It’s official–the ants have invaded my laptop. At first I thought it was just my mind playing tricks on me, but I’ve caught one out in the open for long enough to verify that it’s not all in my head. I don’t know exactly what I did to deserve such a “blessing,” but tiny little ants now frantically scurry from point A to B within my laptop as a key-strike or drive movement or fan startup scares them into action. They’re incredibly tiny, move like little hummingbirds, and I have no idea how I will end up getting rid of them. I’ll add pictures soon, if I can catch them long enough to focus on them in macro mode. How am I going to explain this if I need Dell servicing?

I’m apparently not the first to enjoy this little brush with nature. Here is “Ant Farm,” the tale of one individual who had to have her notebook serviced to remove a nest of ants; there is a Yahoo Q&A about ant colonies in laptops; a man who loses his $3300 Toshiba to Australian biting ants, and here is a long list of other ant-invaded electronics such as iBooks, network switches, and so on. I had better find some method of extermination…. I’m thinking it’ll probably involve partial disassembly, some alcohol, poison, and the vaccuum of space…. Or(!), I could just leave ant bate on the desk next to my computer and wait for the colony to die. Then I’d just have to shake the little buggers out of my computer…

Categories: General
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So we got a new camera, plus I’m going to be in Thailand for the entire summer, so I was felt moved to revamp the ole’ wedding website to be a little more useful/relevant for today (768 days later). I haven’t exactly figured out what the divide will be, since I’m not exactly burning up the wires sending new posts to WTG. I think the biggest difference will probably be that gradually the more personal photos will migrate to the personal site (www.isaacandandrea.com). I figured that not ALL my friends want their pictures advertised on the web, and my niece may not want every moment of her early life chronicled for random people on the web. I figure that I can probably implement password protection as needed on the personal site.

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Connecticut’s Bar Examining Committee has joined Colorado, Florida, Delaware and Kentucky to require that applicants indicate whether or not they have been hospitalized for one of a number of mental illnesses. Where this year, applicants were asked about any “psychotic disorder or condition” such as schizophrenia, bipolar or paranoia, the list will now include “major depressive mood disorder” (the technical terminology for general depression). This opens up several cans of new worms:

First, the overwhelming majority of depression cases do not involve psychosis. Second, unlike the original list of psychotic conditions, many cases of depression are effectively treated or cured. Third, particularly by asking not even whether or not the individual has X condition but asking if they’ve been treated for X condition, these examining committees are discouraging treatment. This is true of any questions about personal and potentially embaressing matters. In addition, all of these sorts of questions are invasions into the applicant’s privacy. However, unlike questions regarding psychotic conditions, criminal convictions, prior bankruptcies, gambling problems, and other conditions that have been shown to correlate to ongoing problems for attorneys, there are effective treatments for depression. If someone becomes depressed as the result of a chemical imbalance, life crisis, or some other event, then that can be addressed with medical and psychological treatments. In many cases, medical treatment is successful enough to allow the individual to stop taking pills.

There are lots of things that could lead someone to potentially be a bad attorney, doctor, electrician, teacher, accountant, etc. How many of these things should your employer or a state-sanctioned board be able to demand disclosure for?

From Law.com - “Being Treated for Depression? Another State Bar Wants to Know“

Categories: Public Policy
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I just loved this quote from my former Contracts professor as he outlined his academic planning suggestions. It’s hard to not laugh at an offhanded statement like that.

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I was just composing this little note to the King of Nepal when today’s news that he was returning to Nepal’s capitol from his vacation made my note irrelevant:

Our own president finds that getting away to his ranch in Texas is a good way to catch his breath, gain some perspective, and relax. However, when big issues come up, he generally heads back to the capitol. Based on this, I offer this advice–When some of your closest friends are willing to comment to international reporters that you are destroying the country, or when you’ve managed to drive most of the country’s political leaders into talks with Maoist rebels, it’d probably be a great time to return to the capitol. Perhaps you’ll have better luck figuring out how to restore that democratic government you promised if you are on location.

The good news is–great minds must think alike! King Gyanendra headed back to Nepal’s capitol. The bad news–his friends think he’s ruining the country, the nation’s elected leaders are in talks with Maoist rebels… oh! and police and rioters have been clashing in ongoing violent protest. I guess it’s sure handy that he has his neighbors India and China to turn to for sound diplomatic advice or democracy-inducing tips.

For more balanced coverage of the story, read or listen to today’s report, Nepalese Political Parties Explore Links with Maoists.

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In my reading for today’s class, I came across an interesting case from the Supreme Court of New Mexico, in which a hospice home shared by four persons with AIDS was found to meet the “single family” requirement of the neighborhood’s restrictive covenant. Hill v. Community of Damien of Molokai, 121 N.M. 353, (1996). The Court ruled based on precedent that, since the covenant didn’t define family, any ambiguity must be resolved in favor of the free use of the property. Since an Albaquerque zoning ordinance defined family as “any group of not more than five [unrelated] persons living together in a dwelling,” the Court found that the controlling fact that the individuals “bear the generic character of a relatively permanent functioning family unit” and could stay in their home. You’ve got to love that circular definition of a family as being much like a family.

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Categories: Public Policy
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So yesterday I went down to see some of the rally on the Capitol Mall. I got a bit teary eyed seeing and hearing thousands of people waving American flags and expressing their desire to be citizens. I can’t blame them–this is a great nation. I don’t have time to write more at the moment, but maybe I’ll come back and include more of my observations from the rally at a later time.

Categories: Public Policy
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I gazed into your eye’s, stealing a glance at your soul. You caught me offguard. The darkness of my mood was captured and placed within them.

Black Eyes.

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Categories: FromTheFront
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