The Original Techymike

Goodnight

2009-11-04T19:27:00.001-08:00

It's been a long day and I'm exhausted. As a matter of fact I could have gone to bed over an hour ago when I got home from work, but I forced myself to stay up for some reason.

Now i'm off to bed. Goodnight.

(there OGO, I posted!) :)

Biking

2009-08-19T18:47:00.000-07:00

just passing by to clean off the cobwebs. Not much new on this front. I've started cycling more. A lady at work was looking to get rid of a bike from her garage...it had been sitting there for the last 5 years and was looking for a home. I took it off her hands for the low price of free. Cleaned it up, put some new tires on it, and I've put about 120 miles on it so far. It looks to be pretty good for the body too, which needs it. I've been straddling that 200lb mark for awhile, but i've been too lazy to do anything about it. This was that something.

I enjoy biking, whether it's with a neighbor or by myself. One of my neighbors bikes quite a bit, and it's tough to keep up with him. It's nice because he keeps me motivated and pushes me to go a little faster and harder than normal. The other neighbor is 300+ lbs and is also in the weight-loss boat. Like the first neighbor, I like to push the second one to go a little harder, and we have a good time. It's a lot of fun. I wish Omaha were more bike friendly, because I'd love to eventually be able to bike to work, at least in the decent months. Sadly, it's so spread open and people in cages (cars) don't know how to cohabitate with cyclists on the roads, so I don't see myself doing that any time soon.

I hope to stop by again soon and update my status. Hopefully I will be boasting about lost pounds and canteloupe calves!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T13:09:00.000-08:00

I know I don't stop by here anymore, but I figured I'd at least wish my visitor(s) a Merry Christmas. Here's a special song for you:

GO BIG RED!

2008-09-04T19:13:00.000-07:00

I'm not necessarily back to blogging, but I just thought I'd post a quick update here. It's September, and that means that it's the best time of the year. COLLEGE FOOTBALL! My Cornhuskers are a new team with a new coaching staff and the Husker fans are pumped up. I attended the home opener last Saturday and it was LOOOOOUUUUUD! It was my first game since I'd moved to Phoenix 7 years ago, so it was obviously special to me too. We kicked some serious Western Michigan butt, and although we made a lot of mistakes on defense, we've got plenty of time to improve before we see any real competition.

With that said, I need to go watch the SC game which is starting back up now. Take care everyone, and GO BIG RED!

Chick magnet

2008-06-23T16:04:00.001-07:00

Shortly after moving back to Nebraska, my mother in law signed Ian up for a 4H activity, hatching and raising baby chickens, similar to what you see here:

For the past several weeks, he has played the part of mother hen, rotating the eggs in the incubator (I'm not really sure mother hens rotate their eggs, and most certainly they don't use an incubator, but that's neither here nor there.). This morning, much to his and Kendra's excitement, the first chick hatched. Much like most things when they are newborn, it was kinda ugly, but after a day in the incubator, it is starting to resemble the picture above. I'm sure we'll go through similar reactions as the remaining 11 eggs hatch.
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And although this probably didn't cross your mind, the chicks are broiler-ready in 6-8 weeks. That's straight from the 4H manual, folks. Now, how am I going to convince Ian that Fluffy will make a great snack???? And at what point to I apply the hot sauce?

An old video

2008-06-19T17:47:00.000-07:00

I found this video that my son made several months back when we still lived in Phoenix. I thought it was kind of humourous, so I figured I'd share it. Sorry it's a cliffhanger...I'm not sure what the end result was, but I'm sure it wasn't good for our friend Jack!

Happy Father's Day

2008-06-15T15:04:00.001-07:00

Happy Father's Day to anyone who happens to stop by :)

Breaktime

2008-04-07T18:02:00.001-07:00

Sorry, guess it's breaktime again. Nothing really newsworthy going on here, but I'm keeping pretty busy with the new job and all. I'll post again when I have more to add. I'll still check your blogs :)

I've got the flu...

2008-03-22T10:40:00.001-07:00

so much for my Easter weekend. :(

Still kicking

2008-03-20T17:37:00.001-07:00

I'm still here, just haven't been hanging out on the computer as much as I have in the past. For your reading enjoyment, some updates:

The new job is going well. It's pretty much the same thing I was doing at my last job. For now I'm just concentrating on learning new policies, procedures, and names, and then I'll be good to go.
Our new house is great. We have a huge backyard, which is a real plus. Back in Phoenix, our backyard was maybe 100 sq ft. It's at least 10 times that here. Unfortunately, the weather hasn't been too cooperative for us to enjoy it, but it's only March.
I was pukey last night and this morning, so much so that I had to call in sick to work today. I felt really bad about that, but there wasn't much I could do to prevent it. I wouldn't have even lasted the drive to work! Feeling much better now. I crawled out of bed around 2PM, and haven't puked since. I even went outside and enjoyed the mid-50s weather for about 30 minutes.
Our neighbors are all great. There are all sorts of kids on our block, and my son has already befriended a couple of them. Every day after school he asks if he can go over and play with him. There is a good mix of ages, and my daughter has found some girls to play with too. The summer should be a blast.

That's it for now. Not sure when I'll be back here, but I'll be here eventually!

We've arrived!

2008-03-08T08:17:00.001-08:00

We've made it to Omaha, safe and sound, and we just go the internet hooked up (after several days without...ugh!)

Will post again soon, but we're still getting settled, so it might be another day or two.

Continuing on

2008-02-17T14:22:00.000-08:00

As you can imagine, it's been a busy couple of weeks, and we're down to 2 weeks before our 1500 mile trek to Omaha. We found a great house with an enormous backyard, and although we're just going to be renting it, it will be a wonderful place to call home.

This weekend has been a whirlwind of packing and planning. We've got the moving company reserved, and they will pick up all of our stuff on Feb 29. Considering we don't hit the road until Mar 4, we'll be living very minimalistic for those few days. You know what, I just realized this was a leap year after writing that last sentence :)

I remember when we moved from Nebraska to here, we sold all of our stuff, packed our two cars full, and hit the trail. I wish it were that simple this time around, but with our daughter in the picture this time around, and a lot more stuff, it wasn't an option. The company I'm going to is only allowing $1500 for moving expenses, and we're going to pay more than double that, but at least we're going home!

Have a good week everyone. I'll check in when I get some more time.

It's official...

2008-02-08T15:48:00.000-08:00

Thanks to all for your words of support and/or advice. I received an offer from the company today, and it was just too good not to take it. I accepted the offer today, and our last day in Phoenix will be March 3 (My birthday!).

As far as the house goes, we're just going to see what happens. I've spoken with a couple of realtors, and we're going to put it on the market and see where it goes from there.

That's about all I have for now. I'll post more later, but I wanted to share the good news!

Follow up

2008-02-04T12:07:00.001-08:00

Well, the interview went as well as I could have imagined. I received a verbal offer, which was right at the salary range that I was looking for. I'm just waiting for the formal letter with all the details.

So today, we got in touch with a realtor to get our house on the market. They said, and I'm paraphrasing, "Oh, I'm sorry...you owe more than your house is worth. We won't be able to sell it for what you need to get out of your mortgage."

I'm so depressed right now, I don't know what to do about the house. We could try renting it out, but I'm not a big fan of being an "out of state landlord". We've even contacted that silly "We Buy Ugly Houses" company to see if there's anything they can do for us.

The job doesn't pay enough for us to cut our losses and start over, so we might be stuck here in AZ for the foreseeable future. And that just makes my heart sink and has my stomach in knots.

Job interview

2008-01-29T15:00:00.000-08:00

I'm flying back to Nebraska on Friday for a job interview. It's with a company in the same industry as where I work now, so I'm very familiar with the environment. I'm probably overly qualified for this job, but it would be a great way for me to get my foot in the door in terms of getting back home. Not sure what the pay is yet, but I'm sure we'll discuss it on Friday.

Wish me luck :)

Sicko...

2008-01-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

I've had this sinus, cough, crap that's been going around for the last few days, and it sucks. I'm not used to getting sick, so when I do, I feel like a real baby for complaining about it. My immune system is typically pretty strong and I don't have too many issues, but this is just kicking my butt! I've been slathering vicks up my nose, and keeping the breathing strips on my nose whenever I'm at home, just so I can breathe somewhat normally. I'm sure it will pass soon enough, but it sure stinks for now!

My wife and I went to see I AM LEGEND on Saturday. It's pretty different from the book if you've already read it, so it's probably worth seeing. I was a little disappointed that they used CGI monsters instead of people wearing makeup...it never looks as realistic using CGI!

I hate reading books and then seeing movies...I always end up critiquing the movie too much about what was left out or changed, but I didn't do it in this one, so it's all good. If you're interested in a spoiler, start highlighting here: DARTH VADER IS LUKE'S FATHER! Don't say I didn't warn you...it's a spoiler!

So that's about it for me. Nothing else new on this side of the country. I'll check back in sometime in the near future :)

My name is Techymike...

2008-01-16T22:42:00.000-08:00

...and I am a mage!

Is today Monday???

2008-01-15T07:11:00.000-08:00

I walked out of the house this morning, on my way to work, to a flat tire on my wife's van. Sooooo I went inside, changed clothes, and proceeded to replace it with the spare. Only to find (after I got it attached) that the spare was flat.....

What the heck....Monday already?

2008-01-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

Man, where did the weekend go? I don't know about you, but I could definitely use a few more days off!

And who woulda thought that both Indy and Dallas would be eliminated yesterday? Crazy stuff, I tell you!

Ouch! Softball season arrives...

2008-01-09T07:20:00.000-08:00

Everyone who says that Phoenix is beautiful this time of year obviously hasn't played in a winter softball league. Our season started last night at 8:30PM. It was somewhere around 50 degrees. I'm sure to some, this is beautiful weather and you'd give ~~your left nut~~ anything to have this kind of weather. To me, this is FREAKING COLD! By 10:30 when we finished, we were all ready to vacate the field for the warmth of our beds!

I also realized (this morning) that I'm very out of shape and shouldn't probably be playing softball. I'm going to try to sit in my chair and do nothing all day, because it's the easiest way to avoid the muscle aches that are surging through my lower body. At least there were no major injuries on our team last night....but it's a long season. It never fails, every season there are several guys who end up out of the picture because of various pulled muscles.

I'm off to nurse a Coke. Have a good day. :)

2008 Resolution for the media...

2008-01-04T13:56:00.000-08:00

...drop the Britney Spears infatuation. Maybe, if we all stop giving that loon attention, she'll either dry up and get back on track, or she'll crawl into a hole and die. I can't even visit my normal Google homepage anymore without having to see 3 links about her newest tragedies.

That's all :)

Closing the book...

2008-01-02T07:38:00.000-08:00

...on 2007, that is :) You didn't think I was going to stop blogging did you? Well, I'm not...at least not right now!

I hope you had a great Christmas and a safe New Years Eve! It was pretty much uneventful for us at the our household. We went over to my wife's sister's house for Christmas dinner, and stuffed ourselves with Honey Baked Ham (yum!) and all the typical sides.

With all of the money we spent on the house this past year, my wife and I didn't really do anything for each other for Christmas, but focused what we had on the kids. It was worth it too, especially watching our 3 yr old daughter opening her gifts was just precious!

New years eve was just as it has been the past 9-10 years or so. Neither my wife or I hardly ever drink or party, so we stayed at home, opened a bottle of Martinelli's Sparkling Cider, which was finished in about 5 minutes between the 4 of us, and that's about it. My son and I shared a can of smoked oysters (which about made my wife gag). He wanted to try to stay up until midnight to celebrate the new year, but by 11:30, he could barely keep his eyes open, so he went to bed. I toasted the new year with my dog, Koda.

So yeah, that's about it. Happy 2008 to all, and I'll see you again soon!

Here and there, to and fro...

2007-12-19T08:05:00.000-08:00

Holy cow, has it really been over a week since my last post? How time flies! Nothing of substance here, but I'll post a few thoughts from this past week:

I still haven't turned on my outside Christmas lights, and most likely won't do it this year. I plugged the extension cord into my outlet socket adapter, and it is too heavy and keeps falling out. Unfortunately, my townhouse doesn't have any normal outlets on the exterior, so that's the only way I can get electricity outside. I have too many other things going on right now to bother with it any more.
Working in an office where a lot of staff work closely with outside vendors, we get a lot of "goody baskets" from those vendors at this time of year. It's hell on my weight loss plan. I've started doing one of those DVD Workouts at home, which helps a little bit...it's easier than going to the gym.
Tucson sucks. I have to take a trip to our Tucson office on a monthly basis, and I never look forward to it. People move a lot slower, and they need to learn how to drive. I just can't stand the place, OK? :)
Normally this time of year, the freeways are normally very light on the drive to and from work, so it takes me only about 30 minutes to get to the office. For some reason, this year is different...heavy traffic mornings and afternoons. It's probably due to all the snow birds that show up in Phoenix this time of year.
Been very busy at work lately. Corporate determined a ratio of approximately 90 users per 1 IT staff is our standard IT support staffing plan. I support approx 300 people between all of my offices, but they dont' want to hire additional staff to help me out. So between my existing duties, and my newer duties, I keep very busy!

That's all for now. I'll try to post more later. If I don't get back before the weekend, have a merry Christmas, or whatever other holiday you might celebrate.

It's beginning to look a lot like...

2007-12-09T16:21:00.000-08:00

...December in Phoenix. More so than previous years, it's been tough for me to get into the Christmas spirit this year. Normally, by the day after Thanksgiving, I've got my Christmas lights and tree put up, and I have the seasonal tunes cranked up during the waking hours. This year is a little different, however. I've got my lights hung up outside, but for two weeks, I haven't had the extension cord run to them, so they don't light up.

Part of that is due to the weather...it's been gloomy and rainy off and on for the past week or so. The other part is just a lack of motivation on my part. It's hard to get into the mood when it's 70+ degrees outside. I miss the possibility of a white Christmas. I miss the change of season. I think I'm getting burned out on being here in Phoenix.

Sorry for the downer post. Hope you're enjoying your holiday season!

Puttin' up the tree HNT

2007-12-05T21:31:00.000-08:00

Although I love Christmas, putting up the decorations is one of my least favorite things to do. I love the end result, but it's always such a pain! I'm not much of a planner. Every year, I pull the boxes of decorations out from under the stairs, and I just put them up wherever I feel like it. Martha Stewart would be horrified.

This year, a creative bug crawled up "you know where", and I decided to play around with the tree lights and a 15 second exposure. Here are the results:

First attempt...a light flurry:

Second attempt...A barrage of lights:
Third attempt...all hell breaks loose:
Fourth attempt...things are spinning:
THE FINAL PRODUCT:

You'll have to enlarge to get a glimpse of the HNT part of this last picture...but it's probably not worth it. No naughty bits, sorry folks! Happy HNT everyone

The most wonderful time of the year!

2007-12-04T21:03:00.001-08:00

Christmas is my favorite time of year. The smells, the music, the decorations. The presents! I know that Christmas isn't all about presents, but you have to admit that it just wouldn't be the same without old Saint Nick!

My son is 8, but he still tells me that he believes in Santa Claus. I can't recall how, or at what age I found out the truth about Santa, but my wife and I have decided, at least for this year, to wait until he brings it up before telling him. I'm not sure if he tells me he believes because he thinks that he won't get anything if he doesn't. If only he knew how much I enjoy playing the part! I suppose I'm like my dad in that aspect. He's 50+, and Santa still visits his house every year.

On another note, my son brought home a couple of pine cones that he found at school the other day. He's really into "Conifer Trees" right now...they grow up so quickly! Anyway, he wanted to make some ornaments from the pine cones, so I found some craft paints upstairs, and we went to town. They didn't turn out as well as we had hoped, but he had a good time painting them, so it was worth it!

Money stresses

2007-12-03T08:07:00.000-08:00

We came to the conclusion about a month ago, after some large house projects, that we had to curb our spending. We had maxed out a couple of credit cards and spent most of our savings trying to get our house ready to sell in the event that I get a job back in Nebraska. We've been eating out way too much. My wife shops too much. Etc, etc, etc. Now, we're trying to overcome our financial issues and get back on our feet. I've turned into a bargain grocery shopper, with my pocketful of coupons, and a knack for keeping an eye open for low prices!

I don't usually get stressed out, but these are definitely trying times. I'm looking for some great stress relief suggestions...what are some things that YOU do to relieve your stress?

Coming soon...

2007-11-29T09:21:00.001-08:00

...A new post of substance. Things have been stressful and hectic in the world of Techymike, and you'll hear all about it soon, I promise.

Goal #1: Drink Less Soda

2007-11-18T21:29:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone for the words of encouragement. Losing weight is something I'm serious about, but I've never had much luck with it in the past. Like I said in my previous post, it all comes down to motivation, prioritization, and just plain not being so lazy.

I figure that maybe it's better for me to make lifestyle changes in individual goals, rather than just jumping straight into the rivers of change. And for no other reason than to be accountable, I'm posting my first goal here!

My first obstacle will be difficult...I've gone through periods where I've been able to give up soda for a couple of weeks at a time. Problem is, something ends up stressing me out, and Coke (the soda, not the powder) is a release for me. It's partly the taste, partly the bite. Once I get that taste, I've got to have more. It's a fix I've got to have on a daily basis.

This week, I've still had my Coke first thing in the morning, but after that, it's been all unsweetened iced tea. I bought an iced tea machine, and it's been great. I've always had a problem with drinking straight water...it's too bland. Tea is much more refreshing, and gets me my daily requirement of water and then some!

So that's my first goal...let's stick with it for awhile and see how it goes. Of course, heading into Thanksgiving isn't the best time to be making life changing goals, but here's hoping that I have the will power to stick with it :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Motivate me HNT

2007-11-14T20:45:00.000-08:00

I stepped on the scale the other day and got a bit of a shock. 1 9 5. I weigh the most I've ever weighed in my life, and it just seems to keep creeping higher.

I want to lose weight, but I'm unmotivated. I like to eat. I like to sit on my ass and watch TV. I sometimes like to veg in front of my computer. I don't get ~~enough~~ any exercise.

I don't really want to hit that 200 mark, but at this point it doesn't seem like I'm motivated enough to keep from going there. Look at me now. I COULD be out doing some crunches or something, but instead, I've got my feet propped up on the desk and I'm writing on my blog. What is wrong with me?

So who (and by who, I'm looking to the two of you who read my blog) is going to be my big motivator? Who wants to encourage me to lose that weight? Who wants to share those great weightloss secrets? Because at this point, I'm totally open to suggestions...

(yeah, i'm sticking out the gut a little bit on the front shot, but it still looks gross...at times I even look pregnant. yikes!)

I'm freaking MacGuyver!

2007-11-13T09:07:00.000-08:00

Duct tape and a paper clip. That's what it took to fix one of my backup drives today...well, at least to rig it good enough until Dell can replace it. I feel like a genius.

On a side note, my Huskers kicked butt this past weekend, winning of Kansas State 73-31. This came a week after having our butts handed to us 76-39 by Kansas. This was hopefully the spark that will help us beat Colorado the day after Thanksgiving and make it to a bowl game. I sure hope we are picked for the Insight Bowl...that's here in Phoenix and would be a great time!

Have a great day everyone!

Where does it go...?

2007-11-08T07:33:00.000-08:00

Not sure where the time goes...it's already Thursday! I don't really have anything interesting to share, but here you go...

-My dad and stepmom were here over the weekend. It was nice to see them, but definitely nice to send them packing as well! They were a drain on my energy and my wallet! :) We went to a couple of places that I'd never been, so it wasn't all bad. My dad didn't want to eat anything t hat he could normally eat at home, so we spent the weekend eating out. While that's nice to do, our finances are stretched pretty thin right now, so it was a little stressful. It's nice to be back to lunchmeat sandwiches :|

-Since I was off of work for a couple days last week, it was all piled up for me on Monday. It's been crazy busy all week long, which makes the days go by so much faster, but I'm so tired at the end!

-My wife's parents are coming into town over Thanksgiving. I'm one of the few guys who loves his inlaws....again, in moderation :). Should be a nice Turkey-day weekend.

That's about all I can muster up for now. I'll be back with more sometime later :)

Have a great day!

It's a small, small world

2007-11-03T21:53:00.000-07:00

So, have you heard about the wacko 25 year old teacher who fled to Mexico with her 13 year old student? Well, my wife knew her from high school. That makes me a celebrity by proxy. I'm so glad that my wife's home town has such wonderful national attention.

On a related note, I'm a year younger than my wife...it just goes to show that those Lexington chicks dig younger men.

Blogging break...

2007-10-30T22:47:00.000-07:00

Have no fear, just for a few days :)

My parents are in town until Sunday, so you probably won't see anything of substance from me. We had planned some fun events...a little trip down to Tombstone...a journey to the state fair. And then we tallied up the cost of all of these fun events, and we decided that sitting around and doing things that didn't cost so much would be just as fun! Besides, we'll be busy inspecting candy for the next week anyway! Thank goodness we'll have a few extra hands!

Have a safe Halloween!

Halloween caution video

2007-10-25T19:02:00.000-07:00

With Halloween only a few days away, it's important to be prepared:

MIA HNT

2007-10-24T22:10:00.000-07:00

No HNT this week, sorry to disappoint those (one or two) of you who frequent this blog. I'm headed out for a one day road trip Thursday to visit one of my remote offices, and I've had my head wrapped up in work stuff this evening.

For any HNT'ers who might stop by, have a Happy HNT!

Expecto Patronum! Gay style.

2007-10-22T08:46:00.000-07:00

Last week JK Rowling, of Harry Potter fame, revealed that Albus Dumbledore, one of the most beloved wizards of all time, was a gay man. I say was, because he died on page 596 in the Half Blood Prince (don't yell at me for that spoiler...if you haven't read the book by now, then you probably never will). Oh, and he's also a fictional character.

Here's my quandary...at no point during the course of the novels does it (now) add value or expand upon the character of Dumbledore to bring forth his sexual preference. What good does it do to add this tidbit well after the final book has been published, other than for a little bit of added press? Sure, I suppose it could be said that since Dumbledore was the most loving, good natured wizard of all time, it indicates that gay men can be good men, and that it's OK to be gay. And it is...I'm all for gay rights, and feel that if two men or two women want to be together, more power to them.

I don't understand our culture's need to be so open about one's sexual preference. I don't go around openly proclaiming my heterosexuality, so why do gays (or maybe it's the media) feel they need to openly proclaim their homosexuality? Did Rowling ever come out and state that Sirius Black was a straight man? No. Why not? Because it didn't add to the story line. Neither does Dumbledore being gay. Now if there had been some hot witch on witch action...that's another story!

Training

2007-10-18T08:33:00.001-07:00

Been in training all week, so it's been tough to get anything posted this week. I'll be back next week :)

Cleaver HNT

2007-10-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

Halloween, the scariest day of the year, is only 20 days away. Now, typically I wear a costume into work each year, but this year, my dad is coming to town that day, and I'll be damned if I am going to the airport to pick him up dressed as a two bit hooker again...

So I figure in honor of Halloween, I'd creep you all out just a little bit early. I find this area to be one of my better features, but I also find that most others don't! My ass cleavage!

So what do you say, fellow HNT'ers? Trick? or Treat? :)

Happy HNT everyone!

Captured!

2007-10-09T17:30:00.000-07:00

I've seen a few of my other frequent Blog Haunts doing this, so I figured it must be the cool thing to do! So here's a shot of my desktop at the office. Pretty bland, yet I get a lot of crap for it. Those damn Phoenicians love to remind me of the 19-0 shutout handed to us by the ASU Sundevils back in 1996. Of course, I always reply by asking how many national championships ASU has....the answer is a big goose egg, for those wondering :)

I don't change my computer desktops very often. When I do, they are usually pretty tame. I've never been a big fan of having a lot of color and noise on my screen...for me, it detracts from the usefullness. The icons always end up getting lost on the screen and I can't find a damn thing! So whatever my desktop may look like, it's always going to be fairly bland.

I'm off to my softball game. Have a great Tuesday, what's left of it!

I want to be positive...I really do.

2007-10-06T21:00:00.001-07:00

But it's just so hard to do so when my Huskers are playing like (expletive). We make any team we play look like a National Championship team. :(

These guys make me so sad.

P.S. See OGO, I'm still here!

Don't tase me, bro! Unless I deserve it.

2007-10-01T10:58:00.000-07:00

These days, you can't go a week without hearing a story about somebody being tasered by the police. Whether it's the Rent-A-Cops tasing the jackass University of Florida student, or the tasing of a 56-yr old, wheelchair-bound schizophrenic, we just can't seem to escape these stories.

Now don't get me wrong...I hold no ill will toward the police. I've never had anything but good experiences when it has come to law enforcement. However, you can't assume that just because somebody is given a badge and a gun that they won't go overboard with their newfound authority.

I think that tasers are appropriate in certain situations, and not so appropriate in other situations, and we just need to educate our police force as to which situations are appropriate. Of course, I can't help but offer up some suggestions.

APPROPRIATE

1. A knife-wielding maniac is threatening to attack.

A knife is a deadly, short range weapon in most cases. If someone charges an officer with a short range weapon of any kind, it is appropriate to use a taser to keep the perpetrator at a distance. If a gun is pointed at you, slowly put down your taser, and draw your own firearm.

2. Resisting Arrest
If a suspect is violently resisting arrest, it is appropriate to use a taser to temporarily incapacitate the suspect. It is important to differentiate between violently resisting, and shock/confusion.

3. OJ Simpson
Everyone knows he is guilty. It's appropriate to tase "The Juice" under any circumstance. Even if he appears to be sitting peacefully, he is most likely concocting an vicious murder in his mind.

INNAPPROPRIATE

1. School Children
Children, especially young ones, are virtually harmless to a large police officer. Under no circumstances should a child be tased. It's important to note that some people, Gary Coleman for instance, could easily be confused for a school-aged child. Exercise caution.

2. The Elderly
The shock from a taser could stop an elderly person's heart, killing them instantly. Besides, if you feel the threat of being overtaken by the elderly in a short range tussle, it's probably best you stop what you are doing and turn in your badge.

3. Me
I pay my taxes. I've served on a jury. I vote. Plus, I'm deathly afraid of having 50,000 volts surging through my body. Please don't tase me.

A Princess HNT

2007-09-26T22:15:00.000-07:00

Holy cow, where has this past week gone?

Well, it's been a looooooong day, and I didn't have the energy to come up with an idea for HNT, until I stumbled upon one....literally.

Like any little girl, my daughter has her share of Barbie toys. She's really into princesses, and her favorite one is Cinderella. What's funny is that Disney doesn't show Cinderella in the same light that I see her in. Disney portrays her as an innocent peasant girl who finds her way into a pair of glass slippers, and dances her way into the prince's heart.

The Cinderella that I see, however, is somewhat different. The Cinderella I know...well, just take a look below.

I don't know if she's caught one too many Britney concerts or what, but this poor girl can't seem to keep her clothes on. I'm contemplating an intervention.

Happy HNT everyone.

Piratey HNT

2007-09-19T20:02:00.000-07:00

Arrrrrrrr, me fellow HNT mateys!

OK, it's 8:00PM and I'm tired of talking like a pirate, so that's quite enough of that. Since Wednesday was "Talk Like a Pirate" day, I figured it was fitting to do a related HNT picture. Unfortunately, I'm short on pirate gear, so dressing up for a quick photo op this evening is out of the question. Plus, it's been a long day and I don't really feel like taking a picture anyway.

Fortunately, I went into the office last Halloween dressed like a scurvy buccaneer. Here, you can see me during our office pot luck, eating a "special brownie" prepared by the neon hippie sitting beside me.

Happy Half Nekkid Thursday everyone. Arrrrrrrrr! (OK, I had enough for one more!)

Arrrrrrrrrr!

2007-09-18T16:59:00.001-07:00

Ahoy, me hearty crew! Wednesday, September 19th be International Talk Like a Pirate Day! Ye best be goin' through yer day usin' yer most Piratey voice! If ye don't, ye may just find yerself on the wrong end of a blunderbuss!

What's this? Ye be interested in becomin' a pirate yerself? Well, this job ain't for everyone, landlubber! But if ye want to give it a try, best be readin' up on the Laws o' the Pirate first!

Now, if ye be wonderin' how to talk like a pirate, see below for the "Five A's of Pirating", which I pirated from the Talk Like a Pirate website.

Ahoy! - "Hello!"

Avast! - Stop and give attention. It can be used in a sense of surprise, "Whoa! Get a load of that!" which today makes it more of a "Check it out" or "No way!" or "Get off!"

Aye! - "Why yes, I agree most heartily with everything you just said or did."

Aye aye! - "I'll get right on that sir, as soon as my break is over."

Arrr! - This one is often confused with arrrgh, which is of course the sound you make when you sit on a belaying pin. "Arrr!" can mean, variously, "yes," "I agree," "I'm happy," "I'm enjoying this beer," "My team is going to win it all," "I saw that television show, it sucked!" and "That was a clever remark you or I just made." And those are just a few of the myriad possibilities of Arrr!

If ye be seekin' a piratey tune, there ain't no better theme than the original Pirates of the Caribbean theme. Just click that there link, and you'll be listenin' to it in no time!

ARRRRRRRRRR!

It's Softball season

2007-09-17T17:56:00.000-07:00

The summer heat has subsided (in Phoenix, that means the temp has dipped below 110), which means that it's time to pull out the aluminum bats and oil up the gloves...it's softball season again!

Here in Phoenix, we play 3 seasons out of the year...Winter, Spring, and Fall. Unfortunately, due to a shoulder injury (resulting in some surgery) while remodeling our kitchen, I missed out on the last season so I'm really looking forward to this one! The doctor has given me the OK to play, so I'm very excited.

I thought about going to the cage to practice my batting, but being the worst batter on the team, I figured why ruin a good thing.

Emotional (Sporty) HNT

2007-09-12T19:29:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the long post. However, if you're a football fan, I'm sure you can relate.

I don't get emotional about too many things. I'm a pretty laid back kind of guy, and won't cause too much of a stir when things don't go my way. However, there's one thing that will send me into a counch-punching, profanity-driven tirade...

...Football. The college type, that is. If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm a huge Cornhusker fan. Like most football fans, I like to see my team win, and win big if possible. When we're not playing up to the level that I think they should be playing at, I let everyone within a three mile radius know about it.

For some bonus HNT coverage, I'd like to show you some of the emotions that I go through on any given Saturday (but more specifically, this past Saturday while playing Wake Forest.

First, there's the Preparation phase. This is right as the game is beginning. I have high hopes, and can't wait to see what we're going to do. My lucky 1989 autographed football is always there with me. I'm always wearing my #12 jersey (that's Bobby Newcombe from a few years back. He was a prick and left the team because he didn't get his way, but I've just been too lazy to go out and get a new jersey), and my favorite Husker cap.

Next, we have the Confusion stage. This is the point where I'm starting to question everything about the team. Who are these guys on the field, and what did they do with the guys that I thought we had playing for our team? I start to wonder what the hell Keller is doing forcing the ball between two defenders. Why does he have to stare down his receiver? Why in God's name does Callahan keep running Lucky up the middle when Castille is a better power back?

Next we have the Frustration stage. We aren't making any plays, and the lead is switching back and forth. The only thing keeping us in the game is the defense...and barely! By this time, the hat has come off, and there's a slight indentation in the couch. The neighbors start coming out of their homes to see what all the swearing and yelling is about. Fortunately, my wife isn't home or else she's probably be washing my mouth out with soap.

Lastly comes the End of the Game stage. This can go one of two ways. The first, and most preferable way for everyone in my path, is that we win. The second is that we lose. In this case, I go through a fit of depression for the next several hours, wondering about the what-if's and how-comes. My family knows to leave me to my sulking for the rest of the day. If it's a large upset, I might go until Sunday before I speak again.

As you can probably see in the last picture, we won this weekend (barely) against an unranked but decent Wake Forest team. Let's hope we can pull together a little more enthusiastic game this Saturday against the USC Trojans.

Happy Sporty HNT everyone!

Smart cat

2007-09-10T17:48:00.001-07:00

It's nice to know that the animals
in the house are also fans!

My Playlist

2007-09-08T13:27:00.000-07:00

I've got nothing worth posting this weekend, but felt a need to post something. So how about some music talk? I've got a wide variety of taste in music. I can listen to country, rock, pop, classical, and even some rap. I'll often pick up a tune that is hot at the moment, but just as often replace it with something else when it's become overplayed.

However, here are some tunes that have had staying power on my playlist, in no particular order:

Dobie Gray - Drift Away
Steve Miller Band - The Joker
Big & Rich - Rollin' (The Ballad of Big & Rich)
Billy Joel - Piano Man
AC/DC - T.N.T.
Bon Jovi - Livin' on a Prayer
Bobby McFerrin - Don't Worry, Be Happy
Trent Tomlinson - Drunker Than Me
Jimmy Buffett - Why Don't We Get Drunk
Beastie Boys - Fight For Your Right
Tracy Lawrence - Paint Me A Birmingham
Guns N Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine
Jason Mraz - Curbside Prophet
Don McLean - American Pie
Charlie Daniels Band - Devil Went Down to Georgia

So there are just a handful of the songs that are permanently on my iPod. How about you? What are some of your favorites?

A semi-dorky HNT

2007-09-05T20:28:00.000-07:00

I had a dilemma when Osbasso declared this past Tuesday to be "Dorky Tuesday" My dilemma? Well, the problem is, I'm naturally dorky. Therefore pretty much all of my pictures are dorky, so it's tough to single out just one.

This week for HNT, I found a picture from a couple of years ago, when I went to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. I happened upon the MSN Butterfly himself (who knew that butterfly was a dude?) and pulled him aside to get a quick photograph. Never in a thousand years did I think I'd be standing next to a million-dollar bug!

So alas, I was unable to find anything suitable for a Dorky Tuesday entry, but I sincerely hope that this makes up for it. Happy HNT Everyone!

Phew, what a weekend!

2007-09-02T23:29:00.000-07:00

I know the weekend isn't technically over, but I'm exhausted!

I've been looking for a job in Nebraska. We currently live in Arizona. Why Nebraska, you ask? My wife and I both grew up in Nebraska, and well...there's a reason that the state slogan is "The Good Life". I moved to Phoenix 6 years ago for a job. Our son was 2 at the time, and we didn't really take into consideration how it would be to raise him out here. Then, almost three years ago, we had our daughter, and started thinking about moving back home (Nebraska) where we could have a house with a yard (the grass really is greener there...literally!) that is affordable, and be closer to family. So I've finally taken the plunge and sent off a boatload of resumes, and have been applying for every job that I remotely qualify for, just to try to get my foot in the door.

With that out of the way, we're trying to get our house to a point where we can sell it if I do get that great job offer. We've spent the weekend thus far painting, and will most likely spend Labor Day doing the same. I'm high on paint fumes. I'm likely stoopider from it.

Oh yeah, my Cornhuskers won on Saturday...kicked the snot out of Nevada, with a score of 52-10. I haven't been as enthusiastic as I am now about this team for several years. We've got an offense with a lot of potential and our defense looked stellar. I have a feeling this could be a great year!

Until next time, blog safely!

Don't push it HNT

2007-08-29T23:49:00.000-07:00

Holy cow, I almost forgot about HNT! I guess that happens when you've been away from blogging for awhile.

Last week, I had at least one comment that said that since I took a picture of my daughter on the toilet, I should do one of myself as well. Not being one to back down from a challenge, I set up the camera, and went about my business like nobody's....business.

Now, being that football season starts in just a few days, I decided to flip through the pages of "C is for Cornhusker", an A-Z journey of all that is great about the state of Nebraska. Yep...there are at least 26 things that are great about the old Cornhusker State!

So that's that. Who's got a challenge for me next week? I'll do just about anything, as long as it stays clean...this is a family blog after all! Happy HNT everyone!

The concept of "reading" has changed

2007-08-28T08:22:00.000-07:00

When I was young, I used to love to read. Mind you, this was well before computers, video games (well, except for Atari!), and 1,597 TV channels.

These days, I don't read as much. I find it hard to take the time to sit down and dedicate time exclusively to reading a book. It seems like there's always something else that needs to be done. That's why I'm grateful for audio books!

My wife makes fun of me for listening to audio books. I think she considers it cheating. But I love it...it lets me multi-task! I've been listening to books all day long at work, while I do the dishes, folding laundry, painting, etc. It certainly helps pass the time. The only downfall is that I don't always comprehend the book 100% of the time. If I get really involved in whatever other task I'm working on, sometimes my attention slips from the book and I miss out on a portion and have to rewind.

Recently I found the site Podiobooks.com, where authors record their books, free of charge, and post them online. If you're into audio books, I definitely suggest checking it out. If you're an iTunes user, you can subscribe to the books directly through it.

Return to HNT

2007-08-22T20:34:00.000-07:00

With that, I wish you all a happy Half-Nekkid day!
I figured that with my return to blogging, it would be a great time to get back into the swing of doing HNT (Half-Nekkid Thursdays) as well. However, I didn't plan all that well and I'm out of batteries for the camera! So instead, I thought I'd post a picture that I took earlier in the year...this is of my daughter, spending some "alone time". I've posted it before, but since all my old posts are gone, it's kind of just like new, eh?

With that, I'll wish you a happy Half-Nekkid day, and goodnight!

Invasion!

2007-08-20T20:43:00.000-07:00

It's interesting the wide array of critters that can be found taking refuge in an Arizona home during the summer. From these, to these...it would seem like not the safest place to live, eh?

Now, don't panic! Ol' Techymike and his family haven't had to worry about either of these invading the TM House. What we have is something far less creepy (and painful!), yet far more pesky! These!

That's right, we have an ant problem. Dozens of them! Now, our house isn't pristine, but we do our best to keep it clean, and make sure we don't leave food or remnants laying around. Dishes are done (nearly) every night, and we have a dog to clean up the floor when something falls down. With that said, we have a two year old...and she often finds "special" places to put things when we're not watching.

This isn't the first time we've had an ant problem. It seems to happen every summer, and usually they make their way in through the kitchen windowsill. This happened at the beginning of the summer, and we placed a fair share of ant poison on the sill, and it seemed to do the trick. Well now, those cunning ants saw fit to come in through our front door! I placed another poison trap under the couch near the door, so hopefully that solves the problem. If not, I'm gonna make a special trip to Home Depot to buy a can of Raid!

That's all for now :) I have a very special project that I'm trying to put together, but it might take a couple of weeks before it's ready, so stay tuned!

Teenage Drivers

2007-08-17T10:54:00.000-07:00

When I was of driving age, it always used to bother me when those pesky grown ups would say, "Kids these days are such irresponsible drivers!" Insurance rates were jacked up through the roof, and I couldn't figure out why! I was a GREAT driver! It was irresponsible of the grown ups to label we teenagers as bad drivers! What did they know anyway???

Now that I'm a parent, I have to say this...nobody under 21 should be allowed to drive. Period. Kids these days are so damn irresponsible when it comes to driving. They weave in and out of traffic. They text message their friends while turning across three lanes of oncoming traffic. They cause me anxiety and stress. Need I say more?

While we're at it, can we get rid of drunk drivers, elderly drivers, foreign drivers, idiot drivers, etc.? That way the road will be clear for me on my drive to and from the office.

Well this is awkward...

2007-08-16T22:33:00.000-07:00

It feels very odd to come back to a blog after such a long time. I remember the days where I really loved writing posts, commenting on others, and chatting with my bestest blog buddies. I feel bad for abandoning everyone. Really, I do. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't check here, here, and here for new posts, among others. Note: Just because I didn't link your blog here, doesn't mean I don't check up on you...

I've seen bloggers come and go. Some have come back again. I really hope that this time I'm back for good. I promise that I'll try. A lot has gone on in the past several months, and every day brings new things to share, so I'll try not to be lazy. Maybe I'll even get back into HNT...that was always a blast.

So here I am. Let's pick up where we left off, shall we? Will you have me back?