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Me: Frank Lynch
These are my mundane daily ramblings.
For something
less spontaneous, I maintain The
Samuel Johnson Sound Bite Page (over 1,700 Johnson quotes),
with a weekly essay springing from
one of Johnson's quotations.
Email:
frank
dot
lynch2
at
verizon
dot
net
2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002
2003:
Dec | Nov | Oct | Sep | Aug | July | June | May | April | Mar | Feb | Jan2002:
Dec | Nov
December, 2003
| 24 | Putting the birth of Jesus into the context of a long hopeful people; Andrew Sullivan vs. The New York Times, again; a death in the Royal Family. |
| 22 | More on MSNBC.com's abuse of Opera users; Amazon's most consistent book reviewer? |
| 21 | Crying buckets over "In America;" more complaints about the New York Times without any examples of who is better. |
| 19 | "The Prisoner" goes to Hollywood; blogger vanity; the death of John Cunningham. |
| 17 | The chair of the government's commission on 9/11 thinks it was preventable; an entire army runs instead of fighting; John Glenn concurs with Howard Dean, we're no safer with Saddam Hussein captured; the importance of strategically-placed shopping baskets. |
| 16 | While the press fills the void chasing down stray Saddam Hussein items, no one looks back at all the stories that were wrong. |
| 15 | A revamped home page for MSNBC.com? Plus, which way does the water drain at the equator? |
| 14 | No question, capturing Saddam Hussein is a good thing. |
| 13 | Auction of "surprise" Van Gogh painting delayed. |
| 11 | Is the NY Times failing in its coverage of the protests in Baghdad? Protests in Baghdad as multi-flavored as pre-war protests here in the US and abroad; Great flea market purchase: a Van Gogh; the Bush administration experiences the downsides of wanting to have it both ways; White House Press Briefings can be so funny! |
| 9 | Iraq as a distraction in the war on terror. |
| 8 | Feeling and thinking; Gore about to endorse Dean may limit voters' opportunities; what should we be reading instead of the New York Times? |
| 7 | Poll results indicate that the Fla. Legislature and Governor were out of touch with state values re Terry Schiavo. |
| 6 | Google bomb: "miserable failure;" Christmas tree tales; the creator of "Flat Stanley" has died. |
| 5 | Happy St. Nick's Day! |
| 4 | When is a story a non-story? Hunting Bush. |
| 3 | Is Bush hatred really due to a failure of liberalism's basic tenets? |
| 1 | Conventioneers on a cruise ship; major combat operations; economic diversity through small towns and small merchants. |
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November, 2003
| 29 | Bush's Thanksgiving visit to Baghdad. |
| 28 | Cook's vanity and Thanksgiving. |
| 23 | InstaPundit published my email! Whoah!; Ellington's Blanton- Webster band, remastered; a fishy review at amazon (shocking!) |
| 21 | Botox radio ad; the value of libraries. |
| 20 | Sympathy for the hawks, who continue their roller coaster ride. |
| 19 | Abandoning Neal Stephenson's "Quicksilver;" more on the Feith memo; candidates should refocus on our pitiful Homeland Security, not Gay marriage rights. |
| 18 | The Weekly Standard article on Douglas Feith's memo. |
| 16 | Taking advantage of Prospect Park; Manhattan shopping trip; the hassles of setting up a PayPal account; more on Senator Bill Frist's polling operations. |
| 15 | Red states were more generous, but only slightly. |
| 14 | Are Red (Bush) states really more generous than Blue (Gore) states? |
| 13 | Take your kid to the zoo this weekend; picture of a meerkat; Atrios covers the shady online poll of Senator Bill Frist; a discussion surrounding the CBS miniseries on the Reagans. |
| 10 | The Knights of Nee, applied to Prince Charles; blogs that go stale; the importance of using the same units when trying to make a point on Sarah McLachlan. |
| 2 | Children's amazement over a sword through the head; new speakers. |
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October, 2003
| 31 | Happy Hallowe'en! |
| 29 | Drawn out school meeting; dual format Dylan CDs. |
| 27 | Halloween costumes; Neal Stephenson's "Quicksilver;" resolve in Iraq; Oliver North's gullibility was repeated in US confidence in Ahmed Chalabi. |
| 24 | Still more on the "imminent threat." |
| 21 | A welcome to visitors from an inbound link; Florida's efforts to circumvent judicial decisions on a comatose woman; new content on the site. |
| 15 | Using the word "imminent" vs. using the idea. |
| 12 | A more proper, graphic representation of the California voting. |
| 9 | The Louis Armstrong House Museum is about to open; US can't find shoulder-launched missiles from Saddam Hussein's armory; US government pays a contractor millions, rather than just recycling and getting money. |
| 8 | Reactions to the California recall. |
| 2 | A focus group I really didn't want to attend; Republican outrage? where?; thoughts on The West Wing. |
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September, 2003
| 26 | Watched Holes; maneuvers in the Zacarias Moussaoui case. |
| 22 | Merdwin the Mediocre at Fort Tryon Park's Medieval Festival; implications of tuning differences between baritone ukuleles and standard (soprano) ukuleles. |
| 20 | I avoided talking like a pirate, and sent off a book proposal instead; Bush questioning the advice he gets? |
| 16 | CDs too artsy to say whose they are; further Dick Cheney thoughts. |
| 15 | Tim Russert has a prime opportunity in re-interviewing VP Cheney, and blows it. Horrendously. |
| 7 | The sequence of events leading to a Presidential address; new page on Samuel Johnson's politics; America still slow to disconnect Saddam Hussein from September 11. |
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August, 2003
| 31 | Head lice; a trip to old neighborhood (Astoria); Ansel Adams. |
| 29 | Prosecutors trying to prevent further DNA testing for convicts; WW II images and Iraq. |
| 27 | Worst case scenario for the carbs in my licorice; Mars; almost time for school. |
| 25 | Phrasing in a Newsweek article; current reading list; how many carbs in my licorice? |
| 24 | Weight loss; dealing with the entropy in the office; reactions to "Life With Mikey"; chill day. |
| 17 | Bush aims for less dependence on foreign oil: whaddaya think he means? also, nothing significant to say about the blackout. |
| 10 | The arrival of the phrase, "Blogging will be sporadic;" a new machine will be a big improvement, and take care of a demon on my old one; the story of this demon. |
| 1 | PCBs in farmed salmon; Poindexter wasn't the only one with an idea of how to make money on terrorism. |
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July, 2003
| 27 | The POTUS defaced the a flag! Plus, what if the Press Corps didn't show up for the briefings? |
| 24 | A stranger on 42nd Street; overcoming the ineptitude of the street cops and directory assistance, with a little help from another stranger. |
| 21 | And the jury decided... |
| 15 | Jury duty; one of my favorite movies, Funny Bones. |
| 14 | Condoleeza Rice measures importance by word count. |
| 10 | Brief report on our trip to the Netherlands and Belgium (wedding, Leiden, the Ardennes, and Kwak beer glasses) |
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June, 2003
| 26 | Death in the fish tank; terror alert color manipulation? |
| 24 | Vague headline at the New York Times; summer doldrums; the rain has stopped; a demon in my PC. Plus: fraudulent email claiming to be from PayPal. |
| 21 | The Kid Unit turns 10; Ray Davies shares the birthday, and Harry Potter. |
| 18 | Superman II and September 11; Jonah Goldberg vs Eric Alterman, and me vs. Jonah Goldberg |
| 17 | Andrew Sullivan may not be getting it about blog triumphalism; got my mother in law on the "do not call" registry; summer plans for the Kid Unit. |
| 13 | A tank full of fish named after the Atlanta Braves. |
| 11 | The market research industry is imploding; was my effort in building in quotation links wasted? School ends for the Kid Unit. |
| 6 | Reactions to Howell Raines' resignation at the New York Times show, yet again, a vindictive side to America. |
| 5 | Who is "americandigest.org"? |
| 4 | Sammy Sosa's corked bat; Shostakovich string quartets on a cold day; unseasonably wet and cold for June; MSNBC.com reports there were options to save the Columbia astronauts; more lies from the Bush administration. |
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May, 2003
| 31 | Selling the Iraqi invasion to the American public, and consumer behavior research: would it have been such a problem to give greater emphasis to other non-WMD issues? |
| 30 | The Bush record? The Administration of Lies. |
| 27 | Could "Let it Be" ever be impromptu when Sir Paul plays it? The In-Laws was better than I expected, but not what we wanted to see; OK, the weather stinks. |
| 25 | Memorial Day Weekend weather blues; attempts to force summer; In-Laws remake. |
| 21 | I feel more secure about terrorists, don't you? Wedding anniversary; airline deregulation = you can't get there from here. |
| 17 | Kid Unit at the funeral; The Bourne Identity's Chris Cooper resembled Tom DeLay; Tom DeLay's shenanigans, and the Texas re-districting battle. |
| 12 | More America in baseball than other sports, as reflected by integration strife and success. |
| 7 | The ridiculousness of the aircraft carrier photo-op; Bill Bennett's flaws call for compassion from all; unsuccessful bidding for the sheet music for a Fleetwood Mac album; Kid Unit on stage. |
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April, 2003
| 30 | Why finding WMDs in Iraq mattered before as well as now; we got our book; web site fan mail; joy through rhubarb pies; developing a research scale around the Kid Unit's tummy ache. |
| 23 | Easter menu; NYC MTA cried wolf on need for fare increase; manatees' new peril is the State of Florida itself; will Bush be knocked off Alabama's ballot? plus, something for those who have everything, including lots of cash. |
| 22 | Now is the time for all good men to come to aid of their country: Republican convention timing, planned to coincide with the anniversary of September 11, should fill everyone with outrage. |
| 16 | Highlights of a trip to Florida; saw Jim Palmer; drift fishing in Riviera Beach. |
| 9 | Hectic week; lessons from writing; Monday's snow has disappeared; Baghdad joy, but remember we're there because of WMD. |
| 4 | Great start to the day, with a demonstration at the Kid Unit's school; does Iraq have weapons or not?; an ISP refuses to work with Al Jazeera, making it more difficult to hear their viewpoint; the right bombards a liberal blogger who dares to question the accepted view. |
| 2 | Questions about summer trip plans; intolerance in my home town, and elsewhere in the US; shenanigans from visitors to my web site. |
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March, 2003
| 26 | Klaatu makes you call old friends; we lose Daniel Patrick Moynihan; a hand-held recorder for our thoughts. |
| 24 | Hoping for the best; humane treatment for POWs, and why; Patriotic expressions, God help America; renting cars; war music. |
| 20 | A wet keyboard yields odd typing; prices for keyboards have come way down; roller coaster weather; war's start and troop support; White House terminology. |
| 14 | We were wrong, terribly wrong: how will we feel about our Iraqi intervention in years to come? |
| 13 | Happy about Elizabeth Smart; the Kröller-Müller Museum; a vegetarian experiment with the Kid Unit goes nowhere; lots of sodium yesterday; more snow today. |
| 9 | Book progress; birthday parties; cooking with pumpkin; Egre? egre?; Will France help rebuff Iraq's latest ridiculousness? |
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February, 2003
| 28 | The In-Laws on DVD; CPR saves lives; Charles Krauthammer misplaces the ridiculousness at the UN; no snow record this February; Bush hires another economist who disagrees with him; I'm mentioned in another book. |
| 26 | Anticlimactic final hug for Rob Lowe on The West Wing; libeskind wins the World Trade Center redevelopment competition; Glenn Hubbard now resigns from the White House; Age 46 |
| 24 | Eric Alterman's "What Liberal Media?"; Bushies lie about the revenue implications of their tax plan, why should we listen to them about Iraq?; explaining the Grammys to the Kid Unit. |
| 20 | Surviving the week break from school with the Kid Unit; on-sight reference books I used today in writing the book; Tom Tomorrow's Internet plight. |
| 18 | It ain't the snow, it's the drifts; what music should they play when you come up to bat?; bad computer programming slows down an emergency response. |
| 17 | Snow pictures infect the weblogs of the North Eastern United States; Kid Unit spends day watching Jeff Corwin; I didn't march on Saturday. |
| 14 | Helen McGuffie and "Samuel Johnson in the British Press, 1749- 1784" arrives via an inter-library loan; need to focus. |
| 11 | Organized crime confronts Steven Seagal; NYC bans an antiwar parade; "rules" for bloggers? |
| 10 | Early afternoon snow report; Kid Unit home sick from school; Odd behavior from WordPerfect today. |
| 9 | No skiing today; the tale of the neighbor who doesn't return what's been borrowed; Karel Capek's "Letters From England". |
| 4 | Is there a penguin in a Vincent Van Gogh painting?; World Trade Center design decisions; the dinner I served my wife for her birthday. |
| 2 | The Columbia tragedy and how the Information Age enables Texas residents to send NASA digital images of debris; New way of cooking oatmeal; capsizes and turnovers; subway fare increases. |
| Back to Top |
January, 2003
| 30 | Cooking injury sustained while making a vegetarian Shepherd's Pie; problems with the State of the Union address. |
| 25 | Frivolity in the New York Times; sick house. |
| 23 | Still cold cold cold; a $30,000 Polaroid camera; Senate representation vs. the population; an inconsistency from White House economist Glen Hubbard, and reports of his exit from the White House are premature. |
| 22 | Behave yourself on the Internet, because you CAN be traced. |
| 21 | Adjusted driving rules in Prospect Park make it easier for bike riders; Adaptation, the Golden Globes, and Nicholas Nickleby; interesting choice for a book group. |
| 17 | Learning how songs end; Bush covering all bases, just in case; tree mostly down. |
| 15 | Kidnapped by banal music; kid unit makes lunch; baby you can drive my car; the Christmas tree is still up, and here's why; Prospect Park has redone its web site; no bike riding this week. |
| 10 | Why I love the Opera Internet browser; faster surfing at gawker.com; continued linkage from Eric Alterman. |
| 9 | Pluses and minuses: linked by Eric Alterman, but a mirror site in Japan violates my copyright; a new fish jumps out of the kid unit's aquarium; index card and taping for my book. |
| 6 | A trip to the Bronx Zoo, to see the new baby giraffe; a stupid visitor taking flash pictures in the World of Darkness pavilion; school is open and the hamster has been returned; snow falling past my window. |
| 4 | Scotch as first aid for poison?; how to transform Ken Burns' Jazz into something more comparable to Johnson's Lives of the Poets; musings on Walter Jackson Bate, spurred by an old ticket stub; a banner to welcome home a friend; a page of my commentary at WebWord.com; the kid unit reacts to Nicholas Nickleby. |
| 1 | New Year's wishes; rain in NYC; CNN doesn't know it's own poll results?, WQXR Classical Music Count Down makes me appreciate the program director. |
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December, 2002
| 31 | New page on Oliver Goldsmith; why wait for New Year's for resolutions?; more on the polybean salad; Bush's approval ratings down, but little media mention. |
| 30 | I am surprised that I am missing fairly standard dried beans; what I got for Christmas; pretty stupid thought from some toy manufacturers; dissatisfaction with an electronic crossword puzzle machine. |
| 24 | Last day prep for Christmas; vegetarian dinner at the Green's in Brooklyn Heights; missing Christmas CDs arrive; Presidential pardons. |
| 22 | Status of the missing Christmas CDs; varieties of the negative Trent Lott reactions, including some who others who overcame a similar cultural upbringing; slowness of the response in general; New York Times editorial against reinstating Pete Rose; stocking stuffers. |
| 19 | Is Trent Lott only the tip of the iceberg?; Clinton calls Republicans who are critical of Lott hypocritical. |
| 18 | "This Is Spinal Tap" targeted for film preservation; Trent Lott "the reincarnation of Martin Luther King"?, 10 Internet overhypes of 2002, missing Christmas CDs. |
| 16 | No transit strike as of yet; the scary thought of thousands of people trying to bike in Manhattan for the first time. |
| 15 | We're lucky that we will be able to weather the transit strike; if I say I won't run, can I host Saturday Night Live?; shopping in Manhattan. |
| 12 | Tiny Elvis; tears about the exit of our German friends; Nixon no standard for forgiving Pete Rose; Trent Lott. |
| 10 | The joys of Adobe Photoshop Elements; the Trent Lott-Strom Thurmond crapola. |
| 9 | Slow progress, but the computer is close to normal now; last Thursday's snow storm; the kid unit's fish tank needs an algae eater. |
| 4 | Bush campaign efforts in Louisiana shows he not only can't reach across the aisle, but that he believes in pork barrel legislation; joys of walking through Chinatown. |
| 2 | Bush policies based on political considerations, not vision; friends bring licorice from Germany; kid unit not helpful yet with Christmas list. |
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November, 2002
| 29 | No one admits to adding provisions in the Homeland Security bill that protects Eli Lilly; Krazy Kat; what we served for Thanksgiving. |
| 26 | George Will mischaracterizes the 2000 election fallout; William Byrd; improved traffic at my Johnson web site; roasting this year's turkey in pieces. |
| 25 | The immediate peace I felt when we stopped on the A82, east of Glencoe. |
| 22 | Senator Tom Daschle and Rush Limbaugh; vitriolic expressions too rife in general. |
| 20 | Information-age concerns in the face of Homeland Security; Eddie Miller, fast lead-off batter for the late 70's Atlanta Braves. |
| 19 | Phill Gramm running for Stupidest Man on Earth; Will Republican senators go Democrat, risking the Republican majority? Also, reminiscences of when it was hard to love the Atlanta Braves. |
| 18 | Timing of the Bin Laden tape is odd, coming out too late to influence midterm elections. Who forgot to tell him? |
| 17 | Influences on the Bush administration: Eli Lilly and Homeland Security; Cheney and energy; contributors at Waco economic summit. |
| 16 | Words of caution before you install Windows XP. Trying to uninstall Windows XP. |
| 14 | A gorgeous day in Brooklyn; Jakob Nielsen vs. John Rhodes on the cost benefits of intranet usability; myth that the Democrats blocked the Homeland Security bill. |
| 13 | Goofy lyrics in the Wings song "Don't Let It Bring You Down"; Windows XP problems; Republicans responding to Senate wins with polarizing initiatives. |
| 12 | Rain keeps me at home, away from the Strand book store. |
| 11 | Rainy day and school out; biking in Prospect Park; is Windows XP slow? |
| 10 | Computer problems still not over; a runaway horse in Prospect Park. |
| 9 | Bethany McLean, of Fortune Magazine, links my Samuel Johnson web site. |
| 8 | The joy of being linked by Metafilter; computer problems aggravated by a defective USB 2.0 card; watching the Magic Flute on DVD with the family. |
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