Lots of ravens out this morning.. walked around the garden explaining stuff... you can hear them in the video.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Friday, April 27, 2012
The High Price of College Tuition and Student Debt
This problem will turn out to be a blessing in disguise. It opens up Community Colleges as an alternative since they can do several things for the student.
1) chop half the cost off the four year college tuition by taking freshman and sophomore classes at the CC.
2) give students a chance to graduate from a CC with an Associates degree and a technology or trade major
3) Fast track a technology or trade credential without the AA.
We need trained technicians and tradesman badly. There are millions of jobs out there for them if they are simply trained at a CC.
However one problem remains. How to convince the CCs themselves that vocational training is really important. Some years ago the Cerritos Mission Statement read something like: "The college offers vocational training, transfer to a four year college, and remediation". Now it reads something like "The college offers transfer to a four year college, vocational training, and remediation". The difference is simply the order. The Academicians in the CC are the ones who rule and the wanted "transfer" to precede "vocational". Meaning they wanted to emphasize transfer above all else. This is an error they are still making and is the biggest stumbling block to setting up for hard core vocational programs. Voc-ed is still managed by academicians and they will never get it. There should be separate schools withing the district in my opinion.
1) chop half the cost off the four year college tuition by taking freshman and sophomore classes at the CC.
2) give students a chance to graduate from a CC with an Associates degree and a technology or trade major
3) Fast track a technology or trade credential without the AA.
We need trained technicians and tradesman badly. There are millions of jobs out there for them if they are simply trained at a CC.
However one problem remains. How to convince the CCs themselves that vocational training is really important. Some years ago the Cerritos Mission Statement read something like: "The college offers vocational training, transfer to a four year college, and remediation". Now it reads something like "The college offers transfer to a four year college, vocational training, and remediation". The difference is simply the order. The Academicians in the CC are the ones who rule and the wanted "transfer" to precede "vocational". Meaning they wanted to emphasize transfer above all else. This is an error they are still making and is the biggest stumbling block to setting up for hard core vocational programs. Voc-ed is still managed by academicians and they will never get it. There should be separate schools withing the district in my opinion.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
88 degrees today.. my gawd it's still April! LOL
The warmers are having great "i told you so" fun with it. The Fox-cons are quiet. Until their comes along an abnormal cold spell then it will be they who take up this extrapolation nonsense.
"Here, here" I say, "Is a barrel of black and white marbles. Thousands of them. Step up and take a few.
How many did you take randomly?
Three? two black and one white?
So what can you deduce about the number of black and white marbles in the barrel?
What?
You can say that there is a likelihood that they are mostly black?
How likely?
66% you say.
Well throw those three back in the barrels and mix them up and this time randomly take ten out of the barrel.
What did you get?
Six black and four white?
What can you now deduce?
You say its more evidence that there are more black than white marbles in the barrel?
How likely?
60% you say.
So throw those back in and mix them up and this time randomly take 100 marbles out.
So what was the number of black and white marbles?
Whoa!
47 black and 53 white?
So what does that tell you about the barrel and what does it tell you about your first two assumptions?
You now think the barrel has more white?
How likely?
53% more likely you say?
Yet before you were more sure that it contained more black.
Of the three samples which one do you think shows you the greatest degree of scientific accuracy when extrapolating the contents of the barrel?
The last one? why?
Because it was a larger sample?
Good!
Can you postulate something from this?
EXACTLY! the greater the sample the greater the degree of certainty.
What?
Well not exactly because I happen to know that there are equal numbers of black and white in the barrel but at least you can see that small samples are usually not as accurate as large samples. If you would have plotted the sampling on a graph it would have plotted a straight line through the neutral 50/50 axis.
You did good"
The warmers are having great "i told you so" fun with it. The Fox-cons are quiet. Until their comes along an abnormal cold spell then it will be they who take up this extrapolation nonsense.
"Here, here" I say, "Is a barrel of black and white marbles. Thousands of them. Step up and take a few.
How many did you take randomly?
Three? two black and one white?
So what can you deduce about the number of black and white marbles in the barrel?
What?
You can say that there is a likelihood that they are mostly black?
How likely?
66% you say.
Well throw those three back in the barrels and mix them up and this time randomly take ten out of the barrel.
What did you get?
Six black and four white?
What can you now deduce?
You say its more evidence that there are more black than white marbles in the barrel?
How likely?
60% you say.
So throw those back in and mix them up and this time randomly take 100 marbles out.
So what was the number of black and white marbles?
Whoa!
47 black and 53 white?
So what does that tell you about the barrel and what does it tell you about your first two assumptions?
You now think the barrel has more white?
How likely?
53% more likely you say?
Yet before you were more sure that it contained more black.
Of the three samples which one do you think shows you the greatest degree of scientific accuracy when extrapolating the contents of the barrel?
The last one? why?
Because it was a larger sample?
Good!
Can you postulate something from this?
EXACTLY! the greater the sample the greater the degree of certainty.
What?
Well not exactly because I happen to know that there are equal numbers of black and white in the barrel but at least you can see that small samples are usually not as accurate as large samples. If you would have plotted the sampling on a graph it would have plotted a straight line through the neutral 50/50 axis.
You did good"
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Good LA Times article on reshoring
http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-manufacturers-abandoning-china-20120420,0,3679186.story
The more I read them the more accurate the reporters are becoming. They are finally getting it. Asking the right questions and parsing the answers and inserting them into a fine article.
I like this quote:
“Not long ago, many companies regarded China as the low-cost default option for manufacturing,” said Michael Zinser, a partner with the consulting group. “This survey shows that companies are coming to the conclusion surprisingly fast that the U.S. is becoming more competitive when the total costs of manufacturing are accounted for.”
What I've been saying for almost ten years.
The more I read them the more accurate the reporters are becoming. They are finally getting it. Asking the right questions and parsing the answers and inserting them into a fine article.
I like this quote:
“Not long ago, many companies regarded China as the low-cost default option for manufacturing,” said Michael Zinser, a partner with the consulting group. “This survey shows that companies are coming to the conclusion surprisingly fast that the U.S. is becoming more competitive when the total costs of manufacturing are accounted for.”
What I've been saying for almost ten years.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
When sour-crout is not sauerkraut
I was raised on the canned stuff. Sauerkraut and hot dogs and fried potatoes. YUM YUM YUM!
But it wasn't until I took other's advise and got off the canned stuff that I realized how bad it is.
You can find deli sauerkraut in almost any super market. It is in the cold section and usually in a glass jar. Why cold? because it would not last in a can. There is not enough vinegar/salt in it to keep it from going stale.
So here is my UN-sauerkraut recipe for sauerkraut and onions.
Slice onions and saute in butter.
Take a jar of deli-kraut out and rinse it thoroughly to get rid of all the vinegar.
Drain it very well and then toss it into the butter and onions.
Add caraway seed.
The taste is so far removed from canned sauerkraut that you wont recognize it. You will taste cabbage,
Yum
But it wasn't until I took other's advise and got off the canned stuff that I realized how bad it is.
You can find deli sauerkraut in almost any super market. It is in the cold section and usually in a glass jar. Why cold? because it would not last in a can. There is not enough vinegar/salt in it to keep it from going stale.
So here is my UN-sauerkraut recipe for sauerkraut and onions.
Slice onions and saute in butter.
Take a jar of deli-kraut out and rinse it thoroughly to get rid of all the vinegar.
Drain it very well and then toss it into the butter and onions.
Add caraway seed.
The taste is so far removed from canned sauerkraut that you wont recognize it. You will taste cabbage,
Yum
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Can you keep a dry eye?
This poetry and song from Markita tells the story of a boy and a girl growing up together and what drugs did to them. Listen closely and read the lyrics and watch the video.
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
It wasn't my intention to mislead you
It never should have been this way
What can I say
It's true, I did extend the invitation
I never knew how long you'd stay
When you hear temptation call
It's your heart that takes, takes the fall
Won't you come out and play with me
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
It's getting hard to wake up in the morning
My head is spinning constantly
How can it be?
How could I be so blind to this addiction?
If I don't stop, the next one's gonna be me
Only emptiness remains
It replaces all, all the pain
Won't you come out and play with me
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
We never win
Only emptiness remains
It replaces all, all the pain
Won't you come out and play with me
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
Most people mistake this for an anti-war song. It would be the best ever made if it were. EMENEM thinks that is what it is. But that's ok... I forgive him.
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
It wasn't my intention to mislead you
It never should have been this way
What can I say
It's true, I did extend the invitation
I never knew how long you'd stay
When you hear temptation call
It's your heart that takes, takes the fall
Won't you come out and play with me
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
It's getting hard to wake up in the morning
My head is spinning constantly
How can it be?
How could I be so blind to this addiction?
If I don't stop, the next one's gonna be me
Only emptiness remains
It replaces all, all the pain
Won't you come out and play with me
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
We never win
Only emptiness remains
It replaces all, all the pain
Won't you come out and play with me
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
Step by step
Heart to heart
Left, right, left
We all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit
Torn apart
We never win
But the battle wages on
For toy soldiers
Most people mistake this for an anti-war song. It would be the best ever made if it were. EMENEM thinks that is what it is. But that's ok... I forgive him.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Did ubuntu really think?
man what a moronic attempt to replace Windows.
Linux was poised to be a warrior competing with Vista and the I-dont-know-where-we-are mac-OS.
They failed.
Gnome was OK
Ubuntu was just plain stupid.
Why do they think users want to sudo this and sudo that. I don't mind but I go back some years. They missed their op.
Linux was poised to be a warrior competing with Vista and the I-dont-know-where-we-are mac-OS.
They failed.
Gnome was OK
Ubuntu was just plain stupid.
Why do they think users want to sudo this and sudo that. I don't mind but I go back some years. They missed their op.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Hot
81 today
The peach trees have all blossomed and did the birds-and-the-bees thing except just with bees. There should be a lot of fruit set. We'll see.
Got the two raised beds set for taters.. have the first crop of candy-onions planted. Have reds coming any day now. Will plant a couple watermelon and a couple of cantaloupe and some squash. Tomatoes and broccoli will be in the enclosure. Should have planted the broc last month. Corn will be seeded soon too.
The peach trees have all blossomed and did the birds-and-the-bees thing except just with bees. There should be a lot of fruit set. We'll see.
Got the two raised beds set for taters.. have the first crop of candy-onions planted. Have reds coming any day now. Will plant a couple watermelon and a couple of cantaloupe and some squash. Tomatoes and broccoli will be in the enclosure. Should have planted the broc last month. Corn will be seeded soon too.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Dallas Tornado
Talked to my son in Dallas on this day. Got close to him and his.
Funny thing though he has a three car garage but can get only his wife's and his daughter's car inside so he took his pickup down to the local coin op car wash to ride out the hail storm! LOL
Monday, April 2, 2012
Go to prison and pay your penalty.
The eighth amendment has to be the most abused amendment other than maybe the second amendment.
If you are a criminal you should go to prison and "suffer" the consequences. What is with all this penal social mingling and conjugal rights? Damn! Everyone of them should be locked up in stir (isolation) with no social contact. You think that would not set them straight? You think criminals would be "ok" with going back to prison then? LIBERALS! saying that stir would be cruel and unusual and a violation of the eighth amendment. You see? Liberal abuse of the eighth and conservative abuse of the second. I hate them both. I really do. Time for a third party.
If you are a criminal you should go to prison and "suffer" the consequences. What is with all this penal social mingling and conjugal rights? Damn! Everyone of them should be locked up in stir (isolation) with no social contact. You think that would not set them straight? You think criminals would be "ok" with going back to prison then? LIBERALS! saying that stir would be cruel and unusual and a violation of the eighth amendment. You see? Liberal abuse of the eighth and conservative abuse of the second. I hate them both. I really do. Time for a third party.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
TEXAS BBQ
I just ordered some texas BBQ from Black's BBQ in Lockhart Texas. On their online store.
http://www.blacksbbq.com/store/blacks_bundles.aspx
I'll report back how it goes.
http://www.blacksbbq.com/store/blacks_bundles.aspx
I'll report back how it goes.
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