TILOTD - Blinded by the Light

Things I Learned On This Day - The 1976 song "Blinded by the Light" made popular by Manfred Mann's Earth Band was actually written by Bruce Springsteen. According to Wikipedia,the Manfred Mann's Earth Band's recording of the song changed some lyrics. The most prominent change was in the chorus, where Springsteen's "cut loose like a deuce" was replaced with either "revved up like a deuce" or "wrapped up like a deuce". The lyric is a reference to the 1932 V8-powered Ford automobile, which hot-rod enthusiasts dubbed the "deuce coupe" (the "deuce" coming from the 2 in 1932, the first year the V8 was available). 

Fun Fact: Springsteen was fond of classic hot rods in his youth, hence the line "revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night". As the line is frequently misheard as "wrapped up like a douche", Springsteen has joked about confusion over the lyrics, claiming that it was not until Manfred Mann rewrote the song to be about a feminine hygiene product that it became popular.

Book Review - Source Code - My Beginnings

Title: Source Code - My Beginnings
Author: Bill Gates
My Rating: 👍👍👍👍👍
My Review: I'm a bit of a computer nerd. I totally remember when desktop PC's became affordable and how amazing it was to be able to write documents and print them on my dot matrix printer. My first computer was a Leading Edge Model D which I bought in 1986 at a store in Eureka, CA that, for some reason also sold vacuum cleaners. Looking back now, I realize how primitive that computer was, especially considering what can be done with smart phones now. I really like this book. Bill Gates is a genius and computers would not be where they are today without him. I totally recommend this book. 

Description (Audible): Everyone is programmed a little differently, and Bill Gates' unique insight led to business triumphs that are now widely known: the twenty-year-old who dropped out of Harvard to start a software company that became an industry giant and changed the way the world works and lives; the billionaire many times over who turned his attention to philanthropic pursuits to address climate change, global health, and U.S. education. Source Code is not about Microsoft or the Gates Foundation or the future of technology. It’s the human, personal story of how Bill Gates became who he is today: his childhood, his early passions and pursuits. It’s the story of his principled grandmother and ambitious parents, his first deep friendships and the sudden death of his best friend; of his struggles to fit in and his discovery of a world of coding and computers in the dawn of a new era; of embarking in his early teens on a path that took him from midnight escapades at a nearby computer center to his college dorm room, where he sparked a revolution that would change the world. Bill Gates tells this, his own story, for the first time: wise, warm, revealing, it’s a fascinating portrait of an American life.

Description (ChatGPT): Source Code: My Beginnings is the first volume of Bill Gates' memoir, offering an intimate look into his early life—from his childhood in Seattle to the founding of Microsoft. In this candid narrative, Gates reflects on his experiences growing up as a precocious and sometimes misunderstood youth, shaped by his ambitious parents, his deep friendships, and his early passion for computers. He shares personal stories, including the profound impact of his friend Kent Evans' death during high school, and his journey into programming, which led to the creation of Microsoft alongside Paul Allen. Gates also delves into his neurodivergent traits, his intense focus, and the emotional challenges he faced. This memoir provides a humanizing portrait of one of the most influential figures in technology

Book Review - Galapagos

Title: Galapagos

Author: Kurt Vonnegut
My Rating: 👍👍👍
My Review: Pending...

Description (Audible): Galapagos takes the listener back one million years to AD 1986. A simple vacation cruise suddenly becomes an evolutionary journey. Thanks to an apocalypse, a small group of survivors stranded on the Galapagos Islands are about to become the progenitors of a brave, new, totally different human race. Kurt Vonnegut, America's master satirist, looks at our world and shows us all that is sadly, madly awry - and all that is worth saving.

Description (ChatGPT): Imagine Darwin got drunk, time-traveled a million years forward, and wrote a sarcastic memoir—Galápagos is that book. Vonnegut gleefully strips humanity of its overgrown brains and offers evolution a do-over, starring seals, simple minds, and a healthy dose of cosmic irony. It’s like a sci-fi survival guide written by a stand-up philosopher with a grudge against opposable thumbs. Hilarious, haunting, and unmistakably Vonnegut.