Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Bodies, Jobs, & Never Lost.

The last day of the week that I have spent a night at Mom's. Tomorrow life goes back to normal. Brother-in-law went to work yesterday and did really well. So that crisis is past us.

Do you ever consider the history of a home when you are looking to buy one? I never do but maybe I should:

http://realestate.aol.com/blog/2011/09/09/history-at-auction-homes-past-includes-john-browns-body/?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-sb-nb%7Cdl18%7Csec1_lnk2%7C94879

Unless the body is in the living room on the couch I don't think it would bother me to buy the house.

I'm always happy when anyone gets a job:

http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2011/09/12/ibm-putting-watson-to-work-in-health-insurance/?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-nb%7Cdl9%7Csec3_lnk2%7C94843

I'm not sure I am happy about a computer diagnosing medical conditions. Are you?

Men never ask for directions. We just don't we know the world is round and we will eventually get there. Now we don't have to worry about getting lost because someone wants to know where we are at all times:

http://translogic.aolautos.com/2011/09/09/unwarranted-gps-tracking-devices-warrant-fears/?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-nb%7Cdl20%7Csec1_lnk3%7C94912

Comment Away.

QUOTE

Suzanne La Follette authored yesterday's quote. "Yes'm, old friends is always best, 'less you can catch a new one that's fit to make an old one out of. " Was authored by novelist and short story writer born in 1849 and died in 1909. She is best known for best known for her local color works set in or near South Berwick, Maine, on the border of New Hampshire, which in her day was a declining New England seaport. As treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, a condition that developed in early childhood, She was sent on frequent walks and through them also developed a love of nature. She published her first important story in the Atlantic Monthly at age 19. She possessed a keen descriptive gift that William Dean Howells called "an uncommon feeling for talk. She never married; but she established a close friendship with writer Annie Field and her husband, publisher James Thomas Fields, editor of the Atlantic Monthly. After the sudden death of James Fields she and Annie Fields lived together for the rest of her life in what was then termed a "Boston marriage." Have you visited THE COUNTRY OF THE POINTED FIRS?. If you have you can answer the question, who authored today's quote?

4 comments:

Pat said...

I think there's a new movie about people who unknowingly move into a house where something horrible happened. Not a movie I'll probably see, so I haven't paid much attention, but it's a fairly common theme. I like the Perkins house, and it wouldn't bother me that it was the site of an execution so long ago. Some other things might bother me, though, and I would hope to know a house's history if it had a history.

I quite liked Watson on JEOPARDY, so I'm glad he has a new job and isn't just languishing with all the other unemployed. OTOH, since I'm not a fan of any health insurer, I do hope he doesn't become corrupted by their greedy "me first and forget the patient" attitudes. The article quotes a company exec: "Beer said patients needn't worry that Watson will be used to help insurers deny benefits." Sure, that's what they SAY. Humph!

As to whether I'd trust Watson's diagnoses, well, probably more than I'd trust a lot of doctors and certainly more than I'd trust an insurance company.

Sheesh! Tracking devices on our cars? The CIA or others listening to our phone conversations or monitoring our email? What a world we live in today! For me personally, I hope all those trackers and listeners don't die of boredom, but for some I imagine it's a huge invasion of privacy. Probably most of those are doing something they shouldn't be doing, but still...

Lady DR said...

Yea! on some free time for you and on b-i-l going back to work.

I like the Perkins House, although it's way to big for me. Still, I'd buy it. It's a piece of history. Like you, unless there was a body on the LR couch, I probably wouldn't worry overmuch, although I might consider a feng shui cleansing (g)

I think Watson can work for good or evil. First, I'd want to know that any charts and med records included *everything* from historical test results to patient comments and complaints. And I find it interesting the company felt it had to print a disclaimer, assuring it wouldn't be used to deny claims. I trust insurance companies about as far as I can throw their CEO.

The GPS is a little scary. On the one hand, I can see the plus to being able to track suspected drug traffic and documented potential terrorists, especially it the unit could also detect anything that might be a car bomb. OTOH, using it willy nilly is a bit to "big brother" for me. I recently edited a ms in which the govt had re-issued paper and coin currency with a tracking device that read fingerprints (all citizens were fingerprinted, when the got their DLs or some such), which allowed the gov't, through GPS satellites, to track anyone who touched a piece of money. It was of course, used by the wrong people, for the wrong purposes, but it was a pretty scary idea, especially taken with the issue of all the new money the government has been printing lately.

William J. said...

Hi Pat

Well there was one recently which I forget the title but wasn't The Amityville Horror House or something like that about a possessed house? I like the Perkins house and a dead body or two wouldn't keep me from buying it, if the price was right.

I liked Watson Jeopardy too. But the risk is there that the wrong users, insurance companies, could corrupt it. And I do think the insurers will use it to deny benefits. Call me Skeptical but I do think that.

They indicated in the article that ex girl/boy friends or current spouses could us it track what everyone is up to. There is just something wrong with that. I really don't give a rip what an ex is doing (not that I have all that many) and the spouse just means divorce due to lack of trust if the device is found out.

Bill

William J. said...

DR

I'm glad we agree on the Perkins House, it is to big for me too.

I'm hoping Watson works for Good and has a mind of its own. Good point about everything being included. If they printed aq disclaimer that means they were thinking about it.

The GPS thing does scare. Of course, anyone watching me would be bored stiff. I'm quite disturbed that they could be in relationships which also means they could be used by people just wanting to know where I shop to target me on ads. What a nightmare story with the Ms and money. Frightening.

Bill