vanderwal.net

Update on lack of broadband progress

I am still with out most of my outbound e-mail capabilities for my usual accounts. I can see all the inbound e-mail, but I am mostly devoid of responding, which is driving me crazy. This will get resolved once DSL arrives, I am still waiting on Verizon to get their act together and tie the phone number to the address. The last residents of the house has DSL running at a really good clip, but nobody can see that until Verizon understands their role in the world.

We finally got satellite TV today, which is a huge improvement over cable. Why? Much better picture, much better sound, cheaper, and channels like Tech TV and BBC America. The downside is the current placement of the dish, on the right hand corner of the roof on the front of the house. It could be a good reason to remove the tree that is creating this issue or to get the dish moved when we paint the eaves.

I spent today trying to figure out why we had no phone signal, well it turns out the PC modem fries the phone lines. I was waiting for contractors to come and fix a furnace, closets, and the dish guys. All the contractors were stuck in the traffic related to trying to find the DC shooter and we calling the often to let me know of their delays. The shootings really have not un-nerved me as the odds are long that I or anybody I know would get shot. I am much more aware of my surroundings, much like living in the UK in the late 80s with the IRA bombings and such.

I was put off from doing some work for a while today as the CD I burned on a nearly up-to-date security patched Win 2k box would not be acknowledged in the Mac. This is odd as it is how I move files out of XP Home (miserable version of XP). I finally got the CD to run in the PC (I finally had a reason to assmble it after nearly 2 weeks in the house) and reburned them on a CD, which did run on OS X. This little task and figuring out that the PC modem has phone voodoo here caused the loss of a couple hours. I knew I should have pulled the box of blank CDs out of the packing box they are in.

I am trying to focus on getting a couple reviews done, user/usability test a new site, get back to writing some articles, and putting our office together.

Gabriel Live

We now have tickets for the November 11th November 24th Peter Gabriel show at MCI Center. I have only seen Gabriel as a part of festival shows like WOMAD and the Amnesty Internationl Tour. I am so ready to see a full show.

Battle Boxes

On the house front, we found out late last week that our furnace has a tendancy to shoot flames out the front when the gas is turned up to normal capacity. This is entertaining, but it is not safe. It seems the fire shooting has been melting some wires in the furnace. At least the walls are in good shape, knock wood.

We are still sitting in a sea of boxes and will be for some time. We had some space savers put in our closets, but there was one number not accounted for, our height. We are not tall people, well by Dutch standards, but our clothes drag from the top rack to the lower rack and the lower rack drags on the floor. The whole contraption needs to be raised two inches or so, which will limit the overhead storage.

I still can only find the left shoe for any of the shoes I wear to work. I am not sure where the right shoes are, nor can Joy remember where they may have been placed. I also can not find my electric razor, which should have been in the box marked "desk items and RAZOR". I have been using a blade razor, which in one or two more days will give me insane ingrown hairs.

One positive observation, well for me at least, I have fewer books than Joy. The last few years I have listened to teasing for all the books I have (mostly tech/Web/UXD related with a healthy helping of econ, history, architecture, design, and fiction) on the shelves. It seems Joy has nearly equal, if not more, knitting books and boxes of periodicals, just slated for our office. The knitting book count does not include the attic nor second bedroom. This to me is a nice thing to find out, I am not sure you are interested, nor Joy with my telling you, but it is just you and me here right?

Dial-up woes

Okay, I know I am not the "normal user", but I really do not understand how millions to billions of people prefer dial-up over broadband. I have been struggling with a shared line with the main house phone and dial-up for only two days and it is a huge struggle. The images on CNN take forever to load, particularly the ads, which slowdown even the text from appearing. I really don't understand how this is tollerable. It must be me. I want my DSL, too bad the local telco (Verizon) is so slow in connecting 3rd party DSL providers (like DirectTV DSL) that have much better service and customer service.

New outlook

A new month, a new house, and a new outlook. It is great waking and being able to look out at trees and not a parking garage.

Temporary Leave

Things will be very very quiet around here over the next few days to 10 days. We move in the morning and will have very little connectivity for a week or so. Not even a phone line until Monday evening. Enjoy your selves and take in some items I find of interest over on the vanderwal net links. I have added a few new ones recently. Of most interest of the new links have been Pixelcharmer and Mike Lee's "Visual Lee". When we get settled all of you will have to come by and just say hi. See you soon.

Home

We are home owners!!

Home sweat Home, really

In less than two days we will be home owners. We are very excited and are now streching and limbering up as we plan to start updating outlets, pulling panelling in the basement, and pulling ivy from the yard beginning day one. There will be much to get done by the end of September when we move in. We have already dealt with the flakey contractors who have not made it to appointments for estimates the first or rescheduled times. Being who we are we have matrix running for products and services and have timelines started. Now if it will all come together.

I mentioned to Jeff and Bryan that we had a Tiki bar in the basement, but it may have a short life as it sits under the stairs and may become a server closet. Yes, they threatened me, but it could have been the burbon.

This new endevour has brough two new categories to track "home" and "gardening".

Close call

The vacation was nearly much tougher. Last Thursday I was walking to get my morning coffee and as I went to cross a street walking down Woodmont a Beemer wizzed around the corner and I stepped out carefully making sure the car behind him was going to stop and let me cross. The car stopped and as I got in front of it I heard loud screaching of brakes, a thud and plastic shatter just as I felt a strong rush of air push across the hair on my legs. I looked down and saw the bumper as it was beginning to tease the hair on my left leg and I jumped back. The car kept coming for another foot or so. The air I felt on my leg was the air from the trunk of the Acrua as a large delivery truck collapsed it. It is a nasty corner for pedestians where I make my turn on mornings I drive into work. The strangest thing about the whole incident was I did not get the shakes or any adrenaline rush. Yes, I waited for the police woman to arrive and be a witness.

Ah vacation

It is good to be home, well I wish I was still at the shore. We had a great time in Spring Lake, New Jersey staying at the Normandy Inn, as we always do. I lost a watch and two left contacts in the Atlantic Ocean, but we found some new great places. There are a couple new ice cream places in Spring Lake, iscream and Sunday Times are great new additions. We also found a great restraunt in Asbury Park, Moonstruck (it used to be in Ocean Grove and moved to a great larger space) the waitstaff was great as was the atmosphere, but the food was amazing. Joy had honey mustard pork chops with garlic mashed potatoes and I had salmon with a spicy sweet Thai sauce over brown rice. Both were extremely good. We also went to our favorites Spring Lake Gourmet Pizza, Kleins Seafood Cafe in Belmar, and to Strollo's Italian Ice in Belmar. We had lunch in the Cucina Cafe, which always has great salads, other midday snacks, and brings in awesome piniole cookies from Brooklyn. We also took a trip up to Pennington and Princeton to visit friends, which was another nice diversion.

To be home sweet home

Things have been a little slow around these parts the last month or so due to some side projects, mostly involving writing (stuff I have been in turn throwing out then trying again), also some fun diversions, including reading many books (all work/fun related). The largest reason for the slowness is we signed a contract on a house we have had our eye on since January/February. We will be moving only a couple miles away into a brick cape cod built smack in the middle of the 1900s. We still have some time before everything is final, our fears are gone, we get keys, and we move in. The house will need some work, but it will be ours. The next month or two will be a nice trick balancing everything, but we will make it all happen and we will take a long nap.

A slight break

Things have been a little quiet here work as drawn off energy used to read and post, reading has been in books (shared in a few days), summer diversions are abundant, and we are preparing to move. We are going through a transition to our own house with all the fears and excitement that can bring.

Rumpole no more

When I see a glass or bottle of claret I can only think of Rumpole, who was brought to life by Leo McKern who has passed away today. Leo brought to life many enjoyable charaters and will be greatly missed.

Chiam moves on

I learned a great deal about art and myself from reading My Name is Asher Lev, which is now ingrained in my senses. The author, Chiam Potok passed away today. It is days like these that you wished you had reached out and said thank you, at the very least.

Brought together

It has been a weekend of independance and interdependance. The Independance Day holiday weekend was spent with friends that have been spread around the globe who all came together to witness two great friends of ours, Fred and Paula, get married. It was a wonderful occasion of celebration and sharing. They were married next to the Jefferson Memorial (photos soon) and the party ensued out at Great Falls. It is amazing the wonders that two people can bring together and even back together. Being blessed with wonderful, caring, and bright friends is a great treasure. We wish Paula and Fred a great long future together.