A Connecticut Yankee Out West

Last Day? (D12K11)

Pete and I headed to Kirkwood on Sunday to enjoy some sunny California spring skiing as the mountain prepares to close this coming weekend.  Neither of us was anywhere near as excited as we normally are to get on the mountain, but we were looking forward to a nice relaxing sunny day with soft snow.  It is interesting to make the drive when there is a lot less snow around.  It seems just a little wrong to see the bottom of the snow stakes on the sides of the road when you are used to *maybe* seeing just a bit of the tops.

Mother Nature had different plans though.  Most of the day was quite cloudy and overcast, with variable precipitation all day and very, very flat light.  The snow took longer to soften then expected as a result, so it was quite reminiscent of an East Coast ski day.  It was a much better day for skiing then snowboarding, but I'm not testing the new knee that much until next season.  Being on the mountain was still way better then most other things I could have been doing, but this was probably my worst snowboarding experience in California to date.  I continue to feel very spoiled when it comes to Tahoe experiences as a result.

It is sad the mountain is closing, there is still plenty of snow left, and from the looks of it, they're due for more snow this week.  They just don't have the attendance now though, everyone has moved on to summer activities, myself included I guess.  I'd probably go again this weekend, but I twisted my knee and ankle well enough that I'm still limping a bit and I'm looking at sailing this weekend.  So, I suspect this was it until next season, unless I attempt something back country or take some vacation and head to the antipode.  What a great season, I hope '05 - '06 comes out similarly.  I'll get back on skis some then too.

Skipper Johnco

I completed "Basic Cruising" a week+ back and can now skipper up to a 34' sailboat (like the one shown here).  I need to charter some boats a few times before I move on to the next level, "Bareboat Cruising".  I'm not sure how much further I will go after that, as there is another two levels of certifications that can get you to a point where you are well prepared for full on ocean passages like San Francisco to Hawaii (that trip is about 2 weeks at sea, one way).  Bareboat would let me go to various locations and rent a sailboat for days at a time without having to also hire a crew or captain (hence the "bare boat" term).  This seems like a great way to vacation.  I'm already looking at two September weeks in Tahiti with some friends who have the bareboat experience well in hand already.

So, if anyone wants to tour the San Francisco Bay by sailboat, I can hook you up!  I think it is a great way to experience the area, day and night.  Charter cost will generally run somewhere between $50 - $120 a person, depending on boat, day, and # of people.

The instructors I've worked with so far have been very good, and the rental fleet (mostly Hunters) seems very well maintained.  Club Nautique is where I went, based on recommendations from others.

"Deputy" JohnCo

I need to dispel the rumor floating around that I want to personally trash Scott "Spam King" Richter's house if he is ever found guilty and, by some magical twist of fate, have his reportedly large, plush domicile seized by the government and handed over as part of payment.  For the record, were this fantasy world to come true, and his casa became our casa, I have no interest in damaging the place.  Such an act would reduce the home's value and I only want to work for the best interests of the company and the email world.

I *would* however, not be adverse to hanging out in the place for a few days with several hundred of my close employees, various fellow spam fighters, and some industry media (supermodels and famous people welcome at anytime, of course).  I'd probably even be willing to do this all on personal time and expense, although I think that would hurt the symbolism of the event: "Mess with our customers and we'll sue you out of house and home" or some such.  We could create a PSA with footage from various spammer ex-homes.  Here we are at Richter's ex-place, enjoying the jacuzzi, here we are in Mrs. "Great new Stock's" ex-kitchen making margaritas, here we are in Mr. "All Natural Viagra's" ex-living room playing twister.  I'm thinking of dozens of anti-spam slogans you could attach to such images.  I bet you could too!

I'm sure the law doesn't work that way anyway, but a man can dream, can't he?

Psst, people should stop spamming (and phishing), pass it on.

The jig is up, spammers!  You're surrounded!  Come out with your hands up and perhaps even flashing that deed to your house!  This dude over at ZDNet has blogged your end by deputizaing everyone who reads his post.

Gates proves real resolve in bringing spammers to justice by ZDNet's David Berlind (last paragraph contains our deputization, be still my beating heart).

All jokes aside, the more publicity Microsoft's determination and litigation gets, the better, IMHO, so please do pass it on.

For some reason, this seems like a good time to point out the obvious; that the opinions expressed here (and in all my posts) do not represent my employer's in any way, and are strictly my own.  The rest of such a disclaimer reads something along the lines of:  "The posts on this weblog are provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confer no rights."  Got it?  Good.