In the Outbox...

Believe

2009-09-09T19:33:00.006-04:00

I hope today is an indication that things are starting to really look up. The last year has been really tough, primarily due to some health problems that have proven to be quite difficult to diagnose and treat effectively. My blogging scarcity has been a side effect.

Over the past couple of months, I have seen glimpses that real improvement was possible, if not probable. I am grateful for my small, trusted circle of support that has stuck by me and helped me to not give up, even when I had convinced myself there was no hope.

Today at work was one of the best days I've had in quite a while. I proved to myself—my worst critic, although it seems there have been others vying for that title lately—that I still "got" it. I am still capable of performing to a level approaching my expectations (at least within sight of that).

To celebrate, I am watching the 2009 US Open on ESPN2. I was inspired the other day when I saw a bit of the match where Melanie Oudin played beyond her years against the highly favored Nadia Petrova. Enscribed on her shoes is "Believe." Tonight her coach and others in her entourage are wearing black shirts with "Believe" written across the front in bold yellow. Although she has just lost the first set, that has not proven to be too much of an obstacle for her thus far.

Even if she does not win tonight's match, she has every reason to "believe" she is well on her way to a successful tennis career. She's only 17, and as she gets stronger (and improves her serve), she will also gain valuable experience that will give her even more confidence.

I hope Ms. Oudin will allow me to also adopt that simple mantra: Believe.

CRASH!

2009-04-28T14:46:00.003-04:00

PC goes down hard w/out even a "friendly" BSOD. Just frozen w/ hourglass, windows as-is. Ctrl+Alt+Del does nada. Time for a hard power-down...

Llama

2009-04-28T14:46:00.001-04:00

Is he posing? Or, is he getting ready to spit in my face?

Leaman Place Covered Bridge - Intercourse, PA

2009-04-28T14:44:00.001-04:00

Small covered bridge along Township Rd. 684 (Belmont Rd.), south of Old Philadelphia Pike (Rt. 340).

Horse & Buggy

2009-04-28T07:53:00.001-04:00

A traditional Amish horse & buggy cruising down a busy street in Intercourse, PA (about 10 miles east of Lancaster, PA).

Weather.com forecast for this weekend in NJ!

2009-04-23T09:02:00.001-04:00

Upper 80's starting on Saturday, and nearly 90 on Sunday! (Screenshot of the Weather Watcher app on my new Samsung Omnia phone from Verizon Wireless.)

Making it fresh today

2009-04-22T07:24:00.001-04:00

Brewing fresh Dunkin' Roasted Coffee (Original Blend, whole bean). Now I need to get the oatmeal going...

Hong Kong from Victoria Peak

2009-04-03T14:52:00.001-04:00

On tour of Hong Kong Island, October 4, 2008. This was the one day for sight seeing during my 2-week business trip (September 29 - October 11, 2008).

XL Dunkin French Vanilla

2009-04-03T14:27:00.001-04:00

Today's caffeine vehicle of choice.

Two and half down, one to go!

2008-09-15T08:33:00.002-04:00

Saturday didn't start out as a great day. A storm moved through on Friday, which may have contributed to the way I was feeling. I really needed to spend some time on the floor, though, as September is fast slipping away, and it looks like I'll be traveling for a week or so this month, further limiting my time.

Finally by about 11 a.m. on Saturday, I was able to get started on the floor in Lourdes' office. She's been patiently waiting but dropping many hints and words of encouragement. I have really been wanting to do her office, but the hallway took longer than anticipated. Actually, I still have 2 pieces of trim to do at the top of the stairs, but I'm not sure I'm going to use the FasTrim pieces I bought. I want to think about this a little more.

I had watched a few laminate flooring installation videos on YouTube the week before, and realized that using a "pull bar" in certain places might be helpful. I had been using a crow bar and some scrap pieces, but the videos made it look so easy with the pull bar. A friend had offered to lend me his, so I took him up on the offer. I chipped the first piece I went to install around the doorway with the pull bar, though. Ah, lesson learned: Use scrap pieces on the edge (if the scrap chips, it doesn't matter).

Once I got through the doorway and into the main part of the room, it was smooth sailing. In a matter of a few hours, we were over half-way done. It was decision time. Do we forge ahead into the evening and try to finish tonight? Or, do we call it good here and finish tomorrow? I was feeling pretty good, and it was going very well, so we decided to press on!

It took just a couple of more hours to complete the room, including a brief break for some Canadian bacon, scrambled eggs and toast for dinner. I was amazed, and quite pleased actually, at how square it turned out. I try to measure and cut carefully, but it seems impossible to end a job perfectly square. Well, this one turned out as close to perfect as any for me. It's even all along the walls. I won't even have to put quarter round along the baseboard, although I probably will just to add a traditional finish.

With the master bedroom, Loudres' office and the hallway (almost) complete, that just leaves my office yet to be done. I may not get to it for a couple of weeks, but I don't want to lose all my momentum. If I don't have to travel to Asia on business next week, I may get it done this coming weekend. If not, it will have to wait until early October. We're getting close, I can feel it!

(Check out more pictures of the progress on Flickr.)

A real Labor Day

2008-09-01T18:05:00.000-04:00

The plan was to get the floor done in the hallway this morning, then get started on my wife's office. So go the plans of mice and men. Mice would probably get this done quicker. Admittedly, I'm not rushing because I want it done right; I don't want to stare at mistakes or be tormented that I could have done a better job had I been more careful or taken a little more time.

Today, though, seemed to go a little extra slowly. The pieces didn't want to lock tightly without some strong "encouragement"--several whacks, firm but not too hard, with a mallet. As I would get one piece tight, a little gap would appear somewhere up the line. Back and forth, until the gentle beatings finally won over. I'm blaming that on the humidity.

At 6PM tonight, I finally had to give up as I tried to get the second piece in the last row to fit snugly. I'm afraid any more encouragement could break it. It has a notch cut out to go around the right side of one door jam and the left side of another with a short wall in between. My cut is pretty good, and I don't want to have to redo that, so I'm going to let it rest. I'll give it a go later this evening or early in the morning, hoping the humidity will be down.

My wife's office will have to wait, unfortunately. This week, I have already set aside Wednesday and Thursday evenings to work on the floor, so I should finish up the hallway and get a good jump on her office before the weekend. I have no other plans this weekend but working on the floor, which should allow me time to finish her office.

I can feel the muscles beginning to ache a little already from today's labor. Maybe an Epson Salt bath would be a good way to unwind for the day and possibly head off more aches and pains tomorrow. And a good night of sleep.

Slow and steady... well, at least slow...

2008-08-21T12:29:00.001-04:00

Most of July was lost on the big flooring project. I started to have abdominal pains, many days quite severe, that I just couldn't shake. My wife believes it was just my "nervous stomach" acting up over the anxiety of doing the floor. OK, that probably didn't help, but it certainly was not the only--and probably not the biggest--factor.

A couple of weeks ago, though, I finally started to make headway on the floor. I started in our master bedroom, as planned, finishing about 75% of the nearly 200 sq. ft. on a Saturday afternoon. Taking a couple of hours here and there, I installed the final piece in the MBR this past Sunday. As is typical for most projects, the final 4 pieces took about as long as the rest of the floor! Each one required tedious cuts along the wall and around door jams. I took my time trying to get it right, and I am very pleased with the results. (If you've ever installed flooring, especially interlocking laminate wood, you'll know why this wasn't so easy!)

Next is the hallway as I cross over to the smaller bedrooms. I want to install it without thresholds at the doorway, to give it a nice flow throughout all the rooms. This makes it a little trickier, but I think it will look very nice and be worth the effort.

I won't have much time to work on the floor this weekend because we will be attending the "Guided by God's Spirit" District Convention of Jehovah's Witnesses in Jersey City, NJ. We've been eagerly anticipating this event all year, so we are really looking forward to spending the three days being spiritually strengthened.

Now that I'm back to taking Nexium to help with the abdominal pain, I should make steadier progress on the floor. My wife is so anxious that yesterday she started moving furniture out of her office and into mine (the temporary storage room for this project)! I'll get in there as soon as the hallway is done. She endured sleeping on the mattress on the floor in the MBR for a few weeks, so I don't want to test her patience too much on finishing her office. If I do, she's likely to pack her bags and head back to the villa in Orlando until I finally finish. Uhm, I shouldn't give her any ideas, though, because I need her help!

Ambitious home improvement project

2008-07-06T16:49:00.000-04:00

We have just embarked on our most ambitious home improvement project yet. As I've tweeted about, we are now the proud owners of over 750 square feet of laminate flooring. This is to replace the carpet in our 3 bedrooms upstairs.

We selected the DuPont Real Touch® Elite Cherry Block laminate flooring product. (The picture here is from the DuPont Web site. I haven't actually installed it yet...) It is supposed to be of better quality than most other laminate options at Home Depot, and it carries a 30-year warranty.

So, after a good breakfast at a local diner, I spent my day off on Friday, July 4, 2008, ripping out carpet in my house. I had hoped to start to lay down some of the laminate flooring, but it turned out to be a bit more work just getting the carpet up than I anticipated.

In particular, the stairs were a nightmare. I have never installed carpet on stairs, so I didn't stop to think that it would be attached with hundreds upon hundreds of staples. Makes sense, but I just didn't think about it beforehand. My wife, bless her soul, spent a few hours yesterday painstakingly pulling out all of the staples.

The hallway and the master bedroom were a breeze by comparison. We actually were able to get the carpet out of the master bedroom without removing all of the furniture. It just took a little strategic shuffling. Of course, the furniture has to come out before I can put down the new floor, but we don't have another place for it, yet.

I need to clear out my office to make room for the furniture from the master bedroom. I have started that process, which is also taking more time than I counted on. I have set up a temporary office in our living room on a little cart. I figure this should be just inconvenient enough to encourage me to make rapid progress with the floor upstairs. I will have to mostly use evenings and weekends, but I hope to get the majority done by the end of the month (July).

This will be my first time installing laminate flooring. I've done a lot of ceramic tile, and I've been told laminate is easier, so I figure I shouldn't have too much difficulty. Time will be the big thing. As long as my wife continues to help me, and is patient with me, I'll get it done as quickly as possible.

One thing about the stairs. We've decided not to put laminate on them as originally planned. This will save some material, including the expensive trim pieces, but may also save time. The steps are a nice solid wood (probably fir), and should look nice if we finish them appropriately. If anyone has any suggestions, we'd love to hear them!

I'll blog periodically throughout this adventure, so stay tuned for more. Also, I'll be uploading pictures of the progress on Flickr.

First ride (in a long time...)

2008-06-25T07:24:00.000-04:00

I finally did it. I've been thinking about taking my bike out for a ride for a long time, and this morning I finally did. I was inspired by Barb Mathers, a manager at work who I've been following on Twitter. She often tweets about her rides, so I finally made up my mind yesterday to just get it down off the hangers, pump up the tires and take it out for a spin.

The first ride was nothing spectacular. It was only about 5 miles along relatively flat streets in my neighborhood.

View Larger Map

(Although the map has my starting address as 74 Melanie Lane, I really started at 14. All the on-line mapping services have the numbering way off on my little street. So what they have as 74 is really near where 14 would be. There is no 74, and, actually, none higher than 18.)

Of course Barb does it right and does real mountain biking. I'll have to find some trails in my vicinity to ride. The only ones I know of are off-limits to bikes, they are for hiking. But, as I said to Barb yesterday, I need to get my training wheels off first before I get too adventurous. Today's ride was a good start.

I have to admit, I really felt a burn, especially on the little inclines I encountered. Much more so than when I ride my stationary bike, which I have done recently for as many as 12 miles. Not the same, though. The stationary bike has the arms that move as you pedal, but I feel the work out from today's ride all over, including my arms.

I've known I've needed to get more exercise lately. I haven't been sleeping well, and I'm starting to feel tired more. Of course, the 3.5-mile walk I took last Wednesday evening does not count. Normally when I walk on my treadmill, I go about 1.5 miles per session. So, why did I walk so far? Don't ask, it's a really stoopid answer, especially since it wasn't on my treadmill! Suffice it to say that I was not in a good mood and I decided to walk home instead of ride in the car with my wife. Dumb. At least it gave me time to cool off. Next time, though, I'll probably just take some deep breaths and count to 20. Oy vey.

I do need to get back into the routine of exercising regularly 3-4 times a week, though. I've really slacked off for the past few months because I've not felt too well. I know ... am I not feeling well because I'm not exercising, or am I not exercising because I'm not feeling well? A little of both, I suppose, but I know forcing myself to exercise will ultimately help.

So today was a good start. It felt great to get out and ride the bike. Now I just need to keep up the motivation to do it again ... and again and again. My goal is to ride the nearly 20 miles up to Merrill Creek Reservoir and back by the end of the summer.

Hello, I'm an idiot...

2008-05-19T12:02:00.001-04:00

Well, at least I feel like one. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I was unable to connect my camcorder to my new PC using the USB interface because of an incompatibility with Vista. This morning I picked up a FireWire cable, and Shazam! It worked! (I still want a Mac, though.) I also picked up an HDMI-to-DVI cable so the connection from the computer to the monitor is now digital. I can't wait to start editing all the video.

Maybe I'll have time this evening. I planned on mowing my overgrown lawn (it's been a very rainy May in New Jersey, so the grass is very green and, after 2 weeks away, very long). However, it just started to rain again. It won't be good to mow with it as long as it is while it's wet. I may have to wait another couple of days, as the forecast calls for rain at least today and tomorrow.

Of course, tonight is the season finales of Bones and House. I don't watch Bones much, but I have seen the past couple of weeks, and after watching last week's episode, I have to see the outcome tonight. I can't wait to see House and learn why he was on the bus with Amber! I hope Amber makes it, even if House has to risk his life to save her.

I just started to watch House sometime during this season, and now I'm really hooked. After a few episodes, it finally hit me why I like it so much: Dr. Gregory House reminds me of one of a great friend that I worked with years ago. Nathan was an incredibly intelligent person, probably one of the smartest I've ever met, and a tremendous problem solver. Yet, his social skills, or lack of them, often made his relationships difficult. You had to have the utmost respect for him because of his intelligence, knowledge and skill, yet it was often frustrating to deal with him.

In Nathan's world, I was Dr. James Wilson: The trusty sidekick friend who stuck by and defended him. I learned a lot from Nathan, and will always treasure the close friendship I had with him. We've lost touch over the years, but I've been wanting to try to reconnect for a while. I've checked through places like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Plaxo, but have yet to find him. I recently reconnected with a mutual friend, Nigel, so maybe he can help me.

Well, the rain has stopped, so if it doesn't start up again, maybe I'll get the lawn mowed this evening after all.

Hello, I'm a PC...

2008-05-18T17:42:00.000-04:00

So, we have returned home from our vacation. Of course, the actual vacation ended on Thursday when we flew from Orlando back to NYC, but we've been at my mother-in-law's in NY for the past few days before actually arriving home this afternoon.

The first thing I did was get out the camcorder so I could start to edit some of the several hours of video I recorded in Florida. I've really been looking forward to doing this since we recently purchased a powerful new computer that should be excellent for video editing. I plugged in my Panasonic miniDV camcorder via a USB cable, but was rudely presented with a message telling me that it is not compatible with Vista!

Naturally I thought I should be able to download updated drivers from the Panasonic support site. After thoroughly searching, though, I found nothing. I even Google'd for Vista drivers, but came up empty. So, I fired off an e-mail to Panasonic support, and we'll see what they have to say. I hope they don't tell me I need to buy a new camcorder!

I guess I should have bought a Mac. We purchased this PC for working with multimedia, so we should have considered a Mac more. My wife saw it on QVC, and it came with a 22" widescreen monitor and HDTV tuner, so she figured it would double nicely as a TV in her office. It did record all the shows she programmed while we were on vacation, but I'll be very disappointed if I have to resort to my old XP computer to do video editing.

I mean, this computer has an AMD Phenom(tm) 64-bit triple-core 2.10 GHz processor and integrated ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics, so it should handle video editing very well. The 300GB hard drive will be plenty for my videos, too. It came with just 2GB of RAM, but it's upgradable to 8GB, which I'll do little by little.

My camcorder has an S-Video out, which I could then plug into the computer, but I'm not sure that wouldn't work well to capture video. I'm sure I could view it, but probably not capture it, at least not easily, and it wouldn't be digital-to-digital then, either.

While I wait to hear back from Panasonic, I will probably dabble with the video on my XP machine. Then, if I can get the camcorder connected to this new computer, I'll really see the difference.

...Steven

Vacationlog 2008.05.13: Spectacular!

2008-05-13T21:12:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was absolutely the pinnacle of our vacation. Of course, when we made the reservations for Discovery Cove shortly after making arrangements for this trip, we highly anticipated the day. Without question, though, it surpassed our wildest imaginations!

A first take, the admission price seems very expensive. When you take into consideration all that you get, however, it is relatively reasonable—and worth every single penny. It's "all inclusive," which includes all meals, drinks, and snacks for the entire day (the park is open from 9 AM to 5:30 PM). They had a basic continental breakfast, but the in-park restaurant has several delectable choices for lunch, and is clearly not your typical "themepark" eatery. There are several snack huts strategically placed around the park, making it easy to stay hydrated and well-fed. Oh, and being owned by Anheuser-Busch, they have several beer selections available for your enjoyment, too.

Not that food is the big draw, of course. Really, you are pampered all day. After checking in, you are issued a wetsuit or vest (your choice) and a mask and snorkel. The snorkel is yours to keep. They have individual showers with body soap, shampoo and conditioner provided. Next to the showers is a locker pavilion with good-sized keyed lockers where you can store your change of clothes and other valuables.

Discovery Cove is the ultimate water park. Aside from the Dolphin Lagoon where you have your Dolphin Swim experience (more on that momentarily), there is a large Resort Pool surrounded by white, sandy beaches. This pool has a cave leading to the wonderful Tropical River, which circles around the aviary and coral reef with fluctuating currents and various depths. It was very relaxing to snorkel along this river.

Across the beach from the Resort Pool are two smaller pools. One is very shallow and is home to approximately 35 sting rays. (None of these sting rays have their stinger, so they are perfectly safe.) You can walk around this pool and touch the sting rays as they swim by. They feel almost slimy and very smooth. With the mask and snorkel, it was fascinating to watch them swim around.

Next to the sting ray pool is the coral reef with hundreds of tropical fish and a few large sting rays. This pool goes up to about 12 feet deep in places, so you can swim around more and really enjoy observing the fish in a semi-natural reef environment. I imagine it's not the same as actually snorkeling off an island, for example, but it has to be the next best thing.

Certainly, the highlight is the interaction with the dolphins. When you check in, you are assigned a time for your interaction, which lasts about 30 minutes. After signing a waiver, a trainer tells you about the dolphins, what to expect and some safety tips. You watch a short video presentation prior to going into the Dolphin Lagoon with two trainers.

Dolphins are very social animals, and they often will have close relationships with other dolphins in their pod. The dolphin we began our interaction with was named Yoko. She is about 8.5 feet long and weighs a little over 500 lbs, about average for a dolphin. She has a half-sister (same father) also in the pod, named Rose. The trainers said that Rose and Yoko are inseparable, and Rose might come over, too. She didn't while we were there, but later while I was video tapping another group's interaction, this is exactly what happened.

We also learned that they can be moody, and will sometimes refuse to do what the trainer asks of them. Yoko was very good to us, even letting each of the eight in our group give her a kiss. However, when it came time for her to give us a ride, she apparently decided that a few of us where too big.

No problem, we just swapped with another group who had been interacting with Dixie, who the trainers characterized as the "dominate female" of the pod. She is over 9 feet long and about 610 lbs., so she is quite a bit bigger than Yoko and wasn't concerned about giving any of us rides. We swam out to deeper water (about 15 feet deep) with one of the trainers. Dixie took turns giving each of us a ride towards the shore and the other trainer. With your left hand on the dorsal fin and the right on a side fin, you just let this wonderful animal pull you effortlessly through the water. What a tremendous experience!

Naturally, anything else we do this vacation will pale in comparison. With your admission to Discovery Cove, you also get to choose a complementary 7-day pass to either Sea World, Aquatica (Sea World's waterpark), or Busch Gardens (in Tampa Bay) to use in conjunction with your visit to Discovery Cove. We chose Sea World, which we visited today and will return to tomorrow.

We've been to Orlando many, many times, but for some reason we have never gone to Sea World. Still being a little tired from yesterday, we opted to take our time. We had lunch at the Sharks Underwater Grill. Our table was right next to the shark tank, providing quite the dining experience. There was no shark on the menu, but Lourdes had crab cakes, and I had grilled salmon.

Not to miss, of course, is the "Believe" Shamu show. Killer whales, which are in the dolphin family, are amazing animals. They are so big, yet they are so majestic and playful. Look for pictures from this show (and the rest of our days at Sea World) on Flickr in the next couple of days. I will also try to get a some video clips up there soon.

Vactionlog 2008.05.10: Feeling better

2008-05-10T21:00:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm back. As I last blogged, I was coming down with a cold, and Thursday it hit pretty hard. We didn't end up doing much, except sleeping in and lounging around. By Friday, I was feeling a lot better, so we spent the day at the Universal Studios themepark.

On Thursday, we had lunch at Havana's Cuban Cafe (8544 Palm Pkwy, Orlando, FL 32836). It was a little warm in the restaurant, but after moving to a seat towards the back, it was bearable. The food was very good, but not better than Bongos Cuban Cafe at Downtown Disney. We had hoped it would be a good, less-expensive, alternative to Bongos. The location and atmosphere at Bongos makes it worth the few dollars more.

Friday started out at one of our favorite places for breakfast, Cracker Barrel. Lourdes had pecan pancakes, which is her usual. I was also in the mood for pancakes, so I opted for them over my usual Uncle Hershel's breakfast, which includes eggs, grits and sausage & biscuits.

Then we were off to Universal for a day of fun. We started out on the Shrek 4-D attraction, which is one of the first as you enter the park. Later, we had a great time fighting aliens at the Men In Black Alien Attack ride. The disparity in our scores was a clear indication of which one of us grew up playing video games!

At the Disaster attraction, Lourdes was selected to play the "Gardening Granny" in the Muther Nature disaster film! It was a lot of fun, and seeing her go "POOF!" at the end of the trailer was just too funny. I captured the trailer with our video camera, so I'll have to try to upload at least the end of the it to Flickr or YouTube...

The best, we both agreed, was Revenge of the Mummy—The Ride. We had a backpack, and the ride does not allow any loose bags. The same was true for the MIB ride, so we didn't think too much about it. I stayed with the bags while Lourdes went first. She didn't happen to notice the many signs leading up to the ride that state: "This is a high-speed roller coaster." So, she was in for quite a surprise. Of course, she warned me before my turn, but they aren't kidding! The ride is short, but it is very fast at times. Like most of the attractions at Universal, it is inside, so it's not like a regular roller coaster. It's more like Space Mountain, with an occasional interruption by an angry mummy.

Check out some of the pictures from the day at Flickr.

Today, Saturday, was another day to recuperate. We started out at the photo shoot for the complimentary 5X7 picture here at the resort. The photographer, Stephanie, was very good, but we just don't look good enough to splurge on more pictures. Last year we did get a couple of extra prints, but this year we decided we'd just go with the one 5x7.

It was close to 100° F today, so we opted for an indoor activity. We went to the AMC Theater at Downtown Disney and saw What Happens in Vegas with Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher. It is a little "out there," but we liked it. Plenty of laughs. Very typical and predictable, but worth the matinee admission (only $6 here, compared to $10 regular price).

Right across from the theater is Bongos, so we had to stop there for a late lunch. I had Ropa Vieja, which is a delicious shredded beef in a tomato sauce. Lourdes had Chino Cubano Arroz Frito Especial (Cuban Chinese Fried Rice Special, with pork, chicken and shrimp). She commented that she has had better Chino Cubano in Miami.

Tonight we had a video call with my mother-in-law. We got to see our three doggies who are staying with her. Of course, they don't quite get the whole video call thing, but that's OK, I'm sure we miss them more than they miss us.

I'm not sure what's on tap for tomorrow. Maybe we'll head back to Universal. The big swim with the dolphins is coming up on Monday, so whatever we do, we don't want to over do it.

Vacationlog 2008.05.07: Sniff, cough, hack, ugh

2008-05-07T20:22:00.000-04:00

There are few things worse than being sick while on vacation, but I'm going to try to not let it spoil this long-awaited—not to mention, much-needed—vacation. I started to feel the beginnings of a head cold a few days before we left, but today I woke up with all the symptoms raging. So far, the medicine I picked up at Walgreens hasn't helped much. My wife has threatened to make her ginger root and red onion tea if I'm not better by tomorrow. We'll see.

Still, we had a great day. We intended to go to Universal Studios, but we ended up in Islands of Adventure. Mostly, we walked around the comic-centric stores. The Spider-Man ride was quite a thrill. Of course, the cold medicine may have given it a bit more kick than normal...

We spent the late afternoon and early evening at the Universal CityWalk. Not that I was disappointed, but it's not quite up-to-par with Downtown Disney. There were enough shops and restaurants to keep us occupied for the afternoon, though.

We were ready for dinner early, around 4 PM, after having had a light lunch. However, the restaurants didn't open for dinner until 5 PM. So, we spent a little while trying not to get cranky, and wait for the Latin Quarter to open. "It was worth the wait," my wife remarked as she polished off her steak fajitas. I wholeheartedly agreed. Their Tres Leches dessert was a great finish.

The plan for tomorrow is to stay around the resort and enjoy the pools. We'll rejuvenate, then hit Universal Studios on Friday.

Look for more pictures soon at my Flickr site.

Vacationlog 2008.05.06: Relaxing Start

2008-05-06T21:00:00.000-04:00

It's been months since I woke up after 9 AM. Of course, today was the first full day of vacation, so I took advantage and slept in. I programmed the coffee maker for 7 AM, but fortunately it was still hot a couple of hours later.

My wife, Lourdes, and I arrived in Florida yesterday afternoon. Last year, we became owners in the Hilton Grand Vacations Club, and we have returned to our home resort, International Drive - Orlando. We will be here until next Thursday, May 15, 2008. I plan to blog about our vacation , and I'll probably post a few pictures.

What do we have planned? Well, this year, we will be fulfilling a life-long dream of Lourdes': Swimming with the dolphins! Yes, next Monday, we have reservations at Discovery Cove. We also have tickets for Sea World and Universal Studios. We have never been to Sea World, and it's been over 14 years since we last went to Universal. Sorry Disney, not this time.

The balcony overlooking the lake served as a fitting setting for a leisure breakfast today. With temperatures in the 80's, I soon retreated back into the air conditioned condo. It will probably take me a few more days to grow accustomed to the Florida heat.

Hopefully I sleep better tonight. Last night I had a hard time relaxing, so I tossed and turned a lot. I'm more in "vacation-mode" after a relaxing day, and I expect a more restful slumber tonight. I'll probably program the coffeemaker for 7 AM again, but I won't rush out of bed again. We are going to Universal tomorrow, so it should be a lot of fun.

Stay tuned for more!

First offering

2005-12-13T07:22:00.000-05:00

Why did I start a blog? I'm not the type to do it just because everyone else seems to be. I don't even expect anyone to read this, especially not with any regularity. I complain about not having time to do all the things I need to do (nevermind doing things I want to do), so this seems to be adding just one more non-essential time wasting activity to an already overloaded schedule.

Then again, I find writing to be relaxing and a good way to de-stress. A way to get off my chest things that are on my mind in a healthy way. So my blog will be a vehicle for me to release stress. I have no plans for a particular topic, or even a range of topics. Here you are likely to find musings of any sort in a very informal manner. We'll see how regular I am after the first few weeks...