What does USPS stand for?

First, a joke:

Q: Do you know the real reason the USPS needs to raise stamp prices?

A: Because the cost of storage keeps going up.

This joke would be funnier except that I'm currently waiting for a shipment.  It always seems I'm waiting for a package to arrive just before I'm out of town, so this time I ordered as soon as I could.  I chose what looked like a UPS option, but turned out to be a hybrid UPS + USPS.

So here's how it's gone so far:

• Monday evening (4/24): Package ordered
• Tuesday: UPS received shipping information and the package, Carol Stream IL
• Wednesday: Package was handed off to the USPS, postage paid.  USPS tracking shows the info was received 12:37 PM, and the package itself accepted in Forest Park, IL at 5:09 PM.
• Thursday: Nothing happening
• Friday: Nothing happening
• Saturday: ???

I know we've received packages in the mail 48 hours after they were posted, so what's the hold up?

I guess I didn't need to listen to that music on my trip anyway.

So what does USPS stand for? Seems like US Package Storage is appropriate.

Update: Yay, the post office came through! Murphy's Law still applied: the package came while we were away from the house for a showing. I checked the tracking site, and it still hasn't been updated.

Technorati Tags: USPS, Ghost in the Shell

Technorati...

Looks like Technorati has picked me up without my knowledge. I've heard a lot about it, but never investigated. Since I'm interested in increasing traffic, this seems like a good way to get started.

If you already use Technorati, you can check my Technorati Profile. Looks like I've got about 4 pages of links, but mostly internal.

Grand Canyon Skywalk revisited

The Grand Canyon Skywalk I had previously written about turns out to be a major ripoff. Tyler took his family and found out.

The whole experience was quite disappointing. While the views were spectacular, the cost was just far too high, especially because they were not clearly advertised anywhere. $25 might have been worth it, $75 was far too high. Additionally, none of the infrastructure was able to support the number of visitors and all of the buildings in the advertisements are not built yet. We spent most of our time waiting in line, a lot of it out in the cold, even avoiding the one really long line. My suggestion is to wait until they at least have the buildings built and hopefully have realized that most people do not want to pay that much for that little.

That's right, $75 dollars to go out on the Skywalk, no discounts for children, and they won't even let you take your camera.

A commenter on the blog goes into greater detail:

1. The 2 roads in (1 40 miles unpaved, the other 21 miles unpaved) are in very bad condition. We almost needed a 4 wheel drive. Had it started raining, (and it almost did) we would have definitely needed 4 wheel drive to negotiate it.
2. The outhouses were deplorable. They had never been pumped. "Material" was piled up ABOVE THE RIM of the seat. I can not imagine what it would be like in warm weather. FILTHY.
3. The tribe member who gave me my tickets (I had ordered ahead online, and went to will-call) was very rude. She rolled her eyes, and acted as though I was a bother to her. (I encounter this often at tribe-run facilities. I have been told by many, they do not like non-native Americans, which is their right. But if they feel this way, they should get out of the tourist business!!)
4. If you did not get your ticket online, the wait was very long; in some cases, over an hour.
5. After getting on the bus, and getting to the Skywalk, there was another long line to check in your bags, and ANOTHER long line to get your wristband, and get through the metal scanner.
6. On the side of the Skywalk bridge was a huge white banner that said "grandcanyonskywalk.com" with big blue letters. Really ugly. It not only took away from the beauty of the bridge and the canyon, but made it all look that much more commercial.
7. Once on the bridge, you could have your picture taken for $14.95. I did, but the quality of the picture was terrible; very dark and blurry. It also took an hour to get that picture... yes ANOTHER long line.
8. The Indian Village part of the tour that you paid the $50.00 for was an almost non-existent, newly built hogan, and another small "tepee-like" structure. No one was there to explain anything. Basically, there was nothing there to see.
9. For the included lunch at the ranch, you had to ride the bus back to the gift shop, and catch another shuttle. The Ranch itself was a facade in the middle of the desert; very un-authentic, and sort of "hokey". The "cowboys" referred to themselves as actors. It may be an ok show for very small children. Lunch was OK, but again, another long line.

The term "Indian giver" has strong racial overtones, but it seems quite appropriate in this context.

[via Joel Spolsky]

Red Hot Chilli Pipers

Here at TooMuchBlue, we take great pride in searching the net for only the best and classiest videos for your entertainment. Only the highest quality videos will do.

It is therefore a rare pleasure to recommend this fine video of Red Hot Chilli Pipers, performing a medley including Queen's We Will Rock You and Survivor's Eye of the Tiger. It's definitely not what you'd expect.

[via Dave Barry's blog]

One of a kind!

Seen at a local pizza place. It's amazing to me that people will put a grammatical error in print like this and leave it there long enough to wear out. It's not like the rules of grammar are some big secret -- Ethan is learning about There, Their and They're in first grade. Worse yet, if the customer didn't spot it, how about the company who printed it for them? Dave Barry was right.

Dear Mister Language Person: What is the purpose of the apostrophe?

Answer: The apostrophe is used mainly in hand-lettered small business signs to alert the reader than an "S" is coming up at the end of a word, as in: WE DO NOT EXCEPT PERSONAL CHECK'S, or: NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ITEM'S.

Another important grammar concept to bear in mind when creating hand- lettered small-business signs is that you should put quotation marks around random words for decoration, as in "TRY" OUR HOT DOG'S, or even TRY "OUR" HOT DOG'S.

We are now officially listed

Yup, we've done it.

We're MLS listing #184301, or just follow this link for a look.

Female Vocabulary

Here's a funny little article I found somewhere on the web a while back.

And let me just clarify that by "funny" I mean "funny how some husbands have to deal with their wives on this level, since my wife and I are honest and open enough to share with each other without all this". Yeah, that's it.

FINE

This is the word women use at the end of any argument that we feel we are right about but need to shut you up. Never use fine to describe how a woman looks. This will cause you to have one of those arguments.

FIVE MINUTES

This is half an hour. It is equivalent to the five minutes that your football game is going to last before you take out the trash, so I feel that it's an even trade.

NOTHING

This means something and you should be on your toes. Nothing is usually used to describe the feeling a woman has of wanting to turn you inside out, upside down, and backwards. Nothing usually signifies an argument that will last Five Minutes and end with the word Fine.

GO AHEAD (with raised eyebrows)

This is a dare. One that will result in a woman getting upset over Nothing and will end with Fine.

GO AHEAD (normal eyebrows)

This means "I give up" or "do what you want because I don't care. " You will get a raised eyebrow Go Ahead in just a few minutes, followed by Nothing and Fine and she will talk to you in about Five Minutes when she cools off.

LOUD SIGH

This is not actually a word, but is still often a verbal statement very misunderstood by men. A Loud Sigh means she thinks you are an idiot at that moment and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you over Nothing.

SOFT SIGH

Again, not a word, but a verbal statement. A Soft Sigh is one of the few things that some men actually understand. She is content. Your best bet is to not move or breathe and she will stay content.

THAT'S OKAY

This is one of the most dangerous statements that a woman can say to a man. That's Okay means that she wants to think long and hard before paying you retributions for what ever it is that you have done. That's Okay is often used with the word Fine and used in conjunction with the raised eyebrow form of Go Ahead. At some point in the near future when she has plotted and planned, you are going to be in some mighty big trouble.

PLEASE DO

This is not a statement, it is an offer. A woman is giving you the chance to come up with whatever excuse or reason you have for doing whatever it is that you have done. You have a fair chance to tell the truth, so be careful and you shouldn't get a That's Okay.

THANKS

A woman is thanking you. Do not faint, just say you're welcome.

THANKS A LOT

This is much different than Thanks. A woman will say, Thanks A Lot when she is really ticked off at you. It signifies that you have hurt her in some callous way, and will be followed by the Loud Sigh. Be careful not to ask what is wrong after the Loud Sigh, as she will only tell you Nothing.

Clear channel

Amazing. I'm driving through South Bend, (yes, right now) and the two AM stations I can pick up are in Des Moines and somewhere in Tennessee.

Update: the Tennessee station was in Nashville, and by the time I got to Shipshewana, I had also picked up a station from the Quad Cities (Wisconsin and Minnesota).