I've been eating a lot of pizza in New York. I really like a type called "White Pizza". No tomato sauce. Just cheese. Ricotta cheese I think. Damn tasty.
The Ipad made a great companion while walking around New York City. I had heard that Times Square had free WiFi. My plan was to head to Times Square, grab a seat, get an IP address and relax. Not so easy. There are so many WiFi signals being blasted around Times Square and there are so many WiFi devices...that nothing worked!! There were three free hotspots, Times Square, AT&T and McDonalds. All were so slow they were literally unusable. I ended up tethering to my phone. Problem.... I didn't bring my portable battery and thus couldn't tether for long.
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Getting around though was very easy. Between the big Google Maps on the Ipad and the new Google Walking navigation, I had a pretty easy time. I did get turned around when trying to head to Tom's Diner (made famous by Seinfeld and the Susan Vega song). I walked around for 20 minutes looking for the "1" train. Gave up...ate some more White Pizza. Then I found it....but took the wrong "1" train....and headed home.
I head home to Dallas today for a 3 day weekend. I come back Tuesday only to go back to Dallas Wednesday for good...maybe. My company put out another bid for 8 First Officers to come back to New York next month. I am not going to volunteer...but I may be forced to come. Ugh.
Stopped by the New York Apple store. Played with the new Ipods. They were nice. The nano was silly small. The shuffle makes sense to runners. The touch is an amazing value.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
They call it work...but it's more like a boring vacation
Been in New York for a week...kinda.
I am supposed to be flying. Haven't yet. Just hanging out in the hotel.
The hotel is nice, but it's RIGHT next to the La Guardia airport. Not a lot around.
Yesterday a Captain I have known for a while and I headed into the city. We bought a $8.25 Metropass that was good for a day. Great value as we traveled a lot. We left the hotel at 1:30PM and got back at 10PM. I saw more yesterday than I had in the past 5+ visits.
First stop was the American Museum of Natural History. Spent a good two hours there before heading to Ground Zero then Staten Island and finally Times Square. I ate Ray's Pizza for dinner...which annoyed Kelli. Years ago we were here with her entire family. She wanted Ray's Pizza. It was her birthday. The rest of the family voted for Olive Garden (I think my sister in law Jami was most vocal about it) thus we all ate at Olive Garden.....in Times Sqaure...in New York. Bleh.
We walked several miles yesterday. I have been averaging 1.5-3 miles a day of walking. More exercise than I have had in a while.
I had home Friday night. Off for the weekend + Monday. I come back Monday night and head home for good Wednesday night.
Miss Kelli and Natali. Don't think I will do this again. It's different. But boring.
[nggallery id=48]
I am supposed to be flying. Haven't yet. Just hanging out in the hotel.
The hotel is nice, but it's RIGHT next to the La Guardia airport. Not a lot around.
Yesterday a Captain I have known for a while and I headed into the city. We bought a $8.25 Metropass that was good for a day. Great value as we traveled a lot. We left the hotel at 1:30PM and got back at 10PM. I saw more yesterday than I had in the past 5+ visits.
First stop was the American Museum of Natural History. Spent a good two hours there before heading to Ground Zero then Staten Island and finally Times Square. I ate Ray's Pizza for dinner...which annoyed Kelli. Years ago we were here with her entire family. She wanted Ray's Pizza. It was her birthday. The rest of the family voted for Olive Garden (I think my sister in law Jami was most vocal about it) thus we all ate at Olive Garden.....in Times Sqaure...in New York. Bleh.
We walked several miles yesterday. I have been averaging 1.5-3 miles a day of walking. More exercise than I have had in a while.
I had home Friday night. Off for the weekend + Monday. I come back Monday night and head home for good Wednesday night.
Miss Kelli and Natali. Don't think I will do this again. It's different. But boring.
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Wednesday, September 1, 2010
West to East
I started Monday morning in Albany, Oregon. Monday Afternoon I (along with my ladies Kelli and Natali!) were in Portland, Oregon. Late Monday night I was home in Euless, Texas. Early Tuesday morning I left for New York city.
Tuesday was a wasted day. Once I arrived I went straight to the hotel, located just outside of the La Guardia Airport.
Today, Wednesday, I transferred to a much nicer hotel...where I am just sitting. I am on a 2 hour call out.
Tomorrow I will likely be on another 2 hour call out. I am off Friday and Saturday. I might try to sneak home Thursday night and come back Saturday night. All depends on that damn hurricane.
Our vacation was very nice. My new daughter didn't mind the 3 hour + flights at all. She did get a little fussy during the trip. I attribute this to the constant pressure changes. She went from 600 feet in Euless, to 7500 feet (estimated) cabin pressure altitude on the flight, to 50 feet elevation in Portland to 200 feet elevation in Albany to 4500 feet elevation in Sunriver to 7200 feet elevation at Crater Lake and then the reverse. That's a lot on a person new to breathing.
I've changed a few dirty diapers. Gotten physically ill at a few. I am sure it will get worse.
The rental we had for 9 days was a Chevy Impala. I was leary of the gas sucking ability, but it did fine averaging 28 MPG over 880 miles. I found an online discount code from flyertalk.com. Total cost out the door $306!!!! That included full insurance. That's a steal for a 9 day rental.
Getting to and from was fine. Turns out Kelli didn't need a real ticket. Better safe than sorry though. Natali had her own seat each way. She is now a non-rever! We saved both of her boarding passes for her logbook.
Speaking of Natali. I am wrapped around her huge hands. It's hard not too be when she is so perfect. So perfect in fact that I am content with getting snipped.
For now....gonna sit back and relax in New York. If I can't get home I will likely explore the city over the weekend. Still getting used to the time zone shift from west to east.
Tuesday was a wasted day. Once I arrived I went straight to the hotel, located just outside of the La Guardia Airport.
Today, Wednesday, I transferred to a much nicer hotel...where I am just sitting. I am on a 2 hour call out.
Tomorrow I will likely be on another 2 hour call out. I am off Friday and Saturday. I might try to sneak home Thursday night and come back Saturday night. All depends on that damn hurricane.
Our vacation was very nice. My new daughter didn't mind the 3 hour + flights at all. She did get a little fussy during the trip. I attribute this to the constant pressure changes. She went from 600 feet in Euless, to 7500 feet (estimated) cabin pressure altitude on the flight, to 50 feet elevation in Portland to 200 feet elevation in Albany to 4500 feet elevation in Sunriver to 7200 feet elevation at Crater Lake and then the reverse. That's a lot on a person new to breathing.
I've changed a few dirty diapers. Gotten physically ill at a few. I am sure it will get worse.
The rental we had for 9 days was a Chevy Impala. I was leary of the gas sucking ability, but it did fine averaging 28 MPG over 880 miles. I found an online discount code from flyertalk.com. Total cost out the door $306!!!! That included full insurance. That's a steal for a 9 day rental.
Getting to and from was fine. Turns out Kelli didn't need a real ticket. Better safe than sorry though. Natali had her own seat each way. She is now a non-rever! We saved both of her boarding passes for her logbook.
Speaking of Natali. I am wrapped around her huge hands. It's hard not too be when she is so perfect. So perfect in fact that I am content with getting snipped.
For now....gonna sit back and relax in New York. If I can't get home I will likely explore the city over the weekend. Still getting used to the time zone shift from west to east.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Sick....we're all going to die
One person got sick in the house. A niece. Within hours my father in law was sick. Kelli and I broke out the GermX. Wiped everything down including Natali. Yesterday morning I had a sore throat. Last night I had my last rites read to me. This morning both of my brother in laws are sick and my niece is worse. This is like a bad horror movie; A family goes to a wooded retreat. As days go by more and more are overcome by a mysterious illness. Death house.
Semi looking forward to going to New York on Tuesday. Staying close to the La Guardia airport. I might have time to go home at least once during my 14 days there.
Not sure how we are all getting home yet. Maybe tomorrow...maybe Monday. Worst case scenario is we land at 9:30PM Monday night and I fly out at 6AM Tuesday morning for New York. Quick.
That all assume I survive. Death house I tell you. Death house.
Semi looking forward to going to New York on Tuesday. Staying close to the La Guardia airport. I might have time to go home at least once during my 14 days there.
Not sure how we are all getting home yet. Maybe tomorrow...maybe Monday. Worst case scenario is we land at 9:30PM Monday night and I fly out at 6AM Tuesday morning for New York. Quick.
That all assume I survive. Death house I tell you. Death house.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Ipad fever
My nieces have been loving the Ipad this week. I downloaded a Dora the Explorer coloring book ($4.99) and a Dr Seuss Book ($3.99). They kinda took turns. One niece is 3 the other is 4.
Last night my sister in laws girlfriend, Kelly, bought an Ipad for herself and the 3 year old niece Haley. An interesting experience.
Best Buy shows if they have Ipad's in stock. The one up the road in Bend showed to have the base version. By the time she got there they were sold out. After she got back to the house I told her the 3G might be worth the money. Again they showed in stock. She bought one online to pick up in store. When I bought mine it was a 20 minute delay to get the email that it was ready. Kelly waited....and waited....and waited....no email. After 90 minutes she called. She was told it would take a while due to clearing the "credit card fraud" department. Another hour later....nothing. She called again. They had 12 in stock. Whatever.
We drove up there. Waited in line for 15 minutes. We were the only ones in line. Finally I found an employee who got one for us and gave it to the people in the customer service department...the line we were in. Another 10 minutes and we were being helped. When we got to the car....she got an email stating her order was ready too pick up. Nice.
A similar thing happened with the Macbook Pro. I bought mine. Then Kelli bought one. The Jami bought one. Then Peggy bought an Imac. Then Kevin bought one. Ipad fever is spreading.
Last night my sister in laws girlfriend, Kelly, bought an Ipad for herself and the 3 year old niece Haley. An interesting experience.
Best Buy shows if they have Ipad's in stock. The one up the road in Bend showed to have the base version. By the time she got there they were sold out. After she got back to the house I told her the 3G might be worth the money. Again they showed in stock. She bought one online to pick up in store. When I bought mine it was a 20 minute delay to get the email that it was ready. Kelly waited....and waited....and waited....no email. After 90 minutes she called. She was told it would take a while due to clearing the "credit card fraud" department. Another hour later....nothing. She called again. They had 12 in stock. Whatever.
We drove up there. Waited in line for 15 minutes. We were the only ones in line. Finally I found an employee who got one for us and gave it to the people in the customer service department...the line we were in. Another 10 minutes and we were being helped. When we got to the car....she got an email stating her order was ready too pick up. Nice.
A similar thing happened with the Macbook Pro. I bought mine. Then Kelli bought one. The Jami bought one. Then Peggy bought an Imac. Then Kevin bought one. Ipad fever is spreading.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
No more driving`
I wrongly assumed that once we arrived at the house the long drives would end.
Yesterday we drove to Crater Lake National Park....only 100 miles away, but 2 + hours because of the small towns and winding roads. We climbed ANOTHER 3000 feet to reach over 7000 feet above sea level.
By the time we got there I was tired. I somewhat enjoyed the view and took a few family photos. Then headed back. Today I am hoping to stay within 20 miles of the house.
Natali is eating a lot. Until now she had 2 ounces every 3-4 hours. This morning...it's only 8:40AM and she's already had 10 1/2 ounces! She was on a feeding frenzy this morning between 3-4 AM. Yay?
The Internet here is decent. 1.5Mbps down 1Mb up.
My inlaws are digging our Ipads. Too bad I can't get a commission if they buy them.
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Yesterday we drove to Crater Lake National Park....only 100 miles away, but 2 + hours because of the small towns and winding roads. We climbed ANOTHER 3000 feet to reach over 7000 feet above sea level.
By the time we got there I was tired. I somewhat enjoyed the view and took a few family photos. Then headed back. Today I am hoping to stay within 20 miles of the house.
Natali is eating a lot. Until now she had 2 ounces every 3-4 hours. This morning...it's only 8:40AM and she's already had 10 1/2 ounces! She was on a feeding frenzy this morning between 3-4 AM. Yay?
The Internet here is decent. 1.5Mbps down 1Mb up.
My inlaws are digging our Ipads. Too bad I can't get a commission if they buy them.
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Tuesday, August 24, 2010
F this road
So driving from Albany, Oregon to Sunriver, Oregon was a pain. Both my Google Navigation and TomTom said to take the same initial route.
The route had us turn off the main highway onto a scenic route. Hmm...scenic. Highest speed was 40...average was 15-25. Lots of tight turns and switchbacks. Large drop offs. Tons of twist. No cell coverage. We didn't see a car for a while. Thoughts of breaking down streamed through my head....as did having a head on collision as when cars did come from the opposite direction some were going a bit too fast and were on my side of the road.
I was frustrated. Hated driving so slow. The non-stop turns while climbing up a mountain with my wife and daughter on board was stressful. I was happy to take a break a the top. Kelli changed and fed Natali while I snapped a few photos.
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The rest of the drive was just as crappy. Going back I am going to take the non-scenic route.
The house is very nice. Huge 5 bedroom cabin style home. Very nice. Indoor pool. Nice.
The route had us turn off the main highway onto a scenic route. Hmm...scenic. Highest speed was 40...average was 15-25. Lots of tight turns and switchbacks. Large drop offs. Tons of twist. No cell coverage. We didn't see a car for a while. Thoughts of breaking down streamed through my head....as did having a head on collision as when cars did come from the opposite direction some were going a bit too fast and were on my side of the road.
I was frustrated. Hated driving so slow. The non-stop turns while climbing up a mountain with my wife and daughter on board was stressful. I was happy to take a break a the top. Kelli changed and fed Natali while I snapped a few photos.
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The rest of the drive was just as crappy. Going back I am going to take the non-scenic route.
The house is very nice. Huge 5 bedroom cabin style home. Very nice. Indoor pool. Nice.
Monday, August 23, 2010
No coverage
Driving from Albany, Oregon to Sun River, Oregon today. There is ZERO T-Mobile coverage over a large section of the trip. There is AT&T Coverage so in an emergency we can call...or we can roam. A little disconcerting though.
Since we normally use our Nexus One's for navigation (which uses a data connection....for data) I brought along an "old fashioned" back up GPS device...a hacked Tom Tom. Should be fine.
The rental car is a Chevy Impala. Big...boring car. I now know why I don't care for National/Alamo at PDX....very limited selection of cars. Only 3 "full size" cars were available, two Impalas and a Grand Marquis. Yeah. Most locations have 20+ cars. The lot here is VERY small. Boo.
Natali is doing well. A little more fussy in the middle of the night. Nothing major.
I forgot Natali's "special" onesie I bought for her. Doh! I have my matching shirt though....so we should be safe.
Since we normally use our Nexus One's for navigation (which uses a data connection....for data) I brought along an "old fashioned" back up GPS device...a hacked Tom Tom. Should be fine.
The rental car is a Chevy Impala. Big...boring car. I now know why I don't care for National/Alamo at PDX....very limited selection of cars. Only 3 "full size" cars were available, two Impalas and a Grand Marquis. Yeah. Most locations have 20+ cars. The lot here is VERY small. Boo.
Natali is doing well. A little more fussy in the middle of the night. Nothing major.
I forgot Natali's "special" onesie I bought for her. Doh! I have my matching shirt though....so we should be safe.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Makes sense
Found a decent deal on a rental car. Found a Compact/Ford Focus from National for $240 all in. Not bad for 9 days. Not a big car, but it's just the three of us. Will get stellar gas mileage too boot.
Didn't fly at all this week. "Worked" four days. No flying. As is I will go at least 2 weeks without flying. Could be interesting on my next landing.
I will be headed to the Big Apple next month. I will work in New York August 31st thru September 15th and back home after that. I will get a hotel room and per diem 24 hours a day while I am there.
The Ipad is great for babies. Easy to have a baby on my lap secured with one hand and the Ipad resting on the arm of the chair being used by the other hand.
Being a dad is still cool.
Been a rough week for my allergies. The crazy high temp and bad pollution days made me feel blecky. Yes blecky.
Not all hybrids drive the same. My mother in law owns a Toyota Camry Hyrbid. She was down for about a week and drove the Prius while Kelli was in the hospital. The gas mileage average isn't as high as it normally is. To be fair the Camry has more torque and thus "feels" faster and my powerful for a given foot pressure on the gas pedal. Thus to get the same feeling she would have to push harder. No biggie. Our cars will be parked for a while anyway.
Didn't fly at all this week. "Worked" four days. No flying. As is I will go at least 2 weeks without flying. Could be interesting on my next landing.
I will be headed to the Big Apple next month. I will work in New York August 31st thru September 15th and back home after that. I will get a hotel room and per diem 24 hours a day while I am there.
The Ipad is great for babies. Easy to have a baby on my lap secured with one hand and the Ipad resting on the arm of the chair being used by the other hand.
Being a dad is still cool.
Been a rough week for my allergies. The crazy high temp and bad pollution days made me feel blecky. Yes blecky.
Not all hybrids drive the same. My mother in law owns a Toyota Camry Hyrbid. She was down for about a week and drove the Prius while Kelli was in the hospital. The gas mileage average isn't as high as it normally is. To be fair the Camry has more torque and thus "feels" faster and my powerful for a given foot pressure on the gas pedal. Thus to get the same feeling she would have to push harder. No biggie. Our cars will be parked for a while anyway.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
2012
The Mayans are pretty smart people. I think. According to their calendar the world will end in 2012. Maybe I should take advantage of this.
There are lots of no interest/no payment deals that go through 2012. Furniture stores are big on this. Maybe I should go on a spending spree and live it up. If the world does indeed in in 2012.....it will all be one big free adventure. If not...well..hmmm...Craigslist it all?
Even with the Ipad I carry too many gadgets. I carry the Ipad, Nexus One and a Zune. If Apple had a subscription music service I could ditch the Zune. Yeah I could download all the music illegally, but the legal way is just too easy. I also download a local radio show that is encoded in the WMA format...not compatible with the Ipad. Boo. Bleh. Blip.
We have HBO again. For a few months. Kelli can get her True Blood on. It's free for 3 months. No brainer....as long as I remember to cancel (which I will as I set a Google Calendar event!).
Being a dad is great when you have an awesome wife and a too good to be true daughter.
Would have been nice to be in the cockpit for Natali's first flight. I will fly her around one day I'm sure.
Haven't been in my man cave in 2 months. I need to get that place in order.
Looks like I might take my FMLA right after Kelli finishes hers. I likely won't do a full 12 weeks, but enough to get through the end of the year and start day care in January.
There are lots of no interest/no payment deals that go through 2012. Furniture stores are big on this. Maybe I should go on a spending spree and live it up. If the world does indeed in in 2012.....it will all be one big free adventure. If not...well..hmmm...Craigslist it all?
Even with the Ipad I carry too many gadgets. I carry the Ipad, Nexus One and a Zune. If Apple had a subscription music service I could ditch the Zune. Yeah I could download all the music illegally, but the legal way is just too easy. I also download a local radio show that is encoded in the WMA format...not compatible with the Ipad. Boo. Bleh. Blip.
We have HBO again. For a few months. Kelli can get her True Blood on. It's free for 3 months. No brainer....as long as I remember to cancel (which I will as I set a Google Calendar event!).
Being a dad is great when you have an awesome wife and a too good to be true daughter.
Would have been nice to be in the cockpit for Natali's first flight. I will fly her around one day I'm sure.
Haven't been in my man cave in 2 months. I need to get that place in order.
Looks like I might take my FMLA right after Kelli finishes hers. I likely won't do a full 12 weeks, but enough to get through the end of the year and start day care in January.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Making mustard
Still enjoying being a dad...which is a good thing as the only way out is to pack up and drive to Mexico (do they have extradition rights?). Yesterday I found a good use for a sleeping baby. Ipad stand.
Amazon is proving very useful to get things we need. Simple things like a bottle drying rack. Yeah we could drive to Walmart/Babies R Us and buy one. But on Amazon they have a bigger selection and reviews...plus we save gas. Free two day shipping is the icing on the cake.
Looking toward Saturday we are going to buy a car seat bag in case we have to gate check ours. Amazon once again.
Had my first gag moment with Natali. Her stool has turned a mustard color. When she poops now I say she is making mustard.
She squirmed for about 10 minutes yesterday and I thought she was done. I had her on the changing table and was doing just fine until she started making more mustard right there. I had to hold her legs up and turn away. A few gags and dry heaves later and Kelli swooped in to finish the job. I am sure it will happen again.
Still digging the Ipad. The Baby Geek app is VERY useful for tracking just about everything with Natali.
Playing games less on my phone nowadays.
Started watching the "IT Crowd" again. Very funny.
We finished season one of "Boston Legal" also very funny.
Behind on my podcast. Will have plenty of time next week in Oregon.
Amazon is proving very useful to get things we need. Simple things like a bottle drying rack. Yeah we could drive to Walmart/Babies R Us and buy one. But on Amazon they have a bigger selection and reviews...plus we save gas. Free two day shipping is the icing on the cake.
Looking toward Saturday we are going to buy a car seat bag in case we have to gate check ours. Amazon once again.
Had my first gag moment with Natali. Her stool has turned a mustard color. When she poops now I say she is making mustard.
She squirmed for about 10 minutes yesterday and I thought she was done. I had her on the changing table and was doing just fine until she started making more mustard right there. I had to hold her legs up and turn away. A few gags and dry heaves later and Kelli swooped in to finish the job. I am sure it will happen again.
Still digging the Ipad. The Baby Geek app is VERY useful for tracking just about everything with Natali.
Playing games less on my phone nowadays.
Started watching the "IT Crowd" again. Very funny.
We finished season one of "Boston Legal" also very funny.
Behind on my podcast. Will have plenty of time next week in Oregon.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Monday morning quarterback
Just another manic Monday.
Slept well. I was supposed to know yesterday where I will be based for September. Still haven't been told which is annoying.
I'm a planner. Kelli is a free spirit. This makes more some interesting conversations.
For our first trip as a family I think I have a plan. Since I (and possibly Natali) will be non-revving, we can check 2 bags per person for free. I plan on checking everything except my laptop bag and a small diaper/bottle bag, for Natali. Kelli is going to check a bag as well under Natali's ticket. I've seen hundreds of parents travel the "wrong" way.
Some parents bring everything with them. The mom is carrying the baby, her purse and the diaper bag (a huge one at that). The dad is behind pulling his carry on, the moms carry on and his laptop/briefcase. Too much. I want to travel light. Checking a bag is scary for me. Haven't done it since we went to Hawaii...back in 2004 I think. Hopefully we will be stress free.
Natali is still a peaceful baby. Eating a lot more which makes both Kelli and me happy.
Eric and Angela stopped by Saturday. We can't thank them enough for all they have done to help us so far.
Slept well. I was supposed to know yesterday where I will be based for September. Still haven't been told which is annoying.
I'm a planner. Kelli is a free spirit. This makes more some interesting conversations.
For our first trip as a family I think I have a plan. Since I (and possibly Natali) will be non-revving, we can check 2 bags per person for free. I plan on checking everything except my laptop bag and a small diaper/bottle bag, for Natali. Kelli is going to check a bag as well under Natali's ticket. I've seen hundreds of parents travel the "wrong" way.
Some parents bring everything with them. The mom is carrying the baby, her purse and the diaper bag (a huge one at that). The dad is behind pulling his carry on, the moms carry on and his laptop/briefcase. Too much. I want to travel light. Checking a bag is scary for me. Haven't done it since we went to Hawaii...back in 2004 I think. Hopefully we will be stress free.
Natali is still a peaceful baby. Eating a lot more which makes both Kelli and me happy.
Eric and Angela stopped by Saturday. We can't thank them enough for all they have done to help us so far.
Finally a baby to take photos of
I love photography. Heck I majored in photojournalism. Being able to capture a moment in time amazes me.
Kids are great subjects. The younger the better as they don't know what a camera is and therefore are natural in their responses. I have taken photos of of my nieces, but rarely post/share them as...well they aren't MY kids. I didn't feel right plastering a photo of a kid that's not mine online. They few times I did I watermarked the photo to protect it from being used elsewhere.
Now that I have a daughter I'm free to take all the photos of her I want. It helps that she's hands down the cutest baby in the world. One thing that bothers me are her fingers. They are long like mine. I know one day she will raise one of her middle fingers and aim it my way. Probably the same day she goes and votes for a Democrat...to break my heart just a little bit more. I will take photos of her then as well because she is my daughter and I love her.
[singlepic id=1744 w=640 h=480 float=center]
[singlepic id=1743 w=640 h=480 float=center]
[singlepic id=1742 w=640 h=480 float=center]
[singlepic id=1741 w=640 h=480 float=center]
Kids are great subjects. The younger the better as they don't know what a camera is and therefore are natural in their responses. I have taken photos of of my nieces, but rarely post/share them as...well they aren't MY kids. I didn't feel right plastering a photo of a kid that's not mine online. They few times I did I watermarked the photo to protect it from being used elsewhere.
Now that I have a daughter I'm free to take all the photos of her I want. It helps that she's hands down the cutest baby in the world. One thing that bothers me are her fingers. They are long like mine. I know one day she will raise one of her middle fingers and aim it my way. Probably the same day she goes and votes for a Democrat...to break my heart just a little bit more. I will take photos of her then as well because she is my daughter and I love her.
[singlepic id=1744 w=640 h=480 float=center]
[singlepic id=1743 w=640 h=480 float=center]
[singlepic id=1742 w=640 h=480 float=center]
[singlepic id=1741 w=640 h=480 float=center]
Friday, August 13, 2010
Other blogs
Been a busy few days. I've been hammering away on Byrdintheoven.com quite a bit.
Found a great ap on the Ipad to keep track of diapers, feedings etc. Baby Geek...only $0.99. Will sync between our two Ipads. VERY easy to use. Kelli can click a button when she starts nursing and again when she's done. I can click two buttons when I change a diaper and note "dirty" or "wet". I bought the ap after we could no longer remember how long we nursed and how many diapers I have changed. One would think I would easily recall such things, but it is known that when people go through traumatic events they tend to forget. Ha!
Found a great ap on the Ipad to keep track of diapers, feedings etc. Baby Geek...only $0.99. Will sync between our two Ipads. VERY easy to use. Kelli can click a button when she starts nursing and again when she's done. I can click two buttons when I change a diaper and note "dirty" or "wet". I bought the ap after we could no longer remember how long we nursed and how many diapers I have changed. One would think I would easily recall such things, but it is known that when people go through traumatic events they tend to forget. Ha!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
The most uncomfortable bed...almost ever
Kelli told me I didn't have to stay in the hospital last night as not much would be going on. Felt guilty leaving her here alone so I stayed. The chair the expands to a bed is one of the most uncomfortable pieces of furniture ever. I slept very little as did Kelli. More about that on byrdintheoven.com later.
We are all teched out. We each have an Ipad. I have my Zune pumping out content to the TV. My Macbook Pro was being used to watch Boston Legal. Of course we each have a Nexus One. Between the two of us we could launch a Space Shuttle.
Working on something fairly cool. Should be able to show it off tonight/tomorrow morning.
Mother in law is here. She's really liking the Ipad and Word with Friends.
Good wifi here. Very speedy.
Looking forward to sleeping in my bed....oh and meeting my daughter.
We are all teched out. We each have an Ipad. I have my Zune pumping out content to the TV. My Macbook Pro was being used to watch Boston Legal. Of course we each have a Nexus One. Between the two of us we could launch a Space Shuttle.
Working on something fairly cool. Should be able to show it off tonight/tomorrow morning.
Mother in law is here. She's really liking the Ipad and Word with Friends.
Good wifi here. Very speedy.
Looking forward to sleeping in my bed....oh and meeting my daughter.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Sack Lunch
Been taking my lunch to work for the last week. Nice change of pace. I prefer Pumpernickel bread or bagel thins for the bread. Feeling even a little healthier. Amazing what less grease and fat does for you.
Kelli is ready to be done being preggo. Hopefully this will swear her off having another kid. One is just fine with me. We are going to have a perfect daughter Wednesday. Why screw that up?
Tires getting low on tread. Still legal. Will likely have to spring for new ones before I turn it in or whatever next March.
The dogs are still alive.
Allergy shots going well.
Can't find a cheaper rental car for Oregon. Looks like $400 all in for 8 days is going to be it. Would be cheaper by $50 or so if I rented it for a 6 days, returned it, and rented another one. Eh.
Sitting in Highfill, Arkansas right now. You can fly from Highfill, Arkansas nonstop to Newark, Dallas, Houston, Denver, Chicago, New York and for a while Los Angeles. Little Rock, the capital of Arkansas doesn't have all those options. Reason? Highfill is close to Wal-Mart headquarters.
Name for my daughter is partially released. Full name on Wednesday.
Kelli is ready to be done being preggo. Hopefully this will swear her off having another kid. One is just fine with me. We are going to have a perfect daughter Wednesday. Why screw that up?
Tires getting low on tread. Still legal. Will likely have to spring for new ones before I turn it in or whatever next March.
The dogs are still alive.
Allergy shots going well.
Can't find a cheaper rental car for Oregon. Looks like $400 all in for 8 days is going to be it. Would be cheaper by $50 or so if I rented it for a 6 days, returned it, and rented another one. Eh.
Sitting in Highfill, Arkansas right now. You can fly from Highfill, Arkansas nonstop to Newark, Dallas, Houston, Denver, Chicago, New York and for a while Los Angeles. Little Rock, the capital of Arkansas doesn't have all those options. Reason? Highfill is close to Wal-Mart headquarters.
Name for my daughter is partially released. Full name on Wednesday.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Age
I'm only 33....ran out of toes and fingers counting long ago. Getting old.
Went to bed at 8:30PM on Thursday. I was spent.
Power went out last night for about an hour. House wasn't uncomfortable except for the lack of air flow. After about 30 minutes we all (dogs included) hopped into my car and sat in the driveway to cool off. I turned on the outside light and aimed my rearview mirror at it so I would know when the power came back on. Me being me I immediately started looking for a hotel room. La Quinta is "pet friendly". Thankfully wasn't needed. Once I saw the light come back on, we all headed back. Not too bad only spent 30 minutes in the car.
I get two weeks of vacation each year. In order to maximize my time off I move my work days around. I end up killing myself in order to have more time off. As of now I have August 20-30th off. Working 13 out of 14 days to get that. Today is my 6th day in a row too work. All long 9-12 hour work days. Feelin' old.
Flew with a Captain yesterday that was a little pompus. He pointed out just how much money he was making on his 4 day trip. This is his vacation week. He picked up extra flying. he would be earning more on this 4 day trip (excluding vacation pay) than I will earn in a month. Nice eh?
Mother in law coming in town Tuesday. Best friend from high school is flying through DFW today. Going to head up to visit if I am still here. Airline running very short on pilots lately....so I will probably be sent out before she arrives.
Yesterday while sitting at home I looked over at Kelli and smiled. She was sitting on the couch with her Ipad on her lap, Macbook to the left while using her Nexus One. When I met her she had a basic phone and a basic Dell tower computer. My plan is almost complete....just need to correct her political views.
Went to bed at 8:30PM on Thursday. I was spent.
Power went out last night for about an hour. House wasn't uncomfortable except for the lack of air flow. After about 30 minutes we all (dogs included) hopped into my car and sat in the driveway to cool off. I turned on the outside light and aimed my rearview mirror at it so I would know when the power came back on. Me being me I immediately started looking for a hotel room. La Quinta is "pet friendly". Thankfully wasn't needed. Once I saw the light come back on, we all headed back. Not too bad only spent 30 minutes in the car.
I get two weeks of vacation each year. In order to maximize my time off I move my work days around. I end up killing myself in order to have more time off. As of now I have August 20-30th off. Working 13 out of 14 days to get that. Today is my 6th day in a row too work. All long 9-12 hour work days. Feelin' old.
Flew with a Captain yesterday that was a little pompus. He pointed out just how much money he was making on his 4 day trip. This is his vacation week. He picked up extra flying. he would be earning more on this 4 day trip (excluding vacation pay) than I will earn in a month. Nice eh?
Mother in law coming in town Tuesday. Best friend from high school is flying through DFW today. Going to head up to visit if I am still here. Airline running very short on pilots lately....so I will probably be sent out before she arrives.
Yesterday while sitting at home I looked over at Kelli and smiled. She was sitting on the couch with her Ipad on her lap, Macbook to the left while using her Nexus One. When I met her she had a basic phone and a basic Dell tower computer. My plan is almost complete....just need to correct her political views.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Making the right turn
Ya know that feeling you get when you're driving to somewhere new and you're not sure if you made the right turn? Yeah.
Been working a lot lately. More than ever. Twelve hour works days are now the norm instead of the exception. Yesterday I did five flights, the airline wanted me too do 7. Running the same checklist over and over make anyones brain mushy. Add in hot outside temps and operating in 10 critical phases of flight (5 takeoffs and 5 landings) and fatigue sets in. When I got home I was only slightly more coherent than room temperature jello.
Prior to my starting flying I read online forums. There were several post stating to NOT go to an airline. The pay, work conditions, and outlook were horrible. I thought they were just naysayers. Now, I'm not so sure.
Don't get me wrong I absolutely love what I do. Flying is in my blood. Safely navigating the skies and weather to transports soldiers, men, women, and children home to their families brings joy to me. I love the power of 50,000 pounds of thrust in my left hand and the controls to a multi-million dollar jet in my right hand is awesome. But is it all worth it?
Bleh.
Now for something funny.
On my flight to Little Rock yesterday was a wealthy family from Brazil. They BOUGHT (with cash not points!) First Class tickets from Brazil to Little Rock for their family of 6. Four kids and two parents. The First Class section of my plane has 9 seats. They took up 7. The kids were all 10 and under dressed in comfy, but not dressy clothes.
My flight attendant said several of the elite frequent fliers complained and gave dirty looks to this family as many of the frequent fliers had to sit in coach as they couldn't use points to upgrade. Most of these frequent fliers got their status by flying PAID for by their companies. Big name companies many of us spend money with. My flight attendant was senior and doesn't take crap from anyone. She sternly told the frequent fliers that the family paid cash for those seats. Those passengers are consumers who spend money so the companies that fly these executives around can survive. Some took it and were quiet, others thought the family should have been back in coach. Nice eh?
Ok maybe that wasn't funny.
Been working a lot lately. More than ever. Twelve hour works days are now the norm instead of the exception. Yesterday I did five flights, the airline wanted me too do 7. Running the same checklist over and over make anyones brain mushy. Add in hot outside temps and operating in 10 critical phases of flight (5 takeoffs and 5 landings) and fatigue sets in. When I got home I was only slightly more coherent than room temperature jello.
Prior to my starting flying I read online forums. There were several post stating to NOT go to an airline. The pay, work conditions, and outlook were horrible. I thought they were just naysayers. Now, I'm not so sure.
Don't get me wrong I absolutely love what I do. Flying is in my blood. Safely navigating the skies and weather to transports soldiers, men, women, and children home to their families brings joy to me. I love the power of 50,000 pounds of thrust in my left hand and the controls to a multi-million dollar jet in my right hand is awesome. But is it all worth it?
Bleh.
Now for something funny.
On my flight to Little Rock yesterday was a wealthy family from Brazil. They BOUGHT (with cash not points!) First Class tickets from Brazil to Little Rock for their family of 6. Four kids and two parents. The First Class section of my plane has 9 seats. They took up 7. The kids were all 10 and under dressed in comfy, but not dressy clothes.
My flight attendant said several of the elite frequent fliers complained and gave dirty looks to this family as many of the frequent fliers had to sit in coach as they couldn't use points to upgrade. Most of these frequent fliers got their status by flying PAID for by their companies. Big name companies many of us spend money with. My flight attendant was senior and doesn't take crap from anyone. She sternly told the frequent fliers that the family paid cash for those seats. Those passengers are consumers who spend money so the companies that fly these executives around can survive. Some took it and were quiet, others thought the family should have been back in coach. Nice eh?
Ok maybe that wasn't funny.
Monday, August 2, 2010
August and everything after
Bought an Apple bluetooth wireless (somewhat implied that it's wireless...being bluetooth and all) keyboard for $20. Guy had it on Craiglist as "barely used" and "new"....not. I can tell it's well used. But it works....way less than $69 from Apple. Works with the Ipad. Which is what I am using right now.
Got the car seat bases installed in our cars. Wasn't too hard. Both of our cars have the LATCH system things. We will get them inspected next week.
Kelli is enjoying HER Ipad. I found one using the Best Buy inventory system. Apple should have something like it. It's extremely easy to go to BestBuy.com and check stock of items. Saw one in North Fort Worth...drove over...picked one up. Eighteen months no interest.
Rumors of my airline being sold are floating around. If we are sold we could lose our easy travel on American. Which would blow.
Allergy shots continuing. No name Claritin doing it's thing.
Blueray movies are nice. Don't see us buying a lot of Blue Ray movies though. Easier to stream from Netlix, rent from Netflix or the new RedBox Blueray rentals. I don't feel the need to "own" media. I don't "own" most of my songs on my Zune. They are rented. I pay $15 a month for all the music Kelli and I can listen too. Simple. Easy. I forecast DVD and Blueray sales dropping off as broadband access expands.
Trying out bringing my lunch to work. Tired of airport food. I spent an average of $8 a day when I sat airport standby last month. That's at least $40 a week. We will see. Hard to pack food though as I could be gone one day or five days.
Mother in law arriving next week for 8 days.
Going to be a little interesting getting to the airport for vacation. Since Kelli has a "real" ticket she has a "real" seat on the 4:25PM flight. I'm flying standby. Will have to non rev starting with the 9AM flight. In the past she would drop me off early and drive my car to the employee lot. Problem is the employee lot and buses aren't really set up for baby strollers and the like. Exploring options.
It's gonna be 106 today. I'd rather be hot than cold. When it's hot I can still go to work. People up north can't say the same when it's cold with 5 feet of snow outside and a frozen car battery.
Got the car seat bases installed in our cars. Wasn't too hard. Both of our cars have the LATCH system things. We will get them inspected next week.
Kelli is enjoying HER Ipad. I found one using the Best Buy inventory system. Apple should have something like it. It's extremely easy to go to BestBuy.com and check stock of items. Saw one in North Fort Worth...drove over...picked one up. Eighteen months no interest.
Rumors of my airline being sold are floating around. If we are sold we could lose our easy travel on American. Which would blow.
Allergy shots continuing. No name Claritin doing it's thing.
Blueray movies are nice. Don't see us buying a lot of Blue Ray movies though. Easier to stream from Netlix, rent from Netflix or the new RedBox Blueray rentals. I don't feel the need to "own" media. I don't "own" most of my songs on my Zune. They are rented. I pay $15 a month for all the music Kelli and I can listen too. Simple. Easy. I forecast DVD and Blueray sales dropping off as broadband access expands.
Trying out bringing my lunch to work. Tired of airport food. I spent an average of $8 a day when I sat airport standby last month. That's at least $40 a week. We will see. Hard to pack food though as I could be gone one day or five days.
Mother in law arriving next week for 8 days.
Going to be a little interesting getting to the airport for vacation. Since Kelli has a "real" ticket she has a "real" seat on the 4:25PM flight. I'm flying standby. Will have to non rev starting with the 9AM flight. In the past she would drop me off early and drive my car to the employee lot. Problem is the employee lot and buses aren't really set up for baby strollers and the like. Exploring options.
It's gonna be 106 today. I'd rather be hot than cold. When it's hot I can still go to work. People up north can't say the same when it's cold with 5 feet of snow outside and a frozen car battery.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Separate but equal
Almost from day one...well actually from day one...Kelli and I have had separate bank accounts. We have some commingling of funds. We share a joint checking account, one credit card and a few ING savings accounts.
Some people think we are nuts for having separate accounts. But it makes life easier. I balance mine, she balances hers and we both keep an eye on the joint account. Only household bills come out of the joint account. I buy stuff that I want, she buys what she wants. I don't pay for dog stuff. She doesn't pay for gadgets.
Now that there will be a third person in the house. We decided Natali should pay for her own stuff. She will have her own bank account and can buy all the baby food she wants. Ha!
Kelli is very conservative with her money. I think it's just her nature. She is very cautious on most purchases (although she did buy a Prius on a whim). She's been pawing my Ipad for a few days. It's a great device for her. Most of what she does online is browse web pages and play games. She wants one...but won't pull the trigger.
We are big on free money. No interest deals. We've done a ton of them. We buy whatever and simply set up our bank account to pay AT LEAST the minimum each month. That way we won't miss a payment and lose the no interest deal. I told her an IPad is $30 a month on the Best Buy card with no interest. She still balked. I stated that's 2 less trips to Sweet Tomatoes a month. That's it! She balked. Bleh.
Back to Natali. For a few months we've been putting money aside for a baby fund. The money will be used as a backup for things we need for Natali in case of emergency. We have been building a similar account for house emergencies. True we could have one big savings account....but we like buckets. Having buckets of money is easier to organize.
Quite a random post on my part. Good job me.
Some people think we are nuts for having separate accounts. But it makes life easier. I balance mine, she balances hers and we both keep an eye on the joint account. Only household bills come out of the joint account. I buy stuff that I want, she buys what she wants. I don't pay for dog stuff. She doesn't pay for gadgets.
Now that there will be a third person in the house. We decided Natali should pay for her own stuff. She will have her own bank account and can buy all the baby food she wants. Ha!
Kelli is very conservative with her money. I think it's just her nature. She is very cautious on most purchases (although she did buy a Prius on a whim). She's been pawing my Ipad for a few days. It's a great device for her. Most of what she does online is browse web pages and play games. She wants one...but won't pull the trigger.
We are big on free money. No interest deals. We've done a ton of them. We buy whatever and simply set up our bank account to pay AT LEAST the minimum each month. That way we won't miss a payment and lose the no interest deal. I told her an IPad is $30 a month on the Best Buy card with no interest. She still balked. I stated that's 2 less trips to Sweet Tomatoes a month. That's it! She balked. Bleh.
Back to Natali. For a few months we've been putting money aside for a baby fund. The money will be used as a backup for things we need for Natali in case of emergency. We have been building a similar account for house emergencies. True we could have one big savings account....but we like buckets. Having buckets of money is easier to organize.
Quite a random post on my part. Good job me.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
This is when it gets real
Countdown has begun....in my head anyway.
Vacation next month. Lots of expenses. Kelli is on a "real" airline ticket. Renting a car for 9 days. Hotel for 2 days. Kennel the dogs/dog sitter for 9 days. Lotta money.
Flew to Milwuakee and back on Wednesday on overtime. Five hours. I would have to work 20 hours overtime to pay for all the above. It will be a little rough as we have been saving for baby stuff not really thinking about vacation.
Still think Kelli is getting an Ipad....not if but when. The Democrat in her is holding back. Hopefully the little...errr...big Republican in her belly will sway her.
Vacation next month. Lots of expenses. Kelli is on a "real" airline ticket. Renting a car for 9 days. Hotel for 2 days. Kennel the dogs/dog sitter for 9 days. Lotta money.
Flew to Milwuakee and back on Wednesday on overtime. Five hours. I would have to work 20 hours overtime to pay for all the above. It will be a little rough as we have been saving for baby stuff not really thinking about vacation.
Still think Kelli is getting an Ipad....not if but when. The Democrat in her is holding back. Hopefully the little...errr...big Republican in her belly will sway her.
She can't stop playing with it
Headed to Milwaukee today. Overtime. Baby money....maybe IPad money?
Most days there is a free app of the day for Ipad/Iphone. I grab most as I am cheap. Yesterday there was an app called Super 7 HD. It's a game where floating blocks with various values float around the screen. The object is to connect blocks to add up to 7....and not 1 more. It's a challenge.
I thought Kelli would like the game. She already plays "Words With Friends" (a Scrabble like game she plays again against her sister and a family friend). I showed her how to play. She was then in a trance for a straight hour playing the game. Her finger was getting tired. She took a break....but then played another 45 minutes before going to bed with a tired finger. She couldn't stop playing it.
Kelli is sooooo going to get an Ipad.
It would be MUCH easier to hold/nurse a baby with an Ipad versus a laptop. Kelli blahs me off. She blah'd me off about getting a laptop, smartphone, MP3 player, HDTV, surround sound, Facebook and a toilet light. She uses and enjoys them all. Time will tell. Just yesterday I bought a cheap hard shell, snap on, case for my laptop. It's a pretty dark blue. Kelli bought her own, green of course, right away. I know deep inside she want's to be a hip republican technophile like me.
August is going to suck. The first half anyway. In order to get off the extra days I wanted off following my week of vacation I had to move things around. I now work 5 on 1 off 5 on 3 off 4 on. Booo. The things you do for family.
Finally....a photo from work. I love my job....even though I bitch about it. I love being in control of 50,000 horsepower. Zoom-Zoom on steroids.
Most days there is a free app of the day for Ipad/Iphone. I grab most as I am cheap. Yesterday there was an app called Super 7 HD. It's a game where floating blocks with various values float around the screen. The object is to connect blocks to add up to 7....and not 1 more. It's a challenge.
I thought Kelli would like the game. She already plays "Words With Friends" (a Scrabble like game she plays again against her sister and a family friend). I showed her how to play. She was then in a trance for a straight hour playing the game. Her finger was getting tired. She took a break....but then played another 45 minutes before going to bed with a tired finger. She couldn't stop playing it.
Kelli is sooooo going to get an Ipad.
It would be MUCH easier to hold/nurse a baby with an Ipad versus a laptop. Kelli blahs me off. She blah'd me off about getting a laptop, smartphone, MP3 player, HDTV, surround sound, Facebook and a toilet light. She uses and enjoys them all. Time will tell. Just yesterday I bought a cheap hard shell, snap on, case for my laptop. It's a pretty dark blue. Kelli bought her own, green of course, right away. I know deep inside she want's to be a hip republican technophile like me.
August is going to suck. The first half anyway. In order to get off the extra days I wanted off following my week of vacation I had to move things around. I now work 5 on 1 off 5 on 3 off 4 on. Booo. The things you do for family.
Finally....a photo from work. I love my job....even though I bitch about it. I love being in control of 50,000 horsepower. Zoom-Zoom on steroids.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Something different
For the most part I fly to the same handful (like 5) cities. I know the routes...the airports....the airspace....I really think I could fly to Little Rock by just looking outside.
Yesterday I was assigned to fly to Little Rock. Lots of weather in the area. My flight taxied to the runway and then shutdown the engines for 30 minutes (the APU was still running to provide air conditioning and power).
On the way I navigated around thunderstorms. Had to punch through a few. Haven't been rocked and rolled like that in a while. Landing was mostly uneventful except for the thunderstorm over the right half of the airport and all along the bottom. I landed on the left side.
I'm glad the baby comes in two weeks. I don't think Kelli can get any bigger. Mark this down.....9 pounds 3 ounces.
Today is the day I can "request" to change my work days for August. First priority is moving days around for Vacation. Then for the birth. Why that order? Well my Chief Pilot can approve days off for the birth if I can't do it on my own. At worst I can call in sick. I have almost a month of sick time in the bank for short term and over a month for long term sick.
Ipad still rocking my world.
My friend from high school and my geeky friend Kerry are both keeping an eye out for a new/newer car. Kerry has kids, Katy, my friend, is planning to have kids. Can't think of a better go getter than the Mazda5. Cheap to buy, cheap to own and even a little fun to drive.
"The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept." -George Carlin
Yesterday I was assigned to fly to Little Rock. Lots of weather in the area. My flight taxied to the runway and then shutdown the engines for 30 minutes (the APU was still running to provide air conditioning and power).
On the way I navigated around thunderstorms. Had to punch through a few. Haven't been rocked and rolled like that in a while. Landing was mostly uneventful except for the thunderstorm over the right half of the airport and all along the bottom. I landed on the left side.
I'm glad the baby comes in two weeks. I don't think Kelli can get any bigger. Mark this down.....9 pounds 3 ounces.
Today is the day I can "request" to change my work days for August. First priority is moving days around for Vacation. Then for the birth. Why that order? Well my Chief Pilot can approve days off for the birth if I can't do it on my own. At worst I can call in sick. I have almost a month of sick time in the bank for short term and over a month for long term sick.
Ipad still rocking my world.
My friend from high school and my geeky friend Kerry are both keeping an eye out for a new/newer car. Kerry has kids, Katy, my friend, is planning to have kids. Can't think of a better go getter than the Mazda5. Cheap to buy, cheap to own and even a little fun to drive.
"The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept." -George Carlin
Monday, July 26, 2010
I hope my mother in law doesn't find out
Decent weekend. Flew a bit. Home both nights.
Angela (of EricandAngela) wanted to go to Pahonix....Phoenix...for the weekend. Not many have taken me up on my buddy passes this year so I had two to spare (one each way). Flights looked great both ways all the way until the morning of. She was on the second flight to PHX. The first flight cancelled. The flight was only 1/2 full....as was the second flight. The second flight easily filled up...as did every flight until 9PM. She was a trooper and hung out until 4PM before throwing in the towel. Thankfully she got on the first flight out of DFW Sunday morning...and even scored a First Class seat. If this had been my mother in law....I think she might have decided to start using swear words for the first time in her life.
Kelli and I have only truly not made it somewhere once. We were trying to get to damn Sacramento (Jami and Kelly should seriously consider a move closer to SFO , SJC or LAX!). We were on the plane (in First Class no less!). The plane had a mechanical issue. Deboarded. Lost our seats as all the passengers who missed the flight made it. Boo.
Getting closer to B-day. We went shopping at Babies' R Us using some coupons we had been sent. I was comparing products and prices to Amazon.com. There are a ton of reviews on Amazon for baby stuff. There was a glider/rocker Kelli licked. At Babies' R Us the price was $139. On Amazon.com it was $111. Free 2 day shipping. Even with our 10% off coupon Amazon was still cheaper. We did buy a diaper bag....$50! For really a diaper backpack. I'm skeptical. We won't need a truly large diaper bag as I don't see us taking a road trip anytime soon. The diaper backpack will work for flights.
Loving my new Macbook Pro. No more glare! I hate glossy screens. Consumers like them as the colors are deeper. I hate them as I don't like the glare. If I wanted to look at myself I will buy a mirror. The IPad is hella glossy. I am still debating buying an antiglare screen for it.
IPhone to T-Mobile? Rumors going around that it's coming in the Fall.
Kelli is flying to Portland on a real ticket. Flights to Portland are notoriously full (Peggy and John should seriously consider moving closer to Denver or Phoenix!). I get 20% off the lowest fare I can find. Not bad. Of course paying $280 round trip is 10X more than we normally pay. Eh. I am non-reving.
Finally added a link on the Byrdintheoven.com blog to Natali Del Conte's baby blog. She, along with others, contribute to Mommy Beta. Very neat.
Angela (of EricandAngela) wanted to go to Pahonix....Phoenix...for the weekend. Not many have taken me up on my buddy passes this year so I had two to spare (one each way). Flights looked great both ways all the way until the morning of. She was on the second flight to PHX. The first flight cancelled. The flight was only 1/2 full....as was the second flight. The second flight easily filled up...as did every flight until 9PM. She was a trooper and hung out until 4PM before throwing in the towel. Thankfully she got on the first flight out of DFW Sunday morning...and even scored a First Class seat. If this had been my mother in law....I think she might have decided to start using swear words for the first time in her life.
Kelli and I have only truly not made it somewhere once. We were trying to get to damn Sacramento (Jami and Kelly should seriously consider a move closer to SFO , SJC or LAX!). We were on the plane (in First Class no less!). The plane had a mechanical issue. Deboarded. Lost our seats as all the passengers who missed the flight made it. Boo.
Getting closer to B-day. We went shopping at Babies' R Us using some coupons we had been sent. I was comparing products and prices to Amazon.com. There are a ton of reviews on Amazon for baby stuff. There was a glider/rocker Kelli licked. At Babies' R Us the price was $139. On Amazon.com it was $111. Free 2 day shipping. Even with our 10% off coupon Amazon was still cheaper. We did buy a diaper bag....$50! For really a diaper backpack. I'm skeptical. We won't need a truly large diaper bag as I don't see us taking a road trip anytime soon. The diaper backpack will work for flights.
Loving my new Macbook Pro. No more glare! I hate glossy screens. Consumers like them as the colors are deeper. I hate them as I don't like the glare. If I wanted to look at myself I will buy a mirror. The IPad is hella glossy. I am still debating buying an antiglare screen for it.
IPhone to T-Mobile? Rumors going around that it's coming in the Fall.
Kelli is flying to Portland on a real ticket. Flights to Portland are notoriously full (Peggy and John should seriously consider moving closer to Denver or Phoenix!). I get 20% off the lowest fare I can find. Not bad. Of course paying $280 round trip is 10X more than we normally pay. Eh. I am non-reving.
Finally added a link on the Byrdintheoven.com blog to Natali Del Conte's baby blog. She, along with others, contribute to Mommy Beta. Very neat.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Macbooks hold their value!
Finally sold my Macbook Pro. I paid $1700 for it back in April 2008. It has traveled all around the United States. Japan, Nassau and more since then. Lots of miles. A dent or two....several scratches on the bottom. Sold it today for $800 cash.
Over 2 years later it still had almost half it's original value. Truly awesome. New one on the way. Buying a base model Core I5 with the Hi-res anti glare screen.
I'm having issues getting my vacation moved for next month. My contract says one thing, my employer is stating something else. Super annoying part? The department that handles moving vacation days can only be reached through our archaic computer system and it only takes max 60 characters. Nice eh?
My job finally released an App for the Ipad that allows me to access the aforementioned archaic computer system directly from the Ipad. This means I no longer have to carry around my netbook. It also means my new Macbook Pro will be in much better shape as it will rarely leave the house.
Over 2 years later it still had almost half it's original value. Truly awesome. New one on the way. Buying a base model Core I5 with the Hi-res anti glare screen.
I'm having issues getting my vacation moved for next month. My contract says one thing, my employer is stating something else. Super annoying part? The department that handles moving vacation days can only be reached through our archaic computer system and it only takes max 60 characters. Nice eh?
My job finally released an App for the Ipad that allows me to access the aforementioned archaic computer system directly from the Ipad. This means I no longer have to carry around my netbook. It also means my new Macbook Pro will be in much better shape as it will rarely leave the house.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Almost vacation time
I get a lot of time off from "work" as is. Next month I get a week off with pay. Heading to Oregon. Still not exactly sure what I'm going to do. Mostly I plan on sitting in the house, watching TV and not changing diapers. Yeah....about that.
Kelli will have to buy a "real" ticket. I will go standby. Going to need a rental car which, as of now, will cost as much as a real airline ticket. No big deal. Everyone else .....well most everyone else.....well some other people are paying their own way.
Sat next to a guy yesterday who, by the time the plane landed, would have 2 Million AA miles. Two million! He started collecting AA miles in 1991. Crazy.
Kelli's stomach is getting so big it looks fake. Like she strapped on a fake baby stomach.
Tethering via my Nexus One is amazing. Stayed in a hotel with crappy wifi. Put my phone in hotspot mode and used my netbook and Ipad. Technology bliss.
Since I'm flying more this month, I'm saving gas. I used to drive to and from the airport daily. Exactly 20.0 miles a day. Since I've had a few multi day trips, my mileage has gone way down. Haven't bought gas since 6/28. Still have a quarter tank left.
Kelli and I are kinda on an island. No family is within 4 hours. Shouldn't be a big deal as millions of people have raised kids without the outside help of family. They weren't special...and neither are we.
Today is Friday. My only day off this week. By choice...could have had the last two days off but I picked up overtime.
Kelli will have to buy a "real" ticket. I will go standby. Going to need a rental car which, as of now, will cost as much as a real airline ticket. No big deal. Everyone else .....well most everyone else.....well some other people are paying their own way.
Sat next to a guy yesterday who, by the time the plane landed, would have 2 Million AA miles. Two million! He started collecting AA miles in 1991. Crazy.
Kelli's stomach is getting so big it looks fake. Like she strapped on a fake baby stomach.
Tethering via my Nexus One is amazing. Stayed in a hotel with crappy wifi. Put my phone in hotspot mode and used my netbook and Ipad. Technology bliss.
Since I'm flying more this month, I'm saving gas. I used to drive to and from the airport daily. Exactly 20.0 miles a day. Since I've had a few multi day trips, my mileage has gone way down. Haven't bought gas since 6/28. Still have a quarter tank left.
Kelli and I are kinda on an island. No family is within 4 hours. Shouldn't be a big deal as millions of people have raised kids without the outside help of family. They weren't special...and neither are we.
Today is Friday. My only day off this week. By choice...could have had the last two days off but I picked up overtime.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
I've been flying around
Almost like a real pilot this month. I've had 4 or 5 nights away from this month. Flew Milwaukee t0 DFW to Milwaukee to DFW yesterday. Long day. Seven and a half hours of flying inside of a 9 1/2 hour work day. Heading away again tonight on overtime.
Originally this trip was 6 hours of overtime. Of the 6 hours, 4 were to be spent in the cockpit and paid at 120% while 2 were to be spent in the cabin deadheading as a passenger paid at 90%. So $172.80 + $64.80 for a total of $237. Not bad for being gone just over 24 hours. Well yesterday I was displaced from the cockpit into the cabin for the first 1 hour flight. Now I get $129.60 + $97.2 for a total of $226.80. Still good money...especially considering for 3 hours I will simply be a passenger a plane. Eh. Wanted the whole enchilada.
Put in my FMLA papaerwork. I can see online the benefits department got it. Waiting for it to be approved. On a flight yesterday the Captain said that when his wife had their kid she had to be "cut" a bit to fit the baby through. Afterwards he asked the doctor if he could watch the "repair" work. He grabbed a mask and was down with the doctor as his wife was sutured up. He went into a little detail until I cried uncle. Once again I want to see no body fluids.
Kelli is enjoying "Words With Friends" still to "responsible" to buy her own Ipad/Ipod touch.
Got another allergy shot yesterday. Nurse noticed a bruise from a previous shot. Apologized then injected the shot. She then paused. "Hmm, now this one is bleeding." Nice. Didn't bleed for long. Long 5 year journey to normalcy. As close to normal as I can get anyway.
Originally this trip was 6 hours of overtime. Of the 6 hours, 4 were to be spent in the cockpit and paid at 120% while 2 were to be spent in the cabin deadheading as a passenger paid at 90%. So $172.80 + $64.80 for a total of $237. Not bad for being gone just over 24 hours. Well yesterday I was displaced from the cockpit into the cabin for the first 1 hour flight. Now I get $129.60 + $97.2 for a total of $226.80. Still good money...especially considering for 3 hours I will simply be a passenger a plane. Eh. Wanted the whole enchilada.
Put in my FMLA papaerwork. I can see online the benefits department got it. Waiting for it to be approved. On a flight yesterday the Captain said that when his wife had their kid she had to be "cut" a bit to fit the baby through. Afterwards he asked the doctor if he could watch the "repair" work. He grabbed a mask and was down with the doctor as his wife was sutured up. He went into a little detail until I cried uncle. Once again I want to see no body fluids.
Kelli is enjoying "Words With Friends" still to "responsible" to buy her own Ipad/Ipod touch.
Got another allergy shot yesterday. Nurse noticed a bruise from a previous shot. Apologized then injected the shot. She then paused. "Hmm, now this one is bleeding." Nice. Didn't bleed for long. Long 5 year journey to normalcy. As close to normal as I can get anyway.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Blood on the wall
When I first left for college I bought silverware at the Dollar store. It lasted a day or two. I could afford better....just didn't know better. Knowing is half the battle.
My mood is back to normal now that I am free of Allegra. There is definitely a link between mood swings and Allegra. I'm taking 24 hour Claritin. No issues..except that it really does last 24 hours...around the 24 1/2 hour mark...nose starts closing up.
Cut my finger open. I foolishly pushed my hand into my suitcase with it closed and started feeling around for something. My left ring finger grazed my brand new (i.e. sharp!) Fusion 5 razor. Five fine slices. Ouch. Bled quite a bit. Took a while to get it under control. Me being me I had the kitchen and living room looking like a crime scene. Apparently after I put on a band-aid, blood started pooling in the tip. I dripped blood on the counter...then smeared blood on the wall as I turned the light switch off.....gross. If it had been Kelli's blood I would have thrown up. I don't handle blood well unless it's my blood as I have.....er...had a personal bond with it.
Toured the HEB hospital. The rooms are in the middle of being refurbished. Lots of older stuff still around. The TV's are still tubes. No DVD players. But they do have Wifi. I am sure I will bring up Kelli's laptop and Kindle. The man couch looked very uncomfy. Bleh.
Really enjoying being on regular reserve this month. Not HAVING to go sit at the airport for 8 hours a day is nice. Instead I can hang around the house or DFW and just wait to be called. Nice.
Still trying to sell my Macbook Pro.
Geeky friend Kerry had her phone disabled due to being caught in a rain storm. Bag of rice later....all fixed. If it had been dropped in a bath or sink....could have been worse. There are minerals and chemicals in tap water that are not present in rain water. The crap in tap water transmits current...shorting out the device. Glad it is back to normal.
Still digging my Ipad.
I have Froyo on my Nexus One thanks to Cyanogenmod. Very happy.
My favorite radio host is back on the air. Russ Martin is back on the radio on 97.1 the Eagle. It's mornings instead of afternoons. Hopefully I can download the show without commercials.
Still have a lot of stuff to buy for the baby. Might have to hold off on the security cameras.
Kelli and I have been together for more than 8 years. Guess we are official now. No I don't know what that means.
My mood is back to normal now that I am free of Allegra. There is definitely a link between mood swings and Allegra. I'm taking 24 hour Claritin. No issues..except that it really does last 24 hours...around the 24 1/2 hour mark...nose starts closing up.
Cut my finger open. I foolishly pushed my hand into my suitcase with it closed and started feeling around for something. My left ring finger grazed my brand new (i.e. sharp!) Fusion 5 razor. Five fine slices. Ouch. Bled quite a bit. Took a while to get it under control. Me being me I had the kitchen and living room looking like a crime scene. Apparently after I put on a band-aid, blood started pooling in the tip. I dripped blood on the counter...then smeared blood on the wall as I turned the light switch off.....gross. If it had been Kelli's blood I would have thrown up. I don't handle blood well unless it's my blood as I have.....er...had a personal bond with it.
Toured the HEB hospital. The rooms are in the middle of being refurbished. Lots of older stuff still around. The TV's are still tubes. No DVD players. But they do have Wifi. I am sure I will bring up Kelli's laptop and Kindle. The man couch looked very uncomfy. Bleh.
Really enjoying being on regular reserve this month. Not HAVING to go sit at the airport for 8 hours a day is nice. Instead I can hang around the house or DFW and just wait to be called. Nice.
Still trying to sell my Macbook Pro.
Geeky friend Kerry had her phone disabled due to being caught in a rain storm. Bag of rice later....all fixed. If it had been dropped in a bath or sink....could have been worse. There are minerals and chemicals in tap water that are not present in rain water. The crap in tap water transmits current...shorting out the device. Glad it is back to normal.
Still digging my Ipad.
I have Froyo on my Nexus One thanks to Cyanogenmod. Very happy.
My favorite radio host is back on the air. Russ Martin is back on the radio on 97.1 the Eagle. It's mornings instead of afternoons. Hopefully I can download the show without commercials.
Still have a lot of stuff to buy for the baby. Might have to hold off on the security cameras.
Kelli and I have been together for more than 8 years. Guess we are official now. No I don't know what that means.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Side effects
The human body is a complex system of chemicals and goo. Yup goo. For most people the balance of chemicals and goo is just right to allow them to function. For others, outside chemicals (and sometimes goo) is needed.
I grew up in Houston...a humid, hot place. Never had much in the way of known allergies. My first year of college was up in Lubbock, TX (Panhandle of Texas...desert like). I felt better there....except for the dry air. Apparently I did have allergies.
My next 4 years of college (don't judge!) were in DEEP East Texas. They use the word DEEP, it's not a judgement on my account.
I developed bad allergies every spring. Sneezing, watering eyes, itchy throat, flaming nostrils, grew a third nipple kind of allergies. I took over the counter Tylenol Severe Allergy daily. Eventually I went to the Quack Shack (name given for the campus clinic) along with my girlfriend at the time who also had allergies.
We were both given Allegra. The medicine helped after a few days. There were side effects though. Both of us went from happy go lucky people to somber and quiet. It took a while to notice. Our semi active lives changed and we were docile and moody. Our happy relationship changed and we argued a lot more. We both got off Allegra and onto Claritin. Our relationship went back to normal and lasted until her crazy mother's brainwashing finally did the trick. Which is a good thing as I would likely not be where I am today if she were still in my life.
Fast forward to June 2010. My allergy Doctor initially prescribed a drug normally used for Asthmatics but helps with allergies as well. For normal folks it's no big deal. I'm a pilot. The drug requires a good deal of paperwork in order for me to take it as it's viewed as an asthmatic drug. Instead I was prescribed Fexofenadine HCL..... AKA Allegra which is FAA approved.
For some reason I thought this time would be different. I began taking the drug and after a few days the normal burning feeling I have in my nostrils was gone. I could breathe again. Times were good. So I thought.
Fast forward again to this week (using the fast forward button a lot today). Apparently my chemicals and goo reacted to Allegra the same way it did more than 12 years ago. I had become docile (more than normal), moody, irritable and just plain blah.
Wednesday was D day. I had the day off but just sat on the couch not wanting to do anything. Surrounded by technology I could find nothing to occupy my time. As the day went on I became more agitated and annoyed. It wasn't until late that night (when I had a "discussion" with Kelli) that I realized it was Allegra that was causing my moodiness. Thursday morning I stopped taking Allegra and ordered up 3 months supply of Claritin OTC. I can tell the Allegra is leaving my system. I had a headache and light headedness akin to a hangover. My nostrils are burning again, the Claritin should be here this afternoon (I love Amazon).
My airline offered up a temporary duty assignment for New York City for August. It's a sweet deal. Hotel room for 30 days. Free travel to and from and the biggest perk, per diem 24 hours a day for the entire month....tax free....about $1300 worth of extra money.
I was hoping for such an assignment in July. In August...can't really do it. Maybe in September. Maybe.
I grew up in Houston...a humid, hot place. Never had much in the way of known allergies. My first year of college was up in Lubbock, TX (Panhandle of Texas...desert like). I felt better there....except for the dry air. Apparently I did have allergies.
My next 4 years of college (don't judge!) were in DEEP East Texas. They use the word DEEP, it's not a judgement on my account.
I developed bad allergies every spring. Sneezing, watering eyes, itchy throat, flaming nostrils, grew a third nipple kind of allergies. I took over the counter Tylenol Severe Allergy daily. Eventually I went to the Quack Shack (name given for the campus clinic) along with my girlfriend at the time who also had allergies.
We were both given Allegra. The medicine helped after a few days. There were side effects though. Both of us went from happy go lucky people to somber and quiet. It took a while to notice. Our semi active lives changed and we were docile and moody. Our happy relationship changed and we argued a lot more. We both got off Allegra and onto Claritin. Our relationship went back to normal and lasted until her crazy mother's brainwashing finally did the trick. Which is a good thing as I would likely not be where I am today if she were still in my life.
Fast forward to June 2010. My allergy Doctor initially prescribed a drug normally used for Asthmatics but helps with allergies as well. For normal folks it's no big deal. I'm a pilot. The drug requires a good deal of paperwork in order for me to take it as it's viewed as an asthmatic drug. Instead I was prescribed Fexofenadine HCL..... AKA Allegra which is FAA approved.
For some reason I thought this time would be different. I began taking the drug and after a few days the normal burning feeling I have in my nostrils was gone. I could breathe again. Times were good. So I thought.
Fast forward again to this week (using the fast forward button a lot today). Apparently my chemicals and goo reacted to Allegra the same way it did more than 12 years ago. I had become docile (more than normal), moody, irritable and just plain blah.
Wednesday was D day. I had the day off but just sat on the couch not wanting to do anything. Surrounded by technology I could find nothing to occupy my time. As the day went on I became more agitated and annoyed. It wasn't until late that night (when I had a "discussion" with Kelli) that I realized it was Allegra that was causing my moodiness. Thursday morning I stopped taking Allegra and ordered up 3 months supply of Claritin OTC. I can tell the Allegra is leaving my system. I had a headache and light headedness akin to a hangover. My nostrils are burning again, the Claritin should be here this afternoon (I love Amazon).
My airline offered up a temporary duty assignment for New York City for August. It's a sweet deal. Hotel room for 30 days. Free travel to and from and the biggest perk, per diem 24 hours a day for the entire month....tax free....about $1300 worth of extra money.
I was hoping for such an assignment in July. In August...can't really do it. Maybe in September. Maybe.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Step 1....open box carefully
I think Kelli has Ipad envy. She likes Words With Friends. Only playable on Ipad/Iphone/Ipod Touch.
I did mention to her that an Ipad would be easier to use while holding/nursing a baby. She agreed.
Damn nurse injected my allergy shot INTO my muscle yesterday. Hurt. Bruised. Still hurts. I'm a wimp for pain.
My sister in law and her girlfriend bought a Prius. Unlike my brother in law in New York, they actually listened and took my advice to heart on car choices. My sister in law Jami previously had a Hyundai Santa Fe SUV that she loved. She was looking for something SUVish that wasn't expensive but reliable. The Santa Fe was perfect for her. Big enough, great gas mileage and was very reliable for her over 40000+ miles. My brother in law Kevin was looking for a car a few years ago. Kelli and I both told him to get a Honda Civic Hybrid or a Prius or a plain Honda Civic. He bought a Honda Accord EX-L V6. Great car, but he complains about the poor gas mileage. Shoulda listened.
I was able to sit at home and get paid yesterday! I am doing the same thing today. Hopefully I won't get called. We have a doctor visit this afternoon...another sonogram.
I did mention to her that an Ipad would be easier to use while holding/nursing a baby. She agreed.
Damn nurse injected my allergy shot INTO my muscle yesterday. Hurt. Bruised. Still hurts. I'm a wimp for pain.
My sister in law and her girlfriend bought a Prius. Unlike my brother in law in New York, they actually listened and took my advice to heart on car choices. My sister in law Jami previously had a Hyundai Santa Fe SUV that she loved. She was looking for something SUVish that wasn't expensive but reliable. The Santa Fe was perfect for her. Big enough, great gas mileage and was very reliable for her over 40000+ miles. My brother in law Kevin was looking for a car a few years ago. Kelli and I both told him to get a Honda Civic Hybrid or a Prius or a plain Honda Civic. He bought a Honda Accord EX-L V6. Great car, but he complains about the poor gas mileage. Shoulda listened.
I was able to sit at home and get paid yesterday! I am doing the same thing today. Hopefully I won't get called. We have a doctor visit this afternoon...another sonogram.
A week with an IPad
I've now had my IPad for a week. Verdict so far.....I'm in love.
The first few days were a little awkward as I've never owned an Iphone/Ipod touch before. Getting around was easy. I found some things the iOs does better than Android (such as copy and paste) but some it does worse....notifications!
On Friday I left early in the morning for a 4 day trip. I overnighted in Atlanta, Georgia and Washington, D.C (two nights in a row). I wasn't ready to cut the cord to a PC yet so I brought along my netbook.
The battery life of the IPad is better than my Nexus One by a long shot. Better than the IPhone 4 as well. I have used it on and off for an entire day and never had to recharge. The most use in one day exceeded 7 hours. Very nice.
I am almost done with my first Kindle book. As an ereader the Ipad is just okay. No doubt the Kindle is better. The glare of the Ipad in sunlight was the most annoying feature. I turned down the brightness to minimum so the back lighting didn't bother me at all.
I've become a "Words With Friends" addict. Words with Friends is a Scrabble like game. I'm playing 6 games at once. Won a few...lost a few. Kelli would love it...but she is resistant to an Ipod Touch/IPad. I think my mother in law would enjoy it as well.
While in DC I tossed my Ipad in my messenger bag and walk around the city. I was able to get online via free WiFi (in the Pentagon City Mall or Hotel) or just as easily via tethering to my phone. At least for me there is no need for the 3G model.
Going through security was just as easy as going through with my netbook. I left the Ipad in the case and placed it in a bin.
Overall...I'm very happy. I used my netbook only to update my pilot blog and use my company scheduling software.
My time in DC was fun. I naively went to the National Mall to visit a museum. Bad idea. All the lines were over an hour long!!! I found a tree and read on my Ipad for a bit before heading back.
The hotel I was at has a rooftop pool. I headed up there and took a seat for the firework show. It was an awesome view!!
[nggallery id=43]
The first few days were a little awkward as I've never owned an Iphone/Ipod touch before. Getting around was easy. I found some things the iOs does better than Android (such as copy and paste) but some it does worse....notifications!
On Friday I left early in the morning for a 4 day trip. I overnighted in Atlanta, Georgia and Washington, D.C (two nights in a row). I wasn't ready to cut the cord to a PC yet so I brought along my netbook.
The battery life of the IPad is better than my Nexus One by a long shot. Better than the IPhone 4 as well. I have used it on and off for an entire day and never had to recharge. The most use in one day exceeded 7 hours. Very nice.
I am almost done with my first Kindle book. As an ereader the Ipad is just okay. No doubt the Kindle is better. The glare of the Ipad in sunlight was the most annoying feature. I turned down the brightness to minimum so the back lighting didn't bother me at all.
I've become a "Words With Friends" addict. Words with Friends is a Scrabble like game. I'm playing 6 games at once. Won a few...lost a few. Kelli would love it...but she is resistant to an Ipod Touch/IPad. I think my mother in law would enjoy it as well.
While in DC I tossed my Ipad in my messenger bag and walk around the city. I was able to get online via free WiFi (in the Pentagon City Mall or Hotel) or just as easily via tethering to my phone. At least for me there is no need for the 3G model.
Going through security was just as easy as going through with my netbook. I left the Ipad in the case and placed it in a bin.
Overall...I'm very happy. I used my netbook only to update my pilot blog and use my company scheduling software.
My time in DC was fun. I naively went to the National Mall to visit a museum. Bad idea. All the lines were over an hour long!!! I found a tree and read on my Ipad for a bit before heading back.
The hotel I was at has a rooftop pool. I headed up there and took a seat for the firework show. It was an awesome view!!
[nggallery id=43]
Thursday, July 1, 2010
So easy a Forensic Analyst can do it?
When I got my first computer back in the early 90's it came with instruction manuals almost as heavy as the computer itself. It was needed. Computers were complicated. Over the years computers have become easier to use and the manuals are mostly an afterthought. The idea being no one really read them so if they had a problem they would just call tech support.
This annoys me as I like manuals. I like to really know how things work. For the most part when I get a new gadget I play with it for a bit and see if I can figure it out. Once I have an idea I read the entire manual. One of my favorite manuals to read are car owners manuals.
Anyways I know I have a well made gadget when the device is so easy to use a manual isn't needed. Something so easy a Forensic Analyst can use it....i.e. Kelli.
Kelli is highly resistant to technology and change. She is very much so a routine person. She gets in a groove that works for her and doesn't like to change it.
My first chink in her armor of tech came with her getting a slightly intelligent phone. She protested as she didn't need anything more than a basic phone. Later she got a laptop as she realized it was neat to sit on the couch and use a computer. Not long after she got her first smart phone, then a zune MP3 player, then a Kindle DX then an Apple Macbook, then a Zune HD then a Nexus One. Her daily tech now consist of her Zune HD, Nexus One and Macbook. When we travel she uses her Kindle DX.
Technology has become so easy to use....that it's harder for me to use. Take Windows 7. Awesome OS for the most part, but the search function that's been around for a long time has been waaaay dumbed down. Annoying.
I finally bit the bullet and got an ereader. I was drooling over the Pandigital Novel, but it was recalled for defects within a week of it being out. I then got hot and heavy over the wifi only Nook....but it won't be out till maybe this week. I was getting backed up....I was getting blue techballs. Monday I was sitting on the couch watching a movie while my sister in law Jessi read a book when it happened. Best Buy showed to have a base model Ipad in stock. I quietly stepped out and rushed to buy it. The employee said they had just put the product in the cage 20 minutes prior. It's mine.
Most of what I do online is read.....blogs....gadget post....car post...read. The Ipad is great for it. I can buy and compare prices for eBooks from Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Apple (IBook) and I think Walden books. I of course bought from Amazon as I can read the same book on my computer or Nexus One. The Amazon app supports Whisper Sync which means I can read on my IPad, close the book then open it on my Nexus One and it will pick up where I left off. Very neat.
Beyond that the IPad can do 75% of what I need a computer to do. The keyboard is useful, but I would never write an entire blog post on it. Battery last all day and then sum. One annoyance....I can only sync it with one computer. I might need a work around as I plan on taking my netbook along on trips.
This annoys me as I like manuals. I like to really know how things work. For the most part when I get a new gadget I play with it for a bit and see if I can figure it out. Once I have an idea I read the entire manual. One of my favorite manuals to read are car owners manuals.
Anyways I know I have a well made gadget when the device is so easy to use a manual isn't needed. Something so easy a Forensic Analyst can use it....i.e. Kelli.
Kelli is highly resistant to technology and change. She is very much so a routine person. She gets in a groove that works for her and doesn't like to change it.
My first chink in her armor of tech came with her getting a slightly intelligent phone. She protested as she didn't need anything more than a basic phone. Later she got a laptop as she realized it was neat to sit on the couch and use a computer. Not long after she got her first smart phone, then a zune MP3 player, then a Kindle DX then an Apple Macbook, then a Zune HD then a Nexus One. Her daily tech now consist of her Zune HD, Nexus One and Macbook. When we travel she uses her Kindle DX.
Technology has become so easy to use....that it's harder for me to use. Take Windows 7. Awesome OS for the most part, but the search function that's been around for a long time has been waaaay dumbed down. Annoying.
I finally bit the bullet and got an ereader. I was drooling over the Pandigital Novel, but it was recalled for defects within a week of it being out. I then got hot and heavy over the wifi only Nook....but it won't be out till maybe this week. I was getting backed up....I was getting blue techballs. Monday I was sitting on the couch watching a movie while my sister in law Jessi read a book when it happened. Best Buy showed to have a base model Ipad in stock. I quietly stepped out and rushed to buy it. The employee said they had just put the product in the cage 20 minutes prior. It's mine.
Most of what I do online is read.....blogs....gadget post....car post...read. The Ipad is great for it. I can buy and compare prices for eBooks from Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Apple (IBook) and I think Walden books. I of course bought from Amazon as I can read the same book on my computer or Nexus One. The Amazon app supports Whisper Sync which means I can read on my IPad, close the book then open it on my Nexus One and it will pick up where I left off. Very neat.
Beyond that the IPad can do 75% of what I need a computer to do. The keyboard is useful, but I would never write an entire blog post on it. Battery last all day and then sum. One annoyance....I can only sync it with one computer. I might need a work around as I plan on taking my netbook along on trips.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Long weekend
Family was in town this weekend. Didn't see them much as I worked 13 hour days each day they were here. I didn't dare complain as my sister in law is a nurse and brother in law a cop. Thirteen hour shifts are a cake walk.
Baby shower was Saturday. Also was our 8 year anniversary of us starting to date. I spent the day flying to Cleveland, Ohio and back. Just as good. Didn't really want to be in a house full of women. We got some good stuff. Kelli says there is $800 more to buy! Ouch.
I was home after the party. Eric, Angela and Marin came over. Marin had a great time playing with my niece Haley.
Kelli and I swapped cars while the family was here. I increased her gas mileage by .3 MPG. She dropped mine by a full 4 MPG. Seeesh.
I'm off for 4 consecutive days this week. Payback for working 6 days in a row last week.
Almost missed my second allergy shot of the week last week. Going to be a slight challenge getting there twice a week....even though it's 2 miles away. I have to go twice at least two days apart. Closed Sunday and Saturdays after 12PM.
Kindle App for Android is out. Free. Bought my first book Samantha Bee I Know I am, But Who Are You ? . Very legible even on the small screen. I can read the book on my phone, computer or Kelli's Kindle.
Fixed my Zune broken glass this morning. Broke the LCD.
Looking forward to a day off that line's up with Kelli being off. Should happen on July 10th.
Baby shower was Saturday. Also was our 8 year anniversary of us starting to date. I spent the day flying to Cleveland, Ohio and back. Just as good. Didn't really want to be in a house full of women. We got some good stuff. Kelli says there is $800 more to buy! Ouch.
I was home after the party. Eric, Angela and Marin came over. Marin had a great time playing with my niece Haley.
Kelli and I swapped cars while the family was here. I increased her gas mileage by .3 MPG. She dropped mine by a full 4 MPG. Seeesh.
I'm off for 4 consecutive days this week. Payback for working 6 days in a row last week.
Almost missed my second allergy shot of the week last week. Going to be a slight challenge getting there twice a week....even though it's 2 miles away. I have to go twice at least two days apart. Closed Sunday and Saturdays after 12PM.
Kindle App for Android is out. Free. Bought my first book Samantha Bee I Know I am, But Who Are You ? . Very legible even on the small screen. I can read the book on my phone, computer or Kelli's Kindle.
Fixed my Zune broken glass this morning. Broke the LCD.
Looking forward to a day off that line's up with Kelli being off. Should happen on July 10th.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Screw you AT&T!
Family in town. I picked up my sister in law and her girlfriend along with my niece last night. I stood in baggage claim for the first time in years. They only brought one huge bag. Less than they brought for the cruise. I still think they could have gotten by with carry on. Time will tell how Kelli and I will do.
Along with them is my mother in law and another sister in law. Six people means Kelli's Prius is inadequate. Gave her my car for the day. I'm a little worried. Hopefully she parks way far out in parking lots.
AT&T UVerse support can kiss my shiney brown but. Horrible. Service went down yesterday. No biggie. It happens. I tether'ed my phone to my phone and looked up the support number. When I called I dealt with a new automated system. Not only does it take your information....It tried to troubleshoot the damn issue. After 5 steps it passed me to a human.
I used to work in high speed internet support. I know a few things. The problem was the router/modem was not getting an IP address from AT&T. Tried to reboot it. Nothing.
The first human was nice and I let them know what I had done. She had me do the same things again. I complied. She then wanted me to default the Uverse router. I asked why this was needed if the service stopped working after months of being fine. She insisted . After letting her know I was certain it would not fix the issue I again complied. Service still down. Then the phone call ended. Nice.
I called back. Automated system again. New tech. More troubleshooting. Finally agreed the problem WASN'T with the router and they would have to send out a tech. Ugh.
Appointment made from 4-9. I gave them two phone numbers to call prior.
Kelli and I had an appointment at 3PM two miles from our house. Dr. was running late. I called AT&T at 3:45PM to check on our status. I figured it would be quick so I stepped into the lobby. Turns out they had our home number on file to call not the two numbers I gave them. Fifteen minutes later they have the correct numbers and stated they would call prior to coming. I walk back in and Kelli is walking out. I missed everything.
We get home at 4:30PM. The Internet and TV started working again. At 5:10PM the phone rings the guy is on his way. Two minutes later he is at our door. Thanks for the heads up. Worthless. The problem was NOT at our house.
Because I defaulted the system my network is all screwy. I could and maybe should, use another router for my network have connect it to the Uverse router to avoid this issue. Eh. Annoyed.
Along with them is my mother in law and another sister in law. Six people means Kelli's Prius is inadequate. Gave her my car for the day. I'm a little worried. Hopefully she parks way far out in parking lots.
AT&T UVerse support can kiss my shiney brown but. Horrible. Service went down yesterday. No biggie. It happens. I tether'ed my phone to my phone and looked up the support number. When I called I dealt with a new automated system. Not only does it take your information....It tried to troubleshoot the damn issue. After 5 steps it passed me to a human.
I used to work in high speed internet support. I know a few things. The problem was the router/modem was not getting an IP address from AT&T. Tried to reboot it. Nothing.
The first human was nice and I let them know what I had done. She had me do the same things again. I complied. She then wanted me to default the Uverse router. I asked why this was needed if the service stopped working after months of being fine. She insisted . After letting her know I was certain it would not fix the issue I again complied. Service still down. Then the phone call ended. Nice.
I called back. Automated system again. New tech. More troubleshooting. Finally agreed the problem WASN'T with the router and they would have to send out a tech. Ugh.
Appointment made from 4-9. I gave them two phone numbers to call prior.
Kelli and I had an appointment at 3PM two miles from our house. Dr. was running late. I called AT&T at 3:45PM to check on our status. I figured it would be quick so I stepped into the lobby. Turns out they had our home number on file to call not the two numbers I gave them. Fifteen minutes later they have the correct numbers and stated they would call prior to coming. I walk back in and Kelli is walking out. I missed everything.
We get home at 4:30PM. The Internet and TV started working again. At 5:10PM the phone rings the guy is on his way. Two minutes later he is at our door. Thanks for the heads up. Worthless. The problem was NOT at our house.
Because I defaulted the system my network is all screwy. I could and maybe should, use another router for my network have connect it to the Uverse router to avoid this issue. Eh. Annoyed.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Fixing it myself
I like to fix things myself. Sometimes I screw up....sometimes I get it just right.
Owning a house means I have attempted quite a few repairs/upgrades on my own. Before the Internet people would buy a book and figure things out. Nowadays instructions are a Youtube search away.
I've watched videos on how to install floors, replace lighting, install home networking, install a car stereo and more. There are several great guides on gadget repair over at IFixit.com. I used that site to replace the hard drive in my Macbook Pro and more. Love it.
Yesterday my Zune HD had a glass shattering fall yesterday. I was trying to carry too many things at one time. Ouch. It had fallen a few times before. Always survived. I was worried it would be an expensive tumble. Nope....$25 for the part and about an hour of my time.
Family coming in town tonight. I might be in Cleveland. Eh.
I was up in the attic this week working on a project. After just 4 minutes I was drenched in sweat. Rethinking installing new cameras this summer. I'm a house geek not a field geek.
Owning a house means I have attempted quite a few repairs/upgrades on my own. Before the Internet people would buy a book and figure things out. Nowadays instructions are a Youtube search away.
I've watched videos on how to install floors, replace lighting, install home networking, install a car stereo and more. There are several great guides on gadget repair over at IFixit.com. I used that site to replace the hard drive in my Macbook Pro and more. Love it.
Yesterday my Zune HD had a glass shattering fall yesterday. I was trying to carry too many things at one time. Ouch. It had fallen a few times before. Always survived. I was worried it would be an expensive tumble. Nope....$25 for the part and about an hour of my time.
Family coming in town tonight. I might be in Cleveland. Eh.
I was up in the attic this week working on a project. After just 4 minutes I was drenched in sweat. Rethinking installing new cameras this summer. I'm a house geek not a field geek.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
My father in law is a…….geek?
My father in law owns his own business up in Oregon. He repairs and occassionally designs industrial machines. Lots of welding and metal work. Rough job. He knows it well.
While waiting to get one of my twice a week injections of concentrated itch he called me. One of his computers was down.
After a minute of troubleshooting I concluded it was likely a bad power supply. I told him how to take the old one out and what kind of power supply to buy to replace it. I then stated if it was a truly dead computer it wasn't hard to pull the data off the old hard drive. He then came back with, "Oh I'm not worried about the data, I have Carbonite." I was silent. He just shocked me. "Wow, you're all set then."
I just started using Carbonite a few months ago. Carbonite is an off site backup service with unlimited data storage. Very easy to use. It's currently backing up over 90 gigs of photos and files for our house. It's dead easy to use. Simply tell it which folders to monitor....that's it. Recovery is very easy as well.
Turns out it was just a power supply. He swapped it with another computer. I'm still amazed that he KNEW about Carbonite. I am curious if he has it installed on more than one or two computers as it can get expensive at roughly $55 per computer per year. There is a new Carbonite Pro designed for business. It's cheaper if more than 3 computers are signed up for the service.
Think I'm going to get an Nook. Makes the MOST sense with a baby on the way.
Cell phones are amazing. I'm still in awe. In my hand I hold a device that can connect to a tower MILES away to then connect to the Internet to do any number of things. And the damn thing makes phone calls!!!!!
While waiting to get one of my twice a week injections of concentrated itch he called me. One of his computers was down.
After a minute of troubleshooting I concluded it was likely a bad power supply. I told him how to take the old one out and what kind of power supply to buy to replace it. I then stated if it was a truly dead computer it wasn't hard to pull the data off the old hard drive. He then came back with, "Oh I'm not worried about the data, I have Carbonite." I was silent. He just shocked me. "Wow, you're all set then."
I just started using Carbonite a few months ago. Carbonite is an off site backup service with unlimited data storage. Very easy to use. It's currently backing up over 90 gigs of photos and files for our house. It's dead easy to use. Simply tell it which folders to monitor....that's it. Recovery is very easy as well.
Turns out it was just a power supply. He swapped it with another computer. I'm still amazed that he KNEW about Carbonite. I am curious if he has it installed on more than one or two computers as it can get expensive at roughly $55 per computer per year. There is a new Carbonite Pro designed for business. It's cheaper if more than 3 computers are signed up for the service.
Think I'm going to get an Nook. Makes the MOST sense with a baby on the way.
Cell phones are amazing. I'm still in awe. In my hand I hold a device that can connect to a tower MILES away to then connect to the Internet to do any number of things. And the damn thing makes phone calls!!!!!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Let me inject you with everything you're allergic too
Allergy shots make me laugh in an evil way.
"Hey we're going to take all the stuff you're allergic too and inject it into your arm. You cool with that?"
Yeah. Itchy. Over time though....should feel better.
Amazing world we live in. In response to Barnes and Noble dropping the price of the Nook to $149 for Wifi and $199 for 3G, Amazon dropped the Kindle (which is 3G only) to $189. That's $70 off the price on Sunday and $210 off since the original debut in 2007. True over 3 years the price to produce the Kindle has gone down. Still at under $200....both ereaders provide a great reading experience. My nod goes to the Nook though....more advanced and less proprietary.
I have had a few bites on my Macbook Pro. It's up on Craigslist for $950. I paid $1700 for it 2 years ago. If I can sell it for $950 I will be happy. Apple computers have the same crazy high resale values that Lexus and BMWs enjoy. By comparison a 2 year old ultra premium ($1500+) HP or Dell computer barely holds 1/4th the value and has a much smaller market.
Almost traded my netbook for an Ipad yesterday. Guy on craigslist wanted a netbook. Over a few emails I thought we had agreed on trading my HP 5101 for his 16GB Ipad. I would include $250 cash. Then he stared wanting more cash since my HP only has a license for Windows XP Home and not Pro. I backed out. My 5101 is much nicer than the average netbook. He wanted to meet and check it out. In order to do that I would have to wipe my 5101 and put XP back on it. That's about an hour or so of my time for something that may not happen. No thanks. I'll keep my netbook.
Stopped by a day care yesterday. Not trolling for kids. Looking for some place to watch Avantika. It was a franchise from La Petite Academy. It was okay. I didn't get a good vibe. We will visit more. They charge $227 a week. Only half if we are on vacation. In the future we would be able to save money if I can move my schedule around to be off one full week a month. Very possible.
"Hey we're going to take all the stuff you're allergic too and inject it into your arm. You cool with that?"
Yeah. Itchy. Over time though....should feel better.
Amazing world we live in. In response to Barnes and Noble dropping the price of the Nook to $149 for Wifi and $199 for 3G, Amazon dropped the Kindle (which is 3G only) to $189. That's $70 off the price on Sunday and $210 off since the original debut in 2007. True over 3 years the price to produce the Kindle has gone down. Still at under $200....both ereaders provide a great reading experience. My nod goes to the Nook though....more advanced and less proprietary.
I have had a few bites on my Macbook Pro. It's up on Craigslist for $950. I paid $1700 for it 2 years ago. If I can sell it for $950 I will be happy. Apple computers have the same crazy high resale values that Lexus and BMWs enjoy. By comparison a 2 year old ultra premium ($1500+) HP or Dell computer barely holds 1/4th the value and has a much smaller market.
Almost traded my netbook for an Ipad yesterday. Guy on craigslist wanted a netbook. Over a few emails I thought we had agreed on trading my HP 5101 for his 16GB Ipad. I would include $250 cash. Then he stared wanting more cash since my HP only has a license for Windows XP Home and not Pro. I backed out. My 5101 is much nicer than the average netbook. He wanted to meet and check it out. In order to do that I would have to wipe my 5101 and put XP back on it. That's about an hour or so of my time for something that may not happen. No thanks. I'll keep my netbook.
Stopped by a day care yesterday. Not trolling for kids. Looking for some place to watch Avantika. It was a franchise from La Petite Academy. It was okay. I didn't get a good vibe. We will visit more. They charge $227 a week. Only half if we are on vacation. In the future we would be able to save money if I can move my schedule around to be off one full week a month. Very possible.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Man cave
Our house is roughly 2000 square feet (1960 to be exact). Off that 2000 square feet I have 110 square feet as my "Man Cave". It's full of computer parts and stuff. My stuff. Kelli is fine with whatever I do in there. She never has to go in there. As long as my stuff fits in my man cave....and the door can close....all is good.
At first my stuff occupied space in every closet in this house plus two rooms. Getting down to just one room is quite a feat. My room. Kelli has never attempted to clean or organize my room. All is good.
My room. Less than 5% of the house. My room. Man cave. No one else is welcome in there. No one. My room.
The Barnes and Noble nook WILL be $149 this Wednesday at Best Buy and Barnes and Noble. The catch? WiFi only. The 3G/Wifi model will be $199. Interesting. I don't think 3G is REALLY needed. Useful yes...but wifi is everywhere. I want an ereader, but I resist because it's ANOTHER device to carry.
Right now I carry a laptop (Macbook Pro most of the time), Zune HD, Digital Camera and my Nexus One. Increasingly I am leaving my Zune HD behind as my Nexus One can play music and downloads all my audio podcast without issue. I watch my video podcast on my laptop.
If I bought an ereader it wouldn't replace anything. A tablet PC could replace the laptop and Zune HD. Thus I would be carrying 3 things at most. Which tablet PC though?
I've been an Android champion from day 1. I ordered The T-Mobile G1 sight unseen the first day it was available for order. Android tablets are supposed to be on the horizon. My employer has an Iphone app that allows me to connect to the software I use for work. Currently I have to use a "real" computer to access the software. No app is in production for Android. Soo....Ipad?
I poo poo'd the Ipad back in March. I want one. Can almost justify it. My attempts at tricking Kelli into buying me one failed.
Over the weekend I kept thanking her for buying me an Ipad and posted that she bought me one for Juneteenth. I was hoping a Jedi Mind Trick would result in her thinking, "I guess this pregnancy is messing with my head because I bought Darren an Ipad." Didn't work. Hmmm.
With the application for accessing software for work coming out I could travel 3-4 days with just an Ipad. Hmmm.
At first my stuff occupied space in every closet in this house plus two rooms. Getting down to just one room is quite a feat. My room. Kelli has never attempted to clean or organize my room. All is good.
My room. Less than 5% of the house. My room. Man cave. No one else is welcome in there. No one. My room.
The Barnes and Noble nook WILL be $149 this Wednesday at Best Buy and Barnes and Noble. The catch? WiFi only. The 3G/Wifi model will be $199. Interesting. I don't think 3G is REALLY needed. Useful yes...but wifi is everywhere. I want an ereader, but I resist because it's ANOTHER device to carry.
Right now I carry a laptop (Macbook Pro most of the time), Zune HD, Digital Camera and my Nexus One. Increasingly I am leaving my Zune HD behind as my Nexus One can play music and downloads all my audio podcast without issue. I watch my video podcast on my laptop.
If I bought an ereader it wouldn't replace anything. A tablet PC could replace the laptop and Zune HD. Thus I would be carrying 3 things at most. Which tablet PC though?
I've been an Android champion from day 1. I ordered The T-Mobile G1 sight unseen the first day it was available for order. Android tablets are supposed to be on the horizon. My employer has an Iphone app that allows me to connect to the software I use for work. Currently I have to use a "real" computer to access the software. No app is in production for Android. Soo....Ipad?
I poo poo'd the Ipad back in March. I want one. Can almost justify it. My attempts at tricking Kelli into buying me one failed.
Over the weekend I kept thanking her for buying me an Ipad and posted that she bought me one for Juneteenth. I was hoping a Jedi Mind Trick would result in her thinking, "I guess this pregnancy is messing with my head because I bought Darren an Ipad." Didn't work. Hmmm.
With the application for accessing software for work coming out I could travel 3-4 days with just an Ipad. Hmmm.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Shootin' Up
Got my first allergy shot today. Arm started to fell itchy...then I remembered....I am being injected with stuff I am allergic to!
T-Mobile unleashed the HSPA+ network. What does this mean? Our cellphones have nearly as fast download speeds as our home AT&T Uverse. I love the world I live in.
The Captain I sit airport standby with bought a fancy new Macbook Pro Core I5 yesterday. Spent the morning helping him set up Windows 7 and just getting around Mac. Damn sexy machine. Thinner than mine. I had Mac envy.
Hung up the curtains in the baby room. Still pondering where to put "A Princess Lives Here" sign I bought.
Years ago Kelli and I flew to Sacramento as "real paying passengers". Round trip from Dallas it was $290 a person. From Austin it was $160 person...and we flew through Dallas. Back then we bought one way tickets to Austin, ate breakfast, hopped back on a plane, flew to Dallas changed planes and flew to Sacramento. On the way back we got off in Dallas and went home. We saved over $260. I say that to say the following.
A ticket round trip to Portland from Dallas is $540. From Austin....going through Dallas....$260. Why am I looking at airfare? Well Kelli might need a "real" ticket to fly with the rib kicker as standby can be rough. I do get 10% off the lowest fare I can find. Eh.
One of Kellis dogs is over 7 years old. That got met thinking....Kelli and I have had a social agreement going on 8 years...as of next week. Eight years. Over 2900 DAYS.....wow.
T-Mobile unleashed the HSPA+ network. What does this mean? Our cellphones have nearly as fast download speeds as our home AT&T Uverse. I love the world I live in.
The Captain I sit airport standby with bought a fancy new Macbook Pro Core I5 yesterday. Spent the morning helping him set up Windows 7 and just getting around Mac. Damn sexy machine. Thinner than mine. I had Mac envy.
Hung up the curtains in the baby room. Still pondering where to put "A Princess Lives Here" sign I bought.
Years ago Kelli and I flew to Sacramento as "real paying passengers". Round trip from Dallas it was $290 a person. From Austin it was $160 person...and we flew through Dallas. Back then we bought one way tickets to Austin, ate breakfast, hopped back on a plane, flew to Dallas changed planes and flew to Sacramento. On the way back we got off in Dallas and went home. We saved over $260. I say that to say the following.
A ticket round trip to Portland from Dallas is $540. From Austin....going through Dallas....$260. Why am I looking at airfare? Well Kelli might need a "real" ticket to fly with the rib kicker as standby can be rough. I do get 10% off the lowest fare I can find. Eh.
One of Kellis dogs is over 7 years old. That got met thinking....Kelli and I have had a social agreement going on 8 years...as of next week. Eight years. Over 2900 DAYS.....wow.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Too slow
I was ready to pull the trigger on a refurbished Macbook Pro. I clicked select to put it in my cart, then went to get my credit card. Less than 2 minutes later I clicked the button to buy....then I got an error. "Some items in your cart are no longer available. WTF?!?!?! Apparently refurbished computers are popular as someone else bought the one I wanted faster than I could. Boo. Back to waiting.
Kelli somehow broke her down arrow on her Macbook. No idea how. Spent 30 minutes trying to get everything back together. It works...but she might need a new key.
After that I decided to replace a few heavily worn keys on my Macbook Pro. For some reason the 'A', 'S', 'E' and 'D' are all worn so badly the letters can no longer be read. After they are replaced I'm pretty sure I'm going to sell my current Macbook Pro. Models like mine are easily getting $800-$1000 on eBay. Might try Craigslist first. Might.
Hell of a day on Monday. Damn long day.
Lots of family coming in next week. Gonna need two cars to get around.
Blood pressure hovering in the normal range for a while now. Good times.
Kelli somehow broke her down arrow on her Macbook. No idea how. Spent 30 minutes trying to get everything back together. It works...but she might need a new key.
After that I decided to replace a few heavily worn keys on my Macbook Pro. For some reason the 'A', 'S', 'E' and 'D' are all worn so badly the letters can no longer be read. After they are replaced I'm pretty sure I'm going to sell my current Macbook Pro. Models like mine are easily getting $800-$1000 on eBay. Might try Craigslist first. Might.
Hell of a day on Monday. Damn long day.
Lots of family coming in next week. Gonna need two cars to get around.
Blood pressure hovering in the normal range for a while now. Good times.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
It's Monday
Went to the allergist for a test. My back was on fire for 20 minutes with 64 allergins on it. Verdict: Dogs, Cats, Dust, Grass, and Pollen. Taking weekly shots, daily pills and twice a day inhalants...for a long time.
Flying today. At first I was going to avoid passengers till the end of the day. Not anymore. Now I am deadheading to Abilene, test flying a plane, then (if it passes) flying that plane to DFW empty, the flying another empty plane to Abilene, then deadheading back to DFW. Boo.
We bought a new printer yesterday. No more inkjets for us. Network Laser printer/fax/copier on sale at Fry's for almost free. Getting rid of the current ones.
Kelli stated if the rib kicker was born today it could survive on it's own. Good to know.
Saw Precious last night. Good movie. Sad knowing kids live like this everyday.
Debating on spelling the rib kicker's real name as Natali or Natalie. Natali is of course patterned after Natali Del Conte.
Installed Ubuntu Linux again. Getting better. Still not consumer friendly as I can't figure out how to install flash on Chrome. I love Google Chrome by the way. Syncs all my bookmarks to every computer I use.
The dogs are still alive.
I think my dad has watched 100 movies in the past week. Glad he is enjoying Roku.
Time to go to work.
Flying today. At first I was going to avoid passengers till the end of the day. Not anymore. Now I am deadheading to Abilene, test flying a plane, then (if it passes) flying that plane to DFW empty, the flying another empty plane to Abilene, then deadheading back to DFW. Boo.
We bought a new printer yesterday. No more inkjets for us. Network Laser printer/fax/copier on sale at Fry's for almost free. Getting rid of the current ones.
Kelli stated if the rib kicker was born today it could survive on it's own. Good to know.
Saw Precious last night. Good movie. Sad knowing kids live like this everyday.
Debating on spelling the rib kicker's real name as Natali or Natalie. Natali is of course patterned after Natali Del Conte.
Installed Ubuntu Linux again. Getting better. Still not consumer friendly as I can't figure out how to install flash on Chrome. I love Google Chrome by the way. Syncs all my bookmarks to every computer I use.
The dogs are still alive.
I think my dad has watched 100 movies in the past week. Glad he is enjoying Roku.
Time to go to work.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Allergist
I have allergies. Mostly to cats....dogs....and dust. Cats are the worst.
Over the years I have coped by downing allergy medicine. It does enough. Recently I have had really bad allergies. Annoyed.
Stopped by an allergist yesterday. Great Doctor. Crappy office staff. Took his time with me. Discussed my job and other factors. I learned that people who are allergic to cats should steer clear of people who own cats and their houses. Simply putting a cat away isn't enough. My sister in law Jami was really good about keeping her cat away. My sister in law Jenny...not so much. Nonetheless cats are evil.
Going in tomorrow morning for a full allergy test. Going to get 64 allergans placed on my back and see what pops up. I have to be very careful with what I am given drug wise. Lots of stuff for normal people isn't allowed for pilots.
Dijon is 3.5 pounds. Slightly above weight. My bet....at birth...9 pounds 10 ounces.....minimum.
I was ready to pull the trigger on a Macbook Pro yesterday. A refurbished model that is more than $380 off sticker. When I went to the product page. Sold out. Reason? Because I think too damn much and other people bought them. I am sure they will be back in stock soon. Boo me.
Almost down 17 pounds over almost 3 months. I'm on a modified low carb diet. I eat no/extremely little refined sugar. No fructose corn syrup. Low fat. Very little processed foods. Lots of fresh vegetables and fruits. Lots of lean meat. I feel great and will soon need a smaller belt as the current belts are starting to look silly as they wrap around my left side.
Over the years I have coped by downing allergy medicine. It does enough. Recently I have had really bad allergies. Annoyed.
Stopped by an allergist yesterday. Great Doctor. Crappy office staff. Took his time with me. Discussed my job and other factors. I learned that people who are allergic to cats should steer clear of people who own cats and their houses. Simply putting a cat away isn't enough. My sister in law Jami was really good about keeping her cat away. My sister in law Jenny...not so much. Nonetheless cats are evil.
Going in tomorrow morning for a full allergy test. Going to get 64 allergans placed on my back and see what pops up. I have to be very careful with what I am given drug wise. Lots of stuff for normal people isn't allowed for pilots.
Dijon is 3.5 pounds. Slightly above weight. My bet....at birth...9 pounds 10 ounces.....minimum.
I was ready to pull the trigger on a Macbook Pro yesterday. A refurbished model that is more than $380 off sticker. When I went to the product page. Sold out. Reason? Because I think too damn much and other people bought them. I am sure they will be back in stock soon. Boo me.
Almost down 17 pounds over almost 3 months. I'm on a modified low carb diet. I eat no/extremely little refined sugar. No fructose corn syrup. Low fat. Very little processed foods. Lots of fresh vegetables and fruits. Lots of lean meat. I feel great and will soon need a smaller belt as the current belts are starting to look silly as they wrap around my left side.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Everything I need to know I learned from a coke can
Apple computers are expensive. They do give price breaks by selling Apple refurbished models. Right now they have Macbook Pro's with the Core I5 CPUs for $250+ off. Free shipping. Exact same 1 year warranty as new models. Hmmm.
Still waiting for the Pandigital E-reader to come down to MSRP. I don't get the $60 markup at Kohls. JCPenny has it for $199...but not shipping until 6/23???
Made a wonderful lunch yesterday....curry chicken....from scratch. Today is Ginger Pork Tenderloin.
The new IPhone is sexy. I almost want one....until I think of all the limitations compared to my Nexus One. The Iphone will be great for many people though. Maybe my sister in law can get one while she is here and save on California taxes. That way I could see one in real life. Just sayin.
My brother in law has a Droid Incredible. His wife got a Droid. They upped their cool factor with me. Not that they care.
If it weren't for the fear of what Kelli would do I would so own an Ipad and a top of the line Macbook Pro right now. She wouldn't do much more than give me THAT look and a guilt trip. That's enough. I'm still putting money into a baby account....in addition to a house account....and savings...and 401K. True we could have one big savings account, but by having labeled accounts we can easily see how much money we have set aside for "what ifs."
Watching Parenthood. Great movie. Steve Martin seems to never age.
Kelli is getting worried about her size. More to come on Byrdintheoven.com.
Still waiting for the Pandigital E-reader to come down to MSRP. I don't get the $60 markup at Kohls. JCPenny has it for $199...but not shipping until 6/23???
Made a wonderful lunch yesterday....curry chicken....from scratch. Today is Ginger Pork Tenderloin.
The new IPhone is sexy. I almost want one....until I think of all the limitations compared to my Nexus One. The Iphone will be great for many people though. Maybe my sister in law can get one while she is here and save on California taxes. That way I could see one in real life. Just sayin.
My brother in law has a Droid Incredible. His wife got a Droid. They upped their cool factor with me. Not that they care.
If it weren't for the fear of what Kelli would do I would so own an Ipad and a top of the line Macbook Pro right now. She wouldn't do much more than give me THAT look and a guilt trip. That's enough. I'm still putting money into a baby account....in addition to a house account....and savings...and 401K. True we could have one big savings account, but by having labeled accounts we can easily see how much money we have set aside for "what ifs."
Watching Parenthood. Great movie. Steve Martin seems to never age.
Kelli is getting worried about her size. More to come on Byrdintheoven.com.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Lavatory Navigation
Waking up in the middle of the night to use the restroom sucks. Kelli does it often now that Dijon is using her bladder as a trampoline.
Turning on lights when you were sound asleep sucks. Bright lights screw up your internal clock. Dark = sleep. Light = wake up. I hate turning on the light to use the restroom. Shooting in the dark is dangerous. There had to be a better way!
There are no power outlets next to the toilet in the master bathroom. What to do? The Lav Nav!
I heard about the Lav Nav on the Daily Giz Whiz podcast. It's a simple device that attaches to the back of the toilet that monitors the position of the lid as well as provides a soft light for navigation. If the seat lid is up the light is red (for Kelli doesn't get a back end wash). If the lid is down the light is green (cleared to land). The Lav Nav has a proimity sensor so it only turns on when you walk up.
The light is plenty bright to see whats going on, but not bright enough to cause eye pain and wake you up. Perfect. Just $19.95 on Amazon....free shipping.
New Iphone is out. It's awesome. I would like it. But won't get one. My sister in law should get one....think she is up for an upgrade....she's currently getting by with a 3G.
My food palette is shrinking. I am sure it's 100% mental, but I have little desire for fast food or processed food. I think I feel better than I used to. Belt is getting bigger. Need to buy a smaller one.
People walking around with bluetooth headsets on all the time are dorks.
Turning on lights when you were sound asleep sucks. Bright lights screw up your internal clock. Dark = sleep. Light = wake up. I hate turning on the light to use the restroom. Shooting in the dark is dangerous. There had to be a better way!
There are no power outlets next to the toilet in the master bathroom. What to do? The Lav Nav!
I heard about the Lav Nav on the Daily Giz Whiz podcast. It's a simple device that attaches to the back of the toilet that monitors the position of the lid as well as provides a soft light for navigation. If the seat lid is up the light is red (for Kelli doesn't get a back end wash). If the lid is down the light is green (cleared to land). The Lav Nav has a proimity sensor so it only turns on when you walk up.
The light is plenty bright to see whats going on, but not bright enough to cause eye pain and wake you up. Perfect. Just $19.95 on Amazon....free shipping.New Iphone is out. It's awesome. I would like it. But won't get one. My sister in law should get one....think she is up for an upgrade....she's currently getting by with a 3G.
My food palette is shrinking. I am sure it's 100% mental, but I have little desire for fast food or processed food. I think I feel better than I used to. Belt is getting bigger. Need to buy a smaller one.
People walking around with bluetooth headsets on all the time are dorks.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Will Kelli have Macrosomia?
Nice weekend. Having weekends off makes me feel like I have a "regular" job.
Got a nice phone call yesterday from my former flight school. Two years go I scored an awesome job teaching in their CRJ simulator for $300 a day. It only lasted a month or so as airline hiring stopped. The director called yesterday and offered me a session THIS Friday as well as hinted that things might be picking up again. Perfect timing. I can earn way more there than I can at work. Hope it continues.
Kelli drug me to Get Him To The Greek yesterday. I thought it would be bad. It was. A true train wreck. Ugh. Save your cash.
New Pandigital ereader is on sale today. MSRP is $199....Kohls has it for $259!?!?!?! I'll wait for $199.
Decided on our security camera system. Going for a proprietary dedicated system. This will allow me to put it in the same closet as the current switch. Now to order and start installing cameras. Still fine tuning a baby camera. I don't want to buy an off the shelf baby monitor as they are NOT secure.
My dad loved the Roku box. The remote has very few buttons....non-intimidating. He was amazed at how easy it is to use and how fast movies start. I piggybacked the device onto our Netflix account so no monthly cost. Only negative is he has to start with our "intant cue" versus his own. I don't think he would go online and line up movies anyway. I did add few movies I thought he would like. He refuses to get cable, so this is a great option for him. He can search for movies on his own via the device. At just $99 it's a steal!
Visited one some extended family while I was in Houston. An Aunt and Uncle I haven't seen in...10 years?
Due to genetics, Kelli is susceptible to Macrosomia. Gonna find out how bad it is this Thursday.
I bought some basic RAM at my local Compusa last week. Same brand (Corsair) as I have used in the past. I replaced the RAM in my old office computer with new Corsair RAM. Tried to install Windows 7. Got continuous BSODs (Blue Screen Of Death). Put the old RAM in....installed fine. Tried the new RAM in another computer. Worked fine. Thought about returning it to Compusa as it didn't appear to work for me....until I saw the ridiculously high restocking fee!!! Fry's has no restocking fee (unless it's a new change). I will have to be very careful about Compusa. It's much closer than Fry's.....but is it worth it?
The baby shower is in a little more than 2 weeks. I work that weekend....which is probably a good thing. Lots of estrogen will be in the house.
Got a nice phone call yesterday from my former flight school. Two years go I scored an awesome job teaching in their CRJ simulator for $300 a day. It only lasted a month or so as airline hiring stopped. The director called yesterday and offered me a session THIS Friday as well as hinted that things might be picking up again. Perfect timing. I can earn way more there than I can at work. Hope it continues.
Kelli drug me to Get Him To The Greek yesterday. I thought it would be bad. It was. A true train wreck. Ugh. Save your cash.
New Pandigital ereader is on sale today. MSRP is $199....Kohls has it for $259!?!?!?! I'll wait for $199.
Decided on our security camera system. Going for a proprietary dedicated system. This will allow me to put it in the same closet as the current switch. Now to order and start installing cameras. Still fine tuning a baby camera. I don't want to buy an off the shelf baby monitor as they are NOT secure.
My dad loved the Roku box. The remote has very few buttons....non-intimidating. He was amazed at how easy it is to use and how fast movies start. I piggybacked the device onto our Netflix account so no monthly cost. Only negative is he has to start with our "intant cue" versus his own. I don't think he would go online and line up movies anyway. I did add few movies I thought he would like. He refuses to get cable, so this is a great option for him. He can search for movies on his own via the device. At just $99 it's a steal!
Visited one some extended family while I was in Houston. An Aunt and Uncle I haven't seen in...10 years?
Due to genetics, Kelli is susceptible to Macrosomia. Gonna find out how bad it is this Thursday.
I bought some basic RAM at my local Compusa last week. Same brand (Corsair) as I have used in the past. I replaced the RAM in my old office computer with new Corsair RAM. Tried to install Windows 7. Got continuous BSODs (Blue Screen Of Death). Put the old RAM in....installed fine. Tried the new RAM in another computer. Worked fine. Thought about returning it to Compusa as it didn't appear to work for me....until I saw the ridiculously high restocking fee!!! Fry's has no restocking fee (unless it's a new change). I will have to be very careful about Compusa. It's much closer than Fry's.....but is it worth it?
The baby shower is in a little more than 2 weeks. I work that weekend....which is probably a good thing. Lots of estrogen will be in the house.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
The results are in!
Kelli passed her glucose test...the second time.
We are up for renewal on auto insurance from Progressive. Next time we are saving up to $111 on our next policy. We pay in full so we will save $67. Kind of convoluted but if we were normal people with our current (very high CYA coverages!) we would pay $644 every 6 months if we paid using installments. By having MyRate and paying in full we are only paying $466 every 6 months. Total "savings" over a year is $356. Take that to the bank!
Kelli is getting 18% off while I am only getting 16% off. I thought I would save more since I drive less....dunno.
The Roku box I bought for my dad came yesterday. Damn easy to setup. A lot more content is on there than I thought. Heading to Houston on Saturday to hook it up.
The dogs are still alive.
Less than two months to go on the baby front. Name of the week updated. Sugarbaby.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
What's in a name?
Byrdintheoven is still down. Even my temp link is screwed up. After several phone calls yesterday things are supposed to start working today.....maybe.
Byrdintheoven is just a name. The Internet is based on numbers.....like a phone number. The current problem is when you type in Byrdintheoven there isn't an IP Address or phone number attached to it.
Last night Kelli and I went to dinner with a friend of mine who works for a different airline. Went to Stratos. Half price dinner. Good food. Kelli was surprised to hear things are crappy all over.
Bought my dad a Roku box for fathers day. Plan on hooking it up for him this weekend. The Roku is very easy to use. He can now stream movies over his Internet connection. He doesn't have cable so this will greatly expand his TV experience.
Heard some horrible news concerning a fellow pilot. She is 5 months pregnant. She had a 35 hour layover last week and her parents planned on driving down and visiting with her. She had trouble getting a hold of them. While on a layover she found out her parents were in a rollover accident and her mom was thrown through the windshield. Pregnant and alone she had to travel from Cleveland to Chicago to Kalamazoo. Her husband also works for the airline but couldn't leave right away. Feel horrible for her. Police report her father fell asleep. Niether were wearing seatbelts. He had serious, but not fatal injuries. Her mother died.
I bought a new wifi adapter call a Wi-Fire. In my crewroom the "linksys" wireless connection is spotty. I get free T-Mobile hotspots but the signal is weak downstairs. Not anymore. With the Wi-fire it comes in just fine. I was skeptical, but even at home I can pick up 3X as many wifi routers. Crazy!
Byrdintheoven is just a name. The Internet is based on numbers.....like a phone number. The current problem is when you type in Byrdintheoven there isn't an IP Address or phone number attached to it.
Last night Kelli and I went to dinner with a friend of mine who works for a different airline. Went to Stratos. Half price dinner. Good food. Kelli was surprised to hear things are crappy all over.
Bought my dad a Roku box for fathers day. Plan on hooking it up for him this weekend. The Roku is very easy to use. He can now stream movies over his Internet connection. He doesn't have cable so this will greatly expand his TV experience.
Heard some horrible news concerning a fellow pilot. She is 5 months pregnant. She had a 35 hour layover last week and her parents planned on driving down and visiting with her. She had trouble getting a hold of them. While on a layover she found out her parents were in a rollover accident and her mom was thrown through the windshield. Pregnant and alone she had to travel from Cleveland to Chicago to Kalamazoo. Her husband also works for the airline but couldn't leave right away. Feel horrible for her. Police report her father fell asleep. Niether were wearing seatbelts. He had serious, but not fatal injuries. Her mother died.
I bought a new wifi adapter call a Wi-Fire. In my crewroom the "linksys" wireless connection is spotty. I get free T-Mobile hotspots but the signal is weak downstairs. Not anymore. With the Wi-fire it comes in just fine. I was skeptical, but even at home I can pick up 3X as many wifi routers. Crazy!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Byrdintheoven.com
Darren isn't happy. The move from GoDaddy to Hover for Byrdintheoven has gone bad. Won't go into detail. Not sure when it will be fixed. Hover is CLOSED on the weekends. For now Byrd in the oven can be reached via http://stillageek.com/baby/
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Developers makes life better
Years go I would get excited about a new device/gadget. I would buy it and accept that it would never get better. No longer.
I bought my T-Mobile Dash the day after Thanksgiving in 2006 in Oregon. At the time it was an awesome phone. A few months later the Iphone came out. My phone started to suck.
October 2008 I bought the T-Mobile G1....the first Android phone. At the time it was an awesome phone (still is amazing). A little more than a year later better phones came out. About a year into owning my phone I "rooted" the phone and installed custom software. The original Android operating system is open source, meaning anyone is free to modify and redistribute the software provided they openly release the changes. The software I installed was developed by Cyanogen. Cyanogen is a nickname for a developer who (along with a team of others) works on cell phone software and makes it better. It made my somewhat stale T-Mobile G1 awesome.
March 2010 I bought a Nexus One, the first Google Superphone (their words not mine). At the time it was an awesome phone. Less than a day later it was better....thanks to Cyanogen. My Nexus One is the best DEVICE I have ever owned. I am still in awe of how great a world we live in. My "phone" has a faster CPU than my computer did just a few years ago.
My top computer in 2000 was a 500 MHz AMD Athlon. I remember being excited buying a 30 gigabyte hard drive at Office Depot that year. My Nexus One runs at 1000MHz and can hold more than 32 gigabytes of memory on a chip smaller than your pinky fingernail. I LOVE TECHNOLOGY!!!!!
I got bored a few days ago and found new software for my T-Mobile Dash made by other open source developers. I installed it and played a bit. I doubt I will ever go back to that phone, but it's nice to see it updated.
The latest version of Android is called Froyo (like Frozen Yogurt). T-Mobile and Google announced that the T-Mobile G1 will NEVER get Eclair (previous version of Android) due to device limitations. Well Cyanogen thought otherwise. It took all of 10 minutes, but I now have Eclair on my G1. If I had never bought a Nexus One, I would be perfectly happy with my G1 now that it runs Eclair. The enhancements are amazing.
My child will never know the heft of a CRT monitor, the weird goo that collects under a computer mouse (mice no longer have balls....ha) or, and this is most alarming, she will never know the soothing sounds of a dial up modem. Bet I can buy computer themed mobile to hang over the crib.....
I bought my T-Mobile Dash the day after Thanksgiving in 2006 in Oregon. At the time it was an awesome phone. A few months later the Iphone came out. My phone started to suck.
October 2008 I bought the T-Mobile G1....the first Android phone. At the time it was an awesome phone (still is amazing). A little more than a year later better phones came out. About a year into owning my phone I "rooted" the phone and installed custom software. The original Android operating system is open source, meaning anyone is free to modify and redistribute the software provided they openly release the changes. The software I installed was developed by Cyanogen. Cyanogen is a nickname for a developer who (along with a team of others) works on cell phone software and makes it better. It made my somewhat stale T-Mobile G1 awesome.
March 2010 I bought a Nexus One, the first Google Superphone (their words not mine). At the time it was an awesome phone. Less than a day later it was better....thanks to Cyanogen. My Nexus One is the best DEVICE I have ever owned. I am still in awe of how great a world we live in. My "phone" has a faster CPU than my computer did just a few years ago.
My top computer in 2000 was a 500 MHz AMD Athlon. I remember being excited buying a 30 gigabyte hard drive at Office Depot that year. My Nexus One runs at 1000MHz and can hold more than 32 gigabytes of memory on a chip smaller than your pinky fingernail. I LOVE TECHNOLOGY!!!!!
I got bored a few days ago and found new software for my T-Mobile Dash made by other open source developers. I installed it and played a bit. I doubt I will ever go back to that phone, but it's nice to see it updated.
The latest version of Android is called Froyo (like Frozen Yogurt). T-Mobile and Google announced that the T-Mobile G1 will NEVER get Eclair (previous version of Android) due to device limitations. Well Cyanogen thought otherwise. It took all of 10 minutes, but I now have Eclair on my G1. If I had never bought a Nexus One, I would be perfectly happy with my G1 now that it runs Eclair. The enhancements are amazing.
My child will never know the heft of a CRT monitor, the weird goo that collects under a computer mouse (mice no longer have balls....ha) or, and this is most alarming, she will never know the soothing sounds of a dial up modem. Bet I can buy computer themed mobile to hang over the crib.....
It's Thursday.....and I'm still a geek
Went with Kelli to the OBGYN yesterday. I always feel like I'm the enemy there.
Seems like Penelope is going to be huge. Kelli is measuring at 30 weeks.....she is only 27 weeks. Kelli also failed her gestational diabetes test. Has to go in for a longer one. I think she didn't prep correctly as she didn't eat much the day prior. She had lunch around 1PM and nothing until the test the following day.
Slickdeals.net is an awesome site. Ordered a set of AC/DC drumsticks for Rockband/Guitar Hero for $2.80 shipped!!!
Our grass is looking better. Need to do something with the bushes.
Still one the fence about cameras. I might bite the bullet and get traditional cameras. Going to decide by the end of next week. Of course I should have done this in winter...going to be hot as hell...probably hotter....up in the attic.
Got a rock chip repair kit for my car. The chips are mostly from when I leased the car. I didn't do a proper inspection..shame on me. The car had 800 miles on it from being transferred between dealers. Never again will I buy a car without a super detailed inspection.
Seems like Penelope is going to be huge. Kelli is measuring at 30 weeks.....she is only 27 weeks. Kelli also failed her gestational diabetes test. Has to go in for a longer one. I think she didn't prep correctly as she didn't eat much the day prior. She had lunch around 1PM and nothing until the test the following day.
Slickdeals.net is an awesome site. Ordered a set of AC/DC drumsticks for Rockband/Guitar Hero for $2.80 shipped!!!
Our grass is looking better. Need to do something with the bushes.
Still one the fence about cameras. I might bite the bullet and get traditional cameras. Going to decide by the end of next week. Of course I should have done this in winter...going to be hot as hell...probably hotter....up in the attic.
Got a rock chip repair kit for my car. The chips are mostly from when I leased the car. I didn't do a proper inspection..shame on me. The car had 800 miles on it from being transferred between dealers. Never again will I buy a car without a super detailed inspection.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Not that there's anything wrong with that
Not sure what's going on but my appetite for processed food has dropped dramatically. I've been cooking a lot more. Still on my low carb (not no carb) diet along with avoiding high fructose corn syrup and sugar. Doing very well. Content. Who knows how long it will last. I do like cooking. Lots of chicken breast and veggies....some beef as well.
Having Aldi so close is nice. I can stop in for a few basics....nuts....blackberries....super ghetto koolaid (private label Crystal Light...20 packets for $1.59!!!! Walmart brand is the same price for 10!!!!).
Job satisfaction is down. Pretty bored lately.
This is the year of the tablet. Still no Ipad for me. Very interesting ereader coming out next month. A full color ereader that can buy books from Barnes and Noble for $199. No 3G..but there is wifi. Runs Android (my favorite Operating System). Comes out next month.
Maybe it will be for me.
Still thinking about a laptop replacement.
Started seriously looking into security cameras. Not cheap. Wired cameras are inexpensive, but the controller cards that allow true 30fps per camera are not. Network cameras are semi-affordable, but not the outdoor variety.
If I keep with network cameras I can easily move the server around the house whenever I want. Also I can easily integrate them into my current software. Choices.
Penelope is the name of the week.
Having Aldi so close is nice. I can stop in for a few basics....nuts....blackberries....super ghetto koolaid (private label Crystal Light...20 packets for $1.59!!!! Walmart brand is the same price for 10!!!!).
Job satisfaction is down. Pretty bored lately.
This is the year of the tablet. Still no Ipad for me. Very interesting ereader coming out next month. A full color ereader that can buy books from Barnes and Noble for $199. No 3G..but there is wifi. Runs Android (my favorite Operating System). Comes out next month.
Maybe it will be for me.
Still thinking about a laptop replacement.
Started seriously looking into security cameras. Not cheap. Wired cameras are inexpensive, but the controller cards that allow true 30fps per camera are not. Network cameras are semi-affordable, but not the outdoor variety.
If I keep with network cameras I can easily move the server around the house whenever I want. Also I can easily integrate them into my current software. Choices.
Penelope is the name of the week.
Monday, May 24, 2010
She's flying for the last time....really
Friday night The Bridges came over. Marin bought an outfit for Natali. We have met Marin several times over the years. She finally got comfy with us I guess as she said more words Friday night than over the last 3 years combined. Probably helped that Kelli put her dogs away and out of the room.
Saturday we took the trip to DC that we wanted to do with my father in law the week prior. Flights were very open all day. We took the 7:10AM flight out and arrived at 11AM. I wrongly assumed Kelli researched and planned on how to get from the airport (DCA) to the Newseum. I finally broke down and used my phone...same phone Kelli has...to find the way. She tried to use the maps around the airport...which were of no help. We have Google Android powered phones with GPS and Google Maps....a few clicks. Seeesh.
Subways in DC are crazy cheap. It was $2.90 per person round trip! The Newseum was very nice. It did bother me that a private company had so much memorobilia. They kind of control history. Eh. Took a few photos. The 9/11 area got Kelli a little emotional. This was the only place where tissues were available. One would think they would have been out around the Berlin wall...nope.
[nggallery id=42]
After about 3 hours we were done. Lucky for us an Asian festival was going on right in front of The Newseum. We walked around and found lunch. Kelli had Indian food while I had Chinese. I'm glad I grabbed some cash the night before for my slot machine AND took it out that morning to take with me. We then walked around a bit and found our way to the History museum. Pretty tired. Wanted ice cream. Found a Ben and Jerry's (again via our awesome Android powered phones!). As we walked up a group of 11 (mostly kids) walked up...all wanted ice cream. We didn't have time to wait. Back to the airport.
Kelli was really beat. I mentioned we should J-walk and cut across the street to the subway entrance. Kelli said it was a bad idea to J-walk in the nations capital. A few moments later she was J-walking as she was tired.
As we got off I noticed a very small purse sitting across the aisle. The lady who is belonged to got off two stops prior. She was likely distracted by her MP3 player she was listening to music on. I picked up the purse and gave it to a subway employee in the ticket booth who didn't seem to care and tossed it on her desk. Hope she gets it back. I squeezed the purse hoping there was a phone inside that I could have used to call someone to let them know where the purse was. No luck.
We sat down on the 6:30PM flight and were driving home by 8:10PM. Last flight for Kelli until August. Really!
Saturday we took the trip to DC that we wanted to do with my father in law the week prior. Flights were very open all day. We took the 7:10AM flight out and arrived at 11AM. I wrongly assumed Kelli researched and planned on how to get from the airport (DCA) to the Newseum. I finally broke down and used my phone...same phone Kelli has...to find the way. She tried to use the maps around the airport...which were of no help. We have Google Android powered phones with GPS and Google Maps....a few clicks. Seeesh.
Subways in DC are crazy cheap. It was $2.90 per person round trip! The Newseum was very nice. It did bother me that a private company had so much memorobilia. They kind of control history. Eh. Took a few photos. The 9/11 area got Kelli a little emotional. This was the only place where tissues were available. One would think they would have been out around the Berlin wall...nope.
[nggallery id=42]
After about 3 hours we were done. Lucky for us an Asian festival was going on right in front of The Newseum. We walked around and found lunch. Kelli had Indian food while I had Chinese. I'm glad I grabbed some cash the night before for my slot machine AND took it out that morning to take with me. We then walked around a bit and found our way to the History museum. Pretty tired. Wanted ice cream. Found a Ben and Jerry's (again via our awesome Android powered phones!). As we walked up a group of 11 (mostly kids) walked up...all wanted ice cream. We didn't have time to wait. Back to the airport.
Kelli was really beat. I mentioned we should J-walk and cut across the street to the subway entrance. Kelli said it was a bad idea to J-walk in the nations capital. A few moments later she was J-walking as she was tired.
As we got off I noticed a very small purse sitting across the aisle. The lady who is belonged to got off two stops prior. She was likely distracted by her MP3 player she was listening to music on. I picked up the purse and gave it to a subway employee in the ticket booth who didn't seem to care and tossed it on her desk. Hope she gets it back. I squeezed the purse hoping there was a phone inside that I could have used to call someone to let them know where the purse was. No luck.
We sat down on the 6:30PM flight and were driving home by 8:10PM. Last flight for Kelli until August. Really!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Couldn't fix it
Buddy of mine has a busted Dell Inspiron laptop. The screen went out. I offered to look at it. After opening it up I found a burned out backlight bulb. When I say burned out, I mean it was physically burned. Something arched bad. I hoped it was just a bulb as the LCD is at least $150 and the inverter board is $40. So $190 in parts for a 2 year old laptop that was $500 new. Eh....not a great investment. I put in a new bulb, not the issue as it turns on...then archs. Instead of spending more money he's going to turn it into a desktop and buy a new one.
Still mulling over a replacement for my Macbook Pro.
Washington D.C. this weekend? Maybe.
My in laws are interesting...much like Kelli and I, my mother and father in law are different. Having each one come visit separately showed how different they are.
Today is my 5th day of "work" all week. I haven't flown anywhere the last 4 days. Would like to fly at least once this week. Just sayin.
Think I'm going to get my dad a Roku box for fathers day. Speaking of my dad. I bought him a Paul Simon DVD from Amazon. He called stating it wouldn't play and that he was getting a wrong "region" message. I looked at the product page at the comments. Several people were shipped a DVD intended for a different country. Not cool Amazon. The Roku box will allow him to stream movies and TV shows over the net to his TV easily. It has a very basic remote which is good as he is not techy. I do the same thing thru my Xbox 360.
Our Ooma service is 9 months old. We paid $200 for the box. We have now recovered our initial investment. Previously with Vonage we were paying $23.76 a month. So going forward we are truly saving that much per month. Issues? None. Service quality? No one knows we don't have a "real" phone. Anyone looking to save money should switch. It's truly painless.....so easy any one of my in laws could do it.....and should.
Still mulling over a replacement for my Macbook Pro.
Washington D.C. this weekend? Maybe.
My in laws are interesting...much like Kelli and I, my mother and father in law are different. Having each one come visit separately showed how different they are.
Today is my 5th day of "work" all week. I haven't flown anywhere the last 4 days. Would like to fly at least once this week. Just sayin.
Think I'm going to get my dad a Roku box for fathers day. Speaking of my dad. I bought him a Paul Simon DVD from Amazon. He called stating it wouldn't play and that he was getting a wrong "region" message. I looked at the product page at the comments. Several people were shipped a DVD intended for a different country. Not cool Amazon. The Roku box will allow him to stream movies and TV shows over the net to his TV easily. It has a very basic remote which is good as he is not techy. I do the same thing thru my Xbox 360.
Our Ooma service is 9 months old. We paid $200 for the box. We have now recovered our initial investment. Previously with Vonage we were paying $23.76 a month. So going forward we are truly saving that much per month. Issues? None. Service quality? No one knows we don't have a "real" phone. Anyone looking to save money should switch. It's truly painless.....so easy any one of my in laws could do it.....and should.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Aldi
Aldi is a new grocery store....well new to North Texas. A store opened up less than 1/3rd of a mile from our house becoming the closest grocery store by more than a mile.
Aldi has low prices which is helped by mostly private label foods. They have VERY low prices on produce, milk and meat. How low? Gallon of milk for $1.62. Most produce is 10%-30% lower than Wal-Mart. Of course being private label...if you don't cook...probably won't find much.
I bought a weeks worth of food for meals. Kelli bought Starburst, Strawberries and Bananas. She said she will start cooking.....one day. Total bill...$30. We normally spend $80 a week. Having fewer options means less money spent. Also having Kelli just buy Starbust, Strawberries and Bananas helped lower the bill.
Guess we are keeping the TV. Kelli put her foot down on me doing anymore TV swapping.
The Macbook Air is an interesting computer. Lots of rumors flying around that a new model was coming last week....then today. Nope. Apple did release a new Macbook today. Faster CPU, better graphics, better battery...same price...$999. Very competitive. The specs match the Macbook Pro base model except for the Pro has 2GB more RAM, a SD card slot, backlit keyboard and a aluminum case. The base Macbook Pro is $1199. The only true performance difference is the 2GB of RAM. I thought for sure Apple would lower the price of the Macbook. Didn't happen. One thing of note....the previous gen Macbook is under $750 via the refurbished section of the Apple store. Apple refurb's have the exact same one year warranty as new models. Very good price for students or people with common computer needs.
Byrdintheoven.com was updated 3 times yesterday! Crazy!
Aldi has low prices which is helped by mostly private label foods. They have VERY low prices on produce, milk and meat. How low? Gallon of milk for $1.62. Most produce is 10%-30% lower than Wal-Mart. Of course being private label...if you don't cook...probably won't find much.
I bought a weeks worth of food for meals. Kelli bought Starburst, Strawberries and Bananas. She said she will start cooking.....one day. Total bill...$30. We normally spend $80 a week. Having fewer options means less money spent. Also having Kelli just buy Starbust, Strawberries and Bananas helped lower the bill.
Guess we are keeping the TV. Kelli put her foot down on me doing anymore TV swapping.
The Macbook Air is an interesting computer. Lots of rumors flying around that a new model was coming last week....then today. Nope. Apple did release a new Macbook today. Faster CPU, better graphics, better battery...same price...$999. Very competitive. The specs match the Macbook Pro base model except for the Pro has 2GB more RAM, a SD card slot, backlit keyboard and a aluminum case. The base Macbook Pro is $1199. The only true performance difference is the 2GB of RAM. I thought for sure Apple would lower the price of the Macbook. Didn't happen. One thing of note....the previous gen Macbook is under $750 via the refurbished section of the Apple store. Apple refurb's have the exact same one year warranty as new models. Very good price for students or people with common computer needs.
Byrdintheoven.com was updated 3 times yesterday! Crazy!
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Swagger Wagon
My Mazda5 is officially a Multi Activity Vehicle.....with sliding doors. My friend Angela gives me grief over sliding doors. Deep inside I know she is jealous. She will never be able to rolldown the street in a Swagger Wagon.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql-N3F1FhW4
Absolutely hilarious. There is a whole series of videos that Toyota produced that are all very funny....and sadly only online!
I'm serious about electronics. I really liked the first Viewsonic TV I bought for the guest bedroom. Nice picture and size....too bad it died. Next up was a 24 inch Dynex TV from Best Buy....720P....just $209. It had a 8 second boot up and crappy picture. Back it went. Now up is a 26 inch Vizio LED TV...very thin. Already found at least one dead pixel. I will give it a few days. Yes I know it's a guest TV....but I don't want my guest watching subpar TV.
Weather screwed up our plans to go to Washington D.C...or anywhere with my father in law. Flights Saturday were VERY open as of Thursday night. Bad weather on Friday cancelled tons of flights Friday. All those passengers were pushed to Saturday flights...overfilling them. This also killed my plans on buying a laptop tax free. Oh well.
I work 6 days in a row this week. Ugh.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql-N3F1FhW4
Absolutely hilarious. There is a whole series of videos that Toyota produced that are all very funny....and sadly only online!
I'm serious about electronics. I really liked the first Viewsonic TV I bought for the guest bedroom. Nice picture and size....too bad it died. Next up was a 24 inch Dynex TV from Best Buy....720P....just $209. It had a 8 second boot up and crappy picture. Back it went. Now up is a 26 inch Vizio LED TV...very thin. Already found at least one dead pixel. I will give it a few days. Yes I know it's a guest TV....but I don't want my guest watching subpar TV.
Weather screwed up our plans to go to Washington D.C...or anywhere with my father in law. Flights Saturday were VERY open as of Thursday night. Bad weather on Friday cancelled tons of flights Friday. All those passengers were pushed to Saturday flights...overfilling them. This also killed my plans on buying a laptop tax free. Oh well.
I work 6 days in a row this week. Ugh.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Shame on you Compusa
Boo bad weather. Bad weather caused us to cancel our trip to Philly today. Bleh. Penciling in Washington, D.C. for tomorrow.
I am really good at talking my way out of stuff I want. I'm cheap. I spend hours trying to save an extra 1%...ridiculous.
The new TV my mother in law bought for the guest bedroom lasted about 30 minutes. I watched a 30 minute TV show Wednesday night on it. Great picture. Thursday I was getting ready to mount it and decided to test it one more time. Dead. Just kept rebooting. It's on it's way back to Amazon.
My father in law arrived last night. We needed a TV...bought a 1/2 way decent Dynex TV from Best Buy. Not really happy with it. Pondering if I want too keep it.
Kelli and her dad are at the Bodies exhibit in Dallas today. I have no desire to see that kind of stuff.
Really worried about the longevity of my current Macbook Pro given the known video card issue. Eric has the same laptop....his is chugging along fine. Hopefully mine will last.
Compusa built a store 3 miles from my house. I was happy at first. I needed an HDMI cable for the new TV. There is a "value" cable on their website for $7. I stopped by yesterday only to find "performance" cables for $35! Boo on them. I went to Fry's about bought 3 "value" cables for $9 total. Shame on you Compusa.
Still enjoying my new coffee maker.
Think my geek buddy Kerry is up to something with domain names. Sneaky sneaky.
I am really good at talking my way out of stuff I want. I'm cheap. I spend hours trying to save an extra 1%...ridiculous.
The new TV my mother in law bought for the guest bedroom lasted about 30 minutes. I watched a 30 minute TV show Wednesday night on it. Great picture. Thursday I was getting ready to mount it and decided to test it one more time. Dead. Just kept rebooting. It's on it's way back to Amazon.
My father in law arrived last night. We needed a TV...bought a 1/2 way decent Dynex TV from Best Buy. Not really happy with it. Pondering if I want too keep it.
Kelli and her dad are at the Bodies exhibit in Dallas today. I have no desire to see that kind of stuff.
Really worried about the longevity of my current Macbook Pro given the known video card issue. Eric has the same laptop....his is chugging along fine. Hopefully mine will last.
Compusa built a store 3 miles from my house. I was happy at first. I needed an HDMI cable for the new TV. There is a "value" cable on their website for $7. I stopped by yesterday only to find "performance" cables for $35! Boo on them. I went to Fry's about bought 3 "value" cables for $9 total. Shame on you Compusa.
Still enjoying my new coffee maker.
Think my geek buddy Kerry is up to something with domain names. Sneaky sneaky.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Best coffee ever
I love coffee. That's no secret. Kelli hates that I love coffee as I make a mess while making coffee.
A few months ago I started grinding my beans fresh....better tasting indeed. Recently I bought an Aeropress Coffee Maker...holy better non bitter coffee! I love it! And it's "green" since it uses no power. Best tasting coffee I have ever had.
A little worried about continuing to play games on my Macbook Pro after the video card failure. My computer gets crazy hot during game play. Not good.
Saved a little more than $100 this month by taking my lunch to work/not buying airport food. I could have saved 3X that if not for a few one off payments (tickets to and from NY, CD's my dad wanted from Amazon). Hoping to have a better May.
I love the Google Chrome browser, Evernote, Lastpass and Google Voice. Everyone should use these applications/services.
Odd to see a bed in the front bedroom that used to be my office. Just so used to seeing that door closed or, if open, full of stuff.
Played $40 on my slot machine...lost it all in 10 minutes..won at most 20 credits.
A few months ago I started grinding my beans fresh....better tasting indeed. Recently I bought an Aeropress Coffee Maker...holy better non bitter coffee! I love it! And it's "green" since it uses no power. Best tasting coffee I have ever had.
A little worried about continuing to play games on my Macbook Pro after the video card failure. My computer gets crazy hot during game play. Not good.
Saved a little more than $100 this month by taking my lunch to work/not buying airport food. I could have saved 3X that if not for a few one off payments (tickets to and from NY, CD's my dad wanted from Amazon). Hoping to have a better May.
I love the Google Chrome browser, Evernote, Lastpass and Google Voice. Everyone should use these applications/services.
Odd to see a bed in the front bedroom that used to be my office. Just so used to seeing that door closed or, if open, full of stuff.
Played $40 on my slot machine...lost it all in 10 minutes..won at most 20 credits.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Missed it by one
Kelli mailed...errr non-reved her mom home yesterday. We listed her for 1st class....and she missed it by ONE seat. I hate when that happens. Kelli and I have missed 1st class a few times by ONE seat. I would prefer to miss it by 10 seats rather than ONE seat. That ONE passenger had a confirmed seat on a later flight at that. Oh well....she got an aisle seat. Better luck next time.
Kind of odd to walk into the old guest bedroom and see a crib there....and lavender walls.
Our TV is free of "old fashioned" tube TV's. Sold our 32 inch TV and 20 inch TV for $55 total last week. Took a loss...hell I even through in a free DVD player. New 24 inch Viewsonic LCD arriving today for the guest bedroom. Father in law arrives Thursday night.
Need to work on my man cave. Planning on moving the slot machine in there.
Sister in law looking for flights here in June for Kellis baby shower. The summer travel season means high prices. Maybe one day Haley can get a part time job as a flight attendant.
Easy work day today. Woke up at 5:10AM. Rode to the airport at 5:45AM. Talked on the radio and pressed buttons from 6AM till 7:30AM (Captain flew home as I flew to Little Rock)....then was done.
Kind of odd to walk into the old guest bedroom and see a crib there....and lavender walls.
Our TV is free of "old fashioned" tube TV's. Sold our 32 inch TV and 20 inch TV for $55 total last week. Took a loss...hell I even through in a free DVD player. New 24 inch Viewsonic LCD arriving today for the guest bedroom. Father in law arrives Thursday night.
Need to work on my man cave. Planning on moving the slot machine in there.
Sister in law looking for flights here in June for Kellis baby shower. The summer travel season means high prices. Maybe one day Haley can get a part time job as a flight attendant.
Easy work day today. Woke up at 5:10AM. Rode to the airport at 5:45AM. Talked on the radio and pressed buttons from 6AM till 7:30AM (Captain flew home as I flew to Little Rock)....then was done.
Monday, May 10, 2010
If I had hammer.
Peggy kept me busy over the last few days. Before she came I built a bed. When she arrived I built a baby crib. I thought I would be "smart" and build the crib in the living room so I could watch my Revision3 and TechTv shows and relax. Over 3 1/2 hours I built the crib several times. Damn chinese to EngRish translations. When I was almost done Peggy did ask if it would fit through the doorway. WTF?!?!?! I finished it then posted a photo on Facebook of my accomplishment. More people questioned if it would fit. A few mentioned how when they built their crib it didn't fit through the door. Sonofa....yeah it didn't fit. Took it apart again. I told Kelli that when Natali outgrows her crib I will destroy said crib with a hammer....a sledgehammer.
I also built a dresser.
Crazy Peggy (that's an endearing name) painted two complete rooms, organized a closet full of crap, 5+ years of magazines that were thrown into a storage bin and more. She never sat down from Thursday morning thru Saturday night. Crazy. Think she should be tested for drugs.
I have a burning desire for technology. Can't help it.
My father in law is flying into town on Thursday. Friday he is going with Kelli and me to Philadelphia for this day. This will be Kelli's last flight until August. Just 30 minutes south of the airport is an Apple store in Delaware. Delaware charges no sales tax. I get an 8% discount at Apple. Just sayin.
We are mailing....err...non-reving Peggy home today. This will be her first non-rev experience. She was nervous about going First class. Eh...might not be an issue as First Class is filling up. She will get on though.
I also built a dresser.
Crazy Peggy (that's an endearing name) painted two complete rooms, organized a closet full of crap, 5+ years of magazines that were thrown into a storage bin and more. She never sat down from Thursday morning thru Saturday night. Crazy. Think she should be tested for drugs.
I have a burning desire for technology. Can't help it.
My father in law is flying into town on Thursday. Friday he is going with Kelli and me to Philadelphia for this day. This will be Kelli's last flight until August. Just 30 minutes south of the airport is an Apple store in Delaware. Delaware charges no sales tax. I get an 8% discount at Apple. Just sayin.
We are mailing....err...non-reving Peggy home today. This will be her first non-rev experience. She was nervous about going First class. Eh...might not be an issue as First Class is filling up. She will get on though.
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