Changing some pictures and stuff on the blog. Let me know what you think, but only as long as you like it. :-) I am not a HTML, CSS, JAVA person, but I play (hunt) around for what I want and sometimes come out with something that is close enough. The background image here is one of those things. I created a collage in Google's Picasa, basically making a border down each side of the page, but the HTML somewhere here said to tile the thing. So it did, and what was right is left, left is right, and where there were two are four. I'll keep looking at it. The previous picture was a mountain at Snowbird in Utah.
I figure, since I am moving furniture and stuff all over the house now prepping for the end of summer and the wedding, I might as well move this around too.
The invitations have all been sent out. Procrastination is my super power, so you probably have no idea what this really means in terms of my world. It is more than significant. Especially considering the fact that I do not write ANYTHING with pen or pencil, and I almost NEVER put anything in the mail. Both border on phobia levels for me. SGG has been very concerned that she will never see my handwriting. I'm serious. :-) I also don't have anyone's postal address, just their email. SGG was not amused when I hinted about just scanning the invite and emailing it out. Nope, not one bit. So with minimal foot stomping, addresses were collected and invites were sent.
Now, I feel rather vindicated in the scan and email idea, since we have had two people so far think that the RSVP email address we put in there was an evite and couldn't navigate to the site. :-)
I am sure someone may try to video conference the event with their cell phone, but they are own their own if they do. I certainly am not planning to.
Other changes have included getting all the pictures from my previous residence hung on the walls here. We can't do them all (I had a lot), but we are filling up the place. Also, technology has exploded around SGG. She said she woke up one night and the whole house was humming. Gigabit ethernet, servers, workstations, laptops, wireless-N, droids, etc....She has learned how to work the media center pc, pulling up TV, movies, blu-ray, and netflix. Netflix has become the center of our relationship. In an effort to keep her up later, we started watching Dexter. We are totally "wrapped" up in it. Dexter "captivates" us. It entertains us to "death". What a great show.
All in all, things are moving along very well. My son comes home Saturday morning. :-) Who knows what will happen after that.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
I am a facebook fake, and a twitter twit....
What?
I've turned off chat in facebook. I have locked down all my settings to friends only (or at least I did several weeks ago). I have removed a few "friends". I don't play ANY facebook games, poke, or anything else. I rarely log in, and I seldom run through the huge list of updates. At most I get through 24-48 hours worth. It is rare that I ever even look at anyone's profile. I have managed to become almost anti-social on the worlds biggest social networking site. I don't know whether that is a good or bad thing. I am a facebook fake.
Twitter I found useful for just a couple of things. One is there are two accounts that give updates for the City of Virginia Beach, and another that gives updates for traffic in Hampton Roads. I follow them and a few single parents and that is about it. The only thing I do less than updating facebook is tweeting on twitter. I am a twitter twit.
You could say I am following suit with my blog, but I like my blog. I like being able to type more than a few lines of text for an update. I don't know how many people find my blog through my facebook profile, but I would guess very few. Actually, I have those statistics in google analytics for the most part. I don't post updates to the blog on facebook though. Sometimes on twitter...as I am doing with this post. But, since I don't really cover really juicy topics here, just the fun things we do, does that make me a bland blogger? :-) If you made it this far into the post, I am so sorry. I love sentences and words, and I love putting them together. I love rhymes and writing poems, but more than all that I love alliteration. I am always an all-out alliterer. Even if I have to make cruddy crap up to get there.
I've turned off chat in facebook. I have locked down all my settings to friends only (or at least I did several weeks ago). I have removed a few "friends". I don't play ANY facebook games, poke, or anything else. I rarely log in, and I seldom run through the huge list of updates. At most I get through 24-48 hours worth. It is rare that I ever even look at anyone's profile. I have managed to become almost anti-social on the worlds biggest social networking site. I don't know whether that is a good or bad thing. I am a facebook fake.
Twitter I found useful for just a couple of things. One is there are two accounts that give updates for the City of Virginia Beach, and another that gives updates for traffic in Hampton Roads. I follow them and a few single parents and that is about it. The only thing I do less than updating facebook is tweeting on twitter. I am a twitter twit.
You could say I am following suit with my blog, but I like my blog. I like being able to type more than a few lines of text for an update. I don't know how many people find my blog through my facebook profile, but I would guess very few. Actually, I have those statistics in google analytics for the most part. I don't post updates to the blog on facebook though. Sometimes on twitter...as I am doing with this post. But, since I don't really cover really juicy topics here, just the fun things we do, does that make me a bland blogger? :-) If you made it this far into the post, I am so sorry. I love sentences and words, and I love putting them together. I love rhymes and writing poems, but more than all that I love alliteration. I am always an all-out alliterer. Even if I have to make cruddy crap up to get there.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
What is in a name?
I'm trying out some new names and descriptions, so you may see some changes over the next few weeks...
I think we are finally finished with the old house I was renting. I have said goodbye to all my neighbors. I will miss them.
We are getting settled in to SGG's house. We nearly have all the boxes emptied. We are going to buy a shed for stuff. The garage is overflowing with stuff. We have stuff that needs to go up in the attic. We surely are over stuffed. This is after two yard sales, several trips to thrift stores to offload stuff, and several trips to the dump.
We have been putting up pictures. You would be surprised how many I have to put up. We have been re-arranging stuff.
SGG has been getting used to some new sights, sounds, and smells...and I have also to be fair about it.
Things have been so busy, but we are hoping things settle down soon.
I skipped 150 pages of my piano book and started learning Pachelbel's Canon. I didn't mean to, but the wind blew the pages to it one day and I started banging it out. I think everyone is tired of hearing it now, but I need to smooth it all out. Maybe when I have it done I'll record it and play it here. I may have to record and play it in sections. :-)
And just in case you did see that the title and description changed and you read it...no worries about the cat. In fact, I have few stories about that ferocious feline to tell you...but a little later.
edited to add:
I also meant to put in a plug for craigslist. I have a practically new washer and dryer that I bought when I moved back to Virginia Beach four years ago. Think about it, how much laundry does a single guy and his son really do? So I put them on craigslist around 11am Saturday morning and they were gone by 2:30pm. I have previously purchased one thing through craigslist, my primary camera lens for my Nikon. What a really cool service. I know, I'm not telling anyone anything they didn't already know.
I think we are finally finished with the old house I was renting. I have said goodbye to all my neighbors. I will miss them.
We are getting settled in to SGG's house. We nearly have all the boxes emptied. We are going to buy a shed for stuff. The garage is overflowing with stuff. We have stuff that needs to go up in the attic. We surely are over stuffed. This is after two yard sales, several trips to thrift stores to offload stuff, and several trips to the dump.
We have been putting up pictures. You would be surprised how many I have to put up. We have been re-arranging stuff.
SGG has been getting used to some new sights, sounds, and smells...and I have also to be fair about it.
Things have been so busy, but we are hoping things settle down soon.
I skipped 150 pages of my piano book and started learning Pachelbel's Canon. I didn't mean to, but the wind blew the pages to it one day and I started banging it out. I think everyone is tired of hearing it now, but I need to smooth it all out. Maybe when I have it done I'll record it and play it here. I may have to record and play it in sections. :-)
And just in case you did see that the title and description changed and you read it...no worries about the cat. In fact, I have few stories about that ferocious feline to tell you...but a little later.
edited to add:
I also meant to put in a plug for craigslist. I have a practically new washer and dryer that I bought when I moved back to Virginia Beach four years ago. Think about it, how much laundry does a single guy and his son really do? So I put them on craigslist around 11am Saturday morning and they were gone by 2:30pm. I have previously purchased one thing through craigslist, my primary camera lens for my Nikon. What a really cool service. I know, I'm not telling anyone anything they didn't already know.
Monday, August 09, 2010
A letter from my mom....
On Saturday July 31, 2010 I received a letter from my mom. Probably not too remarkable until you consider that she died from lung cancer February 7, 2001. SGG was going through the cookbooks I was putting into the yard sale and found this sheet of paper. She started asking me about the letter, but I didn't know anything about it. I looked at the sheet of paper and I couldn't believe it. It is a short letter, and more of a poem than a letter really. I don't know when she wrote it, and I don't know if she ever intended me to see it. I can't tell you how often I have a question and I reach for the phone, my mom's number flashes through my head, and I realize I can't call her. I had been wondering what my mom would say about the impending marriage, and what she would say about SGG. I can't describe how awesome it was to get a message from my mom and get to share it with SGG and the rest of my family.
Here it is below:
To my son, [Crazy Computer Dad]
When I became a parent,
I was overwhelmed with love.
I was such a proud parent,
and thanked the stars above!
When I became your parent
you were the greatest gift to me.
watching you learn to walk and talk,
you were such a joy to see!
And now you are a parent,
and this I must confide,
I still count my blessings daily,
for my gifts have multiplied.
All my love, Mom.
Here it is below:
To my son, [Crazy Computer Dad]
When I became a parent,
I was overwhelmed with love.
I was such a proud parent,
and thanked the stars above!
When I became your parent
you were the greatest gift to me.
watching you learn to walk and talk,
you were such a joy to see!
And now you are a parent,
and this I must confide,
I still count my blessings daily,
for my gifts have multiplied.
All my love, Mom.
Sunday, August 08, 2010
Moving, combining, cleaning, selling, donating...
You would think it would all be done by now, but it is not. The saga is far from over. There are still little things to be done here and there. There are still boxes that need to be opened and sorted. There is the garage that is now so jam packed you can barely get in there. There is the attic that stuff, once all sorted, needs to have stuff put in it. Last night we had crab legs for dinner. I went looking for my crab stuff, and couldn't find it. SGG said, there is "another box over here", and sure enough it was in there. Is there some strange unexplored and undefined law of physics governing moving boxes? What is the source of their staying power?
Yard sales make for interesting times. Mine was a couple of weeks ago, during one of the three hottest days on record ever here. Combine that with 99.999999999999% humidity and you have a formula where bodily water loss exceeds the body's ability to replenish it. Everything was cheap, and some stuff was free. For some reason the ad didn't make it into Craigs List, but we essentially sold everything. That was the goal. I had to shuffle a few pieces around the city, and we made appointments for people to pick other stuff up. In my typical "do it all" crazy mentality, I had also scheduled a backpacking trip that I had to be at a carpool point at 11:30am that morning. I figured I would just pack it all up around 10:45 (or be done hopefully), but with so many people coming back, etc, I had to cancel the trip.
The most comical moment I think came when an elderly lady stopped by and wanted the twin bed mattress and frame set. Economically priced at $10. The problem was that she didn't have a way to get it to her house. I didn't have my tools with me to break it down. This was a large metal frame, but light, that was part of a bunk bed set that my son has been using for 8 years now. Earlier this year I took the bunk bed down to one bed. The lady lived about 2.5 blocks away. I told her if she couldn't find someone to get it, we would bring it over there. Worst case I would just carry the thing (in the heat and humidity). She could find anyone, and it wouldn't fit in SGG's vehicle, so I carried it over. I didn't really want to have to break it down. We would bring the mattresses over a little later.
Turns out carrying it wasn't the hardest or craziest part. It really was no problem getting it there. However, she must have the smallest house in the neighborhood, and at 105 Degrees, 119 heat index, was trying to get by without AC. The frame would barely fit down the hall, and had no chance of fitting through the doors. She got a little mouthy at this point, complaining about how she maybe didn't want it if it wouldn't just fit. I got to practice a little transcendental meditation. I went back to borrow my neighbors tools, essentially an allen wrench and a pair of channel lock pliers since one bolt was stripped. In short order the bed was disassembled, put back together, and had the bunky board and mattress on it. I left puddles of sweat everywhere as she didn't have the windows in that sun facing room open (and no AC).
Once all of that drama was done, we concentrated on cleaning the place up and getting unpacked/combined at SGG's. We had a gigantic yard sale at her place the next weekend (last weekend). She also invited a few friends over. I made coffee and bagel egg sandwiches for the ladies, in addition to moving all the heavy stuff out front.
SGG's two boys came back from New York last Sunday. I've been working on getting network connectivity to the rooms. The transition has gone fairly smooth so far.
We definitely need a shed. Between bikes, lawn tools, recreational gear, etc, we are packed to the gills.
This weekend has been a lot more relaxed. Still a lot to do, but we decided to take it a little easier. This morning, we've been sitting on the back porch drinking coffee, reading the paper, talking about the state of the country, making jokes, and now I'm writing out our adventures. Or at least a little slice of them.
Work is going well, and much less stressful! A blessing really with all the house stuff.
A project/idea came to me recently, inspired by my recent blog book project. I may start taking my photo albums and doing another blurb book for each year, writing up stories about the pictures as I go. I have almost all of those photos scanned in, due to another multi-year project. SGG's eldest son was going back through the book I made for her again, for like the 20th time. He was very intrigued, asking questions about the pictures, reminiscing about various activities.
Yard sales make for interesting times. Mine was a couple of weeks ago, during one of the three hottest days on record ever here. Combine that with 99.999999999999% humidity and you have a formula where bodily water loss exceeds the body's ability to replenish it. Everything was cheap, and some stuff was free. For some reason the ad didn't make it into Craigs List, but we essentially sold everything. That was the goal. I had to shuffle a few pieces around the city, and we made appointments for people to pick other stuff up. In my typical "do it all" crazy mentality, I had also scheduled a backpacking trip that I had to be at a carpool point at 11:30am that morning. I figured I would just pack it all up around 10:45 (or be done hopefully), but with so many people coming back, etc, I had to cancel the trip.
The most comical moment I think came when an elderly lady stopped by and wanted the twin bed mattress and frame set. Economically priced at $10. The problem was that she didn't have a way to get it to her house. I didn't have my tools with me to break it down. This was a large metal frame, but light, that was part of a bunk bed set that my son has been using for 8 years now. Earlier this year I took the bunk bed down to one bed. The lady lived about 2.5 blocks away. I told her if she couldn't find someone to get it, we would bring it over there. Worst case I would just carry the thing (in the heat and humidity). She could find anyone, and it wouldn't fit in SGG's vehicle, so I carried it over. I didn't really want to have to break it down. We would bring the mattresses over a little later.
Turns out carrying it wasn't the hardest or craziest part. It really was no problem getting it there. However, she must have the smallest house in the neighborhood, and at 105 Degrees, 119 heat index, was trying to get by without AC. The frame would barely fit down the hall, and had no chance of fitting through the doors. She got a little mouthy at this point, complaining about how she maybe didn't want it if it wouldn't just fit. I got to practice a little transcendental meditation. I went back to borrow my neighbors tools, essentially an allen wrench and a pair of channel lock pliers since one bolt was stripped. In short order the bed was disassembled, put back together, and had the bunky board and mattress on it. I left puddles of sweat everywhere as she didn't have the windows in that sun facing room open (and no AC).
Once all of that drama was done, we concentrated on cleaning the place up and getting unpacked/combined at SGG's. We had a gigantic yard sale at her place the next weekend (last weekend). She also invited a few friends over. I made coffee and bagel egg sandwiches for the ladies, in addition to moving all the heavy stuff out front.
SGG's two boys came back from New York last Sunday. I've been working on getting network connectivity to the rooms. The transition has gone fairly smooth so far.
We definitely need a shed. Between bikes, lawn tools, recreational gear, etc, we are packed to the gills.
This weekend has been a lot more relaxed. Still a lot to do, but we decided to take it a little easier. This morning, we've been sitting on the back porch drinking coffee, reading the paper, talking about the state of the country, making jokes, and now I'm writing out our adventures. Or at least a little slice of them.
Work is going well, and much less stressful! A blessing really with all the house stuff.
A project/idea came to me recently, inspired by my recent blog book project. I may start taking my photo albums and doing another blurb book for each year, writing up stories about the pictures as I go. I have almost all of those photos scanned in, due to another multi-year project. SGG's eldest son was going back through the book I made for her again, for like the 20th time. He was very intrigued, asking questions about the pictures, reminiscing about various activities.
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