Mid Life Crunches

Oh the Noise, Noise, Noise, Noise!

2016-04-23T10:30:00.001-04:00

I had to quote the Grinch. My neighbors play their boom box from the side of their house that is not adjacent to me, but I can still hear it. Annoying.

New Chapter

2015-12-30T17:32:00.001-05:00

I received and accepted a job offer today. Woo Hoo! They want me to start on 1/18/2016. When I was parked in my Mother's driveway over Christmas, one of her neighbors placed a bag of orange on my driver side mirror. I called my Mother to let her know about the job offer, and she said the oranges were good luck. I guess she was right. Happy New Year to everyone!

Rejection

2015-12-15T12:45:00.003-05:00

No, I am not talking about being turned down for a date. I am talking about being rejected for a job. If you apply for a job these days, they will only contact you if they want to interview you or offer a job. If they have no interest in you, or you were rejected, it is easier for the prospective employer not to contact you at all. It makes sense, why waste time and money contacting job applicants who have been rejected. It is cold, and impersonal, but that is how it works now.

Done - 27 Years

2015-09-04T16:40:00.002-04:00

I found out two weeks ago that my company had decided to terminate my employment. My company's CEO made a general lay off announcement in the beginning of August, stating that affected employees would be notified the end of August/early September. Today was my last day of work after 27 years. Before I left, I shook the hand of one of the most tenured employees. Then I decided that I wanted a hug. I got emotional, not fully blown crying, but I was teary eyed. I am not sure where my former company is headed, they are trying to re-invent themselves. They are not doing good, so this may be the best for me.

Loud Neighbors

2015-08-15T19:09:00.002-04:00

How loud is loud? My neighbors like to sit out on their deck and play a boom box. If I have my windows closed and I am inside my house sitting on the side of the house adjacent to their property, I can hear the boom box. It is annoying. Luckily, my bedroom is on the other side of the house, and they seem to shut it down after 11:00PM.

Toe Cramps

2015-02-08T18:44:00.001-05:00

Last Wednesday evening, the toes in both my feet cramped. First my right foot, then about one hour later, my left foot. It was one of the most painful experiences I have had. Today, the balls of my feet are sore. Maybe it's time to get new shoes?

Bumps and Bruises

2015-01-19T22:15:00.001-05:00

My bumps and bruises for 2015 are carry overs from 2014. My car hit a deer in early November 2014, and I think it may have aggravated some previous conditions. Yesterday was the first time I have done any resistance training since the deer accident. My left wrist was noticeably sore on the pinky side of my hand immediately after I was finished with my work out. I was using light weights and exercises for my back (lat pull downs, close grip pull downs). I also did preacher curls with an EZ Bar and curl bench. My right wrist was only slightly sore. On my right wrist, my golfer's elbow (tendonitis) was aggravated by the car/deer accident. Some other previous injuries include left biceps and left shoulder. Happy New Year!

Obviously

2015-01-10T18:32:00.002-05:00

Is it my imagination, or do all Pittsburgh area sports reporters use the word "obviously" way too much? Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is known for his excessive use of the word "obviously" during interviews, press conferences, etc. "Obviously" has obviously infected the vocabulary of Pittsburgh sports reporters. I listen to all the major Pittsburgh sports media, including 93.7 the fan, ESPN 970, and Trib Live Radio/Sportstalk. It's not my imagination, obviously.

Random Reps - 07/16/2014

2014-07-16T01:35:00.001-04:00

1. Does anyone blog anymore or do they use Twitter and/or Facebook instead?
2. Sowed Dwarf Grey Sugar and Oregon II Pea Pods today.
3. WWWYKI
4. To buy a uke or not, maybe I will treat myself on my birthday.

First Injury 2014

2014-01-21T22:47:00.000-05:00

I had my first injury of 2014. As usual, it was a self inflicted injury. It happened the morning of 1/8/2014, the day after the "polar vortex". I was dropping off some mail at my local post office. The car window was frozen, so I had to open the door. I was wearing a new pair of gloves, and I dropped the mail on the ground. As I went to pick up the mail, my foot was not on the brake, so the car drifted. I had the grab the gear shift to change it from Drive to Park, and that's when I tweaked my right wrist. It is a same wrist that I injured a few years ago. I have been stretching it, but it is not completely better yet. I have found that most of my self inflicted injuries usually happen after I had a layoff or extended break from working out. It's tough getting old. The joints aren't as flexible as they used to be.

2013-03-11T21:26:00.000-04:00

I have not completely disappeared. Just a quick update. I have had some minor health issues the last three weeks. I am currently recovered from a cold - congestion, etc. The weekend before, I pulled a muscle on the left side of my neck. Two weekends before, I had a cramp in my right calf muscle. I limped around the house for about two days. I hate getting old.

Angels

2012-12-17T22:11:00.001-05:00

New Distraction

2012-12-08T01:59:00.000-05:00

Here is my new distraction, a harmonica. I decided on a harmonica, because I wanted to learn how to play a musical instrument. Why? It's something I have never learned before and a different type of learning experience. Most of my learning is cerebral, not artistic, and that is the challenge I wanted to have. In elementary school, I remember taking an aptitude test for music because the school wanted to look for future band students. I did not make the cut.

I initially thought about learning the guitar, then I realized the cost and the amount of space it would take up. My next option was the harmonica. I searched Google to make sure there were resources available online for learning the harmonica, and yeah there are plenty.

My next decision was what harmonica should I buy. I did my research and decided on the Suzuki Folkmaster. I read that a beginner should pay around $30.00 for a good harmonica because it is harder to learn on cheaper ones. I also read don't spend less than $10.00. I decided to spend between those two prices, so the $15.00 Suzuki Folkmaster was my choice. Beginners can "blow out" a reed, so I decided to go with a cheaper model. Plus, if I lose interest or totally suck, $15.00 is not that much money.

I have been practicing for about two weeks now and yes I am still a beginner. I can play "Row Row Your Boat" once. The harmonica is a "blind" instrument. You cannot see what you are doing. You have to rely on sound, feel, and muscle memory. The harmonica is sometimes called a blues harp, or just harp. I will keep harp'n away and see what happens.

My Olympic Crush - Jessica Ennis

2012-08-11T23:10:00.002-04:00

My Olympic crush for the 2012 London Olympics is Jessica Ennis, Gold Medalist in the Women's' Heptathlon. Why? She is cute, athletic (obviously), and from what I have read, a good person. I ran track in high school, so you could say I have an appreciation for track athletes. Here are a couple of links about Jessica Ennis:

Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jessica_Ennis

Jessica Ennis Official Website
http://jessicaennis.net/

An Article About How Jessica Trains
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2186973/London-2012-The-team-Jessica-Ennis-reveal-helped-build-Olympic-champions-gold-medal-body.html

Congratulations Jessica!

Yves Saint Laurent Live Jazz Review

2012-07-29T02:06:00.002-04:00

Here is a description from Fragrantica:

Live Jazz by Yves Saint Laurent is a Aromatic Fougere fragrance for men. Live Jazz was launched in 1998. The nose behind this fragrance is Pierre Bourdon. Top notes are mint, grapefruit and lemon; middle notes are coriander and rhubarb; base notes are nutmeg, amber, vanilla and cedar.

For the first 30 minutes, there is a very pleasant lemon and mint smell with very good projection. Then the fragrance starts transitioning to the middle notes. After 2 hours, it smells like an herbal garden with a tiny hint of the citrus lingering. The coriander is energetic, and spicy. The projection is still good. The top and middle notes are opposites. The top notes are cool and refreshing, and then the scent changes to energetic and lively. It feels like taking a relaxing lounge in a recliner, then having to get off my butt and start a workout. From 3 to 4 hours, the projection dies down and becomes a skin scent. After 4 hours, on my skin, the scent is gone. And I mean gone, no skin scent at all. I don’t even have a chance to smell the base notes.

I am disappointed that the longevity is so bad. I only paid about $30.00 for a 3.4oz bottle, so I can’t complain about the price. The bottle is nice with the words “Live Jazz” frosted on the bottle. The sprayer is outstanding and sprays a large amount in a nice spray pattern. Even with the powerful atomizer, longevity is still poor on me. This was a blind buy. Many YouTube reviewers said this is a great mint based starter fragrance. Unfortunately, the mint only lasts a maximum of 2 hours on me, and I am being generous. Due to the poor longevity, I can’t enjoy this fragrance. What a shame.

God Bless

2012-07-21T22:48:00.002-04:00

Ed Hardy Born Wild Review - Initial Impression

2012-07-10T23:13:00.003-04:00

I bought an Ed Hardy Born Wild for Men 3 Piece Gift Set at Marshall's for $24.99. The retail price was $55.00 and the gift set included a 1.7 oz and 0.25 oz EDT spray bottles, and a 3.0 oz Hair/Body Wash. A 1.7 oz EDT bottle retails for around $33.00, so I think I got a good deal. So, what does it smell like? It smells like a sweet fruity blend of orange and apple, that is also spicy. There is also a floral note in the middle, then it dries down to a sweet, woody note. There are not a lot of You Tube video reviews for this fragrance, but it has been described as sweet and geared more for teens and college students. Even though I am over 40, I like the sweetness. The most amazing thing is the longevity. It lasted a good 7 hours on me. After 12 hours, it is a skin scent, but I can still smell it. Amazing! I will have to try a couple more wearings to see if the sweetness is too heavy for summer. The name of the fragrance, Born Wild, is a complete opposite of what it smells like. It is not wild at all, but a sweet fragrance. For a first impression, I give Ed Hardy Born Wild a Thumbs Up!

Happenings

2012-06-04T22:23:00.001-04:00

Yeah, yeah, I do not post as a faithful blogger should. I can't promise anything, but here is a short update:

Container Gardening - I am attempting to grow pepper plants in planter pots.
The air conditioner in my 2nd car, which I mainly use in the winter, died. I noticed that the compressor does turn on if I switch the air flow to any of the windshield settings. I will need to get this fixed before winter. I am not looking forward to the cost
Left Bicep Update - I have only done two very light workouts on my biceps with no issues. I really need to get them back in shape for summer. Curls for the Girls!
Duquesne Light Sucks - From last week's storms, my power was out for about 14 hours. A few years back, there were scheduled power outages as part of a plan to improve the infrastructure. It did not help.

Later.

Yves Saint Laurent Live Jazz Discontinued

2012-03-07T18:37:00.001-05:00

I recently purchased a bottle of Yves Saint Laurent Live Jazz and was curious why I could not find it on the Yves Saint Laurent website, so I emailed their customer service. Here is the response that I received:

March 7, 2012

Thank you for asking us about Live Jazz Eau De Toilette Spray. We are sorry to tell you that it was discontinued and that we do not have any available for you to purchase.

It was not easy for us to make the decision to discontinue Live Jazz Eau De Toilette Spray. This was a wonderful product that we know some of our consumers will miss. Unfortunately, demand was not high enough for us to continue manufacturing it. As consumers ourselves, we understand how disappointing it can be when a favorite product or shade is no longer offered.

Although we do not currently have a similar fragrance to suggest to you, we invite you to visit an YSL Fragrance counter where you can test our current fragrance line. For a location near you, please visit our Store Locator at: http://www.yslbeautyus.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-ysl_us-Site/default/Stores-Find. Enter a zip code to find the address of a store near you. We hope that you will find a product to take the place of We hope that you will find a product to take the place of Live Jazz Eau De Toilette Spray soon.

We appreciate your loyalty to Yves Saint Laurent Beauté.

Sincerely,
Xxxxxx
Consumer Affairs Supervisor
Ref # xyzabcd

You should be able to find a 3.3 oz/100 ml bottle online for around $30.

Bumps and Bruises

2012-01-27T22:10:00.002-05:00

This blog is a good place to time stamp my bumps and bruises. Why? Well, my company has changed health care providers over the past ten years due to mergers, acquisitions, etc. This is a good place to make note of my injuries so I can refer back to this blog to look at recovery times, etc. So, here is a list of my current injuries, when they approximately happened, and how:

1. Left Shoulder - February 2011 - I believe I injured it after trying to remove snow from my deck. The railings on my deck are about 30 inches high, so it is an overuse injury.

2. Left Elbow Tendinitis - Late Spring/Early Summer 2011 - Injured trying to squeeze caulk from a caulking gun.

3. Left Bicep - Early November 2011 - Injured moving an old 21 inch CRT monitor into a work vehicle. The monitor "moved" on me and in an attempt to stop it from moving, I braced it with my left arm.

I could use some bionic parts now.

KDKA TV - Exaggerated Severe Weather Promos Begin

2012-01-11T22:16:00.004-05:00

I just saw a promo on KDKA TV with a warning that severe weather is on the way. I looked at the forecast from www.noaa.gov and I did not see any warnings or watches. The over exaggeration begins.

Groundhog Day - 9/24

2011-09-24T20:55:00.002-04:00

After three weekends, I finally live trapped the groundhog which was living under my storage shed. I have tried placing the trap at various locations around the shed and tried different baits with no success. I finally found the right combination of location, bait, and timing. The trap was placed on the left side of the shed. I used Gala Apples and dehydrated bananas from Trail Mix that I bought from Aldi. I set the trap around 9:00AM, with plans to go grocery shopping in the AM. As usual, I got distracted, and the Pitt game was on TV at 12 Noon. I looked outside and there it was, in the trap.

I was not sure how sturdy the cage was, so I wanted to relocate the groundhog as soon as possible. I lined the trunk of my car with a tarp, cardboard, and newspaper, in case the animal got nervous and completed a bodily function. I read you should cover the cage with a towel so the groundhog will not get nervous - I used a black T-shirt. Lifting the cage, then carrying the cage was difficult, as the animal got nervous and was moving and clawing inside the cage. I finally got it in the trunk and drove to North Park. For the first five minutes of the drive, I could hear the groundhog clawing at the cage. I found a good spot to release it and again carrying the cage while the animal was moving got on my nerves. I placed the trap on the ground, and opened the trap door. I tapped the other end of the cage and the groundhog bolted right out the door into the woods.

I have not read that they are social animals, so hopefully there was only one groundhog under the shed. I have read that the mother has babies in the spring, and the babies eventually leave the burrow when they are ready. I am going to reset the trap Sunday morning (and Monday too since I am taking off work) to make sure there was only one groundhog.

My work is not done. I have to block access on all four sides of the shed. With winter coming and the amount of daylight getting shorter, I have some work to do.

Happy Groundhog Day!

New Wheels

2011-09-02T22:39:00.004-04:00

My big news since my last post is my new Do It Yourself Home Built PC. Here are the specs:

Power supply: Corsair TX750 V2
Motherboard: Asus Sabertooth p67
CPU: i5-2500k, 3.3 GHz
Cpu cooler: Coolermaster Hyper 212 plus
RAM: Corsair 4 x 2GB
Dvd drive: Lite-On Ihas324
Hard Drive: Western Digital 1 TB, 6.0Gb/s
Video Card: XFX HD 6770

This is a huge jump in technology compared to my old PC which is over 11 years old. My old PC only has a 667 MHz processor, and the maximum amount of RAM it can have is 768 MB. I am very happy now.

Updates

2011-06-12T22:07:00.002-04:00

It has been a month since my last post, so here is what's been happening in my little world:

I have been trying to decide on a Personal Information Manager to use on my home PC. I am organized at work, but at home, I seem lost with no direction. The candidates are: Microsoft Outlook 2007, Mozilla Thunderbird, Mozilla Sunbird, Task Coach, Chandler Project, and Essential PIM.
I have been very lazy with my exercise program. From January through May, I made a lot of excuses not to work out. In May, I slowed started cardio session. In June, I started weight lifting again. It is going to take a while to get back in shape. It is my fault for being a couch potato
I am looking forward to all of the comic book based movies this summer.
Every year, I keep saying that I will build a new PC since mine is over ten years old. Will I finally do it?

Later

The Mentalist - Season Finale

2011-05-19T23:22:00.003-04:00

I thoroughly enjoyed the Season Finale of the CBS TV show "The Mentalist". I had a hunch that O'Laughlin was the mole at CBI. The big question is: Was the man that Patrick Jane shot really Red John? I have my doubts. Here are links to a couple of reviews:

Daemon's TV
Pop Star Recap Part 1
Pop Star Recap Part 2

One of my favorite screen caps above: Lisbon pretty in a pink bridesmaid dress.