I am feeling good today...  got some niggling stuff done, which was nice, and enjoyed several interactions with friends, which was nicer.  And had a good solid ride.  And - maybe this is the capper - watched Holland defeat France 4-1 in the Euro 2008 soccer championships.  So in one week they've defeated both of the finalists in the last World Cup, and are now the odds-on favorites to win.  I'm not a big soccer fan but these were entertaining matches, and of course Go Oranjie!

It was also fun going back through my report and pictures from my incredible ride up to Lagos de Covadonga last September; I'm really glad I made time to post that...  I'll have to go back and do some others, too...

Beside Holland, my other pick from yesterday didn't do quite as well; Levi Leipheimer hung in on the Joux-Plane but had a bad moment and wasn't able to gain on Alejandro Valverde, who seems headed for overall victory in the Dauphiné Libéré.  Another tough day tomorrow, we'll see... 

In the wake of the dissolution of talks between Yahoo and Microsoft, and a subsequent announcement of a partnership between Yahoo and Google, Mike Arrington comments "I don’t believe that there is anything Yahoo could do at this point to further destroy their business that would surprise me".  Certainly their stock has taken a big hit, and it is hard to see how they have improved their prospects over the past few weeks...  too bad, because we need them as a counterweight to Google. 

Instapundit on Google: "A few years ago Google lost its position as an outfit that people trusted because they thought it was run by friendly well-meaning geeks, and became just another big corporation out for the money. I think that's hurt them, and I also think it's sad, if perhaps inevitable".

And in other news, Get ready for a platform war.  Google (Gears) vs. Microsoft (Office).  I totally believe this.  More and more people I know are using Google Apps instead of Microsoft Office, and not only because they cost $0.  (Although, one must say that is a pretty compelling price.)  And the third player from stage left is Apple; those AJAX apps they demoed in conjunction with MobileMe looked pretty slick.  Microsoft is in BIG TROUBLE.

Of course, Google still hasn't figured out how to make money from YouTube.  Will they figure out how to make money from Google Apps?  Have they already?  Time will tell...

So the new Hulk movie is out; Jason Kottke quotes Guardian critic Peter Bradshaw, who pans the movie in Hulk-speak: "Hulk take all effort of cinema, effort getting babysitter, effort finding parking, and Hulk put great green fist right through it. Hulk crush all hopes of entertainment".  So much for seeing that!