marclafountain.com

A much better photo from our recent dinner in Bethesda, MD at...

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 12:01:38 -0400

A much better photo from our recent dinner in Bethesda, MD at Jaleo with my cousin, Amie, her husband, Roger, and their adorable 2-year-old son, Alex. It was great to see them!

No, I’m not an addict. I’m sure plenty of people...

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:11:40 -0400

No, I’m not an addict. I’m sure plenty of people have had this many.

Fitbit told me on July 17th that my order would ship by August...

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 17:48:00 -0400

Fitbit told me on July 17th that my order would ship by August 10th. Now, on August 30th, the website still tells me my order will ship by August 10th.

Are we now talking 2011, Fitbit?

We are having a lovely dinner at Jaleo in Bethesda with my...

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 20:16:16 -0400

We are having a lovely dinner at Jaleo in Bethesda with my cousin Amie, her husband Roger, and their adorable son Alex.

Just got the shipment notification for the new Kindle. Yay!

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 00:54:15 -0400

Just got the shipment notification for the new Kindle. Yay!

Google Chrome

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 22:52:00 -0400

I have been trying to use Google Chrome instead of Safari on my Mac for the past couple of weeks since it feels speedier for many things. But, the user interface can be so painful. I’ll give two examples.

There is no built-in RSS reader or any option to send RSS links to an RSS reader that I can find. Amazingly, Google Chrome doesn’t even let you open an RSS feed in Google Reader as far as I can tell.

Also, if you download a file, the browser window grows larger at the bottom with a file download display. And, if you close the file download display, the browser window remains larger.

Perhaps there are browser plug-ins to address these issues. I haven’t had time to research that.

I love the speed of Google Chrome, but I dearly miss Safari’s interface and may have to switch back.

markcoatney: Thanks, Time! It’s an honor to be mentioned with...

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 12:42:42 -0400

markcoatney:

Thanks, Time! It’s an honor to be mentioned with such great sites.

Lots to smile about today. :-)

david: Colbert finally mentioned Tumblr on air! My life is...

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 11:28:59 -0400

david:

Colbert finally mentioned Tumblr on air! My life is complete.

:-)

The spammers continue to innovate. But, the real issue is...

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:42:03 -0400

The spammers continue to innovate. But, the real issue is whether he’s a Muslim woman.

Simon LaFountain, November 1997 - August 21, 2010 After watching...

Sat, 21 Aug 2010 20:12:00 -0400

Simon LaFountain, November 1997 - August 21, 2010

After watching Simon’s health spiral downward alarmingly over the past few days due to cancer, Francisca and I made the difficult decision to have him put to sleep. It was done at 6 p.m. this evening at a local emergency vet. Simon was very nervous at the vet, but allowed us to hold and pet him for awhile before the procedure. Surprisingly, he went out with barely a growl. I think he was just so very, very tired. I’m glad that he can rest now.

I got Simon when I was 23 years old and living in Columbia, SC. For nearly 13 years, he was the lone daily constant as my life changed has changed in numerous other ways. I miss him more than I can possibly put into words. But, he was suffering and I have no doubt that we’ve done what was best for him.

Simon, you were the best cat and best friend I could have ever asked for. I’ll never forget you, buddy.

Simon Update

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 20:58:41 -0400

Due to Simon’s worsening condition, I took him to an emergency vet this afternoon for an ultrasound. He has a large mass around his stomach and liver that is likely cancerous. It is the cause of his nausea and vomiting. His liver tissue has uneven textures, meaning cancer has spread there or fat has gathered there due to his digestive issues. Some of his lymph nodes are also enflamed and cancer may have spread there.

I’ve cried a lot today and spent time pondering whether to put Simon to sleep. In the end, Francisca convinced me to put Simon on pain and nausea meds to see if he can enjoy life a bit longer. The pain medication is an opiate and a controlled substance. So, Simon may finally become a laid back cat in his final days after 13 years of being tightly wound.

This will likely only buy us a few days or weeks. But, I hope we can make a few more good memories with Simon and have a chance to say a proper goodbye.

Many thanks to those of you who have written and called. This has been a horrible week and your support is deeply appreciated.

Simon

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 21:07:00 -0400

We’ve noticed that Simon has been dropping weight lately and that he has been throwing up even more than our three cats usually do. (Which is a lot. It’s disgusting.) I had chalked it up to old age and changes we’ve made to corn-free cat foods. Really, I think I just didn’t want to see that something is wrong with Simon. He’ll be 13 in November. How time flies.

Yesterday, I finally clued into just how skeletal Simon has become. He now weighs 8.5 pounds, down from a high of 14 pounds three years ago. I feel like a horrible pet owner for not seeing how much weight he was losing. It was just so gradual.

I had to force Simon kicking and growling into a kitty carrier yesterday to get him to the vet. He does not like the vet. It took three people in Kevlar gloves to hold him down while the vet took blood and did an exam. Simon screamed the whole time. It was simply awful.

The blood work came back today. Simon likely has an enflamed liver, an enflamed colon, and/or some type of cancer, such as lymphoma. We now have to do an ultrasound with sedation on Tuesday to find out which one(s). That will mean another fun visit to the vet for both of us.

I’m actually hoping for an enflammed organ, since those are fairly treatable with oral steroids. Many cat cancers cannot be treated very well. So, a cat owner has to judge when a cat is in too much pain to enjoy life and have them put to sleep.

Francisca is encouraging me to be optomistic. And, I really want to be. But, I have a feeling of dread that I cannot shake. Somehow, I know this will not end well.

Lauren Farmer came through Richmond today. She and Johnny Hugel...

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 15:16:14 -0400

Lauren Farmer came through Richmond today. She and Johnny Hugel were nice enough to let me crash their lunch at Kuba Kuba. It was great to catch up with both of them. I’m not really as short as I appear in this photo, I swear!

Just made my first envelope-free ATM deposit. The ATM even...

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:12:23 -0400

Just made my first envelope-free ATM deposit. The ATM even scanned the check for the amount of the deposit. The future is now.

Modest Proposal: Fixed Tenure for the Supreme Court - The Atlantic

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 10:24:05 -0400

Modest Proposal: Fixed Tenure for the Supreme Court - The Atlantic:

Couldn’t agree more. I would do 10 or 12 year terms and not allow reappointment in order keep justices from getting political (or more political) toward the ends of their terms.

Francisca is baking today. She does not like to be photographed...

Sat, 07 Aug 2010 14:45:00 -0400

Francisca is baking today. She does not like to be photographed when she bakes. I was threatened with a beating by rolling pin.

"If you FaceTime two iPhones towards each other you can see infinity, then rainbows, the unicorns...."

Sat, 07 Aug 2010 09:30:35 -0400

“If you FaceTime two iPhones towards each other you can see infinity, then rainbows, the unicorns. Oh, and FaceTime adds five pounds.”

- simsie

Original 'V' star Jane Badler joins Season 2 of ABC reboot - Zap2it

Fri, 06 Aug 2010 19:07:06 -0400

Original 'V' star Jane Badler joins Season 2 of ABC reboot - Zap2it:

I haven’t enjoyed the new V that much. But this news makes season two sound a lot more interesting.

The sky after a big storm is always stunning.

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 20:30:09 -0400

The sky after a big storm is always stunning.

Need New Music

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:07:00 -0400

The last time I was really craving new music, a Question post gave me answers with awesome recommendations. So, I am trying this again.

Who I like now:

Blind Pilot
Bon Iver
The Killers
The Dodos
Duffy
Fanfarlo
Fleet Foxes
Gnarls Barkley
DeVotchKa
Modest Mouse
Muse
Party Animal
Vampire Weekend

Who should I try?