- Matt's Mind -

Dad The Internet Isn't Working

2020-03-16T09:41:00.002-04:00

Online School begins today (3/16/2020)

If your day is starting out with, I can't get to my homework because the wifi is down... I'm just gonna play video games...

If your child is having problems connecting to ItsLearning it is not likely it’s your home network. There are thousands of children trying to access the same sites. Here are some helpful tips you can use to check your connection.

If your child say's "The Internet isn't working" here are some really simple things you can check to see if the problem is on your home network.. If you can complete these steps then you can in most cases know that your home networking and internet connection is working.

Check another website: choose one you don’t often visit.

Yahoo.com
nasa.gov
tanium.com
Some other Random URL

If you can reach one or more of these sites you’re on the right track.

This means:

Your ISP is online
You can connect to the Internet
DNS (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_Name_System) is working

Check your bandwidth: with a bandwidth test. (Don’t do this every time)

Testing your bandwidth is not necessary every time, if you can do step 1 above you’re probably good. Having a Bandwidth test though can give you a baseline of what connectivity speeds should look like for you.

Note: High latency results mean you may want to move closer to your wifi router or use a cabled internet connection (plug in the wire)

I'll may add additional steps.

-matt-

Questions, contact me

Will you please help us fight Crohn's and colitis?

2015-08-19T11:43:00.001-04:00

Dear Friends and Family:

I want to thank all of you who have gernerously donated to support the fight against Crohn's and Colitis. So many of us have a friend or family member who has been impacted by these terrible diseases that affect more than 1.3 million people in America. Together we have raised $5778 dollars to fight.

My goal is to break the $7000 mark before the end of this campaign. With 2 weeks left we are only $1222 from that goal. My ultimate goal is $10,000 can we do it?

My Request to you:

If you can donate please do, this is an amazing organization that helps so many with Crohn's, colitis and other Inflammatory Bowel Diseases.
If you've already donated or are unable, please share this information with your family your friends and facebook. Share my link: http://online.ccfa.org/goto/IronMatt

Why am I doing this?

I want to share a personal story of one man's ongoing battle with Crohn's disease. My friend Joseph is one of the many reasons that I'm out here fighting. On hard training days and days I don't want to get up to train I think of him and the countless others who have suffered far more than most of us can ever imagine. Please Help however you can.

Here are his words:

I was diagnosed 15 years ago. I was working on my second bachelors degree in Chattanooga, TN (what a coincidence!!!) when I had come home for Christmas break. I started having a lot of abdominal pain at that time but dismissed it to all the wonderful holiday treats I had enjoyed. I was hospitalized soon after returning and after two weeks in the hospital, I was diagnosed with Crohn's

I was in my last semester so I struggled and fought through it so I could graduate on time. The day of my last class I came home to Indiana to spend some time with my family and hopefully recover. My second day home I started having sever pain and ended up in the ER. They took me in for emergency surgery where they removed 22" of my intestine and a small portion of my colon. Since that time I have had 5 additional surgeries bringing the total to 6. My last two surgeries were met with severe complications, one requiring an additional surgery to repair a "leak" that was expelling into my pelvic cavity and causing near sepsis.

The battle has been never ending. I am currently experiencing one of the worst flares I have had in my 15 years. I am on IV feedings and have lost about 30 pounds. I am 6'1" and currently weigh 107 pounds. I was already ridiculously thin, but now I look like Celine Dion's body double!

Through all this I have gone on to get my Master's degree in Social Work and have worked full time despite the pain and other non-pleasantries that come along with the disease. I am a fighter and refuse to give up.

In my previous life (which I call B.C. "Before Crohn's") I was very athletic and energetic. Since then, my life has drastically changed. I keep a great attitude and have an awesome sense of humor which has helped me on this journey. I also have a great support system through my family and friends, without whom I do not think I would be here today.

Again, you have no idea what all you are doing means to me.

-Joseph

Together we are making a difference! On September 27th, I'll be out there swimming, biking and running 140.6+ miles to raise more awareness.

Click here to visit my personal page.
If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address:
http://online.ccfa.org/site/TR?px=3164789&pg=personal&fr_id=4670&et=kq4ZCEAmzN8oV94nt0dq-w&s_tafId=100310

If you no longer wish to receive email messages sent from your friends on behalf of this organization, please click here or paste this URL into your browser: http://online.ccfa.org/site/TellFriendOpt?action=optout&toe=1669efac8cdb1846c0550f16971e5a8a2170ed0537ccf32cebcbc7435140ece1

nonprofit software

IRONMAN Chattanooga 2015!

2015-04-21T20:37:00.001-04:00

A message from Matthew Eash info@ccfa.org.

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I’m excited to announce that with the support of my amazing family I’ll be training for my second IRONMAN. I will be training to complete IRONMAN Chattanooga with Team Challenge on September 27th in Chattanooga Tennessee. I am sure you're thinking, "Yeah, so what. Matt is running another race. He has done this before, should we be surprised?"

Maybe you’re not all that surprised, but you may be surprised to know that this year my race will be dedicated to help those who suffer with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. I will be completing the 140.6 mile journey to raise funds and awareness for research leading to a cure for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Over the next 8 months I will be swimming, biking and running while raising funds to find a cure for this disease that has claimed over 1.4 million Americans.

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are known together as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are painful, medically incurable illnesses that attack the digestive system. The cause of IBD remains unknown. However, the effectiveness of recently developed treatment methods and steady advances in research brings us closer every day to finding the cause and probable cure of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

My base goal is to raise over $5,000 for Team Challenge and the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America. I have a much larger stretch goal, we’ll talk more about that later. Over 80% of every dollar I raise will directly fund the mission of CCFA, to cure Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults affected by inflammatory bowel diseases.

I have made a commitment to complete this journey in 2015 and bring us closer to providing hope, peace, and freedom to individuals battling IBD. I am hopeful you will join me in the fight against Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. You can help by visiting the link at the bottom of this email and helping the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America. Donations are tax deductible, and don’t forget to check and see if your company may match donations. No donation is too small!

Along the way I plan to share stories of friends and family who have been impacted by Chron’s or ulcerative colitis. I’d love for you to share your story with me so that together we can raise awareness!

Thank you so much for your generosity and support!

-matt-

2015-02-02T13:21:00.003-05:00

Dear Friends and Family,

I’m excited to announce that with the support of my amazing family I’ll be training for my second IRONMAN. I will be training to complete IRONMAN Chattanooga with Team Challenge on September 27^thin Chattanooga Tennessee. I am sure you're thinking, "Yeah, so what. Matt is running another race. He has done this before, should we be surprised?"

Maybe you’re not all that surprised but you may be surprised to know that this year my race will be dedicated to those who suffer with Chron’s disease or ulcerative colitis. I will be completing the 140.6 mile race to raise funds and awareness for research leading to a cure for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Over the next 8 months I will be swimming, biking and running while raising funds to find a cure for this disease that has claimed over 1.4 million Americans.

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are known together as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are painful, medically incurable illnesses that attack the digestive system. The cause of IBD remains unknown. However, the effectiveness of recently developed treatment methods and steady advances in research brings us closer every day to finding the cause and probable cure of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

My base goal is to raise over $5,000 for Team Challenge and the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America. I have a much larger stretch goal, we’ll talk more about that later. Over 80% of every dollar I raise will directly fund the mission of CCFA, to cure Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults affected by inflammatory bowel diseases.

I have made a commitment to complete this journey in 2015 and bring us closer to providing hope, peace, and freedom to individuals battling IBD. I am hopeful you will join me in the fight against Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. You can help by visiting: http://online.ccfa.org/goto/IronMatt and donating generously to the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America. Donations are tax deductible, and don’t forget to check to see if your company matches donations.

Donate here: http://online.ccfa.org/goto/IronMatt

2014 Chicago Marathon

2014-04-16T09:56:00.002-04:00

I'm Matt Eash and I'm an amateur endurance athlete. Since 2006 I've competed in both running and triathlon events. Following a visit to the emergency room in February of 2013 I was diagnosed with diverticulitis. In May of 2013,while away from home in California I experienced a major diverticulitis attack . Narrowly avoiding an emergency bowel resection, this required a 4 day hospital stay. At the time I had already been training for my first Ironman 70.3 and my first Chicago Marathon. I was told these plans were over. I was devastated, all my training and planning for not.

After returning home and explaining my race plans to my physician he came up with a plan to allow me to continue training for my Ironman 70.3. A glimmer of hope knowing there was still a chance to complete my goal! With the amazing support of my running group, the Magic Milers I was able to continue training and complete my first every Half Ironman!

I had bowel resection surgery in July just two weeks after my Half Ironman and at that point was again told that I wouldn't be able to complete the Chicago Marathon. I had already recovered from being told once, but this second time seemed more real. However, after my required time off I began slowly training again. It wasn't until the week before the Chicago Marathon that I had finally decided I would participate. A crazy idea probably, but I was determined to hit my goals! I finished in 05:01:01, not my best time but a time I was proud of. With the help of my physician, my family and my Milers I had concurred my disease and achieved my goals!

This year, I've been presented with an amazing opportunity to join Team Challenge and help others with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). My goal is to raise over $1500 while training for and completing the Chicago Marathon! I want to help find ways to cure and treat IBD so that those impacted can receive improved treatments and reduce the daily impact to their lives.

You can help by donating, it's simple and anything you can offer is appreciated! I'll be posting training updates and events on my blog at http://meash20.blogspot.com. I'm super excited for the journey to follow and I hope you'll be a part of it!

2013 A Year in Review

2013-12-03T14:48:00.002-05:00

As I reflect on this year I have so much to be thankful of. This year has been trying both mentally and physically. I had set some pretty lofty goals this year, and I'm proud to say that even when I was told I couldn't I did. It really is amazing what you can do when you set your mind to it.

Here's a look at my year in review. I've added some notes in between the events.

- Jan 2nd, 2013 Registered for Ironman Muncie 70.3

- Feb 18th, 2013: Diagnosed with Diverticulitis (Emergency Room Visit)

- May 4th, 2013: Indianapolis Mini Marathon (Run 13.1 Miles - 2:16:49)

- May 13th, 2013: Admitted to Hospital in California

*I spent 4 days in the hospital; it was here where I was told that my Ironman goal was over. I was devastated. I actually believed it too. I mean I had a tiny hole in my colon...

- May 16th, 2013: Discharged from El Camino

* I got home and started working out again; I was determined that if I worked I could do it!

- June 8th, 2013 Muncie Sprint Triathlon (400yard swim / 20.6k bike / 5k run - 1:24:22)

* testing myself I completed a sprint triathlon, and I felt really good!

- July 13th, 2013: Ironman Muncie 70.3 Finisher (1.2 Mile Swim / 56 Mile Bike / 13.1 Mile Run: - 6:25:37)

* I did it! With the support of my family, my Dr. and many others I completed my half Ironman!

- July 16th, 2013: Pound the Pavement (5k Run - 27:57)

- July 27th, 2013: Summit Lake Sprint Triathlon (400yard swim / 13.5 mile bike / 5k run - 1:24:20)

* This tri was my first the year before, my goal was to beat the time from one year prior. I did!

- ** July 29th, 2013: Surgical Bowel Resection

* Again, told I would be done for the season. I mean another 4 days in the hospital, 7 inches of my colon removed and at least 4 weeks no running (right)... I may have cheated a little but I was back at it as soon as possible.

- Oct. 13th, 2013: Chicago Marathon (26.2 Mile Run - 5:01:01)

* Another huge Milestone for me this year! I was able to come back from surgery and being down to complete my second ever Full marathon!

- Nov. 17th, 2013: Big Sur half marathon (2:10:29)

- Dec. 3rd 2013: Got the All Clear from my Dr. !!!!!

Future: January 2014
Jan. 9th, 2014: RunDisney Family Fun Run (5k Run)
Jan. 10th, 2014: RunDisney Minnie's 10k (10k Run)
Jan. 11th, 2014: RunDisney Donald's Half Marathon (13.1 Mile Run)
Jan. 12th, 2014: RunDisney Mickey's Marathon (26.2 Mile Run)

Long time coming

2013-07-19T14:07:00.001-04:00

Clearly I suck at blogging every day... so much time has passed since my last post so I'll try to update you from the start.

Jan. 2nd 2013:
I signed up for Ironman Muncie 70.3. I was already training well and progressing pretty good.

I also set a goal to run a 13.1 distance every month this year! Pretty ambitious but attainable.

February 18th:
I was diagnosed with Diverticulitis and had a visit to the Emergency room where I was directed to a colon dr. He placed me on meds and scheduled me for a colonoscopy to check out the situation. I was off from working out a few days and this ultimately didn't impact my training too much.

I spent the month of Feb and March traveling for work. I was managing to get my 13.1 runs in even when traveling. One of them I actually ran in Helsinki Finland, that was pretty cool!

May was filled with some more travel of which one trip was to California to my HP office headquarters. When I arrived on Sunday May 12 I wasn't feeling very good and I figured my diverticulitis was acting up again...

Sadly I was right, Monday I trudged through work at the office doing my best to manage the pain, I'd called my family doctor to get some antibiotics ... But by that afternoon I was in serious pain. My colleague was kind enough to drive me to the ER where they did a CT scan that showed indeed I had another outbreak... Only problem was that this time was a lot worse and included a small hole in my intestine. I wasn't prepared for their next update which was that I was going to have to have emergency surgery to resolve the problem.

The doctors where really cautious and I got admitted to the PCU (Progressive Care Unit, one less than ICU). After a while they decided that they were going to treat me through the night and see how I was in the AM. I was taking antibiotics via IV, and morphine for pain. The next day my wife had flown out to be with me. It was so nice to have someone I loved finally by my side. Every time a dr. would visit we'd ask about surgery and they became less and less focused on that.

Now, flashing back to the point where they said surgery, I was crushed... my goals of completing my first Half Ironman gone... All the training and commitment I'd put into the race wasted... And now even now after the idea of surgery passed many were saying I'd never be able to do it..

My Wed it was clear that I wasn't going to have surgery and that now they just wanted to watch me and make sure I was getting better and no fever. Thursday afternoon I was finally able to leave the hospital.

The following Monday I saw my colon Dr. and he gave me 3 options. 1) do nothing, hope it doesn't happen again soon. This was unlikely considering I'd had two issues within 2 months, and the second episode was a lot worse than the first. ... 2) Meds for a long time to see if that helped avoid future problems. Trouble was that the meds had a low success rate and weren't tested on people in my age group... 3) Surgery to remove the bad section of colon. The good news here was that research shows that less than 3% of the time are there any issues after this type of fix.

Of course I asked the Dr. the important question about my race and training. To my delight the Dr. agreed that training and racing had little impact on this and that we'd schedule the surgery for after the race.

I was back to training after having missed about 2 weeks of it. I was running out of time and becoming more nervous about the upcoming race every day... Was I ready?

Fast forward ...

July 13th Arrives ... It's go time! Race Day! The day I'd been training for!

Swim 1.2 Miles: 43:19
T1: 4:29
Bike 56 Miles: 2:55:45
T2: 4:40
Run 13.1 Miles: 2:37:24
Total: 6:25:37

I killed my goal time of <7:00:00 ...="" 6:30:00="" a="" and="" blast="" br="" even="" goal="" had="" i="" my="" nbsp="" of="" stretch="" too.="" wow="">

Now, it time to prep for the surgery. ... and now you're caught up. I'm going to try to post more frequently maybe it will help me be less grumpy about the surgery and recover (no workout) time...

-me-

Commitment

2013-01-02T12:13:00.000-05:00

Prior to 2005 I'd never considered distance or endurance events. It was by chance in Fall 2005 when I needed to be in Panama City Florida for work. My flight to Florida got delayed and canceled which led to getting stuck overnight in Atlanta with Ironman Florida competitors.

The IM event happened to be the day I was heading home, however I was able to go to the start and witness the emotional power of the event. Inspired by those competing, I signed up for my first half marathon (500 Festival Mini-Marathon) from the hotel's computer and actually ran on the hotel treadmill that very day.

I made it back in the afternoon and managed to see both of the competitors I'd traveled with at around the 15 mile mark of the marathon. I was so in awe of the event that I ended up staying too long and actually missed my flight home.

Signing up for this 70.3 had been 6 years in the making, I completed my first and only marathon in March 2008. I've managed 5 half-marathons, and in 2012 I completed 3 Sprint distance triathlons and my training has been consistant with the ulitmate goal being the completion of a full IronMan at some point in the future.

Training for such an event is a huge commitment, one that I couldn't do without the support of my wife. As the parents of 5 kids, I could never have considered such a commitment without her support. Today, is the day that I commit to my ulitmate goal of IronMan, and this 70.3 is the halfway point to many exciting days to come!

Today, I signed up for the Muncie 70.3 Half Ironman. The event is on July 13th 2013.

1.2 Mile Swim
56 Mile Bike
13.1 Mile Run

Our new Product Bundles

2012-10-18T21:52:00.000-04:00

I am really excited to share with you our new product bundles. Now you can purchase the 24 Day Challenge in just a few simple clicks!

You can get to our Site: http://team-transform.biz

Or go straight to the Product Bundles:

24 Day Challenge-Base Add to Cart
24 Day Challenge-Plus Add to Cart
Matt's Performance Bundle Add to Cart
Stress & Tension Relief Add to Cart

The Past Two Months, have been awesome.

2012-08-21T15:34:00.003-04:00

I'm not generally one to push products that I sell. But I want to share with you about my personal experiences with the AdvoCare products. I really can't put into words my excitement about how these products work...

2 months ago I started the AdvoCare 24 day challenge. Over the past 2 months, I've been using a core set of products that have been improving my performance and helping me feel great about working out and staying focused on improving my overall health and fitness. I can say without a doubt that my desire to workout has never been this high, my performance has never been this good, and I've never felt so amazing after completing my workout. Today (8/21/2012) I actually set a new Personal Record(PR) time for a 10k and I feel amazing.

I attribute this to a handful of AdvoCare Products listed below, that I've been using in an attempt to learn more about the products and see how they work first hand... I'll be honest, I didn't expect the products to work, but they really do.

O2 GOLD™ Advanced - (1 hour before workout)
Mass Impact™ - (30 minutes before workout)
CATALYST™ - (15 minutes before workout)
AdvoCare Spark® Energy Drink - (15 minutes before workout)
Rehydrate - (1 hour to 15 minutes before workout, during and after workout)
MNS® Max 3 - (Daily Supplement: Supports advanced core nutrition and wellness*, Part of the 24 Day Challenge)
Post-Workout Recovery - (within 1 hour after workout)
Nighttime Recovery - (Bedtime on workout days)

It's no joke this stuff works... Using these products I've completed 3 sprint triathlons, a Warrior Dash and set a PR for both my 5k and 10k distance... Oh, and I've lost 18 lbs...

If you're an athelete, looking to get back into fitness shape or just want to loose a few pounds. Rachelle and I can help you. Feel free to contact me for more information or questions. Meash20@Gmail.com or 765-734-3274.

If you're looking for detailed product information, or you want to order products visit my microsite:https://www.advocare.com/120532655/Products/default.aspx

Does Advocare Work?

2012-07-26T10:06:00.000-04:00

I'll be straight forward... 6-8 months ago when I first heard of Advocare I thought, oh boy another gimmick. I've never been a fan of so called wonder plans. I've hated diets because they all seem fake and unmaintainable. Who wants to be stuck eating specific foods andmonitoring it all, certainly not me!

My wife Rachelle started using a few products, Spark: an energy drink and a snack bar here and there. I wasn't too into it, but I went along for the ride to support her and her Zumba business. I'd heard about a 24 day challenge and thought again, great another thing to spend money on...

A few months later we went camping with some friends. One of them mentioned they were going to try the challenge, and she was talking about a cleanse. It all sounded bizarre to me.

A week or two later Rachelle said we should try the challenge to seew hat it was about, I begrudgingly agreed to trying it out.

I started the 10 day cleanse phase and decided I'd really do it. The cleanse phase is essentially a preparation for your body, a chance to free some of the junk that's been building up so that your body is able to process the max phase. The first few days of the cleanse felt awkward, as I mentioned I was only doing this to appease my wife. What was weird though was that I was actually starting to feel different. A good different a fulfilled different... I started wondering if maybe this was actually working... But it couldn't be right?

The 14 day max phase started and I was feeling even better than before. Even before the challenge I had been running and training for upcoming races, but my training changed. My runs felt easy, energy was consistent and I didn't feel sore or tired afterward. It was something I'd never experienced during previous training plans...

Not only was I feeling better, but I noticed that my clothes werefitting different, the shorts I bought at the start of spring were getting loose, and I was losing weight!

I really truly was surprised! I was losing weight, feeling great andgetting back into shape! This all impacted my training, I found withmy new energy I wanted to workout more often, and for longer times!

Here are a few other side effects that came along with this. 1) I cut back almost completely on coffee, no longer a slave to the caffeine I'd been addicted to. 2) I didn't crave junk and other unhealthy foods 3) I stopped drinking so much beer... 4) My recurring sinus problems have resided and I'm breathing and sleeping better than ever! 5) I regained my confidence to be able to walk around without a shirt on, something the extra pounds had previously prevented me from doing.

My training had progressed so well that I actually signed up for my first Sprint Triathlon, which is coming up this Saturday!

You're asking me why am I sharing this? Here's the thing, Advocarereally does work. I'm telling you this as someone who didn't believe it would, but it did! I am so convinced that Rachelle and I are now Advocare advisors who can help you achieve your goals too.

If you're looking to change your life, feel better and get healthier I encourage you to take a look at Advocare. I'd be happy to spend sometime with you and share my experience in more detail. We can help you determine how to start and what to consider.

Phone, email, txt, or FB message me and I'll give you more information. You'll be glad you did !!! Here's a sample of my results!

Let the training begin...

2012-07-03T13:38:00.000-04:00

Some of you know that I've been running again. My goal is to run my second full marathon in the fall of 2012. Right now, I'm targeting the Monumental Marathon on November 3rd 2012. I've decided I'm going to try the Hal Higdon training plan this time. To my surprise, my official training starts this week.... Wow only 18 weeks left ...

Here's my training plan! It's gonna be a fun 18 weeks!

Intermediate 1
WEEK	Date	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN
1	7/2/2010	Cross	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	Rest	5 m pace	8
2	7/9/2010	Cross	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	Rest	5 m run	9
3	7/16/2010	Cross	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	Rest	5 m pace	6
4	7/23/2010	Cross	3 m run	6 m run	3 m run	Rest	6 m pace	11
5	7/30/2010	Cross	3 m run	6 m run	3 m run	Rest	6 m run	12
6	8/6/2010	Cross	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	Rest	6 m pace	9
7	8/13/2010	Cross	4 m run	7 m run	4 m run	Rest	7 m pace	14
8	8/20/2010	Cross	4 m run	7 m run	4 m run	Rest	7 m run	15
9	8/27/2010	Cross	4 m run	5 m run	4 m run	Rest	Rest	Half Marathon
10	9/3/2010	Cross	4 m run	8 m run	4 m run	Rest	8 m pace	17
11	9/10/2010	Cross	5 m run	8 m run	5 m run	Rest	8 m run	18
12	9/17/2010	Cross	5 m run	5 m run	5 m run	Rest	8 m pace	13
13	9/24/2010	Cross	5 m run	8 m run	5 m run	Rest	5 m pace	20
14	10/1/2010	Cross	5 m run	5 m run	5 m run	Rest	8 m run	12
15	10/8/2010	Cross	5 m run	8 m run	5 m run	Rest	5 m pace	20
16	10/15/2010	Cross	5 m run	6 m run	5 m run	Rest	4 m pace	12
17	10/22/2010	Cross	4 m run	5 m run	4 m run	Rest	3 m run	8
18	10/29/2010	Cross	3 m run	4 m run	Rest	Rest	2 m run	Marathon

Nest Update 1/7/2012

2012-01-07T15:38:00.003-05:00

You read my First Impression post about the Nest, here's the day three update. Overall It's been pretty hands off so far.

Wednesday night, I set the thermostat for around 71 when we went to bed I set it for 67. Thursday morning, when I woke up, I set the thermostat for 70, and then a little later I set it for something like 72. On Thursday it was sunny so in the afternoon it got warm in my office, I turned the thermostat down around 12:30 pm.

To my surprise on Wed. night (I stayed up late) and it set itself down to 67 at the time I'd done so the night before. When I woke on Friday, the temp was already where I wanted it and it was good to go.

Nest is still in a "learning" status, but it's pretty much nailed my normal pattern so far. As you can see from the "https://home.nest.com/home" screenshot that it has built a basic schedule for us.

At this point I am still happy with Nest. I realized that you can actually create a schedule from the iOS App which is pretty cool. I also like that you can see the current and set temp from the App.

It will be interesting once it's collected enough data to calculate time to temp and energy savings information. Will also be interesting to see how the schedule changes over time.

Nest Learning Thermostat on a 1-5 scale?
Ease of Use: 5
Accuracy: 4
Support: N/A
iOS App: 4.8

First Impressions Really Are Everything!

2012-01-04T23:41:00.004-05:00

I know it sounds cliche, but it's true a first impression can make or break a relationship whether it's a person, a car or a thermostat. As you may know, tonight was my opportunity at a first impression with the Nest Learning Thermostat.

The packaging:

did I just open "Hal 9000"? It's a tad creepy, or maybe not. clearly the packaging is meant to support a pleasent first impression. They could have just thrown it in the box and wrapped it up, but they took the time plan your opening of the box, and how you'd see it. Is it looking at me?

Below the nest you'll find the baseplate and the tools to install. Yes, folks that's a nest screwdriver kit included in the package. The cool part about this is that litterally I didn't have to walk to my garage for any tools to install this, everything needed was included inside the convinient packaged product. This is genius if you ask me, who wants to fumble around for tools. Oh did I mention they also included 2 different back plates, in the event your old thermostat left a giant hole or was in a box? Yes, again they are thinking ahead, though I chose the Hal style mount directly to the wall.

Here's the base plate installed and wired up, oh yeah, notice the little bubble level? Another genius addon. No need to level it yourself just use the device. Brilliant!

It's really pretty simple to install, I mean it's like 4 or 5 wires depending on your HVAC setup.

So, you've seen the packaging the attention to detail and the physcial product. That's fine and dandy, but what if you need help or have a problem? How is the support from the company you may wonder...

You're in luck, I just happen to know! It turns out that I may have jumped in a little too fast and forgot to power down the HVAC system prior to disconnecting the old thermostat. I was sad when I plugged in the Nest and it didn't power up. I fumbled around for a bit and thought about testing a few things, then I decided to call Nest. I'm extremly happy that I did, not only because I got above exceptional customer support, but that I also get to share this with you.

I got connected to a guy named Craig at Nest Support, first off he was friendly and easy to communicate with. We ran through a couple tests with the connections, then he suggested that I power on the device via the mini-usb connection on the back. Essentially I just plugged it into my laptop to get it powering on, after that we connected the Nest back to the base and it told us what the problem was, well sorta. The device wasn't getting power from my HVAC. After a couple more tests; he even waited while I reconnected and tested the old thermostat, Craig stated that he was going to check with his next tier support team and run the situation by them.When he came back he had already approved a service call from a technician from my area. WHAT!? I was thinking oh man, what's this going to cost me... No, he said Nest would be paying for this.... After I regained myself from surprise of a company offering real technical support... I was like wow! Ok?

In the mean time, Craig mentioned that usually there is a fuse that gets blown on the board, which I immediately began looking for. Viola! there it was, a small 3 amp fuse, and yes it was blown. I said to Craig let me replace this before we send someone out, it'd be a shame to send out people and waste time for a silly fuse (which btw, was the result of my not turning off the power first)... I couldn't immediately find a fuse so I suggested to Craig that I hang up and work on this so as not to take his time. I'm convinced he would have waited but that would have been silly. I scavenged my tool box and finally found one. I installed it, and powered things on and BINGO, I was in business. The moral of the story is disconnect the power to the HVAC before you disconnect the old thermostat! For my friends in Support, I called him back to let him know I was up and running without any further problems.

So this time, we power up and get things going, excellent. I follow the onscreen display and setup the WiFi connection to the internet, when the Nest immediately checks for an update and installs it. I walk through the simple setup and away we go.

I'd previously downloaded the "Nest" iPhone app so I kicked that up to see what it looked like. As soon as I fired it up on the iPhone the app recognized that there was a Nest on my network and since I was already logged in on the app, it simply asked me on the base if I wanted to assign it to my account. How simple was that!

Next I set the temp and let the learning begin, I didn't leave it at 73 :)

iPhone App Screenshot:

So you're wondering how would I rate the Nest Learning Thermostat on a 1-5 scale?
Appearance and Presentation: 5
Installation: 4 (because the "flip power wasn't big RED letters" even though this was an error on my part)
Support: 5+ Amazing and knowledgeable Support Personnel. Saved me time and money.
Setup/Configuration: 5
iOS App: 4.5 (I'm probably being a bit hard here, it is after all just a thermostat) though the setup was very simple.

OVERALL: 4.7 out of 5

So there you have it, my first impression of the Nest Learning Thermostat . I'd have to say it's been pretty good so far... Let's see what the next week or so brings, I'll share some of the and other info presented from the device. I'm really curious to see how it plays out when it determines a schedule. Hopefully this review helps you a bit.

Gluten Free: Day 2

2011-12-14T19:58:00.001-05:00

Today was day 2 of my Gluten free lifestyle, so far it's not been to difficult though considering we just got grocery's there's plenty to eat and try. I'm not a very picky eater so that helps too.

Today's challenge was going out for breakfast. Every second Wednesday of the month I take the three school aged kids out for breakfast. It's our way of connecting and we all quite enjoy it. This morning's location was IHOP, where I'd read something about gluten free pancakes. I wasn't too surprised when I got there and they didn't have them. Normally I'd have something like biscuits and gravy or eggs and toast. This morning I went with 2 eggs, some sausage and bacon, hash browns and fruit. To my surprise, it wasn't nearly as difficult to find something that I wanted within the plan.

Today's lunch consisted of last night's chicken veggie soup. It's a really tasty recipie that wifey came up with from . Along with it was the gluten free bread from Pamelas's Products mix that she'd made yesterday too.

Supper, was tacos with turkey meat. Originally we were going to use a taco seasoning but it had wheat and flour in it. So wifey flavored the meat on her own and it turned out fantastic! I passed on the corn shells and went with a salad style, placing the meat on spinach leaves and adding cooked corn kernels and some taco sauce.

All in all so far this isn't a huge issue for me. Clearly the beer issue will be the biggest hurdle for me to overcome, though even this I think will prove not too daunting an effort.

I'm probably not going to blog every day, but I'll sure try to keep a consistent pattern to the updates. The next few weeks will be interesting to track my health and general well being. I'm going to try to the following rating scale to track my change. It's worth noting that I also started taking my one-a-day vitamin a few days ago, so there's likely to be an added benefit there too.

Vitamin: Yes
Guaifenesin: Yes 1AM - 1PM
Pseudoephedrine: No
Sinus Pressure (1-10): 4+
Weight: 193
Attitude and Mood (1-10): 7+

[ + = improving ]
[ - = declining ]

New link: Celiac.com

Gluten Free - the beginning

2011-12-13T12:50:00.000-05:00

Over the past several years, I've struggled with a lot of sinus infections. I've been poked, prodded, cut in efforts to find and resolve the ongoing issues I've had.

It seems that the majority of my problems revolve around the fact that I produce a larger than normal amount of mucus that tends to get clogged and infected in my face. In September of this year 2011, I had sinus surgery to help re-open and hopefully lessen the impact of my on going problems.

My allergy testing proved negative. My sinus surgery went fine, but does nothing to reduce the amount of mucus. I'm growing tired of feeling worn down and painful faced all the time.

Today we're starting a gluten-free diet. My hope is this will move me towards a more raw or natural diet. The end goal is a more healthy feeling body and mind.

I intend to document the process here, not just for you but for my own personal tracking of the progress, changes and outcomes.

-me-

Happy 13th Anniversary to my wife

2011-08-08T13:43:00.001-04:00

410,140,800 seconds ago the sun was hot, the humidity high and I was about to marry the girl of my dreams. I learned later that my dreams would never be as good as the reality that followed. Happy 13th Anniversary to my wonderful wifey Rachelle Eash.

It all started December 9th 1992 when a cute girl from the color guard finally said yes to being my girlfriend. I was a freshman and she a sophomore. It was a few weeks later ~December 28th, when I finally got that to kiss that shy gal while riding “The Haunted Mansion” at Disney's Magic Kingdom during the band trip to the Gator Bowl. This trip, our first together would not be our last.

The high school years that followed were filled with long nights on the telephone; waiting to see who'd hang up first, and chatting about when we'd see each other again. I fell asleep more than once while sitting cross-ways in that comfy chair talking late into the night. We knew pretty early on that we'd get married one day, we talked about what we wanted in life and how we'd grow old together. Then the inevitable happened Rachelle graduated and went to college at Ball State leaving me alone at home.

The distance didn't stifle our relationship, we wouldn't let it. We continued to talk on the phone, and send email. I would visit her often on the weekends, one time we even concocted a plan where she would call into the school for me, so I could leave early that Friday and head to see her... It mostly worked :)

A year later, I graduated and went to Manchester College. While closer, it was still about 1.5 hours between schools. Thinking back, I’m wondering how many miles we put on vehicles between 1996 and 1998... Must have been a lot! We traveled between Muncie and North Manchester so many times, we had the trip memorized. One little town “Bippus” was in between, and we always joked about how one day that would be a great name for our first dog.

In 1997 we decided it was time to revisit Orlando and the Magic Kingdom. Little did Rachelle know, she was being set up. Maybe she’d overlooked the timing, but she’d soon be reminded. She did decide to drive the last few hours, which put a wrinkle in my plan.. You see I’d changed the hotel we were going to stay on Disney property instead. Luckily for me, she was (still is) directionally challenged and followed my directions. It wasn’t till she pulled up to the gate of the resort that she realized we’d had a change of plans.

I’d been keeping a secret for months, and being this close made it so hard to continue. Little did she know, that I’d tucked a diamond ring in the bottom of my camera bag. I carried that thing around all day, at one point she was carrying it.

Finally it was the time I’d been waiting for as we approached The Haunted Mansion, it was show time. We rode the ride just like before, and I snuck in my kiss. :) Then afterward it was time to take a photo. I had her stay put as I shared my plan with an unsuspecting line attendant. I remember telling her, “just keep taking photos!“ I dropped to one knee and asked the love of my life to be my wife. I was only afterward, by the roar of applause and whistles, that we realized how many people were witness to this event, one that I’ll never forget.

The wedding planning started quickly, we had a lot to do and we did it mostly on our own. The date, August 8 1998. (8/8/98) one that I could easily remember. The time High Noon! With the help of family, friends, and strangers we made it all happen. The days leading up to the wedding was full of excitement. Rachelle and her girlfriends stayed up late decorating the reception hall, I was up early with my guys to set up the wedding site, and rain was in the forecast. I made the decision to go forward and we did.

410,140,800 seconds ago the sun was hot, the humidity high and I was about to marry the girl of my dreams. Nothing would stop us now, especially the heat of the day! It was an amazing feeling to know that the future we’d spent so many long nights talking about was about to begin. The love of my life was walking down the isle to be my bride. She was more beautiful than I could have ever imagined.

The wedding was a success, so many family and friends in attendance. On to the party! I could go on and on with details, as the day was certainly to remember. That night, exhausted from the planning and excitement … we slept!

The 13 years that have followed have been amazing, challenging, exciting, trying, rewarding, and loving. To say the least, marriage is not simple or for the faint of heart. We have been through many ups and downs. The good times and the bad, but in the end we’ve always come back to what is important. Our Love for one another.

We got or first cat "Bippus" in 1998, we bought our first home in Pendleton in 1999. On September 10th 2001 we found out that Rachelle was pregnant with twins. On April 19th 2002 Nolan and Jillian made their presence into the world. In July of 2003 we moved to our second home, August I started a new job and on September 5th 2003 Sullivan was born, and dealing with 3 hungry little mouths was not an easy task. Rachelle has always an amazing mother to our children, I’ve yet to figure out how she does it!

January 29th, 2007 brought our next little bundle of joy Brendan who came into the world smiling and hasn’t stopped yet. In 2008 we moved yet again. This move was followed by a new baby boy Adrian; born October 1st 2009.

Together, we’ve managed to continue to grow our family and our relationship. It’s funny when you look back and think about the dreams we shared so many years ago. We’ve achieved so many of them. I can say, that I know without a doubt, that these dreams would have not been possible had we not been such a team.

I don’t recall who to credit for it, but someone once called us “Team Eash”. It’s amazing how appropriate that name really is. One of the strongest features of our marriage is our teamwork. When we’re a team we are so strong. While our team is no longer growing in size, we’ll continue to grow in strength, trust and togetherness.

While we’ve enjoyed with all our hearts the family we’ve built today. There’s no better time than when the two of us get to enjoy each other alone. Some of the most precious times we’ve ever spent together have been while traveling and visiting those we love. We’ve seen tropical islands, desert resorts, Hollywood hills, and warm sandy beaches. The location changes, but the company is what makes it great. I can’t wait to see what life brings next. There’s few things I enjoy more than traveling with my wifey.

13 years later I love my wife more today than ever before. Without her I’d not be the man I am today. I know these things sound cliche, but when I look back I think about how different I’d be with without Rachelle in my life. She is my constant, my love and my life. I can’t wait to see what the next 13 have to bring!

Happy 13th Anniversary.

-matt-

Today's Quote:

2010-10-26T15:09:00.000-04:00

"Dwelling on the negative simply contributes to its power."
- Shirley MacLaine

M.Eash Photography is now on Facebook!

2010-09-02T22:29:00.002-04:00

http://www.facebook.com/M.EashPhotography

About the Artist

Matthew Eash grew up in Goshen, Indiana and attended Goshen High School where he met his wife Rachelle. They moved to Pendleton, Indiana in 1999 while attending college at Ball State University. Together they now have 5 children ages 8, 8, 6, 3 and 11mths. Matthew’s interest in photography started in college when he completed several creative and digital photography courses. Over the past 12 years he has worked with various genres of photography, including landscape, portrait and wedding photography.

Matthew created M.Eash Photography with the goal of sharing his art with others. Since its inception he has continued to grow his portfolio and along the way has captured some amazing photographs. While historically Matthew’s forte has been landscape photography his growing portfolio of portraiture has been well accepted.

Matthew is currently working with families, individuals and groups in the Pendleton and surrounding areas to save their moments in time. If you’re looking for someone to help you to capture your moment consider giving Matt a call.

Matt can be reached by internet, email or phone.

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/M.EashPhotography

::SCAM ALERT::

2010-08-16T14:47:00.003-04:00

If you receive an email like this from one of your contacts please ignore it as it's a scam to attempt to get your money... I've received this a few times now so I figured I'd go ahead and share it publicly to help prevent people from harm. Note that the letter is slightly different in some instances but follows this storyline:

I'm writing this with tears in my eyes,We came down here to England for a short vacation and i was mugged at gun point last night,at the park of the hotel where we lodged all cash,creditcards and cell were stolen off me, thank God we have our life and passport.

I've been to the embassy and the Police here but they're not helping issues at all,they asked us to wait for 3weeks but we can't wait till then. Our flight leaves in less than 3hrs from now and we are having problems settling the hotel bills.

The hotel manager won't let us leave until we settle the hotel bills.
we are freaked out at the moment

you can wire the money to me through westernunion all you need is Name
on my passport and location below.

Name: {Friend's Name}
Location:60 Hyde Park Gate - Kensington London sw7 5bb Kingdom
Amount: $2,250

I'll def refund your cash as soon as i get home.

A Curly Proboscis

2010-06-16T12:27:00.001-04:00

Caught this little guy enjoying our flowers...

Esau Wood saws wood

2010-06-08T22:26:00.004-04:00

All of the wood Esau saw, Esau sought to saw. And oh, the wood-saw with which Wood would saw wood. But one day Wood's wood-saw would saw no wood. Thus the wood, Wood would saw was not the wood Wood would saw if Wood's wood-saw would saw wood. So Esau sought a wood-saw that would saw wood. One day Esau saw a wood-saw saw wood as no other wood-saw would saw wood. And I never saw a wood-saw saw wood like the wood-saw Wood saw saw wood until I saw Esau Wood saw wood with the wood-saw that would saw wood. Now Wood, saws wood with a wood-saw that would saw wood.

My Grandma gave me a piece of paper with this little gem on it, I think my grandfather used to have this memorized...

-matt-

San Francisco

2010-06-06T10:34:00.005-04:00

Some of you know that I was in San Francisco last week for work. We spent a lot of time in a conference room making great progress. At the end of the day 1 day we got to go downtown San Francisco and eat on the pier. After that we got a chance to hang out a little bit in the downtown area. I really enjoyed the little time I had there to shoot photos and we had a great tour guide Suzanne :) .

Being in the Downtown gave me the chance to take some photos. I thought I'd share them with you.

Bay Bridge:

From San Francisco

The Boat Yard and the Golden:

From San Francisco

Alcatraz from the pier:

From San Francisco

Trolley Turnaround:

From San Francisco

Lombard Street:

From San Francisco

See More Photos Here

A red rose

2010-05-26T15:04:00.002-04:00

Playing around with some photos of my red rose

Add Google Calendars to your iPhone even if you use an MS exchange sync.

2010-03-21T15:24:00.005-04:00

Do you use MS Exchange to sync your email, contacts, and calendar to your iPhone? I do too, however I'm also a huge fan of Google's calendaring system as it's flexible and easy to share with my wife and others as needed.

Did you know that you can add your Google Calendar to your iPhone and have it show up on your iPhone calendar app. Simply start by

CalDAV: CalDAV Calendar Sync
Sync your Google Calendar with your iPhone or iPod Touch and always have your schedule at your fingertips.

Note: If you don't already use exchange you can also choose to use Google Sync to sync your Calendar and Contacts. Click for instructions. This is the better option (in my opinion) for iPhone owners not using MS Exchange.

Syncing via CalDAV is only available for devices with version 3.0 firmware or above. You can check your current version by going to Settings > General > About > Version on your iPhone or iPod Touch device.

To sync with your device, follow these steps:

1. Open the Settings application on your device's home screen.
2. Open Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
3. Select Add Account...
4. Select Other.
5. Select Add CalDAV Account.
6. Enter your account information:
* In the Server field, enter [ google.com ]
* In the Username field, enter your full Google Account email address.
* In the Password field, enter your Google Account password.
* In the Description field, enter the name you'd like to appear on the account.
7. Select Next at the top of your screen.

After you've completed setup, open the Calendar application and syncing will automatically begin.

By default only your primary calendar will be synced to your device. You can sync additional calendars by visiting one of the following pages from any browser (via desktop or mobile device):
Note: I found it easier to do from my iPhone, you will see a list of your calendars that are available for syncing. I added my wife's calendar as well as my primary calendar.

* For non-Google Apps users: https://www.google.com/calendar/iphoneselect
* For Google Apps users: https://www.google.com/calendar/hosted/YOUR DOMAIN NAME/iphoneselect

TIP: When you have multiple calendars on your iPhone each entry is color coded in the calendar view. To change the Color of the Google Calendar Items, just change the color of your calendar on the Google Calendar web site. Mine was red as was my MS Exchange account. I found that changing the color online updated the color on the phone. This made it very simple to determine which calendar the item was on.

Hopefully this page will help you, I know it would have helped me :)

- Matt's Mind -

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Nest Update 1/7/2012

First Impressions Really Are Everything!

Gluten Free: Day 2

Gluten Free - the beginning

Happy 13th Anniversary to my wife

Today's Quote:

M.Eash Photography is now on Facebook!

::SCAM ALERT::

A Curly Proboscis

Esau Wood saws wood

San Francisco

A red rose

Add Google Calendars to your iPhone even if you use an MS exchange sync.