Packing, storing, organizing!

Well, we started packing this week for our move to Montana. It has been a slow & chaotic process to say the least. Its really amazing how much we have accumulated since we got married.

I have to admit though its been "fun" for me. I have this weird personality (quirk) where I enjoy sorting and organizing things. Today, I worked on the garage. A daunting task for some but for me it was exciting. I sorted through all my nails, screws, and bolts organizing them in their respectable categories. I put all my sockets and tools in their rightful place. I had a system, a nice pace. The weather was perfect. ESPN radio playing in the background. Honestly, hours went by and I barely noticed....

We still have a lot more to go which is fine by me. Next week the kitchen. I can hardly wait!!

I bought cat food for my dog yesterday

I decided on my lunch break to go to Petsmart to get DOG food for Jack. But instead I bought cat food. You heard me right. I bought cat food for my dog and now your probably wondering why? Let me try explain what goes on in my little head. :)

So Jack, is on a special food. We found out that they sell that kind of food at Petsmart. Which was convenient and a little cheaper. So I grabbed a big bag and stood in a long line. There was only 1 choice for a cashier.

When it got to my turn the cashier asked me if I had a prescription for this "cat" food. I panicked! What? A prescription? Cat food?! The line was really long behind me and I said what was the first thing that came to my mind...

"Oh, I didn't know I had to have my prescription. I think I left it at home."

At this point all I wanted to do was to get out of there as fast as I can! I was embarrassed and I felt a little guilty, like I was trying to buy a bag of food w/o approval. How could I do such a thing?!?

I had a prescription. It was at home. But it wasn't for CAT FOOD!

She began telling me why they require it. What the food is all about. How it works, etc etc etc. I told her, "No problem. I'll just go home and get prescription and I can leave this "cat" food here and get it later!"

I guess she felt bad for me. Maybe she saw the fear on my face or how it was bright red. So she said, "I'll tell you what. I'll let you get this bag of CAT food this time. But in the future make sure to bring the prescription"

Well, wasn't she nice!

So I found myself in a bad situation.

a. do i fess up and say oh i meant to get dog food and risk the chance everyone in the line and the cashier would think I was lying about the prescription or that I had brain trauma in my childhood.

OR

b. Buy the cat food.

Guess what I did? I took option b and now i have a $50 bag of cat food.....

This is the story of my life.....

Now I have to go back and return it.....

Why do I do these things to myself.....

baby bird almost takes flight

As some of you might know, we have a nest full of purple martins right above our front door of our house. They come every year flying to and from South America. This year they had several baby birds!

Two of the babies are hanging out on the ground near the front door close to momma and pappa. It seems they are not quite ready for flying yet. Katie and I have to go through the garage door to avoid any accidents!

This morning, one of the babies got some encouragment from momma bird and found their way to the front yard about 15 feet from their nest. The baby bird was flapping it wings really hard and running fast with momma bird right behind. Unfortunately, the baby bird ended up crossing the sidewalk all the way to the busy street! The baby bird just sat there waiting for direction.

After a few minutes I took it upon myself to do some encouraging as well and helped the baby bird make its way back to the yard. I wonder by the time I get back home if the baby bird will have learned how to fly! I hope the other baby bird learns from their big brother!

Here are some more pictures! Hope you enjoy!

Heartworms

Got news on Friday that Jack has heart worms. Took him to the vet this morning for pre-diagnostics which includes, exam, blood profile, radiograph's, and an urinalysis. They need to check his heart, liver & kidneys before they begin the treatment.

Once he's cleared for treatment, they will keep him in the hospital for 2 days injecting him with an Immidicide which is suppose to kill the worms. We then have to wait 3 weeks for additional exams and oral medicine. By week 5, we will test him again and if negative begin monthly heart worm prevention.

Our vet said Wylie has seen more positive cases then normal. She said its due to the nearby lake. Heart worm comes from misqutoe bites. They lay larvae in the blood stream. She said for outside dogs like Jack, its almost certain w/o prevention a dog will get heart worms.

The procedure is pretty safe and successful. So, I'm not too worried. Plus Jack is a fighter. A few days after he was born, my old vet diagnoised him with parvo. Telling me he had 4 days to live. Got a 2nd opinion and they said it was a stomach virus. They perscribed Tamiful, the same stuff used to fight swine flu for humans. Within a few days he was fine!

I miss him a ton and cant wait to get him home soon. He was so excited about going. I wonder if he'll change his mind the next time we visit the vet. :P

Owens Farm

Katie and I took a tour of Owens Farm in Richardson the other day. A much needed break. We fed the goats, said hi to two 1 week old pony's and saw a tiny baby goat. They were cute of course. We got really close to a huge horse named Midnight. Midnight made the big bulls look really tiny. Here are some pictures we took on our cell phone of our fun adventure. Hope you like.




We were alittle nervous with these longhorns. They didnt seem too happy with us touching their horns.








This little guy got his head stuck in the fence!!








It was slimy. Had to wash our hands afterwards!










I was having way to much fun! :)







Katie fed them as fast as possible. :)

Inspiration

This is what helps me get through my work day!!!

:)

Radio Lab

I just started following radiolab on twitter. :)

If you havent heard of radiolab you are missing out on some of the most interesting topics of discussion. You can download the podcasts or listen directly on their website.

Radiolab is a hour long show about curiosity. Each episode is an investigation - a patchwork of people, sounds, stories all centered around one big idea.

I promise its definately worth checking out. And then maybe one day you'll follow them too on twitter. :)

My next project :)

http://www.cigarboxguitar.com/build.html

Some of you might know that Katie and I have been contemplating on giving Jack away. Its been on our minds for a while now. More on mine then Katie. She has been very supportive throughout all this. It seems every time I get serious about it, the very next day I change my mind. Its really hard to make decision to let go on something that been a part of your life for so long.

Yesterday I typed up an ad with a picture. The picture I had was old so I asked Katie to take a new one today. She sent me these below..... Isn't he cute?

Life is confusing. I don't get it sometimes. He's a dog right? Why I am so attached to him? Why would I even consider giving him away?

The beginnings of Compost....

Katie and I have decided to do a little composting! To start we created a simple compost tumbler made out of a plastic food grade barrel we picked up from Craigslist. We used treated 2x6 lumber for the stand (carriage bolts, deck screws to hold it together). For the barrel to flip upside down we used a galvanized 3/4" pipe about 36" long to act as the axle.


Inside the center of the barrel is a 3" PVC pipe with drilled holes to help aerate the material inside. It has a screen we glued on the end of the flange to prevent any bee's from making nests and to keep any rodents out that sneak by Jack our friendly dog.



For our materials inside, we started with a mix of dried up and green grass clippings and leaves. We also added shredded newspaper, pizza box, and straw. We went through our fridge and freezer to find old veggies and fruits. Lettuce, green beans, carrots, banana peels, etc. Whatever we could find that was no longer edible. No picture was taken of the inside yet. Trust me its probably better that way. :)

The hope is in the next 6 to 8 weeks we will have a nice pile of compost to use for Katie's garden and our newly planted trees and shrubs. We'll keep you posted on the results.

What am I going to do?

Katie left to Virginia last night to see her brother's graduation ceremony. I miss her a ton. I realized very quickly how much I need her in my life. So as she often does, I created a list of events while she has been gone:

1. It was really cold in bed last night. I forgot to turn off the ac and I had the fan going full blast. Doh! My throat was sore in the morning! What was I thinking. The small thin blanket was no help. I tossed and turned all night. I think I was confused which direction I should face. My legs were confused too. I miss my snuggle/tickle partner!

2. I had no idea what to do for dinner. It seems I forgotten how to cook. So I panicked and ate McDonalds. Needless to say I was hungry the rest of the night. I did however find a bag of chocolate chips to hold me down. I think they are for baking. I had about 5 handfuls while watching Biggest Loser and pacing around until I got tired.

3. I thought it would be smart to write down a to do list to keep me busy. However, I couldn't do any of it. Instead, I played my guitar until my fingers bled (not literately). I played, How to be a Tycoon on Facebook and channel surfed on TV. I was really frustrated with myself. I cant stand not doing something I had planned. So today will be better! See my new list below.

1. Cook dinner or go to Whataburger whichever is easier
2. Exercise 24 hour fitness
3. Pick up plastic barrel for Compost Tumbler (maybe)
4. Turn off AC and get thick comforter! Don't forget this one!
5. If not raining mow yard.
6. If frustrated disregard all the above, except #4 and RELAX!!!

Well, I better go back to work. Wish me luck! Or better yet PRAY FOR ME!!!!

Web Comes Alive

It seems Nortel is on the news again, but this time its for good reasons. Nortel has been working on a project called web.alive. Its our attempt to move into the 3d world. You can read more about it by going to www.projectchainsaw.com.

Basically, a company, lets say an electronic store wants to sale their products online. Typically you can search through their products by category, read reviews left by people or compare products specs. But that approach isn't very dynamic. Sometimes its nice to hear what others customers are asking. See the product in your hands. Bottom line, you loose a lot of the interactions you would normally get in person by shopping online.

web.alive combines the online experience with in-person experience.

First, you start by creating an avatar. This is a computer person you create. Its similar to Nintendo's WI or Xbox 360 avatars. If you don't know ask you kids. They know. You can then walk your avatar in to a virtual store all in 3D. Lets say you see on the shelf a sweet flat panel TV you like. Well, you can walk over to that TV, click on the product to watch a video demo or see specs, costs, etc.

Or take it up a notch. You can walk over to a live employee and ask direct questions using a USB headset. They can hear you and you can hear them all live. Or lets say you walk up to a customer in the store. You can speak to them too. Ask them questions that maybe are not found on the FAQ link. Or just say hi. The technology allows you to hear others who are online shopping with you. The sound technology is based on distance in this 3D world. So walk away and you cant hear the person talking anymore. Walk up to someone and ease drop on their conversation. Listen to the employee talk to another customer. Or just mute someone because you don't want to hear them at all.

Its truly endless what you could do with this product. E-Commerce, school environments or a training seminar, its taking the web and making it come alive!

It might not completely replace going to the store but it sure would make things convenient and cool!