Oil Change

I'm getting better at changing the oil on the cars. I changed out both the Alero and the Bravada today. It would have gone a lot smoother if I had done a little pre-planning, but I got both cars done. Sure, I could have taken them to an oil change place and had them both done in under an hour for $40, but why choose the path of least resistance? I was all set to get to work around 1pm when I realized that I didn't have oil filters. So I made a quick run to Pep Boys to get the filters. I also decided to pick up air filters for both cars, as both had been running for about 18,000 miles without a change. Two air filters, two oil filters, and a 3-pack of air fresheners and I was on my way home, $45 poorer.

When I got home, all the kids in the neighborhood volunteered to help me out. Corbin wanted to know why his daddy was crawling under the car. With all that help, I was successful in both removing the oil plug without dropping it, and removing the oil filter without dropping that either. Here is where the pre-planning flaw comes in again though. The Bravada took 8 quarts of oil to fill up. That was all I had leftover from my last effort. That meant another trip to Pep Boys so for 5 quarts of oil for the Alero. As I was getting into my car, I noticed that the back tires were looking really low. I got out the air gauge and saw that the rear driver's side tire was down to just 5psi. I detoured over to Tire Barn, and they said that the bead between the tire and the rim had corroded and was leaking air. They fixed it and filled up the tire, free of charge. I love that place! I bought a set of tires from them a while back, and they've really taken care of me.

Back home with five quarts and another bottle of windshield wiper fluid and I took care of the Alero. Here again, I'm bitten by the pre-planning thing. After changing out all of the oil, I had a bunch of spent oil and no place to put it. I had stored 12 quarts of spent oil from the last set of changes in barrel through the winter, intending to put it in milk jugs for return to a oil change shop for recycling. We had put away some milk jugs, but those were no where to be found. The barrel doesn't have a lid, so taking that wasn't an option. I decided to pour the spent oil back into the original containers. Using those and an empty windshield wiper fluid bottle, I managed to get it all stored. Success!

Another task I took on was to router the cabling for the Sirius receiver through the car. I pulled up the plastic runners by the passenger door and hid the antenna cable through there. I also discovered an extra lighter plug on the passenger side, and used that to keep the Sirius power cord from dangling down the center console. There are still some things I would like to fix, but this was a good day. I just need to get the hazard light button re-mounted (it fell back into the dash) and replace the low water coolant level detector (regardless of how much coolant is in the tank, the idiot light always blinks) and the car will be back to mint condition.

New King of the Castle

For the past couple of years, I have held the title of "King of the Castle" at Flexware. I earned the title by eating a record number of White Castle burgers, also known as Slyders, in a single sitting. In a one hour period, I ate 17 sandwiches. It was a mixed lot of chicken, chicken with cheese, fish, hamburgers, and cheeseburgers, but 17 was the record. This beat the previous record held by my coworker Josh, who had choked down 15 of the little steamy burgers in his last record attempt. The record stood at 17, hovering out there for anyone to try for it.

Now that I am about to leave Flexware, I was afraid that the title might be permanently retired. I wasn't about to let that happen. So today I went to the castle to feed the crave. I picked up three crave cases, one plain, one with cheese, and one with cheese but no pickles. A crave case holds 30 Slyders, so I was packing 90 sandwiches when I strolled back into the office. I was sort of debating whether to get two or three cases, and it was a good choice to go for the three.

Everyone was sitting anxiously at the lunch table as I returned. Eyes lit up as the boxes of Slyders entered the room. I distributed the cases, and we began to dive in. I tried to act as a pace setter, and quickly downed my first five burgers. Josh laughed with a bit mirth, and continued his onslaught. Others at the table (Hack, Kevin, Jeff, Dwayne) made respectible efforts, but fell short of the goal. Others tentatively tried a couple of Slyders, some for the first time. They were with us in spirit at least. In the end, I decided to make a strategic stop at burger 11, recalling the incredible amount of pain I endured during my record night.

Josh, cheered on by the growing crowd, continued to pound down one White Castle after another. Asked if he was getting full he replied, "I'm not full, but I'm getting really tired of eating." The warrior pressed on, and at the end of the hour time slot had completed a new record of 20 White Castle burgers. Josh has my respect, and the new title of King of the Castle.

I Hate the Weed Eater

Sorry, this is a gripe post. I hate using the weed eater (aka string trimmer, edger, angry hornet....). I try to put it off as long as I can, which usually means I run it about once a month. When I do, it is always a pain. First, it takes a special fuel-oil mix that I can never remember the ratio for. So I usually make up a gallon and it will last all year. Of course, by the end of the year the fuel and oil are becoming sort of a slurry goo, which I know isn't good for the motor. Next, our trimmer is not the easiest thing to start. I'm starting to get down the order of incantantations and black magic spells necessary to start it. Usually, it involves some language not befitting young ears, and severe abuse of my arm and shoulder as I pull on the starter line. Everyone once in a while the starter line hitches on something and I feel like I just about ripped my arm off. And you can't just start it. Here are the steps as I've figured them out so far:

1. Insert ear plugs, and apply PPE (personal protective equipment)
   
2. Top off fuel
   
3. Prime fuel line with 3 to 5 pumps on the primer
   
4. Turn the choke completely off
   
5. Pull starter cord several times
   
6. Curse
   
7. Continue pulling starter cord until motor turns over a couple of times
   
8. Switch choke to middle position
   
9. Continue pulling starter cord
   
10. Curse louder, forgetting ear plugs are in and that everyone in the neighborhood can hear you
    
11. Continue pulling until motor starts
    
12. Flip choke to full-open position and hope it doesn't die and flood the motor
    

Approximately 70% of the time, this method works. The other 30%, the motor floods and I have to start all over. Grrr....

Of course, now you've just gotten started with the trimmer. Now begins the process of traversing the yard looking for stuff to clip. Usually the light post, mailbox, trees, house perimeter, and fence are on the list. The fence is the worst part. If I get too close, I tear up the fence. Not close enough, and it looks like I didn't trim. All the while the trimmer is spraying very small, very hard bits of tundra in every direction. Inevitably, either the spool of string runs out or gets jammed, which requires shutting down the trimmer, fixing the problems, and repeating steps 1 through 11 above.

Once I've finished with the trimmer, I have a fine coating of grass from head to toe. My hands are always completely shot at this point due to all of the vibration from the trimmer. The reason that this comes up today is that I ran the trimmer yesterday, and after two full showers I'm still finding clippings. My eyes are the worst part. I wear my glasses while I trim, but it doesn't keep everything from getting in. I found a nearly inch long blade of grass in my eye one time. Fortunately, no damage done.

Anyway, I think that helped to vent my frustration with the trimmer.

High Score

I'm pretty proud of this high score. I was given many gifts throughout life: great family, a good set of brains, a healthy body.... but rhythm was never one of those gifts. Donkey Konga is a game all about rhythm, and this is my high score playing on the medium difficulty level on a very hard song (7 out of 8 bananas on the difficulty scale). I love electronic music, and I'm a big Crystal Method fan, so maybe I had a little bit of an advantage on this one.

Donkey Konga is fun in so many ways, it is really hard to explain. First, it is fun to try and get the beats down, because when I started I felt like I was just smacking at the bongos. Jenn and I had a good time laughing at ourselves and how bad we were to start. It is also fun to challenge yourself on some of the songs, just to see if you can keep up. Another way it is fun is when you get into the groove of one of the songs and you don't really have to concentrate on hitting the right note... it just sort of happens. Ahhhh... the zen of Donkey Konga.....

Okay, it's 2am and I've been playing for over 4 hours.... time to get some shut eye.

Game Finished - Donkey Kong Jungle Beat

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is the game that came with my second set of bongos for the GameCube. It is a fairly simple game where you tap the left drum to run left, tap the right drum to run right, tap both drums to jump, and clap to perform an action. The game is fast paced, but even though there is a lot going on on-screen, there isn't much to the game. All you have to do is beat the heck out of the drums and clap like a mad-man and you'll get through just fine. Each level is made up of three scenes: two platform action scenes and a final boss fight. This was the game that was on display at Fry's that enticed us to get the drums in the first place. The game is so easy to pickup and play that anyone could have a good time beating on the drum. It's great stress relief too!

I played for a couple of hours tonight and managed to beat the game. Once you figure out the basics, it isn't too difficult to play through. Even though it was easy to beat, it was a lot of fun. Anyone out there who has a GameCube would probably enjoy this game.

Oh, and the picture is of my score after beating the final boss

Job Change

Friday I made a major change. I submitted my two-week notice at Flexware. Flexware has been a great employer for me for nearly five years, but the time has come to move on. I am headed down the road a ways to Integral Technologies. I have high hopes that this is going to be an excellent career move for me. Integral was recently acquired through its parent company by Schneider Electric. Schneider is looking to use Integral as a way to grow revenue quickly, and is infusing the business with an incredible amount of money. Integral plans to grow through both new product offerings and acquisitions of other businesses. I'm hoping that I can get to know integral and within a couple of years put my MBA learning to good use in assisting with those acquisitions and new product developments.

I'm making this move with a bit of a heavy heart. Flexware was a great employer, and I made some incredible bonds with the folks there. It was a really difficult decision to make. I was comfortable at Flexware. I probably could have continued to work there for the rest of my life, collecting a check every other week and putting in my hours. There is something inside me that demands that I go after that carrot though. So a couple of months ago I started looking at the jobs that were out there. I made it to the final interview stage for the Director of IT position at SaveItNow!, but was turned down in the end for lack of executive management experience. I received an offer from a contract operation here in Fishers, but contracting is not at all what I'm looking for, so I turned that down. I also reached the final interview stage with Radian Research in Lafayette. I was well on my way to receiving an offer letter from them, but Jenn and I decided that we really like it here in Fishers, and we wanted to stay. In addition to that, it didn't seem that they could offer me any more than Flexware already did, other than a title upgrade to Senior PC Software Architect. So I turned that opportunity down.

I was really excited when I learned about the opportunity with Integral though. The company deals with subjects that I find very interesting: security, access control, automation, video storage and playback. That the company was local and going through a big growth spurt was just icing on the cake. I had a phone interview on Thursday, face-to-face interviews the next Tuesday, and an offer letter on Thursday. I feel really fortunate that I was able to find everything I was looking for right here in Fishers.

So to my Flexware friends - I'm going to miss you all a lot. I'm still in the area though, and I'll be sure to stop in from time to time to say hi. I wish you all the very best, and I know that you will be very successful in the future. You have too many good people not to be.

Game of the Moment : Donkey Konga 2

There is a new addiction in our house, and it is Donkey Konga 2. For our anniversary, Jenn gave me a "coupon" for anything I wanted at Fry's (within reason), and she said I couldn't justify it. That meant it had to be something totally for fun. We went in a couple of weeks ago to browse around, and we walked by the DanceDanceRevolution (DDR) kiosk. DDR is a rhythm game where you try to dance to the beat, and the game cues you to what you should do. There is mat on the floor with spaces to jump on, like in twister, and you get high scores based on how in rhythm you are, and if you hit the right spot. I had always wanted to try one of these, and thought it would make a great exercise program. Anything that mixes video games with exercise is going to be a surefire hit with me.

I sucked at it! Of course, it was my first time, but I was really bad. It didn't help that one of my coworkers happened by with his camera phone at the same time. I got a little gunshy at that point. Fortunately, right next door to the DDR setup was a Donkey Kong Jungle Beat game setup. This is a GameCube game where you play a set of bongos and Donkey Kong does things on the screen. Corbin took to it right away, and Jenn and I both thought it was pretty neat. It was also much less than a DDR setup, as I already have the Nintendo, and the Bongos run $50 with a game, or $30 without. To get setup to play DDR I would need to buy an XBOX or a Playstation 2, dancepads, and a game. That was going to run a minimum of $300. I knew I had a major paper coming up, though, and decided not to get anything to make sure I could study.

My willpower ran out on Friday. Jenn called me at work and said she was hungry for Chinese. She also dropped the hint that Fry's was on the way. That was all it took for me. I dropped in the Fry's, picked up two sets of bongos with the Donkey Kong Jungle Beat and Donka Konga 2 games. It is a BLAST! Jenn and I played Donkey Konga 2 for a little over an hour tonight. It is so much fun. We can play with or against each other. The point is to hit the bongos in rhythm with the music. The screen cues where you should hit the right bongo, left bongo, both, or clap. There are easy songs, with a slow tempo and few notes, and tough songs with a fast tempo and lots of notes. It is soooo much fun. The only downside is that our hands were getting pretty sore from beating on the drums.

There is another Donkey Konga game with other songs if we get through this one. Nintendo also has a Donkey Konga 3 in the works. And who knows, if Jenn and I really enjoy these rhythm games, maybe at some point we'll splurge and get the DDR setup. It was so much fun to sit in the basement and play video games with Jenn. I'm glad we've found a game that we can both enjoy together!

PostSecret

Have you ever had a secret that you couldn't confide in anyone, but wished you were brave enough to tell the world? PostSecret is a very cool blog for just that. It is full of postcards that people have written their secret on, and mailed in. Some are hopeful, some are funny, some are sad. It is kind of fun to read through them and see which you identify with.

Church and State

This is so sad that I don't even know where to begin. If you click on the story, you can watch a news video about a church that excommunicated all members that were known to have voted for Kerry in the last election. During the last election, several folks made a point that, if you support your church (Christians), then you MUST support George Bush. I took serious issue with that. After all, Jesus even said "give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and give to God what is God's". Most of the time that phrase is used in reference to taxes, but I think it is equally applicable to seperation of Church and State. I believe that one of the reasons the American Way works so well is that we have a healthy seperation of religion and politics. The pioneers who first settled this land were racing to escape persecution for practicing their system of beliefs. How sad is it that we've now come all the way back to where we started. Whether you are Democrat, Republican, Green Party, Libertarian, or whatever... I don't care! You are welcome at my church anytime. I'm okay with disagreeing on politics, and I don't feel that anyone's political standings should remove you from God's sight. It infuriates me that our politics and religion are getting so twisted up as to create this kind of lunacy. This is the kind of thinking that has led to the situation in the Middle East: theocratic systems where the political leaders whip their party into a frenzy and declare religious war on anyone who would oppose them. All of this, what I would call blasphemy, so that the leaders can keep their position of power. How very, truly sad that we seem to be nearing a precipice, where our politics and religion become so indiscernibly intertwined.

My hope is that this stops, and stops soon. We need to be able to not just tolerate those with a different opinion from our own, but celebrate our differences. There is so much to learn, so much opportunity to grow when we have a diverse environment with a variety of beliefs, backgrounds, cultures, and ideas. I'm not interested in a gray race, nor a monoculture of religion. I want variety.

Video Capture

I'm in the process of converting a bunch of our old VHS home movies to DVD. To capture video, I currently have the VCR output routed to the input jack on our Sony Handycam. The HandyCam is then connected via USB to a USB Hub, which is then connected to the PC. I'm using Nero Vision Express to capture the video from the HandyCam, and the HandyCam is doing the analog to digital conversion on the signal. The result has been less than I had hoped. The capture video is very grainy and choppy. I'm not sure if this is due to the capabilities of the HandyCam, speed issues with USB (I think I'm using USB 1.0), or of the software on my PC. In addition, the audio is out of sync with the video. What is really frustrating is that I can't do high speed dubbing, so it is only after waiting for the video to finish (anywhere from 1 to 2 hours) that I find out just how bad the capture was. I thought maybe the choppyness and syncing issues might be due to playing the video on my PC, but after burning to DVD, the issue remains.

My PC is a 2.4GHz Pentium 4 with 512 MB of DDR 266 memory. The hard drive has over 20GB free, and spins at 7200RPM. I don't run any other applications while capturing video, and the performance monitors show that, while the system is under a load, it isn't exceeding the limits of the PC. I'm fairly certain that my PC has the horsepower to do what I want, so I'm looking more at my method for capturing video. I watch the output from the VCR on a second monitor to verify that the VCR has quality output, and the image is bright and crisp, so I know the VCR is working well. The screen on the HandyCam also shows a nice, bright image with good quality resolution. But when I get to the PC, the image is dark, grainy, choppy, and the audio is often out of sync. I'm fairly certain that I either need to upgrade to a firewire connection to the HandyCam, or I need to invest in a dedicated video capture card and go straight from the VCR to the PC.

Anyone out there in webland have experience with doing this? Any tips on what a good next step might be, or good equipment for video capture?

Huzzah - WebCam is Back

Many, many thanks to Absenth who was gracious enough to offer me some account space to host my webcam. I've been really impressed lately with the connective power of blogs and websites in general. I never really thought anyone but family would be reading this blog, or the one that we do for the family. Now I've seen a offer to host the webcam image, and an offer for a free meal... AWESOME! In addition to that, two people have come in to play volleyball at FUMC over the past couple of months, and learned of our play through the yahoo group that I put together. Thanks to everyone who reads these, and thanks for all of the responses and help! I know it isn't always riveting reading, but I'll try to keep it at least mildly interesting.

Best Round Ever

Sunday morning I got a call from my dad wondering if I would be able to get out and play some golf. My attitude about playing golf this year has done a 180 degree turn from last year: I'm ready to play! We teed off at Wildcat Creek, and the weather was unbelievable. The wind was constantly blowing at what felt like 35 miles per hour, and the sun rarely peeked out to warm us up. Our group was bundled up in several layers of clothes, and we still felt the bite of the chill. We got a brief repreive from the wind once we got into the wooded areas, but it never truly let up throughout the round.

Regardless of the weather, something was working for me out there. I shot a 97 for the round, the best round I've ever had! I can't remember ever breaking 100 before (unless you count Britton Golf Course, which isn't really a full length course). For the front nine I shot a 47, and a 50 on the back nine. Wildcat Creek is no easy course, either, so this came as a big shock to me after my first round of the season came in at 116.

I guess now the bar is set a little higher. I suppose the only thing to do is get out there and practice more!

Busted

Well, so much for the "What I'm doing right now" picture... at least until I figure out another solution. I use Insight Broadband cable modem service, and it is against the terms of service to host a web server or FTP server. I was using both to host the picture on the site, and to upload the latest update. Evidently they caught on, and I got a nice warning letter:

Insight Broadband - AUP Violation!



Please Do Not Respond to This Email -- If You Have Any Questions, Please Contact Your Local Insight Office.



Dear Insight Broadband Customer,



We are contacting you in regards to your Insight Broadband service. Our Network Operations Center (NOC) runs a test over our entire network on a regular basis to find computers setup to run as servers. Your computer has come back with ports open, indicating that it is running as a dedicated Internet server. Your computer must have these ports closed. Running a server is against the Insight Broadband Service Agreement (section 9).



Running a dedicated Internet server puts an unnecessary load on our network. Even if you think you are not using the server, you put yourself at risk to hackers and/or viruses, which could use the open ports to expose and control your computer. Once a server is circumvented, it can be used to hack into other servers in or outside our network.



If you are running a server-based OS, such as Windows XP Server or Linux, please keep in mind that these operating systems are designed for running dedicated Internet servers. As such, most of these OSs will open server ports on default, when the system is loaded.



The following is information about your account, and a list of open ports found on your machine:



Account #: ------

IP Address: -------

Open Ports:



Port 21 - Response: 220 Serv-U FTP Server v6.0 for WinSock ready...

Port 80 - Server: Apache/2.0.53 (Win32)



For more information on how to disable these open ports on your machine, you will need to contact your tech support for your computer. If you have installed the operating system on your own, you should contact the support line for your OS.



This is an important issue and needs immediate action in order to ensure no interruption to your Insight Broadband service.



If you are part of a business and need to run a dedicated server on our network, you may contact our business sales department to inquire about our Business Choice accounts.



As always, if you have any questions about this or any other aspect of you service, please call your local Insight office. Thank you very much for your cooperation.



Thank You,



Insight Broadband Technical Services





Please Do Not Respond to This Email -- If You Have Any Questions, Please Contact Your Local Insight Office.



Click here to go to InsightBB.comClick here to go to Insight-com.com



This announcement was sent to you by Insight Communications. If you have any questions, you may contact us at: 4701 Commerce Crossings Drive, Louisville, KY 40229, Attn:Technical Support Group.

So I shut down the ports and will have to quit with the picture until I can find another, clever way to get it on there. Oh well, life goes on....

I'm Certifiable!

This morning I took the Microsoft Certification Exam 70-320 : XML Web Services and .NET Remoting in Microsoft Visual C#. I passed with flying colors, which means that I'm now not only certified in that subject, but I've passed the requisite exams to be a Microsoft Certified Application Developer (MCAD). In the MS developer track, you are a Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) after passing any exam. I've been an MCP for several years, but I've not put the effort forth to get through the exams to get my next certification level. Until a couple of years ago, the hurdle was pretty high. To reach Microsoft Certified Solution Developer (MCSD) status, you had to pass five exams. Microsoft introduced the MCAD certification as a mid-step between the two. It was just the motivation I needed. That, and the fact that we have a state grant at Flexware to get reimbursed for any certifications we get.

So now I have two more exams to pass to get my MCSD. I need the 70-300 Solution Architectures exam, and an elective. I'll likely take the SQL Server exam as my elective. This latest exam was probably one of the hardest I've taken, and I've been putting it off for almost an entire year. I'm glad it is finally over and I can move on to the next one.

Book: 2 , Spiders: 0

Jenn was cleaning out the basement closet today, and came across some more of our eight-legged housemates. Two were already dead, but one big one was still limping along. I grabbed the trusty battle axe, aka a thick book, and ventured in. A couple of quick mashes with the book, and our buddy was curled up. Jenn broke out the handy-vac and sent him on his way. I haven't seen any of the creepy crawlies scooting across the floor since our first run in. I guess they got the message.

Zelda Music == Tchakovsky?

I was sitting here listening to my Sirius radio. That's when I noticed something. I'm listening to Sirius Pops, the classical pops station. The current track is Swan Lake : Dance of the Swan Queen. As I'm listening, this sounds a whole lot like some of the theme music to the Zelda series fo video games on the Nintendo. Have I played so many hours of video games that I'm starting to hallucinate and hear the music in other places, or did the game producer crib the music from Tchaikovsky?

Skype

There is a new telephone service that has been getting a lot of attention recently. This one is a little different though: you use your internet connection to make calls. Skype is a tool developed by the same folks who brought you the Kazaa P2P file sharing service, only this time the focus is on voice rather than files. To be sure, internet voice chats are nothing new. NetMeeting has been around since 1996, allowing you to have voice chats over the web, and most instant messengers include some type of audio / video conferencing features. What sets Skype apart is the quality of the service, and rich set of features. First, Skype has focused on getting voice, and voice only, just right. Skype will work behind some of the toughest firewalls where most instant messenger apps are so fragile that a sneeze on the network shuts them down. The software and service is completely free for making PC to PC phone calls.

One of the features that really sets Skype apart is the SkypeOut service. For a little more than 2 cents a minute, you can use Skype to call justa bout any real phone (mobile or landline) anywhere in the world. There is no monthly subscription fee. Just buy SkypeOut credit like you would a calling card and go to town.

Of course, some folks aren't comfortable making calls from their PC. There is something intimate about having that handset next to your ear that you know that you are making a phone call, and not just talking at your PC. That's where the CyberPhone steps in. It looks like any other telephone handset, and plugs into a USB port on your PC. It works directly with Skype to allow you to place regular phone calls. If that isn't enough freedom for you, grab a handheld PC, such as a Dell Axim or any other Microsoft PocketPC handheld, and you can Skype over your WiFi network. A couple of my buddies at work have PocketPCs, and we tried out the Skype connection that way with great success. There is an element of coolness to knowing you can walk into any place with a open WiFi connection (public libraries, Starbucks, cafes, etc.) and start making free / cheap calls on your PocketPC.

I'm just dabbling with Skype right now, but if this service continues to grow like it has over the past six months, I would almost consider ditching our regular phone service for it. Skype offers a SkypeIn service in beta form now that allows regular landline and cellphone users to call your skype account. Service runs $40 for an entire year, which is about what most people pay per month for their local and long distance service. This is an interesting technology that I'll definitely be keeping tabs on.

Nintendo A Capella

By now you all know that I absolutely LOVE video games. When I ran across this video, I was just utterly amazed. A group of singers, I presume in a college club, perform several old school Nintendo theme songs a capella. It is really amazing. Give it a listen!

Day Light Savings Time

There has been quite a bit of political debate in Indiana recently concerning Day Light Savings Time (DST). Most of Indiana is not on DST. Instead, we are on Eastern Standard Time. The result? For a portion of the year, we are in the same time as New York, and for a portion of the year we are in the same time as Chicago. We never change our clocks, we just let 'em run.

Our governer (Mitch Daniels) is hell bent on changing that. When a recent call failed to get the necessary votes to pass the DST plan, Daniels got on the phone and badgered enough Republicans to change their mind. There was a re-vote, and this time it passed. I'm still not sure if the bill says we would go on Eastern or Central time, but it still has a ways to go before it can be enacted into law. Nevermind the fact that the US legislature has already told the state that they may not mandate a time zone to all of the counties.

Why go on DST? Ostensibly to allow for more daylight hours in the evening to be outside. That's the major reason. During the summer, the number of daylight hours increases. We end up with more daylight, both before normal work hours and afterwards. The idea is that, by moving our clocks forward an hour, we wake up earlier in the day and shift those morning daylight hours into the evening. In the fall, as the daylight hours wane, we would move our clocks back.

There are other arguments as well, most of which I put little stock in. Proponents claim that DST will be good for the Indiana economy. That's a pretty fluffy response to just about any bill before the state house. Proponents claim that a large amount of time and money is lost by businesses who must help people outside the state understand how Eastern Standard Time works. Of course, no one has ever presented any hard numbers on this, so it is really difficult to validate the claim. Another claim I saw recently was that, by switching, we could save 10,000 barrels of oil each year due to the decreased use of lighting in businesses. Nevermind that we use 100,000,000 barrels, that reduction would be a trivial 0.01% decrease in usage. Add to that the fact that, if we get home while it is still warm, we're likely to switch on our air conditioning. Air conditioning consumes a lot more electricity than lighting.

From those opposed to going on DST, I've heard people say "Just wake up earlier". The comeback to this one is, "But the businesses I work with won't be up at that hour." Either way, I don't think either argument has much merit. To me, this is a really trivial issue that I wish our legislature would just drop so they could address some of the more important issues. If it were up to me, I'd leave our time where it is now. I don't have to change my clocks, and I don't really have any need for extra daylight. In fact, if we switch to central daylight time, we won't even get the extra daylight benefit. Maybe I'm just a stick in the mud, or afraid of change, but I almost feel like our using standard time is something that sets Indiana apart, and I like that.

Fry's Electronics (aka Geek Heaven)

I don't have school tomorrow night, so today has been pretty stress free. This morning, Corbin and I got packed up and headed over to the grand opening sale at the new Fry's Electronics. It was awesome! I thought it was going to be another Best Buy knock-off, but it is so much more than that. It has all of your electronics store fare: PCs, movies, games, audio, video, etc. In addition to all of that, they also carry component parts and lab equipment. It sort of like a Radio Shack, a Best Buy, and a Barnes and Noble all rolled into one, and then pumped up on steroids. They had a wide selection of motherboards, Tektronix oscilliscopes, movies, games, and other great geek stuff.

I had avoided coming in earlier in the week because I knew I needed to control myself. Sometimes I go in a store like that and I just completely lose consciousness and come out with a very light wallet, and very little trunk space. Today I was on a mission. My mission was to get all of the equipment I would need to transfer VHS tapes to my PC, and then burn those tapes onto DVD. This is for a little project I'm doing to transfer all of my parents old home movies over to DVD before the tapes start to rot. They were caught in a flood last year, and we're not sure how long they will last. So in order to complete this project, I needed a couple of things:

• VCR
  
• DVD Burner
  
• DVD Media
  
• DVD Authoring Software
  
• Video Capture Board

Our old VCR bit the dust a couple of months ago, so I needed a replacement. I was looking to get a DVD/VCR combo so I could put it in the arcade cabinet and watch just about anything I wanted. I found a nice Panasonic model for a shade under $100. As I browsed through, I found a copy of Quicken WIllMaker Plus 2005. Jenn and I need to get a will put together, and the WillMaker software was marked down to $30, and with the $30 mail-in rebate, was effectively free. So then it was on to the DVD Burner. I found a Memorex multiple format DVD burner that was $89.99 with a $20 mail-in rebate. There are way too many recordable DVD formats, and this one seemed to support just about everything out on the market. In the same isle, there was a pile of DVD-R media. A 50-pack of blank DVD-R media was marked down to $12, and included a $12 mail-in rebate, so that was another freebie I tossed in the cart. The burner included the DVD authoring software, so I was able to skip that one. Then it was on to the video capture equipment.

This is where my plan hit a little snag. Corbin and I had been in the store for an hour and a half at this point, and we had completely exhausted his supply of snacks and drinks. He was cranky, and we think he is cutting some molars, so he was in an awful mood. I hadn't done my homework on video capture boards, so I needed some type to look into the different models. With Corbin throwing a fit, my patience was wearing out. I decided to high tail it out of the store while I still could. I tossed a couple of DVD cases into the cart on my way to the register. Total Damages: $254.26. Total Rebates: $62.00.