O Acaso Vai Me Proteger

My book

2009-05-01T15:18:00.000-07:00

Some great fake business book titles:

* If the past doesn't affect the future, leave it in the past
* Checks and balances, or check mate
* Be genuinely kind for completely selfish reasons
* Get to the bottom of it: the lesson learned from Phil Purcell
* Just because its running, it doesn't mean its working
* Corporate Culture: The great soft hand with bones of ancient stone
* Spell check it!
* Stop analyzing and do something - anything

=)

Playin'

2009-04-27T15:38:00.000-07:00

In life, wins who panics the least.

Oh!! And before I forget...

2008-03-19T22:44:00.000-07:00

Best birthday comment goes to Brent.

"well i figured i would wait until it was th 18th for the both of us.
so happy birthday

did you know that tomorrow chipmunks come out of hibernation? bet you did not know you shared anything in common with chipmunks."

<3

It would have been the best birthday ever...

2008-03-19T17:40:00.000-07:00

... had my family been here =)

I always have been really big on birthdays, i think it's really important to celebrate them... yet it is never as good when my family is not around.

I can, however, say that this year I fucking celebrated my birthday - A LOT.

My birthday was Tuesday, and, let me tell you, I started celebrating it on Friday (per Luiza).
On Saturday I went out a my friend and on Monday my REAL celebration started.

It just so happens that my birthday is on the 18th and St. Patric's Day on the 17th... What better combination? Me and three of my Brazilian gals (Luiza, Priscila and Fernanda) went downtown for the annual St. Pat's day blowout. Let me tell you, tava bombando!

I am putting some pictures up, but I dont think they can fully convey the madness. IT WAS AWESOME!!

Here are more pics.

On Tuesday my they bought me a cake at work, sang happy birthday, AND - SO COOL - my boss bought me GAROTO!!! (Brazilian candy) ROCK ON!

My drawer @ work:

So that is it? NOPE.

Later that day I went out with Harry to get Indian food and watch and Indiana Jones movie.
OOOOO And harry bought me the BEST cake EVER. Chocolate mousse. It was grand.

So there you have it. Miss you, Family.

Like a Relationship on Speed

2008-02-18T13:31:00.000-08:00

They call us the "un" generation. We are uninterested, unconcerned, uncaring, unmoved, unresponsive, untouched and unimpressionable . We are apathetic. We are noncommittal. We are selfish and self-indulgent. We got our values all wrong. We know very little.

I see where this criticism comes from and I try my best to hold on to any evidence to the contrary. Sometimes though, you just can't avoid the truth when it's banging on your door.

The other day I was coming home from job-hunting, sitting on the bus, reading a book, when this guy comes in. He was probably on his mid to late 20s. He starts talking to people around me, asking them whether they were registered to vote, telling them about environmental issues. I take a look at him, he has a calculus book: inside a few petitions lay. "There!" I think. Here is someone from our generation, ready and willing, going to college, probably working and still making time to be socially active! Take that!"

After he collects a few signatures, I ask him, "Why are you doing this?"
(I should have stayed with my fantasy)
"They pay me a buck a signature", he says.
" I see" I say, and think, "well, a guy must pay his way through college. This is a flexible enough job that he can do it in between classes."
"So where do you go to college?" I ask.
"College? I don't think so. I am never going back to school"
"Oh.. I just saw the Calc book and I thought...."
"Oh this? Oh no. I actually just needed a clipboard and I happened to find this book on a bench..."
"..."

Eu sei que as aparencias enganam... mas po!

Bitter Sweet

2008-01-27T23:43:00.000-08:00

This made me smile, but I also cried a little in the inside.

I want LEGOS so bad! Any donors?

<3

An accurate depiction of our trip (summary).

2008-01-27T12:12:00.000-08:00

Easily Amused

2008-01-27T01:57:00.000-08:00

As some of you might have noticed, I am very easily amused (whenever I am not on my period, or "on the rag", suffering a "visit from Aunt Flo", "Raining down south" ... or whatever you want to call it (God, I love the English language!)).

At risk of sounding dangerously like Hughes let me tell you about the newest addition to our house, our baby, our shinny star, our pride and joy: The Blackboard. Yes, we are now the proud owners of our very own blackboard. In fact, we have made it ourselves!

Actually, making it was the easy part. Finding chalk, on the other hand, was an arduous pilgrimage. You would think that art supply store would sell that kinda thing... you would think..

But no matter! We have found chalk and returned happily to our home, and here is one of the very things Harry wrote with the chalk we bought:

I laughed.

Meet the cast.

2008-01-27T01:00:00.001-08:00

Before we descend (further) into the depths of madness, I'd like to introduce you to the stars of our show:

Julia Secunda is Harry's GPS.

We've Made It!!

2008-01-27T00:44:00.000-08:00

Twenty-two days ago Daniel, Harry and myself left Atlanta (where my good friend Phil lives) and started on our journey across country. But, after days of fast food, cheap hotels and - sigh - scarce and scattered tubes, we've made it! Dan is back at school and Harry and myself managed to get ourselves a nice place, we had an adventure involving a couch, a belt, and an elevator... we even made ourselves a blackboard (it's ok to be jealous).

As I have mentioned in previous postings, I have maintained a diary of our trip in the form of comics. Over the next few days, I'll be disseminating them via posts on this blog. Don't worry if you don't understand them - that makes you one of the lucky ones.

... now all we need is to get a job... or 2, if possible.

oh do I

2008-01-15T22:43:00.000-08:00

I have comics and as soon as I have a house, I'll be uploading them.

=D

pseudo-update

2008-01-11T08:16:00.000-08:00

Look, voracious fans. I know I haven't updated this blog since I've been on the road...

I was going to follow it with an excuse, but I find none fitting. No worries though. I have been keeping every adventure logged in cartoon form. It will be grand.

So yeah. Blogging about not blogging. How sad.

Anyway, maybe I'll update for real tomorrow. It depends where we are spending the night.

XOXO

Julia

What???

2007-12-25T21:35:00.000-08:00

Harry: you're going to need to hurry up, or I'll eat all the good authors

Ach So

Julia's SOOOOO DTUUUUUNKL

2007-12-22T22:44:00.000-08:00

My name is Julia.

I'm... I'm a blogaholic.

=(

Cute or Creepy, part III

2007-12-22T22:28:00.000-08:00

Lyrics by Belle and Sebastian

Winter Wooskie

Who's that girl?
She must be nearly freezing
Who's that girl? I'll bet
All that snow makes it hard so see her
Today she waved to me

And maybe I'm in love
Love love, love love
And maybe that's enough
That stuff, that stuff

Made a film
I made it through the window
Who's that star I cast?
All wrapped up in her winter wardrobe
She hurries by so fast

And maybe I'm in love
Love love, love love
And maybe that's enough
That stuff, that stuff

On summer days when the sun shines
I watch the tape
And through the snow, through the window
I watch her wave to me

Who's that girl?
She must be nearly freezing

Cute or Creepy, part II

2007-12-22T22:15:00.000-08:00

Julia's Post.

2007-12-22T22:06:00.000-08:00

I love how Harry has usurped my blog.

Harry reminds me that the proper term is "coup d'etat."

He's actually typing this right now.

=)

Layers of Blogability (or, Harry and Julia High on Technology)

2007-12-22T21:48:00.000-08:00

Chain mail???

Ta-Da! :

Harry and Julia Explain the World, Part II: The Deep

2007-12-22T21:01:00.000-08:00

If you are my friend, you've probably heard my theories and feelings on the philosophy, or rather attitude, that I like to call The Deep. The Deep is a very complex concept - a Nirvana-esque state, if you will. Being Deep consists of talking about things that amaze you because you don't fully understand them (and attributing these things to forces that are almost spiritual or intangible... forces that only you - and perhaps a few other blessed ones - are insightful enough to grasp) while trying to woo your listener; after all, not everyone can reach such wonderful secrets of life. Now, everyone has talked Deeply - probably during their teenage years. Yesterday, however, I found an epidemic of The Deep. I promise you: it's one beautiful Deep Moment after another. Ladies and Gentlemen: Before Sunset (2004)

Watch it, and you'll see what I mean.

Here are a few gems:
Jesse: Do you believe in reincarnation?
Celine: Yeah. Yeah, it's interesting.
Jesse: Yeah, right. Well, most people, you know, a lot of people talk about past lives and things like that, you know? And even if they don't believe it in some specific way, you know, people have some kind of notion of an eternal soul, right?
Celine: Yeah.
Jesse: OK, well this was my thought: 50,000 years ago, there are not even a million people on the planet. 10,000 years ago, there's, like, two million people on the planet. Now there's between five and six billion people on the planet, right? Now, if we all have our own, like, individual, unique soul, right, where do they all come from? You know, are modern souls only a fraction of the original souls? 'Cause if they are, that represents a 5,000 to 1 split of each soul in the last 50,000 years, which is, like, a blip in the Earth's time. You know, so at best we're like these tiny fractions of people, you know, walking... I mean, is that why we're so scattered? You know, is that why we're all so specialized?
Celine: I don't know. Wait a minute, I'm not sure... I don't...
Jesse: Yeah, hang on, hang on. It's a, it's a totally scattered thought. It... which is kind of why it makes sense.

Celine: You know, I have this awful paranoid thought that feminism was mostly invented by men so that they could like, fool around a little more.

Celine: I believe if there's any kind of God it wouldn't be in any of us, not you or me but just this little space in between. If there's any kind of magic in this world it must be in the attempt of understanding someone sharing something. I know, it's almost impossible to succeed but who cares really? The answer must be in the attempt.

Priceless.

Graduation Gifts!

2007-12-17T09:09:00.000-08:00

Ring: 25 ¢

Tattoo: 50 ¢ (given, it is not exactly what I wanted)

Celebrating yourself: YES, PLEASE!

Bros: a tentative report on my findings

2007-12-16T22:51:00.000-08:00

Commemorative Post

2007-12-16T01:42:00.000-08:00

A university professor set an examination question in which he asked what is the difference between ignorance and apathy. The professor had to give an A+ to a student who answered: I don't know and I don't care.
- Richard Pratt, Pacific Computer Weekly, 20 July 1990

A thought I'd make an entry marking the exact time I am officially done with school work. I just submitted the final draft of my research paper. It was bitter sweet, handing in my baby.

I'll have more posts about graduating soon. For now, sighs... which kind of sighs varies by the second.

Finals week

2007-12-11T18:46:00.001-08:00

Julia Azambuja Eats..

2007-12-11T03:09:00.000-08:00

Harry's Blog.

It's his 50th post! CONGRATS!

plagiarism

2007-12-11T02:48:00.000-08:00

Sonnet 130

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips' red;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
I grant I never saw a goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.

Harry and Julia explain the world

2007-12-11T02:14:00.000-08:00

self-explanatory.

vanity, hats and classes

2007-12-08T09:40:00.000-08:00

To someone whom I love so very much.

2007-11-28T17:28:00.000-08:00

Dialética

É claro que a vida é boa
E a alegria, a única indizível emoção
É claro que te acho linda
Em ti bendigo o amor das coisas simples
É claro que te amo
E tenho tudo para ser feliz
Mas acontece que eu sou triste...

Harry, Condoms and Anthropology

2007-11-28T08:49:00.001-08:00

I have a great friend. For anonymity's sake, let's call him Harry.

Harry truly is one of the best human beings I know. People who know him would agree.

He was the one who first pointed out to me the golden rule of convenient-stores-condom-arrangements: condoms always go next to headache medicine.

But this entry is about his newest theory (and it's not like he doesn't have a new one every day)...

Anthropology...

I always thought Anthropology only really had one actual theory that it may claim its own:

Cultural relativism (which, by the way, I don't deem to be that great of a theory anyway).

The rest of it is mostly applied linguistics, with some stuff borrowed from psychology.

Now, Harry has a different theory. See, he is taking this anthropology class this semester and ... let's just say it's not his favorite class. He said to me that anthropology is the one discipline that actively seeks to conclude that we do not know - that we do not, cannot, understand.

In fact, he says, anthropology is the only subject area I know that prides itself the most at not knowing... "Oh yeah, I am a good anthropologist, I know that I couldn't possibly understand that culture for I am a middle class western white male"...

I laughed. I think he is right.

Sexy

2007-11-26T23:08:00.000-08:00

Bad

better

<3 fall

2007-11-26T16:07:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving!

And then, of course, there was apple cider and 500 pages of reading...

good times.

Elis Regina -

2007-11-23T19:17:00.001-08:00

I don't have many idols... But SHE is my greatest idol. ever.

Physics is sexy

2007-11-08T17:44:00.000-08:00

what?

Packing

2007-11-06T08:46:00.000-08:00

In a few weeks (hopefully) I'll be on a plane... to Holland (?) ... surely to somewhere. And I am only allowed one backpack. Problem: I HAVE TOO MUCH CRAP.

There is the stuff I am keeping for when I loose those extra pounds;
Stuff my grandma gave me that, well, I don't actually use ...
That dress that I only use every 3 years.
That gorgeous outfit that only goes with that purple pairs of shoes I bought specially for it.
That gorgeous pair of shoes that only goes with one outfit.
The clothes that are amazingly comfy but I don't ever dare to wear in public.

SO MUCH CRAP. It all must go...

... and even then... there are more clothes than room on my pack. boo.

Physics

2007-11-02T03:33:00.001-07:00

In a nuclear reactor, rods made of boron are used to slow down neutrons to control the nuclear
reactions (the more neutrons flying around, the more fission reactions). Boron has a light
nucleus. Why not use a massive nucleus like lead to slow the neutrons?

Europe : Here we come.

2007-11-02T02:15:00.001-07:00

Totally.

I found METAL! ( - or Dethklok first appearance)

2007-10-27T09:03:00.000-07:00

Harry and I went to a show last night, and it was pretty rocking (except for the fact that I hadn't slept "much" the night before and my body was throwing a hissy fit).

During the show there was some dude reading Already Dead and selling cds. And it was among these CDs that I found it. The name is Nile. Song No. 6 is called

" Chapter Of Obeisance Before Giving Breath To The Inert One In The Presence Of The Crescent Shaped Horns".

(I felt the title deserved its own paragraph).

Now, I am not a huge fan of metal lyrics. They sound like 7th graders poetry and I am pretty sure most of them were composed by rhyming the last words of the verses AND then coming up with the verses themselves.

(quick! get the rhyming dictionary! what rhymes with "death"?)

... but this post is not about their lyrics; it's about their actual music.
I am not an expert in music, and especially, I am not an expert in metal... but I must say that I have never ever ever heard any metal band that produced music as generic as this one. Correction: never with the exception of Dethklok. In fact, I am pretty sure I have heard parts of Nile's songs in Metalocalypse. This band was metal in its most generic, collective, cliche form. I mean. Seriously. This band was just so... metal.

\m/

The Economist asks... I answer.

2007-10-15T19:40:00.000-07:00

Well... we know they can fucking foot dance like pros.

Time

2007-10-06T17:28:00.001-07:00

Scott: Julia! It's been ages since you've posted on your blog! Didn't you know that 3 days equal a year in internet time?

Cute or Creepy?

2007-09-27T20:57:00.000-07:00

Soap.

NO. THAT IS DEF JUST CREEPY.

My Uncle is Badass!

2007-09-27T14:59:00.000-07:00

This post is to celebrate my uncle's latest achievement: he got a big promotion!

Congratulations, tio Claudio!!

I love you and we are all very proud of you! You deserve it! <3

Where have I been...

2007-09-25T05:13:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't been posting. I've been scheming though. That is all I'm going to say for now. Scheming - cheers Will (great word!)

That time of the year...

2007-09-20T22:26:00.000-07:00

So, it's once again time for Halloween costume shopping!

(And this time around I actually have been invited to a really awesome event - Thanks Chad!)

So I started browsing ... I was looking under sexy (of course!) costumes and I think I might have found my costume for this year:

"You'll fly off the shelf in this unique Pretty Polly Poseable Dolly adult costume. Comes with piping and straps to give structure to the box, and slits on the side allow for arm movement. Plastic cover is removable and secured with velcro. Comes with assembly instructions. Great on guys too! "

How much sexier does it get?

Ok... but seriously. I am looking for a costume. Suggestions please?

Gadfly

2007-09-19T13:57:00.001-07:00

- a person who persistently annoys or provokes others with criticism, schemes, ideas, demands, requests, etc.

I JUST LOVE THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE!

(So much better than the word of the day dictionary.com provided me)

<3

2007-09-19T09:25:00.000-07:00

For my CS homies.

Thanks mom! You rock!

=/

2007-09-18T12:16:00.000-07:00

Scott so gave me the flu.

Thinking of... Jeanine and our trip cross country... I love you!

2007-09-18T03:22:00.000-07:00

Hey Jeanine, Thank you so much for introducing me to India Arie. I always feel closer to you when I listen to her!
You're one of the greatest things ever to happen to me, and I will always have a place for you in my heart!

These Eyes

These eyes never saw you leavin
This heart is in need of some healing
These arms are letting you go
Our life is the greatest story never told

How many more ways can I explain this to you boy
We had had this conversation several times before
I will except nothing less than your complete respect
If you cannot give me that then maybe I should step

These eyes never saw you leavin
This heart is in need of some healing
These arms are letting you go
Our life is the greatest story never told

All this cryin all this fightin simply ain't my style
Though you're one of the most important people in my life
I love you from the day we met, I know you love me too
But at this point walking away is the best thing we can do

These eyes never saw you leavin
This heart is in need of some healing
These arms are letting you go
Our life is the greatest story never told

Are we meant to be man and wife?
The answer I don't know
Of life's many mystery's what intrigues me the most
Is who our children would have been
I guess we'll never know
Even as I walk away I'll always keep the hope

These eyes never saw you leavin
This heart is in need of some healing
These arms are letting you go
That's life

That's the way the story goes
Truth is every relationship is a lesson
Truth is I saw it coming but it hurts anyway
Truth is I'm not the reason you're so angry
Truth is you're not the reason I'm so passive
Truth is I've got to take back my power
Truth is

The reason why it hurts so bad
to walk away from you

These eyes I never saw you leavin
This heart my heart is in need of some healing
These arms, These arms are letting you go
That's life is the greatest story never told (2x)

Our love is the greatest story never told
Our life is the greatest story never told (2x)

And that's the way the story goes...

NONSENSE 5. anything of trifling importance or of little or no use.

2007-09-17T03:39:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all

I haven't posted in a while, so I decided to post some ramblings, even if they aren't exactly prettily written... (and by the way, somebody help me here, is "rambling" a noun? dictionary.com doesn't think so).

As I wrote the first line of this entry I decided to check the spelling of "Y'all" (I wasn't about to get yelled at by Phil ;) ) AND YES! THERE IS INDEED AN ENTRY ON WIKIPEDIA ABOUT IT!

And I found out that it's sometimes misspelled as "Ya'll", "Yawl", or "Yaw" (YAW??? REALLY?) . Anyway.. thanks to wonderful wikipedia, that is not a mistake I'm making.

But the internet is really a wonderful, informative tool. The other night I had a strong craving for raisinets (my favorite candy, because it reminds me of my mom). So I dragged Harry and Scott to Redners. On the way there we noticed a shoe in the middle of the road... we've all had a similar experience at some point in our lives and we've all wondered "How the hell did it get there? Is it part of a cult? Did someone got pissed off in traffic and decided the middle finger wasn't enough to express his anger? Does it involve sex somehow?" Well, fear no more. I have THE ANSWER(s). Yes, someone actually wrote a thread about it, and, what is best, people replied to it (some people actually wrote on it more than once).

I will leave you today ( pretend it's still the 16th - I haven't gone to bed yet <3)wishing a wonderful International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer!- Especially for those of you under the hole in Brazil.

Shoe of Shoes

WOW - That's all I have to say.

2007-09-11T23:29:00.001-07:00

I AM SPEECHLESS

GO ACM GO!

2007-09-11T22:09:00.000-07:00

Julia's first Video

2007-09-07T14:34:00.001-07:00

YOU GO SCOTT!

2007-09-07T05:21:00.000-07:00

HALO 3 LAUNCH TOURNAMENT

9/25/07

COME JOIN US AT OUR FIRST VIDEO GAME TOURNAMENT OF THE YEAR

1^ST PLACE: HALO 3 COLLECTOR’S EDITION + $50 GIFT CARD

2^nd PLACE: HALO 3 STANDARD EDITION + $25 GIFT CARD

3^RD PLACE: HALO 3 STANDARD EDITION

RULES

Players will sign up in teams in 4 (or we will put you in a team of 4, if you do not have one)! Each match will be a 4v4 match, so it's one team against another. Each team will play against each other team once.

At the end, the number of kills each team scores is tallied.The team with the highest number of kills gets the 1st place prize, the team with the second-highest number of kills gets the 2nd place prize, and the team with the third-highest number of kills gets the 3rd place prize.

But which of the four in the team will keep the titanic prizes?

MASSIVE TWIST!!! --- A new catch is going to be added this year. Once the prizes have been awarded to the teams, there will be the final EPIC BATTLES between the Halo gods of Ursinus. Once your team has placed in the top 3, your war is just beginning.

For each of the top 3 teams, there will be a 4-way free-for-all between the former teammates. The single winner of this match will win his/her team's prize!

Will YOU be the one to finish the fight?

http://ursinus.facebook.com/event.php?eid=18543425808

FINISH THE FIGHT!

MASTER CHIEF IS WAITING…

Heims+Julia skyping.

2007-09-06T14:17:00.001-07:00

Check list. Heims can:

* Jump
*Climb
*Fetch
*Play football (catch)
*Skype with his favorite human ... (that would be me)

I will never ever ever ever (!) love another cat as I love Heims.

Algorithm March! with Ninjas!

2007-09-06T02:07:00.001-07:00

Watch it to the end.

Me? Proud?

2007-09-06T01:32:00.001-07:00

AWESOMENESS

Success! (or Let the games begin!)

2007-09-05T23:10:00.001-07:00

Back to school

2007-09-05T21:30:00.000-07:00

Classes started again on Monday. Although I am glad to still be in school – as this is a refuge from the real world- life on campus without Jeanine or Philip feels really odd. So far I am enrolled in Physics and Independent research for economics – none of which excites me to the least.

I am, however, excited by my newest project (it’s been a while since I’ve head a project of my own): Studying language. I’ve decided to undertake this project for a simple fact: anything I might ever want to announce to the world will have to be in words. I’ve came to terms with this fact, so it’s probably a good idea to attempt to understand my means of communication.

I’ve always thought that passion, initiative, and interesting thoughts are often born out of boredom. I still believe that. It’s been quite a while since I felt bored – I’ve rather felt overwhelmed through out the five years I’ve inhabited this country. This summer, for the first time in a while, for the fact I was single, the fact that I did not have a job for most of it, I was finally beginning to feel, well, bored. And with it came the wonderful desire to learn. A desire I haven’t felt since I was 18. It feels good – and I hope it will last even though school has started. You shouldn’t let school get in the way of your education. That is often how I feel.

So I went nuts and bought 4 or 5 books on language, in addition to Lolita and Catch 22, which are books on language on their own way. I am, of course, reading them all simultaneously (is there any other way?) and as fast as I can, so I can read more and other things. I plan on hiding from any social life this semester – with the exception of ACM events – and dedicating myself to my new friends: the books. Noam Chomsky is excellent. Nothing he has said so far (I’ve only read 50 pages) on his On Language has been new to me, yet the concise way in which he presents his points, the clarity and specificity with which he addresses these issues, as well as the great examples he explores make this book absolutely phenomenal, and a delight to read.

Language in Thought and Action on the other hand has proved to be less than exciting. Its writing, while eloquent, is far from beautiful, and its content so far is quite childish and dull. It talks of how different humans are from other animals for we can 1. learn from other humans (who communicate their experiences to us through language – verbal or written) and 2. because we can make use of symbols that stand for something. Although those are both valid points, I find them to be rather common knowledge and I don’t see the need for discussing it as thoroughly as they have in this book. I have, however, only read 30 pages of this book, so I still have hopes for it.

More on other books later – but just as a teaser, as far as I can tell (again, I’ve only read 20 pages worth of it) Empires of the World, A Language History of the World is quite the work of art.

Cultural Differences

2007-09-05T20:24:00.000-07:00

Today, as most days, I ordered a cheese quesadilla at Zack's (our school cafeteria). For two (or three?) years now you no longer order your food from a human being; instead you go to a touch screen and place your order there. You select what you want to eat and drink and then press "PAY". Then a screen comes up giving your total (again) and asking if that is "OK". Yes, it's ok.
I wonder how such a machine would work in places like India, Israel or Morocco. Would it accommodate bargaining?

Your sandwich comes to a total of $30 dollars. Is that ok?
1.Yes
2.No.

>> 2

Please select a reason:
1. Simply won't pay this much. I'll walk out.
2. I don't have that much on me.
3. My house is on fire.
4. I just got fired.
5. I need to teach the value of money to my kids.

>>4.

Sorry to hear that. Please make a counter proposal.

>>$2

Sorry we are not able to accept that price. Your new total is $25 dollars. Is that ok?
1.Yes
2.No

>>2

Please select a reason:
1. Simply won't pay this much. I'll walk out.
2. I don't have that much on me.
3. My house is on fire.
4. I just got fired.
5. I need to teach the value of money to my kids.

>>1

Wait! Maybe we can figure something else out! Is $12 dollars ok?

1. Yes
2. No

>> 2

...

Duly Guidance

2007-09-03T15:35:00.000-07:00

Americans don't love as well as Brazilians. But then how could they, without Vinicius?

Para viver um grande amor perfeito, não basta ser apenas bom sujeito; é preciso também ter muito peito — peito de remador. É preciso olhar sempre a bem-amada como a sua primeira namorada e sua viúva também, amortalhada no seu finado amor.

GOOGLE RULES! (or Playing Barbie)

2007-09-03T03:08:00.001-07:00

meaning

2007-09-02T12:26:00.000-07:00

in·ten·sion

5.Logic. (of a term) the set of attributes belonging to all and only those things to which the given term is correctly applied; connotation; comprehension.

-- dictionary.com

Take 2

2007-09-02T12:24:00.001-07:00

Hello World! (again)