Some actual personal content! How about that!
The kids started taking swimming lessons again after a 9 month hiatus. They swim after school once a week at a great new place that we found. It's an older facility, but it has a heated pool and small class sizes - only 4 kids per class and sometimes there are 2 instructors. Ben and Anna are both enjoying it. I learned how to swim at an early age and would like the kids to swim confidently too.
Anna takes a dance class once a week. Half the time they do tap dancing, and the other half is ballet. I think Anna prefers the ballet so far. They have a recital planned in a couple of months.
Ben continues to do well in first grade. He's really thriving in math and reading. They do a math quiz every day(!), just like when I was in high school! And, just like when I was in high school algebra, when they get a high enough score, they move up to the next quiz. He's already on G, I think. Hopefully he can make it to the double letter just like Daddy. :) Ben is an excellent reader and does a lot of reading on his own, albeit always about Bionicles. And we've been reading at bedtime since he was a baby.
Ben is in Cub Scouts and I'm the den leader. It's an interesting experience since I was never a scout myself. We have great families in our den and we're having a good time. We recently visited the Elgin Public Museum which has a lot of Indian and early historic artifacts, plus a lot of (dead) animals on display. They also have some (live) bison. We also visited a radio station and the fire department, and it is neat to see how they work. Most of this stuff is more interesting for the parents than for first graders. We live near FermiLab and personally I can't wait to visit there.
Anna is in her first year of Montessori preschool. She's doing fine and has made friends. I no longer need to peel her off my leg when I drop her off. She has some good friends in our neighborhood too. We feel that she should be learning more at school than she is, but I have a vague feeling that we felt the same way about Ben, and he really did most of his learning (how to read, for example) in his second year of preschool. Anna went to a friend's birthday party, which was a dress-up tea party and a lot of fun. Anna's birthday is coming up and we may do the same thing.
We had quite a bit of snow on the ground but it was about zero degrees, so couldn't spend much time out there. But it finally warmed up, and we had a great time sledding at a nearby park. Ben even tried Nick's snowboard, and I was amazed that he could stay on it for about 20-30 feet. I stepped onto the snowboard to try it, but the damn thing was so slippery...I could just see the headline "Local man bowls over 12 kids before breaking every bone in his body" and changed my mind. Maybe on a very small hill...
- schneid
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Rob's wedding
I used to play a lot of volleyball in the early years B.C. - Before Children. After Ben was born, I didn't play much and saw my volleyball friends a lot less. Getting laid off didn't help, and then I didn't see those old friends for about 3 years. Plus people moved, changed jobs, etc.
Rob called my up on a Friday night recently, asking what I was doing the next night. "Something with you, I guess" was my reply. "Come to my bachelor party", he said, and it took me a minute to realize that he was getting married. "Oh yeah, you're invited to the wedding too", which was in a couple of weeks. Rob said he couldn't reach me because Tim hadn't given him my contact info. But Rob and I work at the same company! Which he had forgotten, I guess. I had only run into him twice since I came back to Tellabs, and not in the last 6 months.
I wanted to be there to hang out with Rob, but I'm not big on going into the city, so I'm glad Tim was going so I could hang out with him. I had managed to see Tim in the last couple of years, once taking a VERY long lunch (from Mt. Prospect to downtown) to hang out with Tim, Eric, and James.
To make a long story short, we played poker for about 4 hours in a hotel room downtown. The structure was awful and you just had to get lucky. We played two tournaments and I am not exaggerating that Rob got all in with the worst hand preflop 7 times and RIVERED the winner 6 times. The other time, he turned a set, but then his opponent rivered a set. I would've thought it was a setup to let the bachelor win, if I hadn't dealt some of the hands myself. We probably only played 70 hands all night. The guys were getting extremely drunk drinking Red Bull and Vodka (blech!) and assorted other crap when that ran out. I had a few beers but didn't really feel like getting drunk. Guess I'm getting old. In the group, I had been married the longest by far.
Tim arrived around 10:00, having been at a work dinner function. We all hit the bars around 11:30. Rob was quite plowed and starting a routine of "You know what's wrong with you..." which was pretty funny. After telling it like it is (according to Rob) to a few guys, I yelled "Do me! Do me!" and everyone cracked up. The guys did some karaoke and the party broke up about 3:30.
Tim and I took a cab to the north side where he wanted me to meet some of his friends at a bar. A gay bar. Tim (although straight) plays in a gay volleyball league. So we went to this bar, did the rounds, couldn't find any friends, and left. Then we did the only logical thing to do at 4:00 in the morning and ate a gyro. I slept in Tim's guest room and listened to the pitter patter of cats running up and down the hallway. Tim's place is now a bachelor pad featuring two wide screen TVs and a terabyte MythTV server. Tim has always been envied by geeks everywhere. I was really glad that we were able to spend some time together.
In the morning, I took a cab back to where my car was parked and headed home to watch the Bears game. Later I looked at Google maps and realized that Tim lives directly next to the cemetery where my birth mother is buried. I've never been there (well, I guess I've been there once but that was 31 years ago and I don't remember), and if I had known, I would've stopped by that day. I really should plan to go another time.
So a week or two later, we went to Rob's wedding. Tim drove out and left his stuff and our place. He was going to spend the night so he wouldn't have to drive home, plus he conveniently had a volleyball tournament the next morning not too far from our place. We headed to the wedding and got there about 20 minutes early.
Joe and Kary came in from Santa Barbara and we hadn't seen them in about 4 years. Joel and Ginger were there; I run into them occasionally at work. Jay and Geoff were there too although I didn't get to talk to them a lot. There were some product planners and sales guys from Tellabs, most whose names I don't know, a couple that I do, and one guy who I had heard about a lot but had never actually seen until that day. We hung out with our old volleyball friends.
Rob's best friend performed the ceremony. In fact, I think Rob asked him to do it, and he became certified or whatever you need to do just for the ceremony. He kept things light (for example, "Repeat after me, I, Rob, am a big nerd"). It was funny but heartfelt, and he did a good job. He used the Irish Blessing (May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back...) and the Apache Wedding Prayer, which was recited at our own wedding but sounded different this time. The vows were nice and the ceremony was short.
We ate some good food, had a few drinks, danced just a little bit, and had a good time. It was really nice to hang out with old friends after such a long time. I'd like to think that we'll do a better job of staying in touch in the future, but you know how it goes.
- schneid
PS: I didn't take those pictures at Dark Lord Day and I can't remember where I downloaded them, so if they are yours, thanks!
Rob called my up on a Friday night recently, asking what I was doing the next night. "Something with you, I guess" was my reply. "Come to my bachelor party", he said, and it took me a minute to realize that he was getting married. "Oh yeah, you're invited to the wedding too", which was in a couple of weeks. Rob said he couldn't reach me because Tim hadn't given him my contact info. But Rob and I work at the same company! Which he had forgotten, I guess. I had only run into him twice since I came back to Tellabs, and not in the last 6 months.
I wanted to be there to hang out with Rob, but I'm not big on going into the city, so I'm glad Tim was going so I could hang out with him. I had managed to see Tim in the last couple of years, once taking a VERY long lunch (from Mt. Prospect to downtown) to hang out with Tim, Eric, and James.
To make a long story short, we played poker for about 4 hours in a hotel room downtown. The structure was awful and you just had to get lucky. We played two tournaments and I am not exaggerating that Rob got all in with the worst hand preflop 7 times and RIVERED the winner 6 times. The other time, he turned a set, but then his opponent rivered a set. I would've thought it was a setup to let the bachelor win, if I hadn't dealt some of the hands myself. We probably only played 70 hands all night. The guys were getting extremely drunk drinking Red Bull and Vodka (blech!) and assorted other crap when that ran out. I had a few beers but didn't really feel like getting drunk. Guess I'm getting old. In the group, I had been married the longest by far.
Tim arrived around 10:00, having been at a work dinner function. We all hit the bars around 11:30. Rob was quite plowed and starting a routine of "You know what's wrong with you..." which was pretty funny. After telling it like it is (according to Rob) to a few guys, I yelled "Do me! Do me!" and everyone cracked up. The guys did some karaoke and the party broke up about 3:30.
Tim and I took a cab to the north side where he wanted me to meet some of his friends at a bar. A gay bar. Tim (although straight) plays in a gay volleyball league. So we went to this bar, did the rounds, couldn't find any friends, and left. Then we did the only logical thing to do at 4:00 in the morning and ate a gyro. I slept in Tim's guest room and listened to the pitter patter of cats running up and down the hallway. Tim's place is now a bachelor pad featuring two wide screen TVs and a terabyte MythTV server. Tim has always been envied by geeks everywhere. I was really glad that we were able to spend some time together.
In the morning, I took a cab back to where my car was parked and headed home to watch the Bears game. Later I looked at Google maps and realized that Tim lives directly next to the cemetery where my birth mother is buried. I've never been there (well, I guess I've been there once but that was 31 years ago and I don't remember), and if I had known, I would've stopped by that day. I really should plan to go another time.
So a week or two later, we went to Rob's wedding. Tim drove out and left his stuff and our place. He was going to spend the night so he wouldn't have to drive home, plus he conveniently had a volleyball tournament the next morning not too far from our place. We headed to the wedding and got there about 20 minutes early.
Joe and Kary came in from Santa Barbara and we hadn't seen them in about 4 years. Joel and Ginger were there; I run into them occasionally at work. Jay and Geoff were there too although I didn't get to talk to them a lot. There were some product planners and sales guys from Tellabs, most whose names I don't know, a couple that I do, and one guy who I had heard about a lot but had never actually seen until that day. We hung out with our old volleyball friends.
Rob's best friend performed the ceremony. In fact, I think Rob asked him to do it, and he became certified or whatever you need to do just for the ceremony. He kept things light (for example, "Repeat after me, I, Rob, am a big nerd"). It was funny but heartfelt, and he did a good job. He used the Irish Blessing (May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back...) and the Apache Wedding Prayer, which was recited at our own wedding but sounded different this time. The vows were nice and the ceremony was short.
We ate some good food, had a few drinks, danced just a little bit, and had a good time. It was really nice to hang out with old friends after such a long time. I'd like to think that we'll do a better job of staying in touch in the future, but you know how it goes.
- schneid
PS: I didn't take those pictures at Dark Lord Day and I can't remember where I downloaded them, so if they are yours, thanks!
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Police to play Wrigley in Summer 2007?
One of my regrets in life is missing some cool rock concerts when I was younger. I really should've gone to more. After playing a cool rendition of Roxanne at the 2007 Grammy awards, there are rumors that the Police might be playing at Wrigley Field this summer on July 7 and 8. If they are, I'm definitely going. Our attendance at rock concerts has been few and far between. Foreigner played at Galt Airport outside of Woodstock in 2006, and it was a blast. We saw Prince in 2004 at the All State Arena, and the most recent one before that might have been the Eagles Hell Freezes Over Tour in 1995. I regret having missed Sting in the past, so if we get a chance we're definitely going to this one.
Dave Matthews was scheduled to play, but his wife is due to give birth right around then, and the Police may be his replacement. Here is an article about it with an amusing headline.
- schneid
Dave Matthews was scheduled to play, but his wife is due to give birth right around then, and the Police may be his replacement. Here is an article about it with an amusing headline.
- schneid
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Weird weather
We've been having some pretty unusual weather since October. October was cool, with barely any 70 degree days, and it snowed on October 12, which is pretty early. I only recall that it's snowed before my birthday (October 24) a couple of times.
The end of November was warm, in the 60s for Thanksgiving weekend, which worked out nicely since Zadie, Nana, and Aunt Debi were in town visiting. We usually go to North Carolina for Thanksgiving, but everyone wanted to come see the new house.
The first week of December was freezing, with lows in the teens and even single digits. Then the rest of December was pretty mild, pretty much above 30 degrees for the rest of the month. There were a couple of pretty good snowfalls.
January started out pretty warm, with temps above 30 for two weeks - then it was colder, but still pretty mild for January - highs around 30, lows 15-25.
The last few days of January were really cold, with highs around 20 and lows in the single digits. Then the really cold weather started. Our low temperature has been below zero for about 10 of the last 14 days. On several days, the high temperature was under 10 degrees.
We've had a couple of big snowfalls lately, including late Monday the 12th, all day and night Tuesday the 13th. School was cancelled on Tuesday, and many schools in the southeast suburbs closed on Wednesday as well.
So October was cool, November was cool then really warm at the end, December was freezing in the beginning, then warm the rest of the month, January was warm, then at the end of the month it turned bitterly cold and has been for 3 weeks.
- schneid
The end of November was warm, in the 60s for Thanksgiving weekend, which worked out nicely since Zadie, Nana, and Aunt Debi were in town visiting. We usually go to North Carolina for Thanksgiving, but everyone wanted to come see the new house.
The first week of December was freezing, with lows in the teens and even single digits. Then the rest of December was pretty mild, pretty much above 30 degrees for the rest of the month. There were a couple of pretty good snowfalls.
January started out pretty warm, with temps above 30 for two weeks - then it was colder, but still pretty mild for January - highs around 30, lows 15-25.
The last few days of January were really cold, with highs around 20 and lows in the single digits. Then the really cold weather started. Our low temperature has been below zero for about 10 of the last 14 days. On several days, the high temperature was under 10 degrees.
We've had a couple of big snowfalls lately, including late Monday the 12th, all day and night Tuesday the 13th. School was cancelled on Tuesday, and many schools in the southeast suburbs closed on Wednesday as well.
So October was cool, November was cool then really warm at the end, December was freezing in the beginning, then warm the rest of the month, January was warm, then at the end of the month it turned bitterly cold and has been for 3 weeks.
- schneid
Monday, February 12, 2007
TiVo and Amazon Unbox
I've been downloading TV shows from iTunes onto my iPod and watching on my TV. That's pretty cool. But TiVo recently announced that they are partnering with Amazon Unbox to allow you to download video to your TiVo instead of your computer! That will allow me to skip a step and then I can use my TiVo remote to pause, fast-forward, etc. That is cool! Hopefully it will be available soon.
Once you have purchased a movie from Amazon Unbox, they will keep track of it in your account, and you will have it forever. So you can delete it from your TiVo and download it again.
Once you have purchased a movie from Amazon Unbox, they will keep track of it in your account, and you will have it forever. So you can delete it from your TiVo and download it again.
iPod + TiVo
OK, so I love my iPod, but TiVo was my first love. So how can I combine the two?
Some things I would like to do are:
Here's how to do it.
This is so easy. All you need is the right cable. Visit this web page about Getting the Video out of your new iPod - for Cheap!. I bought this cable on eBay for $7 including shipping. It's called an "RCA-mini" or "A/V" cable. It works great. Connect it to the jacks on the front of your TV. You need to use the volume control on your iPod to get the proper sound out of your TV (this matters more for music), and then you can adjust the volume on your TV to make it louder.
Works great, but since the cable is only 6 feet, you need to get off your lazy butt to use the iPod controls to pause, etc.
This is also so easy. Get the cable mentioned above (you could just get an audio to mini cable), connect from the iPod to your home stereo, and voila, your iPod is playing on your stereo. Use the iPod volume to turn it up, otherwise it gets really distorted, then use the stereo volume to make it louder. Again, you don't have a remote, but it works fine.
This is what I was really interested in. We have a TiVo in our master bedroom, and sometimes I record movies for the kids to watch, but would prefer to watch on the big TV in our family room. So, you can copy movies from the TiVo to your PC, and from the PC to the iPod.
But there's a catch. OK, maybe 2. You can copy from your TiVo to your PC with no problem, if you are using a broadband connection (I have wireless). However, you must have TiVoToGo software to convert from the PC format to iPod format, and it costs $25. The second catch is that it takes 3-4 hours to copy a 1 hour show from the TiVo to the PC over a wireless connection. That kills it for me. It's just too much of a hassle. Sure, you could do it at night, but my PC is in my bedroom, and I would hear the hard drive spinning for hours while I was asleep.
Yes, I know that you can just get another TiVo on the other TV, and then you can transfer stuff while you are actually watching it, but you must have paid TiVo service on the other box and I'm too cheap.
There is another solution that's pretty cool. Did you know that you can insert a video signal on your cable? That's how they put security camera feeds on your TV. You can insert your TiVo signal onto a channel on your cable, and then your TIVo will play on that channel in your whole house. See this article about How to extend your TIVO or other device throughout your house for more information. I haven't actually done this, but it sounds pretty cool.
This is another thing I haven't tried, but should be easy. You can download TiVo Desktop for free, and copy stuff from your TiVo to your PC, and watch it there, or presumably send it back to the TiVo. You need to have a broadband connection. If you are wired, it might only take 1 hour to transfer a 2 hour movie, but if you have wireless, it's going to be slower, which is why I don't do it.
- schneid
Some things I would like to do are:
- watch videos from the iPod on my TV
- listen to music from the iPod on my home stereo
- watch stuff from TiVo on another TV
- save stuff from TiVo
Here's how to do it.
Watch videos from the iPod on my TV
This is so easy. All you need is the right cable. Visit this web page about Getting the Video out of your new iPod - for Cheap!. I bought this cable on eBay for $7 including shipping. It's called an "RCA-mini" or "A/V" cable. It works great. Connect it to the jacks on the front of your TV. You need to use the volume control on your iPod to get the proper sound out of your TV (this matters more for music), and then you can adjust the volume on your TV to make it louder.
Works great, but since the cable is only 6 feet, you need to get off your lazy butt to use the iPod controls to pause, etc.
Listen to music from the iPod on my home stereo
This is also so easy. Get the cable mentioned above (you could just get an audio to mini cable), connect from the iPod to your home stereo, and voila, your iPod is playing on your stereo. Use the iPod volume to turn it up, otherwise it gets really distorted, then use the stereo volume to make it louder. Again, you don't have a remote, but it works fine.
Watch stuff from TiVo on another TV
This is what I was really interested in. We have a TiVo in our master bedroom, and sometimes I record movies for the kids to watch, but would prefer to watch on the big TV in our family room. So, you can copy movies from the TiVo to your PC, and from the PC to the iPod.
But there's a catch. OK, maybe 2. You can copy from your TiVo to your PC with no problem, if you are using a broadband connection (I have wireless). However, you must have TiVoToGo software to convert from the PC format to iPod format, and it costs $25. The second catch is that it takes 3-4 hours to copy a 1 hour show from the TiVo to the PC over a wireless connection. That kills it for me. It's just too much of a hassle. Sure, you could do it at night, but my PC is in my bedroom, and I would hear the hard drive spinning for hours while I was asleep.
Yes, I know that you can just get another TiVo on the other TV, and then you can transfer stuff while you are actually watching it, but you must have paid TiVo service on the other box and I'm too cheap.
There is another solution that's pretty cool. Did you know that you can insert a video signal on your cable? That's how they put security camera feeds on your TV. You can insert your TiVo signal onto a channel on your cable, and then your TIVo will play on that channel in your whole house. See this article about How to extend your TIVO or other device throughout your house for more information. I haven't actually done this, but it sounds pretty cool.
Save stuff from TiVo
This is another thing I haven't tried, but should be easy. You can download TiVo Desktop for free, and copy stuff from your TiVo to your PC, and watch it there, or presumably send it back to the TiVo. You need to have a broadband connection. If you are wired, it might only take 1 hour to transfer a 2 hour movie, but if you have wireless, it's going to be slower, which is why I don't do it.
- schneid
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