2004-10-23-1947Z


I've been working on this python program, hourglass.py, to time out my internet café customers. It works pretty well; I can have all 3 computers in use, and I login to the bootserver with my Clié to run addpesos, a symlink to the same script, whenever they give me more cash. It works out great, I don't have to write down the times and try to remember who prepaid and who didn't... it was becoming a drag, and this makes it bearable again.

This pssh software is great. I know I keep harping on the same theme, but dig this: you turn off the PDA while it's connected to the remote server, and when you turn it back on, all you need to do is hit <ENTER>, and it reconnects within seconds to your session, no need to login again. That way the batteries can last the whole day, particularly if you turn off the backlight -- that's the biggest power drain, not the wifi.

I've only gotten feedback from one online acquaintance on my disability decision so far, but it's the one person whose opinion I value the most -- a libertarian friend who's not afraid to express what she thinks. Yes, it's somewhat negative, in effect saying that she and all other payers into the SS system will be paying for my decision. I don't see it that way, obviously... I'm still hoping to persuade her and other libertarians that my way of seeing the problem, and its solution, is a valid one. We shall see. I have to keep trying, because I haven't yet really convinced myself on all levels.

That I'm disabled isn't really contestible any more. I became finally sure of that when I freaked out on a little $50 joblet on RAC a week or so ago. I had to admit it: the stress of even a small assignment gets me worked up to a fever pitch. I can't imagine committing myself to any job without going, as the Brits say, completely bonkers. How about a broom-pusher job? I don't know, I've been applying for such online with nary a response. My resumé doesn't help much in that regard. Besides, most jobs of that sort require use of toxic chemicals, which make me sick. I don't want that either... why should I suffer either mental or physical illness just to make money, when I've already put away over $100,000 towards (or so I thought) my retirement?

Now, on to a different subject: the paleolithic diet. It took me years to reach this point, of which Ray Audette in Neanderthin warned me: carb binges now consistently bring headaches, diarrhea, upset stomach, and an acid taste in the mouth that I "feel" throughout my system. Finally I'm able to go into the Waldo's dollar store and resist the 7-ounce chocolate bars, knowing that if I buy it I'll eat it and suffer the consequences. It's as bad as drinking a gallon of beer, except that the pleasure isn't nearly as great while the pain is the same. So the diet is self-enforcing, with a built-in feedback loop that helps to prevent lapses. It just takes longer to "kick in" with some people than with others.

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