livendive

We have this at my work. I imagine it could help out the SETI@home project. ;-) Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

There's a new energy drink on the market. I'm sure it's quite invigorating, but the name suggests you'll need a nap soon after partaking. Website here. (Note, while it's mostly SFW (no pictures worse than Maxim type), I got web-sensed on the "bartenders" link) Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

It's been a rough week The end of the fiscal year I'm ready to drink Family draws near Mom, Dad, Grandma and her "beau" No rest this weekend Wine tasting with them That will hinder skydiving Hmmm...maybe Sunday. "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I think I'd probably take the lump sum, although the Washington lottery is now high enough that I'd consider the payments. At 45 million, I'd be getting right around 1 million per year for 25 years (after taxes). Then again I could take the lump sum of 22.5 million, pay the 9 million or so in taxes, and invest 9-10 million at a decent interest rate, keeping 3.5-4.5 M for paying off my families houses, splurging a little on some fun things, and getting my own business up and running. Hmm...the lump sum is worth considerably more, but the payments would reduce headache and insure against blowing it all. I'm not sure what I'd choose...though I sure would like to consider the decision in something other than theoretical terms. :-) Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Yeah, this was on this week's "Real time with Bill Maher". I think he led in with "it now costs our military an arm and a leg to lose an arm and a leg". Overall it was a pretty funny episode. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

This is my renewal month. I thought it was funny that the letter I got last week encouraging me to renew listed "3rd party liability insurance" as the first benefit of renewal, not mentioning that it will only exist for half of the renewal period. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I hadn't realized that. So a spouse gets 100% of the decedents 401K but anyone else gets only 90%? Yeah, the company I work added some domestic partner benefits. An interesting side-effect is that I can now carry my girlfriend on my health insurance without having to be married, and it doesn't cost me a dime because I'm already paying for a family plan (to cover my daughter). Not a bad deal considering my insurance is substantially better than what her employer offers. Anyhow, I can't think of any good reason why straight couples (married or unmarried) should get any benefits that gay couples don't, whether it be a tax break or survivor benefits from social security. Most of the arguments against allowing gay marriage come from the religious perspective. Why is it ok for my girlfriend and I (both atheists) to marry, but not gays? If/when we take that step, it won't be a commitment "before god", but rather a legal promise to stick with each other that includes financial security benefits. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

"If it bleeds, it leads." Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Kissing, oral sex, intercourse, etc...those are all "cheating" in my book. I wouldn't do them with another woman and I expect my girlfriend wouldn't do them with another man. I can't speak about open relationships, because I've never been in one. I just wouldn't be all that interested in a relationship that wasn't even good enough to justify monogamy. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

So by your definition, there's no such thing as "gay sex". Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Apparently at least one court believes it would infringe on the free speech rights of the direct marketers. What's that saying "Your right to express yourself with your fists ends at my nose" or something like that? Couldn't the same statement be made about it ending at my dinner table, etc? Link here Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

What a bunch of bull. Don't believe a word of it. Arlo dreams of the day she can have a single-wide w/ a dirt porch and 11 little tykes running/crawling around while she chain smokes and knits beer can hats in her housedress. Blues, Dave ABG#1 "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Lew Sanborn, A-1, D-1. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Ally knows the basics (sit, down, stay, heel, off, leave it, on your bed) as well as "Who is it?" (growls/barks, checks the doors/perimeter of our property for anyone approaching) "Give love" (settles down and licks open palm) and "Gimme hug". Gracie doesn't know much of anything, but she barks and follows Ally on "who is it?" rounds. She's got her sister's back.

For starters, imagine two older lifelong couples in the US, one straight, the other gay, all surviving on pensions and social security benefits. Now imagine one member of each couple dies, the straight surviving spouse will subsequently receive social security benefits to help them deal with the financial loss of the death, while the gay surviving partner will have to take the financial hit in addition to the emotional hit. I think that social security benefits ought to be distributed equally, regardless of a lover's gender. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I found out one of the guys I used to talk to every week in a skydiving chatroom had the number two after mine (21415 vs 21417). Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

umm...you didn't include a 1,000-10,000 range (not that I'd fit in there). Blues, Dave D-21415 "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Cool! There is so much out there it's impossible to taste everything, but try to approach it the same way I do beers. Nobody ever had a massively produced Coor's Light or a Budweiser and said "wow, that's awesome, I gotta stock up on some of that", and I doubt that's likely to happen with a K-J, Columbia Crest, or low-end Mondavi or Gallo. That's not to say there aren't occasional good bottles produced by them, it's just not where I look for good stuff. OK, whites... Sparkling Low end - Schramsberg Mirabelle (California, $15) Better - Veuve Clicquot Vintage Reserve (Brut or Rose) (France, $35) Something different - Schramsberg Cremant Demi-Sec (a soft, somewhat sweet sparkler, AWESOME w/ jalapeno jelly & cream cheese on crackers, $35) Riesling Schloss Lieser Estate QbA (German $11) Trimbach (France $13) Woodward Canyon sweet or dry (Washington, $10 sweet, $20 dry) Sauvignon Blanc Duckhorn (California, $20ish bucks, by far my favorite SB) Clos du Bois (California, $10 (good value wine)) Cloudy Bay (New Zealand, $23) Chardonnay Ferrari-Carano Reserve (California, $28) Rombauer (California, $25) Ryan Patrick (Washington, $13) Note I'm not including white burgs cuz I just don't have enough money to play much with those Sweets Kestrel Chardonnay Ice Wine (Washington, $40/split, looks like liquid gold, tastes like strawberry jam, awesome over vanilla ice cream) Tualatin Estates Semi-Sparkling Muscat (Oregon, $15, a real "panty dropper" & good hot tub wine) Santo Stefano Moscato D'Asti (Italy, $14/split, similar to the Tualatin muscat, but creamier and not so sweet) Other Caymus "Conundrum" (California, $22) Beaucastel Chateneuf-du-Pape Blanc (France, $45, a great white Rhone blend) Pinot noir Panther Creek, any single vineyard (Oregon, $40ish) Ken Wright, any single vineyard (Oregon, $45ish) Domaine Drouhin (Oregon, $40) Note I'm not including burgs...too expensive and difficult to find for me to drink enough to form strong opinions. Anyhow, the last few vintages in Oregon have been outstanding Syrah/Shiraz Woodward Canyon (Washington, $40) Apex (Washington, $35) Barnard Griffin (Washington, $30) Can ya tell I like what Washington's doing with syrah? :-) Merlot Andrew Will (Washington, $38) Duckhorn (California, $28) Petrus (France, $300-$1800...ok I had to throw it in there :-)) Cabernet Sauvignon Woodward Canyon Old Vines (Washington, $50) Mount Veeder (California, $40) Liberty School (California, $14) Bordeaux style blends Estancia Meritage (California, $28) Hedges Red Mountain Reserve (Washington, $35) reasonably priced 2nd growth Bordeaux, such as Gruaud-Larose, Leoville Barton, Leoville Las Cases, Lynch-Bages, Pichon-Lalande, etc Other red blends Ferrari-Carano "Sienna" (California, $30, blend of Cab.Sauv., Sangiovese, and Malbec) Rosenblum Vintner's Cuvee (NV) (California, like $15) Bonny Doon "Big House Red" (California, $12) Marietta Old Vine Red (NV) (California, around $15) A few off of this list ought to keep your mouth happy for awhile. :-) Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

ahh, here's angel (apparently there's a 5 attachment limit)? "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

One of our birds died a couple months ago, leaving us with only 7 pets, as follows da_girls1 and da_girls2, our boxer (Ally) and bulldog (Gracie) szosa_the_cat, our resident hellion Szosa lilli_the_cat, our "special needs" cat, I don't know how much longer she is for this world despite only being a couple years old. Her quality of life just isn't that good. mario_and_maggio, our indoor rabbits angel, our remaining cockatiel Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

As far as I know, the only minimum age limit for skydiving in the US is in Nevada, where USPA's BSRs have been referenced as law. Local laws DO dictate when one can legally sign a waiver of liability, but that is not the same thing as an age limit for skydiving. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

You need to be a little more specific.

Ditto on Rosenblum zins. Their "Vintner's Cuvee" is a consistently good bargain, and their single vineyards are often very good. Somewhat disagree on Greg Norman, the bottles I've had (a few chards, and I think a merlot) were just ok. Absolutely agree on white zins ("Friends don't let friends drink white zin"). Absolutely disagree on shiraz/syrah. I might say that about people who drink cab franc as an unblended varietal (actually I'd say that it's a good transition wine for white wine drinkers just starting to play with reds), but I've had and have cellared some syrahs that would stand up to and even overpower most mainstream cabs. More fruit, more tannins, better aging potential, with a little leather and plenty of oak. Yum. :-) Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

My cubicle? Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I don't plan to get hit in the head, but I still wear a hard helmet. So how many people (knowing you wear a hard helmet & CYPRES) go out of their way to tell you to make sure you don't get hit in the head? Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)