Moving to the dark side

We've moved to the dark side, and now I wonder what's been taking us so long to make the switch.

Bethany and I have been talking of an Apple for the last couple of years and now that our main computer croaked, we decided we'd investigate properly.

Off to the Apple Store. There happens to be an Apple store just a few miles from us, so we paid them a visit. Where else are you supposed to hang out on Friday afternoons? We looked at the iMac's, the software, talked to some of the specialists, got some prices, and moved on.

They have a current "education" special that's pretty hard to beat right now too. Between $50-$100 off the price of the computer, a free 8gb iTouch, a free all-in-one printer, and a discounted 3yr service plan.

We liked what we saw, but we wanted to shop around.

Off to Best Buy. Call me crazy, but I like Best Buy. I always have. They seem to do pretty good and doing me right and helping me out. Well, knowing they were an authorized retailer of Macs and PCs, we did some side by side comparisons. The desktops were not near as neat and clean looking, and we needed something with more horsepower than a laptop.

We questioned the "education" special to see if they'd honor some price matching...

This is where things went odd.

The ever abundant Geek Squad approached and offered his advice and expertise. Our conversation went a little like this:

ME: You're an authorized retailer, and Apple has an education special going on which includes $100 off the computer, an 8gb iTouch, a free printer, and a 3yr warranty plan; will you honor that?"

HIM: Have you thought about the warranty? Our Black Tie Protection? It covers better than the Apple Plan. Ours is accidental too. (Their plan was twice the Apple Care plan)

ME: Yes. I plan on using the one included with the education plan. Do you honor it though?

HIM: I'm not sure. I'll have to check with a manager. We have printers for $30 too, so I wouldn't be too concerned over that.

ME: I'm not. It's just in their package.

HIM: Ok. I'll be right back.

*Queue the Jeopardy theme music

HIM: Ok. The best I can do is knock $150 off the computer price. The rest are rebates and we don't match it.

ME: But you're an authorized retailer. You can't match the adds from your supplier?

HIM: Nope.

ME: Well, sorry we're not buying it here.

Needless to say, we went back to the Apple Store. And since this is a personal blog, I'll write my feelings about them too.

I waited WAY TOO LONG to make my purchase. I knew what I wanted, yet I found it odd that I had to wait as long as I did to seal the deal. After nearly 30mins of toying around, we were finally seen and given our merchandise. Once helped though, it was a breeze!

Walking out, it felt like we had hit a gold mine. Our loot:

a 24" iMac

an 8gb ipod Touch

an HP all in one Printer

a 3yr Apple Care Warranty

I'd say it turned out pretty well! And now the desk is clean and neat, and nothing could make it too much better.

When it rain...

...it pours!

So far we've had the misfortune of running into some problems throughout the week, and they just keep getting better...

#1. Our computer hiccupped and died. It won't boot.

Not sure what's going on, but I woke in the middle of the night to see the infamous "blue screen" and upon restarting - nothing. It goes to the welcome screen and stops. There's no telling what the culprit is. The highlight - I luckily backed up the MyPhotos and MyMusic folders to an external drive a few days prior. Now to go computer shopping.

#2. Our Jeep is having issues...again.

Seems that it's about time to have more car issues. The electric motor that holds the driver door window up broke. When it broke, the glass went down with it. Apparently, it's a pretty common problem in the vehicle. And seems that Chrysler hasn't done anything to help fix the problems that everyone's facing.

#3. Glass is fragile.

Remember that window motor that broke? I attempted to do my part and slide the glass back up in place for the night. Well, since it was in the door, I used a small pair of pliers. In doing so, apparently, I pressed too hard and shattered out the driver side window. Now, I'm out a window motor and a window...

That's three. Hopefully we're done for a while!

Performance

It's all about Performance....




Everybody needs a good laugh on Mondays.

Catch up

Quite a bit has happened lately. Guess it's time to catch up a little...

#1. I'm home.
The FEMA assignment is over for my part and I'm heading back into my normal line of work. The trip was good and I was able to work with a great group of guys. We made short work of the disaster and got our applicants back on their feet. Win - win situation. Now, back to a normal routine

#2. My yard is a disaster.
It's been tough for Bethany to keep up with the yard, entertain guests, and come south to see me at times. She's done what she could, and I commend her for it, but the yard still looked bad when I showed up.

For one, she hates bagging grass clippings, therefore, she cuts it high to keep the clippings to a minimum. I'm the opposite. I ended up mowing the yard nearly 6hrs just to get the height down and all the grass clippings up. There are 10 bags of clippings on the street.

#3. My honey-do list has been significantly reduced.
Mow & edge the yard - DONE
Repair/Replace rotten porch column - DONE
Trim hedges - DONE
Repair/Replace rotten screen porch door - DONE
Expand patio and create french drain for drainage - NOT YET

#4. My sister graduated from The University of Alabama
She graduated on Saturday, so we spent the weekend in Tuscaloosa watching her ceremony and enjoying the reception afterwards.
Congratulations, on a job well done!
Heading to get the infamous "cardboard in a nice sleeve".
It was a blast getting to see her walk across the stage and get her diploma (even if the real one is in the mail!). She worked hard and deserved every minute of it!

#5. I'm getting sick.

I'm supposed to start back with my normal routine on Monday. I think this head cold I have is trying to change my mind. The first time this whole year, and now I'm battling sinuses.

Freewheeling 'Four-Wheel Bob'

Remember Bob Coomber from a while ago? Well ABC news has finally found him too...

Freewheeling 'Four-Wheel Bob'

Talk about dedication...

Bike for sale

I stumbled across an awesome add for a new bike. I liked it so much, I thought I'd share it with you:

Specialized Bicycle - $650

Date: 2009-08-10, 2:04PM EDTReply to: sale-tmf3u-1315817279@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

This is truly a one of a kind bike. It goes quick like 10 MPH. It has gears to suit your tastes. Hardly ever used, it even has an odometer, and all these other readings in this kit I had bought for it. It includes Cat Eye lighting which means you could ride your bicycle at night with plenty of safety lights flashing. The bicycle is white in color. I will include the bike pump for $700 U.S. dollars. There is also a bike helmet for it, which I will sell for another $50. Thanks for considering this bike, I know you will like this.

it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

PostingID: 1315817279

I think I may have just found the bike for anyone who's interested...

Almost Home

Well, here's another disaster that's in the books...

After this week, there will be a skeleton crew here doing the last of the paperwork with the state, but as far as FEMA is concerned, WE'RE GOING HOME!

So, if everything follows the plan, I'll be home next week.

See ya'll then!

IF

I went to a Scouting banquet last night where they celebrated the incoming of the 100th year of scouting. It was the "kickoff" so to speak. Several executives dropped in to host a little presentation with videos of where we've been the last 100years and where they'd like to go. It was good to see the number of folks there, and the amount of effort from everyone to keep it going too.

There was a speaker who read the poem "IF" by Rudyard Kipling, which sorta stuck. If you haven't read it, here it is:

If
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream–and not make dreams your master,
If you can think–and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on!”

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings–nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And–which is more–you’ll be a Man, my son!
–Rudyard Kipling

Just thought I'd share...

Paying Off

Things are paying off and I'm getting excited.

There are many advantages to the triathlon training I've been doing, and I saw one of the better ones this weekend, which I'll share with you...

Before FEMA work started my normal attire was khaki's and a polo in the office. Since FEMA, I've been allowed to wear jeans and a polo. Not a huge change, but it still plays a part in this. Just bear with me.

So, this weekend Bethany came down to visit, and spend some time with me. One of our plans for the weekend was to see her sister baptised on Sunday morning at church. This is where the khaki's come in. I pulled the khaki's from the clothes Bethany brought, only to realize they didn't fit. As in, they were WAY too big. I put them on and asked her what she thought and she merely laughed.

When I let go of the waistband, they fell off. As in, still buttoned and fell off. That was quite exciting.

We decided to see which pair she brought, and turns out it was a pair that we had to buy larger than normal earlier this year, because I had quite the gut. Now, not so much... As a matter of fact, I've been told I need to go shopping again, because the jeans I'm wearing are having a hard time staying on too.

Guess we're going to be adding another pair of clothes to the Goodwill pile :)

I'm really starting to enjoy the extra training I've been doing, and honestly, it's a huge boost to see those kind of results!

I like sod

Now that the utilities have decided to finish tearing up my yard, they finally planted some sod to fix their disaster.

Not too bad really.

The only problem...it didn't last very long. We're talking just a couple of days and now it's dead. So, now, we're back to square one.

Guess I ought to call again and see about this being fixed...again.

The new Yogi Bear

Remember Yogi Bear? And his side kick Boo Boo?
Well there's a new Yogi, execpt her name is Yellow-Yellow, and she live Adirondacks (NY). A report has come out that hikers have been complaining that their food stashes, stored in a Bear Vault, have been invaded. Turns out it's Yellow-Yellow.

The Bear Proof Can is a Pop Top for the Crafty Thief - NY Times

"...Similar to a childproof medicine bottle, the BearVault 350 and 400 models can be opened by pressing a tab that allows the camper to screw off the lid. But reports began coming in from campers a few years ago that BearVaults were being broken into. State wildlife officials began suspecting Yellow-Yellow, one of a number of bears they have tagged and tracked as a way of studying the behavior of the more than 5,000 bears roaming the Adirondacks.

In most BearVault break-ins, Yellow-Yellow’s radio collar indicated she had been in the area. Eventually, campers began spotting her from afar rifling canisters. There have been no reports of her threatening anyone...."

Smarter than the average Bear!

Headin' to George Town

Earlier this year, I set up the Virtual tour that's been taking me down to George Town based on my fitness mileage.

A good friend of our in the Bahamas wanted me to see if I could virtually make it down there (of course we'd love to go physically too), so that's what I set out to do.

I plugged in this month's current mileage only to notice that I'M THERE! I'VE OFFICIALLY MADE IT TO GEORGE TOWN BAHAMAS! How cool?!?!

Here's the map:


And the totals so far:
Swim - 116mi
Bike - 915mi
Run - 201mi

A little of "Le Tour"

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've seen a million and one headlines about "Le Tour de France" that's going on right now. I know I couldn't even muster the strength to hang onto the last guy for 5mins, but it's still fun to watch.

I've gotten into a habit to log in to the computer, turn on Le Tour, and have it play while I work. It's a good break to go back and forth to see who's where and what's going on. Absolutely amazing.

Well there have been a few pretty nasty wrecks throughout of course (100+ riders, 20+mph, 1ft apart, go figure), which some have been caught on camera. Here area few:
Don't worry, he's ok. Hurt, but ok. Flat tire, lead car, lost control. It happens.

He was alright too. Tire bounced, caught the white line, and down he went too. Notice the swell of that back tire!

I'm not genius, but I can pretty much assure this isn't going to end well.

You really should tune into the Tour. Even if you're not sure what's going on, tune to watch these guys hammer down and do some serious riding!

Lunch Company continued

Three days. Three lunches. Two meals with awesome company. Yea, that's a pretty good week!

Today was a join called Coach's Corner w/ another cousin and an aunt. Sara and her mom joined, which was definately nice.

I need more FEMA work in the vicinity of family :)

Thanks Sara. Next week, we'll get you and Jess together at the same time!

Lunch Company

The cool thing about the FEMA gig, is being able to enjoy lunch at different places throughout the disaster. The really cool thing is when you have friends and family within just a short haul that you can meet for lunch.

Today was one of those days. Awesome luch and even better company for lunch!

Thanks for the lunch Jess. We'll definately have to do it again soon...and who knows, maybe Sara will join us next time :)

See ya next week sometime, hopefully!