Monthly Archives: October 2005

Google Reader

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This is almost week-old news now, but [Google](http://www.google.com/) recently [released](http://www.google.com/press/annc/reader_launch.html) their [Google Reader](http://www.google.com/reader/) software into beta. It is a direct competitor to web-based news aggregators such as [Bloglines](http://www.bloglines.com/). As it is still in beta, there are a number of kinks being worked out. You’ll sometimes get error messages when trying to read the news, and their servers are frequently slow or unresponsive. But as time goes by, bugs get fixed, and they have a chance to scale up to their demand, I think lot of the issues will be smoothed out. There are a lot of things you can do with Bloglines that you can’t do in Google Reader, and I have emailed all of my notes on those matters to the Google Labs folks.

In order to make my testing more effective and directed, I’ve imported all of my Bloglines subscriptions into Google Reader. I’ve also removed all of my links to Bloglines so that I’m forced to use Google Reader to get my news. Overall, I’m quite impressed. As usual, they have given the application those little touches that make an application oh-so-Google-y. Boxes that slide open and closed, search-enabled-everything, colorful icons and labels, etc. And so far I haven’t needed to go back to Bloglines for anything. I’m still getting used to Google Reader’s organizational methods. Reading the news from a specific source in Google Reader takes a bit more effort than it does in Bloglines. As I go along I’m sure I’ll learn some tricks to help make things better.

Anyway, I’d definitely recommend giving it a try. If you’re looking for a way to organize all of the news and blogs you read, check out [Google Reader](http://www.google.com/reader/) today!

Gordon Reunions

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Becky and I have had reunions with various folks from Gordon in the past several days.

Early on Saturday, we had a virtual reunion of sorts with fellow Gordon College alum James Berry, via a comment on Becky’s [post about Pete Holmes](http://prwdot.org/archives/2005/10/calling_all_sweaty_toothed_mad.html). James is living out in Idaho and working on his master’s degree.

Saturday was also Homecoming at [Gordon College](http://www.gordon.edu/). Even though the weather was lousy, that didn’t stop a lot of people from coming out in support of their alma mater. Throughout the day, we had reunions with various Gordon folk: [Jeremy and Angela](http://www.thebiggspicture.org/), Dr. Askew, [Heather Cole](http://gallery.prwdot.org/homecoming_weekend_2005/P1050098), Stephanie Trombley, Dr. and Mrs. Wick, Erin Simmons, Jeff Barraclough, Owen Webb, Brian Hall, Dr. Senning, Prof. Bjork, Prof. Levy, Culley Parris, Emily (Winchell) Card, and Doug and Shannen Rhoda. It was great to get to see all of these folks and catch up with them. It was also fun to walk around Gordon, eat at the cafeteria, and visit our old dorms and classrooms. Lots of good memories.

Saturday afternoon, we got together with Jeremy and Angela, as well as Bob and Leah, who had travelled up from New Jersey with their new baby [Lucas](http://gallery.prwdot.org/homecoming_weekend_2005/P1050113). We all went out to dinner at [Uno’s](http://www.unos.com/), and then came back to our place for dessert – a strawberry cake that we have [previously enjoyed](http://prwdot.org/archives/2004/05/strawberry_heav.html). We had a great time that evening, talking about the good old days and the good new days. Bob, Jeremy and I welcomed Lucas into [our club](http://gallery.prwdot.org/homecoming_weekend_2005/P1050111). We also tried to teach him a [traditional Vulcan greeting](http://gallery.prwdot.org/homecoming_weekend_2005/P1050107), with little immediate success (though he does have a promising future).

Finally, on Sunday we saw Gordon Alum Matt Fitzpatrick at [church](http://www.danestchurch.org/). He just got a job at [Electric Insurance](http://www.electricinsurance.com/), and is living in downtown Beverly with Rob Dokes, another Gordon alum. Matt and Rob were both friends of mine while I was at Gordon, and it’s been over three years since I’ve talked to or seen either one of them. It was good to reconnect.

Finally: For any Gordon folks who are reading this, make sure you head over to our [Gordonexus](http://prwdot.org/gordonexus.html). There you will find a listing of websites belonging to Gordon students, former students, and alumni. Check out the websites and see how many people you can connect with! If you have a site you would like to add to the list, just drop me a line.

Bamboozled!

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In the words of Richard Hatch, “I been bamboozled!” As has already been pointed out to me by various people, the man I photographed [on Sunday](http://prwdot.org/archives/2005/10/rock_stars_knitters_activists.html) in Boston was not, in fact, Bono. No, it was a look-alike hired by [Mix 98.5](http://www.mix985.com/) to drive around the city and give out tickets to the U2 concerts. So I apologize for misleading anyone.

In my defense:

1. I actually didn’t think it was Bono when I first saw him and took the photos. I thought it was just some random crazy guy riding around in a limo – maybe some wannabe or lesser-known rock star. I thought he had too much facial hair and that his hair color was too light. Only when I got home later that night and looked up U2’s tour dates did I think it was him – I didn’t even know that U2 was going to be in Boston this week.
2. How often do I see Bono in public, to begin with?

I guess I was just too excited about the potential prospect of having gotten a decent photo of a celebrity. Next time, I’ll go with my gut instinct, which was to avoid asserting the identity of anyone I photograph until I have 100% positive confirmation that it was, in fact, who I thought it was.

P.S. If anyone from [Mix 98.5](http://www.mix985.com/) is reading this, I think I should get a pair of tickets just for taking such a nice photo of your look-alike. Thanks!

calling all Sweaty Toothed Madmen!!!

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So. There I was. Innocently watching VH1’s [Best Week Ever](http://www.bestweekever.vh1.com) when I caught a quick gilmpse of a familiar face.

It was none other than 2001 Gordon Grad: Pete Holmes! I could barely believe it. I called Peter into the room, but it was too late… So we waited around a bit and, POP, there he was again. WOW. A quick google search brought up his [blog](http://peteholmes.blogspot.com/) and his [website](http://www.peteholmes.com).

All you [Scotties](http://www.gordon.edu) (1997-2001ish) out there will probably remember him from such antics as “Sweaty Toothed Madmen”, when he played Sebastian the Crab in the “Mr Gordon” pagent, and well…many other comedy themed events…

So, catch “Best Week Ever” and look for our very own Pete.