Gaz Soup

Old and dusty

2012-02-01T20:59:00.000-08:00

Just stumbled on this old site and wondered if it is still working

decision time . . .

2009-04-07T09:45:00.000-07:00

advanced sales for ACL just went on sale.
the concert is oct 2-4
http://aclfest09.frontgatetickets.com/index.php

we went the last two years and had a lot of fun

if i had spending money .... my toy wish list

2009-01-15T10:21:00.000-08:00

A pocket sized HD video camera for under $150.

a USB microphone and guitar/instrument line-in for recording songs in Garage Band/Logic.

A portable audio recorder for capturing those 'jamming' sessions. Then again this may not be a good idea.

A gardening tool to analyze soil & sunlight that might even be able to turn my brown thumbs green.

my gig with pancake

2008-12-08T10:18:00.001-08:00

more photos here

http://www.originalalamo.com/Show.aspx?id=6032

hello out there . . .

2008-11-18T12:50:00.000-08:00

Hello blog. It’s been a long time. Sorry for the absence.

New music i’m listening to: Vampire Weekend. Mix Paul Simon’s Graceland with mid life-cycle Clash, sprinkle some recent alternative stuff (e.g. Kooks, Clap Your Hands), season with David Byrne and there you have it.

Old music i’m listening to: The Who’s ‘Who’s Next’ and ‘Who By Numbers’. Genius and great rock & roll. On re-listen it strikes me that ‘Who By Numbers’ was actually a Townshend solo album with the Who playing back-up.

Books i’m reading or listening to: John Adams by David McCullough and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. The John Adams is a great read - it contains the lessons that we should concurrently learn from and move beyond history. Adams helped pen the declaration of independence (or at least many of the letters & articles leading up to it). We could learn a lot today about the danger of majority (e.g. prop 8) and an unchecked government. He also realized there were huge flaws in the document concerning the asterisk after “all men are created equal” regarding salves and women.

Favorite new iPhone app: Ocarina by Smule. For .99 cents your iPhone turns into a musical instrument by blowing into the microphone and pressing the buttons on the screen. Pretty cool.

Accomplishment i’m not sure i want to be congratulated on: Last weekend Trevor & I went camping with the Boy Scouts. He was awarded the Polar Bear patch which you earn for camping out in sub-freezing temperatures. I’m still waiting to regain the feeling in my left side.

Thanksgiving plans: the usual relaxing with family, wine, & food. The Aggie game is on Thanksgiving night and will likely be a pleasant experience for UT fans. Last year i tried brining the bird in a cranberry juice mixture. This year i’m going to try soaking wood in grapefruit juice before smoking the bacon wrapped turkey. Mix that with healthy servings of Cameron Hughes and i may not care about the Aggies.

Beer: Tried an interesting holiday brew from Shiner over the weekend. I tasted before i read the label which was a good thing. It was a nice tasty malty beer with what seemed a slight hint of cloves or perhaps vanilla. The label states it includes peaches & pecans.

until next time!

Welcome Oscar

2008-09-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

My brother Owen & wife Jodi introduced Oscar Ivor Egerton to the world!
Happy Birth Day!

More photos at http://flickr.com/photos/gegerton/

happy birthday Eeyore

2008-04-26T20:12:00.000-07:00

45 YEARS
more photos here

westminsterwoodstock

2008-04-13T19:58:00.000-07:00

with nudity

Sunday afternoon jam session & BBQ

2008-04-07T18:24:00.000-07:00

More photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/gegerton/

photos from Austin Capitol 10K

2008-04-03T17:23:00.001-07:00

Finally a smile on the 4 mile mark
if every picture tells a story then Trevor's story is "@#$% you, Dad!"
At the end of the race we were thinking "chicken fried steak lunch"

humm . . . interesting

2008-03-26T15:11:00.000-07:00

"Houston, we have a penis. In my uterus."

2008-03-25T18:32:00.000-07:00

when a blog starts with the phrase "Houston, we have a penis. In my uterus" it gets my attention. when it's from my sister-in-law and it contains photos . . . well click here

and for starters . . .
Aaron
Andy
August
Barack
Elliott
Evan
Michael
Patrick or Peter or Paul
Samuel
Zach

Easter 2008 photos

2008-03-25T18:25:00.000-07:00

http://flickr.com/photos/gegerton/sets/72157604253351893/

spring break cruise 2008

2008-03-24T14:29:00.001-07:00

a short video of photos from our spring break vacation.

Christmas 2007

2007-12-29T10:40:00.001-08:00

video from our Christmas vacation with the Gerlachs

on the boat

2007-09-01T21:21:00.001-07:00

a great start to the holiday weekend

(one of the) most underrated musicians

2007-08-28T19:42:00.000-07:00

I’m listening to Ringo’s greatest hits right now. Maybe it’s the combination on wine and avoiding work but this is decent stuff. This is good stuff!
Ringo

but if you are in the buying mood you should also check this out (and get an extra copy 4 me :)

recommended family fun!

2007-08-28T19:38:00.000-07:00

last weekend we rented kayaks and splashed around on Town Lake / Lady Bird Lake. All 4 of us had a fantastic time going from Red Bud Island to MoPac Bridge. It still hurts a little when i raise my arms above my head but i would strongly recommend this adventure.
http://rowingdock.com/

Jax Wilde & The Full House

2007-08-14T10:23:00.000-07:00

The band puts on a live show at the Broken Spoke. This small clip is the band introductions.

reporting live . . . boink!

2007-07-12T12:20:00.000-07:00

http://view.break.com/329276 - Watch more free videos

Looking forward to getting my iPhone

2007-07-11T09:54:00.001-07:00

but i won't be doing this

The Armadillo Hunt

2007-07-02T08:20:00.001-07:00

Simon's movie about a hunt for an armadillo

Colleen's New Computer

2007-06-20T07:58:00.001-07:00

A friend asked for advice on buying a new computer.

A fun weekend (with video)

2007-06-11T11:50:00.000-07:00

Thursday – went to 1st Thursday on South Congress. A pretty cool open art festival. Lots of people, street musicians, and … art. I received an early father’s day gift of a mosaic guitar. It’s hanging on my wall – come & see. Went to Salt Lick 360 for dinner. Decent food but not a ‘real’ bbq place . . . they even had ceramic plates.

Friday – swimming after work. Karen made Eggplant Parisian for dinner on the deck. Back swimming with our new visitors – the Singing Texas Cicada.

Saturday – chores in the morning. We found a tarantula on our front porch . . . Ringo bit it. Went for a swim and Simon found a huge grasshopper in his swim trunks. Visited the Domain shopping center and toured the Apple store. Joined the ‘Story of Texas’ museum and saw the ‘Mummies’ IMAX. Had a Tex-Mex meal at Chuys. Came home for a quick swim with the Cicada and then watched an action movie in our theater . . . Sahara

Sunday – Took my Dad for an early father’s day meal at the Gospel Brunch at Stubbs BBQ. Authentic live gospel and southern breakfast. I’m still full! Visited the home my sister is trying to buy in North Austin. Went for a hike along, over, & through a creek in Emma Long Park. Came back for a swim.

video: http://web.mac.com/gegerton/iWeb/Site/My%20Great%20Movie.html
click here for video

YouTube

Moving into our new house

2007-04-03T09:10:00.000-07:00

Photos from a busy first week
http://web.mac.com/gegerton/iWeb/Site/Photos.html

Goodbye Intel

2007-02-28T15:44:00.000-08:00

I left Intel in early February, moved out of California to Austin Texas for a job with Apple. Here's a video i took on my first weekend. I haven't used a Mac for 15 years so i wanted to give it a test on video production.

o' Christmas Tree

2006-12-02T22:08:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving 2006

2006-11-27T10:00:00.000-08:00

IMG_2589
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

3 days, 2 families, 1 huge turkey, 5 different ways to cook pig, lots of wine, food, & fun, and 109 photos.
http://flickr.com/photos/gegerton/sets/72157594393877380/

birthday dance

2006-11-12T13:53:00.000-08:00

Turning 9 in style

2006-11-05T22:41:00.000-08:00

IMG_2303_edited-1
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

The boys are turning 9 and the celebration goes on & on. Halloween, Dinner party, & San Fran Dim Sum trip photos here http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=all&q=egerton+birthday&m=text

New Music

2006-10-30T22:00:00.000-08:00

The Fratellis – Costello Music. Fun, raw, and new. Flavors of Franz Ferdinand, Louis XIV, and Cake. Syrah/Shiraz not too full but a bit spicy.
Beck – The Information. Sometimes there is a perfect match of music and mood – this one hit it for me. Nice blend of complexity, pop, and sweetness. Chardonnay ready for drinking now
Jimmy Buffett – Take The Weather With You. Fantastic. Pure Buffett style. Like a good Sauvignon Blanc – it’s light but if that’s what you are looking for it is perfect.
The Who – Endless Wire. My first impression was a bit of disappointment but the second listen improved my opinion. It is solid Who – so much so that it felt like a recycle of old & familiar but on the second taste it appears to have more depth than expected. At first a Pinot with bang but little follow through on second though it’s a Cab that needs to stay open for a while.
Lloyd Cole – Anti Depressant. When Lloyd Cole is good he is very very good. When he is bad, I am driven to do the unthinkable and poor the rest of the bottle down the drain. There are one or two songs on this album that deserve a second sip but otherwise (it pains me to say) … Gallo
Cedar Fever – Name Unknown. Despite promises I haven’t received this CD yet. Reviews sound very promising but one in the hand beat two in the bush . . . or maybe I should have another glass of wine.

Sunday Hike

2006-10-30T21:50:00.000-08:00

IMG_2173
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

The time change gave us an extra hour and the Indian Summer provided lovely weather so we hiked down to the river and splashed around a bit. See more photos here http://flickr.com/photos/gegerton/

pumpkin patch

2006-10-23T20:35:00.000-07:00

IMG_2106
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

10 kids, 4 parents, 1 big bottle of wine, and 1000's of pumpkins. Just outside of Half Moon Bay overlooking the Pacific Ocean we found pumpkin patch paradise.

Pics here

Difference between Vietnam & Iraq

2006-10-19T10:23:00.000-07:00

http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=7631

Fishing Fun

2006-09-04T21:29:00.000-07:00

IMG_1896
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

We rented a boat with the Krzeczowski lads and headed out into the bay for some fishing. Lots of fun and a decent collection of fish. 5:30am wake-up call and coffee with rum. A smell i can't wash from my hands and one of the best monday mornings ever!

more photos here

2006-08-29T23:20:00.000-07:00

Our friend and neighbor, Kelly, celebrates her birthday each year by riding the Big Dipper roller coaster at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk. We all joined in the fun!

Roller Coaster Birthday

Generated by Flickr Album Maker

Sunday at the Giants game

2006-08-29T09:08:00.000-07:00

IMG_1713
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

We scored cheap but great seats to last Sunday's game. Myself, Karen, Trevor & friend Jake cheered the Giants on to a 8-0 win over the Reds.

Mike & Heather

2006-08-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

Mike & Heather
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

Just returned from a fun weekend in Colorado to celebrate my sister-in-law's wedding. Wonderful wedding, fun family, and a great time. See photos here http://www.flickr.com/photos/gegerton/sets/72157594246462113/

Kid Tossing

2006-08-06T14:05:00.000-07:00

yes, the summer passtime of tossing kids in the air

2006-07-26T21:41:00.000-07:00

U Gave Me The Clap

my brother writes and produces a 'boy band' song/video and i am so proud. this is funny stuff

2006-07-23T12:46:00.000-07:00

the first 40 years

This is a video slideshow my Dad put together for my 40th birthday. some great old photos!

Photo's from our Mexico trip

2006-07-16T12:02:00.000-07:00

a great week in Puerto Vallarta at Casa Mucumba to reunite with family and celebrate my 40th. Here are some photos (124 of them).

Sister-In-Law gone wild

2006-07-16T11:58:00.000-07:00

There's some rule about what happens in Puerto Vallarta, stays in Puerto Vallarta. This one slipped out . . .

(let me know if you want to see more)

a buzz for summer

2006-07-05T21:15:00.000-07:00

a Twit

2006-06-13T16:01:00.000-07:00

This is what the ability to edit audio gets you . . .

2006-05-18T14:18:00.000-07:00

“I should also say that listening to this show may have some benefits to parents. Gareth does a wonderful job of managing these two rambunctious boys. Listen to the calm, affectionate way he keeps them on track throughout the episodes. When one of them begins to get too wild, he distracts them instead of getting angry or punitive. Anyway, I was impressed, and I think some parents out there could improve their relationships with their kids by using his interactions with the boys as a model.”
- TeachwithTech

Sleeping with the Neighbors

2006-04-25T22:02:00.000-07:00

IMG_0943
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

Spent the night with the Cub Scouts on the USS Hornet. This is a WWII aircraft carrier that was also used to recover the Apollo 11 capsule after the moon landing. The night included the very authentic navy mess hall dinner (aka: slop) and navy bunks (aka: sardines)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gegerton/sets/72057594115366054/

Nott ready for prom

2006-04-25T14:53:00.000-07:00

We had Nott try on my tux last night in preparation for his prom. In front of his date's mother, Nott turned very red when Simon asked "so, are you going to kiss her?"

Back in 2000 . . . Owen's VW Valdez

2006-04-18T11:07:00.000-07:00

My new Nephew

2006-04-18T11:04:00.000-07:00

IMG_0853
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

My sister presented us with Kavan Stewart. Beautiful baby boy born 4.12.06. We were in Texas for Spring Break so we got to be there (well in the waiting room) for the event. This is the photo of the 4 grandchildren

Some interesting/fun web links

2006-03-30T15:21:00.000-08:00

Learn about your neighbors

Local real estate prices

Road side safety – funny videos

Science Friday

2006-03-27T21:07:00.000-08:00

A good NPR/Science Friday show on the latest in diabetes cures

Nott on a Skateboard

2006-03-27T20:57:00.000-08:00

a 16 yr old boy
plus
left over plywood and a lot of effort
equals a video

I have 43 years left

2006-03-20T12:48:00.000-08:00

how about you?

Results:
Based on your answers to the above questions, your current life expectancy is 83 years. If you're not happy with the result, consider that by adopting a healthier lifestyle and avoiding various risk factors, you can increase your life expectancy by up to 15 years.

The three biggest positive factors that you have going for you are:
1. Age of parents
2. Age of grandparents
3. Personality type

The three biggest negative factors that you have going for you are:
(let's see - which of these can i change?)
1. Family health
2. Gender
3. Drinking

new music reviews

2006-03-17T14:46:00.000-08:00

Belle & Sebastian – The Life Pursuit. I didn’t like their last album very much (Push Barman). And I read a review of their latest release what wasn’t very positive – claimed they went for formula success vs. creativity & depth. Don’t believe everything you read – except this J. I really enjoy the new album. Similar in style to Catastrophe Waitress but with a bit more of a retro 70’s flavor. Some songs I really like “The Blues are Still Blue” with hints of T-Rex, “White Collar Boy” sugar coated sarcasm, “Sukie in the Graveyard” channels Bowie, and “For the Price of a Cup of Tea” great song & great title.

Morrissey – Ringleader of the Tormentors. Enjoyable but not stand out. Not a permanent fixture on the playlist but this is solid Morrissey with songs of death, despair, and depression set to a whirl of electric guitars. The troubadour with troubles now seems to be having fun with a hint of a tongue in cheek (with lines like “if the USA doesn’t bomb you” in a love song and a vague song of sexual conquest with a line “there are explosive kegs between my legs”)

Van Morrison – Pay the Devil. I was intrigued by the description of this new album; ‘Van Morrison does old time country’. The soul man of Ireland belting out songs of cheating, drinking, pick-up trucks, and heart ache. Unfortunately it just doesn’t live up to it’s promise. The songs seemed too polished & arranged and lack the roughness & rawness of good old country. At times is sounds like Van walked into a country karaoke bar. A better bet is an old but fantastic album by Elvis Costello called Almost Blue.

Diabetes breakthrough may end insulin injections

2006-03-17T14:44:00.000-08:00

See link

Bioengineers at the University of Calgary have successfully grown insulin producing cells in a lab, marking a major breakthrough in diabetes research.
The team of scientists hope to eventually transplant lab grown, insulin producing cells directly into the bodies of patients with Type 1 diabetes.

Asperger's quiz

2006-01-09T10:12:00.000-08:00

Here is a short test that measures your autism spectrum quotient.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/newsweek/autism_quotient/default.asp

given how much of tech nerd i am, i was surprised at my score . . . 'low'. i guess i'm a social & creative tech nerd :)

where's the sand

2006-01-08T20:33:00.000-08:00

the washed out stairs
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

if you listened to our last podcast you heard about the big waves we had here at Santa Cruz. We went back to the beach tonight for the first time after the storms and the "dog beach" is missing 8-10 feet of sand. As you can see the stairs don't even reach the beach (the lower portion are usually under the sand)

simon with the big waves

2006-01-08T20:30:00.000-08:00

simon with the big waves
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

here's a photo of the "big waves" - this was taken new years eve

dog & boys

2006-01-08T20:28:00.000-08:00

dog & boys
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

and here's family on the same beach a week later

Nott's new hair color and other news from a strange land

2006-01-08T20:04:00.000-08:00

Nott recently updated his blog & photo album. Nott is our exchange student who is living us for his junior year in high school. It is interesting to view your family online from a different point of view. Here's the link http://spaces.msn.com/members/nottzilla/

Personally i was thrilled to see a photo of me in a bath robe published on the internet (under his christmas photos)

Trevor at the Emerald Bowl

2005-12-30T09:53:00.000-08:00

Trevor with the final score
Originally uploaded by gazsoup.

Santa came through for Trevor and gave him 4 tickets to the Emerald Bowl in SF. Simon, not being too much into sports, declined and his seat went to Trevor's friend Cullen. It was an upset game (Utah beating Georgia Tech) which pleased the boys who were cheering for the underdog. See more photos here http://www.flickr.com/photos/gegerton/sets/1699661/

Also we talked about the game on our podcast (www.smellymonkeys.com) where we mentioned that we did not know what a Utah Ute was or why it was called the 'Emerald' Bowl. I've received several emails from listeners telling me that the Utes are a Utah indian tribe and we discovered yesterday that 'Emerald' is from the bowl's sponser - Emerald Nuts :)

this is not a fun website

2005-12-05T22:00:00.000-08:00

http://www.familywatchdog.us
search for sex offenders by zip code . . . not for socializing . . . knowledge is useful . . . I’d recommend not selling Cub Scout popcorn or Girl Scout cookies at these houses.

if you have a blog but never blog do you really have a blog

2005-12-02T13:18:00.000-08:00

wow - it has been a very long time since i posted anything here. I wonder if anyone still visits this site?

It is now the beginning of December and that warm feeling is starting to grow inside – anxiety that there is so much to do and not enough time to get it done. This year seems to have zoomed by … physically it is December but mentally I’m not quite over July. And now with advent calendar ticking I have lights to hang, a tree to cut & decorate, presents to buy, cards to send, parties to attend, seasonal movies to watch, eggnog to drink, colorful sweaters to wear, parades to see, etc. And that’s just THIS weekend.

drinking from the bottle

2005-10-27T21:44:00.000-07:00

i was on a business trip in Utah this week and was advised by the potbsntm (person on the bar stool next to me) to drink beer from the bottle. Apparently there is a state law limiting the strength of draft beer to 3.2 . . . and not just the piss-water aka Coors or Budweiser but also the real stuff like Guinness and microbrews (although according to a bartender with artificially white teeth and a transparently white t-shirt, the microbrews can be up to 4%). I stuck with a red wine that gave me a headache the next day. Here’s an interesting article on the topic.

who are you?

2005-10-27T21:40:00.000-07:00

In addition to my ‘day’ job at the place I work, I also spend sometime time helping the corporate health by delivering training and community events. One training event I help out on is our leadership/management development courses. These are typically a week+ long and take place in a hotel or conference center in which we get sequestered (kept away from work & the outside world) for 12+ hour days. That may not sound like a good time to everyone but these sessions tend to be great learning sessions and are attended by very sharp people. In one version of the class we have all attendees (students and facilitators) take a personality test. It is quite an amazing test – with only a few short questions it returns information about you that you thought only your mother would know. Insightful and a little scary.
This site offers a quick personality test of a different nature – give it a try and post your results in the comments section. I turned out to be Jean-Luc Picard. who r u?
http://www.tk421.net/character/

Teaching the world English language

2005-10-10T08:35:00.000-07:00

it is amazing what you can find on the internet! for example this site uses one of my songs to teach the english language.

actually they could have selected less appropriate songs of mine to really learn the art of the language :)

http://mylcpodcasts.blogspot.com/2005/09/song-get-out-of-bed-by-egerton-boyz.html

Emergency Kit

2005-09-28T07:12:00.000-07:00

In my hotel room, in a sleek black box with gold lettering, i noticed the "Emergency Kit"
* Band-aids
* Tampons
* 3 condoms
* Refreshing drink
* Sanitary wet tissues
* One-time use underpants (M&F)

Price is RMB $8 (which i think is close to USD $1) and it states "The hotel assumes no liability for the use of the items"

i think i might like the kind of emergencies they have in China better than back in the USA!

what day is it and where am i?

2005-09-26T21:07:00.000-07:00

i got to the airport on sunday morning to find that my flight was delayed by 20 hours. Given how tight my travel schedule is - i would be pushing it to arrive before i had to catch my return flight. thanks to some fantastic creative juggling by United Airlines - i asked just get me to either Shanghai or Chengdu and they got me on another flight but different destination. As i was jogging through security i was emailing the folks i was suppose to meet with to change all the meetings around to match my new travel plans while the same time i was on the cell phone trying to change my hotel rooms. amazingly it all fell into place and here i am.

btw - it seems like i can make this post but i won't be able to read it. it appears that the internet has been blocked for certain sites and blogspot does not load.

news for tuesday

2005-08-30T22:14:00.000-07:00

Some quick news for a Tuesday night before the combination of tiredness and rum send me to bed:
• My nephew, Shane, is scheduled to throw out the first pitch in tomorrow’s (8/31) SF Giant’s game. Unfortunately I can’t make the game because of work but it’s scheduled to record.
• I introduced our exchange student, Not, to blogging. Find him here. But don’t believe the bits about us stealing his money or treating him bad [:)]
• The Smelly Monkeys continue their march to world domination with a video performance in Austin and a global listening audience

if you are reading this you're a rich young man

2005-08-26T08:38:00.000-07:00

an interesting article on the demographics of bloggers and podcasters. suggests the trend mirrors the evolution of the internet. I was a bit annoyed that i fell out of the age range but, i guess, on the internet is easy to lie about your age :)

http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1852423,00.asp

BTW- we have a new show out (#13) at www.smellymonkeys.com - please do us both a favor -> listen and tell a friend to listen

Satan and Britney’s virginity

2005-08-22T11:07:00.000-07:00

I usually don’t like impersonal posts that suggests some crappy mildly entertaining website but this deals with the very important messages hidden in backwards music including satan and Britney’s virginity

http://jeffmilner.com/backmasking.htm

Map not working & the Monkeys don't smell too bad

2005-08-22T10:35:00.000-07:00

i came back to check on my map and it doesn't seem to be working :(
it should be showing flags of the loction where visitors are sitting.
i made some tweaks to the code and we'll see if this makes a difference

On a different note, our Podcast; Smelly Monkeys, was reviewed by Vox Monitor over the weekend. Overall, not a bad review!

Where are you?

2005-08-15T14:03:00.000-07:00

I read about a cool little bit of code that let's to track where visitors to your site come from via google maps. Here's my map and here's where you can ready about the technology.

back home

2005-08-10T21:14:00.000-07:00

It’s been a long time since I’ve blogged – been v busy. I had an unexpected trip over to England to visit my Grandfather before he passed – it was sad but I was glad to be there. He lived a long life (91) and he passed peacefully with his family (including his new great grand-daughter) sitting around him.

Traveled back (wrong airport, middle seat, and lost luggage) to attend my wife’s family reunion in Lake Tahoe. This is an event they have every 5 years and it’s 3 sisters (one of which is my Mother-in-Law) and their extended family. This year there was >50 in attendance. Good to see everyone again.

now i'm back home.

tomorrow we have our exchange student from Thailand visiting.

a fun website

2005-07-13T13:37:00.000-07:00

sometimes you come across a website that you just need to share. this is one of those sites. enjoy – btw you can also move her around with our mouse.

Also btw – it’s my birthday today!

Bon Voyage

2005-07-08T15:49:00.000-07:00

Two very excited boys, two proud grandparents, one family friend, and six camouflaged boxes of white wine boarded the Regal Princess cruise ship yesterday for a 10 day trip to Alaska and back (we hope). As I was driving home from the dock (Pier 35 in San Francisco) this photo was delivered to my phone.

more smells from the monkeys

2005-07-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

You can now listen to Smelly Monkeys through an on-line player at http://www.podcastalley.com/podcast_details.php?pod_id=5531#

You can also vote for us as a "popular" show!

Smelly Monkeys

2005-07-01T21:04:00.000-07:00

Hi there! I'd like you to listen to our new podcast Smelly Monkeys at www.smellymonkeys.com.

This is a 10-15 minute internet based radio show that we are producing. It's called podcasting because many people download the show to listen on their mp3 player or iPod. But you can also listen via your computer.

There are some (confusing) tools that allow you to subscribe to the shows. Let me know if you want some help on the show.

what do you think?

2005-06-28T22:41:00.000-07:00

so one of my hobbies is making music. I've done this for a while but since i've had kids the subject matter has evolved. Here are two versions of a song i wrote this weekend. Your input on which and why would be much appreciated:

http://www.archive.org/download/Cant_Wear_That__B/cantwearthat3.mp3

http://www.archive.org/download/Cant_Wear_That__A/cantwearthat2.mp3

my "sob" story

2005-06-28T18:46:00.000-07:00

http://www.craigslist.org/sby/tix/81322676.html

Einstein/Kissinger in the morning

2005-06-27T09:56:00.000-07:00

I had to wake-up early this morning; 5am in order to make it to work for an early teleconference (now why I wake up early, shower, and drive 1 hour /35 miles to speak on a phone when there is one by the side of my bed is another question).

The moments after my alarm clock went off at 5:01am I discovered that I was, for a brief moment, channeling the minds of Einstein and Kissinger. My mind was quickly calculating the time of various morning tasks and negotiating what could be skipped in order to gain extra time in bed.

For example by not putting socks on I could save 46 seconds or button my shirt while in the car could equal 33.2 seconds. In the end I selected the ‘wear the jeans on the floor by my bed instead of picking out something from the closet’ (after all I’m just on the phone) and a combination ‘drink cup of coffee while getting the newspaper while letting the dog pee’.

I made it to my meeting in time.

Crusin'

2005-06-22T21:39:00.000-07:00

Simon & Trevor are preparing for an Alaska Cruise with their Grandparents

2005-06-22T21:38:00.000-07:00

the boys ready for crusin'

Ben F said . . .

2005-06-22T21:25:00.000-07:00

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results . . . in this case expecting the same results.

(not Folds)

Misc list

2005-06-21T11:04:00.000-07:00

I’ve been really busy at work lately and I haven’t had much time to blog so here is a quick hit list of items:

• Went to get contact lenses but I was told my eyes were not the right kind for the ‘soft multi-day disposable’ kind I wanted. So I ended up with a new glasses prescription. I had the “Eyewear Fashion Consultant” help me select a pair. Fancy, squarish, tinted . . . watch out ladies!
• Had a dental appointment for a cleaning. While she was scraping my teeth (a lovely experience) these loud rumbling sounds came from the tummy of my dental hygienist. To take my mind off the cleaning pain I tried to make up a song/poem – I got as far as “I hear a sound in my hygienist’s belly . . . I think she’s about to make something smelly”
• I had a fantastic father’s day! We got together with family and played tennis, went swimming, played guitar in the sun, ate BBQ, and drank good wine.
• No dead pets this week

morning

2005-06-07T14:57:00.000-07:00

I’ve heard it said that every picture tells a story, well picture this scene. (To give credit, it was my wife who pointed this out to me as I shuffled out the door)

I was leaving for work this morning with plans to drop the boys off at school on the way. I’m walking out the front door (or whatever sounds digital cameras make)

Me in my typical work clothes,

An overstuffed briefcase with a laptop, 2 PDA, 1 iPod, 1 GPS, an electric razor, and an assortment of paperwork & folders

An overnight bag for a business trip to Utah

A brown paper bag with my lunch (a salmon sandwich)

A photo of Simon’s first grade teacher in an astronaut suit sticking out of my shirt pocket

A flask of rum (see location of business trip)

And a go cup of coffee

And who said Tuesday mornings aren’t interesting

feeling between the toes

2005-06-03T08:31:00.000-07:00

Have you noticed that the air sick bags in the seat pockets on airplanes are not as ubiquitous as they use to be? This is an easy observation to make when the 7 yr old sitting next to you at 30,000 feet starts spewing vomit all over himself, his backpack, and you.

I cleaned up as best I could but three ominous reminders remain:

The backpack is still outside in the attempt to air out the smell

The Encyclopedia of Extreme Animals is crispy and stained and may have to be destroyed

The memory of chunky goo seeping through my sandal clad toes still scars my memory

BTW – the flight attendant finally brought some air sick bags after the eruptions had finished. We gladly accepted these for the car ride home but lucky they were not needed . . . but new Tevas might be on my birthday wish list.

Betta RIP

2005-06-02T10:14:00.000-07:00

Plop! “Goodbye Betta . . . sorry I never gave you a name . . . I know you will miss swimming around your rocks . . . you were a good fish” Flush! - while I quietly sing “You betta you betta you bet” and the non-evolving tadpole slowly swims around.

One Dead & One Close Call

2005-05-19T07:54:00.000-07:00

“Dad, Bones has turned white and isn’t moving”, called Simon. Sure enough, Bones, a previously transparent-ish fish (hence the name) was no longer transparent and was no longer with us. Trevor flushed while Simon grieved “Dad, can I get a turtle now?”

A few minutes later. “Dad, the tadpole (it lost it’s name after it’s partner died) is dead”, called Trevor. Trevor had dropped food in the frog habitat and the tadpole didn’t move then Trevor shook the habitat and the tadpole didn’t move. As I was walking the habitat to the ACDD (Aquatic Creature Disposal Device – AKA ‘toilet’), the tadpole moved and swam around a bit. He’s back on the shelf now . . . he’s not evolving, he doesn’t seem in the best health, and it’s hard to say he’s happy but in accordance with the wishes of senior Republican members of congress we intend to keep him around until intelligent design makes him flushable.

Once again Wisconsin makes the news . . .

2005-05-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

It’s not a very big state but it seems to collect more than it’s share of ‘newsmakers’. With a population only slightly larger than that of LA, Wisconsin must put up the welcome sign for a certain type of person. Sort of like how San Fran attracts gays and New York attracts artists, this state attracts . . . well you make up your own mind.

From the rural to the urban – even the state tourist motto is ‘WTF’

And now we have this! Note to men in Wisconsin (advice too late for one): do not let an angry woman with scissors tie you up.

On the other hand 15 stitches . . . impressive bragging rights?

Woman Charged With Cutting Husband's Penis - Yahoo! News

Weekend in Review

2005-05-16T07:41:00.000-07:00

Monday morning after a fun weekend starts with a 7am conference call about HR Data Confidentiality (yawn). This weekend the boys played (& won) a baseball game, had a friend sleepover which included a XBOX tournament, fishing derby, held a garage sale (but mainly ended up trading items with our next door neighbor), watched our minor league baseball team, a bonfire at our neighbors house, tide pooling at the beach, a grueling tennis match in the mid-day sun, the boys went bowling for a birthday party, and we capped it off by seeing my niece, Gabby, in the musical “You’re a good man Charlie Brown”.

Two items of note:
* Trevor, who was at first reluctant to go, won the fishing derby by pulling an 11 ¼ trout from the creek. The poor fish put up a fight and splattered blood all over us – it was like Carrie at the Prom. Trevor won a new fishing pole and the trout is in the freezer.
* Simon wanted to keep a diary so I told him about blogs. I helped him get set-up and he was away – you can find his blog at “SiSi BlogBlog”

Evolve, damn it!

2005-05-12T13:16:00.000-07:00

Long time back we brought tadpoles in to our home. Following tradition one died due to some over/under application of care (e.g. over fed, under fed or under cleaned, over cleaned, etc) but the other one still lives . . . well sort of. We’ve had this blob with a tail zipping around in murky water for about 2 months now. In 2 months of tadpole time the thing should have graduated to froggie middle age, right? I turned to the Uncle for the answer. According to Uncle Milton’s tadpole department FAQ:

The type of tadpole we provide is the Leopard Frog tadpole. Their scientific name is Rana pipien. This species is native to most of North America.

We captive-breed our own frogs and we make sure that the tadpoles are clean and healthy. We nurture the tadpoles until they are almost ready to metamorphose. This process allows the tadpoles to be stronger, so they can withstand the trip through the mail. Also, you will not have to wait the usual three months for the tadpole to complete its metamorphosis into a frog.

The vast majority of tadpoles go on to develop into adult frogs. Occasionally, a tadpole will not metamorphose, but will just remain a tadpole

Alas - I think we may have the Rudy of tadpoles. Is there no froggie greater being? What kind of cruel joke is it that Buffalo or Treeco (which ever survived) may not ever metamorphose? Maybe we should go back to hamsters . . .

My mother and the faith healer.

2005-04-29T15:27:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I was diagnosed with RA. It’s not a very pleasant illness but I don’t want to take the place of a certain someone’s Jewish Aunt with descriptions of woe and doom. Suffice to say that (1) I was diagnosed, (2) there’s no cure just medicine to slow the progression and ease the symptoms, and (3) my Mum was upset about the news.

So upset that this normally conservative down to earth woman resorted to the mystical world of faith and religion to save me . . . or at least help me. This is not actually an isolated incident, recently she resort to the mystical world of faith and luck when she got me in contact with her financial advisor.

This is how it happened. They were being visited in their home in Texas by a friend of the mother of my sister-in-law (this branch of the family tree is an increasing interesting and entertaining source of fruit). In the normal flow of conversation they got to the standard topic of “what horrible afflictions do your children have?”. I’m not sure if my mother was working down the list sequentially or alphabetically but my RA finally came up. The woman she was talking to related a story that she was also diagnosed with the disease several years ago. The blood test came back positive and the symptoms were pretty bad. She was living in Japan at the time and because there’s strength in numbers American’s who normally wouldn’t socialize would now hang out together. This is how she met a couple on a missionary in Japan. Their mission was (1) convert the Japanese to Christianity and (2) convert them to a fork instead of eating with sticks. Anyway to speed up the story . . . this woman was, as she put it, not very religious (btw this is a brave thing to say in Texas as they execute for less) but she allowed these people to ‘pray heal’ her. As she put, what did she have to lose? Well apparently it worked! She was cured much to her surprise and her Doctors.

Upon hearing this mother quickly dialed my number and shoved the phone to this poor woman. I could hear my Mum crooning in the background “tell him your story . . . amen . . . praise be . . . share the truth . . .”

She was very nice and re-told me her story.

I found it very interesting.

At the end I asked her “so . . . are you religious now?”

“No . . . not really”, she said

I found it very interesting.

Simon’s Story

2005-04-27T13:23:00.000-07:00

The Boy Who Called Desk!
Simon’s Story
April 27, 2005

Once upon a time, there was this old man, he was on the
sidewalk walking one day and he saw a desk. Nothing
happened. Then a boy walked right behind him and the
desk moved it’s legs and used it’s hypno-ring to hypnotize the boy
with a spell so that every time he saw a desk he would shout DESK!
The next day the boy saw 1,000,000 desks. Seeing this many
desks broke the spell and he no longer shouted DESK while he was
in class. His teacher was so happy that the spell was finally
broken!

The end.

Hiking in the Rain

2005-04-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend something unusual happened in California – it rained. The reaction was immediate: the kids’ baseball game was cancelled, the cub scout camping trip was cancelled, and the TV networks urged everyone to stay inside under the sun lamp.

We rebelled and went out for a hike. Me and a friend, 4 1st grade aged boys, 2 dogs, and a whole bunch of mud. We headed for a geocache in nearby park and went on a trail that I hadn’t been on before. It was a great hike with redwoods, streams, and trails up & down hills. We got wet, we got muddy, and we had fun!

new baby

2005-04-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

i'm an uncle

http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~egerton/egertonblog/

Sounds

2005-04-13T12:24:00.000-07:00

What Am I Listening To Right Now?

A) Sounds of gas erupting from my body
B) Right wing propaganda broadcast via my dental fillings
C) The muffled screams of the person locked in the closet
D) Guero: Beck’s latest album

This was a bit of a trick question, but the sound I’m actually paying attention to right now is Beck’s new album. It’s good – it reminds me of Odelay but a bit more mature (that being said,IMO, if you didn’t like Odelay you probably won’t like Guero).

BTW – is “album” the right term now? It use to be called “album release” but then it went to “CD release” but now with iTunes what is a CD?

WACK

2005-04-12T13:50:00.000-07:00

Wisconsin Association of Cat Killers?

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&e=1&u=/ap/killing_wild_cats

Fly Like a Beagle

2005-04-11T14:10:00.000-07:00

So my business trip is over and the black power pants carried my butt through the meeting. Recently I’ve been traveling a lot more for business and maybe it’s me, but it seems like coach class is going down hill. The seats seem smaller, the drinks are more expensive, the only food is a bag of stale pretzels, and the fellow passengers are … well let’s just say the human zoo has better exhibits than the specimens that I’ve had the pleasure to sit next to recently:

On the way to Arizona I sat next to a seemingly pleasant grandma. I know she was a grandma because she kept on tapping my arm to get me to turn off my iPod so she could share the family history along with snapshots and various family gossip. Despite the banal banter I didn’t mind the old bird until about 12,000 ft when she started complaining about everything: the weather, the cost of milk, her daughter-in-law, computers, people who sit next to her on planes, etc.

On the way to Utah it was a nervous chatty fatty. This woman had a fear of flying and spent most of the flight describing it in context of her up bringing and her current & past relationships. This, by on its own, is nothing that a few rum & cokes can’t cure, but this woman was so large that she took up a seat and a half . . . and that half seat was occupied by me. Putting down the arm rest was not and option and I spent 110 minutes of my life rubbing against her.

Next week I’m due in Sacramento but I think I’m driving :)

BTW - Here's a song i wrote 10 yrs ago about a similar situation.