Micah Burkette » General

Bad Speech is Not Free

Micah — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:54:50 +0000

This is the first I have heard of a city that does not allow cursing in public. If you are heard using any curse words, you get a ticket with a hefty fine. I really don’t see how this skirted the free speech and freedom of expression ideals. Just be warned that Virginia Beach takes cursing very personally and does not allow it. At least they have posted warning signs on all the street corners – of course, I had no idea what the signs even meant until I asked someone local.

Cloud Computing

Micah — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 00:43:58 +0000

Does anyone have any experience with the new cloud computing? My boss told me look into it. He thinks it will be cheaper than having a network in our office and that it would make collaboration easier. I don’t think we can give up the office network though. We need it for emails, printing, etc. But I like the idea of accessing the cloud from anywhere – home, a hotel room, a business meeting off site, etc.

He wants to give it a trial run using word processing and spreadsheets. Then, if that works out, we can start trying databases applications and presentations. I think it is kinda cool that someone from that generation is embracing new concepts in computing.

Serious Eagle

Micah — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 21:51:07 +0000

Saw this eagle graphic on a friend’s Facebook wall. I really like the way they stylized the wings to be American flags. I have never seen any art work like this one and have no idea who created it. Wouldn’t it make a great tat?

Maddening Crowds

Micah — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 00:34:07 +0000

What are the top crazy days for shopping at malls? Obviously, Black Friday is the crazy big one. But I suspect that the Saturday before Christmas is a big one, Christmas Eve is a big one, and evidently the two days immediately following Christmas are big ones, too. Now is when everyone is trying to exchange the gifts that they didn’t like or that didn’t fit. And some lucky folks received gift cards and cash as gifts, so they want to get out and take advantage of the sale prices.

Christmas decorations

Micah — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 11:47:16 +0000

We decorated the outside of the house very simply this year with candles in the windows and a wreath on the door. Love that the newer candles go out by themselves when the sun comes up. I remember older ones that you had to run around and unplug every morning and plug back up every evening. I like the way candles look in the windows, a warm greeting to friends and family.

We got the tree up and it looks pretty, the same as every year because it’s artificial. Perhaps one year we will switch up and buy a live tree. We don’t have a lot of decorations but still I think the house looks nice. I will be tired of it and ready to pack everything up right after Christmas.

Christmas Shopping

Micah — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:58:43 +0000

Ah, once again, my yearly quest to buy the perfect Christmas gifts for my loved ones begins. Being a creature of comfort, I tend to buy comfortable, warm gifts including pajamas, slippers, and fleece blankets. I romantically like to imagine winter being all about snuggling on the couch, with a favorite movie and a cup of hot chocolate, while watching the snow flakes gently fall outside. I try hard to forget the harsh reality of scraping ice off my car and the shoveling of the white stuff.

I didn’t mean to get on the subject of winter, this was about Christmas gifts and shopping. I think rather than heading to the mall today, I will catalog shop from my couch, with my cocoa and find those perfect plush bedroom slippers for the folks on my list.

Thanksgiving

Micah — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 22:03:31 +0000

Another wonderful Thanksgiving has almost come and gone and I’m looking forward to a four day weekend. The wife and I made a simple but delicious meal, and have had a relaxing day mostly laying in front of the boob tube. They say turkey makes you sleepy, but I think it is also just the idea of a mid week day off.

The weather has been picture perfect today in Virginia with a beautiful blue sky.

Later on we are packing up a pumpkin pie and taking it to visit some friends for the evening. That will be the perfect ending to this day, with much fun and laughter with our closest friends.

Nascar

Micah — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 11:54:10 +0000

One day when I have more time, I’d like to research and learn why the American public is so fascinated with Nascar. It really appears to me to be cars going around and around on a giant oval track. Yes the cars are attractive, and the uniforms, and the drivers are very charismatic and they are going incredibly fast, but still I fail to see the infatuation.

I guess the fun is picking a driver you want to support, and rooting for him at each race.

I think it would be fun to travel the country to the different race courses and see the races live. I’ll have to add that to my bucket list.

Good Old Friends

Micah — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 00:23:18 +0000

Got a phone call tonight from my first baby sitter who i have known all of my life, and i consider her to be my second mother and a very good friend. She is 94 years old and having some health issues and recently had to surrender her drivers license to the DMV. She is bummed, and misses driving so much. I know i will never live to be 94 , but you have to give credit to someone with that much willpower, spunk and energy for life. It has to be difficult for our senior citizens to give up their freedom, God Bless em!!

An Extra Hour Tonight

Micah — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 18:22:44 +0000

Tonight we all get an extra hour of sleep, thanks to Daylight Savings Time coming to an end. I always set my clocks back when the late night news comes on, as I am rarely up at 2:00 am to do the official change back. I figure that if I’m asleep I don’t know when it’s 2:00 am anway.