Phoenix

Just back from the southwest and I would have to say it was enjoyable, though I was working the majority of the time. It was an incentive trip for one of our clients sales force, and we were filming their video candids for them. Nothing beats filming other people having fun... but actually the perks are good. I got to go on the ATV's with them which was a blast but made it quite difficult to film. We bought a helmet cam just for this event that made it a bit easier, and we actually got some great footage from it. Also got to go river rafting on the Salt River with them and saw some bald eagles and wild horses.

We stayed an extra day and wrapped up the trip with 27 holes of golf, which is necessary when you visit Scottsdale. If you ever wonder how they keep the courses so green in the middle of the desert, it is because they water them with Phoenix's waste water... which is gross, but useful.

I had a nasty debate about Bush and the war with a friend of my dad who lives in Phoenix. Too many margaritas and political polar opposites did not mix well. But I was right, and that's all that matters.

I came home to a wonderfully green lawn and trees in full bloom which was so very refreshing. The cats pretended not to care I was back but I know deep down they have been yearning for my return. Little bitches. I hope all of you bitches are yearning as well.

I really have nothing useful to say, so it ends here.

Family Visit

Mom and Grandma have just taken off on their journey home. It was their first visit to New Jersey and the first time they were able to see the house first hand, and fun was had by all. It was a busy few days as we covered miles of this beatiful state, The Garden State.

First we were off to Atlantic City; Grandma loves the slots. We played the penny slots until about 1am and called it a night. I have to say that the pennies were quite enjoyable, as you get the entertainment of the slot machine without the rediculous gamble and cost. I "won big" on one machine when I hit 6,000 credits, $60, and it was enjoyable to sit their and listen to it count up and annoy others around me for about five minutes. Ha, 6,000 suckers! We spent the next day poking around the outlet stores and then went back home.

Yesterday we spent the day in the city, and tooled around Times Square wheeling and dealing for purses and posters. I think grandma had the most fun getting good deals on her name brand purses. It was a day of shopping and walking and we didn't really venture out of the midtown area. I did manage to get them onto the subway and we went to the Met, but it was decided we wanted to go back to midtown shortly after we arrived. Everybody had a lot of fun, and the city left us all charmed and gitty. It was a beautiful day and we were all quite tired by the time we got back.

All in all it was a lot of fun to have them out and spending time with each other.

More to come soon... I am easing into blogging.

Birds

I forgot to mention: Yesterday I saw the craziest migration of birds I have ever seen. It was a swath about a football field wide of solid birds and they passed over the house for a solid five minutes. If I had to estimate, I would say it was at least half of a million birds. I ducked under the awning as I figured my odds of getting pelted by poo was quite high, but I stood there in awe. Very cool, all headed northeast right over the house.

Oxfordians

Well, first and foremost I must apologize to Miss Molly for my lack of blogging. Aparently she is keeping a close eye on me and has put me in my place. If your scorn didn't motivate me, I don't know what would.

Things have been pretty quiet here and our rural location is starting to take its toll. Maybe it is just that the winter months are dragging. It is bitter cold again and just when mother nature gives you a taste of warmth she rips it right back and freezes your eyelashes. What a bitch. I am ready for spring. I'd give anything to be able to mow the lawn and start planting the garden (and get a golf club in my hands)! Erin and I have plans to go up and do some hiking on the Appalachian trail when things begin to bloom. Maybe an overnight camping escapade.

Lately:

Reading the papers; bored with all media outlets. I don't know what happened to journalists reporting the facts, but it was lost somewhere. It seems like every front page is an editorial section. Apparently we Americans aren't smart enought to make our own judgements and decisions, so the media has taken it upon themselves to tell us how to think. Fuck you all!

On a lighter note, I started a woodworking project of building shelves. At first I thought I was in way over my head, but the guys at the Home Depot dropped some learning on me (did you know a 2x4 is not actually 2"x4"?) and things have come out nicely so far. I got about 3/4 the way done last weekend and then the cold snap, so I have to wait until it warms up again before I finish. There is something very rewarding about working with wood and having a respectable outcome. Maybe it's just the fumes from the stain, but I'll take it. Also, the smell of fresh cut pine when you walk into the house is nice.

I also brewed a few more beers. I need to take a break from that as I have about 150 full bottles of beer in the house. It's nice to have a homebrew on hand when you so desire, but hundreds of them is a bit much. There is not enough storage in my house to handle a full blown brewery and if I kept pace drinking them my brain would be mush. I'll have to start giving them away as gifts.

My most recent brew. It's a Belgian Dubbel. Should be ready to bottle in about a week.

I have an Irish Stout conditioning in the bottles that I am pretty happy about. Really dark in color, like coffe.

Candy Mountain

I win.

I wrote the previous blog before YouTuber's put their Lite Brite/Boston video on. I rock.

All a Bunch of Silliness

I was listening to the radio yesterday on my way home from work, and within the daily news report was a story about suspicious devices placed around Boston that posed some kind of security threat. I immedietely perked up and thought, "Tell me more, tell me more," but I found it strange that it was not covered more in depth. This threat to our national security was swept over just as any other news story of the day to be never heard from again.

So I get home and do a little research and come to find that it was no threat at all, but mearly a mareting campaign of small Light Brite type devices placed around the city to market Aqua Teen Hunger Force. Now I thought, "Oh how silly, nothing to worry about." I look at a few other websites and realize that even though the Boston PD know what these things are they procede to remove them as though they are volatile substances that could explode if exposed to a whisper. In some cases bomb squads even exploded these LED marketing wonders, "just in case."

Now, I am no expert on homeland security nor have I been to the police acedemy or interned with the bomb squad, but I would think that after you discover what the "suspicious" devices are that you would wipe your brow and move on. Not in Boston. Instead of letting it pass, the fine government up there proceded to propagate fear, and now is not willing to accept any responsibility for all of the silliness. They realize they made a mistake by riling up the populous but intend to hold the Turner marketing department responsible. NY Times, "'It is outrageous, in a post-9/11 world, that a company would use this type of marketing scheme,' Mr. Menino said in a statement. 'I am prepared to take any and all legal action against Turner Broadcasting and its affiliates for any and all expenses incurred during the response to today’s incidents.'"


I know they look scary; almost a resemblence to terrorists. NY Times, "The devices are dotted with blue and purple lights and are shaped like “Aqua Teen” characters, mooninites. One character, Err, seems angry, with slanted eyebrows and what appear to be raised middle fingers." Ha. Only the facts. I made scarier looking things with my Erector set as a kid. Glad I didn't take them outside.

The real reason for writing this is that I only wish to save the harmless Lite Brite. Being that these devices so resemble the wonderful toy, I feel as though they are going to get a bad rap. I fear they will be pulled from the shelves for being "too scary," and parents will refuse to buy them because they do not want to raise the next unibomber. "Is little billy building bombs over there?" "No, he's making a flower." "Well it looks like a bomb to me!"

Help me start the Save the Lite Brite Fund

The Beginning of a Blogtastic Future

It’s about time I made use of the blogging and gave you all a glimpse into my immensely deep and intelligent mind. This is not a pompous statement, as someone of my level of intelligence is humble by nature and not capable of such ostentatious thoughts of ones self. But really, I am the greatest human alive.

I haven’t blogged seriously at all so here is a catch up:

Life is good in Northwest Jersey. I have attached a map of the state so you can all see our precise location. Feel free to Google Earth it. I cleaned off the roof when I heard that the Google bot was coming to take a shot.



Along with the house came great responsibility. Some we were prepared for and could see coming and others surprises. Having not been handy in the past, the house has given me a crash course in repairs. From drywall to copper piping, it has all been a great learning experience. I went from having hardly any tools, to setting up a workshop in the basement in about six months.

The area is very rural and not what one pictures when they think of New Jersey. The neighborhood is very quiet and there are only about 5 houses on our street so there is little traffic. Why do I mention traffic you ask? Well one side of our house is only about five feet from the road. There is protected state forest to our south, along with a lake for fishing and swimming. They stock the lake every spring with trout as some sort of DNR experiment, and everyone says the fishing is good. There is also the Delaware Water Gap about ten miles north that has swimming, fishing, hiking etc. We tried to go up there once last summer but it was shortly after major rains and was closed due to flooding. I consequently had to close my basement for the same reason. The house is old (built before 1900) and the basement is constructed with slate stone and over the years has felt the wear, letting a little water in when we get big rains. So if anyone knows how to build a proper French drain or has any other suggestions let me know.



Work is great. We had a successful 2006 and are looking forward to a better 2007. We revamped the web-site and have created many new marketing materials to aid us this year. We are currently developing a quarterly newsletter to distribute to clients and potential customers with industry news, tips & tricks, new technologies etc.

I have been reading the papers (online) quite a bit and that has consequently taken away from my book reading. I will hopefully find a good balance soon. I just started For Whom the Bell Tolls, so I will try to limit my news intake. Politically I have much to say, but I will save that for a future blog.

OK, that is enough. I will try to do dis thang once a week.