Signal to Noise

I’ve decided to try an experiment. Most of my Apache web log traffic appears to come from people that scrape my headlines frequently using an RSS reader of one sort or another.  So, I’m going to try to use my blog to find out who these people are. If you match the descriptions that follow, feel free to contact me on the Sitofono link in the sidebar:

• A Charter customer in the Marquette, MI area. You read my headlines a ton. Either you’re a closet plaigiarist or you really like my blog. Who are you?
• A Comcast customer in Georgia. 3126 hits in 28 days? Let me guess, you must be the guy sending all the viagra comments to me.
• A Northeast Ohioan using Roadrunner with telco-owned CPE. 828 hits in 28 days; not bad at all. How about posting a comment some time?
• OK, just who the heck is tide533.microsoft.com? You’re sucking my hosting buddy’s bandwidth like crazy.
• A few months ago, one of my posts made the rounds at Avaya and I got like a zillion hits from Avaya. This time around, it’s Nortel. Hey, people at Nortel, who are you?

I’m going to sign off for a few days to celebrate the holiday. I hope that all of your cups are full this Christmas, and all your spirits lifted. We live in a wonderful land at a wonderful time, and there is so much promise this time of year–offline and on. Enjoy your holiday and take time to reflect and regroup.  And I’ll see you all again next week.

To keep in the spirit of the holiday, here’s a passage from the second chapter of Luke:

1In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3And everyone went to his own town to register.

4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

8And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”13Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

21On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.22When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), 24and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.”

25Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
29“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you now dismiss your servant in peace.
30For my eyes have seen your salvation,
31which you have prepared in the sight of all people,
32a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.”