Since I was in the middle of a large file transfer, I started on the outside, vacuuming the vents and joints. When I took the vacuum's tip away from one spot, it pulled a tuft of dust out of the case with it. Uh oh. Maybe it was just that one spot—after all I'd been good about clearing any accumulated dust or cat hair from the external vents. Then another tuft. And another.

Download finishes, I get the computer powered down to open the tower, and confirm that not only do the tufts and layer of dust continue inside, there's even a little spider nest. Fortunately it had not yet disgorged its tiny-yet-twitch-inspiring spawn three feet from where I spend most of my waking hours.

I feel like I deserve a visit from computer protective services.

My computer is back to being pretty quiet (for an over-powered full tower), and I expect the performance will pick up a touch too. It's a minor miracle it was working at all, and testament to some serious over-engineering in the cooling system.

Looks like Dell is still treating Alienware as an independent subsidiary, so hopefully they'll keep making their great gaming machines and just gain some operations expertise from Texas. And not just because there are too few technology vendors who understand that electronics can have style too—I know I paid extra for my case in plasma purple with green lighting. Hey, Apple folks pay extra for style, but they don't get a color choice since Steve Jobs seems to be channeling Henry Ford on that topic.

Now off to add a recurring task to Outlook to keep that dust under control. Computer vacuums which are gentle enough to not suck the wires off their connections and come with tiny attachments can be found for less than $20—good to have one around.

While I made this with cognac, I'm sure any nog-compatible booze will do. One of my pantry staples is a mini bottle of Courvoisier which contains about 3 1/2 tablespoons, perfect for recipes.

Vegan
Prep time 10 minutes | Cooking time 20-35 minutes
Source: Ann Ray

Vegan
Prep time 2 1/4 hours | Cooking time 30 minutes
Source: Ann Ray

My VeggieFoodie Rating: Excellent

This is my favorite veggie-friendly steakhouse—my sister can get her kobe, and I have a choice of several tasty items on the menu.

You'll always find several appetizers/salads and a vegetarian entree on the menu. The soup is frequently vegetarian and they're happy to check on the stock (in my case the minute I walk in the door). Best of all, the times I've requested a vegetarian pasta the chef takes it as an opportunity to get creative and doesn't send out the same old same old. One time it came with artichoke hearts, heirloom tomatoes, chantarelles, and tarragon—yum! And if you're in the main dining room, they'll also serve the wonderful bar menu mac and cheese if you request it. However, my favorite item at the moment is their profiteroles, which are the best I've had anywhere with crisp pastry, coconut ice cream, and warm dark chocolate sauce poured at the table.

The bar is a great place to hang out with a friend or do some reading, though if they get any more regulars they're going to have to build a bigger one. Market Street Grill is a usual participant in the 25 for $25, even offering that deal every Sunday with a bigger selection than most restaurants provide.

More reviews:
Yelp | Judy's Book | Citysearch | Seattle Weekly

Technorati | Restaurant | Food and Drink | Vegetarian

Vegan
Prep time 25 minutes | Cooking time 30 minutes
Source: Ann Ray

Vegan
Prep time 10 minutes | Cooling 2+ hours | Freezing in machine/freezer
Source: Ann Ray

Vegetarian / Vegan
Prep time 0-10 minutes | Cooking time 10 minutes
Source: Ann Ray

Guess what? People changed their work schedules. They used buses and bikes more. Those with environmentally friendly cars could chortle a little more since they got a free ride. Travel times dropped by 1/3 at peak hours. Pollution was reduced. Even accident rates went down.

And why did it end July 31st? Because this was a trial period for a plan which was an unpopular initiative. The public vote to make it a permanent system is September 17, with every traffic planner in the world watching closely. While public support is greatly increased (and traffic right back up at December levels with the tolls off), politics are never certain.

Further reading:

• Official Stockholm Trials Web site
• World Changing, a Stockholm-based environmental blog
• Wall Street Journal article (subscription required)

I love it when technology is used to reinforce human behavior instead of to try and force people into a computer's mold. I could live with a toll system like this on 520 or I-90.

Today's Mercury News has a great article about Hector Vega, a San Jose valedictorian who has come forward as an illegal alien. He came to the US just 5 years ago speaking no English, and not only got out of remedial language classes within a year, he recently graduated with a 4.0.

Kudos to Santa Clara University who grants scholarships to worthy students regardless of immigration status, and to Coca Cola who did not have a standing policy but stood behind their scholarship as well.

While Vega's visibility is building support for his eventually becoming a citizen, it has raised his profile in a country where an Immigration and Customs official will state "Anyone who's in this country illegally is in violation of our immigration laws and is subject to arrest." Meanwhile, it would be nice to see the DREAM Act passed. After all, the contribution one has already made to an adoptive country should be at least as important as having tidy paperwork.

Half the time when I log into the Wall Street Journal there's yet another mention of options back-dating. These were cases where executives were miraculously granted options on days the price took a dip, such as these to one CEO. The Journal crunched this as 1 in 300 billion odds but the CEO called it "blind luck":

WHAT???

I'm high maintenance, I admit it. Not only am I picky about my toiletries, I'm also a vegetarian which means I'm schlepping food on flights. This means that I pack a lot of gels, lotions, and liquids when I travel. If it's a short business trip, I'm doing my best to get everything in a (barely) allowed pair of carry-on bags because in most airports checking will add 15+ minutes to check-in and 45+ minutes to exit.

Right now the TSA is listing this as an "enhanced security" measure so I hope they get carry-on screening sorted out soon. I figure I have a better chance of that happening (slim) than airports developing efficient checked baggage handling for 50% more load than they're currently managing (none).

Why do people care about the file? Several reasons. Search engine optimization consultants are drooling over the opportunity to compare search queries with the pages people clicked on. Since Google drives AOL's searches, their competitors now have a handy volume of data for reverse engineering their algorithms. Law enforcement has enough searches on illegal topics to keep them occupied for ages. The rest of us can simply be seduced by the life dramas captured in a season's worth of surfing.

Why should we all care about the release? If you didn't understand Google's resistance to disclosing this kind of data, maybe you can now see how personal it really is. Compared to regions such as the EU, the US already has very weak and patchwork privacy laws. And yet, it seems each week there's another attempt to erode them a little more. For some reason Minority Report is coming to mind, when Anderton (Cruise) was walking through the shopping center and every billboard tracked him as he walked by. If you think it's just SciFi, you haven't been paying attention to RFID developments.

For those who haven't had enough marketing classes in their life, the Chevy Nova is considered one of the original global naming "oops." In Spanish, "no va" means "doesn't go." Of course according to Snopes it's a false story, so take it as you will.