I had a tired, old, home-made, second-hand chipping hammer that was broken and had been so for years. So, I MIG-welded the busted joint, ground the transition, and added a reclaimed hickory handle, which came from a hatchet rebuild shown in a previous video that I posted on YouTube. With the re-weld and addition of copper handle rivets, it should last a few decades now.
Tag: iPhone
Film Friday – Jeep Paint Prep
…And so begins my plan for interweb domination… This is the 1st in a series of videos detailing my Jeep re-painting project. I am doing the prep work and getting ready for my 1986 CJ-7 to go into the shop for a little cosmetic make-over. It was painted black at the factory in Toledo, has been black ever since, and will stay black until they make something darker. I also give a little bit of an update to what I have been up to of late, some projects that are in the works, and a quick pan view of part of a dirty, disorganized, and cluttered shop.
Film Friday – 41st Annual Port Townsend Wooden Boat Fest 2017
Below is a short film documenting my visit to this year’s Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival. I lived up to my promise to Stamps-With-Foot again this year and did not buy a wooden sailboat, but there was 2-3 in my price range (and about 100 waaayyy out of it…) that made me drool.
Film Friday – A Tour of a Kayak Museum in Portland
Grilling Cedar Plank Salmon
The very first meal that my father-in-law ever made for me was a semi-traditional cedar plank salmon. It was delectable and I have asked him for the magic recipe a few times since, but it was only this weekend that he had the time & opportunity to go through it all from start to finish. I, of course, documented the whole thing with my iPhone (GoPro battery was dead). As a note, he is a professional chef and on this visit hooked us up with a version of his recipe/process made for and on our tiny 10-year-old, much loved and used Weber grill. The meal was AMAZING! Here is the whole process:
New Cell Phone Blues
My J-O-B issued cell phone was on its last legs: broken internal WiFi antenna, if I switched on “Airplane Mode” than I would have to power the phone down to get it to come out again. At the end, it wouldn’t text and I could receive calls, but not make them. It was a sad day when I turned her in to our IT department.
My iPhone was 3 years old; she lived a good life and was as good to me as a phone could be: We traveled the world together, took pictures in exotic locations, drunk texted my wife and friends, sent e-mail sealing $100K+ deals, jammed together on Seasick Steve and Hillbilly music, searched Wiki at the drop of a hat, we ran/biked/lifted together. I had the unlocked version and she took SIM cards from China, the US, Japan, France, Germany, and Morocco like a champ – nary a hiccup. She was my connection to the 21st century. I think her undoing was one to many drops while running and then I used her as a tether for 3 weeks while my home and office internet were down. It was more then her little chip-set could handle.
I was given an “upgrade” and a new Samsung Galaxy S5 showed up at my door. “Ummm, this isn’t an iPhone…” I uttered into the phone at my IT rep who sat in an office 5,000 miles and 7 time zones away. Don’t worry she said, smooth transition she said… Maybe Android will grow on me, maybe, but setting this thing up to be usable makes me feel like a semi-literate 5th grader taking the SATs. It only took 2 hours and two support calls to configure my three mail accounts, my contacts are floating around in the ether somewhere, I had to buy a couple Android apps to replace the Apple ones that I have come to depend on: Turbo Scanner and Photo Toaster. I use a budget/expense app that is not available in Android and my awesome classic pocket watch app, according to the developers, is forever to remain Apple only. Where the Hell is the flashlight function?!?!
My new phone also has the misfortune of being locked – both SIM and region. I had a wonderful experience with AT&T Customer Service, 4 calls actually, where I was finally informed that the only way that AT&T will unlock this bad boy is if my J-O-B buys the phone and the remainder of my contract outright and then pays them a substantial “fee” to unlock it 7-15 days later. OK, small semi-legal Turkish phone shop on a side street in Toulouse, I will soon be on my way to see you with 40 Euros in hand and let you settle this unlock business. Side Rant: I would like to mash the customer service groups of AT&T and Comcast together in Thunderdome and let them battle to the last. Really, really.
I will say that the screen resolution and processor speed are bad-ass! The thing is huge though. I am going to have to start buying pants and suits with bigger pockets.
Apple, why wont you just take my MONEY?!?!?
Statement displayed of the MacRumors website today:
“Apple’s “iWatch” is a smart watch project that Apple is reportedly aiming to launch with a special event in October of this year. Expect a ‘fashionable’ device running iOS with biometrics and other features providing integration with other iOS devices.”
I have been waiting for FIVE years for an iWatch. I held off buying the nano with a Lunatic band/case, because the iWatch was “coming out in the Fall…” every Fall comes and goes and my hunger grows for this bit of techie opulence. I never jump on board when stuff first comes out. I always wait until the 2nd or 3rd Gen, but I NEED an iWatch. Need….. Apple, please just take my money and the damn thing to me already.
9/9/2014 UPDATE:
Oh Apple you sly dog… you snuck my new watch out a month early. I need the stainless bezel, the stainless & black rubber bands. I pray the things it is waterproof – that is all I need before I drink the Kool-Aid. As soon as I get my grubby hands on it I will be drafting up and machining a pocket watch bezel cover, just because I am that nerdy. Let it begin, Let it begin…
9/22/2014 Update:
OK, I have come down from my initial Apple-Crack rush and have had time to look at the facts as they stand today…. Apple wants me to buy a watch that is not a stand alone device, I have to carry my phone for it to be “optimized.” It has a 24hr-ish battery life, is not waterproof, costs $379.00 minimum and probably $450+ for the Stainless model with Stainless band, has ANOTHER new type of plug, and is new tech… Dammit, I should have bought the Nano with the Lunatic case and beat the shit out of it for the last three years. I think that instead of becoming an “early adoptee,” I will keep my Seiko 5 for the foreseeable future. It is Stainless, Shockproof, has a Day/Date display, NEVER needs a battery, glows in the dark, has 12 and 24hr indications, and keeps time just fine with a proven 23 jewel movement. Stupid apple. Stupid me for drinking the Kool-Aid…
My Current EDC
This is what I tote around with me every day.
My wedding ring. I am a sucker for a fountain pen. I drank the iPhone Kool-Aid and willingly came back for seconds. The pocket knife as been with me for 10 of 12 years and never fails to open a letter, cut the fat off my steak, or whittle down a dowel in the shop. One of two watches, silver bracelets, truck keys (USB stick on), glasses, a flashlight in my bag (Leuctturm1917 notebook too) and my thin money-clip/card wallet (front pocket). My .45 has been heavily worked to fit me perfectly and is with me when not sitting at my J-O-B.
Pottery Barn Blanket Chest Refinish/Resale
I was perusing the furniture isles of the Goodwill in South Seattle a few months back looking for a few pieces that I could put a little work into and turn for a profit. I have found some amazing stuff there that has been donated: an $800+ mid-century 8-drawer dresser for $59, solid wood buffets, a camel saddle, hand knotted carpets, two Morris chairs, etc.. It is not always a gold mine – I find something I can turn maybe one out of three or four trips. On this walk, I spied a solid wood and black iron hardware blanket chest that had some heavy water damage on the top. I opened it up, twirled it around to look for a makers mark and any unseen damage. Nope, it was a sound piece. I hopped on my iPhone and looked it up on the Interwebs… I found that it was originally sold at Pottery Barn for almost $400 and I whisked the thing to the front, dropped $39 off at the register and ran out the door.
I gave it a light sanding (320 grit) all over, gave the top some serious attention with 120 then 220 grit sand paper, and layered in some mixed mahogany and dark walnut stain to color match the top before putting on three coats of satin polyurethane finish a couple of days later. After it was done, we were teetering on the fence about keeping what had been returned to a really nice piece of furniture, but our limited space and us not having a clear need for a blanket chest led to the decision to sell it.
I dropped it off at one of the local consignment shops on a Saturday morning and it was sold within two hours. I pocketed $89 after paying for the chest, supplies and the store’s cut. Not too shabby for a 3-mile drive, some stain/poly, and an hour of my labor.
Hey dad, I was thinking that I NEED a dirt bike…
My son, The Ruminator, sent me a text message this morning that said, “What is your address. Will you pay for half of a dirt bike if I save the other half?” What that means is that I am about to get a letter tugging at my heart strings asking for a two-wheeled, 2-stroke emergency room express transporter. My response was no, I will not pay for half. IF I get a hand written document listing 612 individual reasons (an agreement made between us previously), in completes sentences, why he needs a dirt bike, then I will pay for 1/3.
More than most things in this world, I want my kids to write real letters; documents that contain complete thoughts, written with an ink pen, that you have to put a stamp on and leave in a mailbox for the postman to carry away. My 11 year-old son is keenly aware of this desire as we made a deal last summer that I would get a letter a month for two years… I got three letters. He is eleven, I sort of/kind of understand, but I really did/do want him to write. More to the point: if I were to say get more mail from my offspring that included more information than a scribbled wish list and if he delivered on his 612 reasons, then I might be more open to negotiation for this and other objects of his pre-pubescent desire. I am not going to make this easy or hand it to him. If he has some sweat/brain-power equity in this transaction, then he will learn something and while I want to be liked, I want to be the ‘cool dad’, I think it is important to throw life lessons in his path as much as possible. I read another blog recently where the writer set a priority of “raising citizens.” That resonates with me.
The Alaska Airlines iPhone App is the Shiz-nit!
I have been out of touch and away from my blog for a month or so: lots of travel including a 48hr trip to Ireland, a climbing vacation with the boys, a couple short trips to SoCal, and 5 days in the English countryside on a tour of round-a-bouts and concrete cows…
In the process of racking up a large hump of air-miles I have flown on 11 different airlines and I can say without a doubt that Alaska Airlines has been the carrier that has provided the fasted check-in, slickest and most useful App, and all my flights were somewhat on-time. The Alaska App was the clincher. I checked in on the way to the airport, chose my seat, fast-tracked through security, and the QR bar code on my iPhone was scanned at the gate for my boarding pass. From Taxi to assigned seat in the aircraft it took me a total of 23 minutes! Really, I timed it. Now, I still had to remove my shoes (fvck you very much asshat shoe-bombing terrorists!!) and take my laptop out of my bag, but that is just par for the course. If every flight check-in and trip to the gate was this great, then I wouldn’t complain at all about air travel.
The Things They Carried…
You don’t really own anything you can’t carry on your back at a dead run.
– Daniel Keys Moran
In 2004 there was a Flickr thread entitled “What’s in your bag?” that immediately captured a voyeuristic nerve with the denizens of the Web and since then about a gamillion people have posted pictures of all the crap they carry with them through their daily lives. You can see it all: packs, purses, pencil cases, hello kitty, descriptions, puppies (!?!), the entire Moleskine collection, pens, sunglasses, pistols, retainers, pocket knives, Apple products, and enough bike inner tubes to encircle the earth 12 times. Hours of my life have been lost peeping into other peoples lives through the contents of their purse/messenger bag/pockets. The phenomena has been around long enough now that there are subsets of bags and contents: Camera equipment, writers, hipsters, journalists, students, bike messengers, everyday carry (EDC), diaper bags, etc…
I came in after a recent craptastic day and started emptying my pockets and satchel. It seems I carry what professional organizers call “a lot of shit.” I was amazed to see, all stacked in one spot, how many different individual items I tote around all day. I took a picture and added it to the growing online show & tell/confessional.
Starbucks gum
2 dollar coins and a quarter
16GB USB with former puppy’s tag attached
Steel LAMY fountain pen – medium nib, brown ink
Moleskine work notebook – filled with sketches and task lists
iPad with case – pic shot from city wall in Essaouira, Morocco
iPhone, no case – pic of driftwood carving found at beach near the house
Truck/car/house keys with old dog tag
Silver bracelets (copies of John Wayne’s – google it)
Wedding ring – milled from and aircraft bearing
Kershaw – Ken Onion pocket knife
Eddie Bauer slim wallet and money clip – that’s right, big money: one WHOLE dollar
Milt Sparks knock-off IWB holster
Magazine loaded with 7 Gold Dots
Para Ordnance Black Watch .45 – some custom work
Ray-Ban birth control glasses
Bag: heavily modified US Army OD green map satchel
I sometimes carry a small flashlight in my satchel, a couple of other Moleskines, a roll of fountain pens, a spare magazine, sunglasses, my ORCA card, a kindle, a cheapo Bic lighter, and a small folding knife on my keychain. I forgot the light this morning and I flew recently and haven’t put the TSA-offending Victorinox back on my keys.
What do you carry with you during your day? Below are a representational photos of the phenomena including mine.
MIA – last seen with paint on new pants and sawdust in eye
I realized yesterday that haven’t posted anything for almost a month: no astute observations, not one pointed remark, no weird OCD-driven lists, no pictures of adventures at home and afield…. Nothing. Hmmmm. I have just been REALLY busy!! It started with painting the living room, the kitched paint was next, we expanded into wiring a hot tub, I decided to finish up a furniture project, the breakfast table “needed” to be cut down, fancied up, and refinished. I am heavy into finishing my incredibly overbuilt and way too complicated kitchen cabinets, Halloween came, there was Thanksgiving prep, I had to put the garden to sleep for the winter, blow all the water out of the yard irrigation system, clean the gutters (4th time this year – grumble, grumble… hate neighbor’s tree… grumble, grumble…). On top of it all, my J-O-B was INSANE: lots of late nights, weekends, travel, OT, pressure, stress, etc…
There is some proof of all the work that we have been doing – I have semi-updated the pictures on my project page, but remember that most were shot with an iPhone in crap conditions. None of this pics are going to get me into National Geographic!
It hasn’t been all work though: I have been able to go to the range with my cuddly .45s and punch holes in some zombies a good bit – fine, fine stress relief. I mentioned Halloween – Stamps-With-Foot and I outdid ourselves again this year at our local Halloween party. We went as Wednesday and Pugsly Adams – a big hit at the festivities. I went as a pimp to work – think Will Ferrel in The Other Guys movie: grill, blond ‘fro, leopard coat/fedora, purple faux croc high-heeled side-zippered boots, a pimp cane, crunk cup, loads of bling, coke nails – I had it down. A my fellow engi-nerds let me down though… Not one other costume in my group – not even a funny t-shirt!! Sales had some good ones this year, HR was all in, the fiber optics group brought game, but Engineering sucked it! How is it all those people with big brains, imagination, and vast amounts of reasoning ability could not come up with something?! There are WOW players, Trekkies, SGA initiates, one D&D uber-geek, and every single one of them (including the female members of our team) have slave-girl Leia dreams…. They let me down, but I soldiered on and even gave a new-hire tour and orientation in my pimp-o-rific attire. I will not forget or forgive their breach of the nerd code! Philistines.
Speaking of my J-O-B, the long hours, travel, all the late meals out, and my general lack of physical motivation has gifted me with 20 extra pounds of fat compared to this time last year. In essence, it is my own fault – my bikes are all sitting there waiting on me to love them, I have a sweet pair of new running kicks, A gym membership that we pay for every month, and a dusty yoga mat. I HAVE to dig deep, put away work and get my butt moving or I will be the size of Jabba the Hutt in no time and the Wife is not into Slave Girl Leia…
I think that brings it all up to date for the most part. I will try to be more diligent about keeping up when life starts swirling around me.
Rest in Peace, Steve Jobs. Sent with admiration from my iPhone
Glamping
On a recent weekend, Stamps-With-foot and I met some friends at a campsite on the slopes of Mt. Rainer, situated next to a clear, cool, rushing river. It was a welcome vacation from my iPhone, computer, the J-O-B, projects at home and was an adventure is truly luxurious camping: glamping. We had soft warm double beds, million dollar views, canvas recliners, teak side tables, flowers in vases, steak for dinner, champagne both nights, a hardwood fueled fire, fresh pastries, good wine, table cloths, linen napkins, and a curtained canopied dining room. There were even antique Japanese pearls presented and worn (thanks for upping the b-day present giving bar Dave… you dick). The only thing that separated it from a Victorian safari was the absence of white jacketed & gloved natives and the whole killing of endangered species thing.
All we brought to this gathering was a family sized tent, an air mattress, a set of cast iron Dutch ovens & griddle, some yummy food, good booze, and very sharp kitchen knives. Our Portland friends added all the rest of the good stuff. My normal camping experience often requires a nasty 10+ mile uphill hike (both ways), carrying all my junk (with most of the wife’s as well) & 25+ pounds of climbing gear. Evenings and EARLY mornings are often spent hovering over a tiny stove to warm up some dehydrated crap-surprise, sleeping in a tiny tent, on a thin short blow-up pad, pumping my own water, and waking up to instant coffee. It might be age talking, but I think that I might prefer the linen napkin approach. I am now plotting my own glamping plush set up. Next time we all go camping together, it is going to look like a Moroccan Pasha has come over for a weekend – walled tents, plush pillows, curtains, chests, and feasting…
I feel the need to mention that the next time I see Dave I am going to hit him square in the taint for upping the ante with the amazing pearls… Stamps-With-Foot is now expecting antique Japanese pearls, wrestled from the jaws of a giant clam by a tiny woman diver who held her breath for like 15 minutes and fought, almost to the death, for the prize… Yep, SMACK!! right in the baby-maker for this one David. I hope your wife treated you well for the thought and originality of your beautiful gift, as you will soon look back on those halcyon nights of pleasure with non-functioning fondness.
Thursday has come again
What I want Thursday – August 11th, 2011:
- To get more sleep. I find myself not going to bed before 1:00 most nights/mornings and I am up at 7ish. It makes me grumpy.
- To find the drive and initiative to work out. My cookie-handles have now connected with my pot belly and I am not amused, but I haven’t exactly done a great deal to address the situation.
- For my kids to have a great, productive, and interesting school year in 2011/2012.
- I want my sister and Mother’s furniture to arrive from Texas so they can start feeling settled in Seattle.
- It would be great if my J-O-B cubical would stay spotless. The 5S monster has come.
- I wish I could drink my coffee without sugar. It would really help me shed the Santa-fat.
- Were in the HELL is my iPhone charging cord?!?!?!?!
Good laws
Sometimes I get reminded that my job really isn’t that important in the grand scheme of things and that I am a dumb-ass. Such was the case when I got pulled over for talking on my cell on the way to work. The police officer asked me why I was talking on said phone and I told him, “because I’m and idiot.” He nodded in agreement and handed me a ticket for $240. I am not the least bit butt-hurt about this ticket. I fully deserved it. I will not be talking on the phone while driving again and I hope the funds go to schools or the library.
Speaking of good laws: the City of Seattle now says it is a crime (fine included) to not scoop up after your dog. I couldn’t be happier. I hate to find a big steaming pile of dog deuce on my fresh mowed grass (it happens a lot) and I curse both the dropper and their owner. No, like a real curse, not just dirty words, but I do throw a couple of those in for good measure. It usually sounds something like: “May your kibble forever taste like the poop you dropped on my lawn, may fleas torment you, and my your dog snack on your warm corpse after you have a painful demise alone at home…” I do what I can for the cause…
Evil on the inside
My dear friend Rosy is currently feeling the sting of retribution. It is his own fault and really more the result karma then anything I might have done. I HATE snakes and he thought it would be giggly funny to send me an e-mail with an embedded surprise snake video – it may have made me fling my iPhone and pee myself… Unhappy does not cover my reaction. Even before his giggling subsided, I began “Project Retaliation.”
Rosy has a beautiful and loving wife, supportive parents, friendly neighbors, and ultra religious in-laws. I decided to deliver payback through these good people. The thing about my core group of friends – The Arthritic, Big Belly, Hillbilly Climbing Assn., is that we are occasionally mean to each other… There have been forced birthday paddlings, blow-up sheep in restaurants, public ridicule, chain-mails, doctored pictures, co-conspirators, and certain gross misdemeanors committed in the name of good fun, love, and friendly vengeance. This is shaping up to be one of the latter occurrences.
First, I went online and signed him up on the Liberation Party website as wanting information and I gave them $10 in his name. I used his wife’s email address for further contact – she has strong Republican sympathies and the rest of her family are Super-Tea Partiers. Apparently, Rosy also gave the Tea-Party $10 and clicked every “send me updates and info” button that he could while making that donation… My friend is now an official Lady GaGa Fan Club member and his picture and details are on one of the Justin Bieber freak/fan sites – they will be sending him periodic (hopefully daily) updates for all things Bieber. I requested some dirty, dirty, adult toy catalogs for him and sent them to his parent’s address. Then, a 1-year subscription to OUT! magazines was sent to Rosy via Amazon, but I used his conservative next door neighbor’s address. Rosy will get a Bear of the Month-mail from now until the end of time and there were also literature requests for everything from hair-loss treatment to laser back hair removal to penile enlargement device specifications. It really is the small things in life that make us happy.
A couple weeks later I got the text message below from his mom:
One might be tempted to think that I over reacted. One would be wrong. Rosy once contemplated releasing a live adult bison into my apartment because I teased him about his mom being hot and me having prior physical relations with her (I didn’t) – he actually looked at the logistics of getting the thing trailered in, really. Rosy doesn’t have a stop or pause button – you have to decimate him to make it stop. He fired the first shot in this little war and I had to retaliate with immediate and decisive force or there would have been more snake videos and pictures. He will attempt some sort of well thought out retribution and I will then have to use the nuclear option: his turbo-religious in-laws. Stay tuned…
F-ing Auto-complete!!!
The auto-complete function on my iPhone is making me crazy. I keep sending inappropriate e-mails to friends, the dog walker and now a big-wig at my company… My greatest hits include:
Boiling customer issue:
What I meant to say: This is going to get ugly, I feel it in my bones
Auto-complete: This is going to get ugly, I feel it in my boner
Discussing an author with friend:
What I meant to say: I bought a couple of her books on Amazon, It was just too good a deal to pass up.
Auto-complete: I bought a couple of her boobs on Amazon, It was just too good a deal to pass up.
My ex asking me what my son can buy me for Christmas:
What I meant to say: Hmmm… Smart wool socks?
Auto-complete: Hmmm… Smart wool dicks?
The latest incident was sent to a director concerning a document package:
What I meant to say: I put it in your office.
Auto-complete: I put tit in young office.
His Reply: Thanks buddy!
My reply: Not an issue. Oh damn…
Since this “feature” is making me seem even more inappropriate than usual, I hopped onto in inter-webs to figure out how to turn it off. I ran smack into a site listing MANY more examples of auto-evilness. Thought I would share.
~Matt
Kindle, I Heart You!
I have made the leap into the arms of technology once again. After months of internal debate, fondling display models and endless questions & comments, I bought a Kindle 3 this weekend.
My wife gave me the cash and “permission” to buy my e-reader crack of choice for my birthday. We were in Portland this weekend and since Oregon has no state sales tax, I figured it was the right time to buy. We did go to two different stores to find one in stock and were greatly assisted by the magic of the iPhone and its ability to look up store locations and phone numbers on the fly. I opted for the plan-Jane cover and the wifi-only model: I don’t NEED a Cole Haan calf skin leather case, polished with the tears of a busty virgin for $100 and am never joinsin’ for a book so hard that I need 3G coverage. After loading a couple free books, I bought a Steampunk novel and downloaded a newspaper to take a shake down run. Results: Matt likey!! It is small, light, simple, and a pleasure to read.
I spent Sunday morning sitting at a friend’s table reading the International Times Herald, drinking coffee, and popping doughnut holes into my mouth. It made for a really nice rainy Pacific Northwest morning inside. I will include a gallery below of my e-reader lovely next to the Moleskine medium square-ruled notebook that I use for work
Horrors of horrors! I dropped my iPhone in the toliet at work!!
Son of a… How has my life turned into a sitcom? Crazy relatives show up at the house, I have hillbilly neighbors, my dog is cuter than me, and now I have dropped my iPhone in the fvcking toilet. It is like NBC has the cameras rolling on my life (could be worse – it could be a Soap opera: lying, cheating, poison, jail, drama, bad acting, eye-patches…). My company’s CEO just happened to be in the stall beside me (how does that occur in real life??) and giggled like a little school girl as I exploded with hateful curse words and looked on in horror as I had to fish the damn thing out. I turned it off, ran to the sink and washed it with foaming soap. I them wrapped it in towels, ran to the production line and put it in the heated epoxy/potting chamber. All was good for the first 10 minutes and then it turned itself back on?!?!? I turned it off again, but noticed that there was some color run in the screen. SH!T My company provided the phone and doesn’t have iPhone insurance, so if it doesn’t turn back on, I bought a new iPhone…
I just got through making fun of Adam Brown for his super-nerdy waterproof phone case. I really wish I was that geeky! This would be more funny story than possible expensive tragedy. I just e-mailed him for info since if the thing does turn on, I need to protect it. If not, then I will need to encase my “new” phone in a potty-proof wrapper.
Update 9-17-10:
The phone did great with the drying out process. I turned it on a couple of days later and everything worked fine. Two days after that, I hooked it up to my computer to sync and I was asked if I wanted to download the latest and greatest software. Sure, why the Hell not? After the download, the power and home buttons, stopped working if the phone was disconnected from the computer, but worked fine as long as it was plugged in. I am sure it was some sort of weird latent damage caused by the dunking in the potty that showed up later because of the diagnostic check and cycling that accompanied the new download. The phone is now a brick and after a HUGE rigmarole at work, I was given a new one, though it wasn’t free. It looks like I get to share the cost of the new unit. I guarantee that this one will be covered in layers of protective geeky love.
Kindle Lust
I have a book addiction and right now I am jonsin’ for a binary fix: I have a mad case of Kindle lust: one eye is starting to twitch, my mouth is dry, I am all itchy, and I can think of little else but e-ink. I need a Kindle….. NEED! I complained about the size and Amazon made it thinner. I reasoned that it sucked because I couldn’t arrange content and they released new software to allow organization. I bitched about the high price and they dropped it, if only to mock me! 1500 books, my daily paper and Wikipedia access… Fvck it hurts! I am starting to shake.
I am trying to be good, trying so hard. My wife said, “No, we have other things to spend money on right now” (she is right) and she knows that I will spend hours every night for weeks downloading from Project Gutenberg and will buy a crap-ton of new stuff online – she KNOWS… If I just go out and buy the thing, I will get it taken away like I am 3 years old and she will start using it smugly to ‘teach me a lesson.’ That and the sleeping outside alone (dog snuggles with her…) for the months it would take for her to calm down from my wanton disregard of our financial responsibilities would be too high a cost to pay if figured into the overall purchase price.
I am holding out for now, but God as my witness, the minute I can go to the library and check out an e-book with a Kindle, I am gonna go online and buy me some dirty e-reader relief, even if I have to prostitute myself out to a sweet old lady at the retirement home up the street for the cash!
Stranger and weekly indie-paper love
I love me some of The Stranger. While I will always open it directly to the Savage Love column, I happened upon a new column in the July 8-14 issue that made me roll with laughter – The Incredible Hulk. The premier rant was “Hulk Not Racist But…” It was a diatribe about German’s inability to queue. A topic that I ranted about the whole time we lived in Deutschland. Laurel heard my opinion so many times that she developed Spidy-Sense and would stop me even as I opened my mouth to launch into my well-rehearsed, and well-thought out if I must say, argument about the genetic inability of a German to stand in an orderly line and take their proper turn. Holy CRAP!! it used to piss me off: getting on the subway train, at the movies, at Starbucks, in stores, while BUYING GROCERIES!!! Man, I am all worked up just thinking about it!
Needless to say, I hope to be turning there after finishing Dan Savage’s musings each week. The New Column section in The Stranger seems to be more of a test piece and they come and go. I will be sending fan mail asking that this one stays.
I have been into indi weeklies since the day I lived in Little Rock, AR when the weekly there, The Night Flyer, was my lone source of of local left leaning news and local color. My appreciation only grew after moving to Orange County and reading the OC Weekly every Saturday morning at Wahoo’s while choing on a Maui Bowl. The OC Weekly ranted about the Sheriff, Mike Corona, for years complaining about his corruption, mob ties, kickbacks, etc… Then one day it all proved true and the rest of the news establishment jumped on the bandwagon. The paper has rightfully won a number of Pulitzers for their hard work and is where I also found Savage Love for the first time. Laurel and I would read the reader letters with equal mix of fascination, horror, disgust, and glee – good old fashion American fun!
Note: This post was written completely on my iPhone, with the WordPress App, while I was in the air somewhere above Idaho. I heart my iPhone!
Summer is here
It was a little long in coming and we had a cold damp spring, but summer is finally here. My raspberries are going like gang-busters, the sun is shining, the heater is off and I have slathered my self with sun-block no less than 4 times this week. I don’t care what anyone says – I love Seattle weather! My yard is green, the sun is shining, and there is almost no humidify. Why would you live in Houston or Atlanta or Detroit when you can have this‽
New Running Partner
The Nike+ App came with my iPhone and I just started playing with it last week. So far, it has been fairly accurate (after I calibrated the sensor on a local running track) and I have used it on road runs and on a recent trail/hill climb outing and so far the difference between the accelerometer and the GPS distance in minimal. The Nike+ uses so little battery compared to the GPS function that I have tuned the location server off on the phone to conserve battery for important things like phone calls and work e-mail.
I love to run and I find that if I have a partner I get faster and faster until I finally plateau around the 7 minute mile mark for 5+ mile runs. I think that I have the potential to be faster, but since I suffer from Multiple Activity Disorder, I don’t commit the time to train appropriately and I have never invested in a coach to help. My lovely bride hates to run, so I do not have a live-in training companion and so far have not found a neighbor with a similar schedule that is a runner. Nike+ is filling a gap. It is giving me some positive feedback, documents distance and pace, and I can virtually race with people across the country on the inter-webs. I have a couple of buddies in Missouri, Colorado, Germany, California, and Arkansas that run and am hoping to get them set up with Nike+ as well so that we can run as a “group” from time to time.
