New Software Installed

Today I was finally spurred to upgrade my pyBlosxom installation (the blog software which is the engine behind my website) from version 0.7.something to 1.0. What spurred this upgrade? - People spamming my comments! A week or two ago I started noticing the same comments being posted to any and all of my stories, pimping casinos, prescription meds, etc.

So, today I figured it would be a good day to do something about these losers. After installing the new version, I then began looking for a human verification system for posted comments. I stumbled upon a solution similar to that used by Yahoo! and gMail, here. After getting the required libraries installed (including compiling the Python Imaging Library from source, and banging my head against the wall after several obscure problems popped up), everything seems to be working swimmingly.

So, please feel free to post (non-spam) comments till you feint. If you encounter any problems, I'd appreciate a heads up from the peanut gallery! Thanks much.

Defend Your Castle

Here is a fun way to make your mousing/trackball wrist scream. It is a flash game where you attempt to repel the barbarian hordes attacking your castle. If you make it through the attacks of the day, then during the night you can improve your defenses with archers, higher castle walls, and even wizards. Fun stuff!

Dolphin Interaction Program

On Monday, I took the day of and went to Sea World with my family so that our daughter could participate in the Dolphin Interaction Program. Instead of getting a bunch of toys for her birthday, this year she asked if she could swim with the dolphins. As you can see from the pictures, she got up close and personal with a dolphin, and had a great time. Click here to see the album.

Never Skinny-Dip in the Amazon - Trust Me!

The candiru (or Brazilian vampire fish) has to be one of the most feared fish of the Amazon, even moreso than the "ever popular with low bugget horror movie makers" pirhanna. Why? Read and learn:

“When candirus parasitize humans, it is usually only when they are skinny-dipping while urinating in the water. The candiru tastes the urine stream and follows it back to the human. It then swims up the anus and lodges itself somewhere in the urinary tract with its spines. Blood is drawn, and the candiru gorges itself on both the blood and body tissue, its body sometimes expanding due to the amount of blood. This is all said to be very painful for the poor person who has this happen to him or her. Unfortunately, they are almost impossible to remove due to the spines. Amputation of the private areas is the cheapest, and most life-changing, way to remove the fish. Actual surgery is extremely expensive and involves inserting the Xagua plant and the Buitach apple up the urethra. These two plants kill and even dissolve the parasitic fish. If surgery is not done in time, the blockage of the urinary tract will prove fatal. The candiru is the only known vertebrate to parasitize humans.”

Le' ouch!

Thursday Afternoon Surf Report

I haven't said much about the surf as of late, mostly because it has been pathetic. Today is was slightly better, as conditions were merely wimpy. However, from the swell forecasts I've looked at, it appears as if we should see some good sized surf from the South on Friday, and then a big swell from the Northwest will rear it's head for the weekend, with it backing off through Monday. Let's hope we get some of both swells here in the North County.