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So many firsts, so little time

The race is on for the first millennium baby. Some experts believe the race should start sometime next week. Every year, the first birth is always an interesting event. Think of the accolades the first-born 2000 baby will receive.

Unfortunately, there's a better chance of seeing Burt Reynolds at a polka convention than predicting the day your child will be born.

Be prepared

Hard hat. Check.

Two years' worth of provisions, including 80 cans of Spam and 72 cans of beans. Check.

Can opener. Definite check.

Before preparing for the upcoming Y2K crisis, make a short checklist of necessary items. Because the problems could last until the Y3K crisis, it's better to be safe than sorry.

Is anyone really buying into this? Is a modern computer, which was invented sometime in the mid '50s, really going to believe it went back in time? Even without a flux capacitor or Michael J. Fox's Delorean?

Grandparents

There are at least 56,828 things to do during spring break. If you have a credit card, or know how to use a stolen one, the number grows exponentially. But there is one activity that rarely gets a lot of hype this time of year.

Some people live a paper airplane's throw away from relatives, but most do not. I'm also betting days, fortnights, maybe even months have passed since your last family visit.

From the Archive

Berners-Lee on the good and the bad of the World Wide Web

While it's easy to find numerous things wrong while surfing the Web today (popup ads, no consistency between how browsers work, a lack of sites devoted to applesauce), there's one man who has a right to throw in his qualms.

This man is Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web (trumpets should sound now, so turn up your speakers). From the Wikipedia, he is also the director of the World Wide Web Consortium, which oversees its continued development.

Agent wrapup

For those of you who have been following my literary agent list, you know that I've contacted a boatload of agents. Although some of given "Corporate Ties" favorable responses, I have not obtained an agent.

Well, it's now time to move ahead without one.

On the Street: The Fry Guy

As I read on the bus about how China and India were going to take over the world by 2020, I noticed a distinct aroma coming from behind me. I thought it was a burger, or maybe a cheesesteak. At the next stop, the man who was sitting behind me moved up and joined me in the empty seat. He had a brown paper sack with him, and I saw him reach in, grab a handful of fries and stuff them in his mouth.

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