A utility company's pictures of huricane destruction

Take a look at these

If you're wondering why you don't have power down there in TX, this might be why. (But then you wouldn't see this blog then would you.)

My current wanderings

In the beginning, god created the heavens and the earth. Before a child is born, a parent prepares it's room.

I've been reflecting on a few things, and please forgive me if I use this Blog as a forum to express my thoughts. (Programming information will continue later.)

I thought of the creative 6 days in relation to a parent preparing a room, and getting everything in ready for a child who is about to come into the world. I thought about how mankind, unscarred and innocent, was placed as a child in a 'new room' with all they need to exist and grow.

A parent will give their child toys, and objects, to learn about and use as they grow and develop. This parent knows, that a child may damage the toys, the room, or in other ways leave things in disorder. While these are not the correct actions, the parent allows them. They can be undone.
(Side story, I knew a family who had children, and a go-kart. This kart was used all over the lawn, which was of course ruined. When asked if it was all right that the lawn had been destroyed they replied, 'Grass can grow back, children can't.')

Is it wrong for the parent to give the child things that may be misused? Is the parent laying a trap to catch the child up? No! Discipline is not simply punishment, but it is guidance. Guidance is necessary to come to maturity.

Throughout their lives, children exert that they are 'old enough'. They feel that they have reached some level of maturity. A good parent knows that this is not so, and at times corrects the child. However, as the child grows, there will be times when the parent sees it appropriate to allow his child to experience life, and therefore test for themselves their maturity. There will even be times when this perception of maturity is founded, glimmers of advancement shimmering through. But this comes as more is allowed, through slow and careful allowances of freedom.

Mankind is going through such an allowance. They are experiencing all that is involved in life, in the hopes they will appreciate more what their parent is able to provide. How many of us look back on our youth, and realize how unappreciative we have been of our parents, how much they have done for us that, at the time, we overlooked. (At one point man was on a fast track to technical advancement, but was guided away, as a child would be guided away from power tools or appliances when they were to young to safely use them.)

The teenage years are a most tumultuous time. They are a time when even more, the child learns lessons on their own, even with marked results. In the past god has noticeably stepped in, guiding this young child of mankind. But man has grown. They have learned about themselves, their environment or 'room'. They have even begun to expand their comfort zone, as all children tend to do. But they are also trying to exert their own supposed maturity. And, as many children do, they wish to do it on their own.

The failings of attempts of the past have been overcome. The child has learned from their failed attempts to be 'adults', and try again, thinking that ‘now they know it all’. But many an adult will testify that there is still much to learn in the teenage years. Some even regret pulling away from the security of their parent’s watchful eye. And yet lessons must be learned, either by listening or by experience.

A time comes when the child needs to lose the last vestiges of childhood, those traits and tendencies that no longer serve them. They have to come to realize that the many things they were told and warned against are true, despite how they have tried to prove to the false.

Mankind is in their teenage years. They have been given the freedom to test their world, and to learn and grow. Their loving parent has watched, and allowed no harm that cannot be undone. But those last shreds of childhood WILL have to be left behind. And the relationship between the child and parent will be brought to a new level. And appreciation on the child’s part, and pride on the parent’s part, will be all that's left. And yet, the child will always be learning, learning from their loving father.

Am I a Wally?

Why do I feel like this?

Ewww....

http://www.cnn.com/medpage/PublicHealthPolicy/PublicHealth/tb/1778
This article says that many men do not wash their hands when leaving a public bathroom. I find this believable, especially in restaurants. I usually wash before I eat, just to be safe. But I see men leaving after doing, well, you know, and never touching water, let alone soap. They eat with those hands?

Thoughts on life and stuff...

I am convinced that every female Hollywood star has a mirror at home. Not just any mirror, but a special mirror, in front of which, every night, they utter the words, 'Who is the fairest in all the world?'

Also, I'm currently reading 'A Tale of Two Cities'. This is a classic that somehow slipped through my net. I've noticed the horrendous things that happened way back when, and realized something. Revolutions and Civil Wars.
It's only really a Revolution if the new guys win, otherwise it's a Civil War. And these wars take place to change things, replace the government. But you know what? Even when the government changes, the country's past sticks with it. France's poor past is still a part of it's image, no matter what it's people did to try to right the wrongs.

Entering the world of Java

We recently hired somebody w/ a little bit of Java experience. We're hoping he can convert my cropping control to something more users will have access to. (Sorry, but we just can't shake some of these photographers and artsy people out of their Macs.)

When I see things like this:
public void paint(Graphics g) {
g.drawImage(img, 0, 0, imgWidth, imgHeight, this);
}

I think to myself, hmm... that looks familiar.