Shopglider Malware Odyssey

All of a sudden I was getting popups for "deals" at various merchants through some entity known as Shopglider. It had a nice X that I availed myself of...to no avail.
Over and over it would show up. Any double clicking on single click pads would cause it to open.

I tried everything I could think of:
Malwarebytes
Runscanner
Adwcleaner - I suspect this is garbage
TDSSkiller - a rootkit finding program.
My AV - a total system scan.

Still there.
What I had noticed was it seemed to be limited to Chrome. I do not run any extension with any other browser.

Every hit on Google regarding this were the same suggestions and many suggested paid programs so I suspect they were naught but "ambulance chasers," if not the instigators themselves.

I finally started to look at threads on Google+
Lo & behold I found something unseen up until this point. A suggestion that it was somehow piggybacked along with the Adblock Pro extension and by disabling and then re-enabling the extension would remove the malware.
I decided to just replace Adblock Pro with Adblock (an unrelated extension with a similar name) and so far - 2 days, have not seen a shopglider ad yet.

Malware blows.

"ShopGlider is an adware program that displays pop-up ads, advertisement banners and sponsored links within Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google Chrome.
Unfortunately, some free downloads do not adequately disclose that other software will also be installed and you may find that you have installed ShopGlider without your knowledge.ShopGlider is advertised as a program that displays coupons for sites you are visiting and competitive prices when you are viewing product pages at sites like Amazon. Though this may sound like a useful service, the ShopGlider program can be intrusive and will display ads whether you want them to or not.The ShopGlider adware infection is designed specifically to make money. It generates web traffic, collects sales leads for other dubious sites, and will display advertisements and sponsored links within your web browser.
ShopGlider it’s technically not a virus, but it does exhibit plenty of malicious traits, such as rootkit capabilities to hook deep into the operating system, browser hijacking, and in general just interfering with the user experience. The industry generally refers to it as a “PUP,” or potentially unwanted program."

Virtual Sailor

I have a program that I have enjoyed as a sort of virtual fish tank - Virtual Sailor.
Written by Ilan Pappini, it allows you to sail many type of boats in many areas of the world.

It is not something I stare at, rather it just runs and I peek in now and then as I read a book or play my guitar - things I have done on boats while in the midst of a longer ride.
Then I found The VSF Boat Shop run by one Steve Sharp.

Steve has meticulously recreated a nice array of boats. From  34 foot day boats to 160 foot schooners.
I have purchased from Steve in the past, but the level of detail has been ratcheted up significantly.

I got a nice schooner, built in 1905 and refitted 2003 - 2006.
(If I had the $18,000,000 the owners are asking...)
A crew of 5 with 6 guests, a luxurious floating Victorian age hotel - I have not found one television screen, yet.

So I decide to take a ride to Hawaii. (Yes, Steve made one heckuva scenery set - Maui. I'll tell you about it after I land)
It's been almost two days and I am close to 500 nautical miles from the port of departure, Bellingham Washington, in a hailstorm...yeah a hail storm.

The attention to detail goes well beyond the visuals. Another schooner that was built as racing boat will heel 25 degrees or more in the 30 knot winds outside of Seattle while this boat sits almost upright with a heel angle of 5 degrees in 28 knots of wind and hail that is more than impeding our forward progress.
We had been averaging 12.5 knots for the first 30 hours. But now in the middle of this weather, I am torn - should I reef to avoid damage to the sails...and thereby slow down even more?

There is just something satisfying in having this ride going on as my background noise. Much better than having the drone of the television.

This will be one really fun ride.

24 Hour Game-a-thon For Charity

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcAJraAhmnc&feature=youtu.be

Life & Rhythm

Laugh or cry is our choice in life when presented with the little trials and tribulations of the day.

When the sun is low in the sky you can see the snow of everyday life. There are the dust motes, feathers, bits of hair...all the things that make up the world around leave tiny bits of themselves floating past the rest of us to breathe in...or to listen to.

A cars brakes screeched loudly. Then I heard it. A bass line just started in my head. It ran and looped. The brakes made the highlight. A high hat, a time keeper.
The birds played a chord. A train in the distance blew its horn in synchronicity with the rest of the piece.. Everything just fit together with no effort from me. Like breathing.

This...THIS is also laugh or cry. We can choose to hear what music is all around us or we can hear only noise...discord.

In five minutes of opening Band In A Box I had a new composition - Early Earth Music.
Damnit - laugh with me. We can make the world a wonderful place just by dancing to the rhythms that surround us.

Time Dialation

Right.
We all know the phenomenon. When you are watching the clock, time proceeds extraordinarily slow.

I got a very part time job recently. All of two hours a day when I am called to action as I am an alternate - covering for the regulars.
For forty five minutes at a stretch I ply my trade - safely crossing "peds" (hey, that's what the manual says) during school.
I am a crossing guard.

A forty five minute stint is SO short one should be able to complete it without a thought.
And yet...
When I look at my watch it feels as though time completely stops. Yeah, we are all familiar with this.
"What?! Only two minute have passed?"

So I left my mind wander.
Somewhere down the street someone had opened a drain and water began coming down towards me. I watched the leaves and street debris forming breaks and barriers. Seeing the ebb & flow of the water. Thoughts just swirled.
This is what I, what we all did regularly as a children.

Ten minutes passed without notice.
And I had relaxed as well. The down time is appreciated.

Have A Little Passion

It is a good thing to be completely consumed by a love for something. Not to be ruled or dictated to by that love; it is not a need so much as a part of who you are when you wake up in the morning.

I have passions.
I enjoy many diverse things.
But for some reason they all seem to tie together...almost neatly. Einstein would be proud of my unified universe.
I walk the earth and smell the air and my lungs fill with a rich ache, a memory perhaps. Or maybe a present fulfillment? And then I hear music. My heart beats and I feel music. Everything I do seems to lead me back to some innate thing inside. I have intuitive understandings that are incredibly deep and yet I haven't the words to put them before people. So I sing about them instead.

Everything in life is musical to me. I wonder if carpenters feel wood in everything they touch? I would suspect as much. It is natural. I am not really different than anyone else. Some of us proudly wear our passions. Most do not, and that is a sad thing. Probably what Hippies were trying to explain. Acting responsible does not mean foregoing love of anything, no matter how small society deems it.

Give your inner voice a chance to be heard.
I'll listen.

It's the Beat, Stoopid...If You Are a Guy

Open My Eyes - The Nazz

Underneath your gaze I was found in
The haze I'm wandering around in
I am lost in the dark of my own room
And I can't see a thing but the fire in your eyes

Clear my eyes, make me wise
Or is all I believe in lies
I don't know when or where to go
And I can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes

I've been told by some you'll forget me
The thought doesn't upset me
I am blind to whatever they're saying
And all I can see is the fire in your eyes

Clear my eyes, make me wise
Or is all I believe in lies
I really don't know when or where to go
And I can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes

Can't believe that it's on your mind
To leave me behind

Clear my eyes, make me wise
Or is all I believe in lies
I really don't know when or where to go
And I can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes
Can't see a thing 'til you open my eyes

Oh my eyes
Oh my eyes
Oh my eyes

Not what I'd consider a happy tune. Rather dark and a bit disturbing.

And yet to me, it is a dance tune?

There is a driving bass line and the drums are just pushing me forward. I cannot help but smile.

I find I am drawn by the window dressing to the message and completely ignoring the lyrics. This happens all the time.

Is it a male thing? To ignore content and stare at the package?

My female friends, I am guessing would probably rate lyrical content higher than the music itself. Would allow for a less than perfect composition if the words had deep, personal meaning.

Males are said to be shallow...is this proof?

Obviously it does not ring as truth 100% of the time. There are many songs in which the words have far more for me than the music.

Some of those songs are for me anchors to memories and not deep lyrics at all.
'Jesus Just Left Chicago' is a perfect example. I think of my father.

Or the Stones 'Wild Horses.'

Just as often the lyrics do resonate deeply within me.

'Southern Cross' can make me weep. The music is not all that great. But the harmonies with Stills and Nash are chill inspiring. 

And the words - how I fooled myself for a long, long time and gave up what was important to me for someone that didn't see the gesture.

Since I am 51% or more male (the aftermath of midlife?) I can see how each side of me reacts in a different way.

I do suspect a sexual component in our listening. Perhaps it is only a part of humanity and the isolation we have to live with. To be able to share anything with another is a blessing and a joy, no matter why.