Anil Dash asks:
Most of the people I know are geeks, and some large number of geeks are obsessive to one degree or another. (This can be verified by anyone who’s ever mumbled “Asperger’s…” under their breath while watching me arrange my Windows desktop.)
Perhaps the ultimate example of this sort of dorkiness is the fact that almost every one of my friends has, at one point or another, made at least one Excel spreadsheet to document some arcane aspect of their lives. The number of consecutive sunny days, the types and prices of the cups of coffee they drink, or just straightforward charts about their boss’s mood. There’s no end to the ways one can misuse desktop applications in one’s personal life.
…
Thus, it’s time for a bit of market research. Have you ever made a spreadsheet for your personal life? Talked to your kids using PowerPoint? Share your geekiness, and maybe it’ll justify the creation of an exciting new community of dorks.
As much as I would like to hop from one foot to another and whistle idly, I have to confirm that yes I’ve documented part of my life in Excel. To be precise, I calculated mileage and the total amount of money I spent on gasoline on my big 1994 “loop the USA” road trip to see the remaining states I hadn’t yet been to. For the record my trip looked like this:
| Place | Odometer | Cost | Miles | Gallons Used | M.P.G. | Day # | Date |
| Starting | 3175 | 1 | 16-Mar-1994 | ||||
| 29 Palms, CA | 3481 | $12.60 | 306 | 10.08 | 30.36 | 1 | 16-Mar-1994 |
| Flagstaff, AZ | 3829 | $13.25 | 348 | 11.73 | 29.67 | 2 | 17-Mar-1994 |
| Santa Fe, NM | 4225 | $12.25 | 396 | 11.14 | 35.55 | 2 | 17-Mar-1994 |
| Trinidad, CO | 4492 | $9.50 | 267 | 7.99 | 33.42 | 3 | 18-Mar-1994 |
| Elmwood, OK | 4785 | $10.00 | 293 | 9.70 | 30.21 | 3 | 18-Mar-1994 |
| Eureka Springs, AR | 5223 | $13.01 | 438 | 12.52 | 34.98 | 4 | 19-Mar-1994 |
| Lakeland, TN | 5568 | $12.10 | 345 | 11.64 | 29.64 | 4 | 19-Mar-1994 |
| I-81/I-40 jct., TN | 6015 | $12.50 | 447 | 12.51 | 35.73 | 5 | 20-Mar-1994 |
| Wheaton, MD | 6491 | $14.00 | 476 | 12.91 | 36.87 | 6 | 21-Mar-1994 |
| Tuckerton, NJ | 6731 | $8.50 | 240 | 8.68 | 27.65 | 6 | 21-Mar-1994 |
| Boston, MA | 7098 | $15.50 | 367 | 12.93 | 28.38 | 7 | 22-Mar-1994 |
| Rumford, ME | 7333 | $8.00 | 235 | 7.85 | 29.94 | 8 | 23-Mar-1994 |
| Keene, NH | 7671 | $10.50 | 338 | 10.70 | 31.59 | 9 | 24-Mar-1994 |
| Ithaca, NY | 8039 | $13.50 | 368 | 12.50 | 29.44 | 11 | 26-Mar-1994 |
| Sandusky County, OH | 8447 | $14.00 | 408 | 11.67 | 34.96 | 11 | 26-Mar-1994 |
| Williams County, OH | 8820 | $13.00 | 373 | 12.63 | 29.53 | 13 | 28-Mar-1994 |
| Marshall, MI | 9205 | $13.00 | 385 | 12.75 | 30.20 | 14 | 29-Mar-1994 |
| Oak Park, IL | 9535 | $14.00 | 330 | 12.29 | 26.85 | 16 | 31-Mar-1994 |
| St. Paul, MN | 9982 | $15.00 | 447 | 13.64 | 32.77 | 17 | 1-Apr-1994 |
| Fargo, ND | 10269 | $12.50 | 287 | 10.60 | 27.08 | 17 | 1-Apr-1994 |
| Minot, ND | 10610 | $13.00 | 341 | 11.82 | 28.85 | 18 | 2-Apr-1994 |
| Glasgow, MT | 10888 | $11.50 | 278 | 9.90 | 28.08 | 18 | 2-Apr-1994 |
| Shelby, MT | 11160 | $11.50 | 272 | 8.99 | 30.26 | 18 | 2-Apr-1994 |
| Kalispell, MT | 11396 | $10.00 | 236 | 8.48 | 27.83 | 18 | 2-Apr-1994 |
| Moses Lake, WA | 11755 | $14.50 | 359 | 12.09 | 29.69 | 19 | 3-Apr-1994 |
| Salem, OR | 12182 | $15.60 | 427 | 12.38 | 34.49 | 20 | 4-Apr-1994 |
| Yreka, CA | 12464 | $12.00 | 282 | 10.00 | 28.20 | 20 | 4-Apr-1994 |
| Berkeley, CA | 12832 | $12.25 | 368 | 10.47 | 35.15 | 21 | 5-Apr-1994 |
| Totals | $347.06 | 9657 | 310.59 | 30.98 |
This was all done in a rented 1994 Buick Skylark.
You went to Marshall, MI?!?! This is my hometown, where I grew up and went to high school!! You must now come to Pittsburgh and you have a place to crash if interested.