Greg Hartnett

When asked tonight by Tucker Carlson what he would do to the man who threw a rock at his dog, convicted Watergate felon G Gordon Liddy replied that he would “hurt him real bad”. I guess the people of Texas better hope that Liddy’s dog doesn’t get out when it is pissed off.

It has been over a week since my family left for California. Typically, the first few days alone is nice, and then I really begin to miss them. This time, I have been keeping myself occupied with 15 hour work days, so the yearning has been kept at bay.

I woke up this morning, and their absence hit me. The house is so quiet - boring, actually. One week from today, I will be on an airplane heading to Miami for business. From there, it is off to SES in San Jose (where I will get to ring in my 35th birthday). Upon completion of my conference duties, I will pack up and head north to San Francisco to spend a couple weeks vacationing with my family.

I came across these two Halloween pics in one of the folders on my desktop (getting ready for a little clean up):

Started in 1994 at the University of Buffalo, the Best of the Web specializes in the categorization of content rich, well designed web sites. With comprehensive coverage of the internet, the Best of the Web directory allows users to quickly and easily located relevant websites and resources on a wide variety of topics. BOTW has long been considered an authority site, due in large part to our longevity, and our commitment to quality. We pride ourselves in the quality of our listings.

The main branches of the directory are: Arts, Business, Computers, Games, Health, Home, Kids & Teens, News, Recreation, Reference, Regional, Science, Shopping (really a subcat of business), Society, Sports, and Adult (still there, though not accessible from the index). Each branch is broken down into subcategories - thousands of them in fact. Ensuring that the user will be able to find the information they are seeking. Additionally, we have recently upgraded our directory search feature - users can now search the listings of the directly with one easy step. Look for continued improvements on the search technology going forward.

More important BOTW resources:

• Submit site
• Sponsor a category
• Reseller Program

Best of the Web - the internet’s oldest directory. Search engines like us - webmasters love us.

<rant>I stopped at 7-11 late last night after my movie date with Boy Wonder. I was out of cigarettes, and needed to restock. See D-Day Anyway…

As I was pulling in, I noticed a couple of cops hanging out inside talking. I cautiously parked my car, turned off the engine, and walked towards the entrance. As I was walking in, some guy was walking out. He paused briefly, looking down, smiled at me, and briskly trotted off into the dark. The moment he began walking away, it struck me that he was an old friend of mine, Gary. A guy I have not seen in roughly 10 years. I walked around the inside of the store for a couple minutes - somewhat dazed by seeing him. I grabbed a Snapple, paid the clerk, smiled at the cops, and headed back to my car.

As I drove the remaining mile and a half to my house, I thought about Gary. I though about how tight we had been in high school and college. I thought about all the times we hung out - playing Nintendo (then Sega), going to parties, cruising around in either one of our beat-up cars, going to all sorts of concerts. Gary was a staple around my house - he ate dinner with me and my Nana pretty frequently. I though back then that Gary and I would be boys forever.

I moved to California in 1993 and our contact quickly deteriorated. I called him once in a while, and wrote him a few times. As the months passed, I made new friends and he did whatever it was that he did. The calls became less frequent, and within 18 months, we had pretty much stopped trying.

I heard that he is in this area - my sighting last night confirms. I wonder if I will decide to reach out and try to contact him. I wouldn’t mind hooking up with him again. Though our lives have taken different paths, we have a history together. It would be nice to have a drink, hear about where his life has taken him, learn about what it is that he hopes to do…</rant>

I am taking some time away from the blogosphere this evening. While my wife and kids are in California, I am going to take advantage of the time and go see War of the Worlds. From the few people I have spoken with about it, I have gotten mixed feedback. From the trailers, it seems pretty cool. I don’t care if Tom Cruise has gone crazy.

Also, an opportune time for me to get in some shameless self promotion. We launched Movie Review Blog a few weeks ago, and it just so happens that one of our authors reviewed it. So, here then, are the plugs:

Movie Reviews - Unbiased movie reviews including horror, comedy, indy, classics, thriller, and more.

War of the Worlds - review by The Unmotivated Thinker

My family and I went camping in Connecticut last week at Odetah Campground. Definitely not the back country at Yosemite, but with two little kids, my days of hiking in 6 miles to find the pristine spot are a distant memory. Perhaps in a few years I can switch away from the car camping, but for now it is reality.

Posts have been light this past week - at least posts here have been light. I have been super busy registering, hosting, and starting a handful of new blogs.

I am going to oversee approximately a dozen or so authors posting to a variety of blogs. Topics including: gambling, health, sports, science, music, movies, religion, food, and wine. Though the revenue stream is not there yet, I have faith that in the long run it will pay some handsome dividends.

Once I have the foundation set, I should be able to post at my regular sources with more regularity. I will, of course, be linking to the new blogs once they are ready for public consumption.

This morning, my daughter asked me, “Daddy, what do you do for work?” I tried explaining to her that I work on my computer, doing a few things. Owning a couple of companies didn’t seem to quell the curiosities, so I will try to explain a bit more here.

My first company, Hotel Hotline, provides travel reservations online and via a call center. Since 1999, we have provided convenient, discount hotel reservations to thousands of travellers. We are in the process of transforming our business model, switching from a merchant provider to a comparison shopping site. Instead of competing with the big boys, we decided to service them. Cha-ching!

The other company, Best of the Web is the internet’s oldest directory - older than Yahoo or DMOZ. Since 1994, BOTW has been categorizing content rich, well designed websites, topically and regionally. We provide categorized listings of websites. Human edited, reviewed, and properly classified, BOTW takes pride in serving visitors spam-free, relevant resources.

In addition to the responsibilities that come with running two companies, I also manage a handful of blogs (currently approaching 10), and am currently involved in the production of some very cool technology (hint: RSS). A serial entrepreneur, I am always looking for the next opportunity - we are only limited by the hours in the day….

So that is what daddy does that keeps me out of the house 60-70 hours a week. Laying the foundation so that my kids can have a place to do the same in the future.

<rant>We go through a ton of batteries in my house - AA, AAA, C, D, 9 Volt - you name it, we use it With two kids, and a bunch of gadgets and toys, we run through batteries like they are going out of style.

I was in my bedroom tonight, with the plan of taking some time off the computer, and I noticed the remote had dead batteries - surprise, surprise. I went upstairs to look for some batteries that I had seen on the table last evening. Unable to locate the required AA batteries upon a cursory glance, I decided to pilfer the batteries from the remote for the upstairs TV.

While walking over to the living room, I stepped barefooted onto a piece of chocolate that my son had dropped during dessert, and my dogs had neglected to find. Aggravated over stepping in chocolate, I hopped over to the counter to fetch myself a paper towel. Upon reaching the counter, what do I find behind the paper towel roll, but the batteries that I had been looking for. My ever-mindful wife had moved the batteries from the table to a more child-safe, and daddy accessible location. Had I not stepped in that chocolate, I would not have found my batteries.

It takes some rain to make a rainbow.</rant>

Today, I joined countless other Americans in a July 4 staple - barbeque. While grilling my rib-eye to perfection and enjoying a Heineken (ok not so American), I dialed my iPod onto Credence Clearwater Revival. The lyrics to “Fortunate Son” struck me as appropriate, and wrap up my American experience pretty well. Thank you John Fogerty.

Some folks are born made to wave the flag,
ooh, they’re red, white and blue.
And when the band plays “Hail To The Chief”,
oh, they point the cannon at you, Lord,

It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no senator’s son,
It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no fortunate one, no,

Some folks are born silver spoon in hand,
Lord, don’t they help themselves, oh.
But when the taxman come to the door,
Lord, the house look a like a rummage sale, yes,

It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no millionaire’s son.
It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no fortunate one, no.

Yeh, some folks inherit star spangled eyes,
ooh, they send you down to war, Lord,
And when you ask them, how much should we give,
oh, they only answer, more, more, more, yoh,

It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no military son,
It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no fortunate one,

It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no fortunate one, no no no,
It ain’t me, it ain’t me,
I ain’t no fortunate son, no no no,

Another fire hit my hometown today - and this one directly across the street from my house - literally. Less than 50 paces from my doorstep, a neighbor of 30 years will come home this evening to find their life in shambles. I used to shovel his driveway years ago, when I had the energy to do more than just my driveway.

As I sit here and jot this down, the volunteer firefighters of East Norwich, Oyster Bay, and Syosset are cleaning up the streets, and making sure that the last of the fire is indeed out. I highly doubt that there is any foul play involved in this, but with the string of recent blazes, it leaves you wondering.

See also:

New Round of Flames
Eco-Terrorism in Oyster Bay?

There is so much going on in this crazy world, and so little time to talk about it. Instead of spouting off on any one topic, today I am going to present links to strories that are shaping our world - some you may know about, while others are barely mentioned in the mainstream news.

As I spoke of earlier, the Patriot Act is up for review, and it seems the Federales want to step up the efforts. Ugghhh - read more

As the world finally begins to take notice of the atrocities committed in East Timor, we should remember that the slaughter could not have taken place were it not for the full backing of the US military industrial complex. The Clinton administration could have easily stopped the Indonesian slaughter of the East Timorese. To date, only ONE person has been brought to justice for crimes against humanity. Human Rights Watch has more.

President Bush gave an Iraqi war pep rally that was so full of inaccuracies and misrepresentations that it should be filed under fiction, and not history in the Library of Congress. By misrepresenting past events as factual they become embedded in the national psyche as part of our history. Unchecked, they shape attitude, policy, and action. With the war in Iraq turning into a 21st century Vietnam, the puppet masters are lining up their pawns, and doing all they can to keep the doves at bay. Luckily, modern “wild men in the wings” have more of a chance to reach the masses than back in the sixties. The DNC provides some nice insight - Bush Offers Defensive Rhetoric, Rejects Real Solutions