http://www.knigga.com/ The news from www.KNIGGA.com en-us Sat, 19 Jun 2010 12:43:00 -0400 kris@knigga.com http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=411 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=411
the situation generally plays out like this: i find a service i'm interested in and start the registration process, during the registration process i'm asked to pick a username, and then when i'm done filling out the form and hit submit i get an error that says that the username i chose is not available. ok, while i find it odd that any username made up of bits of my first, middle, and last name is taken, i try again with some other permutation. again, the username is unavailable. this cycle repeats two or three more times until i'm convinced they just think my last name is a dirty word.

the first time i ran into this problem that i can remember was registering for aol when i was in 9th grade. later on, google implemented the same policy for gmail. last week i found that windows live also is disgusted by my last name. now, i sort of understand when free services, especially socially-centered services, like aol, gmail, and windows live do this. they don't want some wannabe thugs picking offensive usernames and then harassing people. it's annoying, but i sort of understand. what i don't understand, though, is what happened to me today. i just recently switched from comcast to at&t for home phone and internet access, so today i was signing up for online account management with at&t and they pulled the same stunt. this is not an account that is used for anything but managing my home phone service. it's not used for an email address, message board, online gaming, or anything else that would cause it to be seen by anyone but me and possibly some folks at at&t, so i'm not sure what the fuss is about. but, at least they had the decency to actually say why my chosen username was being rejected instead of just saying it is unavailable.]]> http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=411 Sat, 19 Jun 2010 12:43:00 -0400 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=410 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=410 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=410 Thu, 01 Apr 2010 22:31:00 -0400 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=409 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=409 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=409 Sat, 20 Feb 2010 13:43:00 -0500 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=408 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=408 to help my moving efforts, i temporarily swap cars with my dad. i drive his big pickup truck and he is on vacation from work so my car sits in his driveway. we plan on swapping back when i come down to visit for christmas on dec 30.

dec 28
i get a phone call from my dad around mid-day. "hey kris, your brother took your car to work this morning because it was icy out and he is uncomfortable driving his new trans am in such conditions. well, on the way home for lunch he slipped off the road and rolled it."

dec 30
i do the final walk-through and checkout for my apartment, and then i head to my parents. my insurance company has sent an adjuster to look at my car. initial reports look good. they say that while there is a lot of sheet metal damage, it appears to be minor enough that there shouldn't be anything seriously damaged underneath. they think they can probably fix the external damage and give it back to me.

jan 3
i head back home in my mother's minivan.

jan 6
the body shop has found more damage which has pushed the car past the possibility of repair. the insurance company totals my car.

jan 7 - 20
i car shop. i narrow it down to a 2006 malibu ss maxx and a 2004 grand am gt1. i decide that i can afford the grand am much better than the malibu and schedule pickup of the car for jan 23.

jan 23
i map out a public transportation route to the used car dealership that has the grand am: taxi from home to train station, train from my town to chicago, el from one chicago train station to another, train from chicago to the town where the dealer is, and another taxi from the train station to the dealer. but before i buy the car, i figure it's probably a good idea to pick up a new driver's license with my corrected address. i have already changed the address in the state's computer through a web interface they have, but still have the old address on my license. i head to the dmv just down the street and have to wait nearly 1.5 hours for them to print a new card. because of the crazy, unanticipated wait at the dmv, i end up missing the first train. the next train is in two hours so i reschedule the taxi. when the time comes the taxi arrives and takes me to the train station. i try to pay with debit card.

"the card is declined."

"what?"

"it's declinded. it's got no cash."

"that's not possible. here try this credit card."

"also declined."

"again, not possible."

so i have to run to an atm to get cash for the cabbie. on the train ride in i call my bank and ask them why my card was declined. they see no declined transactions in their logs for my accounts, so i'm guessing my cabbie was just scamming me.

i finally get to the dealer and do all the paperwork and pick up my new-to-me grand am. on the way home i stop at a store to pick up some things, but afterwards my car won't start. when i turn the key the lights dim and the starter clicks. so, i call aaa and wait an hour for them to come out and jump me. they do, and then i realize i have so little gas that i probably ought to fill up before i try to go any farther, so the aaa guy follows me to the gas station to jump me again after i fill up. once that's all taken care of, i head to a national tire and battery that is near my house and have them check out the car. looks like just a dead battery and nothing else, so i get that replaced. the car seems to be ok now, but i don't think having to take the car to the shop in the time between i buy it and i get it home for the first time is a good sign.]]> http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=408 Sun, 24 Jan 2010 10:12:00 -0500 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=407 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=407 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=407 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:12:00 -0500 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=406 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=406 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=406 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:36:00 -0500 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=405 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=405
timing hasn't been so good, though. i have to be in florida this week for work. i'm waiting in o'hare while i type this, in fact.]]> http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=405 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 05:24:00 -0400 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=404 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=404 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=404 Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:49:00 -0400 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=403 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=403 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=403 Sun, 20 Sep 2009 20:13:00 -0400 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=402 http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=402
buying real estate == fun times]]> http://www.knigga.com/viewcomment.php?id=402 Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:05:00 -0400