I'm Denny Crane...

So, you're tired of Law & Order - Unique and Rare Coin Theft Unit?

I must admit, there was a time when I watched the show's re-runs daily. This was before there was more than one version of the show. And who doesn't love the late Jerry Orbach? I mean, he practically personnified the grizzled & glib New York cop, for pete's sake!

But I'm sad to admit that until very recently, my love affair with tv shows about the legal profession had languished. They just seemed to lack that panache I had come to demand from my evening entertainment. I guess I can blame Dick Wolfe for stepping away from direct involvement with Law and Order.

At any rate, I'm happy to report that my love for television court room drama has been re-kindled, and oddly enough, it's largely due to Murphy Brown & Captain Kirk.

Yes, that's right, I admit it - I LOVE BOSTON LEGAL.

The show is quite comedic, despite the fact it's ostensibly billed as a drama by ABC. And oddly enough, it's almost a polar opposite of Law & Order. I guess that's probably because L & O is actually a drama, whereas BL comes off as more of a comedy, with dramatic interludes.

And I would say that although L & O had some great characters in the series, it was primarily driven by its story lines. Boston Legal, at least to this fan, appears to be a character study that happens to occur at a Law Firm.

William Shatner's character, the self-obsessed Denny Crane, is delightfully crazy. Even to the point of claiming he's got "the mad cow disease."

I mean, come on! How do they write this stuff? It's hilarious to say the least.

Shatner plays the role so deftly against the backdrop of other characters in the firm, cheif among them Bergen's portrayal of Shirley Schmidt and James Spader's Alan Shore.

I have always been a fan of the legal drama / comedy. I suppose my step-father's interest in the law has influenced that to a degree.

If you're looking for a sharp, witty, and outrageous hour of entertainment, tune in. You won't be disappointed.

Surviving & Winning Hands

Tonight's poker game was pretty kewl. David, one of my co-workers from Dell, hosted the game at his home. It was incredibly nice to meet his wife and hang out in a social setting away from work. He and I wind up talking a lot at work, as I support one of the applications for which he is a lead developer.

I was astonished as 20 people showed up to play. With a $20 buy in, unlimited re-buys for the first 4 rounds, and a $20 add on, the prize pool grew to a respectable size.

I even busted a pair of Aces. When it counted. ALOT.

Of course, they were David's, which ALMOST made me feel a little bad, but he wound up placing 2nd in the tournament so the guilt was short-lived.

I wound up finishing 3rd, which is nice for my first poker game here in Austin. I won a few hundred, nothing to brag about, but enough to cover my travel for my XMAS trip back home. I'm definitely going to be back there for the next event.

The only disappointing thing about tonight was that Survivor was pretty tame, especially considering the DRAMA of last week's episode. Poker games always leave me with an Adrenaline rush, so maybe that was why I couldn't get into the episode.

Cindy got her Aces busted in tonight's episode. Looks like the Car Curse is still alive and well. Oh well, I like the last episode the best anyways.

A recipe for Crawfish Etoufee that will win every time

Image from MochaDad

I think I'll hold off on preparing it until maybe this weekend. Or at least tomorrow when I'm off of work. I mean, it isn't like it's a complicated dish or anything, it's just that I got invited to play at a Poker Tournament tonight held by one of the guys on a Dev Team here at work.

Wil Wheaton Roxx!

Ok, I know I'm probably too old to be a fanboy. And I guess that's not too hard for me to concede. And I'll even admit that my fanboy-dom for Wil even includes a bit of pre-adolescent / adolescent obsession with his Wes Crusher character on Star Trek: TNG. I've been a geek for a while, ok.

Whatever.

He is still a great actor and quite funny. So you haven't really thought of Wil since you caught the last re-run of Stand By Me? You should check out his blog. It's pretty damn funny. And thoughtful. I've followed it off and on over the last few years. Usually I wind up reading it for a while when he posts on Slashdot.

Why am I still a fan? Well it's primarily because Wil's a real guy. And doesn't pretend otherwise. He writes about things that you can tell are important to him. He's obviously interested and passionate about these things, and that makes him interesting. I find it refreshing that someone can go through the insanity that is a child acting career and turn out to be a pretty ok guy. That gives me hope for the rest of us.

Well, a little anyways.

Anyway, he's got a new book, and if you're a geek you should really check it out. Or if your brain is soggy or tired you can get his audio book also. It's a good read. If you really consider yourself a geek (and that's probably not far off if you're reading this), I can guarantee that you'll find a few stories that hit close to home.

This isn't an ad or anything for Wil. I'm just a fan who thinks anyone interested in my ramblings might find his intriguing as well.

That's all for now, but come back tomorrow. I'm making Crawfish Etoufee for a friend, and I'll be posting my mom's recipe.

Ca c'est bon, cher!

Great new book - "Writing Secure Code" by David C. LeBlanc and Michael Howard

"Writing Secure Code" by David C. LeBlanc and Michael Howard.

I just got my copy of "Writing Secure Code" by David C. LeBlanc and Michael Howard. 

So far, I'm only at the chapter on Threat Modelling, but it has proven to be quite an enlightning read.

I heard about it in a course I took in training called, aptly enough, Developing Secure Software. 

It's a required course for all developers and testers at Dell which is where I am currently employed. It was presented in a lab format by a representative from St. Edwards University's Professional Education Center. 

The thing that really pulled me into the class was that it covered development of web apps, C/S database apps, and code in both C# and Java.
They walked us through both the apps in question, the techniques used to compromise said apps, and even the code / technical solutions to the vulnerabilities. Definitely the coolest training I've been able to attend to date here.

If you write and/or test code, even in non-Microsoft environments, you should check out this book. I got my copy on amazon for $7.95, so it's not even a particularly expensive learning tool. Don't you just LOVE a good sale ;) ?

There's a Kindle Edition, and a Paperback available.  Links to purchase them from Amazon included for your convenience.