#ROW80 1ST QUARTER POST 3 – MUSINGS ON A SATURDAY

Damn! I was going to get up and post something; I’m not really sure what. One of the more interesting things about life and all of the changes, like, yeah, when doesn’t it change? But here, lately? It changes with what seems to be an increase in exponential frequency. It could also be that my poor brain is just really in that stage where it perceives the changes occurring more rapidly. Unless I’m tired and I am right now. How ridic.

The warning labels weigh more than the bottle.

I ran out of my Topamax which really helps my bipolar condition which is one of MY manifestations of “PD or non-PD, blah-de-blah, blah-di-blah.” I missed ONE dose. By yesterday afternoon, I felt it. I was able to get my refill and all is well, or well-ish. But, because I already tried to murder my blog and had to deal with that havoc? (too strong a word, it WAS funny, but it’s change and I’m so hardwired, I clank if you bang on my head.) Therefore, I feel it physically, for a few days afterward. It sucks feeling so enervated after such a minor thing.

Then, horror of horrors! (not really, I love a challenge!) Microsoft’s LifeCam software was part of my latest batch of updates? “Bugpatches” is what we referred to them. Actually, Microsoft is not in the business of creating systems and applications. It’s just one giant Bug industry. It should be called Bugsoft, or Microbug, or Bugshit. The problem is this; with all of the intelligence and creativity that Bill Gates displayed at IBM, he took what was a robust and very workable product and dumbed it down.

Bill didn’t have to do that. He did that so that he could maximize his profit in a shorter period of time and he did it at the expense of the consumer and the industry. No one who has any kind of computer savvy or has ever worked in a hard computing environment, where you work either directly with servers or mainframes, think Windows-based platforms, or MACs, for that matter are worth a damn. I can’t speak for the gamers. I play one game, Runescape and ever since I killed JAVA, (read this article on why I killed JAVA; I'm no visionary, but I've been suspicious of JAVA for years and killed it for good last year.) I have to run it from Jagex's client. I could use Linux, or OS/2; I just don’t have the patience, and I really don’t have the patience with “PD Blargle….”

So, anyway, thanks Bill Gates. Once again, your software fucked up your software. I hope you’re happy. When I narrowed it down, I didn’t even go to your Knowledge Base to look for a “fix,” because then I would have needed a “fix” of a different kind. All of your shit sucks. Your software, community, your partnership with Dell. As an aside, their horrible Intel processors; AMD processors are much more elegant. Intel had an architectural flaw back in the 90s; for a while 2 + 2 equaled 5. No shit. Hot fix. Their integrity over time has never been truly sound. The AMDs can be overclocked via software and worked hard for years. Although I knew a guy once, who overclocked his with a knife; Mary don't do hardware. Last I knew, his was still working. They are that rugged.

Anyway, they're great for math, data-mining and algorithms, and wonderful for SETI@home, but back to Bill and his C- report card. Customer support, Website, F; big giant fail. I don't even go there. Everything you have ever done has had the stamp of slightly less than mediocre about it. I realize you have 7 gabillion dollars and you and your wife gave 1 billion of it to school kids. But the fact remains, you took your "MS"-DOS and left IBM. You tweaked the code here and there and built your Windows 1.0 off of that and all else followed.

No Words Needed

That was back in the day. IBM hung onto PC-DOS and built OS/2 1.0 and WARP off of that, which was killer and no, you couldn’t kill it AND you could run a Windows shell and MSOffice on the same system along with all of your Lotus (1-2-3, AmiPro,Notes) products. But Bill had to kill it. He didn’t want the competition. The sad thing here is, quality didn’t win out. IBM didn’t know how to market it’s product and Bill Gates did. Throw in Steve Jobs with his Apple bullshit and IBM never had a chance. Too corporate and too much spook. I’ve seen exactly 2 commercials on TV for WARP OS/2. I see the hardware ads, but the laptops are tooled by Lenovo.

I found this Time.com article on the history of WARP OS/2 to see if I remembered right. Some of it I did, some I didn’t. I worked at IBM from 1995 to 1998, then went to Verizon. This quote followed by the link to the article says it all:

Another of our guinea pigs, already an OS/2 fan, neatly summed up the software when he told us that it “thinks the way I think. [But] it’s not an end-user operating system; it’s a nerd operating system.”
Read more: http://techland.time.com/2012/04/02/25-years-of-ibms-os2-the-birth-death-and-afterlife-of-a-legendary-operating-system/#ixzz2Hn34rlI4

Geeze o pete. Am I a nerd? An enthusiastic one, but a nerd. Happy Saturday! Check in tomorrow!

ROW 80 POST 40 – SIGNS AND WARNINGS

With a complete lack of any other idea, I have decided to start a post about the warnings regarding side effects caused when taking certain medications. If I stick to writing this, I may even finish the bastard. The last several attempts, produced actual posts, but my win-loss record overall, is dismaying.

Anyway, so yeah; medicine, medications, salves, pills, injections, you-name-it. Over-the-counter or prescription, topical, taken internally; it doesn’t matter. These things can do some pretty frightening ju-ju to your tender self, if you’re susceptible, or if you abuse the shit. Some of this crap causes side-effects even if you look at it, or handle it improperly. Poof! Up in smoke! Just like nitroglycerin!

Now, I’m not talking about the warnings for chuckleheads on ridiculously obviously stuff, like you see on costume Superman or Bat Capes: (Warning: Cape does not enable wearer to fly. This one’s stupid anyway. Batman never could fly, he had a Bat ‘copter and he had all kinds of shit in his Bat Utility Belt, so that one was just wrong.)

This might have looked more sinister if not taken half in the SUNLIGHT.

On second thought, no.

No, I’m talking about the Cripes-a-Mighty side effects and warnings that are plastered all over a bottle of pills that you get from your friendly pill-pusher pharmacy or your witch doctor. I am currently taking Cymbalta for depression, 30 mg per day. It works and THANK GOD, I do not have any of the following:

·       Nausea

·       Dry mouth

·       Sleepiness

·       Fatigue

·       Constipation

·       Dizziness

·       Decreased appetite

·       Increased sweating

But, you know what? This is kind of boring. There’s another drug I heard about, that I have not yet had to take; I'll get to that in a minute. I’m also on Topamax and it has a batch of side effects too:

·       Unusual sensations, such as burning or tingling

·       Fatigue

·       Drowsiness

·       Mental and physical slowing or delays

·       Nervousness

·       Upper respiratory infection

·       Coordination problems

·       Weight loss

·       Loss of appetite

·       Taste changes

·       Confusion

·       Difficulty with concentration or attention

·       Nausea

Hmm, some of that sounds an awful lot like some of the Parkinson's Disease symptoms, I was experiencing BEFORE I started taking Topamax, along with the others; tremors, drooling, stiffness, ball-o-toes 'n' fingers, etc. Still have that and all this other shit, now that I'm taking Topamax because I’m bipolar and have a tendency to get really, really, really psychotic, and there's a chance I might get violent, 'cause I have this thing called "poor impulse control," and a kinda sorta violent streak for a girl, so, at first I was taking some other anti-psychotic drug. I can’t even remember the name now. I just remember the One Warning, “If you itch and break out, get to the ER immediately!” I itched and got to said ER, where I was Presto! Change-O! put on Topamax! So, now, along with the above, I risk these lovely side effects: 

·       Mood problems

·       Decreased sense of touch

·       Viral infections

·       Abdominal pain (stomach pain)

·       Joint pain

·       Weakness

·       Sore throat

·       Dry mouth

·       Indigestion

·       Mood problems

·       Back pain

Plus, the ability to write horrible run-on sentences. Well, shit. I’ve EXPERIENCED (Hello? Who hasn't?) all of this and more. I had all, or most of this BEFORE I took the Topamax. I still have ALL (Hello? Who doesn't?) of this, I just am no longer on a hair-trigger. I still have an inclination to bust heads now and then, but it's just an idle notion, and aimed at the unjust bullies of the world. Of course, looking at this list of bullshit, you can see why anyone would be in a pissy mood. Jeepers!

This other drug that I’ve heard about, but have not yet had to take is for ADHD. Oh, please God, no. Even if I had it, I would tell no one. There’s a new drug that has “can cause tics” as a side effect. Un-fucking-real. The tag line says, “Blah takes care of my ADHD, I do the rest.” I’d do the “rest” by hopping off a fucking bridge if I had to take a drug that gave me tics.

At first, I thought it was "ticks" like "woodticks." I wondered why anyone would want insects as a side effect. Then, when I realized it was "tics," I was all like, "HELL NO!"

keeping in basements and eating pets occur in 10% of patients. If you miss a dose, please jump from your roof, shouting "AIYEEEEE" on the way down, while taking 2 doses, at your next regularly scheduled eclipse. If you begin to levitate, cease taking your medication and call your exorcist immediately." That's the shGeeze, if a drug is going to give you side effects, they should be fun side effects. For instance, I want that medicine that says: "May cause sightings of the dead. You may sprout horns and/or cloven hooves. Cases of hot-dog finger have been noted in clinical trials. Instances of Chthulu setting up houseit I wanna take.