Youngest Son is very aware

My youngest son likes to make things out of paper, and has made a few cards and letters for my friend Bruce. We've hand delivered some and send others to him at work (I work with Bruce).

Last night he drew something, put it in a box, wrapped the box with printer paper, attached a 'card' that he made, and told me it was for one of his pre-school teachers. This is within the scope of things he normally does so I didn't think about it too much, but my wife and I felt a little odd that he had done this for ONE teacher and didn't want to start bringing wrapped boxes to school everyday. We didn't want to stifle his kindness or creativity but I was watching this closely.

I explained to the teacher who was present at his school what it was and who it was for. She told me it was the birthday of the teacher my son made the present for. I was stunned that my son, who is four, had the awareness to think about this, remember it, come up with a plan, and execute it. I was impressed and touched by his behavior.

Gaming News

I try to keep my personal blog free of gaming news, but you can see in this post on my gaming blog, that I've been lucky enough to be included in an podcast interview about Neverwinter Nights, the game I write for and play most often. You can follow this link to Neverwinter Podcast Episode 40, the podcast with my interview. I haven't even had time to listen to it yet, but was very excited and wanted to post right away.

Here's that link again:
http://neverwinternightspodcast.com/?p=89

An Old Friend is Engaged

I heard from Eric, a dear old friend of mine from New York yesterday. We chatted a bit on the telephone an caught up, but the only thing I can seem to remember is the news that he is engaged. He's been dating a woman named Monica for over two years and the two got engaged this past August. I am thrilled for my friend and his news easily eclipsed everything else we discussed.

Congratulations Eric and Monica.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have some turkey and an extra helping of potatoes.

Enjoy the day.

Santa Claus

The recent news stories about Santa Claus are too funny and they are also a bit sad.

Recently there was a story out of the UK. that Santa needed to go on a diet and could not be fat this year. Now there is the following out of Australia.

YDNEY (AFP) - Santas in Australia's largest city have been told not to use Father Christmas's traditional "ho ho ho" greeting because it may be offensive to women, it was reported Thursday.

ADVERTISEMENT

Sydney's Santa Clauses have instead been instructed to say "ha ha ha" instead, the Daily Telegraph reported.

One disgruntled Santa told the newspaper a recruitment firm warned him not to use "ho ho ho" because it could frighten children and was too close to "ho", a US slang term for prostitute.

"Gimme a break," said Julie Gale, who runs the campaign against sexualising children called Kids Free 2B Kids.

"We are talking about little kids who do not understand that "ho, ho, ho" has any other connotation and nor should they," she told the Telegraph.

"Leave Santa alone."

A local spokesman for the US-based Westaff recruitment firm said it was "misleading" to say the company had banned Santa's traditional greeting and it was being left up to the discretion of the individual Santa himself.

What's wrong with a traditional Santa. I don't want to offend anyone, or encourage poor health but give me a break, it's Santa!

Interviewed regarding gaming project.

I was interviewed by Neverwinter Podcast last night using Skype. I blogged about it over at my gaming blog extensively, as it's related to my gaming projects. What's a podcast? What's Skype?

You can find the answers at Wikipedia. What's Wikipeida? The short answer is it's a wiki, but you can read about wiki's and wikipedia on Wikipedia.

My name actually shows up in a gaming related Wikipedia entry. You can read it here...at the very bottom of the page under external links.

My interview will show up on episode 39 of Neverwinter Podcast which should be out in a few weeks. I'll definitely post a link on my gaming blog.

Sick Child

My youngest was sick earlier in the week. Stomach Flu kind of ting. My middle son was on a field trip to Curtis Orchard today, and got sick while he was there, with the same thing. He told Shannon that he didn't like that place because it made his stomach hurt. Clearly he just caught it from his little brother, but it sounded pretty funny. Curtis Orchard is a GREAT place and I'll definitely be back with the whole family at some point.

It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown

My two littlest boys love the Charlie Brown Christmas special and watch it regularly even now in September and October. My oldest son also enjoys it but not to the point where he has to watch it once every other day. Halloween is right around corner, and so I figured I'd pickup 'It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown'.

I sat snuggled in my chair with the one of the younger boys on each knee and my oldest on the couch next to me. They laughed and smiled and we had a great time. As soon as it was over and until he fell asleep my middle son cried and cried. He said the nighttime scenes were too scary! He never wants to watch it again, that's ok with me but I feel badly that I scared him when I was trying to have a nice quite time with all three boys.

Oops!

Microsoft Visual Studio Team Meeting

This looks more like a gaming project than a visual studio programming tool, but what the heck. The ad was funny.

Digital Video Camera Bites the Dust

My digital video camera bit the dust, mostly anyway. It's had a problem for two years, while a tape is in it often becomes bent, creased or damaged while in the camcorder. When this happens it's nearly impossible to rewind, play or record with that tape. Most often the tape has to be pitched. Today I had the same problem but the tape won't eject.

I've been all over the net looking for solutions, and it sounds like this is not uncommon with mini DV camcords, the Sharp band (which I have) tends to be more susceptible as it ages. I've tried all the troubleshooting tips to no avail, and the next step is to start unscrewing parts and remove the tape, which may damage the device, or sent it in for repair, which according to others will cost nearly as much as replacement.

I let the warranty lapse a year ago for the same reason, the warranty renewal was a significant cost.

It looks like a replacement is in the cards for the future. Unfortunately I planned to use this one for a small work project, then buy one for the office. Instead I will buy one for the office tomorrow so I can do the work. I had planned to buy one for work so it's not much trouble.

The big questions is which way to go... I'm not shelling out for a hi-def camera, which means do I get a mini dv, a DVD recorder, or something with an on board hard drive. Given my experience with the tapes, I'm surprised to find that's probably the route I will go. We have a CD based camera at work, and I'm not a fan. I'm not sure about the on board hard drive, but it may be worth looking into. We'll see...

The camera was originally a gift, and one I could not have been more thrilled with. I've learned how to make DVDs, made polished home movies, fun short films for the kids, and other miscellaneous films. It's been one of the best gifts our family received and it's had a significant positive influence on me. (If you were a purchaser of this gift... THANK YOU)

Neverwinter Nights 2 Project Complete

My latest gaming project, a new Neverwinter Nights 2 module is out. You can visit http://enoa4rpg.blogspot.com to read all the latest gaming news or visit web site where the module is posted and rated here: http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=NWN2ModulesEnglish.Detail&id=182

Locatelli Cheese

Locatelli Brand Pecorino Romano

I love it. My kids say it smells funny and they call it 'foot cheese', but I think it's wonderful.

Try it!

Illinois State Budget Mess

The Illinois State Budget has been a mess this year. Months of overtime sessions. The governor making inconsistent and seemingly irrationally statements. It's been alarming and amusing to watch.

My wife showed me this great site where I have been able to get the latest and greatest on the happenings in Springfield, IL. It's a great place to stay up on what's happening in Illinois State Government. I wish there were something similar in Washington DC.

http://thecapitolfaxblog.com/

This blog is updated many times during each weekday. I check it as much as I can for unfiltered news. Great stuff.

World Clock

This is pretty cool. My mother in law sent me the link to this flash based world clock.

Birthday Cake - Grandma Strikes Again

My mom always makes elaborate birthday cakes for my kids. I posted pictures of the spiderman cake a few months ago. Well it's my eldest son's birthday shortly and we are celebrating today. Here are pictures of the amazing cakes my mom made this time.

Sysadmin Day

I work in IT and I am very proud to note that today July 27th is SysAdmin day?

What's SysAdmin day? Look here!

Star Trek XI

Leonard Nimoy to Reprise Role as Spock in 11th 'Star Trek' Movie

Friday , July 27, 2007

SAN DIEGO —

Leonard Nimoy isn't through with Spock yet.

The 76-year-old actor will don his famous pointy ears again to play the role in an upcoming "Star Trek" film due out Christmas 2008.

"This is really going to be a great movie. And I don't say things like that lightly," Nimoy told a gathering of 6,500 fans Thursday at Comic-Con, the nation's largest pop-culture convention.

• Get the low-down on Tinseltown in the Movies Center.

He greeted the crowd with a Vulcan salute.

Nimoy was joined by the newly named young Spock, "Heroes" star Zachary Quinto, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Nimoy.

Both Spocks were introduced by the film's director and co-producer, J.J. Abrams.

"This is a series I loved as a kid," Abrams said, acknowledging that he was "more of a 'Star Wars' kid than a 'Star Trek' kid."

"This matters so much to so many people," he said. "I'm honored to be here and do this."

While the character of Captain Kirk has yet to be cast, Abrams said that William Shatner, who played the role in the original TV series, would likely also have a part in the film.

"It has to be worthy, of him and of you," Abrams told fans, adding that production is slated to begin in November.

One fan asked Nimoy what he thought of his "replacement."

"It was logical," the actor said dryly. He then closed with Spock's classic line: "Live long and prosper."

Visit FOXNews.com's Movies Center for complete coverage.

How not to trim a tree

I work for the International Society of Arboriculture, and have a healthy respect for Arborists and what they do. Check out these videos, and when you need to take a tree down, even a relatively small one, hire an arborist and verify they are certified.



You can also check out this video.

Wild Storm

We had a wild storm in Champaign today. I've got a radar image of the storm system and pair of photos. Terry Hickman, a gentleman I work with was nice enough to share the photos with me.

Weekend in Saugatuck, MI

I took a long weekend in Saugatuck, MI with my wife, kids and inlaws. Everyone had a great time. My kids went up a few days ahead with my wife's folks (yes they are very brave).

The top picture is sunset on a stormy night at Oval Beach. The bottom photo is the view from our cabin.

Battlestar galactica preview

So if you are Battlestar Galactica fan you know we have a LONG wait until season 4. It doesn't air until 2008 but in the mid-fall a two part movie will air called Battlestar Galactica: Razor. This will jump back to the middle of season 2 and focus on events on the Battlestar Pegasus.

Here is a preview:

Perfect

My three boys spent the night at my in laws recently giving my wife and I a rare night alone.

We were preparing the boys for the evening away by explaining what was coming up. My middle son, who's five, had a number of questions.

My Son: "So were going to spend the night."

Me: "Right."

My Son: "We're going to spend the night with Grandpa and Grandma."

Me: "Right."

My Son: "And you and mom are not going to be there."

Me: "Right."

My Son: "Perfect!

How funny is that.

Saugatuck, MI

I took a trip with my family and in-laws to Saugatuck, MI last weekend. We go up almost every year. My wife's family has been making the annual trip since she was a little girl. My three young boys enjoy time at the beach and in the water. The town has great restaurants and many small shops. Large boats almost completely fill the docks at the edge of the water.

There is a web cam of Saugatuck that updates daily here.


I grabbed today's web cam picture because it represents the town very well.

In addition to the web cam there is great virtual tour of Saugatuck available here. Click on the shopping bag icons to bring up the 360 degree camera views. I particularly like the view of water street near the southwest part of the map.

A few more pictures

A few more...

Cool Pictures

My very cool mother-in-law emailed me these photos of unusual houses today. I couldn't resist posting some of the pictures.

Bud Swear Jar

This commercial is hilarious.

Baseball Weirdness

You've got to watch this whole clip to get the full effect. It's something else.


...and one more baseball clip. A plane crash in a game.

Son's Birthday - Cool Cakes

My youngest son had his 4th birthday party today. His grandmother makes the boys really cool cakes for most of their birthday's. Here is this years effort.

Microsoft Surface?

This is a cool article about a new Microsoft technology. Check out the link here If it's available watch the video of Bill Gates showing it off, I'll look for a you tube version to put in here too...

I found an alternate video clip. Here it is.

Shooting near where I work

There was a local shooting in the 1400 Block of West Anthony Drive last night. My office is located at 1400 W Anthony Drive. Scary. Here is the story.

Moona Flex & Gas Prices

So... the answer to the 1 million dollar question.

Moona Flex is Mozilla Firefox. My young son who is learning to read just missed a bit on the words, but now when I still call it Moona Flex (I think that's very funny) he gets upset and tells me it's Mooozilla Firefox.

On another note, here is a link to a story about rising gas prices. Apparently some gas stations can't make any money and are no longer selling gas.

Moona Flex

My middle son was asking me to run Moona Flex on my computer for DAYS. He was upset, sad, mad and everything in between. Any guesses regarding what Moona Flex is? He's five and he's just starting to read. He plays a handful of games on the computer and a few internet games, Dora, Thomas the Tank Engine, etc...

... I will post the answer in a few days.

Monkey dead from bubonic plague in Denver

the bubonic plague? Here Now?

DENVER (Reuters) - A Denver Zoo monkey has died of bubonic plague, apparently after eating a squirrel stricken with the disease, Colorado health and zoo officials said on Monday.

Five squirrels and a rabbit found dead on zoo grounds tested positive for the flea-borne disease in recent weeks, Denver Zoo spokeswoman Ana Bowie said.

Zookeepers on May 15 noticed the 8-year-old hooded capuchin monkey was lethargic, and the next day it was found dead in its enclosure. Zoo veterinarians sent tissue samples to a state laboratory where it was determined the animal died of the plague. The death was announced on Monday.

Zoo veterinarian Dave Kenny said that the risk of plague spreading to humans was extremely low but that visitors were being urged to avoid squirrels and rabbits.

"There are species in the zoo collection, especially monkeys, that could be susceptible to the plague," said John Pape, an epidemiologist with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Bowie said none of the 17 other capuchin monkeys in the exhibit -- or any other animals at the zoo -- have shown plague symptoms. But as a precaution, all the capuchin monkeys have been moved to an inside enclosure and are being treated with a regimen of antibiotics, she said.

Great Weekend

I had a terrific weekend. Saturday night I had a nice dinner out with my folks, my sister and her fiance. My sister Leslie was just engaged a week or so ago. Her fiance Tim seems like a great guy and I am very happy for both of them. It was also a rare night out with my family without the little kids (we got a sitter). That doesn't happen often, maybe once a year.

Sunday I visited with very good, old friends to me. I blogged about them recently and was thrilled that we got to grill out at their place. Our kids and their kids played and swam. We ate well and talked for hours. These are some of my dearest friends and although we have all become busy with our children, but it is inexcusable that I don't find a way to see them more. They are very dear friends and I have missed the horrible. Visiting felt like it had only been a day since I had seen them. We picked up just as it should have been.

What a great weekend.

Midwest Prepares for Invasion of Cicadas After 17-Year Absence

(My kids are going to flip out)

AP
ADVERTISEMENT

CHICAGO —
Coming soon: Brood XIII.

It sounds like a bad horror movie. But it's actually the name of the billions of cicadas expected to emerge this month in parts of the Midwest after spending 17 years underground.

The red-eyed, shrimp-sized, flying insects don't bite or sting. But they are known for mating calls that produce a din that can overpower ringing telephones, lawn mowers and power tools.

Brood XIII is expected across northern Illinois, and in parts of Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Indiana. Cicadas live only about 30 days as adults, and their main goal is mating.

Click here for FOXNews.com's Natural Sciences center.

They don't harm humans, although they are clumsy and might fly into people. Birds, squirrels and pets, especially dogs, love to eat them, and they are high in protein.

"They're going to have quite a meal. It's going to be like Thanksgiving for them," said Tom Tiddens, supervisor for plant health care at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

They are periodical cicadas, which are only found in the eastern half of North America. The annual, or dog-day cicadas, that appear every summer are common around the world.

The last massive emergence of periodical cicadas was in 2004, when Brood X emerged after 17 years underground in parts of 15 Eastern states. Some broods emerge after 13 years.

As nymphs burrowing underground, cicadas suck sap from tree roots. Almost all members of a group, or brood, burst from the ground within a couple days of each other.

They quickly climb the nearest vertical surface to molt and unroll their wings. In some heavily wooded areas, as many as 1.5 million cicadas per acre will crowd onto trees, expert say.

"It's one of the greatest insect emergences on Earth," said Daniel Summers, an entomologist at The Field Museum.

A single male's shrill courtship call can reach 90 decibels, equivalent to a kitchen blender. That could sour plans for outdoor events over the next few weeks.

Ravinia Festival, a 103-year-old music festival held north of Chicago, revised its schedule to avoid classical musicians having to compete with the insects, said festival president and CEO Welz Kauffman.

June will see more pop bands outdoors, a few concerts moved indoors and a visit from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. "With 350 voices on stage, they can hold their own against the bugs," Kauffman said.

At the Chicago Botanic Garden, spokeswoman Gloria Ciaccio joked that her advice for brides holding outdoor weddings there will be to put the tent flaps down and turn the music up.

An Illinois company that provides ice sculptures has turned down several outdoor parties over the next month. That's because of what happened when Nadeau Ice Sculptures owner Jim Nadeau delivered a swan statue to a wedding in 1990, during the area's last emergence of the periodical cicadas.

"We put our tray down and immediately the cicadas came off the ground and attacked the ice. Literally, it was a moving sculpture, this big black ugly mass of cicadas constantly moving," said Nadeau.

"I don't want to talk myself out of work, but that was just too gross," he said.

Exactly when the cicadas will emerge is a subject of debate, although there is agreement they emerge once the soil temperature is consistently 64 to 65 degrees for several days. Biologists and insect experts predict the cicadas will emerge between Tuesday and June 1.

The best place to see — and hear — the cicadas will be forest preserves, golf courses and any land where there are older trees where the soil has been undisturbed since 1990.

Freelance writer David Hammond runs the LTHForum, a Chicago-based Internet site devoted to culinary matters, and his "foodie" friends want to see what the cicadas taste like.

The insects are eaten in other parts of the world, with descriptions of the taste ranging from shrimp to canned asparagus to not much at all.

No recipe has been decided upon yet, but Hammond assumes they will be fried and perhaps accompanied by a dip or salsa.

"Honestly, they'll probably go down easier that way," he said. "Who knows? Maybe we'll love it. We may have to travel around the country as infestations occur."

SQL T-Shirt

Oh my.... this site is awesome. I need this SQL t-shirt.

USB Record Player

So now we can rip our old records. Mine are packed away but I have them.

This is scacy... I want one.
USB Record Player

30 second version of movies w/bunnies

Ok... so this has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with anything I write about on this blog, but it's weird and funny. These are 30 second versions of movies with cartoon bunnies.

http://www.angryalien.com/

Weird but somewhat entertaining.

Gas Prices

Gas prices are continuing to climb. This picture from Drudgereport.com is a shocker. There are rumblings of gas climbing above $4 per gallon. I want an electric car. :-)

Weeds in our backyard

Weeds or should I say weed is growing in our backyard. This week my wife found the following plant growing by the corner of our fence. She killed it with bleach. Since it was growing through the corner of the fence I wonder if it belonged to a neighbor.

Old Friends

I ran into some old friends while picking my middle son up from school. It has been too long and it felt like it. I really truly miss seeing them. They are busy with two young girls and I am busy with three young boys. It's been difficult for one reason or another to get together. If feel like I've got at least 24 hours of talk saved up for the next time I see them. Hopefully it's soon.

Mention on RPGMP3.com

This post belongs on my RPG blog and it's there, but the project I just posted about is popping up on blogs and sites here and there. Here's a D&D audio site that's mentioned the module.

Personal Gaming Project Complete

I finished a personal gaming project I've been working on for months. Only small post release adjustments should be needed. You can visit my RPG blog to read more about this project.

The Worlds Biggest Dog

Look at this monster dog! Unreal.

How William Shattner Changed the World

Bourne Ultimatum

The first two movies were great. The third comes out late this summer. I've liked these movies more than most of the recent bond films.

Star Trek XI

.J. ABRAMS TO DIRECT STAR TREK FEATURE FILM FOR PARAMOUNT PICTURES
IN THEATERS CHRISTMAS DAY 2008

HOLLYWOOD, CA, February 26, 2007 — "Star Trek," one of the most popular and successful franchises in the history of movies and television, returns to the big screen under the creative vision of J.J. Abrams, the force behind "Lost," "Alias" and "Mission Impossible III" for Paramount Pictures.

The team behind the film will include Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci ("Mission Impossible III") who wrote the screenplay and will executive produce with Bryan Burk. JJ Abrams and "Lost" co-creator Damon Lindelof will produce. The film will begin shooting this fall for a Christmas Day 2008 release.

One of the most popular film and television franchises of all time, "Star Trek" has encompassed 726 total episodes for television in six different series, beginning with the original 1966-1969 series created by Gene Roddenberry. The 10 "Star Trek" films have grossed in excess of $1 billion at the worldwide box office. The original characters have been named among the 50 greatest TV characters of all time and the Enterprise has lent its name to two proposed spacecraft.

"If there's something I'm dying to see, it's the brilliance and optimism of Roddenberry's world brought back to the big screen," said Abrams. "Alex and Bob wrote an amazing script that embraces and respects Trek canon, but charts its own course. Our goal is to make a picture for everyone — life-long fans and the uninitiated. Needless to say, I am honored and excited to be part of this next chapter of Star Trek."

Brad Grey, chairman and CEO, Paramount Pictures, said, "We could not be more thrilled to be back in business with J.J. Abrams. The revival of the 'Star Trek' franchise is an important part of Paramount's turnaround."

Star Trek vs Star Wars

Another nerd oriented video clip. Very fun.

Star Trek vs Battlestar Galactica

My friend Bruce found this clip. It's long, almost 10 minutes, but if you like Star Trek and the original Battlestar Galactica you'll get a kick out of this. It's pretty good, but starts to loose cohesiveness about half way through.

Battlestar Galactica Video Kit

Has anyone seen this? Battlestar Video Kit. If were not working on a NWN2 project I might take a stab at this. Pretty cool.

Post from one of my sons

Hi,

One of my sons (the middle child) is learning to write/type and wants to post. Here is his internet debut:

cars
cars 66
lightning

That's it for now!

Romantic Weekend

My parents were kind enough to take my three children and allow my wife and I to slip away for a romantic weekend. We love are children dearly, but 48 hours of grown up time was sorely needed. We go on dates occasionally but we haven't had two whole days to ourselves in five or six years.

Thanks Mom & Dad!

...a few more snow pictures

Home Theater

I am a movie fanatic and love high quality audio. I'm also a huge Star Wars fan.

My wife is helping my son with a school project and they stumbled on this home theater.

I'm moving... I'm going to live in that theater... forever.

Give the following presentation about 8-10 slides and you'll see the theater. http://www.modernhometheater.com/virtualtours/star_wars/slideshow/index.html

More snow

It's snowing again today 1-4 inches possible. Here are some pictures of the backyard.

More pictures of the blizzard

Here are more pictures of the blizzard. I just pulled them off the digital camera today. My wife took the pictures during the blizzard. The blizzard was February 13th, 2007. We got approximately 15 inches of snow. The University of Illinois was closed for two days. I can't remember that happening since I've lived in Champaign.

Our front yard

I am a lucky man to have a wife that beautiful. Isn't she great!

Front yard again

End of our street.

Weather woes continue

The snow is over but the drifting and cold continue. U of I was closed again and half the office staff where I work did not make it in due to weather. Half of Champaign seems to be shut down. Here's another picture.

We're caught in a blizzard

Big time blizzard in central Illinois today. Work closed early. The roads were awful. Even the University of Illinois closed. It never closes. Here's a local picture from my folks.

William Shatner TV Commercial

I watched this this morning and laughed my rear off.

Superbowl Ads

Did you watch the superbowl? Did you see the commercials.

Here's a link to you tube with this years superbowl ads.

Also here is the Oprah/Letterman ad, that isn't on the list. Funniest ad of the night:

New Blog Launched

This blog is still going, but I have launched a Neverwinter Nights/RPG themed blog to chronicle my Neverwinter Nights 2 projects and my general RPG/Neverwinter Nights related thoughts. You can read the blog here: http://enoa4rpg.blogspot.com/

Foot Problems

I have had flat feet for ever and have other foot issues as a result. The vary from being uncomfortable often and occasionally I have mild pain. I've tried orthotics and have been seeing a podiatrist regularly.

I saw the foot surgeon today. Turns out I had already met him once, when I took my oldest son in for a foot problem. He said I have a tendon in the back of my ankle that is tight, and some bones in my foot near my ankle need to be fused. They should be in alignment but are not. The tight tendon will be lengthened.

I will be off my feet at home for 1-2 weeks when I have the surgery. I'll be in a splint for the first two weeks, then a cast for 4 weeks. I'll be on crutches for the period when I have a splint and cast (six weeks). Then I'll have a boot. No shoes for 3 months total. He said the tendon could rupture, but based on my current condition and the fact I am using orthotics he does not believe this is a risk.

I don't have to do this now, but will need to do it someday. I talked to him about working and my need to help my kids. He agreed that it would be good to wait a couple of years until my youngest son is 5 or so, to make things more manageable. Unless the pain gets progressively worse, that is fine with him. Shannon and I will start talking things over.

Merry Christmas

If I don't get to post again, Merry Christmas too all my family and friends who read this blog.

Go Elf Yourself

Go elf yourself!

Scary, isn't it!

Sprained Ankle

I was rushing through the house last night, trying to get something for one of my kids. I was going to fast in sandals. I know better, but did it just the same. I slipped or lost my balance, rolled my ankle and sprained it. I waited about 15-20 min to see if the pain would subside, and very quickly took the advice of my wife and went to the Emergency Room to get checked out.

My wifes folks were nice enough to drop what they were doing and watch my sons while we went out.

No break, just a sprain, but at present I can't put weight on it. I took viactin (sp) at the ER which let me sleep half the night. I have a prescription an my darlin' wife is out now picking it up for me.

With three young boys, and a severe lack of mobility I am not going to be much help. I feel guilty about burdening my wife, all though I know she's happy to help. I feel angry about hurting myself in a silly pointless manner. We were supposed to take a trip to Chicago on Sunday, but I think I've fouled that up pretty badly.

Synopsis:

My ankle is broken.
I feel like an idoit
My wife is great, and will be overburdened.
I screwed up a nice trip to Chicago.
Vicadin (sp) makes me feel good. :-)

Illness Trifecta

All three of my sons are sick today and each with different symptoms. My youngest is throwing up and has a fever, my middle son has a fever, and my oldest has upper respiratory stuff going on. I'm off work to watch them, it would be nice to split the day with my wife, but she's a few meetings she can not move so I'm up for today! If I could only get my kids to all be sick on the same day more often I think my wife and I would both miss less work. :-)

Winter Storm

We had a winter storm in Central Illinois last night and it's continuing now. Last night we had a lot of ice on the trees. I can normally walk under the limbs of the tree in my front yard, and they were so heavy with ice they were touching the ground.

It warmed up a bit in the morning and the ice melts, but we're getting some snow now. It was slick on the roads and visibility was extremely limited due to white out conditions, but it's supposed to improve by noon. Other areas were much harder hit than Champaign, IL. My folks live about 20-30 minutes west and they had no power or heat last nigh and this morning.

The company I work for is supposed to have a Holiday Party tonight. I'm speculating it will be canceled due to the storm, but you never no. Too bad if it is, it's always a fun time.

A Cold?

I think I have a cold. I'm not sure, but I have had mild fatigue for days, and today, I feel a bit foggy headed. This stinks!

Weight

I've got to get my weight under control. I'm not happy with the extra weight I am carrying and no I can do better. I've added a link to my fit day journal to share. In 2000 I was walking 1 hour a day and got down to 238 lbs. Today I am around 275. It's not healthy, I don't feel good and I'm not happy with my appearance. I need to do better.

Last year at my physical, I did well. All results from the doctor were good except my weight, I had momentum and felt like I could get that under control. Instead I've gained 15-20 pounds this year, the worst for weight gain in recent memory.

Losing weight isn't rocket science, it's like a bank account, I can only spend what I have (in terms of calories). I need to not eat garbage (I eat unhealthy snacks), I need to control my portion size and I need to add exercise.

With three kids I don't have luxury of walking for 1 hour every day as soon as I get home, but I can find other ways to exercise. At lunch I can walk, and I can get on the elliptical at home for a few minutes each night. I can try to walk with the kids.

With kids it is easier to create barriers to prevent exercise. Regardless of weather they are real or invented to give myself an convenient excuse not to exercise I have to deal with them. Staying healthy for my wife and kids should be a strong motivator for me. The strongest motivator.

Ah...well. Don't give up. Keep trying. Don't get discouraged.

Happy Thanksgiving

The bird is in the oven, the house is being cleaned by my beautiful wife and we're watching the Macy's Day Parade.

Life is good.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Got the bird and we are putting up the tree.

I picked up the 'bird' today. 21.5 lbs of turkey goodness defrosting in my fridge.

We are also putting up our Christmas decorations tonight. I know it's a bit early but it is a tradition. We started the year my wife and I got married. Our anniversary is on Nov 25th and we were very busy the week before and had the honeymoon afterwards, so we put up the decorations almost two weeks before Thanksgiving.

The next year, one of our sons was due about the same time, so everything went up early again.

Since then it's just been habit.

Bring on that Christmas Tree. Crack out those carols, the holiday season beings tonight!

22 Pound Turkey

My wife and I are hosting Thanksgiving dinner again this year. I think I need a 22 pound turkey, which is close to what I have done the past. At one point the turkey was bigger than my kids. Now my children can eat a 22 pound turkey in a single sitting. When did that happen?

No Photos

I was trying to upload photos but the blog doesn't seem to want to take them. The two photos I have included will only show the smaller inline versions, not the full sized images. Hmmm...

We put a barracuda anti-spyware/anti-virus appliance in place at work. I can read my blog, but can't post from work anymore. I didn't post from work very often. At lunch occasionally, but that was pretty rare.

It's been a long and busy few weeks at work.

Neverwinter Vault Interview

I was interviewed by Neverwinter Vault, for Eye of the Serpent, a module I created for Neverwinter Nights. The interview is posted here. Take a peak and let me know what you think!

Star Wars Humor

My wife found this clip on you tube. I found it entertaining. Someone put some work into it. Star Wars Lego/Music Video

Neverwinter Nights 2, Tired and Work Stuff

I worked with the Neverwinter Nights 2 toolset over the weekend. I converted an old TSR module for Neverwinter 1, and it really helped me learn how to use the toolset/editor. I thought converting the same module would be minimize work not related to learning about the new toolset.

The two screen shots here represent my initial at creating the external of the shirne that players will see at the end of the module. I am pretty happy with how they look. I've built a few other areas. The toolset is powerful and complicated. I have a lot to learn, but I am enjoying myself so far.

On an unrelated note, I am tired. My eldest son is serving as an acolyte at Church each day this week. I am excited and proud, but we are getting up about 30-45 min earlier to get him where he needs to be on time. UGH! I am exhausted. I need some coffee.

I have I busy week at work too. This Friday Chapter Executives from around the world will visit ISA. I will speak briefly to them on Friday, hang around for meet & greet dinner, and then go back on Saturday for lunch to help with any IT questions they might have. One week from Friday, I will install new hardware, specifically a firewall and anti-spyware/anti-virus appliance. We've got outside help, which should help the installation go as smoothly as possible.

Cold

I have a cold, or perhaps a virus, and it is quite cold today. It was freezing when I woke up and has reached 43 degrees now (about 11am). Regarding my cold, it's not bad, I am just tired and feel groggy. It's a little hard to concentrate.

There are a few sick people at work, and I took my 4 year old to the doctor yesterday, so I could have picked something up from a variety of sources.

Hall of Fame Module

The last module I wrote for Neverwinter Nights, Eye of the Serpent, made the Hall of Fame on Neverwinter Vault. The module is posted here.

Someone is reading my blog!

Someone is actually reading my blog! I didn't know anyone was, but my cousin, Chris Gould, posted a comment yesterday. It really made my day to hear from him and be back in touch with him.

On another note, I am tired. I was up WAY to late. I was invited to be interviewed from a Neverwinter Nights module I wrote that made the hall of fame on Neverwinter Vault I wrote answers to the interview questions and have my wife and friend proofing and commenting on them. I'll post them soon.

SQL Server Issues

We did some network maintenance for work last weekend. We hit a problem after changing the serivce account SQL runs under to an account with least permissions. We fixed it this week, but I'm not sure why the fix worked. I'm trying to research it. More on the issue and resolution can be found here.

Happy

I'm having a pretty good day. I have to work late and possible some or all of the weekend, but I still feel good. I stopped at home over lunch and my wife had cleaned up a bit. I looked around and was greatful for my wife, and not just because she cleaned. I am blessed with a wonderful wife, three great kids and a fantastic house. I am very lucky.

Burgers fried in 94 year old grease

This is too disgusting to imagine. Burgers fried daily in 94 year old grease. Link to news article.

Another funny video

This video is pretty good two, watch the lizard in the lower left corner.

Funny Videos

This is too good to let it pass by. Weird Al's new video.

Also funny is this video about D&D. The humor is somewhat in appropriate in places.

Toys in the Toilet

Yesterday I decided to cook something nice. I spent the afternoon shopping and making home made pizza. It was going great, the crust was rising, it smelled terrific. I sat down with my wife and kids, and took two bites, when my three year old started crying in the bath room, "Daddy I'm all wet".

I went to see what was up and the toilet and all the nasty stuff you'd expect to see in a toilet was overflowing on the flow. I kicked off my good sandles and walked in, my socks and jeans quickly becoming wet with... stuff. I got my three year old out, pulled off the top of the tank and stopped the flow of water.

My wife brought me a plunger, and I plunged and plunged until a few duplo blocks came up. I fished them out (now up to my ankles and elbows in stuff) and tossed them in the nearby trash.

With some work the toilet would almost overflow and flush very slowly. Not good.

After a quick check of my plumbing book and a consult with my dad, a handyman around the house, I determined I needed to remove the toilet and check the trap for more toys. If they went past the toilet trap into the house pipes or house trap I'd be in big trouble.

I get the toilet apart and almost removed. I struggled to get the nuts holding the toilet to the floor of, but avoided using the hacksaw, which was almost necessary.

After two hours I was still laughing about the whole thing and had kept my sense of humor. I asked my 11 year old what I was still doing, hoping for an answer along the lines of "laughing" or "keeping my sense of humor". He said, "You are still removing the toilet." Oh well.. he did eventually get the lesson.

After 2.5-3 hours the toilet was in the front yard. My wife, eldest son and I shook, flipped over, poked and prodded the toilet until we produced 6-12 duplo blocks, 1 thomas the tank engine caboose, a small car, 75 cents in change and a ... a... well something you'd expect in a toilet.

The toilet is on our front deck. I purchased a wax seal today and will re-install it today.

My three year old seems to understand the problem and has promised never to flush toys down the toilet again.

I forgot the toilet was gone late last night and went in to relieve myself. I came back out and asked my wife if I should go in the hole in the floor or step out on the front lawn and aim at the pot.

I'm still laughing. Got to keep my sense of humor.

ASP.NET 2.0 (continued)

I picked up Visual Studio 2005 at work and have been converting 1.1 site to 2.0 web application projects. It took 5 work days of mis-steps, learning, research and interuptions, but yesterday I finally had it down and really started cranking through the converstion.

There will be clean up ahead but it's a good start. I learned a lot, and expect bugs and more learning ahead but thus far I am pleased.

iPOD

The iPOD my sister gave me is dead. Totally dead. I had someone at best buy look and they are pretty sure it's the hard drive. I've heard it's $50 to have apple replace the battery, I expect the hard drive would be more, so... that's the end of the iPOD. :-(

ASP.NET 2.0

We upgraded to the asp.net 2.0 framework at the office today. We havne't altered the site, just the frame work on the servers. All the sites are still configured to use ASP.NET 1.1.

We upgraded the development server. No problems. 5 min, piece of cake. We upgraded the intranet server, again no problems. Finally we updated the live web server. BAM! Problems. Anti-virus warned someone was tampering with the computer. Then it wouldn't shut down IIS to complete the installation. I couldn't cancel or roll back. Two restarts later the server booted up with A/V off and IIS off, then the install went fine. Services were down for 30 minutes. UGH! Pain in the you know what.

Jury Duty, Books and an Old Friend

I just wrapped up Jury Duty. I was called for a week, but only needed to be there 2.5 days. Of those days I sat in the jury assembly room 90% of the time and read some books. I made it into the court room twice, but was never called to sit in the jury panel. No one asked questions, and I didn't get on a jury. I would really like to do so, and although I understand simply by being present I was participating and helping, it would have been nice to see the whole process.

One of the books I read while on Jury Duty was 1776 by David McCullough. I would HIGHLY recommend it. I'm a Revolutionary War buff, and learned a great many new things. All of McCullough's subjects came to live vividly. It was an entertaining and informative read.

I got an e-mail today from an old friend. Someone I had not heard from since the mid 1980's. He saw my posts on some gaming sites and dropped me a line. It was a very pleasant surprise. Hopefully we'll write from time to time.

Neverwinter Nights 2 Beta Test

There is a closed Neverwinter Nights beta test coming up. One for the game and the other for the toolset. I have applied to participate in both. Could be fun!

Punny

“Did you hear about the vampire who used to torture his victims with music? His Bach was worse than his bite.”

Google Home Page

I am stuck on yahoo mail and have been for years, but now I'm really excited about the customizable google home page. It's very cool. I highly recommend checking it out, there are MANY cool plug-ins ranging from radar and weather, to earthquake alerts, news, feeds from gaming pages, etc... You can also direcly add rss feed.

Cool stuff.

Ebola Virus

I've missed the past two days of work. I was sure I had the ebola virus, but the doctor assured me it wasn't. (I just like to be dramatic). I've been sicker than I don't know what. I've slept most of the time and felt like total garbage. My wife has picked up the slack with the kids and the extended family has helped as well.

I'm back at work today but still feel pretty crappy.

Speaker Blowout

The speaker in my van blew out. My wife got them for me as a present about 6 months ago. They were under warrenty and the were fixed at circuit city for no charge.

At work, Bruce and I fixed a problem with the router that had been hanging around for months. We had to call Nortell tech support to get the issue resolved. I think we sounded like the Pakleds from Star Trek the Next Generation during the call. Who are the Pakleds, here's an audio clip to give you an idea, it sounds about like Bruce and I did yesterday on the phone with nortel real audio clip 1 or real audio clip 2

Neverwinter Nights Module of the Year (2004 and 2005)

Hey

I have a favor to ask. I've got my Neverwinter Nights modules posted at Neverwinter Vault (http://www.nwvault.com). They are finally getting around to selecting the 2004 and 2005 module of the year. I have 2 modules up for the 2004 mod or year, and one for 2005. If you have time, and are so incline please drop by and vote.

2004 Mod of the Year: http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=40
I have 2 mods, Hythum and C1 Hidden Shrine of Tomoachan.

2005 Mod of the Year: http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=41
I have one mod up, Hythum II: The Halls of Kilgirn.

Give them some votes please!

Thanks

Ernie

Saugatuck, MI

I took my family up to Saugatuck, MI over the weekend. My wife has been going up there since she was a kid. The trip is largely a treat provided by my in-laws. They rent a couple of cabins and we spend a few days relaxing near the shores of Lake Michigan. My sister-in-laws, their husbands and kids all come up too. The town, Saugatuck, reminds me a lot of East Northport, NY, which is very near Greenlawn, NY, where I grew up.

The trip was fun and relaxing. My youngest son yelled/cried in the car for 2+ hours on the ride home, but otherwise it was a great weekend.

Quote of the Day

My office mate was working on a problem with our phones at the office and came across the following quote... Definatley one to remember:

Are you trying to use some kind of low pressure digit routing through the parnatic channel of the CPU instead of call forwarding?

Too Much Coffee

I made the mistake of drinking coffee after 1pm. I think that's like giving a gremlin water or feeding them after midnight. I've been jittery and irritating the hell out of my office mate.

T-Ball

One of my younger sons started T-Ball yesterday. He's a pretty physical and energetic kid so I thought he'd like it, but he fought it tooth in nail, ulimately crying and shaking telling me he didn't want to play. I did get him to participate in 20 min of the hour long practice.

My Monitor Flamed Out!

My monitor literally caught on fire last Sunday. I was working away and heard a static like sound. I looked for the problem, unable to find it, then another crackle and a bright yellow flash under back of the monitor and it went out. Then the smell of smoke. I'll pick up a new one today. It was 1o or 11 years old so I can't complain.