RIP

[howeird]

The Logitech Orbiter webcam is one of the most advanced USB-connected cameras ever created. I found mine in a box of lower-priority computer gear from my last move. Plugged it in, installed the software and when I launched it, a message popped up that it did not work on Windows 7. Went online, and lo and behold, they never built software for it after Vista. And they don't sell it anymore.

A shame, because this is the only webcam I can find which has a motorized tilt/swivel base. And it has a superb glass lens by Zeiss.

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Late morning, woke up at about 9, played fetch with Kaan for a little bit, put pants on somewhere around noon, after loading up the dishwasher with the stuff I made fondue with last night, stripping the bed and putting the sheets into the washer.

There was light sour cream in the fridge and Knorr leak soup mix and minced clams on the kitchen counter, so I made clam dip.

Went online and discovered The French Store had microfiber sheet sets for about half the price of the cheapest cotton ones, and several of the reviews pointed out that they were good for avoiding night sweats, which has been a problem for me the past couple of weeks. So, off to Targét, and looked for those after plucking Q-tips and house brand electric toothbrush heads from the shelf. It was quite a long hunt. All the packages look alike for each brand, and there did not seem to be any microfiber. There was Jersey, which might also do the job, but no microfiber. Until I looked at the identical rows of house brand sheets, and there on the rack meant for Queen Easy Care sheet sets, some customer had slipped in a microfiber. But it was white, and online the perk was many bright colors.

There was no one to ask. All the help seemed to be over in the grocery side.

Finally found them on the end display, but there were only the sheet sets, no separates. I use 3 or 4 pillows, you see. So I picked a blue and a yellow, and then snagged an extra pair of pillowcases in those colors in Jersey material.

On the way home I stopped in at Fry's, where they now have two long rows of security cams, but those are all either $300 wireless internet cameras or analog made to attach to a video recorder or a video card. Way in the back of the store is a section of webcams, but few of them were high quality, and only the Microsoft top of the line said it swiveled. But it didn't say it swiveled by software command or digitally - using the digits on your hand. It definitely did not tilt by motor.

Home, had just enough time to flip between CNN, HLN and TWC trying to get an update on the LA killer cop.** Instead I got in-depth coverage of what looked like normal snowfall for early February in NY and Boston. I've seen more snow in Boston on Thanksgiving weekend. There was a view of heavy machinery removing cars from the road, with the excuse that they needed to be removed in order to plow the roads. This was in an upper upper middle class neighborhood on Long Island about 30 miles from where I spent my first 14 years. When I was a kid, the plows would have been out at the first prediction of snow, and the roads would be clear enough to drive on by daylight. The plows would also push about 5 feet of snow up against our driveway, so we did a lot of shoveling to get Dad's car onto the road. But the roads were drivable. So much sensationalism by reporters based in Atlanta who probably only saw snow in some big winter storm there, where plows and snow preparedness is not an issue.

HLN - Headline News - was playing a 1-hour show about a road rage shooting from several years ago. Not at all what I expect to see on a channel created for up to the minute news bytes. The Weather Channel was showing the wide variety of snowfall amounts from the storm, and pointing out that they were normal for this time of year, and the only remarkable thing about the storm is how wide a path it made.

** 
Chris Dorner came to the LA Police Department about 8 years ago as a well-trained Navy Reserve officer (1st Lt.). He had earned the following awards:

National Defense Service Medal
Iraq Campaign Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Sea Service Deployment Medal
Navy Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon
Armed Forces Reserve Medal w/ “M” Device
Rifle Marksman Ribbon
Pistol Expert Medal

He was trained in hand-to-hand combat and counterinsurgency. He had two years of service with aviation units, and 18 months with the Mobile Inshore Undersea Warfare Unit.

When LAPD gave their first news conference the chief said Dorner was especially dangerous because "we trained him". Uh-uh, Mr. Chief - the Navy trained him. You merely put him in an LAPD uniform.

He tried to blow the whistle on racism and corruption in the department, and instead of launching an internal investigation, they charged him with lying about a fellow officer, and fired him. He lost his appeals, and probably is right in blaming a corrupt department.

When he was fired from the LAPD, the Navy also dropped him.

I can understand why he is going for revenge - he has nothing else to lose, and has exhausted all his legal recourses.

The LAPD started the manhunt by saying it will be easy to catch him because it is snowing. Fresh tracks and all that. Today they are saying the snow is making it harder to catch him. They shot up a vehicle which they claimed looked like the one he was driving, but the occupants were Asian women. Dorner is a HUGE black man. Easy mistake to make -- NOT.

I'm predicting he will disappear for a few months, then continue a guerrilla style approach, hitting a victim or two, then disappearing. When he believes he has completed his revenge, he will either find his way to a country which doesn't have an extradition treaty, kill himself or turn himself in somewhere very far from LA.


Drove to MV and had a short coffee klatch with Janice, who did not tell me anything about her NJ Red Cross experience so she could ask me some dating advice.

We were at the Pear Avenue Starbucks, across the street from the Computer History Museum. Parking was maxed out, but I didn't see anything on their web site about the event. They really need to fix that - they don't list non-museum events, which they have a lot of. Google and other businesses hold parties and meetings there.

Stopped in at 7-11 for potato chips, which were on sale.

Home, had chips and my home-made clam dip for dinner. Neither of the cats liked the dip. Very strange.

Janice had given me a DVD to watch, so I did. The Power of Two is the story of Japanese-American twins with cystic fibrosis and how lung transplants saved their lives. And their campaign to encourage people to sign and carry organ donor cards. And to help change the attitudes in Japan, which are strongly against organ donations from brain-dead patients.

It's a fascinating and touching movie, I'm going to see if it's available in PAL format and send it to my cousin in the UK who has MS and has been campaigning for better government policies on disability care and funding for people with "hidden" chronic diseases.

Went to Cheetah's to break a $100 bill, and get a lot of singles, and enjoy the show. I was there for about 90 minutes, and left after the Playboy model danced. She is not your typical PB model - about 5' tall, very petite. But she is beautifully toned, and has a great smile.

Yesterday's shopping included Pepperidge Farms frozen turnovers. I just made 4 cherry and 4 apple. There is one less cherry left.

Plans for tomorrow:
Set shop? I'll only stay if there is painting to be done. Any heavy lifting is out
Put the last 300 Thailand slides back in their folders
Consider what the next batch of slides will be. If they can put B&W negatives onto DVD as positives, I have a bunch of Thailand photos which are actually in order.