There's a lot of cool stuff to learn at this year's Velocity conference. However, a few things stand out as really popular:

• Hyped NoSQL key-value stores with serious caveats
• Waterfall charts for analyzing front end web performance
• Reworking datacenters and networking

Sometimes you don't realize something's a great term until you hear it in context. I'm gonna have to re-use this one.

In software, there's a delicate balance - it lies between putting so little in your releases and too much.

When you do too little, that you spend more time managing your work than working. When you do too much, you may spend more time thinking about your work than working.

We all know thinking and managing are bad. To avoid these things, I follow a few simple rules.

• When you start worrying about the possible unexpected consequences of the release, push it now.
• When you oscillate between placid calm and sheer panic, cut your next roadmap target in half and calm down.

Some time ago I posted to Facebook about the Congo Conflict Minerals Act of 2009 and how I believe it is important and should be passed. I recently remembered doing so and wondered whatever became of it. As usual, govtrack.us has a good deal of information about S. 891: Congo Conflict Minerals Act of 2009, which is currently stalled in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. One of my Senators, Judd Gregg, is on that committee. I just sent Senator Gregg this letter via his online contact form:

If you've got an interest in the welfare of the people of Africa and how your consumer choices may be inadvertently having a serious negative impact on their lives, please do your research and contact your senators and representatives today.

Note, 6/28/2010

I got a response from Senator Gregg some time ago. He expressed his support for the bill. Unfortunately, as of today the bill is still stalled in committee.

It's a squealing sound. Shrill, even. Why would I like such a thing? How could I want to get into the shower in the morning and hear unpleasant sounds?

Because I don't like being frozen or burned, that's why. The pitch of the squeal goes down if either the hot water or cold water is about to drop precipitously. I get about 2 seconds of warning before I experience serious discomfort.

When I moved in I didn't really think "I hope my shower shrills in my ear", but I guess it's what I want, given the situation. Thanks showerhead!

I wrote this almost ten years ago. I don't remember why.

The rain is coming down in little drips, not big splatting ones. It is also making a background noise that sounds like it does when you're in the shower, but quieter. Every once in awhile a big drop falls off the eaves and goes popsplatt on the ground. The leaves on the trees are a little bit droopy. It is pretty quiet, except for the rain and a crow squalling in the background. Inside the house, it is so quiet that you can hear the cat chewing. It is almost dreary but not quite(it isn't dreary because Philip's chewing breaks the silence).

The rain just stopped. The sun is trying to come out, but the clouds are having the victory. I feel like I want to do something that is less boring that doing this math paper. I feel like this because we are going to a model store soon and we can't go if I'm not done. It is muggy and stuffy inside the house, but the air outside is fresh and cool. The leaves are still soaking wet and would drop their water any minute if the wind rustled the leaves. It is the sort of day that things don't happen in much.

A few months ago in late July, I flew to California for OSCON 2009. On the way back, I took a few photos out the window of my plane as the sun was getting close to setting. Today I stitched together some of those photos into a relatively wide angle view of what was a breathtakingly beautiful view. I'm not sure this representation does it justice, but here it is nonetheless:



Fly Sky Full Size Panorama

People who live in New England can very easily just miss how nice fall is here. Bah, the tourists are suckers, it's just leaves, it happens every year. Well, I went camping last weekend and I'm really happy with the photos I took.

A selection:











Monadnock View Full Size Panorama

I'm posting to tell you about a recipe I've been making frequently in the last year. It's a beanless chili of the pretty spicy persuasion based on Turkey meat rather than Beef. I got it from a cookbook PDF that I downloaded once, but I don't remember where that is or precisely what it was called, so I'll just post the recipe itself.

It only takes about 20 minutes preparation time to make this once you've got it down, and about 45 minutes of cooking.

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 5 roma tomatoes, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• pepper to taste
• salt to taste
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 oz hot salsa
• 3 jalapenos
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1 onion, diced (1/2 a medium onion will do if you don't want to use much onion)

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in large sauce pan over high heat add onions sprinkle with a little salt and saute until they become translucent.
2. Add garlic wait 30-45 secs until garlic is light brown but not burnt.
3. Add package of turkey stir until cooked.
4. Add the tomatoes, jalapenos, and salsa.
5. Continue stirring until everything comes to a boil.
6. Add cumin and chili powder, stir.
7. Cover, reduce heat to low, and allow to simmer for 45mins-1hour.

Voila:

The stone Soup Community Center, a neighborhood outreach, education center, and co-op at 4 King Street, has been gutted by a fire of currently unknown origin. Nobody was hurt as far as I know. The building has been evacuated - all 3 floors are involved and several ladders are at the scene. I hope that the people who built and relied on Stone Soup can find what they need to continue.





More photos. My heart goes out to everyone who lost a place to live and an important part of the community today.