My computer went out last night. Not on a date or anything -- it just clicked off and that was all she wrote!
I had been downstairs watching television until about 10:30. The computer had been on all day, plugged into the adapter/charger, but with the lid closed most of the time -- so, basically it was hibernating. I have it on a stand that has a fan that blows air up its bottom side (oooh, that sounds so bad) to keep it from overheating. In the early days of using this laptop, it would overheat and shut itself off, so that's when I got the stand with the built in fan. But, in those early days, I was always able to start it up again. Not this time.
There is no response whatsoever when I push the button to turn it on. Luckily, I have this computer (that I'm on now) that I bought for Wayne about a year and a half ago. It isn't nearly as nice as mine, though; not built for speed. Doing jigsaw puzzles on this one is frustratingly slow.
Anyway -- when I brought Wayne's computer up here last night to google my problem, one of the suggestions was that it might be dirty. What? Dust in my house? You must be joking! Or not -- there's plenty of dust here. I watched a video showing how simple it is to just take out some screws, remove the case, blow it all out, check for any loose connections and then put it all back together again -- and then, voilá (I don't know how to put a thing over the "a" here -- never mind -- I just googled "special characters" and found what I needed) it might turn on!
Well, I did remove all the screws, but I wasn't able to remove the case. I hope that cleaning is all it needs, but it seems ominous that it won't start after 18 hours of sitting. I also read that the battery adapter/charger might have gone bad. I don't really think that's what happened, though. I do have two of the battery adapter/chargers, so just in case I plugged the other one in. No dice.
Another suggestion was that the motherboard might be fried. That sounds painful. But, would that make it not turn on? Maybe I need to google "my dell computer won't turn on."
Whatever it is, I need it to work! And soon! This computer doesn't even have Word or Excel on it. Gaah!
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Little sleeper
When Sadie is ready to go to sleep, she just falls over and sleeps, as shown by the photos. No rocking necessary!
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| This child is flexible -- no doubt about it. |
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| She usually needs a little nap between her wake-up bottle and time to go to day-care. Robin just puts her in her play area and after exploring a bit (toys were in the tote), finds a soft spot to drop onto. |
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| This was just a couple of days ago, but it's the same story -- she needs her beauty sleep! |
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| I think Robin left Chad in charge. Luckily for him, Sadie found another Boppy pillow. |
Friday, May 3, 2013
Sadie is mobile, now. Robin texted me this video today. It seems that Sadie has mastered crawling and now must be either closely monitored or sentenced to playpen jail. Of course, nowadays, the playpens are a little bigger than when her parents were babies. Wendy and Carolyn each gave their baby gates to Robin and Chad, so Sadie has quite a nice sized play area.
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| The area was clean with all the toys put away when Robin put her in the play-yard. The next time Robin checked on her, all the toys were pulled out and Sadie was sucking on a duck, looking at the drawers. She must have decided to take a nap shortly after that. |
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| Jax and an unknown passenger at the county fair this week. We are headed to California in three weeks where we will spend a day at Disneyland and a day at California Adventure. We figure Jax will be in hog heaven at Cars Land -- he really loves Lightning McQueen and Mater! |
Monday, April 22, 2013
Softly Call The Muster
I almost didn't go to the Aggie Muster this year -- I just couldn't work up any enthusiasm for it -- don't really know why, although now I believe that I didn't think the speaker, Jackie Sherrill, was going to have anything to say that I needed to hear. Up until the day of the event, I was determined to not attend.
But, I did go, and I'm very glad for it.
Muster is, of course, one of the most revered traditions of Texas A & M. The most significant part of it, to me, is the Roll Call for the Absent. The "absent" being current or former students who have died, usually within the past year. It is quite moving when the lights dim and the names and graduation years are called out. After each name is called, someone -- a friend or relative -- answers "Here!" and moves forward to light a candle in remembrance of that person. Silver Taps is then played followed by a reading of The Last Corps Trip. The link is to a post on a blog which tells about the bonfire collapse in 1999. Included in the post are descriptions of heroic action by one Aggie who died and another who survived. Also included is a wonderful letter written by the then UT Student Body Vice President and finally the poem.
But, before we got to the real reason we were all at Muster, we were treated to a very entertaining talk by Jackie Sherrill, head coach of the Aggies from 1982 to 1988. Clearly a man who likes to do things his own way, he even asked a co-contributor to his book, No Experience Required, to thread his way through the packed hall and tell one of his own stories. According to Coach Sherrill, it "wasn't the story he thought it was going to be."
Although not a man to string pretty words together in beautiful sentences, Jackie Sherrill, brought smiles to all in attendance as he shared how, as he worked on the bonfire and saw the great camaraderie of the students, he came up with the concept of the 12th Man. He also spoke of wanting the Aggie band to practice on their own field because their precision was making holes in his turf. He walked over to tell the director that, but after watching for some little while turned and started walking away. When his associate asked him if he wasn't going to tell the director to move, he replied that "when we're as good as they are, I'll tell him."
But, during his talk he referred several times to the real reason we were all there and ended his talk with something wonderful. He spoke, in turn, as if he were Earl Rudder (1910-1970) and Jack Pardee (1936-2013) as well as about four other Aggies, ending each vignette with, "but, I am here, at American Legion Post 226, in East Bernard, for Roll Call. It was very moving; he was visibly emotional and had to pause several times to compose himself before continuing.
It brought to mind the words of Randy Matson, the keynote speaker at the campus Muster in 2000, who said, "we're here (tonight) to pledge that none of you will be forgotten as long as there are two Aggies left in the world."
I'm so glad I was at American Legion Post 226 in East Bernard to observe Roll Call last night.
But, I did go, and I'm very glad for it.
Muster is, of course, one of the most revered traditions of Texas A & M. The most significant part of it, to me, is the Roll Call for the Absent. The "absent" being current or former students who have died, usually within the past year. It is quite moving when the lights dim and the names and graduation years are called out. After each name is called, someone -- a friend or relative -- answers "Here!" and moves forward to light a candle in remembrance of that person. Silver Taps is then played followed by a reading of The Last Corps Trip. The link is to a post on a blog which tells about the bonfire collapse in 1999. Included in the post are descriptions of heroic action by one Aggie who died and another who survived. Also included is a wonderful letter written by the then UT Student Body Vice President and finally the poem.
But, before we got to the real reason we were all at Muster, we were treated to a very entertaining talk by Jackie Sherrill, head coach of the Aggies from 1982 to 1988. Clearly a man who likes to do things his own way, he even asked a co-contributor to his book, No Experience Required, to thread his way through the packed hall and tell one of his own stories. According to Coach Sherrill, it "wasn't the story he thought it was going to be."
Although not a man to string pretty words together in beautiful sentences, Jackie Sherrill, brought smiles to all in attendance as he shared how, as he worked on the bonfire and saw the great camaraderie of the students, he came up with the concept of the 12th Man. He also spoke of wanting the Aggie band to practice on their own field because their precision was making holes in his turf. He walked over to tell the director that, but after watching for some little while turned and started walking away. When his associate asked him if he wasn't going to tell the director to move, he replied that "when we're as good as they are, I'll tell him."
But, during his talk he referred several times to the real reason we were all there and ended his talk with something wonderful. He spoke, in turn, as if he were Earl Rudder (1910-1970) and Jack Pardee (1936-2013) as well as about four other Aggies, ending each vignette with, "but, I am here, at American Legion Post 226, in East Bernard, for Roll Call. It was very moving; he was visibly emotional and had to pause several times to compose himself before continuing.
It brought to mind the words of Randy Matson, the keynote speaker at the campus Muster in 2000, who said, "we're here (tonight) to pledge that none of you will be forgotten as long as there are two Aggies left in the world."
I'm so glad I was at American Legion Post 226 in East Bernard to observe Roll Call last night.
Friday, April 12, 2013
The Sadie Show
Okay, you're right, I've put enough about Sadie on the blog this year. But, really, I needed to post these videos. This first one was shot when Sadie was almost 6 1/2 months old. Robin gave her a couple of those little puffy baby snacks and she chased it around the tray for quite a while -- practice will make perfect for those fine motor skills!
Fast forward about one month. Sadie has been sitting up for about a month. Robin got all the following in this short video: she sat up from lying on her tummy; she caught her pacifier as it was about to drop; she clapped (on purpose); she sort of crawled (be generous); she said, "ma ma ma"!
Sorry about the quality of the videos. Robin texted them to me which causes a degradation of the file. That's not really what happens, but it's the result of whatever happens. Instead of a file that might be more than 160 MB, it sends a file that's less than 1 MB. Even a simpleton can see that the results are bound to be dramatic. And considering the huge difference, they really aren't that bad. And for the record, I'm not calling anyone present a simpleton.
One more accomplishment -- Sadie has sprouted a tooth! Maybe 2 by now, although Robin hasn't sent out a bulletin.
Fast forward about one month. Sadie has been sitting up for about a month. Robin got all the following in this short video: she sat up from lying on her tummy; she caught her pacifier as it was about to drop; she clapped (on purpose); she sort of crawled (be generous); she said, "ma ma ma"!
Sorry about the quality of the videos. Robin texted them to me which causes a degradation of the file. That's not really what happens, but it's the result of whatever happens. Instead of a file that might be more than 160 MB, it sends a file that's less than 1 MB. Even a simpleton can see that the results are bound to be dramatic. And considering the huge difference, they really aren't that bad. And for the record, I'm not calling anyone present a simpleton.
One more accomplishment -- Sadie has sprouted a tooth! Maybe 2 by now, although Robin hasn't sent out a bulletin.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Time Running Amok
I don't know what's going on here, but I have two clocks that have suddenly gone into overdrive. One of them, in my bedroom, has always chosen to be eleven minutes fast. I have reset it numerous times and it always prefers the future, apparently. It seemed easier to accept it than reset it, so I just got used to deducting eleven minutes from whatever it displayed.
Recently, however, for some unknown reason, it has become extremely hyperactive -- changing minutes ever thirty seconds -- yes, I stood there with a stopwatch and timed it. I first realized how inaccurate it was this morning. I opened my eyes and it displayed 8:22. So, I got up, thinking to myself that it sure was dark in the room for 8:22. Just to be sure, I uncovered the other clock in the room -- I cover it when I go to bed because the display is so bright I can practically apply makeup by it. That clock, one that actually sets itself, showed that it was not quite 7 AM.
Obviously, my next move was to go back to bed and sleep another hour and a half. Mission accomplished!
I did reset the erring clock before I went to make my breakfast, which was around 9. After breakfast I headed to the treadmill to walk for 30 minutes (getting in shape for Disneyland). Luckily, I found that I can tie my Kindle onto the treadmill and read, making the exercise almost enjoyable. Once finished with the treadmill, I moved to the recliner to watch a DVR'd program, and noticed that the clock by the television was hours ahead of the actual time. I knew I had reset the clock yesterday -- hearing Twilight Zone music? So, I reset it again, noticing that the ":" between the hours and minutes seemed to blinking at a much quicker rate than usual. I used the stopwatch again and found that this clock, like the one upstairs, was changing minutes every thirty seconds.
I'm upstairs again right now and the clock I reset about 3 1/2 hours ago is now about 4 hours ahead of the real time. The two clocks are not the same brand, they were not bought at the same time, they don't share a breaker -- so isn't it strange that they should both start exhibiting the same behavior at the same time?
Maybe I should take them outside and put a stake through them. Witchy clocks!
Recently, however, for some unknown reason, it has become extremely hyperactive -- changing minutes ever thirty seconds -- yes, I stood there with a stopwatch and timed it. I first realized how inaccurate it was this morning. I opened my eyes and it displayed 8:22. So, I got up, thinking to myself that it sure was dark in the room for 8:22. Just to be sure, I uncovered the other clock in the room -- I cover it when I go to bed because the display is so bright I can practically apply makeup by it. That clock, one that actually sets itself, showed that it was not quite 7 AM.
Obviously, my next move was to go back to bed and sleep another hour and a half. Mission accomplished!
I did reset the erring clock before I went to make my breakfast, which was around 9. After breakfast I headed to the treadmill to walk for 30 minutes (getting in shape for Disneyland). Luckily, I found that I can tie my Kindle onto the treadmill and read, making the exercise almost enjoyable. Once finished with the treadmill, I moved to the recliner to watch a DVR'd program, and noticed that the clock by the television was hours ahead of the actual time. I knew I had reset the clock yesterday -- hearing Twilight Zone music? So, I reset it again, noticing that the ":" between the hours and minutes seemed to blinking at a much quicker rate than usual. I used the stopwatch again and found that this clock, like the one upstairs, was changing minutes every thirty seconds.
I'm upstairs again right now and the clock I reset about 3 1/2 hours ago is now about 4 hours ahead of the real time. The two clocks are not the same brand, they were not bought at the same time, they don't share a breaker -- so isn't it strange that they should both start exhibiting the same behavior at the same time?
Maybe I should take them outside and put a stake through them. Witchy clocks!
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Going to Disneyland!
I almost hate to write a new post -- I liked seeing Sadie's expressions as she learned to "drive" in the previous post.
We (the Bubelas and I) have decided to go to Disneyland in May. So, to that end, we have made our plane reservations, although the room reservations have not been made as yet. We have decided to fly into San Diego and drive to Anaheim, taking the scenic drive along the Pacific Ocean. We will spend the next day at Disneyland and then the day after that at California Adventure. I know -- not very much time to devote to such large amusement parks, but that's our plan. I also hope to be able to visit relatives while we're there.
We'll spend three nights in Anaheim and then hit the highway again, heading back to San Diego. Aside from Knott's Berry Farm and Lego Land on the way, there is also Sea World in San Diego, the San Diego Zoo, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and the Pacific Ocean to provide us with points of interest and destinations. How will we ever decide what to do next? After two nights in San Diego, we'll fly back home -- worn out, I assume. At least I know one person who will be worn out.
I have already started my training, walking 8 1/2 minutes on the treadmill yesterday and 11 1/2 minutes today. I need to start my never-fail diet, but I haven't worked myself up for that yet. In fact, just a few minutes ago, out of the blue, I asked myself if I shouldn't go downstairs and make a cherry pie. The only thing that kept me from doing just that was the laugh it provoked in me, which then made me want to post about it. Who does that? "I need to diet -- I think I'll make a pie." Ridiculous!
We (the Bubelas and I) have decided to go to Disneyland in May. So, to that end, we have made our plane reservations, although the room reservations have not been made as yet. We have decided to fly into San Diego and drive to Anaheim, taking the scenic drive along the Pacific Ocean. We will spend the next day at Disneyland and then the day after that at California Adventure. I know -- not very much time to devote to such large amusement parks, but that's our plan. I also hope to be able to visit relatives while we're there.
We'll spend three nights in Anaheim and then hit the highway again, heading back to San Diego. Aside from Knott's Berry Farm and Lego Land on the way, there is also Sea World in San Diego, the San Diego Zoo, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and the Pacific Ocean to provide us with points of interest and destinations. How will we ever decide what to do next? After two nights in San Diego, we'll fly back home -- worn out, I assume. At least I know one person who will be worn out.
I have already started my training, walking 8 1/2 minutes on the treadmill yesterday and 11 1/2 minutes today. I need to start my never-fail diet, but I haven't worked myself up for that yet. In fact, just a few minutes ago, out of the blue, I asked myself if I shouldn't go downstairs and make a cherry pie. The only thing that kept me from doing just that was the laugh it provoked in me, which then made me want to post about it. Who does that? "I need to diet -- I think I'll make a pie." Ridiculous!
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