Dance Dance Revolution

Waaay, back in California, just before we decided to move to New England, Deb and I signed up for a West Coast Swing dance class. I think we took about 3 or 4 classes before we did the big move and, although we really enjoyed it, we never "cemented" what we learned and it just faded away.

For our Anniversary last year, I found a place that had swing dancing and had a beginners class before the dance. We got there early and (I) struggled through the intro lesson and then kind of shuffled through the rest of the night. It was enjoyable but we really didn't know enough to make it fun.

(It was also kinda weird since, evidently, it's common practice to swap partners at these dances and therefore we had to dance with people who 1) we didn't know and 2)were way better than we were. The dancers were...how should I say this..."skewed toward the Big Band era" and so during the lesson where every woman shifted around the circle to the next guy after each part, Deb and I were paired with every imaginable shape and size of Foxtrotting Fun.)

Knowing that we really needed focused lessons to get over the hump (so to speak), Deb set about seeing if she could find some. Well, lo and behold there was a new place opening up in one of the mills in town that was going to have dance lessons. Of course their first series was "Latin Lovers Salsa Dancing" or some such theme. Oh perfect.

We've been to three classes so far and we are really enjoying it. We are learning the Rumba and the Cha-cha and I don't think we've even scratched the surface yet. We are supposed to practice between lessons and we haven't been very good about it so I think I'll go downstairs and see if I can interest Deb in a little Rumba before bedtime...

More Video Fun

This is kind of a convoluted story that starts with the editorial section in the local paper. Basically, these columns - written by local right-wing zealots - are a journalistic and grammatical embarrassment to modern living. I often want to send in rebuttals or simply point out the travesty of reason that they've committed in paragraphs 1, 2, 3, and 4 but I don't because I know it's futile. It does make me want to write *something* however except that I never could figure out what I wanted to write about. Of course, it finally hit me - I should write about computers and how to do things with them. So I sent a couple of emails to the editors asking if they would like me to do a column on computers. The answer? One said they might be able to squeeze in an article once in awhile and the other never even responded. Well, crap.

OK, switch threads...

It's been awhile since I was first bitten by the video bug. At first there was a flurry of projects and editing and enthusiasm but, like most of my hobbies, it has died down a bit. Loosely associated with the video editing is photo editing - specifically with Photoshop. I use it for tweaking photos of course, but it's also very useful for graphics creating and editing. For such a popular and powerful product however, it is very difficult to use. These are the kinds of things by the way, that I wanted to write about in my computer column for the paper. Anyway, during a trip to the High School for some meeting, on something, some night, I saw signs for an Adult Education class on Photoshop and I thought "I should sign up for that." Well, I never could find out when the classes started so I never did anything.

A couple of weeks ago, I happened to surf to the local access cable TV station and saw that Adult Ed classes were starting so I went to the web site and looked for the Photoshop class. The class was scheduled but after looking at the description, I realized that it was probably a little too basic for me since I had already learned a lot through trial and error and tutorials on various web sites. What I did notice however, was that there was a class starting that showed you how to make video for the local cable station. Hmm... Maybe, if I learned how to make my own cable access TV show, I could make one about how to use computers for various things like photo and video editing. Yeah that's it, screw the old school newspapers, we're going video!!!!

So I signed up for the video production class. The first week, the class was canceled since the instructor had to cover the local selectmen meeting. The next week, after wandering around the High School looking for the video room, I finally found the guy who was in charge. He informed me that there was a change of plans for the class tonight since somebody was coming in to tape a segment of their cable access show. "Great" I thought. I was looking forward to finding out how to use the equipment and now I was going to have to sit here and watch somebody else work on their show. Well, it turns out that Barry, the instructor, is a student of the "education by immersion" school so by the end of the night, I was running camera three, wearing headphones to get instructions from Barry in the production room, panning and zooming and being a real contributor to the making of the show. It was wicked cool and I had a blast.

It turns out that a small percent of every cable bill is earmarked as local access funds and goes back to the community. Well, a small percent of a lot of money is still a lot of money and this guy has equipment that is "the shit" (that's good). He's got studio cameras, hand held cameras, high definition cameras, portable mixing stations, the works. Plus, people who take the class can sign out anything and use it for their own projects.

This is going to be fun...

Big Mac Attack

I really never thought I would be in this position but let's start back at the beginning...

Upon Kyle's return from school for Christmas break, he let it be known that he thought the Apple MacBook laptops were way cooler than his Dell. I, of course, said "That's interesting. So what?" I had no intention of doing anything with Apple computers. Well, he kept noodling me about it - everybody at school has them, they are really easy to use, blah, blah, blah. He even kept changing my desktop wallpaper to an Apple logo.

Christmas this year was somewhat lean I will admit. The kids are getting bigger and the clothes they want are expensive enough plus the fact that tuition is a serious drain. So there weren't many (OK, any) big-ticket items under the tree. I was feeling guilty about this so I guess I was particularly vulnerable to his constant attacks. I had to admit, they are very sleek machines and the shiny new techno-geek in me was slowly being seduced by the dark side. I asked Deb what she thought and she straight-out said that he didn't need a new machine and we should nip it in the bud right there. It was a dose of reality that I needed to knock me back to financial reality.

I guess it wasn't a strong enough dose to kill the invading bacteria and they came back with renewed immunity to treatment. The other factor that started to weigh in was the fact that Carly really needed a new computer. That sounds so strange to say but what has been basically a luxury item is virtually a necessity these days. Her computer is a third generation hand-me-down and is very slow so she uses my computer which means that I sometimes can't get things done. Of course, most of the time she's playing games or buying songs on iTunes (with my account for some reason!) so it's not like she's being held back from working on her doctoral thesis but whatever.

So anyway, in a fit of insanity, I went to the computer store one night while Kyle was out and bought a MacBook. I figured I would bring it home and set it up for him (which would give me a chance to play with it) and he would be surprised. He was surprised alright. After he played with it a bit, he said, somewhat sheepishly, "We can still take this back right?". What! What the heck are you talking about!? It's just what you wanted!

He said he had been thinking about it all day and had decided that he really didn't need a new computer just because it was a sleek Apple and he shouldn't have been pestering me about it after all. Great! I told him I kinda wish he would have told me that a few hours earlier.

Over the course of the next few days, he agonized over that machine. He really felt bad about pushing me into this purchase and that was gnawing at him big time. I told him that it wasn't entirely his fault since I was interested in it too and the Carly factor weighed in as well (although I was still irritated at him and myself for getting into this situation). Although I knew the answer, I called CompUSA and asked about the return policy. $200 restocking fee on opened computers. Now, the computer I would have gotten Carly was about $400 cheaper than the Mac so if we were to return the Mac, give Kyle back his Dell, and get Carly a new machine, I would save about $200.

The other thing that Kyle was struggling with was the fact that his favorite game wasn't quite the same on the Mac as on the Dell. It seems like that might be about the least important aspect of the whole decision but I assure you that it is probably number one.

I finally gave him an ultimatum to decide to keep the laptop or return it. He finally said he wanted to return it. So, I said "OK, uninstall your games, take your name off of it, and basically get it ready to return." Of course, when faced with the reality of really returning it, he hesitated (for the 50th time) and decided that he wanted to keep it after all.

So, in the end, Kyle took his Mac back to school. Carly has a new (to her) Dell, and Dad? Well, Dad got hosed. I got to play with the new Mac and experience a sequence of "No big thing", to "Well, it *is* pretty cool", to "Wow, I really like it", to "Bye, MacBook. Have fun at school".

I *do* really like the machine and I was seriously into the analysis of whether I would want to switch and how I would go about doing that. There are a couple of things holding me back however. First, there are gazillions more programs written for Windows than for Macs. I think I have half of them installed on my computer right now. I don't use them all, all of the time, but when you need something, you can usually find it. That would not be the case (as much) if I had a Mac. Second, my killer app - Quicken - while available for the Mac, is about 2 generations behind the Windows version. Virtually every review of Quicken for Mac says it is garbage compared to the Windows version. Third, Macs are more expensive than PCs which sticks in my cheapo craw. Fourth, since I am tech support for Dad with his computer, if I switch, he would probably have to switch, and I'm not sure the time-space continuum could handle that kind of molecular restructuring. Actually, I'm just trying to be funny there. I actually have wondered if Dad just might find Mac easier than Windows so that might not be a concern after all.

If that were that, then there would be no question. The Quicken thing would be a deal breaker. Things are never that easy though are they. Turns out, you can run Windows programs on Macs using what are called Virtual Machines. We use these at work a lot and basically it is a program that simulates a physical computer. On that simulated computer you can, for example, install Windows just like you would install it on a real computer. Once you install Windows onto this Virtual Machine, you can install Windows programs (like Quicken for Windows) and end up running Quicken for Windows inside a window (to the Virtual Machine) on a Mac. This solves problems 1 and 2 above - sort of. This Virtual Machine, since it is implemented in software, isn't as fast as a real machine so processor intensive applications - like video editing, for which I've invested a bit of money in - won't run as fast and might not run at all. You can get around that however by dual-booting Windows and MacOS. This means that you can install both Windows and MacOS on the laptop and decide which run to run when you turn on the machine. Seems they've got pretty much everything covered.

It's been a few days since the Mac has gone back to school so the *need* has subsided somewhat but it's still simmering in the back of my mind. I figure my current desktop computer is good for another year or so. At that point, I'll revisit the issue and maybe do something drastic.

I'll keep you posted.

So Much for Coming Home Every Weekend

When we last left you, Kyle was struggling to see the bright side of college and worrying that the work would be too hard and he would be flunking out in a few short weeks. At the end of the last episode, there was a glimmer of hope that he might make it - he had made friends on the tennis team but was still apprehensive over classes.

Well, it's been two months now and I think it's safe to say that Kyle has adjusted to college life. Remember how he was going to be coming home every couple of weekends? He's been home once. And that was only because they had a four day weekend and all his friends were coming home from their colleges (it was his birthday weekend to boot and we barely saw him).

The biggest contributor to the turn-around was the tennis team. As mentioned before, the whole team has welcomed him aboard, helped him meet even more people, and provided an instant "fraternity" he belongs to. He really can't say enough nice things about them. They get together for team meals, they've formed an indoor soccer team, and generally have a good time with each other. What's even cooler is the fact that Kyle, despite being a freshman, earned a spot on the starting roster for a couple of "off-season" (Fall) tournaments. The first one was a hoity-toity grass court affair down in Newport, Rhode Island. To give you an idea, the team had to wear all-white to be able to play on the grounds. Kyle plays doubles and they won one match and lost another. He also played in the Wheaton Invitational and I went down and watched the matches (and took some pictures).

Here's a pic of the kid between games. Note his flashy Wheaton duds and bottle. Not shown are the warm-ups and the always available trainer ready with extra water, Gatorade, and medical assistance. I wonder how they manage to pay for all this stuff. Oh wait, I think I know where the money comes from...

Here's Kyle and his doubles partner Ni.

So the tennis thing has helped out a lot. Through teammates, his roommate - who is a Sophomore and therefore able to introduce him to a bunch of people that he knew, and the fact that he always was good at meeting and getting to know people, he has met and made friends with a ton of people. Deb went to visit him one day and commented to me that, as they were walking across campus, virtually everyone they passed knew him and said hello. Deb was amazed. He says that he and various friends have had great times going into Providence for dinner or shows, going to movies, or dances, or just hanging out. He says one of his favorite things to do is his weekly meeting in the TV lounge with his buddies where they order a bucket of wings and some pizza and watch Monday Night Football.

Did I mention that he is one of the only three or four males on his floor? Yes, the rest are girls... Did I mention that there is only one bathroom on said floor? Yes, it is a coed bathroom... He says it's fine but when we were there for Parents weekend, I just couldn't bring myself to use the bathroom in his dorm.

Academically, he says that classes are hard but he's realized that he can do the work and is actually doing well. I think he's lost count of how many papers he's written which was the thing that was really worrying him. He says that there is a lot of work but there is also a lot of time to do the work as well. He likes having just a couple of classes a day and having time between them so that he doesn't have to kill himself to get his work done and still have time for fun.

So, as I said. What started as a plan to come home often has turned into "home, what home?" That's the way it should be of course and we are very thankful that things have worked out the way they have.

SCI-FI Snag

One of the things I like about my cable service is the availability of on-demand movies. These are movies that you can watch whenever you want instead of trying to catch them when they come on the time slots of the movie channels. I can program Tivo to record movies but sometimes I just want to watch something "right now".

Well, I was wandering through the movie choices and found another section of on-demand TV shows - one of them being Battlestar Galactica. I had heard/read that this remake of the old TV series was very good and had wanted to see it but I had never made the effort. One of the "episodes" was titled "The Story So Far" which collapsed the first two seasons into a catch-up episode to let you know what had happened. About 15 minutes into it I was hooked. The basic story is the same as the original: Human designed robots - the Cylons - revolt against their creators and annihilate virtually everyone except for a "rag-tag fleet" of space ships protected by the battlestar Galactica. These guys represent the last vestiges of human kind and they set off on a search for the mythical 13th human colony called Earth with the Cylons in hot pursuit. The big difference between this version and the original is the writing, casting, directing, acting and sub-stories within the main story. Other than that, they're practically identical...

I'm hooked enough that I wanted to go back and see the first two seasons but I didn't really want to buy DVDs of shows that I'd probably only watch once. So, I logged onto the county library system web site, found that they had them to borrow, and placed an order to get them delivered to my local library. How cool is that?

Anyway, I highly recommend taking a look this series. Very interesting.

What Have I Done?

I knew it was only a matter of time. After I got the new Sony SLR, Carly snapped up the little camera that I had been using and began taking pictures of everything.

Well, the other day when we were in the store looking for frames for some of my prints, Carly says "Ya know Dad, I've been kinda thinking that I'd like to get into photography..." Ka-Ching!

So, I gave her a quick photography lesson over the weekend. Of course, she picked it up in no time and is now exploring her creative side, taking pictures of blades of grass growing in the sidewalk, coffee cups, and Skipper's butt. I fear I have unleashed a sleeping giant... BTW, she took the photo of me above which I think is pretty good. I wonder how much this is going to cost me....

Picture This

Bridge001
Originally uploaded by tmhudg.

I don't know when it happened or why but I was bitten by the photography bug over the summer. I had a nice SLR camera way back when I was a teenager and I really enjoyed taking pictures with it. I stopped using it a long time ago in favor of the smaller digital cameras (and video cameras) and, in fact, just sold it on eBay several months ago. I like the digital cameras because they are small and easy to pop in my pocket and take anywhere as opposed to the SLRs that have big lenses and require their own bag to be carried in.

The small cameras though really don't have features and flexibility that the big ones do. Plus, you can't really be taken as a serious photog if you are holding a tiny digicam focusing through the LCD screen like all the other prolotariats!

So (you know where this is going don't you), I started looking at cameras. The camera I was looking at mostly was the Nikon D50. This is their "entry level" DSLR with a 6 Mega pixel sensor. It had tons of good reviews and was priced around $600 which is pretty good. I was all set to pull the trigger on it when I saw an ad for the new Sony Alpha 100. Now, Sony is not well known in the DSLR market but it turns out that they had bought the old Konica-Minolta (KM) company and had decided to take on Nikon and Canon - the giants of the SLR market. Well, the Alpha has a 10 Mega pixel sensor (much higher resolution) plus, the coolest feature of all: in-camera image stabilization.

Image stabilization is the ability to compensate for camera shake so your pictures are sharper. When you take a hand-held photo (as opposed to using a tripod), you can't hold the camera absolutely still of course. If you don't have a fast enough shutter speed, this camera shake will make your pictures slightly blurry (from a little to a lot depending on how steady you are). As you use bigger and bigger lenses (zooming in), this camera shake is magnified along with the picture and can become a big problem. Nikon and Canon have addressed this problem by making image stabilized lenses. These lenses have little sensors and motors in them that sense the movement of the lens and move the lens elements in the opposite direction - effectively canceling out the shake. Pretty amazing stuff huh? The problem is that these lenses are much more expensive than non-stabilized lenses. Konica-Minolta (and Sony by way of purchase) decided to move the image stabilzation into the camera instead of the lens. This way, any lens that you put on the camera is automatically stabilized. You buy the stabilization once in the camera instead of on each lens. That seemed like a much smarter solution to the problem.

So, as usual, I hemmed and hawed all summer over whether I should spend the extra money on the Sony or if the Nikon would be "good enough". To make a long and agonizing story shorter, I got the Sony. Interestingly enough, right after I got it home, a guy on one of the Sony forums I was reading said he had written an on-line book on the Sony and was looking for reviewers. I volunteered and he sent me a copy of the book (a large PDF file that I downloaded from his website). I spent several weeks reviewing it and providing comments. He was so impressed with my viewpoint and comments that he gave me top billing on the credits page of the final version of the book! How's that for cool? Not to mention that I was able to learn a lot about the camera through the process of reviewing the book.

Anyway, I've been having a blast taking pictures, tweaking them on the computer, and uploading them to Flickr. Flickr lets you give tags to your pictures and people can search for photos with certain tags and also leave comments on your public pictures. I'm sure the interest will fade a bit over time but I'm glad I did it - it's a fun hobby to have as I approach the Golden Years...

College Connumdrum

Ah yes, the day that all parents dream and dread - the first day of college. We took Kyle down to Wheaton on Saturday to move him in and get him started on four years of fun... From day one - back when he was deciding where to go - he really hasn't been very enthusiastic about going to college and, as the day of reckoning got closer, he was getting even less enthusiastic about it.

Well, we pulled up outside his dorm and were swarmed by student volunteers with big, wheeled bins who pretty much took care of all the lugging of belongings from the car to the floor. We found his room and were amazed at how big it was. He was on the second floor and his window looked out on the pond and a little patio. It was absolutely beautiful!

Kyle failed to see the splendor of it all...


We then headed over to Balfour Hood center which is kind of like the Student Union for him to register and pick up various pieces of information. As you can see by the photos, the campus is absoutely stunning. This picture is looking back toward the dining hall on the left. Kyle's dorm is part of that building you can see right of center but his wing is out of site on the right with his window looking out on the pond. Pretty sweet. The next picture is back in front of his dorm looking back this way.

Anyway, after he got registered, we took his computer to the tech department to be scanned and checked for viruses. We dropped it off for pickup the next day. Then, we had a nice lunch in the other dining hall and went back to his room. At this point, Deb decided to take Carly back home so she didn't have to go through all the orientation stuff and to let the Skip-dog out so he didn't pop.


Kyle and I waited for his roomate to show up since he, being a sophmore and arriving early, didn't have a key. We met Sam - from Seattle and very nice - and then headed over to the bookstore to pickup a few things. After that it was over to Haas Athletic Center for introductions and speaches by the President, the Dean, and various others. All-in-all, it was very good. Deb got back in the middle of this session.

At the end of the session, the students stayed there for more meetings and the parents went to still more sessions where we could ask questions
about parenting through the college years, athletics, academics, and all kinds of things. Again, a really good job by the college to get students and parents acclimated.
Of course, through registration, lunch, and pretty much the whole afternoon, Kyle was not having a very good time. He kept saying he just wanted to go home. He was pretty much overwhelmed by the prospect of dealing with the newness of the situation and wasn't enjoying things. When it came time for us to leave, it was pretty rough. I think it threw Deb off a bit as well. Initially, she was primarily worried about dealing with the separation and how she would handle it. With Kyle in such a tizzy about how he would handle it, Deb and I pretty much had to focus on convincing him that he would be alright and would be able to handle the situation. Primarily, we both just felt so bad for him that he was so unhappy. As we walked back to the car and he walked back to the dorm, we were wondering if we should make sure that he actually did go back to the dorm and not out to the street to flag down a taxi to take him home.

The next day, I had to leave on a business trip to Seattle so Deb was left to fend for herself in the half-empty house. Kyle had a French assesment test to take on Sunday so I left him a text message on his phone reminding him and wishing him luck. Later in the day, he sent me a message saying he took the test and thought he did pretty well so that at least was a positive.

I talked to Deb a little later and Kyle had talked to her and said that things were a little better - he'd met a bunch of people and was enjoying getting to know them and all that. He was still very apprehensive about classes and how much work he was getting himself into however.

His first day of classes was on Wednesday - he has three back-to-back on MWF, and one on TTHU. He also had tennis try-outs on Thursday. I talked to him on Thursday - he called - and he said that classes were OK but that he thoroughly enjoyed tennis. It wasn't so much a try-out but more like a practice. Evidently, as long as you can play relatively well, you are on the team - which is not to say that the team is bad. Kyle said that he hit with the #1 player and he (#1) was fantastic. He said that everyone on the team was super nice and made him feel part of the group immediatly.

When we dropped him off on Saturday, he had mentioned that he might come home on the following weekend - to which I said that I didn't think that was such a good idea. When I mentioned this on the phone, he said that he was not planning on coming home afterall. He's still worried about classes but I think he is slowly coming around to the idea that he might be able to survive this thing.

We'll keep you posted.

PilotPen

Since Kyle was starting college right when the U.S. Open was starting (plus the fact that I forgot to get tickets), we decided that we would go to the Pilot Pen tournament - which is a warm-up for the Open - in New Haven Connecticut.
So, I took a Wednesday off from work and we headed down to New Haven. This was just like a mini-Open - there was a big stadium and several "outer" courts with shops and vendors all around. We really enjoyed the tennis. The weather was wonderful and it was small enought that we could get right up to the action.

We started off watching some doubles.



Then we saw Srichapan get schooled by Monfils.














Then we saw Davydenko beat (somebody).

We got a look at Patrick McEnroe and the gang.


Then we saw Niemenen.
Bagdadis was on the big court. Our reserved seats were way up top but since there were very few people there, I dragged Kyle down into the box seats and we grabbed some good ones right behind the baseline. Kyle was terrified someone would come and kick us out of the seats but we stayed and watched some great tennis.

Rally Round Westford

Well, we did our first tandem rally last weekend. We went to the Eastern Tandem Rally (ETR) in Westford, MA and had a really good time. I subscribe to an email list that focuses on tandems and had read about other rallies and figured it might be fun to go to one. When this one was announced and was going to be practically in our backyard, I signed us up.

Friday evening we packed up some bags, put the tandem on the car, told the kids to hold the for and set off for Westford. We got kind of a late start so we didn't get there until around 9:00 - a little late for the ice cream social at Kimball's, the local ice cream "farm". We checked in to the hotel and then checked in at the rally desk. They said that Kimball's was still open and we had free coupons in the registration package so we put the tandem in one of the holding rooms - the first one was full - and headed over for some ice cream. It was actually down right chilly out so ice cream wasn't exactly the best thing so we went back to the hotel.

The next morning, they had a breakfast buffet so we got our plates and experienced the familiar "Hmm, everyone else seems to know everyone and is sitting in groups having a great time and we know nobody" feeling. So, we sat down with some people and started talking and had a nice breakfast.

One of the things that I found strange about the rally at first was that there was no set start time. Basically, they gave you a route sheet and said lunch was at such and such a place from around 11:30 to 1:00. The idea was that people would form little groups and leave when they wanted to. Since we didn't know anyone, we just sort of finished up breakfast, got our stuff on and got on the bike. There were people dribbling onto the road so we just joined in. They had several routes that could be combined to give you different total milage for the day. Basically, there was a 43 mile and a 23 mile route to the lunch stop and an 8 mile, 30 mile, and 46 mile route back to the hotel. We really hadn't ridden much more than about 30 miles during our rides this summer so we were wondering if we should do the 22 to lunch and then 8 back but it seemed like most people were doing the 30 mile ride back so we decided to do that.

We started off with a small group of tandems but they were kind of poking along so we gradually left them and caught various other people along the way. Just as we caught up to the organizers - who were riding a triple - they turned into the parking lot of the Minuteman Park. This is the place where the first shots were fired in the Revolutionary War. We got off the bike and walked through the small museum and then down to the bridge where it all started. It wasn't really that spectacular but still pretty cool to be at the spot where it all started.

We got back on the bike and cruised the rest of the way to lunch. We were among the first to arrive and were a bit early so we just talked to the mechanic who happens to work in the bike shop where we got our tandem. I probably should mention the ride sheets. Deb was the Navigator and she had to read the route sheet and keep us on track. She kept the sheet folded up in my back jersey pocket and would pull it out and let me know the mileage at the next turn. So she would call out "OK, at 6.9 miles, turn left on Nagog Hill road". I had zeroed the computer at the start so I just needed to look for the turn at the appropriate mile reading. Except that 15 seconds after she announced the information, it was completely gone from my brain. It wasn't just me either - she would forget what she just said too. So she was constantly pulling the sheet from my pocket and finding the line for the next turn. She was doing all this all while we are blasting down hills and grinding up others. Some clever teams simply pin the route sheet to the back of the captains jersey but after she thought about this, she said that that wouldn't work since she couldn't see the writing without getting it just right in the bifocal area of her glasses. To top it all off, I like to stand up sometimes when going up hills and, of course, I would announce that we were standing just as she had pulled out the route sheet so she had to deal with that as well. All in all though, we didn't get lost. We only really missed one turn and that was because the sign was hidden behind a tree.

At lunch we sat with some people who we recognized from the time we went on a ride with the TBONEs (Tandem Bicyclists Of New England). We finished our lunch and got back on the bike and started off for the 30 mile ride back. At one point, we were working together with another team - each trading pulls and going pretty good. As we were motoring along behind them, they went over a big sewer drain and flatted big time. We were lucky we didn't flat as well. We stopped to help but they said they had all they needed and told us to go on. We were just a mile or so from a stop at the Butterfly Place - a place we had taken the kids when they were little. We pulled in but didn't really feel like going in. As we were cooling it in the parking lot, the couple from breakfast came in. They didn't want to go in either so we both mounted back up and go on the road. We road with them for quite awhile (we would drop them on the uphills and I would soft pedal to let them catch up) until they stopped for a "Butt-break". We were also feeling pretty sore but didn't want to stop for fear of not being able to get started again. We managed to make it back to the hotel without incident.

Once back, we hit the hot tub and chatted with another couple for a bit. Dinner was another buffet thing and we sat at a table with the people we ate lunch with and several other couples and really had a good time talking with them. After dinner, they had door prizes and everybody at our table won something - pretty cool. We won two pairs of "tandem" socks.

Sunday was a quick 30 mile route followed by checkout and a BBQ at the hotel. The ride was a bit hillier than on Saturday but generally not as hilly as our normal rides so we didn't really have a problem. We were among the first to the first stop atop a large hill at the Fruitlands Museum which was a Shaker fruit farm/museum. Unfortunately, it wasn't open. By the time we found out it was closed, a large pack of bikes had arrived so we hooked up with them for a fast downhill run. It's nice riding with a group because you can just follow them and not worry about when and where to turn - theoretically. We were blasting down the road on the tail end of a group and the main group went straight but the people in front of us insisted that we needed to make a left turn. We hadn't been keeping track so we weren't sure so we followed them. Deb quickly got the route sheet out and realized that we should have gone straight. By that time though, the pack was gone and we had to chase. Meanwhile, Wrong Way Larry caught back up to us and got in front. A few mile down the road, Deb calls out that we need to make a left turn on such and such a road. I see it coming up but Larry blasts on through. We turn left and a few minutes later, Larry and Sally come cranking by.

By the time we got back to the hotel, we were pretty tired and sore. 83 miles total over the two days isn't bad for us and we were pretty happy. Lunch was good and we sat with a couple from dinner and the couple from breakfast.

All in all it was a fun time.

The Maine Coast Trip

Tim, Amy, and Quincy came up from the deep south for a visit. They were originally going to stay a few days and then rent a car and travel up the coast of Maine. They wanted to see the "quintessential Maine coast" - rocky harbors and fishing villages and guys saying "ayah". Well, since we had not seen that either, I suggested that we might want to all go up in the MoHo. At the time it seemed like a good idea and they agreed. As I got to thinking however, I started worrying about accommodations. That camper can get very crowded with more than four people in it and I was worried about the dog, rain, Kyle and Carly being bored, and all that. I also worried that we might be infringing on their family vacation but they said not so I didn't worry about it. In the end though, we decided that we would leave K & C & Skipper at home while Deb and I and the Rossers went up the coast.

Deb and I had previously only gotten up as far as Portland which is not quite into the desired landscape so I asked around at work for ideas on where I should go. Of course, I didn't really follow up on it so Deb and I ended up browsing the web and guessing. I'd read a little about Bar Harbor and Arcadia National Park so we made that our destination. We decided to take a couple of days to get up there so that it wouldn't be a tough drive on the Q-dog (Quincy's pet name so-to-speak). Picking campsites from a web page is always a crapshoot but we did our best.

We chose to start at Old Orchard Beach which is just below Portland. We'd camped there before - it is "famous" for an ocean front amusement park - more like a permanent church carnival-type of thing - and it's an easy 2-3 hour drive from home. The next place was Megunticook campground in Rockland which was halfway to the last place in Bar Harbor (BH). We figured we would stay three nights in BH.

The day before we were going to leave, I was sitting at my desk at work looking at the route when a buddy came in. I explained where we were going and we started talking. Then someone else, who I barely know, walked by, overheard us talking about Maine and jumped in with all kinds of suggestions on where to go and what to see on the way up. Serendipity.. Anyway, Tim, Amy, and Q arrived and we poked around for a few days before leaving. Quincy, by the way, was an absolute joy - from when she arrived and throughout the whole trip. It was very fun getting to know her and making her laugh and imprinting on her some special Hudgins things.
The trip to Old Orchard Beach (OOB) was uneventful (if you ignore the problems with the motorhome that I won't get into here). The Rossers were particularly impressed with the New Hampshire State Store just over the border that has it's own highway exit.


OOB itself was kind of shabby. The campground was fine but we walked to the pier/amusement area and found it crowded and kind of dirty - the typical permanent-temporary rides/fried dough/games-you-can't-win kind of place. Quincy enjoyed it though I think. It's funny how your perception of a place can be colored by watching a yung-un experience it. Had it just been Deb and me, we would have hated it. But it was fun with Quincy along.

The next day we continued up the coast and got into the "real Maine". My walk-by buddy had suggested we stop in Boothbay Harbor so that was our first stop. Oh, we passed by Red's Eats on the way - another place that somebody had mentioned. It was a small red "diner" with people in a line wrapped around the building. We didn't stop because Q was asleep and we wanted to make time (ominous forshadowing We got to Boothbay got our first taste of a Maine harbor town. It was a bit bigger and more commercialized than I was expecting but it was very nice and we enjoyed walking around and having lunch. Once again the Q was Qute as ever.
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After lunch, while browsing in a store, I asked the guy behind the counter where I could go to see the quintessential Maine seacoast. He thought a bit and then suggested Pemiquid Point lighthouse. It sounded good and was on the way so we decided that would be our next destination. Well, "on the way" is a relative term in Maine. The coast is made up of many inlets and peninsulas and to get to the end of the next peninsula over, you have to drive back up the one you are on and down the next one. Oh well, we came to find out it was worth it. Pemiquid Point was fabulous





After scrambling over the rocks and enjoying the views and breezes, we piled back in the RV and headed back up the coast toward Rockland, our next campsite. After about 15 minutes on the road though, we heard those words we will never forget - "Bunny?" Now, we had heard the call for Bunny before and the quick application of said Bunny had always calmed the Q and allowed the world to continue to turn. This time however, there was a second call, and a third, and the slowly building realization that Bunny was not in the RV. Yes, we had somehow managed to leave Bunny at Pemiquid Point. On the rocks. With the tide coming in.

We found a place to turn around and headed back to the point. We jumped out and began combing the area for signs of the wayward rabbit. Just as I was about to give up hope, I saw Deb walking back to the camper waving Bunny in triumph. She had found it on top of the fence around the lighthouse, placed there by someone who will now spend all of eternity watched over by a higher power. Amy, who had stayed with Quincy in the RV, was actually crying when Deb arrived with the prize. So, crisis averted, vacation saved, we headed back up the road to Megunticook campground in Rockland.



Megunticook was a small little place that was nice and uncrowded. As I was registering, the lady at the desk said to be sure and check out the "patio" after we were set up. Um, OK, I'll do that... So, after setting up, I wandered in search of the patio. I followed a trail through the woods and emerged onto a beautiful bluff overlooking the ocean and rocky coastline. It really was cool with some chairs for sitting and taking in the view and just generally slowing down (and consuming some of the liquid that was picked up at the State Store in NH).

The next day, we took a quick trip back down the coast a bit to visit a little fishing village and to see the lighthouse at Owl's Head. Both were absolutely gorgeous.


We then headed back up the coast and made it to Mount Desert Isle - home of Bar Harbor and Arcadia National Park. Bar Harbor and Arcadia were also fantastic and we spent the next two days there. One of the great things about the place is that you can get everywhere via a free LPG-powered shuttle bus system. We were able to leave the RV parked and not have to wedge it into places it didn't want to go. The first day we went shopping in BH, and then to a beach and hike along the coast. The next day, Tim and I went kayaking among the Porcupine islands in the harbor and the girls took a trolley tour to the top of Cadillac mountain. For dinner we had lobster at an authentic Lobster Pound where you order your lobster by the pound. They grab them, throw them in a rope net bag and boil them in seawater outside over wood fires. I'm not a big lobster fan but it was fun nonetheless.
It really was a beautiful place.

The last day we headed home. We had planned to head inland and jump on the superslab for the quickest way home but we decided to go back down the coast to see some of the places (read antique and quilt stores) that we didn't stop at on the way up. Well, we didn't stop at them on the way down either, much to Deb's consternation but we did manage to stop at Red's Eats that we had seen the crowds at earlier. So we got in line and waited, and waited, and waited some more. When we finally ordered, I suggested that Deb go find us a table. As I came around to the back patio, I see Deb fuming like I'd never seen before. Seems some woman had pushed past her to claim the only open table in the place. I rarely see Deb get quite that pissed at someone. So, we ate our mediocre lunch at Red's and continued on our way.

Our last stop was in Freeport to checkout the L.L. Bean factory store. Freeport was wacky. It's like the whole town was one big outlet mall. There were outlet stores of all kinds and then, the mega-L.L. Bean store(s). They had a building for bikes and boats (kayaks and canoes), a building for camping gear, a building for regular clothing, and an outlet store as well. The whole place is open 24 hours a day. Weird.

We finally got home that night. This really was a great trip - we had fun with the Rossers and really enjoyed the scenery and locations as well.

My Maine Squeeze

This was shot at the Pemiquid lighthouse on the Maine coast during our trip with Tim and Amy and Quincy.  

Those Amazing Fundies

What will they think of next? This would be fun reading if it weren't so amazingly frightening/depressing.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2006/5/29/195855/959

Collegebound

Well, the decision has been made. Wheaton it is...for now. Well, we sent the acceptance form in along with the $300 deposit so I guess that makes it official. It's been a rocky road for Kyle, figuring out what he wants to do and where he wants to go.

The dilema was between two schools about as diametrically opposed as you could get. In this corner we have UMass Amherst. Weighing in at over 23,000 students, this behemoth is a city unto itself about 2 hours away in western Mass. The challenger, Wheaton College. Only 1500 students soaking wet, about an hour east. Ding! Round One

UMass is big. It has people from all over the world and probably just about any kind of club or activity is available. But, UMass is big. Although they deny it, the classes are large, some taught by Grad Asses whereasWheaton is small, tiny even. Maybe not quite the level of diversity and probably a bit upper crusty but we really got a sense that the instructors take an interest in the students and it certainly seems like they would know them by name.

UMass is cheap (comparatively). It's a state school and, by virtue of good test scores on the state tests (MCAS), Kyle got free tuition (but don't get all excited tuition is only a fraction of the cost). Call it $15K per year. Wheaton is not cheap. Wheaton is wicked not cheap. Wheaton is freakishly, expensively, not cheap. The list price is $43K per year, however, they countered the cough and puke factor by throwing in a $12,500 scholarship. Call it $30K per year - twice the price of UMass. They also awarded him a $4000 stipend that he can use during a summer to do "Academic Exploration" of some sort so that he doesn't have to get a job that he might otherwise. Cool.

So, those are the heavy hitters but like in many things, the small, intangible things seem to have a bigger impact than you would expect. Wheaton has a tennis team, UMass does not. Many of Kyles friends are going to UMass. Wheaton is closer than UMass. Wheaton has a very nice career center that arranges interships with local companies. He doesn't really know what he wants to do so can we justify spending that kind of money in that case? Wheaton just feels like a nice place. UMass half the cost of Wheaton (did I mention that already?). Sigh...

So it boiled down to the fact that Kyle liked Wheaton, wanted to be able to play tennis on a college team but was very concerned about the cost. Me, being the "frugal" person that I am, was very much counting the dollars involved in this decision. Even the "cheap" education at UMass was going to be $60,000 over four years. Wheaton will be over $120,000!!! Is it worth that kind of money? I was having a tough time swallowing that pill. I was pretty sure we could do it but I wasn't sure if I wanted to do it. I basically told Kyle that if he wanted to go to Wheaton, he'd have to cough up (borrow) the difference between UMass and Wheaton. At the time, it seemed like a decent compromise and he agreed (not really understanding the weight of a $60,000 debt of course). As he thought about it more and more however, he started to wobble. He said he was not really looking forward to college - any college - in general so he couldn't even get excited about deciding to go to Wheaton. He was worried about keeping his grades up enough to keep the scholarship. And he was worried about bankrupting us as well.

What to do?? I know, call Mom & Dad!!

Of course, they offered to donate practically the entire proceeds of the recent sale of their house and I'm sure would start work as Wal-Mart greeters to contribute to the funding of this endeavor if given a chance. As we were talking about ways that they could help out and how this compared to what they did for me when I was going to school, it hit me like a cold slap in the face; I've got to quit being so selfish! Here they were, having sacrificed anything needed to put me through school and now perfectly willing to sacrifice anything they now had to put my son through school and I'm whining about how much this is going to cost me! Man - suck it up!
When I think about what a crapshoot it is raising kids and how they could easily be thankless, rotten thugs but are instead wonderful, fabulous people, I'm embarrassed to have even hesitated. That kid has been nothing but a joy and I should be pushing people out of the way to pay for his education. Thank you M & D for indirectly slapping some sense into me.

So we had a big discussion on Wheaton and the merits and the fact that I should not have put the burden of the finances on him (or at least not quite as much) and basically tried to make it OK for him to want to go there. That, and the fact that Deb was practically bursting trying to get him to go to Wheaton, and the fact that the tennis coach said that there was room on the roster for him, led to him giving the thumbs up for Wheaton.

All in all, I'm pretty comfortable [must...keep...typing] with the decision. I'm sure [fight...it] we'll be able to [p..a..y] pay [f..o..r] for [t..h..i..s] this.

I wonder if I can sell a dog on eBay...

The Jetta is not For Sale

Well wonder of wonders, Kyle is now quite proficient with the transmission on the Jetta. He drove us to the mall the other day and was as natural as you please. I'm glad it worked out. It's a far cry from the last time he drove me to the mall...

He'd had the car for a couple of weeks and was driving himself to work (which is an easy drive from home) but hadn't really ventured out that much. So we are getting off the highway on the exit for the mall and he lets out a "Oh Great!" I'm thinking that something is falling off the car but he points to the traffic that is backed up on the ramp. I say "No big deal. A little traffic." He says "No, look" and points to the line of cars stopped all the way up the access road to the mall. "Yeah, some cars...Oh." It was then that I realized what he was fearing. The access road to the mall is a long sweeping *uphill* and given the phalanx of cars, it would be a stop and go, clutch slipping, extravaganza getting to the top. Of course, the guy behind him is trying to get to the top before him by somehow passing through Kyles car - which doesn't help. I've got my hand on the emergency brake to try and prevent a systems meltdown induced roll into our friend behind us. About half way up the hill, Kyle is about to pass out from hyperventilating but he's doing fine. At the top, there is utter gridlock which gives him a chance to calm down. I think this was a turning point for him whether he knows it or not. He made it through a terrifying/trying experience and lived to tell about it.

Fun Athiest Quotes

Steven Weinberg: "I think that on the balance the moral influence of religion has been awful. With or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil. But for good people to do evil -- that takes religion."

For Sale - 1 Jetta with a burned out clutch

Well, I probably did a dumb thing but after much searching and hemming and hawing, we bought a car for Kyle. We found a '97 Jetta for 4K. It was in very good condition so we jumped on it. The only thing is,... it's a manual. Yes, that's right, Kyle doesn't know how to drive a stick. We had our first lesson today. He did alright but he's very nervous about it. He's not ready for traffic yet so we spent a lot of time just going up and down the driveway backwards and forwards so he could get the feel of it. He had to take several breaks since he was so tense. We took a few trips around the neighborhood so he could get out of first.

He's really torn up about the whole thing though. He loves the car but he doesn't want to go through the whole learning process. In hind site, it probably wasn't real smart of me to go for the manual.

The purchase ordeal was another "adventure". The person selling the car was in Newton which is just outside of Boston so it was a long trip there in the first place. When we got there, the owner asked for my driver's license before we test drove it. Guess what I couldn't find? We had been test driving vehicles at various dealers who all ask for my license. Last time I remembered having it was at a dealer the other day. I called Carly at home to have her look for it in my other jacket but she couldn't find it. Great! The owner was very understanding and took Kyle's license number and let us drive it. We liked it and arrived at a price and then set about the process of taking ownership. First, I had to go find a bank, get a cashier's check, bring that to the owner. She then gave me the title which I had to take to my Insurance Agent to get an insurance form proving to the DMV that it was insured. On the way over, Kyle and I are wondering whether they will ask to see my license for some reason which would, of course, scuttle the whole deal. We got through that OK so then I had to find and go to the DMV to get plates. We got to the DMV and took a number - A062 - and looked up to see "Now serving A020" of course. Again, we are wondering whether we can pull this off without a license. We also note that they no longer take credit cards for payment - cash or check. Hmm, I wonder how much this will be... We decide to run out and find an ATM before they get to our number. I grab $100 extra bucks from the ATM to go along with our $60 or so (you know where this is going don't you). We finally get to a window and the woman asks for my license. "I don't have it with me, my son drove here." She says "Do you always go out without your ID?" "You come to the Registry without your license?" and then proceeds to process the transaction. (and I don't say) "So if you can still do this without my license, why did you feel the need to chastise me for not having it?"

She totals it up - $280!!! Oops. "I don't have that much with me." "Here, come back when you can pay." So we walk out of the DMV with no plates. Do we go back to the ATM to get more money and wait in line again or do we just go get the car, take the front plate from the Camry and put it on the back of the Jetta, and hope we don't get caught? I bet you can guess what we did can't you?

So I'm driving the Jetta home with no license, no registration, and "stolen" plates. I bet you thought you knew where this was going didn't you. Well, we made it home with no incident (think of the blog entry *that* could have spawned!)

I've been razzing Kyle about how I'm going to be driving the Jetta and he'll be stuck with the Camry since he's going to give up on the stick in frustration. I'm trying to use "psychology" on him but I'm a little worried he's going to end up calling my bluff...

eBay is Fun

I know I'm a bit late to the party but I've been having a bit of fun selling various things on eBay lately. I've bought one or two things before but it always seemed that the people selling things were more of a business than just Joe Average trying to off-load some of his own crap so I never felt like I was getting a deal.

I've thought about selling things before as well - you know, those Christmas gifts that you've been meaning to re-gift but couldn't think of anybody you wouldn't be embarrassed to give it to. I always held back on that because there were fees, and shipping, and scams. Man, all the information about the scams is enough to stop you right there. There are so many things to watch out for, it's always been just easier to stack the stuff up in the basement.

Well, after I sold the motorcycle this Fall, we had several sets of motorcycle jackets and pants taking up room so I figured I would try to unload them on eBay. I also had a perfect unregiftable item as well. It was actually easier than I thought. They do a very good job of walking you through the whole process. All you need to do is take a few digital pics of the items and they'll help you upload them and create an auction. I sold four of the five items (1 regift, 2 jackets and 2 pants) and I think I'll be able to sell the fifth by re-listing it. I got a good price for one of the pants, a medium price for the other pants and a very low price for one of the jackets. I probably only recouped a fraction of what I paid for those things but they were of zero value in the basement so I choose to look at it as coming out ahead. I even sold the regift item - people will buy anything!

The packing and shipping are a little bit confusing but you can do everything online - including printing out paid shipping labels so it really is easy. All in all, it's been fun and I find myself going around the house looking for more things to sell... here Skip!

Wildflower

Just got Sheryl Crow's new CD - Wildflower. I've never been that interested in owning any of her stuff but now that she's hanging around Lance and all... I was in Borders the other day and happened to see it. I gave it a test listen at one of those headphone/lice nursery kiosks and it sounded pretty good. Upon full listen, it is great! I heartily recommend this album. There's really only one, maybe two slightly pop-sounding tunes and those are really catchy. The rest are beautiful ballads. She really has a fabulous voice and she puts in little inflections here and there that just make it that much better. Go get this one.

A Karma is threatening to run over my Dogma

Surprise, surprise! Kyle wants a car. This has been the running theme in the house for about a month or so now - probably longer but I've been able to ignore it up until now. The persuasion tactics seem to oscillate between the utter despair that "Everyone has a car but me" to calm, reasoned arguments such as "Everyone has a car but me." He's even got Carly ganged up on me. They point out how much more convenient it would be if Mom didn't have to run around and pick them up from their various activities and so on.

I've always maintained that I was not going to get them a car in High School. Heck, I didn't get my first car until I was graduating from college and look how I turned out...OK, skip that part. Anyway, I still really have a tough time seeing how the minor increase in convenience outweighs the added cost. It seems especially irresponsible with college coming up in less than a year. Still, they do have a point. Virtually every kid in Kyle's class does have a car and it would help in situations where he's going to practice or work or wherever.

I've even asked people at work about it. Of course, I got one guy who said getting one was a good thing and another who said he didn't get his kids a car and they turned out alright.

Such a dilemma. WWJD.