Spanky's Place

12/06/2009

The best thing about Friday, June 12, 2009

Tonight's changeover from analog to digital television marks the end of an age.

This age is gone, and with it our worries of being continually harassed with a barrage of advertisements, news stories, placards, flyers, and all manner of irritants foisted upon us by an army of well-meaning idiots.

I remember many years ago when it all began with a minor news story about digital television. That moment marked the beginning of an ocean of torment pounding against the rocks of our intellect, slowly eroding our will to think for ourselves. I remember screaming vainly into the night earlier this year when I heard that our newly elected president had ordered that the date of changeover be pushed back to June. The anguish I felt when I realized I would be forced to endure another five months of torture cannot be measured.

Thankfully, it all comes to an end tonight. Never again will I, nor any other, be forced to hear yet another damnable story about how the digital changeover is coming, and what we need to do to prepare for it. Never again will I have to endure a PSA telling me how to get a coupon from the government giving me a discount on the purchase of a digital-to-analog converter. Never again will I have my soul crushed upon learning that some percentage of Americans are too fucking stupid to realize that this is the 21st century, and it is time to replace the 20 year old rabbit ear TV with something a bit more modern.

Free at last, free at last!

-Devin

Posted by Devin Olson At 16:04:33 Location BARTing from Walnut Creek to Embarcadero | Permalink | Comments (6)

11/06/2009

27 Minutes

Category Personal Health Travel Technology News and Events

A week ago today I took what seemed the longest walk of my life.

It took 27 minutes to walk from my customer's office building to the hospital. It is only 1.2 miles, but if you've ever walked up Pine from Front to Hyde, you know it is quite a hike.

Ok, let me back up a minute and start again.

Last Thursday I was at a customer site in San Francisco, CA. Over the last 10 years I've visited the city enough times to become very familiar with it. San Francisco is quite possibly my very favorite town to visit, but it has been a few years since I've been here.

For the last several weeks I've been start-stalling (starting, then stalling out, then starting again, then stalling out, etc) a diet and exercise program. I'm a fat (275 - 285 lbs), out of shape, nearly 45 year old male with a family history of coronary disease. I've had my own episode in the past; so I am well aware of how important it is to drop the weight and get back in shape.

I arrived in San Francisco last Monday, and hadn't been feeling well (short of breath, very tired) the entire week. When Thursday dawned I decided it was time to start my exercise program again. I hit the treadmill in the hotel first thing in the morning, ate a healthy (oatmeal & fruit) breakfast, and felt better than I had in a while as Tim and I strolled to our customer's offices. However, around 10:30am I started feeling unwell. The tiredness and shortness of breath returned. Just before 2:00pm, the chest pain hit.

The pain hit me so hard it took my breath away. A crushing, heavy, lead-filled knot of pain filled my chest, and ran straight through to my back, underneath my shoulder blade. I didn't have the "radiating pain down the left arm" you hear about, but it was tingling and kind of numb. The alarm bells inside my head started ringing like crazy. It was time to seek medical attention.

Now before you get on my case and tell me I should have called 911, you need to understand a few things. The office I was at is in a very large, very congested city. Had I called 911, it would have been at least 5 - 10 minutes before help arrived. They would have had to evaluate my condition (another 5 minutes), get me downstairs to an ambulance (5 more minutes), and then transport me, through heavy traffic, to the hospital (at least 5 - 10 minutes). That's 20 - 30 minutes (go ahead, do the math yourself) to get to the ER, at an absolute minimum. I'm very familiar with the Financial District; I knew exactly where the hospital was and how to get there. So I figured my chances were much better by walking. Plus, unless you are spurting blood, I believe it is poor form to call paramedics into your customer's office.