MA Transplant in Tampa Bay

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

2010-04-15T07:51:00.002-04:00

I have left my job at Microsoft as of April 8. Why? Well, how long do you have? Let's just say I was burned out with the whole situation.

So what now? I am working as a service provider for Weight Watchers International. I have been working as a receptionist and location coordinator part time the past few months. These next two days, I will be in Orlando for training to become a meeting leader.

This is a very radical change for me, and it took me a long time to give up a job that I did not like at all, but one that paid well and had a great benefit package (free health insurance!) to take on one that pays extremely poorly, but one that I enjoy immensely and one from which I derive a great deal of personal satisfaction.

I guess I decided that it was time to do what I wanted to do and what I enjoyed doing, not what was expected.

So here I am, about to start the next chapter in my journey. Yippee!

Yes, It's been a while

2010-03-09T14:13:00.003-05:00

I have been through some difficult times in the past few months that have not left me feeling very sociable. My mother passed away from ovarian cancer on Christmas Day 2009. She fought bravely with an amazing strength and dignity for four years. When she was diagnosed, she was already stage 4. Women: know the symptoms and get tested if you show signs; early diagnosis is key. I think of her daily and I miss her very much.

But this long, cold winter is finally coming to an end (I got a sunburn yesterday while out for a walk!). And some significant changes are coming within the next month or so. Stay tuned!

Thanks for sticking with me, those of you who have. (If you haven't, well, then you wouldn't be reading this.)

Later!

U2 360 Show hits Tampa

2009-10-10T13:44:00.012-04:00

Absolutely unbelievable evening.

Last night, the U2 360 degree tour hit Tampa's Raymond James Stadium, and we (myself and hubby) were there. To summarize, awesome seats, incredible stage, phenomenal set list, great time.

We arrived around 4:30 with tailgate supplies packed. No trouble getting to the stadium and parking. Traffic was light. We discovered we had a stowaway: a little green frog was hiding under the driver's side back door handle. It eventually crawled into the crack in the door and may still be there for all we know.

We entered the stadium around 6:30. Our first time at "Ray-Jay". Saw the pirate ship, then made our way to the seats. We were in section 122, "behind" the stage in the end zone. The seats were awesome. With the setup they have, being behind the stage was one of the best places to be, in my opinion. We could see the band enter and leave, and we were really close to the stage, otherwise known as "the claw".

You can't see the top of it in this picture. There is a spire that extends pretty high up. There's even a huge disco ball at the top (and one that comes out the bottom). At one point during the show, the screen extended downward so that it was only a few feet above the performers.

The stage is surrounded by a circular track, which allowed the band members to walk around all 360 degrees. There were also a couple movable bridges connecting the center of the stage to the track.

You can find a lot more pictures from the show here. I also posted some video clips on YouTube.

Here's the set list. (Thanks to this site for compiling it.)

Breathe
Get on Your Boots
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For / Stand By Me
Stuck in a Moment
No Line on the Horizon
Magnificent
(Conversation with the Cirque du Soleil founder from the space station … see this related story.)
Elevation
End of the World
The Unforgettable Fire
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
Dance Beat: Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) / I’m Gonna Go Crazy (If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight)
(A Prayer for Iran)
Sunday Bloody Sunday / Get Up, Stand Up
MLK
Walk On
Video: Desmond Tutu: We are the same, We are one.
One
Amazing Grace
Where the Streets Have No Name
(Encore)
Ultraviolet (Baby Light My Way)
With or Without You
Moment of Surrender

The crowd was extremely energetic, standing up and dancing through the whole show. It's really hard to describe the experience in words. It was my first time attending a concert of this magnitude (70,000+ fans - more than attended last year's Super Bowl in the same stadium) but you really didn't feel like you were in that big of an arena. I can't imagine attending a concert of that size without that kind of setup.

And it only took 45 minutes to get out of the parking lot after the show :-).

Best quote (not necessarily exact) of the evening: Bono's observation that "Tampa has a pirate ship, but we have a space ship".

Events coming up for us in the future:

Robin Williams, October 20 at USF Sun Dome
Bonnie Raitt, October 22 at Ruth Eckerd Hall
TR3, November 7 at Skipper's Smokehouse

Check back here for reports on those shows.

Teafrancais.com update

2009-10-04T11:47:00.005-04:00

The saga continues.

When we last left our story, back in July (see this post), I had convinced a manager there to send me a shipment of coffee (2 packages) in place of one shipment of teas (even though they had sent me three overall).

Well, I received one of the coffees, but I am still waiting for the second one. Here's a summary of the time line for this saga:

In early June, 2009, I enrolled in their program. I was supposed to receive a sample shipment of 2 bags of loose leaf tea for $2, then future shipments would cost more. But within 14 days of enrolling, they charged me for 2 additional shipments at a cost of $40. So before I even received any of the product to try, I was out quite a bit of money. I originally reported about this in this previous blog entry.
I called several times to complain. Finally, on July 20, I was able to speak to a manager. I was told they could not refund my money but that they would be willing to replace one of the tea shipments with an equivalent amount from their coffee selection. So I ordered two bags of coffee.
August 20: coffees have still not arrived. I called and was told one of them had been on back order but just came in, so they would send it out right away.
August 28: I received one bag of coffee in the mail, but the other was missing. I called and was told that they would send it right away.
September 17: Coffee still has not arrived. This time when I called, they told me the variety I had ordered was out of stock (thanks for letting me know!). I ordered a different kind which they promised to "send right away".
October 1: Coffee still has not arrived. Gee, they seemed puzzled and didn't know what happened. Will send right away.

So, there we are. I should run a contest and have people guess when (if) I will ever receive my coffee. But I have no prize to give out, alas.

I wonder if they have any satisfied customers? How are they able to stay in business?

Today's Florida wildlife report

2009-09-20T19:39:00.003-04:00

Went for a walk this morning, as I usually do Sunday mornings.

I had to stop at the pond in my neighborhood for about 10 minutes to watch the very large gator and all the birds. There were about 10 birds of different types, including Sandhill cranes, Roseate spoonbills, and white ibises. All the birds were about 2 feet from the shoreline, around the pond, preening themselves and doing whatever birds do. I watched the gator approach the shore, then stop and watch the birds. The birds, almost in unison, turned their backs on the gator and continued doing what they were doing. Not sure if it was a "if I can't see it, it isn't there" thing, or if it was like a Klingon "discommendation" ceremony.

Sorry no pictures - I don't take a camera on my walks. Maybe I should.

Oh, I also saw turtles, and I think I startled another gator as I was walking by part of the shore, as I saw a big splash.

Sirius "Interactive" Radio for your iPod/iPhone

2009-09-09T13:11:00.005-04:00

While I was away recently, I borrowed my sister-in-law's car, which had Sirius radio in it. I came to enjoy the commercial free radio service, so I decided to check it out when I returned.

Lo and behold, Sirius/XM has a Premium Internet Radio option that you can play using an iPod/iPhone app. They offered a 7-day trial, so I signed up.

All went well initially. I downloaded the app, input my trial credentials, and off I went. I connected my iPod to my stereo so that I could listen through my home speakers. It went great until the music suddenly stopped. At first, I thought it was a network issue. I checked the iPod and noticed an "Inactivity Timeout" popup warning - I needed to select OK to continue listening. Hmm, not very useful if I am in the pool, for example, and the music stops because of inactivity.

So, I emailed the good folks at Sirius. A couple hours later, I got this reply:

The SIRIUS player was designed to be an interactive experience. Every 90 minutes, we check to see if you're still there and to make sure that you're still listening to the player. If you're not, the player will shut down after five minutes of the message being up there. If you are there, all you have to do is click the button and you can continue listening. If you?d like to avoid the pop-up, simply change the channel or volume on the player from time to time. We do this so that we're not streaming to computers that have no listeners, to maintain optimum performance for active listeners.

WTF? An interactive experience? You should be able to just turn it on and play it. Oh, and by the way, this "interactive experience" doesn't come cheap. Either $12.95/month for the service alone, or an additional $2.99/month if you already have a "qualifying" (e.g., > $10/month) Sirius / XM subscription.

So much for that. When my trial runs out, that will be the day the Sirius music died.

Back to the Cape

2009-08-28T18:11:00.003-04:00

Tomorrow, I fly to Cape Cod with my mom for a week (actually, 8 days). I am very much looking forward to this trip. I grew up on the Cape. Went to high school there. But I haven't been back there - especially for this length of time - for a very long time.

Somewhat bittersweet trip, as my mom is ill (cancer) and this will probably be her last trip back there (perhaps I am being too negative, but I am also a realist). I will get to visit with family: my aunt and uncle, my brother and his wife, my two nephews, and my father-in-law (with whom I am planning a day trip to Fox Woods casino!). So should be lots of fun.

I have also decided to take a day to try to visit all the places I lived growing up. There are quite a few! But if successful, I will have stories and pictures to post. Until then...

Health and Your Brain

2009-08-25T14:30:00.003-04:00

I found these articles to be interesting:

Obese People have Severe Brain Degeneration

According to a new medical study study, obese people have 8 percent less brain tissue and their brains look 16 years older than normal-weight individuals. The results are based on brain scans of 70 year olds. Makes me wonder how long these affected individuals suffered from obesity - all their lives? recently obese? can the brain recover if one loses weight?

10 Ways to Keep Your Mind Sharp

This article lists 10 ways to help keep your mind sharp. Roughly paraphrased:

10. Tease/challenge your brain: tackle something new (hmm, maybe I should work more at learning the piano?)

9. Skip the supplements. So-called brain pills (ginkgo, melatonin) are not free of potential side effects and have not been shown to offer benefits beyond that of a placebo.

8. Chill out - lower your stress level. Engage in relaxing activities such as yoga, socializing, and crafting (more proof that my regular massages are medically necessary).

7. Eat fish. Never been a big fan of fish, but I am getting better at it. Unfortunately, the "fatty fishes" that you are supposed to eat are the ones I don't really like. Supplements, again, have had mixed results.

6. Enjoy your coffee: evidence suggests a caffeine habit may protect the brain. YES! I certainly do enjoy it. 'Nuff said.

5. Get your beauty rest.

4. Take care of your body: keep your circulatory system in working order, avoid cigarettes and saturated fat.

3. Watch the diet. Over-indulging can make the brain sluggish, too few calories can also impair brain function.

2. Eat, eat, eat. A steady pace of digestion gives a more reliable flow of energy. Many small meals rather than a few big ones.

1. Do something! Regular aerobic exercise. For mental fitness, aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day.

I want to add a number 0: Drink wine every day.

To your health!

Seasons Changing

2009-08-23T08:48:00.004-04:00

Now that the DMB shows are done, I feel like summer is coming to a close. We are in that time of year when the Red Sox have the opportunity to go "old school" and once again dash our playoff hopes, but at the same time, the anticipation of a new football season adds some excitement to the air. Fantasy football is starting, Tom Brady is back to normal (hopefully), and hubby and I are planning a trip to New Orleans to see the Patriots take on the Saints. Never been to NOLA before - looking forward to that.

Soon, the weather will begin to cool off/dry out a bit, lending itself to more extended outdoor enjoyment (walking, biking). Not that I mind the beach/pool weather of summer.

DMB WPB

2009-08-23T08:22:00.005-04:00

Finally, reporting on the two WPB shows...

Hubby and I left Thursday morning and drove out to the east coast of Florida. It is about a 4 hour drive, marked by the exciting Yeehaw Junction half way point. We stayed at the Marriott Ocean Pointe at Palm Beach Shores. We really liked this place. We were able to get a "King Villa" with ocean view, full kitchen, etc. for the same price as a tiny room at The Breakers or at the Four Seasons (which we had tried the last couple years - liked The Breakers, Four Seasons not so much). I really enjoyed being able to make my own breakfast and eat it out on the balcony. This is a family vacation complex, so lots of kids, but lots of activities too. We played shuffle board, enjoyed the pool and the beach.

Thursday night we went down to the Clematis Street area of West Palm Beach. We went down there to go to a specific restaurant, which was closed for renovations. There was also an outdoor festival going on, so lots of crowds. We ended up eating at a French bistro. The food was really good but the service was a bit slow getting going. Typical, I guess :-).

We then walked down the street to the Roxy, where we stood in line for about half an hour to get into the club where Tim Reynolds TR3 was playing. We finally got in and caught the end of the first band - a great reggae band. Then TR3 came on. They were awesome. Lots of energy. We ended up leaving a bit early (around midnight) before the set was done because I will still feeling the effects of the veggie burger at the Ford amphitheater (really sore stomach - couldn't really stand up for very long). Sigh.

Friday night's DMB show was great. We tailgated for a bit. I visited with Captain Morgan. Seats were great: about 9 rows from the stage (bought them from Stub Hub because my warehouse seats really really sucked). Great set list, great crowd.

I have some pictures and movies (sound in the movies is not so great).

Saturday night's show was a very different experience. First off, it rained on our tailgating parade, so tailgating was mostly done from inside the car. Sigh. Then our seats were horrible (warehouse seats) and we were surrounded by obnoxious drunks who kept presenting so much drama that they were an insane distraction. People falling over, spilling beer on you, almost getting into fist fights, talking and screaming so loudly you couldn't hear the music at times. Plus getting hit with beach balls non-stop. It was really too bad, because the set list was great. But I spent to much time dodging people, beer, and beach balls to really focus on the show. I am downloading the tape so that I can hopefully enjoy it later.

Next year, I will need to consider getting non-warehouse tickets for both shows, I think.

DMB Tampa Show

2009-08-13T09:24:00.004-04:00

Show was great. Probably the best Tampa show I have seen. And no thunderstorms/rain for a change.

Seats were really good: row B in section 8 - the second level of sections (thanks Warehouse). Since row A was for wheel-chairs and there was a lot of space between A and B, there was no one standing in front of me and there was lots of room to dance. Also, got a bit of a breeze at times (it was really hot).

Great set list. Thanks, Stefan, for "Squirm". I know you guys played that just because I tweeted you asking for it.

The Jeff and Tim duel during Crush was mind-blowing. Jeff's microphone fell off his sax, so while Tim was playing, Jeff was trying to reattach it, and while Jeff was playing, Tim was holding it for him. They got it fixed eventually.

The people in front of me were blown away by that. It's always fun seeing the reactions of newbies as they realize what amazing musicians are in this band!

But: the guy in front of me did try to get up to go to the bathroom at the start of Jimi Thing. I told him: you can't leave now, Jeff plays two saxes during this song. So smartly, he sat back down. Got up again right after Jeff did his amazing thing - told me the wait was worth it. Hope I didn't cause him too much discomfort. But he missed Dave's very entertaining scat session.

Thanks, Dave, for waving to me from the bus. Since I was the only one around, I know you were waving to me and me alone (well, hubby too).

I did see a taper (same guy from year's past) so I will be looking to download this show later.

Now, packing up our tailgating gear and heading east to Palm Beach!

Lame Excuse for a Post

2009-08-10T08:01:00.004-04:00

Postings have been very infrequent. This one feels like it is being created just to keep this going.

So what's been happening? Well, it is August in Florida, which means it has been hot and humid every day. I don't mind this heat too much, for about 5 minutes. Honestly, I am mostly too busy with work and life to be bothered.

But exciting stuff coming:

Wednesday Aug. 12 is the DMB show in Tampa at the Ford Amphitheater. The Ford happens to be adjacent to the Hard Rock Casino, so we will be there beforehand. There will probably be intense thundershowers right at the start of the show, as there are every year. Dave will be sweating profusely. Great planning - having the Florida stops of the tour in August. But I aint complaining.

Then Thursday it is off to Palm Beach for two DMB shows at the Cruzan Amphitheater. We'll be staying Thursday night thru Saturday night at a place on the beach, so I expect relaxing beach days followed by awesome music nights. The DMB shows are Friday and Saturday night. Thursday night we hope to catch the TR3 show at the Roxy. If you don't know who TR3 is (featuring Tim Reynolds), you don't know what you are missing. The sounds Tim gets to come out of a single guitar are simply super-human.

I will post again after the shows.

The New Math?

2009-07-20T15:02:00.012-04:00

As I was sharing a yogurt with my cat (something I do habitually, she loves yogurt), I glanced at the nutritional contents. This was a fat-free lemon-flavored yogurt (Publix brand, their yogurt is excellent). You know how they list Total Fat, then have subcategories for different types of fat? Here's what is listed:

Amount/Serving Daily Value
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 1%
Trans Fat 0g

So somehow, 0g of Saturated Fat provides 1% of your Daily Nutritional Value. But when you combine this to calculate Total Fat, you are back to 0. Must be the new math :-).

Notice that no Daily Value is provided for Trans Fat. Not sure why. One could assume that there is no recommended daily value for Trans Fat, so calculating it would lead to a divide-by-zero error. That's the old math for you.

To summarize this lesson:

0 / some number can= 1 (where "some number" is the daily recommended amount of saturated fat)
0% can= 1% + ??

(I am filing to copyright the new "can=" mathematical operator.)

Maybe that's why kids are not performing well in school these days? Too many real-world examples are being incorporated into the classroom? Need to get back to the abstract, meaningless math problems, one could argue.

Happy calculating!

TeaFrancais.com follow-up

2009-07-20T14:59:00.002-04:00

I called them again and spoke to a manager this time. I got her to agree to give me a credit for the second shipment, which will at least allow me to order two bags of coffee at no cost. And I don't have to send the tea back.

Anyone a loose leaf tea fan? Will have to re-gift them I guess, as I will never use them.

I have placed an order for "Kahlua" and "Caramel Nut" coffee. Should arrive in a couple weeks.

Still an expensive proposition, though.

Buyer Beware: TeaFrancais.com will rip you off

2009-07-18T10:06:00.004-04:00

This is a public service announcement.

Do not join TeaFrancais.com/Global Tea Direct. They bait you in by sending you an initial selection of teas for $2. But what is not so obvious is that it will take 2-3 weeks for that initial selection to arrive. In the meantime, they will send you 2 additional shipments as part of their semi-monthly program - before you even get to try the product! These shipments are $40 each for a very small amount of tea.

If you read their terms, they send shipments semi-monthly. No big deal, right? But then if you scroll down to the bottom, they state that "Semimonthly shipments are an estimate. They may be more or less frequent." More frequent, more like it. They sent me two shipments within 6 days of each other, and within one week of my initial order. Oh, and they do not offer refunds, only "store credit".

By the way, these are the same people that run seattlecoffeedirect.com. Same terms for that program. And their customer service sucks.

30-day Challenge Conquered!

2009-06-29T08:31:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I finished the EA Sports 30 day active challenge, on time, at the hard intensity level! YEAH FOR ME! The last four workouts were really hard, especially #18! My knees are a bit sore right now, from all the lunges and jumping, I think. I feel a great sense of accomplishment.

I was impressed that even in the last two workouts, new exercises were introduced. One exercise was introduced on workout #19 and only used once (I would have preferred to have that one all along).For me, the equipment (band and leg strap) has held up well through the challenge. I know that others have reported snapping bands and other issues. I think having the wireless nunchuk helped - because I kept the wired one in the leg strap all the time, there was less wear on the pocket stitching (from removing and inserting the nunchuk).

With that said, I'm not sure I will do the 30 day challenge again. The challenge has you do 20 workouts over a span of 30 days. Each workout is about 30 minutes in length. Sometimes I would follow my daily workout with another one (either pre-made or custom) or some Wii Fit Yoga, just to lengthen the workout to something more respectable (45 minutes to an hour). Most of the off days, I did a cardio workout at the gym. I prefer an exercise regimen that favors more cardio, and more variety. So I anticipate that I will use EA Sports maybe a couple times a week for a full body strength training workout, then go the gym, walk, or bike most the other days.

In general, I think the EA Sports Active is a great option for those who need some nudging and motivation to start working out. Cheaper than a gym membership and easily accessible in the home for those times when you have a short window to workout, or those days when the weather is lousy and you don't want to go outside. (Living in Florida as I do, that isn't often the case for me :-) )

I look forward to the release of the expansion pack, which is supposed to feature more core exercises and stretching.

EA Sports Active 30-day Challenge: Almost There!

2009-06-22T17:10:00.003-04:00

Only 4 workouts to go, then I am done. Finished my most challenging one yet today. Burned 190 calories in 30 minutes. Squats, squat jumps, side jumps, squat holds, squats with calf raises, squats squats squats. I think my touche will be a bit sore tomorrow. Also jogged 6 "laps" around the track without stopping - never would have been able to do that when I started. I have definitely built up some stamina and some muscle.

Can't wait until this is done. It is definitely a challenge, and I hope I don't hurt myself patting myself on the back when it is completed on time. (I have been working the shoulder muscles, so...) But I have earned a break. Then, I need a better balance between cardio and muscle work - more cardio, a bit less EA Sports Active.

By the way, apparently, President Obama has been issued a challenge. If I can do it, ....

EA Sports Active 30-Day Challenge: Day 11

2009-06-10T20:37:00.004-04:00

Thank goodness for the wireless nunchuk!

It arrived a few days ago and I have used it a couple times now. The nunchuk that I got (the Kama wireless by Nyko) is actually a little bit larger than the standard one. It is more difficult to get it in and out of the leg strap. So I am following a suggestion I read on one of the message boards: I keep the standard nunchuk with wire in the leg strap and just switch the connection to the Wii remote when I need to. So for lower body exercises that require the leg strap, I put the leg strap on and connect the wired nunchuk to the controller. For upper body exercises, which do not require the leg strap, I take off the leg strap, disconnect the standard nunchuk, and then plug in the receiver for the wireless nunchuk. This works surprisingly well. The switch can be done very quickly. And the wire is bothersome mainly for the upper body work.

I am still working out on the highest intensity. The last two workouts have cranked things up a little bit. I was introduced to fast leg kickbacks - the hardest exercise I have encountered so far. I cannot do this exercise (yet) without stopping to rest. It really drives the heart rate up. Also now exposed to more jumps - side jumps and lunge jumps, which are also quite challenging. My last two workouts I have burned 170 to 190 calories in 35-45 minutes. Still not as much as I would burn doing cardio at the gym, but this workout is hitting all the muscle groups.

I don't have a specific weight loss(gain) or measurement loss(gain) goal, so I can't track progress that way. However, I definitely feel that my muscles are being exercised. Ones that were sore when I first started don't get so sore so easily now as I continue, even though the exercises are becoming more challenging. So I guess that is progress. I am mainly looking for an alternative workout routine to break up the monotony, provide some variety, and serve as a good fallback for those times when I have a bit of time on my hands but don't want to go to the gym.

I also want to be able to say "I conquered this challenge."

Another Saturday in Tampa Bay: Pepperfest and Sawgrass Lake Park

2009-06-07T08:31:00.012-04:00

Saturday (yesterday) hubby and I went to "Pepperfest". Seems there is always some kind of food festival happening in Florida. This one featured spicy sauces: salsas, hot sauces, bbq sauces, most from local Florida vendors, all for the sampling and purchasing. Many of the products have won awards. It was a fairly small event; about 20 - 25 vendor booths. We sampled many, many sauces - built up quite a burn. About half way through, we treated ourselves to a frozen banana dipped in peanut butter to help clear the palette.

One of the most fun aspects of hot sauces is the inventive product names. Here are some of the sauces from yourhotsaucecompany.com (they like politically oriented names):

Weapon of Mouth Destruction (WMD)
Obama Trauma
McCain in my Ass
Bush & Dick Hot Sauce
Al Gore's "I Invented Hot Sauce" Hot Sauce

And a special shout out to a local vendor for their "Pittsburgh Sucks" (anti-Steelers themed) hot sauce. "Bing" it - you can find it from several retailers.

A couple other vendors of note, whose products we liked:

www.intensityacademy.com (chai thai teriyaki sauce and chai curry chup ketchup)
www.legendsbbq.com (nice bbq sauces)
www.heymonsauces.com (we purchased a spicy mango sauce from them)
www.briarwoodfarmherbs.com (makers of herbal infused vinegars, rubs, honeys, and more; we purchased some spice mix packets)

Afterwards, we went to the nearby Sawgrass Lake Park, which is 400 acres of maple swamps, with boardwalk and dirt trails. We saw a couple gators, several turtles, birds, snakes (Florida kingsnake), birds, and of course geckos.

We had a strange encounter with a squirrel. We were walking along the boardwalk, and this squirrel started walking towards us. It has this strange look in its eye. It kept coming closer and closer. All I could think of was Monty Python and the Holy Grail, that this was some kind of "Killer Squirrel", and me without my holy hand grenade. Well, it came within about 2 feet of us, then climbed up and sat on the rail with its paws out. Another disaster successfully averted. Phew.

I tried taking some pictures with my camera phone. The camera in my phone is not the best, but here you go.

Always good advice:

One of the gators we saw. Hard to tell size from the picture, but it was pretty big. We did not feed or molest:

Somewhere in here there is a snake:

Thought this tree was pretty cool ...

That's it for now. Until next time....

EA Sports Active 30-day Challenge, Day 6

2009-06-05T15:17:00.002-04:00

Today is Day 6 in my 30 day challenge, which means it is a rest day (2 days on, 1 day off). The last two days of workouts have been uneventful. Mixed in some new exercises that I hadn't tried before - including squat jumps and lunge jumps - those are challenging! I did break a mild sweat both days and burned 140 to 160 calories in about 40 minutes each day.

Couple things that I am trying:

I have created a custom workout that I have been doing that past 2 days, after the challenge workout. This custom workout combines sports activities (tennis, basketball, baseball, volleyball) with some cardio boxing. I like the sports activities and I don't get enough of those during the 30 day workout. (I will master fielding ground balls!) This supplemental workout is only an extra 20-30 minutes, but it pushes me into the 250+ calorie burn range, which is what I like to accomplish minimally.
During my rest days, I try to go to the gym and do some straight cardio to burn extra calories.
EA Sports Active challenge workouts provide a good set of exercises that work almost all muscle groups - except abdominals. So I follow up my workout with some crunches.
And I always stretch at the end.

After the first couple days of doing the challenge, I was definitely sore in places that I hadn't been sore for quite a while. I could feel that my body was being challenged to do things that it wasn't used to doing. That soreness has faded somewhat - I am trying to make sure I stretch more to help with that, plus I think my muscles are getting acclimated to the new movements.

I haven't had too many problems with the resistance band or leg strap. The times when the game does not follow my movements - it's usually my fault, because I didn't orient the controllers as required, for example. Usually, just a wiggle will allow the game to track me again. But one thing that annoys me is the wire connecting the main controller to the nunchuk controller. Following some recommendations on the discussion boards, I have ordered a wireless nunchuk. Hopefully, that will arrive soon. I'll let you know how that works out.

Groogrux is King

2009-06-05T15:07:00.003-04:00

Got my super ultra mega deluxe (extra $) "Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King" on Wednesday.

I must say this is one of the most, if not the most, artistically beautiful music packages I have seen. The package itself is an album-sized (that's vinyl LP, for those too young to know) box containing all the goodies.The artwork (all by Dave himself, I understand) is stellar. The package includes:

A sheet for each song containing artwork and lyrics (on some kind of embossed, fancy paper). The lyric sheets are the same size as the overall package (LP-sized).
The CD (of course)
A bonus CD with some additional studio tracks
A DVD (haven't watched it yet)
A special CD-sized photo booklet tribute to LeRoi (very moving)
A large LP-sized photo book

I have only listened through the CD twice. I like what I hear (except for one song that I am not too crazy about). The music is complex and layered - definitely takes a few listens to appreciate all that is going on, preferably through some high quality headphones.

Dave has stated that he feels this is some of the best work the band has ever done, and I agree, although it will take some time for these tunes to establish themselves as the fan favorites in the live shows. But I have three shows coming up in August. Can't wait!

EA Sports Active 30-day Challenge, Day 1

2009-05-31T10:40:00.005-04:00

Started my 30 day challenge today, at the high intensity level, and performed my first workout. This workout was composed of 18 exercises and was projected to take about 28 minutes to complete. It actually took me 40 minutes because I reviewed some of the demonstration videos. Also, the leg strap slipped off twice - I think this was due, at least in part, to the shorts I was wearing, which are made of a slick material. We'll see what happens in the future.

The exercises presented a nice variety and intensity. I felt like I was being challenged and that I was a little bit outside my "comfort zone", that is, I was not simply repeating the same exercises that I have been doing for some time. I burned pretty much exactly the number of calories I was projected to burn at the start: about 160.

I liked the way the exercises flowed right from one to the next. If you can ready your equipment quickly, you can keep your intensity up.

I can see now that the 30-day challenge involves 2 consecutive days of working out followed by one day of rest.

By the way, here's a list of all the exercises that are available (compiled by another user and posted on a message board). Ones marked with WBB use the Wii Balance Board (from Wii Fit). You will see that there aren't many of those. Each exercise has three intensity levels. Supposedly you can combine them into your own personal workout, but I haven't tried that yet.

Notice there appear to be no abdominal exercises - a big gap in my opinion. I intend to finish off each workout on my own with abs and stretching.

Cardio

Boxing
Heavy bag
Targets & heavy bag 1
Targets & heavy bag 2
Targets & heavy bag 3
Targets & heavy bag 4
Targets & heavy bag 5
WBB Targets & heavy bag
Targets 1
Targets 2
Targets 3
Targets 4
Random (short)
Random (medium)
Random (long)

Dance
Basic 1
Basic 2
WBB Basic
Intermediate 1
Intermediate 2
WBB Intermediate
Fast 1
Fast 2
Fast 3
Fast 4
WBB Fast
Fastest 1
Fastest 2
Random (basic)
Random (intermediate)
Random (pro)

Track
Kick Ups (short)
Kick Ups (long)
Run & Walk (short)
Run & Walk (medium)
Run & Walk (long)
Run (short)
Run (medium)
Run (long)
Run (very long)
Run, Knees & Kick Ups 1
Run, Knees & Kick Ups 2
Walk & Run (short)
Walk & Run (medium)
Walk & Run (long)
Random (easy)
Random (medium)
Random (hard)

Upper

Alternating Bicep Curls
Alternating Cross Knee Punches
Alternating Shoulder Presses
Alternating Triceps Kickbacks
Bent Over Rows with Triceps Kickbacks
Bent Over Rows
Bicep Curls with Shoulder Presses
Bicep Curl with Upright Rows
Front Shoulder Raises
Lateral Shoulder Raises
Standing Twists
Upright Rows

Lower

Alternating High Knee Reverse Lunges
Alternating Lunges
Alternating Side Lunges
Alternating Side Lunges with Toe Touches
Alternating Standing Knee Crunches
Jump Lunges
Jump Squats
Side to Side Jumps
Squat Holds
Squats
Squats with Calf Raises

Sports

Basketball
Passing 1
Passing 2
WBB Basketball
Shooting
Shooting & Passing 1
Shooting & Passing 2
Shooting & Passing 3
Random (short)
Random (medium)
Random (long)

Skating
Inline Skating
WBB Inline Skating

Baseball
Batting
Catching
WBB Catching
Catching & Batting
Catching & Pitching
Pitch & Catch & Bat
Pitching
Pitching & Batting
Random (short)
Random (medium)
Random (long)

Tennis
Back Court
WBB Tennis
Back Court & Front Court
Back Court & Mid Court
Back, Front & Mid Court
Front Court
Front Court & Mid Court
Random (short)
Random (medium)
Random (long)

Volleyball
Bump & Set
WBB Bump & Set
Bump, Set & Block
Serve & Bump
Serve, Bump & Set
Serve, Bump, Set & Block
Set & Block
Random (short)
Random (medium)
Random (long)

EA Sports Active for Wii - Day 1 Test Drive

2009-05-30T12:53:00.007-04:00

I am an avid video gamer, but also a fitness enthusiast (the two are not mutually exclusive). I have several gaming systems: Xbox 360, Wii, Xbox, even Playstation 2 (although that collects a bit of dust). Action / shooter games on Xbox 360 are a great stress reliever. Recently, hubby and I finished cooperatively ridding the world of many many zombies in Left 4 Dead (published by EA).

I play physically active games on the Wii (after all, that’s what the platform supports). Wii Sports is a great start to get you hooked. I have a Wii Fit that I have been using for about 6 months. While I enjoy the Yoga and Strength activities it offers (and I do feel them the next day), the cardio is extremely lacking. Nintendo really missed on that one – the Step activity could be really great if you could a) adjust the speed (boy, is it slow) and b) download new routines (the same one gets old real fast). Also, there are not real structured workouts – you are on your own to make sure you balance your activities.

So I started looking for another game that would provide some cardio activity. I came across Active Life Outdoor Challenge, which has a dance step like mat that you jog on, jump on (no jumping on the Wit Fit board), etc. This game can be very physically challenging. However, it does not provide the kind of structure that I was looking for. And it is quite obviously targeted at children. (By the way, my cats can trigger actions on the activity mat – usually in such a way as to mess up my game.)

So it is with cautious anticipation that I looked forward to the release of EA Sports Active. I just received it in the mail yesterday and completed my first workout today. Because it was the first time, I tried the 40 minute “easy” workout. I can’t really offer a complete evaluation at this stage, but my initial reaction is quite positive. I am not going to talk about the resistance band or the leg strap. There is plenty of information about those items elsewhere. I was able to use both successfully. Some initial observations:

I like the way the different activities were organized and how one moved right from one activity to the next.
The workout offered good variety: upper and lower body strength work plus a little bit of cardio (in this workout). I was surprised that there were no activities, at least in this workout, that targeted the abdominal muscles. Nor were there any stretching activities (I do know enough to stretch on my own, but ...)
Activities varied from “traditional” exercises (lunges, bicep curls, arm raises, etc.) but also included movements from tennis, basketball, volleyball, and boxing
There are supposed to be activities that use the Wii Fit board (if you don’t have one, these activities will not be selected). My workout did not feature any.
You can watch the “calories burned counter” increase (in tenth of a calorie increments) as you workout. I actually burned more calories than what was originally projected for the selected workout. I assume that was due to variation in intensity.
The game does take some getting used to – you must position the remotes precisely in order for your activity to register correctly. Watch the videos and pay close attention to the orientation of the controllers (horizontal, vertical, face up or down, for example).
In the beginning, it will take a lot longer than the specified time to complete the workout, since you watch videos, etc. The workout time measures the actual time worked.
EA Sports has an online community for the game, where you can share tips, troubles, etc. (They are also on twitter: http://twitter.com/Active_Girl).

I ended up burning about 180 calories, according to the game, during this 40 minute session. That feels about right, given the intensity of the activities I was performing. (Hmm, wonder if I will be sore tomorrow.) Typically, my cardio workouts at the gym burn 400-700 calories. For me, I suspect this game will never be a complete substitute for going to the gym, nor would I want it to be. But it definitely appears to be a decent supplement, providing a well-rounded set of activities organized into structured workouts. Plus, I know I have only begun to scratch the surface here.

I will be starting the 30-day challenge tomorrow. I will post updates on my progress and reactions. I anticipate that the activities will increase in difficulty as one progresses. I look forward to the challenge. I think at least in the short term, I will be setting the Wii Fit aside and focusing on EA Sports Active.

The Groogrux King Shuffle

2009-05-27T08:19:00.002-04:00

As I patiently await the release of DMB’s Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King, I think back to the “good old days” when I would get a new album (on vinyl), and I would sit and listen to it end to end several times (usually wearing headphones) , read the lyrics, view the album art, etc. Of course, that was back when I was still in high school, no job, and probably too much time on my hands. Nowadays everyone is constantly moving from one thing to another, rarely taking the time to enjoy the moment. These days, one tends to listen to music on an iPod (or other mp3 player) in a shuffle playlist, jumping from artist to artist, song to song, in random mix fashion. I admit this is also now my most common music listening mode, which I blame for my developing schizophrenia (hey, one always needs to find someone who is not “self” to blame).

But a really good album has a certain flow and sequence and evokes a certain mood. Pink Floyd was the master of the album story, but there have been many others as well. (I cannot listen to Pink Floyd tunes in shuffle mode. I do have them on my iPod, but those I play as an album.)

What kind of mood will BW&tGK evoke? Based on preliminary listening – yes, all the songs are available somewhere on the net – there seems to be a subtle progression to the song arrangement that will be lost in shuffle mode. Yet most of the songs will stand by themselves as well.

I have ordered the super deluxe package, which includes a bonus CD, a DVD documentary, and a couple books. I look forward to receiving the package, opening it up, and spending time both listening to the music and reading through the extra materials, like I used to in the old days.

Gator Sitings

2009-05-24T11:13:00.002-04:00

After 6 straight days of rain in Tampa Bay area, the sun was finally out this morning, so I decided to go to a walk. Apparently the non-stop rain does not just affect the humans. The reptiles and birds also need to get out in the sun. During my walk, I saw two gators, in two different ponds, sunning themselves. They weren't big ones, only about 3 to 4 feet in length. (Then again, they may have been smaller - women are notoriously bad judges of size :-) .) What was cool was that I could see their entire body. In the past, I have usually only been able to see their beady eyes and upper mouth sticking out of the water.

I also saw a turtle sunning on the rocks. If he isn't careful, he may end up as gator food.

And at one point I had to pause while the 4 foot blue crane crossed the sidewalk in front of me.

Love the Florida nature life.

May Vegas Vacation, part 3

2009-05-12T09:51:00.000-04:00

Of course, the main purpose of the trip was to see DMB! Here are some pics from the first show, when we were in 5^th row center! These two shows absolutely kicked ass. Thanks, guys. See you in Florida in August!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dr_dawn/sets/72157617924979249/

May Vegas Vacation, part 2

2009-05-12T09:34:00.002-04:00

On the drive from Grand Canyon back to Vegas, we stopped at the Grand Canyon Cavern, near PeachTree AZ. This is an underground cavern that was once setup to be used as a bomb shelter by the military; supplies were still in the cavern.

We also stopped briefly at the Hoover Dam (we had done the Dam tour on another trip). But I wanted to snap some pictures of the new “flyby” bridge that is currently under construction. The bridge is being constructed from both sides simultaneously and will eventually meet up in the middle (although it would be pretty cool to just put in a ramp and have everyone jump the gap :-) ).

Here are some more pics (26).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dr_dawn/sets/72157617926941109/

I have to mention that the reason you are seeing these pics is thanks to the cooperative folks at Avis rental car. I accidentally left my digital camera in the car when we dropped it off (black case, small camera, easy to miss, so I tell myself). Thankfully, I discovered it right away after I checked into the hotel in Vegas. I called Avis and the manager went out to the car and retrieved the camera. I then cabbed back to the rental place to pick it up. Over 200 pics in that thing! I would have been very sad to have lost it. Thanks Avis!

May Vegas Vacation, part 1

2009-05-12T08:33:00.003-04:00

Hubby and I were on vacation May 3-10. We traveled to the Grand Canyon for the first half of the week, then Las Vegas for the second half. This and the next two blog entries are about our trip.

We flew into Las Vegas, picked up a rental car, and drove out to the south rim of the Grand Canyon. First travel tip: don’t attempt this drive on a Sunday afternoon – you will sit in two hours of Dam traffic (that’s Hoover Dam traffic).

The Grand Canyon lives up to its name – extremely Grand. It is just awesome and overwhelming. The sights, the sound of the wind blowing through the canyon and up the wall, and the smell of pine (I tried to ignore the smell left by the donkeys). I took about 160 pictures, of which about 60 are posted here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dr_dawn/sets/72157618014889266/

We did a lot of walking – across the South Rim Trail and then down into the canyon a bit along the Bright Angel Trail (coming back up was not fun). I actually saw some women attempting to hike the trails in heels. Fashion before function, apparently. The park runs a free shuttle service between various observation points for people who either are not inclined to walk the rim or who get tired (we fell into the latter category on the second day). We also drove out to the Desert View point, about 25 miles east of the main park entrance, stopping at a couple observation points along the way. We watched the sunset on the second night – you could see the shadows cross the different peaks, and the colors were much more vibrant at that time.

We stayed in Tusayan, AZ, about 6 miles south of the park. We ate in all two of the recommended sit-down restaurants (recommended by the hotel). It is not a big town.

Next up: Grand Canyon Cavern, Hoover Dam, and the drive back to Vegas.

Denis Leary & Friends

2009-04-22T09:30:00.005-04:00

Here are some pics from last night's show Denis Leary & Friends, the Rescue Me tour. Several actor/comedians from the show came out and performed. All were very hilarious. Pics are of Denis, Lenny Clarke, and Adam Ferrara.

Not sure the exact number, but my impression is that about 30% of the words out of Denis's mouth were F-bombs. F-ing A! His songs are funny, but he should stay away from American Idol.

Thanks, guys, for a fun night!

Content Free Post

2009-04-21T17:49:00.001-04:00

Has it really been that long since my last post? Do I really have nothing to say? Apparently so. Work is work - very busy. The weather is getting nice, finally (meaning no more of this temps in the 60s crap :-) ).

Some stuff coming up though:

Tonite: Denis Leary and Friends at Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, FL
This weekend: my older brother and family are visiting
Real soon: hubby and I are traveling out west: a couple days at the Grand Canyon, a couple days in Vegas, two DMB shows!

Update to PB2 post

2009-04-02T09:04:00.003-04:00

An update to my post on PB2 (see the original post here).

In my latest PB2 shipment, I received a sample of the "chocolate PB2". This is PB2 mixed with chocolate. Being a huge fan of the chocolate+peanut butter combo (Reese's - you are truly evil), I have mixed PB2 with unsweetened cocoa myself, with fantastic results. Only a little cocoa is needed to give just the right chocolaty peanut butter goodness.

Surprisingly, I found the chocolate PB2 to be disappointing. It is too sweet for me. It seems like they aren't just mixing in unsweetened cocoa. I much prefer my own mix. So I will not be purchasing the chocolate version.

However, I will continue to keep regular PB2 in stock.

Shuttle Launch

2009-03-16T08:28:00.003-04:00

Finally got to see a shuttle launch last night, from about 100 miles away.

The launch took place just a little before 8 pm EDT, just at sunset. The smoke trail was lit in a rainbow of red to white by the sunset glow. I could see the separation - shuttle proceeding as the tanks slowly fell.

Pretty awesome, even from that distance.

Month of March: from Worst to First

2009-03-14T08:55:00.003-04:00

When I was living in New England, the month of March was always the worst of the year (despite being my birth month). So tired of the winter - the cold, the snow, the dirt and mud, the lifelessness. The "will it ever end" feeling. The ennui and listlessness of having survived another long winter (at least most of it, cuz it aint really over until April).

Now, living in Florida, March is my favorite month. March is a warm spring - high 70s and low 80s. March is time for spring planting - I just planted a new crop of herb, no, not that kind, basil and cilantro; I will be planting a new crop of jalapeños real soon. March is baseball spring training - going to a Sox game on Monday. March is eating lunch outside on the lanai every day, listening to the birds, watching the geckos; laying in the hammock; the start of flip flop and tank top season. March is almost pool weather - pool temp is currently 78, not quite warm enough for me yet (what can I say, I've gone native).

March is the promise of summer - concert season, beaches. I love March.

Billy Joel / Sir Elton John pics and videos

2009-03-07T15:56:00.001-05:00

As promised, here are some pictures and videos from the concert. I took pics/vids of the high def scoreboard, where they were projecting images.

Pictures:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dr_dawn/sets/72157614929792950

Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=903CC30AF774E2A4

Billy Joel / Sir Elton John, Face 2 Face

2009-03-06T08:53:00.005-05:00

I went to this concert last night, at the St. Pete Times Forum. We were seated in the second row of the third deck, at the stage end. We had a really good view. Video images were projected on the Forum's high def scoreboard, which was really great. I will be posting pics and videos over the weekend.

This was a really great show. Some observations:

The show started at 7:30. Elton and Billy came on together and played a few songs. Then Elton played for about an hour. Then Billy played for about an hour. Then they both played together again. The show got over at 11pm: 3 1/2 hours of extremely high quality performance.
Great song selection. Many of the great hits: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Tiny Dancer, Levon, River of Dreams, We Didn't Start the Fire, Rocket Man and Piano Man, of course. Bennie and the Jets sounded fabulous. Also some less well known but nonetheless great tunes: Madman across the Water, Zanzibar.
The backup bands were fabulous. I especially enjoyed the flugal horn work on Zanzibar. (I even recognized it as a flugal horn!)
I can now say I have been in the same room as a Knight. Granted, it was a big room.
Billy Joel is funny.
Who would have thought that Billy Joel would be the crazier one. I thought he was going to knock over his piano stool. And boy, can he twirl a microphone stand (both one-handed and two-handed twirling) as well as throw the stand over the piano to the stage hand. This is something he couldn't have done when he started out, because there were no wireless microphones back then.

I had never seen either of these fine gentlemen perform live before. Seeing them both together was a real treat.

Wonderful product: PB2 powered peanut butter

2009-03-04T13:20:00.007-05:00

I don't usually promote products, but PB2, which is a powdered peanut butter product available from Bell Plantation, is a wonderful product if you love peanut butter but not the fat it contains.

PB2 is made by taking premium quality peanuts, slow-roasting them, and then pressing them to remove the fat. To make a peanut "butter", you mix it with water to whatever consistency you desire. You can also use it dry. Here are some of the things I use it for:

Mix some dry PB2 with fat free vanilla yogurt to make a nice, creamy, peanut butter yogurt.
Mix with water to a thin consistency then heat in the microwave and pour over ice cream. (you can also add a little cocoa for that chocolate-peanut butter kick).
Mix dry into your favorite instant pudding (chocolate or vanilla)
Mix dry with soy sauce, ginger, and garlic to make a nice stir fry or dipping sauce
And of course, mix with water and spread on a sandwich, toast, or bagel

PB2 tastes much better than standard brand peanut butters - it yields a very fresh tasting, not too sweet spread.

It is, of course, more expensive than peanut butter you can buy at the store. Unfortunately, it seems that eating healthy generally costs more these days. Hopefully, that will change. But you are worth it.

Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Another postponement? WTF?

2009-03-04T09:50:00.002-05:00

Robin Williams has canceled 4 Florida shows for health reasons, including the Tampa show this Saturday. Shows will be rescheduled at a later date. Sigh. Get better M. Williams - I need your laughter!

Meanwhile, I'm going to see the Billy Joel/Elton John Face 2 Face show tomorrow night at the St. Pete Time's Forum. I'll be in section 330, row B. Stop by and say hi.

So here's an update on my event list:

- I will conquer this cold
DONE - but now hubby has it and he has been hit much worse
- Jerry Seinfeld performance this Thursday (Feb 26)
DONE - great show! Thanks Jer.
- Cookout at mom's on Sunday (Mar 1)
DONE (although a reduced guest list; several people pulled out due to illness)
- Elton John / Billy Joel concert next Thursday (Mar 5)
MANANA - Psyched!
- Robin Williams performance next Saturday (Mar 7)
POSTPONED :-(
- Dinner at Bern's Steakhouse next Sunday (Mar 8) THE BEST
I can almost taste the filet right now
- Bonnie Raitt show March 15 POSTPONED until October :-(
- BoSox spring training game March 16
- Dennis Leary show April 21

Show postponement

2009-02-25T17:19:00.002-05:00

Just got word (via snail mail) that the Bonnie Raitt show has been postponed until October (Rocktober), due to a family emergency. Sympathies and best wishes to Ms. Raitt.

Misc Update

2009-02-25T12:38:00.002-05:00

Boy, what slacker I am. Long time without a post. Hey, its February. No one really likes February (except for those people who have birthdays in Feb, like hubby).

So what's been happening? Let's see...

(I am listening to newly purchased George Winston content while I type this.)

Hubby's birthday was earlier this month. We went out to dinner with his father and sister to "The Melting Pot" for yummy fondue. Quite excellent. Always a good choice.

Some friends came down from New England. We met them for dinner at Tina Tapa's in Tampa (say that three times fast :-) ). They brought down colds, and gave them to be. I have been fighting it for over a week now - it hit me full steam yesterday. I spent most of the day in bed.

Last Sunday I went to the Bruins - Lightning game at the St. Pete Times Forum. I was all decked out in my Bruins gear - my Adam Oates jersey and jacket. Sadly, despite the fact that the Bruins have one of the best records this year, and the Lightning (the "Bolts") have one of the worst, the Lightning prevailed 4-3. They scored their winning goal after the Bruins got called for a bogus delay of game penalty with about 3 minutes to go. Officiating was pretty sub-par. But there were quite a number of Bruins fans. You could occasionally hear a "Let's Go Bruins" chant - but not quite as loud as the "Let's Go Red Sox" chants you hear at the Rays games :-).

What's coming up for me?
- I will conquer this cold
- Jerry Seinfeld performance this Thursday (Feb 26)
- Cookout at mom's on Sunday (Mar 1)
- Elton John / Billy Joel concert next Thursday (Mar 5)
- Robin Williams performance next Saturday (Mar 7)
- Dinner at Bern's Steakhouse next Sunday (Mar 8) THE BEST
- Bonnie Raitt show March 15
- BoSox spring training game March 16

Then things calm down a bit. Busy and fun times ahead. Will try to keep you posted.

Ultra mega hyper Inauguration Pic

2009-02-12T14:01:00.000-05:00

Check this out:

http://www.davidbergman.net/blog/2009/01/22/how-i-made-a-1474-megapixel-photo-during-president-obamas-inaugural-address/

George Winston concert

2009-02-12T09:08:00.002-05:00

Last night, hubby and I attended a George Winston concert. Whatever I say about him won't do him justice, but I will try. He is a pianist who has been influenced by various styles of classical works, jazz, and blues (among others), and these influences come out in the pieces that he plays. I first came to know of him because of his recordings of the works of Vince Guaraldi, who composed the music associated with the Peanuts cartoons, including the famous Linus & Lucy. (I am a big Snoopy fan :-) ).

The performance was astounding. He is so talented, I was awestruck. We had perfect seats, second row balcony. I could see his hands and feet clearly - well, except when his hands were moving so fast that they were blurry. At times, he would reach inside the piano to modulate the sound. When he played sections one-handed - so much music could come out of just one hand. He also played a couple songs on acoustic guitar, and one on the harmonica!

Such display of talent is humbling. I feel very fortunate that I was able to attend this performance. Thanks, M. Winston!

Gotta go order some more of his music...

Buddy Guy and B.B. King show

2009-02-06T10:05:00.011-05:00

Last night, I had the pleasure of attending a concert featuring two blues Rock And Roll Hall of Famers: Buddy Guy and B.B. King. The show was held in Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, FL (a great concert hall).

Buddy opened with an hour+ set featuring a medley of classic blues by Muddy Waters, Junior Wells, John Lee Hooker, even Clapton and Hendrix, among others. Selections included Hoodoo Man Blues, Mustang Sally, Skin Deep (off his new CD). His version of "Fever" just made me want to close my eyes and feel the music wash over me. What a great blues man and entertainer. At one point, he walked into the audience, all the way up the back, out the hall, and then came back in at the front, playing all the while. Thank goodness for wireless.

If it were only Buddy performing, I would have been happy. First time I had seen him perform, and he was absolutely terrific. But the King was up next.

Buddy finished around 9:20, then B.B. came on at 9:50 and entertained until midnight. I have seen B.B. perform several times now (all at Ruth Eckerd Hall). He never disappoints. Great stories, awesome band, great audience interaction. The man is amazing. I think some of the audience were surprised by the lateness of the show, on a Thursday night - they started leaving at 11. Unimaginable. The man is a legend. Priorities!

At the end of the show, he signed some autographs on stage, including a couple guitars brought in by concertgoers.

If you have a chance to see the Buddy and B.B. show while they are on tour, make sure you do. It is an absolute must for any blues fan.

Here are some pictures and movies ("Rock Me Baby" clip & "Thrill is Gone" clip) to share.

Still Recovering from my NFL eXperience

2009-02-02T07:56:00.007-05:00

Last Saturday, I volunteered to work the NFL eXperience - an NFL theme park setup outside Raymond James stadium, where the Super Bowl was played. Two shifts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

I am still recovering.

For my first shift, I spent about 3 1/2 to 4 hours putting footballs on tees so that little kids (ages 2 to app. 12) could attempt an extra point kick. Let's see, that's about 200+ minutes of bending over, setting the ball on the tee, receiving the ball from the "fetcher", repeat. I probably got in about 200 kicks at least. I am still sore.

The kids loved it though. They had a great time.

The second half, I used my legal experience to guide parents through the intricacies of signing a waiver form so that their kids (and themselves) could get a wristband so that they could play the games. Yes, you need to sign a waiver for each kid. What, you brought 6? Can't help you there, wait, let me find the waiver for hand cramps.

A couple interesting anecdotes:

One guy tried to slip me some cash so that I could get him in because he didn't want to wait in the hour plus long line at the ticket booth. Sorry dude. Volunteer handbook says we can't accept tips, etc.
A "fiscally responsible" gentleman asked if, as a Super Bowl ticket holder (he made sure he said he was an actual game ticket holder many many times during the conversation), did he actually have to pay the entrance fee on the day (Sunday) when the park was open only for ticket holders? Let's see, Super Bowl ticket, $1000+, NFL eXperience ticket, $18.50. We who were staffing the desk didn't know the answer, so he insisted we find someone who did. The answer was that no, he wouldn't have to pay. Good thing - that's 1 beer and 1 hotdog.

After my shift was done, I was able to walk around myself. The lines for all the games were very long. I did go into the Hall of Fame exhibit, and I visited the Lombardi trophy.

I also went into the Super Bowl store. I saw a Steelers fan purchase all the yellow Steelers towels. When I left for the day, he was hawking them in the parking lot. No, it wasn't the same Super Bowl ticket holder guy who was concerned about his $18.50.

I was hoping for a win from Arizona. They almost pulled it off. But it was a good game. Exciting to watch. Glad I had no real vested interest in the outcome.

On to Spring training.

DirectTV Celebrity Beach Bowl

2009-01-27T15:21:00.004-05:00

Unfortunately, this event is taking place during my Super Bowl (not Lingerie Bowl) volunteer shift at the NFL Experience.

THE DIRECTV CELEBRITY BEACH BOWL

Free Admission

January 31^st at Progress Energy Park in St. Petersburg

Eli Manning and Reggie Bush to Coach Teams

Post-Game Concert by LL COOL J!

Kick-off Super Bowl weekend in style with DIRECTV’s 3^rd Annual Celebrity Beach Bowl January 31^st—the day before Super Bowl XLIII—at Progress Energy Park in St. Petersburg. Gates open at 1:00 PM and the first 1,000 to arrive are entered to win Super Bowl tickets for the following day!

Celebrities scheduled to play in the game include Kevin Dillon, Christian Slater, Blake Lively and Penn Badgley (Gossip Girl), Mario Lopez (Dancing With the Stars), Odette Yustman (The Unborn, Cloverfield), Dave Annable (Brothers & Sisters), Zach Gilford (Friday Night Lights), Brody Jenner and Frankie Delgado (The Hills, Bromance), Kim, Kourtney and Khloe Kardashian (Keeping up with the Kardashians), Playboy Playmates Jayde Nicole (2008 Playmate of the Year) and Pilar Lastra.

Athletes scheduled to participate include former NFL stars Eddie George, Warren Moon, Merril Hoge, Jamal Anderson, John Kidd and NASCAR’s Kasey Kahne. Reggie Bush (New Orleans Saints) will coach the Blue Team and Eli Manning (New York Giants) will coach The White Team. The Beach Bowl will be played out over two, 20-minute halves with all the action being called by a team of all-star sports analysts including Brown, Simms, Sapp, Myers and Andrew Siciliano (NFL Sunday Ticket Red Zone Channel), who will serve as the official play-by-play announcers and sideline correspondents. Maurice Jones Drew (Jacksonville Jaguars) and Matt Forte (Chicago Bears) will officiate the game.

The pre-game show begins at 1:30 PM featuring appearances by James Brown, Phil Simms, Warren Sapp and Jenn Brown from Inside The NFL on Showtime and Chris Myers (Fox Sports Network). The main event begins at 2:30 PM EST with an old-school flag football grudge match with over 25 sports icons and celebrities battling for supremacy. Bringing the day to an exciting conclusion, LL Cool J will take the stage and perform a live set after the game to add to the fun.

Super Bowl week

2009-01-27T08:19:00.006-05:00

As the Super Bowl descends on Tampa, there's lots of news to follow. Here are some stories of interest.

The Lingerie Bowl, which is a pay-per-view half time event (apparently), has been cancelled. It was supposed to be held at a local clothing-optional resort. Hubby and I actually looked at a house for sale in the development across the street from this resort.
The economy has apparently affected the availability of chicken wings, leading to a mild panic over a chicken wing shortage. I have already stocked up.
Facts and myths surrounding the Super Bowl. If everyone flushes the toilet at the same time during half time, what will happen?
Local police are preparing to deal with the influx of prostitutes and the men who solicit them. Apparently, during Super Bowl week, one can "score" big time.

More as events warrant.

Why I Love Florida, Reason 23

2009-01-26T18:34:00.004-05:00

Today, I went biking in the afternoon to the Town Ground coffee shop, 3 miles from my house. Just a short bike ride. I brought a sweatshirt, but it was unnecessary. Had it tied around my waist the whole time. As I was sitting outside in 75 degree weather, drinking my iced coffee (it was too hot for hot coffee), listening to my iPod and twittering from my phone, I achieved a certain mental calm.

Of course, the fact that I was doing this in the middle of a workday afternoon helped a bit, I think.

Esoteric Laws

2009-01-26T18:32:00.003-05:00

I found this story to be very funny. Apparently, Florida has an anti-mask law:

"No person or persons over 16 years of age shall, while wearing any mask, hood, or device whereby any portion of the face is so hidden, concealed, or covered as to conceal the identity of the wearer, enter upon, or be or appear upon any lane, walk, alley, street, road, highway, or other public way in this state."

So is Halloween trick-or-treating illegal (for the "over 16" crowd)?

Coldest Day

2009-01-22T07:27:00.001-05:00

I think this morning is the coldest day ever in my area of Tampa Bay, FL. At 7:30 in the morning, I can look out my window and still see frost on the ground. That has never happened at least as long as I have lived here. According to Weatherbug, it is still 31 degrees at the nearest station in Safety Harbor.

We moved plants into the garage, which will still be very cold, but hopefully no frost. We covered delicate plants in the yard: hibiscus and jalapenos. But I don't think the jalapenos will survive this one. Lots of strawberry and citrus crops will be damaged. We even ran our pool pump all night to prevent the water in the system from freezing.

I know it is cold in many other places, but FL is not used to this.

Hubby has to go out this morning, but we have no scrapers for our cars. He's gonna need to run the defrost for quite a while. But at least he has seat warmers.

Hopefully, summer will be here soon (end of March marks the start of summer for me now).

Inauguration Day: Changefest '09

2009-01-21T19:04:00.003-05:00

If you get a chance, watch Jon Stewart's Inauguration Day Daily Show episode: "Changefest 09". Bravely clever, interspersing segments of Obama's speech with past Bush speeches. The episode also featured an interview with Bishop Gene Robinson (both Bishops and Queens were mentioned). And it made me think about something I had never thought about before: "Why is cheese so good when melted over Italian food, but so disgusting when melted over Chinese food?"

Good luck Mr. President. All our hopes and dreams are on your shoulders. No pressure.

Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa

2009-01-19T08:17:00.008-05:00

Well, the teams are finally known: Arizona Cardinals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers. Thank goodness it wasn't an all PA Super Bowl. I don't know if I could take that.

I am ready. I have picked up my Super Bowl Volunteer uniform, credential, and other related paraphernalia. The uniform consists of a baseball cap, polo shirt (red), and windbreaker jacket. All are quite nice. The hat and shirt are shown below.

What, you think I would be modeling them? You gotta show up on the 31st at the NFL Experience to see them in action. I will be working two shifts so I will be there all day. (If I don't show up for my shifts, I have to pay for the uniform.) If you do stop by, bring your Visa card - it is the only card accepted at the NFL experience. (Visa, you can send that promotion residual check my way anytime.)

If you don't know what the NFL Experience is, it is the only Super Bowl event that is affordable by the masses. It is essentially an NFL theme park. Some really cool stuff there. Here's a link. As a volunteer, I received two free tickets for Thursday night (adult night), the 29th. Looking forward to it quite a bit.

By the way, the hat is made in China, the shirt in Pakistan, and the jacket (not shown) in Sri Lanka.

Winter Weather in Tampa Bay

2009-01-14T10:11:00.003-05:00

Like every other place in the US, the weather is a frequent topic of conversation. I think there is an unwritten social rule that 95% of all conversations must mention the weather. Anyway, in Florida, 9 months of the year, there really isn't much to talk about. The summer is another story, with frequent thunderstorms and hurricane threats. But this time of year, the weather doesn't change much: sunny, high 60s or low 70s. Done. So what's a TV weather person to do? Well, mostly, talk about how miserable it is elsewhere in the country - cold, snow, etc. - which I find entertaining.

But when something of interest (can't quite say "exciting") does happen this time of year, the weather folks jump on it and talk about it forever. Take the current "cold" spell that has just hit, finally. The TV weather people have been talking about it for over a week, so much so that I thought I had missed it (given that it was 75 a couple days ago). Well, this morning it finally hit. A chilly but sunny 47 degrees at 9am this morning.

Unfortunately, I had to go out (dentist appointment for a cleaning - I know you needed to know that). So I dug out my leather jacket (purchased at the Wrentham Outlets during my last trip up north) and (yes) gloves. I (forwent? forgoed?) chose to forgo (hmm, better) the zip-out lining for this trip.

As I drove to my destination , with car seat warmers engaged (thank goodness!), I saw people in my neighborhood out walking, but bundled up in heavy jackets, hats, and gloves. At the dentist office, I overheard a conversation between one of the doctors and a patient (hmm, privacy issues) about - what else - the weather. The patient was complaining that once her heat/hot water bill jumped from $30 to $60 in one month! So now she heats her house much more conservatively. Gee, I remember $400+ heating bills when living in MA, and that was several years ago, when we would only heat our house to 68 and use a timer so that we could lower the temperature at night and during work hours when we weren't home. Now we set our thermostat to 70 all the time and we have never had a bill over $50. (We have a thermostat that switches automatically between heat and AC, so the temperature in our house is pretty well regulated.)

For the next few days, while this cold spell lasts, I expect the TV weather folks will actually talk about the FL weather for a significant portion of their segment. I will miss the time normally devoted to winter weather in other parts of the country, as I do draw some pleasure out of hearing those stories. But I'll take the occasional 47 degree (and sometimes lower) days anytime, compared to the alternative.

Gotta go. Need to finish up my tea before it gets too cold.

(For this post, I practiced my run-on sentences and use of parentheticals. How did I do? Let me know :-)).

My iPod Wish List

2009-01-05T18:02:00.004-05:00

Since MacWorld is happening in San Francisco this week, here is my wish list.

1. Can we make iTunes and the iPod music player consistently case insensitive? We all know that the GraceNote DB is full with errors, a common one being difference cases used for the same artist's different recordings. My recent encounter with this issue: Hootie & the Blowfish vs. Hootie & The Blowfish. (Now, don't go off on a side track about whether it should be The Blowfish, since there is/are only one Blowfish). In iTunes, this is one Artist; on my iPod Touch, this is two.

2. Can the Notes entered on the iPod actually get sync'd / copied to the desktop? Once I enter notes on my iPod, what can I do with them? How can I back them up? I am trying to do without my old Palm PDA, but the notes synchronization / backup on the Palm is, unfortunately, superior.

3. Can we have one app to manage music, contacts, calendar, and notes? I have to go into iTunes to manage my music, a different Calendar app for appointments, a Contacts app, etc. One stop shopping please.

And this all has to be compatible with the previous version of OS X, since I can't afford/justify paying the cost to upgrade my old G4 PowerBook. (At least I didn't ask for Vista compatibility :-)).

4. Can the App Store have a try before you buy option? You can listen to a snippet of a song, but if you want to buy an app, buyer beware.

But don't worry, no matter what, I will never buy a Zune. (Are those even still for sale?)

Happy New Year

2009-01-01T13:35:00.001-05:00

Spent a nice, relaxing New Year's Eve at home with hubby and some of the relatives (father-in-law and sister-in-law). The evening started off with key lime martinis and a demo of our new Wii Fit game. I made dinner: butternut squash lasagna, salad, garlic bread, and wine. Then we had key lime pie and coffee for dessert. We played Train Dominoes until the wee hours (missed the ball drop, but I've watched it a few times before). That is a fun game, highly recommended especially for this kind of evening.

This morning, off to the YMCA to work off some of last night's indulgence. I watched the Rose Bowl while on the cardio machine. Brought back memories of marching in the parade in high school - long, hot, and dehydrating. You have no idea how hot those marching band uniforms can be. The floats are pretty impressive. I liked the Acme Wile E Coyote and Road Runner one - speaks to my inner self.

I also enjoyed hearing that New York and New England is having very cold, snowy weather. Right now in FL, it is in the 70s. Sweet.

Holiday Update

2008-12-27T08:37:00.000-05:00

I have been on vacation all week, so very few tweets and no blog updates. Now it is past time to catch up.

Last Sunday (21st), hubby and I went up to my mom's for Xmas family celebration, featuring Christmint-inis (prepared by yours truly), an Italian dinner (manicotti, bread, wine), cheesecake with strawberries, and a Yankee swap exchange of gifts. In attendance were also my aunt and uncle, my brother and his family (wife and two kids), and two dogs. It was a very nice day, and it only took me a couple days to get rid of the bloated, overeating feeling :-).

On Xmas Eve Day, hubby and I traditionally open gifts in the evening, with our cats. Taabu rested up all day for the big event. In fact, she was so rested that she slept through the unwrapping, for the first time. Here she is in one of her favorite napping places (she has many).

Not to be outdone, here is Missa under our tree (this is from when we first put the tree up, before presents):

One of the fun things about opening presents in our house is that the cats inevitably have "marked" certain ones by chewing the bows. This year, they did an especially good job on this one.

I think they were objecting to the wrapping paper. This was a gift ordered via the web, and it included free gift wrapping. Given the design of the paper, no wonder it is free.

Among the gifts I received were two additions to my Mr. Potato Head collection. Introducing: Spider Spud and Trick-or-Treat Tater. They join the ranks of Darth Tater, Spud Trooper, R2 Potatwo, and Spudda Fett. They are the first non-Star Wars spuds I have collected, so they have some social fitting in to do.

Oh, and in the background, that would be the Bailey's Chocolate Mint that I polished off during the festivities.

As you know, if you have been reading this blog, I am working on learning to play piano. To encourage my progress, hubby bought me a Dave Matthews Band anthology, containing vocals, guitar, and piano for many of their songs. As I started to work through some of them yesterday, mostly by being overwhelmed, I gained even more respect for their musical talents. Who really composes in the key of E Major?

Hope everyone had a healthy, happy holiday!

Help Rebuild New Orleans for a Song

2008-12-19T12:56:00.000-05:00

Musician Josh Charles has written and released a new song that is currently available for purchase on Amazon.com for $.99. Proceeds from the song go to Make It Right, which helps build green, sustainable homes in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans.

Please consider purchasing the tune (here's a direct link where you can do so) and helping out a great cause. And spread the word.

Dexter: each season gets better than the last

2008-12-16T11:59:00.000-05:00

Watched the season 3 finale of Dexter last night. Although I so much hate to see the season end, since this is one of my favorite shows that I look forward to watching every week, this season was terrific.

At the end of each season, I ask myself, well, now what can they do? But then the next season is better than the last. Michael C. Hall is fabulous as always. Jimmy Smits was absolutely great - the interplay between his character and Dexter was a pleasure to watch. All the supporting cast are outstanding. They all deserve Emmy's.

My wish for next season: I would love to see Michael C. Hall do a song and dance routine, perhaps in a dream sequence? After all, Dexter's entire life is a song and dance.

Sunset over Clearwater Beach

2008-12-15T08:22:00.000-05:00

Sunset over Clearwater Beach, December 13, 2008 (picture taken by a co-worker).

Xmas Party

2008-12-14T09:54:00.000-05:00

Hubby and I went to my company's Xmas party last night. It was held at the Sandpearl Resort, on Clearwater Beach. Party was dressy - hubby wore a jacket and tie!

Since the party was only for the local Tampa office, it was a fairly small group (50-60 people). The food was very good, accompanied by an open bar. The band was very bad: three guys playing instruments with some karaoke type machine for drums and other background music. They kept selecting the wrong background. And the play selection was very questionable.

I got to meet people and socialize. Most importantly, I didn't embarrass myself. Although I did get the bartenders to go out back to get a bottle of Kahlua, so that we could have shots in our (Starbucks) coffee.

New Red Sox Uniforms

2008-12-14T09:52:00.000-05:00

You can check out the new Red Sox uniforms here. Perhaps not coincidentally, mlb.com is having a buy one get one 50% off sale.

Not sure I like the change. I am more of a traditionalist :-)

Pictures of Xmas

2008-12-11T16:36:00.000-05:00

Getting close to the Xmas Holiday. Here's a picture of our tree, complete with kitty underneath. Not sure you can tell, but there is a nice Red Sox hot air balloon ornament towards the bottom. Apparently, I may need a new one this year, as the Red Sox are announcing a change to their logo! Hey, that's something teams like the (Devil) Rays do.

Here's another picture of my flowering Christmas cactus, which my mother gave me. This cactus is unusual, as the flower are white with a faint pink center.

I hope to take a tour of my neighborhood and capture some pics of the outdoor decorations. People really go crazy down here with those. Until then...

An Old Cat Trying to Learn New Tricks

2008-12-08T22:18:00.000-05:00

Because I don't have enough to do, I am trying to learn to play the piano. For now, I am teaching myself. I played musical instruments (clarinet and french horn) when I was in school (just a short time ago :-) ), so I do know how to read music (at least, it is coming back to me). I also played a little bit of piano back then. My mother wanted to get rid of hers, so I did her a favor and took it off her hands. It is an ivory-colored upright.

I don't expect to become very good at it, although I suspect lessons may help :-) But it is good mental exercise. Trying to get my left and right hands to do different things is a challenge. It exercises my mind, or perhaps it will make me even more schizophrenic. Time will tell.

My cats, at least, don't object to my playing. They always come in and listen to me play.

Tales from the (Semi-) Wild Side 2: DMB in Mansfield

2008-12-04T08:08:00.000-05:00

Time for another tale. This one is about my trip last year (August 1-2 2008) to see DMB in Mansfield, MA. That was the year that the DMB summer tour started late, so I was definitely suffering from withdrawal. Especially because in Florida, it starts to feel like summer in April, so that's when I start to think about summer concerts.

DMB wasn't going to be in Florida until September, after Labor Day, and I couldn't wait that long.

So .... since my company's main office is in MA, I convinced my manager that I needed to travel to MA that week for "work". Hey, free plane fare, car, and hotel - pretty sweet, n'est-ce pas?

I knew the trip was going to be good when I picked up my rental car from Hertz, and they put me in a red Mustang (although it had NY plates).

These were the first two shows of the tour last year. I got tickets for both off StubHub (single tickets - good seats and not too expensive). I did the normal tailgating with my cool car, my iPod, and speakers. Met some nice folks in the parking lot. (I had to continuously explain that my car was a rental, I was not from NY - The Red Sox flip flops helped me there.)

Anyway, so I get into the show, watch the warm up act, then make my ritual trip to the bathroom to help guarantee DMB-non-interruptus. Well, as with pretty much any concert venue, there is a line, and you are stuck with whatever stall frees up.

Well, I finally get a stall. The toilet is in permanent flush mode. No problem, I can still do my business. But as I stand up and button up, my ticket falls out of my pocket and GOES RIGHT DOWN THE TOILET. Gone in less than 60 seconds.

This was an 8th row ticket!

Crap.

Well, I try to make my way back to my seat. At the Tweeter Center (or whatever they call it these days), staff check your tickets before they let you into the good sections. So I was confronted by big burly dude and gentle elderly woman. So I approached the women and told her my story about how my ticket was flushed down the toilet. She looked at me with skepticism and said there was nothing she could do, I would need to talk to customer services.

So I go to customer services (which thankfully wasn't crowded) and tell my story again. Now, this story is a little embarrassing, but is probably not something they hear every day (at least based on their laughter, I don't think they had heard that one before). They couldn't do anything for me, I would need to go to the ticket counter to see if I could get a replacement.

So, I go to the ticket counter and tell my story again, for the third and thankfully last time. If I had bought the ticket myself, things would have been easy. They could have taken my name and looked me up. But no, it was a Stub Hub ticket. I had no idea who originally bought it. But I did know exactly which seat it was (row and seat number). So they gave me a neon yellow voucher that said, basically, let this person into this seat unless someone else claims it, in which case we will kick her out.

So, I did get back to my seat, and I did not miss any of the show.

Several lessons:
- Secure your ticket in the bathroom
- Know exactly where your seat is

It was a great show. First time I heard #27.

Black Friday indeed

2008-11-29T10:43:00.000-05:00

I was going to post my second "Tale", but I am so horrified about this year's Black Friday that I need to write about it.

I thought it was pretty bad when I read that people were lining up two days before - missing the Thanksgiving holiday to camp outside a store.

But the stampede at a Long Island, NY Wal-Mart, where one worker was killed, a pregnant woman suffered a miscarriage, and several others were injured, is simply outrageous, horrifying, and senseless. I can't imagine what those shoppers must have thought, as they felt a human body underneath their feet during their mad rush into the store. Even when the Wal-Mart tried to close because of the tragedy, the shoppers still insisted that they be allowed to keep on shopping.

All to save a couple hundred $$. Do you think any of those shoppers will donate some of the money they saved to the family of the person they killed? Will they still enjoy their big screen TVs and laptops? Maybe they will use one of their shiny new laptops to read this blog posting.

Police are reviewing the surveillance tapes. I hope they catch some of these people.

Thanksgiving Prep

2008-11-25T08:44:00.000-05:00

I love the Thanksgiving holiday: a time for good food, good drink, and good company. Today I am taking the day off f so that I can do some preparations. I am making cranberry bread (a tradition). This year I am also going to make a pumpkin bread (first time).

I have the best cranberry bread recipe. Here it is. The key is that you need to use really good orange juice (Tropicana Pure Premium).

Orange Cranberry Nut Bread

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons butter
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup orange juice
2 cups cranberries, halved
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl, Cut in butter. In separate small bowl, add orange juice to egg. Add the liquids to the dry ingredients, mixing enough to dampen. Fold in berries and nuts. Spoon into well-greased and floured loaf pan. Bake for 45-60 minutes.

Extra cranberries? Nuke 'em (covered) until they pop, then add some honey or sugar to make a nice spread - yummy over a bagel with cream cheese.

This year, my mom is hosting and cooking the Thanksgiving meal, with help from my aunt. The day's attendees will include myself and hubby, aunt and uncle, a brother, sister-in-law, and their two kids, and, of course, mom. It will be a somewhat bittersweet day, as one of the attendees has terminal cancer. This may be the last opportunity for all of us to get together like this. But I view this day as a gift, since she has already survived past medical expectations, and this time last year, I was thinking it would be her last one.

"Life is short but sweet for certain"

I am ready for some football, and Super Bowl XLIII

2008-11-23T10:36:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I attended my Super Bowl XLIII volunteer training. I have volunteered to work the NFL Experience, which is a football theme park that gets setup next to the stadium. There are all kinds of things you can end up doing, divided up into low, medium, and high intensity tasks. I hope to get one of the "high" intensity assignments, which typically involve helping out at the throw, kick, catch kinds of games - running down balls, feeding balls to the participants (usually kids), and high-fiving them when they rock! There will be autograph sessions, too.

They expect 100,000 people to travel to the Tampa Bay area for the Super Bowl. This is the fourth time Tampa has hosted the game (only the 4th city to host 4 times).

The training can be summed up in one sentence: be nice and helpful to the visitors. I think I can handle that. The training session was held at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, cleverly timed to get out just when the afternoon Phantom of the Opera show was supposed to start. There were several hundred people at the training session. I'm sure the play-going folks didn't mind the fact that us Super Bowl volunteers took up all the parking in the parking garage :-)

We had our pictures taken for our official Super Bowl ID badges, which we can pick up in January when we get our volunteer uniforms: polo shirt, windbreaker jacket, and baseball-style hat. It's a very sexy outfit. Oh, and I was wearing my NE Patriots 3x champion earrings - I hope you can see them in the picture :-).

Should be a good time. Jan. 31 - I'll be working the NFL Experience. Stop by and say hi.

In the meantime, I am prepping for today's Patriots-Dolphins matchup. Almost time to go to the "Pat Cave" to gear up: Patriots 3x champion shirt, Troy Brown #80 jersey, socks, scrunchie, and, of course, the earrings. (I have sandals, too, but it is a bit chilly for open toed shoes.) We'll be venturing to "Alligator's" to watch the game. Go Pats!

Tales from the (Semi-)Wild Side I: Being a Red Sox Fan

2008-11-22T09:38:00.000-05:00

This entry marks the start of a new series of blog entries: Tales from the (Semi-)Wild Side. (I don't feel justified to say truly wild - no arrests are involved.) Anyway, these will be tales from the past, of semi-wild adventures.

Today's tale: What it means to be a Red Sox fan, during the curse years (not the "we now expect them to win all the time" years of today).

Scene: Thursday, September 29, 1988. Hubby and I are laying in bed watching the 11 o'clock news. At 11:05, the sports report comes on. (This is Boston area, where sports is often the lead story, not relegated to 11:20 or so.) The Red Sox are in Cleveland with an opportunity to clinch the division.

Hubby and I turn to each other: wouldn't it be cool to be there to see them clinch?

Within about 1/2 an hour, we are in our car (a 1984 Chevy Cavalier (Cadaver, we called it)) and on the road.

It is app. a 12 hour drive to Cleveland. We stopped somewhere in PA so that we could call in sick to work from a pay phone on the highway.

We arrived around 11 am (not quite a 12 hour drive for us :-)). Went up to the stadium and bought tickets a few rows back behind home plate. (This was Cleveland, 1988, in the old stadium.) Went to a hotel and crashed for a few hours. Game time: 7:35pm.

Well, in a nutshell. The Sox lost. Clemens was the losing pitcher (it was the pre-juice days). Attendance was a mere 15,497.

We went back to the hotel to crash. By the time we woke up the next day, the Sox had cliched because of other losses in the division. We could have stayed to see another game, but we drove back home. Good thing. The Sox lost their last two games of the season to end with an 89-71 record.

The Sox ended up losing the ALCS to Oakland that year. The Dodgers beat Oakland to win the World Series.

But Clemens led the league in strikeouts (291) and Wade Boggs led the league in average (.366).

What I learned: It doesn't matter (so much) if the Sox win or lose - as long as you are along for the ride.

Next tale: Hold on to your ticket stub

Invasion of Nature

2008-11-19T13:47:00.000-05:00

Last night, there was a frost warning issued for my area (it's November, in central-west Florida - shouldn't happen). So, hubby and I moved all our precious plants inside so they wouldn't freeze: basil, rosemary, palms, etc.

We have had to do this in past years (but usually in February). In the past, we have found that we haven't just moved the plants inside, but typically there is some kind of critter on one of them that comes along for the ride - gecko, lizard, frog. Of course, our watch cats always find these critters, and then watch them diligently until we are able to capture them and release them back into the wild.

This time, we moved all our plants into the garage, to try to prevent free riders. But our large palm - because it was so large - we put inside the house. It was a much shorter distance to move it into the house than around into the garage.

Anyway, when I got up this morning, there was a "crab-like spiny orb weaver" spider hanging in the middle of the kitchen. It looked like this:

It had built a web strand stretching about 15 feet from the plant to the ceiling fan in the kitchen. Not a very big one, but somewhat disturbing to find in the middle of the kitchen (between me and my coffee).

Anyway, long story short, the spider is not there anymore. I leave its ultimate fate as a mystery, dear readers.

The Joy of Coffee and the Perfect Bagel

2008-11-16T08:25:00.000-05:00

Whenever I return after being away for a few days, I am always reminded about the little daily pleasures that I tend to take for granted. Such as the joy of a good cup of coffee and the perfect bagel.

Most of my coffee I order through the mail. I like dark, flavorful coffee, and I have found some really good ones from Gevalia (Mocha, Pecan Torte, Creme Brulee, Chocolate Raspberry). I also enjoy Seattle's Best (French Vanilla and Hazelnut).

It brews with a robust aroma that fills the kitchen. Yum.

Accommpanied with the perfect bagel, it is a great way to start the morning. My perfect bagel is: a Western Bagel's Alternative Bagel, Cinnamon Spice or Sweet Wheat, topped with cream cheese, a drizzle of honey, then strawberries and blueberries (the blueberries have a tendency to fall off if you aren't careful).

Great way to start the day!

I survived relatively unscathed

2008-11-14T09:07:00.000-05:00

Well, I am back home in FL, after 4 days in metro west Boston area. It was nice landing at 10:30pm and still having the temperature be 78. It was 73 this morning when I got up at 7am, which is actually a bit warmer than normal.

It was pretty cold up north: 30s and 40s where I was. But I was pretty well equipped. My fingers did turn white every single day, actually a couple times a day. Not a very pleasant feeling (or un-feeling, since I lost feeling in my fingertips).

There was still a very small bit of color on the trees. Otherwise, everything was winter brown and bare. Quite a contrast to the green I am now used to.

I did enjoy the morning traffic reports. Also the local newscasters. I felt like I was in a time machine, because they were still talking about eliminating the tolls on the Mass Pike. This topic has been under discussion for the past 5-10 years. It will never happen, folks.

I did have some nice meals at SkipJack's (scallops) and Firefly's (BBQ). I also stocked up on my Trader Joe's cereal, and did some shopping at the Wrentham Outlets. Oh, and there was some work in there too. But a pretty productive trip all in all.

Tis good to be back home, though.

Packing for .. BRRRR

2008-11-09T20:00:00.000-05:00

Flying up to the Boston area tomorrow for the week to work at the "home office". Not looking forward to the chill. Their high is my low, their low is too low! But I have dug out my winter jacket from the closet, some fashionable boots, and other warmer gear. It will be good to see the work folks again.

Had a pretty good weekend building up to it. My mom and Aunt came to visit. Stayed Saturday night, had a nice dinner at Carrabas, then went to see Phantom of the Opera today. It was a good show. We had seats in the second row, which was in some ways too close (couldn't see the floor of the stage) but just right - you could really see the emotional expressions on the actors' faces, which was great.

I missed watching the Patriots game, one of the few games that is actually on regular TV down here, but they won, so it's all good.

Get this, my company (who shall remain anonymous) is actually paying for my dinner. They have a budget for employee morale events, and since I am a "work at home" employee, they allow me to spend my budgeted allotment how I please. Never heard of a company doing that before. Usually, it's just: oh well, you lose. The company I am at right now (which bought the company I was working for) really seems like a great place to work. I am still in the newlywed phase, so time will tell. But for now, things are looking pretty good there.

My next post will be from the great state of Massachusetts. See you then.

The Great Shift

2008-11-05T08:59:00.000-05:00

By now, it has all been said: the American people have spoken. Barack Obama has been elected president. Both the popular vote and the electoral vote agree.

Even Florida went blue! (I take full credit for that. Moving from MA to FL is part of my master plan to turn this country blue, one state at a time. Hopefully, I have about 6 or 7 years before my next target state.)

I never felt as emotionally invested in an election as this one. This was the first time I watched exit polls (I love when they report on 3% of the precincts). I stayed up and watched the speeches. I celebrated with some Bailey's. I feel like an enormous weight has been lifted. I would feel giddy if I weren't so sleepy :-).

There's a lot of work ahead. This is just a beginning. But I feel a reassured confidence that someone intelligent and rational will be leading the way.

Enjoy the day!

Halloween post-mortem

2008-11-03T09:20:00.000-05:00

We gave out candy to 65 trick-or-treaters. I would estimate that almost all of them were below the age of 10. Seems like the older kids don't trick-or-treat as much anymore? Since it is generally quite warm on Halloween, you get to see some pretty good costumes, because the kids don't need to bundle up. We gave out candy and Gold Fish crackers. The Gold Fish were quite the hit. We pretty much got rid of all our candy - no leftovers (a good thing).

All the decorations have been put away. Here are a couple pictures of our Halloween house and Halloween tree. The house makes noise - we keep it turned off because it scares the cats. The tree features pumpkin candle lights and decorations: Jack (Nightmare before Christmas) and Peanuts characters. (The Charlie Brown one is actually kind of creepy - there is Good Charlie with Pumpkin on the front, and Evil Charlie with Evil Pumpkin on the back, although no goatee).

Halloween voting

2008-11-03T08:26:00.000-05:00

Halloween is a time for costumes, candy, and early voting!

Hubby and I voted on Halloween afternoon. We thought that if we went around 3:30, most people would be home getting the kids ready for trick or treat. We waited in line for about 35 minutes, so I'm not sure if our plan worked. What was cool was that the county building had free wireless, so I could twitter and surf from my iPod Touch (I love that little piece of technology). Many of the folks in line were dressed in Halloween regalia, which provided additional entertainment. The wait went pretty quickly. And now we have both done our civic, patriotic duty (we even chose to drive the car with the NE Patriots license plates). We can just sit back and watch the chaos.

Since Florida is such a "swing" state, we have had so much campaigning going on here. Both presidential and VP candidates have campaigned around the state several times. Over the weekend, there were lots of quick stops, rallies, and free concerts (Jimmy Buffet and Chris Rock both had free shows). Giuliani came down to campaign (not sure whose side he was helping :-).

Hopefully, after a couple more days, we will be left in peace. Unless there is another "hanging chad"-like issue (optical scan ballots were used this year), or some other shenanigans.

Voters' Irrational Fears

2008-10-30T09:37:00.000-04:00

Election time always depresses me, if I think about it too much. The constant attack adds, exaggerations, spin. It can be dizzying. I admit, after the last two presidential elections, I have no confidence in the system. (I was living in Canada during the great "chad" debacle of 2000. It was embarrassing to be an American back then. I don't think it is any better now.)

I used to console myself by thinking that one person, the president, really can't steer the country in too radical a direction. We have "checks and balances" after all. But after the last 8 years...

Anyway, one of the things that has always puzzled me is the Electoral College. The founding fathers created the Electoral College because they didn't trust the people to vote - they believed a purely populous election was "too reckless". I used to disagree: give the people the power to vote and let everyone's vote count.

But then I started reading/seeing quotes from voters about why they have decided on a particular candidate. It seems that many decide based on irrational fears. Read some of the quotes in this article: "I'm worried whether the government of the United States will stay democratic". In other quotes, voters have expressed fears that Obama will somehow turn the US over to terrorists, we will become a nation of baby killers, etc..

Voters do not seem to have a good grasp of the political system, how change can be affected, our place in the global stage, etc. So maybe the electoral college is not a bad thing? (I can't believe I just typed that.)

But still, I admit I have little faith in a proper, fraud-free election, either via populous or electoral college. I'm sure there are a lot of others out there who feel similarly.

Nonetheless, the most important thing is to get out and vote, come what may. I plan to "vote early" in FL on Friday afternoon, Halloween.

Things I miss

2008-10-28T08:32:00.000-04:00

Things I miss about New England - surprisingly, this is a short list:

Fall foliage - fall was my favorite time of year. Now my favorite time of year is spring, because down here, spring is really the start of summer
Trader Joe's - there are no Trader Joe's in Florida! They make my favorite cereal (Very Berry Clusters). I have to either bring some back whenever I go up there and/or have someone ship me some.
The basement of my old house - Houses in Florida rarely have basements, being at or below sea level, essentially on a swamp. My old basement was very large, with a ping pong table, foosball, air hockey, and a nice fireplace. Of course, I no longer need to pay to heat it.
My old garage, which was very spacious. My "two-car" garage here barely fits one car.
The local newscasters in MA, and Jerry and Don's baseball commentating. The newscasters down here are, let's just say, not quite of the same quality. And the commentators for the Rays games are absolutely abysmal. Whenever I go back, I turn on the local news so that I can experience educated, informative newscasting.

That's pretty much it I guess that's a good thing.

Entertainment

2008-10-27T08:53:00.000-04:00

I admit that I originally thought of the Tampa Bay area as something of a culturally-diverse step backward, compared to "cosmopolitan" Boston. Boy, was I wrong. I attend so many more events (music, theatre, sports) than I ever did in Boston.

Granted, part of the reason for the difference is that events in Boston are more expensive, tickets are harder to get, travel into the city is an unpredictable hassle, and parking is a nightmare (I lived about 25 miles west of the downtown). Generally discouraging.

In the Tampa Bay area, there are lots of venues of different sizes that hold quality entertainment events. Since I have lived here, I have seen (in no particular order):

DMB (3x in Tampa, including on my 20th wedding anniversary from the 2nd row where Carter handed me a drumstick; 4x in West Palm Beach (about a 4 hour drive))
Eric Clapton
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
BB King (twice)
Chris Isaak (twice)
Alanis Morrisette
John Mayer
Tim Reynolds (going to see his band "TMR" next month, too)
Hootie and the Blowfish
Wicked
Chicago
Rent
Phantom of the Opera (next month)
Red Sox (spring training and regular season games against the Rays)
Tampa Bay Storm (arena football)

I'm sure I am forgetting something. Then there are all the festivals: strawberry festival, kumquat festival, every other fruit festival, jazz and blues festivals, "Gasparilla", "Guavaween", and more.

And if that isn't enough, I can always just go to the beach :-)

Wildlife

2008-10-26T17:42:00.000-04:00

Obviously, the wildlife in FL differs from that in MA. Down here, we have gators everywhere, armadillos, geckos and other lizards, big birds (egrets, cranes, hawks - I have never seen so many hawks - they keep the squirrel population down), tons of butterflies, frogs, armadillos, and more.

Gators are everywhere. My neighborhood has a couple ponds, and there are gators in them. Here's a picture of a baby gator that I call L'il Bubba. He's actually about 2 feet long. Not very big. But I don't want to meet Mama Bubba.

We also have geckos everywhere. They are very cute. Tons of frogs, which can be very loud at night. We have even seen a bobcat in our yard a couple times.

I really enjoy the variety that I get to see in my back yard. Perhaps not surprisingly, we do not let our cats outside.

Landscape

2008-10-24T15:56:00.000-04:00

One of the big contrasts between MA and FL is the landscape. MA is hilly, trees are tall, buildings are tall - you generally can't see very far when you are at ground level. In contrast, FL is flatter than flat, trees aren't as tall, and neither are the buildings - not as many tall ones as around Boston. As a result, you can see for miles and miles. Everything is so open. The sky seems huge. Also the roads are much wider (and straight). I admit, initially, I think I had a mild case of agoraphobia. But now I am used to it.

I can't overemphasize how beautiful the sky is. In part, I think it is because you can just see so much of it at once. The clouds are cool, the sunrises and sunsets are gorgeous.

Now, when I go back to New England, I get claustrophobic.

The People

2008-10-22T09:08:00.000-04:00

One of the first things you notice when you move down here is that, as much as I hate to admit it, the people are generally much nicer, much more apt to engage you in conversation, offer you assistance, etc. At first, it can be annoying. I distinctly remember waiting in line at the bank, watching the tellers have lengthy conversations with every customer - how's the family, what have you been up to, etc. "Come on, let's get a move on, things to do, you know?". At the grocery store, they offer to help you bring out your groceries and load them into the car (they may even call you ma'am!). But no tipping is allowed. It is definitely an adjustment that needs to be made, but a good one. Now that I am adjusted, I have problems when I go back up north and end up having to bag my own groceries, etc.

The population is an interesting mix of transplants (large %), natives (of various Southern states), and of course retired elderly. Hubby and I have often been the youngest folks in a restaurant! (And I am a "ma'am", apparently). But it is all good.

Now, all bets are off when you are on the road. People will not let you out. You need to wait your turn. Down here, the roads are much wider, much more open, and the speed limits are much higher. Back in MA, it would take me 30 minutes to travel 8 miles. Here, you can get very far in that amount of time. Not to say that traffic doesn't get bad, but never as bad as around Boston, and not regularly so.

Voting in Florida

2008-10-21T08:36:00.000-04:00

Early voting for the November election started yesterday. Apparently, there were long lines. I am going to vote on the day. Don't want to tip my hand :-) I can't wait to see what kind of voting machine they try on us this year.

I also received my "sample ballot" in the mail yesterday. Florida voters can't go in cold - they need to prepare. A couple interesting things about the sample ballot. First, there are actually 13 choices for President/VP! Nader made it on, along with a bunch of other people I never heard of.

Second, there are 6 proposed state constitutional amendments. These are listed with a brief description. Pretty much all the descriptions are utterly incomprehensible, and I consider myself a pretty intelligent person (delusional perhaps, but that's another thing).

The one proposal that I do understand is the amendment that attempts to define "marriage as the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife and provides that no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized." I find it comforting that in these troubled times, concerned citizens find the time, energy, and $ to devote to these causes. I just don't get it. Why are people so concerned about this, with all that's going on in the world? And isn't this just trying to legislate one's religious beliefs? What happened to separation of church and state? (Yeah, that was thrown out a long time ago, call me an idealist.) Why can't people just see that the legal and religious aspects of "marriage" are separate? can be separate? Legal marriage represents a legally binding commitment. How one chooses to "celebrate" or "substantiate" that marriage, whether via religious ceremony, public gathering, or not at all, is one's own business.

Having moved from a blue state to a red state, politically, is interesting - that's the word I will use. I do feel that my vote here carries a bit more significance.

I am admittedly an Obama supporter. McCain scares me. I think this election has brought out the worst in him. Palin scares me more. I really want to see a "minority" in the White House. I also hope for a fair, uncontroversial, fraud-free election. If the people speak in a way that differs from me, that's ok. That's what this country is about. But if they do so because of shenanigans, well, I guess that wouldn't be much different from the last two elections. Talk about irony in the world stage.

Anyway, I guess it's time to research these other amendments, to try to figure out what they really mean.

Sports

2008-10-20T08:46:00.000-04:00

Well, the Sox are done. Sigh. The Rays pitching dominated them in game 7. I guess third time isn't the charm. I hope the Rays go all the way. They are a good team, with a lot of nice guys on it. I like the idea that a franchise with a smaller payroll than A-Rod's salary (approximately) can win the world series.

Tampa folks have become wild for their Rays. Not so when I first moved down. I have seen more Red Sox games here than I ever could at Fenway. Better seats, cheaper tickets, and for the first couple years I was here, free parking. I often sat next to people who said it was cheaper to fly their family down to Tampa to see the Sox than it was to go to Fenway. Probably not anymore, with the price of airfares. It was RedSox Nation South. But now everyone is on the Rays bandwagon. That wagon may crash from being overloaded, but I hope it holds for another week. All good things...

Down here, folks are really passionate about football, both college football and the Buccaneers. Of course, there are a lot of transplants from cold places (New England, New York, Chicago, Cleveland, Philly, Pittsburg). I of course root for the Patriots. (I don't mind the Bucs, they are NFC after all - I wish them success, until we meet them in the Super Bowl). Going to be another late night tonight, with the Pats on MNF. We don't get all the Pats games on TV down here, so hubby and I go to a sports restaurant/bar, where we can watch all the games on multiple screens. It is a fun gathering of transplants from all over.

Our new found sport is Arena Football (AFL), which starts up in the spring, after NFL is done. We are season ticket holders for the Tampa Bay Storm. Going to AFL games is a blast. If you get a chance, you should check one out. ESPN has started to show them, but they are really much better live. AFL Rocks!

2008-10-19T08:40:00.000-04:00

I have a lot of things that I plan on commenting on in upcoming posts: sports (Sox v. Rays), election, cultural events, things I miss. But one thing at a time.

For now: Go Red Sox - Finish off another great comeback!

Here we go

2008-10-19T08:26:00.000-04:00

So, I am finally starting my own blog. Generally, I aim to comment on my experience living in the Tampa Bay, FL area, after having spent pretty much the first 40 (yikes!) years of my life living in Massachusetts. FL and MA are quite different, weatherwise, politically, culturally, etc.

First, why did I move? Well, frankly, I was very tired of the New England weather. I have a medical condition called Raynaud's phenomenon - my fingers and toes turn whitest white when exposed to even moderate temperatures (< 60F), and I lose feeling in them. It is discomforting, and it looks pretty gross. Anyway, the only treatment is to avoid the condition that triggers it. When I was living in MA, it would get triggered a couple times a day. Now, only every once in a while.

Also, financially, it was a good time to "cash out" and relocate. I wouldn't necessarily say living in FL is all that much less expensive - food, clothing, costs about the same. But there is no state income tax, property tax rates are lower, I don't have a humongous heating bill - but homeowner's insurance is more than twice as expensive. There is net savings, though.

Finally, my mom moved down into this area, so I was moving somewhere where I had family already.

At this stage, I would and could never go back.

Amount/Serving	Daily Value
Total Fat 0g	0%
Saturated Fat 0g	1%
Trans Fat 0g