Aargh. Midnight. That's where you guys are.

Okay, going in a sec.

But first--questions:

• When you click on Google's Safe Search and it says "Filter explicit search results" what basic expectations do you have on how it protects the searcher?
• Have you seen Microsoft's shock ad based on "we don't read your emails and sell ad space?" How do you rate that as a problem for you on a scale of 1 to 10? Do you know people who worry about this? Anyone going to change provider? Is the fact that MS has ads okay, since they're not "reading"?

I think that's all I have for now...

Good to hear from you Allyson.

Have you seen Microsoft's shock ad based on "we don't read your emails and sell ad space?"

That's a Microsoft ad?? I really thought it was Joe's Internetz-n-Mail, based on the ad quality. Either way, I'm a little creeped out by the way that ads get targeted now, but clearly not enough to do anything about it.

I woke up early and am now eating cranberry biscuits (not bad, but won't make again) and drinking extra coffee.

Also, happy birthday, Suzi!

I called my parents, and they weren't up yet.

I'm glad the home treatment's coming together for you, ita.

It's good to see your pixels, Allyson.

We have no snow here in NC. I'm going to do some garden transplants today while most things are dormant. The late winter deluge of gardening catalogs has arrived and it's making me antsy. Honestly, I wouldn't mind some more snow. Not Nemo levels, necessarily. Just enough to quiet my gardening jones.

If I weren't so heavily invested in the whole Google universe, I would strongly consider switching to Outlook.com for the features (don't ask me which ones specifically, this was just an impression I had when they first launched), but the fact that Google is "reading" my mail to serve me ads doesn't bug me at all. I mean, if it did, I wouldn't have signed up for Gmail in the first place.

Allyson, I'm so glad you checked in. I hope things are getting better.

ita, YAY home nurse drugs!

Frank, you will appreciate this headline from the Poughkeepsie Journal Old-time snowfalls rougher, say some residents.

I just did my first shovel. There's about a foot down on my walkway (though I think some of that is drifts.) Fortunately it's light and fluffy for shovelling.

Timelies all!

Windy, but dry here.

We've been having trouble with our washing machine not spinning enough water out of the clothes at the end.(Resulting in soggy clothes and multiple extra spins) So this afternoon we wait for the repairman. whee.

I'm, predictably, one of the ones that it bothers, which is why I didn't sign up for gmail initially. I also use adblock, so I don't see the targeted ads, although of course the data is still being read and the ads generated.

But I think I've gone to the dark side entirely and may be willing to not care. The convenience often outweighs the mild outrage, plus I have bigger things to fight about.

We've got about two or three inches from overnight, coming down steadily, but small snow. We'll see what the next three days bring.