New Year's is a time were most people think about bettering themselves and so it makes sense that my wife and I received a catalog in the mail from The Great Courses. They had a sale going on where you could pick up 2 or 3 hundred dollar courses for less than $50. So my wife and I went through and found several classes that we thought would be interesting. We spent less than $100 and have our evenings planned for the next several months.
Every night we are home together, we watch one or two lessons from "Wonders of the National Parks." Each video lasts 30 minutes and includes all sorts of interesting facts about the National Parks in the United States. There are also some parks mentioned outside the US, like several in Mexico. We have finished the first of 5 DVD's and are thoroughly enjoying them.
I also picked up a beginning guitar course. Yes I have been playing guitar for about 2 years now and probably qualify as a solid intermediate. I learned from RockSmith but wanted to see how an instructor would teach vs. a video game. So far I have been through the first 2 30-minute lessons but have learned something from each one. It is interesting that a friend who plays the guitar gave me a warm-up exercise when I first started playing. The 2nd lesson from the DVD course gave a similar exercise. This is something I wouldn't have gotten from RockSmith. I have to confess that the course is well worth the $35 I paid for it. I just looked online and it is now $235. I need to run through a few more lessons before I can confirm if it is worth that price.
I like to learn new things and so having in-depth courses about topics I am interested in learning about is a lot of fun. Yes, I probably could just watch the Discovery channel every night. But then I am at the mercy of their programming and I don't really want to be a crab fisherman.
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Friday, January 26, 2018
The Downside of Staying on a Boat
People are amazed at how inexpensive it is for me to stay on my boat in the Bay Area. They think I have things figured out when it comes to beating the high cost of housing. What they don't know is that there are some sacrifices you make when you stay on a boat instead of in an apartment or house. Most of the time I am fine with those drawbacks. This week I came down with a mild cold and the illness made my life a bit more difficult.
While I have Internet, electricity, and water on the boat, I don't really have a toilet. I do, I just never use it. If I do, I have to empty the holding tank immediately or the boat starts to smell. Instead I just make a long walk to a restroom on shore. The round trip is only about a quarter of a mile but after drinking liquids all day long, that can get to be quite a walk every 20 minutes. It is just my personal observation but warm liquids run through you much faster than cold ones.
Another difference is heating the boat. Tuesday evening I had a serious case of the chills because of my mild fever. While I have 2 electric heaters on the boat that both work well, it still takes about 10 minutes or so to get the boat from below 50 degrees Fahrenheit up to a comfortable 70. I sat with my hands outstretched towards one heater like it was a warm fire. Then I shook uncontrollably as I made one last round trip to the restroom for the evening.
There are also some benefits to staying on a boat when you are sick. For instance, everything is really close at hand. I didn't have to reach very far to get my warm soup from the stove to the dinner table. In fact, I didn't even have to get up. I also could continue playing my video game while I ate the soup because my TV and PS4 both sit on my dinner table. I just have to eat carefully and not spill anything.
My wife always encourages me to check into a hotel when the nights are stormy or I am not feeling well. This week the thought crossed my mind but I opted to stay on the boat. I like my living space and it is very comfortable. I just need to not get sick.
While I have Internet, electricity, and water on the boat, I don't really have a toilet. I do, I just never use it. If I do, I have to empty the holding tank immediately or the boat starts to smell. Instead I just make a long walk to a restroom on shore. The round trip is only about a quarter of a mile but after drinking liquids all day long, that can get to be quite a walk every 20 minutes. It is just my personal observation but warm liquids run through you much faster than cold ones.
Another difference is heating the boat. Tuesday evening I had a serious case of the chills because of my mild fever. While I have 2 electric heaters on the boat that both work well, it still takes about 10 minutes or so to get the boat from below 50 degrees Fahrenheit up to a comfortable 70. I sat with my hands outstretched towards one heater like it was a warm fire. Then I shook uncontrollably as I made one last round trip to the restroom for the evening.
There are also some benefits to staying on a boat when you are sick. For instance, everything is really close at hand. I didn't have to reach very far to get my warm soup from the stove to the dinner table. In fact, I didn't even have to get up. I also could continue playing my video game while I ate the soup because my TV and PS4 both sit on my dinner table. I just have to eat carefully and not spill anything.
My wife always encourages me to check into a hotel when the nights are stormy or I am not feeling well. This week the thought crossed my mind but I opted to stay on the boat. I like my living space and it is very comfortable. I just need to not get sick.
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Losing Track of Time
Tuesday night I completely lost track of time. It happens every once and a while. A week or so ago I started putting together a technical specification and became so engrossed in what I was doing that I needed to be reminded to go to lunch. However Tuesday night, 2 hours seemed to be only 5 minutes.
After work I headed back to my sailboat and started playing Horizon Zero Dawn. My wife called to talk a bit and so I paused my game to have a conversation with her. As she hung up the phone, she told me she would call me when she headed to bed. A seemingly 5 minutes later my phone rang again. I told my wife that she must be going to bed early. Then I looked at my watch. She didn't hesitate to correct me that it had been quite a while since I talked to her on the phone last. To me it seemed like such a brief moment in time.
It is too early for me to write a review of the game but I have to say it has my interest. I can tell that eventually it may start to feel like I am doing the same thing over and over, but it has my interest right now. Stay tuned for more.
After work I headed back to my sailboat and started playing Horizon Zero Dawn. My wife called to talk a bit and so I paused my game to have a conversation with her. As she hung up the phone, she told me she would call me when she headed to bed. A seemingly 5 minutes later my phone rang again. I told my wife that she must be going to bed early. Then I looked at my watch. She didn't hesitate to correct me that it had been quite a while since I talked to her on the phone last. To me it seemed like such a brief moment in time.
It is too early for me to write a review of the game but I have to say it has my interest. I can tell that eventually it may start to feel like I am doing the same thing over and over, but it has my interest right now. Stay tuned for more.
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Getting Technical
I flew back to the Bay Area this week and started working in earnest. That can be tough after a few weeks of Christmas and New Year's celebration events. Yesterday I quickly got through my morning ritual and starting working on a design document for one of my projects. I really got into it and didn't notice time passing. One of my regular lunch buddies had to remind me that it was time to go get food. It has been a long time since I got so involved in a project that I needed to be reminded about food.
When I first started this job almost 8 years ago, I didn't think I would be here this long. I got hired as an individual contributor and did technical things on a daily basis. Then I slowly got moved into management. Now I am several levels deep and rarely get to spend my days doing technical things. That is one of the things I want to change and am challenging myself to spend half my time doing technical tasks. That forces me to quickly move through my management tasks. Then I jump into my technical work and am finding it to be a lot of fun.
The scope of my technical project is rather large and so I get to do a bit of dabbling in various technologies. Yesterday I created a document spec for a NoSQL database. Then today I started doing some Python programming to populate that document. Tomorrow I will be looking at machine learning for another part of the project. This sort of reminds me of the weather in the mountains: if you don't like it, wait a minute.
When I first started this job almost 8 years ago, I didn't think I would be here this long. I got hired as an individual contributor and did technical things on a daily basis. Then I slowly got moved into management. Now I am several levels deep and rarely get to spend my days doing technical things. That is one of the things I want to change and am challenging myself to spend half my time doing technical tasks. That forces me to quickly move through my management tasks. Then I jump into my technical work and am finding it to be a lot of fun.
The scope of my technical project is rather large and so I get to do a bit of dabbling in various technologies. Yesterday I created a document spec for a NoSQL database. Then today I started doing some Python programming to populate that document. Tomorrow I will be looking at machine learning for another part of the project. This sort of reminds me of the weather in the mountains: if you don't like it, wait a minute.
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Willfully Disabled
My wife decided that she didn't need any more stuff for Christmas and wanted experiences this year. So instead of getting her jewelry or things she didn't need, I gave her a trip to Disneyland. Naturally I went with her and we left the kids at home. We had a great time but I came away from the trip with disgust of the willfully disabled. What does willfully disabled mean? Keep reading.
I have some friends that love Disneyland because they cater to their adult daughter with Down's Syndrome. Disney is great that way and always goes the extra mile to make sure anyone with a disability feels welcome in their parks. They even go so far as to hire characters that know sign language so they can communicate with deaf children. This is noble and should be applauded. There is a large group of people out there that know this and take advantage of Disney's niceness to get special treatment during long lines. These people are frauds and have a special place reserved for them in the afterlife. While I dislike the frauds, they are not willfully disabled.
There is another group of people that frequent Disney parks who leverage the disability system because they just don't take care of themselves. They use technology like electric scooters to get around instead of daily walks to get in shape (yes, I know that round is a shape too). Those scooters clog up already crowded walkways and lines. It is this group of people that are willfully disabled and they seriously annoy me.
What gives me the right to pass judgement? Well three years ago, I too was headed in the direction of the willfully disabled. My weight/height ratio bordered on me being obese, not just overweight. I tried using technology to help me get my weight down with no success. I came up with every excuse in the book to explain away my ballooning size. Ultimately I discovered the secret of losing weight. I lost 35 pounds in 3 months. Everyone that knew me couldn't believe how much and how quickly I lost all that weight. It has been 3 years and I have not put any of it back on. So how did I do it? Daily exercise and portion control. I didn't take any magic pills. I also didn't start some super exercise regimen. I did lose all that weight under the care of a doctor who made me come in every 2 weeks and provide blood samples to make sure I wasn't hurting myself. I also met with a nutritionist to make sure I included all of the right foods in my diet.
So what caused me to get serious about weight loss? What gave me the willpower to seriously control what and how much I ate? I finally recognized that I was killing myself with food and if I didn't make some changes, I wouldn't be around much longer. Guess what? If you have to use an electric cart to get around Disneyland because you are so fat, you are killing yourself with food. Put down the jelly doughnut and go see your doctor. Your family will thank you for it.
I have some friends that love Disneyland because they cater to their adult daughter with Down's Syndrome. Disney is great that way and always goes the extra mile to make sure anyone with a disability feels welcome in their parks. They even go so far as to hire characters that know sign language so they can communicate with deaf children. This is noble and should be applauded. There is a large group of people out there that know this and take advantage of Disney's niceness to get special treatment during long lines. These people are frauds and have a special place reserved for them in the afterlife. While I dislike the frauds, they are not willfully disabled.
There is another group of people that frequent Disney parks who leverage the disability system because they just don't take care of themselves. They use technology like electric scooters to get around instead of daily walks to get in shape (yes, I know that round is a shape too). Those scooters clog up already crowded walkways and lines. It is this group of people that are willfully disabled and they seriously annoy me.
What gives me the right to pass judgement? Well three years ago, I too was headed in the direction of the willfully disabled. My weight/height ratio bordered on me being obese, not just overweight. I tried using technology to help me get my weight down with no success. I came up with every excuse in the book to explain away my ballooning size. Ultimately I discovered the secret of losing weight. I lost 35 pounds in 3 months. Everyone that knew me couldn't believe how much and how quickly I lost all that weight. It has been 3 years and I have not put any of it back on. So how did I do it? Daily exercise and portion control. I didn't take any magic pills. I also didn't start some super exercise regimen. I did lose all that weight under the care of a doctor who made me come in every 2 weeks and provide blood samples to make sure I wasn't hurting myself. I also met with a nutritionist to make sure I included all of the right foods in my diet.
So what caused me to get serious about weight loss? What gave me the willpower to seriously control what and how much I ate? I finally recognized that I was killing myself with food and if I didn't make some changes, I wouldn't be around much longer. Guess what? If you have to use an electric cart to get around Disneyland because you are so fat, you are killing yourself with food. Put down the jelly doughnut and go see your doctor. Your family will thank you for it.
Tuesday, January 2, 2018
Putting Away Christmas
I am one of those fortunate few who didn't have to go back to work today. My company gave us all the day off and I used the extra time to put away Christmas. While I waited for my son to come over so we could go skiing, I took down all of the Christmas lights on the outside of my house. Then when we returned from skiing, I continued to put things away.
One nice thing about Christmas is that you get all sorts of new stuff. The problem with that is that you have to find a place for everything. One tactic I have employed is getting rid of old stuff. Yesterday my wife and I went through the garage and found a bunch of boxes that we no longer need. We filled our large 100-gallon recycle bin with broken down boxes and Styrofoam. Today I continued cleaning things out. I realized that a wire TV antenna works better for local television stations than cable. I pulled little digital cable receivers from my bedroom and wife's sewing room so I could set up plain-old-wire-TV antennas. Some people used to call them rabbit-ears. I still have a large cable box in my TV room. This works for us because we really only watch the local news in the other rooms. In removing the small cable receivers, I also discovered I had stashed a bunch of spare stuff behind the TV's. I probably pulled out half a dozen extra cables from my bedroom alone. I also rearranged my PS4 and soundbar in the bedroom. The soundbar is one of those Christmas gifts I had to find a place for and now it looks like it belongs.
This evening I have to find a place for my wife's new record player. I had no idea where my wife could put it. Her sewing room is full of stuff and there is no room in there. I asked my wife where she wanted it and she gave me a great place. So now I will make room for it in my TV room.
The only thing left from Christmas that I have to find a place for is my new climbing rope. Fortunately it is small and I can store it on the floor in my closet. I just need to push it under where my pants hang and it should be out of the way. I just need to remember I put it there when I go to use it as it is well hidden.
One nice thing about Christmas is that you get all sorts of new stuff. The problem with that is that you have to find a place for everything. One tactic I have employed is getting rid of old stuff. Yesterday my wife and I went through the garage and found a bunch of boxes that we no longer need. We filled our large 100-gallon recycle bin with broken down boxes and Styrofoam. Today I continued cleaning things out. I realized that a wire TV antenna works better for local television stations than cable. I pulled little digital cable receivers from my bedroom and wife's sewing room so I could set up plain-old-wire-TV antennas. Some people used to call them rabbit-ears. I still have a large cable box in my TV room. This works for us because we really only watch the local news in the other rooms. In removing the small cable receivers, I also discovered I had stashed a bunch of spare stuff behind the TV's. I probably pulled out half a dozen extra cables from my bedroom alone. I also rearranged my PS4 and soundbar in the bedroom. The soundbar is one of those Christmas gifts I had to find a place for and now it looks like it belongs.
This evening I have to find a place for my wife's new record player. I had no idea where my wife could put it. Her sewing room is full of stuff and there is no room in there. I asked my wife where she wanted it and she gave me a great place. So now I will make room for it in my TV room.
The only thing left from Christmas that I have to find a place for is my new climbing rope. Fortunately it is small and I can store it on the floor in my closet. I just need to push it under where my pants hang and it should be out of the way. I just need to remember I put it there when I go to use it as it is well hidden.
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