Here's the line-up for the North Snowdrifts. The only name on this team I recognize is Iverson, but it looks like a pretty decent line-up (click the image for the list showing last season's stats).

The beginning of the draft was very intense. As the clock counted down the minutes until the first round, I started getting very nervous. Once it started, the nervousness morphed into anticipation for my first pick. The wait between picks was the hardest, at least during the first rounds. At about round 8 (of 12) I settled down and tried to make good picks based on what little knowledge of the game I had.

The draft just ended and people are already making trades, which is overwhelming. I need to spend some time and do some research on my players and try to figure out who (if anyone) should get traded. Fortunately the regular season doesn't start for a couple weeks.

You know those commercials for the Library of Congress that have kids duct taping a cutout of Lincoln to a skateboard? I think the tag line is something like "history can be fun."

CoolGov proves that the government can be fun, too, by linking to various .gov Web sites that contain fun, bizarre and neat morsels of information.

Example one: Video of a plane full of crash test dummies doing what crash test dummies do best... crashing.

Example two: Think you're really one-of-a-kind? Check out the most popular baby names. (896 boys born in 2003 were named Curtis, 3,110 were named Stephen.)

Example three: Video of an F-4 Phantom being introduced to 3.6 meters of concrete.

This site is defintely getting bookmarked.

Like any media mogul, I need to own a [fantasy] sports team. Thus, I introduce to you the North Snowdrifts. The Snowdrifts are certainly not the favorite to win the UHXFBC League title, but I think it will be a very spirited season of competition. As manager, I am particularly looking forward to facing off against division rival Cameroon Robusto.

As a new owner of a newly-minted team, I am soliciting applications for people to join my coaching staff. Basketball knowledge is preferred, but not required. As an assistant coach, you will be asked to provide recommendations regarding the team roster. The assistant coach position will not require much time (approx an hour a week -- maybe). As Manager/Head Coach, I reserve the right to ignore any and all recommendations. Please send your resume (or c.v.) and salary requirements in plain-text format to coach@cmerrill.com. The deadline for applications is Saturday, October 16 at 9:30 p.m. ET (24 hours prior to the draft). I look forward to hearing from potential candidates.

Jason Deraleau has a post on Oreilly's MacDevCenter blog about the ubiquitous iPod, and also some of the competition. I don't have a problem with the post as a whole, just one line:

...few will want to get locked into another failing Sony medium. (Didn't they learn anything from Betamax and MiniDisc?)

I don't agree that Betamax and MiniDisc are failing. Betamax led to Betacam XL and SP, which are routinely used in professional video settings, including most television newsrooms in the country. Likewise, MiniDisc is a medium of choice for audio production and broadcast studios. Just because consumers don't have these in their homes, doesn't mean they're failing technologies.

In fact, this argument should sound familiar to Mac users. It wasn't long ago when Mac message boards would fume whenever a new article was published that predicted the demise of Apple because of it's market share. The refrain often included pronouncements that creative professionals in design, publishing, audio and video loved Macs, even if ordinary consumers didn't.

Just because a product isn't in living rooms does not mean that it's failing. Maybe the old Mac-as-Betamax comparison isn't so far off the mark after all.

I've been in Atlanta for almost four months and I'm really enjoying it. I'm still learning my way around the city and experiencing new things. That said, there are a few things I miss:

Seeing local bands like Hegemony (pictured) at the Marlin.

Snow, and the frolicking therein.

Broomball.

The Aurora Borealis (photo by Jan Curtis).

I don't think I'll ever miss the -40 temperatures, but I do miss the absence of humidity.