Views from the Winter Porch

It’s winter here and today it’s REALLY winter. The wind is howling, snow is blowing and it’s cold. This winter is one of the toughest we have had yet, though I am sitting in a nice, warm home in my shirtsleeves as I type this. I can’t help but reflect on my ancestors out in this weather with nothing but wool clothing and a drafty cabin to keep them warm. A fire is only good for so much heat and in those days a lot went up the flue. No wonder the harvest had to be good, they would have died without it (and they did).

I have camped in this type of weather in Colorado and remember that almost all of our time was spent gathering fuel for the fire, preparing meals, cleaning up after meals and then sleeping. There was some time for fun, but only 10% or so. That was with Goretex, down insulated sleeping bags and high tech tents. I was never really wet that time and enjoyed battling the elements and winning. Another time, it was more difficult. A word of advice, if you are in the snow, don’t just wear jeans. If you wear jeans, don’t get them wet. If you get them wet, DON’T take them off and leave them outside your sleeping bag at night. I cannot describe to you the exquisite pain of putting on frozen, rough jeans in the morning. Suffice it to say that it is one of the few times in my life I have screamed in pain. Lesson well learned......

Mom just got back from the Temple and as she walked out of the warm building and into this weather she thought, “Wow, this is like going from the Celestial Kingdom to the Telestial!” ‘Nuf said...

Views from the Porch January 2008

As you can see, I am having fun with this new blogging toy. Three posts in one day... Whew!

Occasionally I do a series of pictures from my porch. This may seem unusual but I have a GREAT view from my porch, one that I rarely get tired of. Sure, there are other houses with big, blank walls everywhere, but if you look near or far, the pictures are stunning at times.

This time I chose to look near. As a kid, I loved icicles and loved to watch them form. I was always amazed at how they melted and grew at the same time. Stalactites and Stalagmites carry a similar fascination, but I just don’t have the patience or time to watch them form. Icicles are different, transient and beautiful if you catch them on the right day.

We had a storm that dumped about 14“ of snow in our front yard on Monday, so today we have icicles! If you look close, you can see them forming and dripping at the same time. Mayflies, icicles and humans, it’s their brief lives that fascinate us.

They also just came and towed the Mercedes, who knows when it will be back.

Grandparents and the MacBook

After many years of being tech support for my family, I decided to try a new tack. Grandpa Dave asked me about a computer. Of course, being a Mac head, I recommended a Mac. I made the switch almost 2 years ago and I still love my Mac. No security headaches, no spyware, viruses or anything. The only glitches I have had is with Parallels and BootCamp on the Windows side.

So, yesterday after a nice lunch at Mimi’s off we went to BestBuy, CompUSA and ultimately the Apple store where we bought a shiny new MacBook (white). They opted for a year of one on one training (a bargain at $99) where they can come in weekly for one year for one hour one on one sessions. I am hoping that they stick with it and complete the course, they will learn a lot and make my job easier. :-)

Last night I set it up for them and all went well except for wireless issues not related to the Mac. The many intervening walls in their house weakened the signal. So, after about an hour of fussing with things and an extended phone call with my brother in law who is a DSL installer we got it to work where they wanted it to, albeit with lower signal strength than I would like.

I installed NeoOffice for the Mac, a great freeware program for word processing, presentations and spreadsheets. I also installed some games because Nana is addicted to Mahjongg and Solitaire. All was working when I left late last night so we shall see how they adapt to the Mac. I am curious because simplicity and ease of use are hallmarks of Apple. This will be an acid test for Leopard. If they can use it productively and quickly, I will be eternally grateful to the guys who designed it. I am worried about that wireless connection, though......

Luxury Cars

Are luxury cars really worth it? I own a Mercedes ML 350 and as much as we love the ride, the comfort and that certain “germanic” quality, we hate the maintenance. Case in point, Mom spent the day and evening with Nana and Grandpa, they went to lunch and I helped them buy a new MacBook (more on this later). After several hours, she got back in her car and when she tried to turn the wheel, it wouldn’t, not easily anyway. She did manage to muscle it home with power steering by Armstrong and then told me as I was on my way home that there was something wrong with the steering. “Crap!” I thought and when I came home I was greeted with a puddle of power steering fluid and steering that would not work. Hopefully, it’s just a cracked hose, but with Mercedes, it will be $2000 for a new power steering pump. So far, here is what has happened to this vehicle since 2004:

- New brakes front and back twice (80,000 miles on the car)
- Internal fiber network breakdown (fixed under warranty)
- Three sets of tires
- One accident (not our fault, but necessitated several trips to the repair shop)
- Air conditioning breakdown (fixed under warranty)
- Heated seat failure (fixed under warranty)
- About $1000 per year on regular maintenance

Well, you get the idea. This is just what I remember. I could go back through the records, but that would be a waste of time. On average, we spend $2000 per year or more on maintenance. Over 4 years, that would have almost paid off this car or been a down payment on a decent used vehicle.

So, my conclusion? This Mercedes has not been worth it. I should have bought an Acura or Lexus, at least they have good reliability track records, but then Mercedes has that reputation, doesn’t it?

ps. The tow truck is on it’s way <<sigh>>

Testing New Software

I am testing a new piece of software called MacJournal. As I write blog entries, I find that I am concerned that all this family history will be lost to posterity. So, looking for ways to keep it in both places. We will see how it works.

For VBug

This is for my granddaughter, who loves this song.....

Woodpecker in Snow

Birds have always been harbingers of good things for Mom and I. When we lived in Denver there were many hard times. Looking back, I wonder how we survived the months without work, no money, no food in some cases and no safety net whatsoever. During those times, flocks of birds always seemed to come and settle in our yard for a day or two just before something good happened. Jobs would pop up out of nowhere or we would get a bit of extra cash or someone would be extra kind to us after the birds landed in our yard.

Getting older does have it's benefits but age does not come with health benefits. I have gotten a string of annoying news lately regarding my health and as a result, have been worrying about it. Nothing really serious, but enough to make me look at my mortality and how much time I actually have. It has been something to pray about. So here come our friends again to reassure us.

Several weeks ago, I heard a banging on our porch, as I went to investigate, I saw a bird fly away. Thinking it was a one time annoyance, brushed it off. A couple of weeks later, I went out on the porch again and noticed something on the ceiling and thinking it was a wasp nest or something, was going to pull it down. However, it wasn't a wasp nest, it was a woodpecker. A woodpecker seeking shelter from our winter weather. It has been there ever since. Looking it up, it appears to be a gila woodpecker, common to the Southwest US. It also looks like a Flicker or Northern Flicker, but hard to say. It's female, since there is no color around the head and neck.

I really don't mind it living there, it's a harbinger of good, so it can stay as long as it wants. Since it has been there, work has improved, I am exercising and it looks like I am going back to my beloved Japan at least one more time, for a month. We will see if this little brown bird is truly the harbinger of something special, it's special seeing her there every day.

Ramblin'

Words and feelings are difficult beasts to wrangle. Most writers say that stories tell themselves and that hey get lost in what they write. Those times of focus and clarity, knowing just what to say and how to say it are rare and precious. A lifetime of feelings, all jumbled and burdened with experience can only be approached like the Gordian Knot, with a sword. In this case, the word does become the sword.

**sigh**

I am over thinking this as usual.

Let's just say the mountain gets steeper the longer you climb. Different rocks, different trees, different streams to cross; but the slope is always there. It is always climbable, with a little help. I hope I can continue to help my family climb higher than I am able.

Not what I intended to say, but hey, it's just a ramble on a blog.

Happy New Year!

2007 is over and while it has been interesting, 2008 appears to be even more so with 3 new grandsons coming. We have baby A, baby B and Baby C. Babies A and B are twins and C is the 6th generation of eldest son of eldest son, etc. I am really happy that our name will be carried on by my eldest, it is something that is important to me.

Twins, that will be a revelation and a handful. My brother had twins and they were terrors. Stole a car at age 4. Good kids now, but really rambunctious then. We will see how this set turns out. Mostly I just want them healthy.

Well, it's late (or early) so I am off.

Happy New Year everyone (all 6 of you who read)

Dad