So last Sunday was one of those long lazy days that can do so much to recharge the batteries. I had nothing much to do, and nowhere to go, and no one to meet, and I made sure to take the absolute fullest advantage of it.
In the morning, for a few hours, I took out the old Lionel O-gauge trains that have been sitting my basement ever since we cleared out my parents' basement two years ago. I don't normally like tasks that involve lots of packing and unpacking, but this one was genuinely fun. Probably because I never knew what I would find in each new box.
There were 50 or 60 pieces of track, two big engines and a smaller steam engine replica, about two dozen boxcars and flatcars, and four cabooses. There was even a box of landscaping materials and buildings, all to the same scale as the trains.
Once I had it all unpacked, and out on the floor, I set up a loop of track about 3 feet across, hooked a control unit to it, and plugged everthing in. I tried out all three locomotives, and all the cabooses; I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they were all in working order, with no burned out lights or malfunctioning horns. Other than a strong smell of ozone when the trains were running, everything seemed tip top.
With that in mind, I started planning the next project: I'm going to get the trains back in operation. Dad would appreciate it.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Music For Free, Sort Of
It's getting late, and I've spent way too much time tonight sitting at the computer. I really shouldn't have, because I've got to work in the morning, and it's not like I'm doing anything that can't wait for the weekend, but it's like this:
My wife set up a music file sharing server on our computer. Some of her co-workers recommended it to her, and the other day, when I got home, I found it all set up, and downloading.
That was it, for me. This wasn't the sort of thing I'd've set up on my own, but now that it was there, on the computer, it was too good to pass up. So I asked my wife to show me how it works, and I set it to start downloading some of my favorite songs. This would be a big day.
You see, a few years ago, I lost my CD collection. It was in my car, we were in an accident, and the car was totaled. When I went to the junk yard to sign over the title and collect our stuff from the wreckage, I didn't see the discs. I figured they must be a home somewhere. About six months later, when we moved to our current place, I still couldn't find the discs. Now I think that the guys at the junkyard got themselves a music collection. But I have digressed....
eMule isn't the fastest system, but works reasonably well, and after a few days of patience, I found that I had half a dozen of my favorite songs back, and available to listen to. And if you ask, yes, getting the music was worth the wait. After all, free is definitely a better deal than a record store can offer.
Well, almost free. It's polite to keep the downloaded files accessible to other eMule users; after all, this is a file sharing service. But I don't think that sharing is too high a cost.
My wife set up a music file sharing server on our computer. Some of her co-workers recommended it to her, and the other day, when I got home, I found it all set up, and downloading.
That was it, for me. This wasn't the sort of thing I'd've set up on my own, but now that it was there, on the computer, it was too good to pass up. So I asked my wife to show me how it works, and I set it to start downloading some of my favorite songs. This would be a big day.
You see, a few years ago, I lost my CD collection. It was in my car, we were in an accident, and the car was totaled. When I went to the junk yard to sign over the title and collect our stuff from the wreckage, I didn't see the discs. I figured they must be a home somewhere. About six months later, when we moved to our current place, I still couldn't find the discs. Now I think that the guys at the junkyard got themselves a music collection. But I have digressed....
eMule isn't the fastest system, but works reasonably well, and after a few days of patience, I found that I had half a dozen of my favorite songs back, and available to listen to. And if you ask, yes, getting the music was worth the wait. After all, free is definitely a better deal than a record store can offer.
Well, almost free. It's polite to keep the downloaded files accessible to other eMule users; after all, this is a file sharing service. But I don't think that sharing is too high a cost.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
A Wedding
I went to a wedding last weekend. I didn't know the bride or groom; rather, my wife and I are friends of the groom's mother, and she invited us. I must admit, it was really nice to see how happy she was; and how many people were there to share it.
So, it was quite a party. I should have expected it, since it was thrown by two Jewish mothers, but the food was excellent, and extraordinarily plentiful. There was a little chicken and angel hair appetizer that was amazing. And the bar was well stocked. I had a few too many rum-and-cokes, which might explain why I felt the way I did at work all day today.
Getting home at 2am might also help to explain that. I haven't been out that late since college, and I'm really not used to it. The day after the affair, my eyes felt like a pair of cracked ball bearings, and I had aches in places that I'd forgotten I had.
It was worth it, though. My wife and I arranged a sleep over play date for the kids, with some friends of ours, and then we went out had a great time. We drank, we danced, we called a cab to get home.... For a night, we felt like we were 20 again, and it was a wedding, so love was in the air.
I must admit, even though we were there for a friend, and we were thrilled to see her on her great day, I think that the best part of the night for me was getting a chance to just cut loose with my wife. We haven't had a chance to go out and dance since our older daughter was born, and she's almost 5 now. Look at this; I'm even measuring the times of our lives by the ages fo our children! That's a sign that we needed a night like that.
So here's to the newly married couple, and to their unlimited future together, but also, here's to me and my wife, who feel like a couple of kids again!
So, it was quite a party. I should have expected it, since it was thrown by two Jewish mothers, but the food was excellent, and extraordinarily plentiful. There was a little chicken and angel hair appetizer that was amazing. And the bar was well stocked. I had a few too many rum-and-cokes, which might explain why I felt the way I did at work all day today.
Getting home at 2am might also help to explain that. I haven't been out that late since college, and I'm really not used to it. The day after the affair, my eyes felt like a pair of cracked ball bearings, and I had aches in places that I'd forgotten I had.
It was worth it, though. My wife and I arranged a sleep over play date for the kids, with some friends of ours, and then we went out had a great time. We drank, we danced, we called a cab to get home.... For a night, we felt like we were 20 again, and it was a wedding, so love was in the air.
I must admit, even though we were there for a friend, and we were thrilled to see her on her great day, I think that the best part of the night for me was getting a chance to just cut loose with my wife. We haven't had a chance to go out and dance since our older daughter was born, and she's almost 5 now. Look at this; I'm even measuring the times of our lives by the ages fo our children! That's a sign that we needed a night like that.
So here's to the newly married couple, and to their unlimited future together, but also, here's to me and my wife, who feel like a couple of kids again!
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
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Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Ever Play 21? Why Not 21 Trivia?
I was websurfing the other day, and found a fun little trivia game, completely by accident. It's called the 21 Trivia Competition, and it's actually a competition. I think it's sponsored by an online casino, but it seems pretty harmless. It's a simple raffle drawing, basically, but with a twist.
The twist is, before you can enter for the prize, you have to play a trivia game about the number 21. The questions are bunched in groups of 3, and you can't go on until you complete a group. Each set of questions is harder than the one before. Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it?
Well, it is. The rules of the game even allow you to go googling for the answers (in fact, they encourage it!). I don't think they want anyone to get any wrong answers, really. Because once you've gotten to the end, and answered all the questions, you can enter the prize drawing. The prize is $21,000, which of course is a thousand dollars for each question, so that's a pretty good rate, I think.
And now, you ask, did I play the game? Yes, I did. And I found all 21 correct answers. Some didn't need much finding (3 times 7 is ?), but some were a bit of a challenge. And did I enter the drawing? Yup. I actually did. So now I wait.
The twist is, before you can enter for the prize, you have to play a trivia game about the number 21. The questions are bunched in groups of 3, and you can't go on until you complete a group. Each set of questions is harder than the one before. Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it?
Well, it is. The rules of the game even allow you to go googling for the answers (in fact, they encourage it!). I don't think they want anyone to get any wrong answers, really. Because once you've gotten to the end, and answered all the questions, you can enter the prize drawing. The prize is $21,000, which of course is a thousand dollars for each question, so that's a pretty good rate, I think.
And now, you ask, did I play the game? Yes, I did. And I found all 21 correct answers. Some didn't need much finding (3 times 7 is ?), but some were a bit of a challenge. And did I enter the drawing? Yup. I actually did. So now I wait.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Keeping it together
I have a large plastic container hidden deep in my closet underneath piles of other random things that seem to have no other place. This plastic box has a green handle that pops up for easy carrying. The box is rather heavy, although all that is in it are photographs, spanning my entire life; obviously from the days before digital photography.
Do you have an old repository of photos and aren't sure what to do with them? Go out and buy a photo album or even just a sketchbook, or even a notebook, if you don't mind lined paper. Then, go through your photos and categorize them and place them in your new scrapbook!
Scrapbooking - makes you think of old age, of lace, and flowery things, perhaps? Not at all. For those who like it simple, just paste in your photos and give them dates and captions. If you're a little more artistically inclined, try cutting things out of your favorite magazines, phrases and pictures in bright colors and gluing them around your photos in interesting and creative ways. And nothing says that your photos need to be glued straight, or in a line in the center of the page. Be different, be unique, do it your way.
In the end, you'll have volumes of visual testimony on your own life. And not only will it be yours, it will be a valuable resource for generations to come. The more I get into researching family history, the more I wish that my ancestors had preserved something attesting to their identities and lives.
So give it a try. You have my word.
Do you have an old repository of photos and aren't sure what to do with them? Go out and buy a photo album or even just a sketchbook, or even a notebook, if you don't mind lined paper. Then, go through your photos and categorize them and place them in your new scrapbook!
Scrapbooking - makes you think of old age, of lace, and flowery things, perhaps? Not at all. For those who like it simple, just paste in your photos and give them dates and captions. If you're a little more artistically inclined, try cutting things out of your favorite magazines, phrases and pictures in bright colors and gluing them around your photos in interesting and creative ways. And nothing says that your photos need to be glued straight, or in a line in the center of the page. Be different, be unique, do it your way.
In the end, you'll have volumes of visual testimony on your own life. And not only will it be yours, it will be a valuable resource for generations to come. The more I get into researching family history, the more I wish that my ancestors had preserved something attesting to their identities and lives.
So give it a try. You have my word.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
A Good Read
The other day, I started cleaning out the boxes of stuff in the basement. These are the boxes left over from the last two times we've moved, and for some reason never quite unpacked everything. Just to put in perspective, the last time we moved was 2002, and before that, 1998. At least one of these boxes had been sealed up for 9 years.
Most of the stuff in the boxes was just crap. A lot of old college papers, some old newpapers that I don't remember why we kept them, and a few odds and ends. God bless the Hefty trash bags, because that's were most of it ended up.
But one box, a fairly small one, yielded up a bit of treasure. It had books. About thirty of them, mostly paperbacks, and some that I had been looking for since the last time we moved. Finding them put me in hog heaven.
Among the books was one of my all-time favorites, The Caine Mutiny. I hadn't read it in years, but I still remember the story. It used to be one of those books that reread every year, just so I don't forget it. The movie was great, too, with Humphrey Bogard as Captain Queeg. Unforgettable.
So the last few nights I've been sitting up on the couch after everyone has gone to bed, and I've been reacquainting myself with a favorite book. Does it get any better than that?
Most of the stuff in the boxes was just crap. A lot of old college papers, some old newpapers that I don't remember why we kept them, and a few odds and ends. God bless the Hefty trash bags, because that's were most of it ended up.
But one box, a fairly small one, yielded up a bit of treasure. It had books. About thirty of them, mostly paperbacks, and some that I had been looking for since the last time we moved. Finding them put me in hog heaven.
Among the books was one of my all-time favorites, The Caine Mutiny. I hadn't read it in years, but I still remember the story. It used to be one of those books that reread every year, just so I don't forget it. The movie was great, too, with Humphrey Bogard as Captain Queeg. Unforgettable.
So the last few nights I've been sitting up on the couch after everyone has gone to bed, and I've been reacquainting myself with a favorite book. Does it get any better than that?
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