Edward Klink

Thursday, June 30, 2005

Last night I caught an interesting program on CNBC called The eBay Effect. They interviewed everyone from Pierre and Meg, to "Powersellers" and fraud victims. But the best part was when they showed the ETS Monkey logo.

{ Posted By edward } { 6:46 AM }

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

NAIROBI - A 73-year-old Kenyan grandfather reached into the mouth of an attacking leopard and tore out its tongue to kill it, authorities said Wednesday.

Every so often there is a story like this which only serves to remind me what an incredible suburbanized wimp I am. When I take out the trash at night no fanged creatures await. When I mow the lawn there's no chance of an attack. Nothing lurks in the bushes, biding its time for the right opportunity to strike. There's never a good smilodon around when you need him. That's why I am in favor of wolf re-introduction. We need to shake things up a bit, otherwise our adrenal glands are going to atrophy.

Or maybe the suburbs are fine the way they are, and it's me--maybe I need to find a cabin in the woods.

{ Posted By edward } { 10:52 AM }

Monday, June 27, 2005

Shark attack stories garner plenty of media attention, especially during the summer, and especially when it's a place we can all picture, such as Florida. Even though the odds are incredibly long, there is something primeval about being eaten alive that triggers fear deep within us (perhaps in a hundred thousand years, if we're still driving, auto accidents might engender the same level of terror).

I've spent lots of time in the water--from swimming and fishing, to water skiing and scuba diving--and I've only seen sharks twice. Both times were in Cape Cod Bay, one was a six foot blue shark that briefly materialized behind our boat after several in our party had gone for a quick offshore dip, and the other time was a sand shark that nosed up to a wriggling blackfish I had just speared while diving a World War II wreck.

I always try to remember the ocean is a true wilderness, and while we've done a good job of pillaging and polluting it, we're far from taming it. Many of us go to the beach expecting some authority has the same control over the environment that we have over manicured parks. Each time you wade waist deep in the sea, you have entered a hostile environment. The lifeguards don't know what lurks in there at any given time, and neither do the police or the coast guard.

No one should fear the ocean, but we shouldn't lose respect for it, or rely on senseless beach closings and media-staged shark hunts to ensure our safety.

{ Posted By edward } { 1:04 PM }

Friday, June 24, 2005

It was a dangerous mission, but I was up for it. I was one of few chosen, the elite of the elite. The expedition would take us through an African tundra, Amazon jungles, and mysterious frozen wastelands. And along the way we would be face to face with some of the world's most unpredictable creatures--first graders. My assignment? Class parent on a school trip to the Bronx Zoo.

It turned out to be great fun. I saw the zoo's attractions through the eyes of my young charges. Giraffes up close seem strangely unreal, as if digitally animated by Lucasfilm. Birds and monkeys exist in varieties I've never seen even after decades of flipping through National Geographic. I marveled at the big cats, several hundred pounds of coiled energy wrapped in fur. At first glance the tigers and lions don't seem to do much, but that's because they operate on a different clock than us humans. As alpha predators, they can sink their teeth into juicy, raw hindquarters whenever they please and answer to no one. Something to aspire to.

I appreciated the winding layout of the park, and the simulated landscapes. The rainforest exhibit with its caves, misty paths, and waterfalls was lifelike enough to me--as well as the kids--and I've been in the real thing.

A highlight for the children was taking the sky tram from one end of the park to the other and catching a birds-eye view of the sprawling, animal-filled kingdom. Of course, they also liked the ice cream which was more than welcome as the noon sun beat down from a New York sky.

My favorite was this guy pictured above. Cute enough to play with a little red ball, yet powerful enough to rip my head clean off with one swat of a paw. It helps to keep nature in perspective.

{ Posted By edward } { 10:23 AM }

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Got some spare cash? Forbes has an interesting article on how one might become Batman for a little over $3 million.

{ Posted By edward } { 12:51 PM }

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

Why do we fall, sir? So that we might better learn to pick ourselves up. --Alfred Pennyworth.

Last night I saw Batman Begins with my dad and brother. It was fun to see the origin of this iconic character put on screen. It's dark, full of action, and a fine portrayal of Batman when he's at his best--as a mysterious avenger lurking in the shadows. The big names fill their supporting roles nicely, the prototype Batmobile rocks, and while the villains aren't the "A" list of the Batman pantheon, the ending delivers a thumbs-up future for the franchise. I enjoyed it. But what do I know? Ask Adam West.

{ Posted By edward } { 8:04 AM }

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

So this is summer! We're supposed to hit 80 degrees today.

I enjoyed my combined Fathers Day--birthday weekend surrounded by family. I'm fortunate to be a dad, and to have a dad (especially the great one that I do). I had a nice steak dinner one night and a seafood dinner the next. I received a (long wished for) German-made cuckoo clock. I grew up with one and they're a lot of fun. Besides, every time it "cuckoos" it's a reminder not to take things so seriously. I also got a nice leather laptop attache bag to replace the backpack look with one a bit more upwardly-moving.

So now I'm a year older. There's going to be a lot going on this year so I've spent some time drawing up a plan with some pretty specific goals, as well as rewards. Stay tuned, maybe you'll be in them.

{ Posted By edward } { 11:44 AM }

Sunday, June 12, 2005

We had a great time last week at Marakesh! It was the first time I had ever tried Moroccan fare. To truly live the Moroccan culinary experience we went for the eight course Royal Feast. The food was delish, and accompanied by some lively music and undulating entertainment. Nearly all of us wound up dancing at some point. You won't find this at Chili's.

{ Posted By edward } { 7:28 PM }

Friday, June 10, 2005

Remember, it's not handicapped, it's handicapable!

{ Posted By edward } { 10:57 AM }

Thursday, June 09, 2005

Fractures of the carpal bones involve only a single bone or complex bones with or without ligament rupture. However, fractures of the trapezoid are rarely seen. Fracture of the trapezoid seemed to occur when the wrist joint was forced with excessive flexion stress that was placed on the trapezoid through the second metacarpal bone indirectly. This occurred in the same manner that a walnut is broken with nutcrackers.

Crack!

Today the MRI confirmed it. My wrist isn't sprained, it's broken. As you just read, breaks in this particular wrist bone are rare, so that's why the emergency room X-Ray doc missed it, and that's why I've been uselessly treating my broken bone for over two weeks with an ACE bandage and a bottle of Motrin.

So tomorrow morning I'm getting a cast, and officially becoming a lefty. Say, anyone have a pair of those green rubber-handled lefty scissors I can borrow?

{ Posted By edward } { 6:04 PM }

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

Recently, my cousin Sean and I had a nice lunch with visiting Irish relatives Martin and Bernie from Ireland. I never met them before. Apparently our grandparents were siblings. They won a contest for a free trip to NYC, so we met at historic Fraunces Tavern downtown for a hearty lunch ("Fraunces Tavern" is where Washington partied with his officers after winning the Revolution).

Cousin Martin and his wife Bernie have three children and live in New Ross in Wexford where Martin works as a barrister. In his entertaining brogue, "I do wills and trusts for torture, personal injury for money, and criminal law for fun." They were a lot of fun to talk to.

Here's a pic, Bernie and Martin are in the foreground, while Sean and I are the two blokes grinning behind them.

{ Posted By edward } { 8:58 AM }

Monday, June 06, 2005

It's June! That means it's time to break out some serious tools!

{ Posted By edward } { 8:54 AM }

Thursday, June 02, 2005

So the doctor gave me allergy medicine with instructions to take it three times a day on an empty stomach. The doc also gave me Motrin for my wrist injury and I'm supposed to take that three times a day on a full stomach. I normally don't take any medication, not even aspirin, so the logistics behind these prescriptions are mind numbing.

{ Posted By edward } { 8:53 AM }