This Week's Fresh Ubuntu – It's All My Fault

Man, I don’t know if I cut out caffeine from my diet or what, but this week’s Fresh Ubuntu recording session was pathetic. I was totally off my game. Let’s hope that Harlem’s miracle editing can fix things up. Go Harlem! It’s all you!

Sugar-free for a Month. Sick for Half a Month

30 days ago (wow, time flies) I stopped adding sugar to my beverages. Within a couple of days I noticed how sweet everything I usually drank was. So, armed with this newfound knowledge, I started to buy no-sugar-added drinks or “lightly sweetened” teas. To my surprise, they were quite palatable!
So now I am thinking I want to add a little sweetness back into my drinks, but intelligently, so as to avoid turning everything I drink into some calorie-laden syrup.

Fresh Ubuntu's Newest Co-Host (that would be me)

I just wrapped up recording my first appearance as co-host of the Fresh Ubuntu podcast. Check it out!
Harlem Quijano, the host and creator of the podcast, and I have been corresponding for over a year, since his first episode, and when he decided it was time for a change, he chose to bring me on board to liven things up. Hopefully I can do that without turning off any of our listeners. 😉

Bowflex SelectTech Customer Service – Kind of Lacking

Three weeks ago I ordered myself a set of Bowflex SelectTech dumbells. Because our house is relatively small and space is lacking, I liked the compact form factor that these things boast.
When I placed the order via their web site, I received a “print this page for your records” screen. This page contained my order info, except it contained no order number. The page also said that I would receive a copy of my order via email. That never happened.
Of course, when I called after two weeks to find out the status of my order, the first thing they asked for was my order number, which they wanted me to enter, followed by the # key. Not having one, I just pressed #. The automated response said “You entered an order number of… zero.” Not being able to process that, I got kicked over to a human, who informed me that I would receive an email when my order shipped.
A few days later, I received the stand for my dumbells and the bench. But no dumbells. I called them again today, three weeks after ordering, and they told me my dumbells should be here on the 6th. I should think if there was going to be such a delay that I would have had some form of contact from these folks, but I didn’t. Disappointing.

Social Networking Update

So, in the span of a few weeks, I’ve gone from having nearly no social networking experience to having accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, Del.icio.us, and Flickr. Aside from always thinking I’m supposed to spell Twitter with no ‘e’, the hardest parts have been deciding where to post things, and how to aggregate all this stuff, as well as my blog. I suppose, if I sign up for a couple more services, then I can follow this article and post all of my Twitters and Jaikus and Pownces at the same time. I could even include my Tumbleblogs from Tumblr, except that I don’t have a Tumblr account. Not yet anyway. I’ll probably have one by tomorrow. Of course, they would all wind up in my Facebook profile, but then I’d have three or for duplicate entries for everything I did. Talk about information overload.
Right now, I can display my Twitter and Jaiku posts in my Facebook profile, but the only Pownce application I can find for Facebook is currently broken.
I’ve been thinking about turning my personal blog (or at least, the articles I mark as “Personal”) into entries on my Facebook profile. That would let me share all of the gory, personal details that nobody wants to read with only my closest friends! (Seriously, who wants to read all these self-important personal updates? Do you really care what kind of toothpaste I’m using?)

Soon I Will Be Invincible – Great Book

After finishing it, I highly recommend the book. The parallels between Grossman’s characters and DC Universe mainstays are obvious, but the differences are refreshing and humorous. The split perspectives, half of the story told by the villain, the other half by a hero, also adds an interesting element. If you like superheroes, you’ll like this book.