Gracie and I have moved up to Leesburg. Contact me if you need the new address.

I have the same 703.942 phone number as before, but if you want another simple way to call me, try that “Call Me” widget on the left. Click on it and enter your name and phone number. Google Voice will call you and me and connect us. FWIW, Google Voice is a good service. If you want an invite, let me know. I have a few invites left.

Finally, speaking of “things on the left,” please notice the “Support” section. There’s a Google link there. If you use this one (it’s tied to my Google Associates account) to make a purchase, I’ll get a small cut of the sale. Using this link would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

The Giant Pool of Money

Another Frightening Show About the Economy

I love This American Life.

The two reporters who did these episodes are doing a new podcast called Planet Money. Give it a listen.

We slowly made our way through traffic and I tried to get into a good state of mind for riding. I’m always nervous before my first few rides of the year, but I was eager to ride. When we got there, Lis and G headed straight for the nearby playground. I went around to the back of the truck, got my bike down, then started putting on my shoes. Left foot… front strap… done… middle strap… done… top strap… snap! Crap! What the heck? The clip that holds the strap to the other side of the shoe broke. Hmmm… Well, the other two straps are holding pretty well. I guess I can just fold the strap back and left it flap loose.

OK…. Next…. Helmet…. Helmet? Awwww, crap. Forgot the helmet.

Well, game over. I can ride with a broken shoe, but not without a helmet. Turns out I also forgot my gloves and a wipe-down towel for after the ride.

G played for a few more minutes at the playground, then we wandered around “exploring” for a while, then headed home.

Maybe I can get my first ride in sometime soon. Just gotta see about getting some new shoes first.

Technorati Tags: biking, mountain biking

It’s nice to know that an amount that means so relatively little to me can make a big difference to someone else.

It also helps that the first entrepreneur they talked with was named Grace.

So, if you’ve got it (and if you’re reading this, you probably do), check out sites like Kiva or some other Internet-based microfinance site and see what you can do to help make a difference in somebody’s life. (And, yes, in this case, I am the boss of you.)

Technorati Tags: frontline/world, kiva, loans, microfinance, tivo

Do you A) lie in bed, trying to convince yourself that you can fall back asleep, despite the pressure or do you B) get up, shocking your system a bit with the cold, make a quite a bit of noise, possibly waking the other members of your family, relieve the pressure, then try to get back to sleep for those precious few minutes left in your night?

Myself? I chose B. I’ve tried A so many time that I’ve learned that I can never convince my bladder to shut up and that it’s not that too bad. It just keeps whining and whining until I finally get up and go after wasting half the time I have left to sleep.

What I really should do is just get up, turn off the alarm, and start my day an hour earlier than planned, but those last, dear minutes are too enticing to ignore and just toss away.

Let’s see Wolf Blitzer discuss that.

Technorati Tags: bathroom, decisions, bed, sleep, The Situation Room, weird, Wolf Blitzer

Technorati Tags: grease stains, clothing