W'd IQ

I took an IQ test this morning... something I do periodically.

This afternoon, I walked by the plasma screen in our hallway that continuously broadcasts CNN throughout the work day. Bush was giving a speech... something he does periodically.

I only listened for a minute or two, but when I got back to my desk, I was curious. So I conducted a little experiment.

I took the IQ test again.

My score was lower.

The very best kind.

While we were out of power last week, our block was a makeshift command post for the city. There were emergency vehicles, news crews, Con Ed crews ostensibly "working" on the problem... There were even Red Cross trucks with supplies.

People were lining up at the Red Cross station to get cold water and fruit... oh, and ice.

When Jen and I were going to bed at 10:30, a Red Cross worker with a megaphone started broadcasting to the neighborhood (yes, we were very annoyed, but wait), "We have cold ice here! You can come get cold ice here!"

Ahh, cold ice...

Fortunately, someone took the idiot's megaphone in short order.

You say Con Ed, I say Con Artist

Early last week, when the temperatures hit 100 degrees (see last week's temp's below), Jen and I lost power when Northwest Queens suffered a blackout. Here was the news as we received it:

July 18: With a forecast high of 101 degrees fahrenheit for Tuesday, the State Health Department issued an air quality advisory for all five boroughs... With air conditioners running at full blast, Con Edison says its power grids in northwest Queens are stressed... The heat may have contributed to some power outages in other parts of Queens, too. Con Ed asks people who live in Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside, Hunters Point, and Astoria to be especially aware of the potential for outages.

July 20: Con Edison says the majority of people affected by power outages in Queens will have electricity back in their homes and businesses either sometime Thursday night or Friday, but power may not be fully restored to all affected areas until Sunday...The utility’s latest numbers confirm the vast majority of the outages are in Queens, and they affect some 1,900 customers.

July 22: Tens of thousands of residents in Queens are frustrated and angry as the power outage entered its sixth day Saturday... Mayor Michael Bloomberg says Con Ed estimates that between 15,000 and 20,000 customers are still without power... The utility raised its estimate of customers without power from around 2,000 to 25,000 Friday.

July 24: After eight days without power, whatever patience residents in Northwest Queens have left is wearing thin...

July 26: Power was fully restored to Northwest Queens early Wednesday morning, but... things are still not completely back to normal... Crews are expected to be in the area for several more weeks. An estimated 100,000 people were without power at the height of the blackout.

Yeah, I feel like we were "ConnEd".

They'll scare the ink out of you...

Just to prove that Mother Nature has a healthy sense of the macabre, I'd like to introduce you all to the Vampire Squid (Vampyroteuthis infernalis, literally "Vampire Squid from Hell").

If one of these puppies had been in the water instead of Bryce Dallas Howard, everyone would have been a little more impressed and freaked out.

I know, M. Night, the hindsight camera is like, hi-def.