tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69588362017-09-05T08:51:18.411-05:00Steve Eck's BlogSteve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.comBlogger2129125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-63757280880316469802013-03-02T13:22:00.001-06:002013-03-02T13:22:54.873-06:00Wrinkly<p>Today while the boy is napping and Linzy is out doing some errands, I was doing the laundry and ironing a few new dress shirts that came out of their initial wash still wrinkly. It reminded me of long ago in junior high economics when we had been given an assignment to do the laundry at home. </p><p>My recollection is that I was fine with doing the laundry itself, but adamant that I wasn't going to iron any of my Dad's dress shirts. After all, I said in what I am sure was an imperious tone that only a 14 year old can manage, that's what permanent press means. It's permanently pressed. As long as you use the right cycle and take it out of the dryer while it is still warm and spinning, no ironing required. My parents, who dutifully ironed those shirts every week, disagreed. But, it was my assignment, and so I set about to prove no ironing was required. </p><p>Of course, as any lazy laundry-doer would expect, the shirts did indeed come out more-or-less OK without any ironing. Perfect, no, but good enough. And from that point on, my Dad's shirts no longer got ironed each week. With two working parents and two teenage kids, good enough was, just that. </p><p>Why exactly being annoyed at having to iron those dress shirts today brought back memories of Junior High, I'm not sure. But I suppose I should say "Sorry Dad" and "You're welcome, Mom". </p><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-35733865108280341912012-04-09T22:14:00.001-05:002012-04-09T22:20:25.670-05:00Small Victories<p>With the proliferation of devices in the house that are capable of playing video files, as well as the <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/06/snap-crackle-pop.html">lack of a TV in my exercise area</a>, recently I decided to undertake a project of converting all our DVDs into MPEG-4 videos. It is somewhat like a crazy flashback to circa-1999/2000 when I converted all my CDs into MP3s. All the hallmarks are there. </p><p>The tantalizing prospect of technology that <i>almost</i> does what you want it to do. The need to have a workflow of several programs working in concert to really convert things correctly. All you young whippersnappers probably don't even remember when ripping a CD required a whole separate program rather, and getting track titles/cover art was an adventure in itself. That's pretty much what mass converting DVDs is like these days. </p><p>Anyways, the process has been going reasonably well and I'd gotten through about a third of our DVDs. Emboldened by my success, however, I fell prey to thinking that the only <i>right</i> way to convert <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/movies.html">The Godfather: Part II</a>'s two discs was by combining the two resultant files. I mean, having two files is just a relic of limited storage media. As soon as we're talking video files there is no reason you shouldn't just be able to merge those files together and make a single 3 hour 20 minute file with the whole movie the way it was meant to be viewed. </p><p>Oh, how silly. </p><p>It turns out that, despite the deceptive simplicity, this is nearly impossible. The Internet is rife with programs claiming the ability to do this, and even more forum posts from joker #1 claiming program Y was able to do it, and joker #2 claiming that it didn't work for his videos, and shill #1 advocating for a paid program that is just a thin wrapper around GPL software. </p><p>Over the past three or four days I tried every suggestion, half-baked scheme, or sequence of multiple programs to no avail. Some of the programs came frustratingly close. Able to merge the m4v files successfully, but re-encoding the video and thus wrecking the quality, able to preserve the quality of the video but splicing the audio tracks on-top of each other so you hear both halves of the movie in the first half and silence in the second, misaligned audio, or just straight-up producing corrupt files. </p><p>Yesterday evening I was ready to admit defeat and import the two individual video files, when I realized there was one dark alley even I had not been desperate enough to travel down: MKV containers. If you are familiar with the nerdier corners of the internet, you might have heard of it, but suffice to say up to this point it's been relegated over to the 'technically superior but basically unsupported by real devices and thus impractical' corner of the video world. </p><p>But in my desperation, I went there, and much to my pleasant surprise tonight I was able to use MKV as a waypoint to support the merging before converting things back to m4v. The actual process involved some trial and error, but in the end accomplished everything I wanted done and I am now the proud owner of a perfect-appearing single complete Godfather: Part 2 video file. </p><p>In case you are silly enough to follow me down this path, here was the process: <ol><li>Ripped the DVDs to the computer as normal</li><li>Converted the DVDs with Handbrake as normal except selected MKV containers instead of MP4</li><li>Used mkvmerge (GUI) to add the first MKV file and append the second MKV file into a new combined MKV</li><li>Used mkvmerge (GUI)to load the chapters from the combined file, rename the last 14 chapters to be numbered sequentially after the first MKV file's 16 chapters, and write the new chapter 1-30 back into the combined file</li><li>Used Yamb unsuccessfully to convert the MKV file to MP4, but used the command-line's it generated for the next two steps</li><li>Manually ran mkvextract to extract the three tracks (one video, two audio) from the combined MKV. This was required because Yamb was using the mkvinfo 1-3 track numbering while mkvextract wants 0-2</li><li>Manually ran mp4box to mux the three tracks into a new MP4 file. This was required because the syntax Yamb generated for the -par parameter was incorrect and :par=40:33 needed to be appended onto the -add for track 1 rather than being a separate argument.</li><li>Imported the new MP4 into iTunes as normal</li></ol></p><p>And that, dear reader, is what passes for 'easy' in Internet Video Nerd land. Luckily I am very capable of deriving satisfaction from that sort of triumph over technology. So now it's time to go back and re-do my LOTR extended edition files into the three four-hour behemoths Peter Jackson intended. <span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-89690010247052301222012-01-15T09:56:00.001-06:002012-01-15T09:58:52.136-06:00What Not to Do<p>Let's say, hypothetically speaking, that you are on a Delta flight from <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/09/temperature-change.html">Minneapolis to Paris</a>, flying in a 2/3rds full 767. That leaves plenty of space free on the plane, and so people can spread out. Thus, for example, when there are two people in a set of three seats in the middle of the plane one might expect that the random guy in the middle would move to the open aisle seat. Leaving a luxurious <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2009/11/chicago-trip.html">cattle-class seat</a> worth of no-mans land in-between passengers. </p><p>That might seem obvious and perhaps every other row in the plane would recognize the optimal positioning. But dear reader, there is in fact another option: </p><p>You could stay in that middle seat, with your bulky shoulders and jabbing elbows punishing the unfortunate soul assigned to sit next to you. After a while when you get up to go to the <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/07/high-flow.html">bathroom</a> and you come back, stepping carefully over that empty seat on the aisle to plop back down in the middle, that other passenger might say something like "Why aren't you sitting over there?". You could then answer "Hmm, I don't know. I guess I like this seat". It's a good effect if, as you are sort of testing out the arms of that middle seat while describing your eternal love for it, you jab the other passenger in the side with an elbow just to remind him that this is your assigned seat and by god, you aren't moving. </p><p>I'd just like to say: Please, <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/12/punched-in-eye.html">don't be that guy</a>. </p><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-9431227375997849742011-09-25T22:11:00.000-05:002011-09-25T22:11:44.458-05:00Temperature Change<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/6183729800/" title="DSC_8046 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6152/6183729800_b3d604df3c_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_8046"></a>I was copying pictures off the camera today for the first time in quite a while and discovered this picture from less than a month ago. Besides Elijah's hilariously suspicious expression, I thought it was interesting that just a month ago the weather was such that playing in the kiddie pool on the deck in shorts and a t-shirt was still appropriate.<br /><br />Today, on the other hand, was nice for a bit while the sun was out but definitely felt like fall. I suppose the fact that I was in <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/6156703660/in/photostream">Nice</a> two weeks ago and Atlanta last week didn't help make the transition from summer to fall less shocking.<br /><br />For reference, the weather in Nice was as amazing as advertised despite mid-September being 'after' the peak summer holiday season. I could definitely get used to 75 and sunny every day. I have no idea what the weather was like in Atlanta because I literally did not go outside from the time I arrived on Monday to when I left on Thursday, which I am pretty sure is not healthy. Unfortunately since the summit took place in convention facilities attached to the hotel and the schedule went from 7am till about 12:30am every day, that left no free time.<br /><br />Next week I'll continue to ensure that my body has no idea what season it is, with a trip to San Francisco. All things considered, it could be far, far worse.<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-57005678805612680232011-05-28T13:47:00.000-05:002011-05-28T13:47:13.437-05:00Future Career<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5769099186/" title="DSC_7670 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_7670" height="173" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5024/5769099186_75c3d2db42_m.jpg" style="float: right;" width="240" /></a>My rediscovery of a camouflage hat in a basement box of paintball supplies, coupled with my vast experience in watching Swamp People episodes, has reassured me that if my career in middle management doesn't work out I can always take up gator hunting.<br /><br />Treeshaker! It's a treeshaker!<br /><span class="shortpost"><br />Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-17201627208928144872011-03-21T21:38:00.000-05:002011-03-21T21:38:00.516-05:00Brazilian BeefMy <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/03/nap-time.html">trip to Brazil</a> that was supposed to happen this week and next was canceled at the last minute, last Thursday. While I'm disappointed to not experience South America/Brazil and to not be able to help with the problem which necessitated the trip, I'm certainly not missing being <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/dubious-honor.html">gone from home</a> for two weeks.<br /><br />I was, however, looking forward to trying the cuisine in Brazil, which is rumored to be quite good. On Friday, this was highlighted when an e-mail chain was started by some co-workers that I was going to meet for dinner while in Sao Paulo discussing just what high-end restaurant we should go to. The decision was for Brazilian Barbecue. Something that was awesome in it's <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2007/05/bloated.html">Minnesota imitation</a>, so I can only imagine what the real deal is like. Alas that experience has been postponed, potentially indefinitely.<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-70004666897724282082011-03-20T21:38:00.000-05:002011-03-20T21:38:02.637-05:00ConvolutedOver the weekend the popular activity seems to have been attempting to buy <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/08/target-field.html">Twins tickets</a>. Instead of using some sort of sensible system, such as letting you pick games and buy tickets, instead the Twins used a useless and ineffective virtual line system and a website built out of chewing gum and bailing wire.<br /><br />My parents spent hours waiting in the virtual line, only to eventually get to the site and still be unable to <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/california-hockey.html">buy tickets</a> due to high volumes (isn't that what the line was supposed to prevent?). Linzy and I also waited in line, but never moved, until eventually going out and back in got us right into the site around the same time my parent's four hours of waiting got them in.<br /><br />But then once you got the the actual site I was never able to actually buy tickets. My parents were able to after trying again and again, but my patience ran out after an hour of trying different games and sections over and over, always getting an error message saying that the request couldn't be processed due to high volumes.<br /><br />Eventually I was so frustrated at the wasted time that I just went and bought the tickets (which were a gift) at Stubhub in about 10 minutes. Sure I paid a gross mark up over tickets that I likely could have just purchased directly from the Twins on the same day, but Stubhub had a website that worked, the Twins did not. And at the end of the day my time was worth that premium.<br /><br />What is so hard about making a <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/04/ticketmaster-scumbags.html">website to buy tickets</a>? Let people pick them, give them a time limit to buy them, and then either complete the sale or put them back in the pool. There is no need for a virtual line, and you certainly should expect when you only allow single game sales on a specific day that there is going to be a flood of people buying tickets. It was sort of like Best Buy being shocked that on <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2007/11/doorbuster.html">Black Friday</a> there were <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/01/linzys-new-tv.html">lots of people</a> looking to buy cheap laptops. Seriously, a virtual waiting line?<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-63191875543648681932011-03-13T16:12:00.001-05:002011-03-13T16:17:08.682-05:00Nap Time<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5523935514/" title="DSC_7153 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5051/5523935514_dcd8e78c20_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_7153" /></a>It's <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/02/be-vewy-vewy-quiet.html">nap time</a> at the Eck household, with Elijah,Linzy, and Pippen all laying down for a rest. Pippen of course, is always eager for a nap, while Elijah is usually only interested for the first 20 minutes but after that it's time for action.<br /><br />Meanwhile, instead of doing something productive with my free time, I'm using the quiet period to transcode videos for next weekend's work trip to Brazil. And blog. In retrospect, perhaps not the best use of my time.<br /><br />The trip to Brazil will be my first business trip <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/10/tight-schedule.html">since October</a>, and the first since Elijah was born. Unfortunately it appears those five travel-free months are coming to a <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/dubious-honor.html">rapid and emphatic end</a>. Interestingly, Linzy says that she is less worried about how her and Elijah will get along without me (Linzy's dad is coming down to help out), as she is about me being in Brazil for two weeks. I think sharing the stories of co-worker's experiences in Venezuela might have been a mistake.<br /><br />Elijah is a little over three months old now and continues to get more interactive every day. He was also diagnosed with torticollis a few weeks ago, which is basically a neck problem where he prefers to hold his head to one side and tilt his head to opposite side. He's able to move his head with the proper motivation but if left to his own devices will always look to the right. So now he has weekly physical therapy, stretching exercises to complete with each diaper change, and four-times-a-day tummy time sessions. The stretches involve some crying, but the tummy time sessions are when Elijah really gets to exercise his lungs. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5523940820/" title="DSC_7193 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5255/5523940820_e705495f30_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_7193" /></a><br />Fortunately, despite the heartbreaking crying, we've persevered and there's already been a noticeable improvement. And it doesn't seem to affect his otherwise generally happy mood.<br /><br />And with that, it sounds like Elijah's had enough nap time, and now it is <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/one-thing.html">time for attention</a>.<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-76248489737157540742011-02-27T21:57:00.000-06:002011-02-27T21:57:45.412-06:00Check Your E-mailWhen we <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/02/new-car.html">bought the new car</a> a few weekends ago, we decided to buy and bought the same day. To help that process along, I decided to try out <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/02/convenience.html">a feature</a> on edmunds.com where you can e-mail local dealers to get an online quote. You select your car and options, and the local dealers you want to e-mail for a quote. Conveniently the site accommodated <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2006/07/most-expensive-lunch-ever.html">spur-of-the-moment purchasers</a> like us by allowing you to select when you want to purchase and giving a 'next 24 hours' option.<br /><br />Since I filled this out about 45 minutes before we left the house to go buy the car, speed in reply was of the essence. All the dealerships had the auto-reply 'we will be contacting you shortly' down, but Inver Grove Honda took things to the next level, actually calling me back within about 15-20 minutes and giving me a quote on the phone and setting up an appointment for us to come look at the car (with it waiting at the door when we pulled up). Richfield Honda was the only dealership brave enough to offer up a quote without calling me first. Unfortunately for them, their quote came in several hours later and a couple hundred dollars more expensive. Next.<br /><br />Burnsville Honda's response was an even bigger disappointment. They never did e-mail a quote, and didn't even return the inquiry by phone until about 7-8 hours later. On the way to Inver Grove we actually called to try to get the quote proactively. After waiting on hold for a while, and hearing how 'everyone was busy' eventually the general manager gave us a quote for $75 less than Inver Grove. At that point despite Burnsville Honda being much more conveniently located, after all the rigmarole and the only slightly lower negotiating starting point, we just went ahead and did the test drive and purchase with Inver Grove.<br /><br />So basically Burnsville Honda's slow response to web inquiries lost them a sale. When your only differentiation amongst the other dozen dealers in the same metro area selling identical merchandise is <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/07/rules-rules.html">customer service</a>, perhaps you might want to take any inquiry seriously. Even if it does come from a mass-submital form on the web.<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-16116514847468764972011-02-16T22:13:00.000-06:002011-02-16T22:13:28.450-06:00New CarBack in June I posted about the <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/06/work-with-me-here.html">Eck car quandary</a>, where our cars were steadily getting older and older but since thanks to their stellar reliability I was having a tough time justifying replacing either of them, much to Linzy's dismay. After months (years?) of trying to figure out exactly what the right plan was, last Saturday I woke up and decided enough was enough and I needed to start solving the problem.<br /><br />A few hours of research later and I had figured out what I wanted to do, and started convincing Linzy. And by convincing Linzy I mean I said "I think we should get a new car", and her eyes said "Yeah!" even if she pretended to debate it with me for a bit.<br /><br />From there it was a whirlwind afternoon of arranging for my parents to watch the boy, heading to a dealership, taking our first and only test drive in many years, and then <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2009/12/negotiations.html">negotiating a deal</a>. By 3 in the afternoon of the same day, it was all over, in rather anticlimactic fashion as there was little drama in the negotiations. I actually took some uncharacteristic pleasure in the negotiations as the dealer used such cliched negotiation tactics it was funny (and ineffective as far as my bottom line was concerned).<br /><br />Interestingly, in terms of deciding which car to trade in, we ended up going with the gamble option and replaced the 8 year old but relatively speaking new Altima and kept the 10 year old Pathfinder. The theory is that the Pathfinder is plenty reliable for driving me a couple miles a day to the bus stop, and since we actually like that car and dislike the Altima, it didn't make sense to keep a car we don't like. On the other hand, if the Pathfinder starts <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/06/will-it-run.html">breaking down</a> regularly in a few months, I'll have made a very, very expensive mistake as I have no tolerance for unreliable cars.<br /><br />Regardless, Linzy will now be cruising around town in her shiny new CR-V.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-59134165580561267472011-02-10T21:56:00.001-06:002011-02-10T21:56:59.997-06:00Be Vewy Vewy Quiet<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5419739172/" title="DSC_6776 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5093/5419739172_c49ef6b2d3_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_6776" /></a>A rare sighting of a quiet sleeping baby.<br /><br />It's been a whirlwind several months here, and despite the fact that I haven't really done anything for quite a while it feels like we have been super busy. Three weeks back we reached the breaking point for <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/01/sleep-deprivation.html">lack of sleep</a> and Linzy's dad was nice enough to come down and help out with things for the past two weeks. That's helped tremendously and hopefully over the next few weeks Elijah will start sleeping longer during the night.<br /><br />Otherwise we haven't been up to too much. With the cold weather we've made many, many more trips to the Mall of America than I ever have in my life, just to <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/01/only-in-minnesota.html">get out of the house</a> and walk around a bit. Plus the boy likes to sleep in his stroller after a nice car ride, so if he's <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/sobriquet.html">particularly fussy</a> walking around the mall with no particular purpose starts to sound pretty good. Of course that's backfired at least once, when we went to the mall for a stroll and came home with an Apple TV and a new video game.<br /><br />Mainly though, the focus has been on taking care of the boy, work, and sleeping, and not much else. All in all, that's not all bad. Especially when Elijah gives you his big smile and a couple coos.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-26639119322536231662011-01-18T17:13:00.000-06:002011-01-18T17:13:00.513-06:00Only in MinnesotaOn Sunday <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2011/01/sleep-deprivation.html">Linzy's parents</a> gave us an afternoon off from Elijah-duty. Among other things we went for a nice lunch and then ended up stopping by Ikea to pick up a few things. While pregnant, Linzy was on a self-imposed <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/09/i-scream-you-scream.html">soft-serve ice cream</a> ban and so on the way out we decided an ice cream cone sounded good.<br /><br />We had left our coats in the car, because we didn't want to carry them through the whole store, and being January it was <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/12/frostbite.html">pretty cold</a> out (single digits I believe). As we were walking out to the car with our cones, we both stopped and laughed at ourselves realizing that only in Minnesota would two people be eating ice cream cones outside in January, without coats on.<br /><br />The cones (which I guess were frozen yogurt), were quite good though.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-11772805278759082672011-01-17T17:06:00.000-06:002011-01-17T17:06:02.369-06:00Sleep Deprivation<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5364556545/" title="DSC_6768 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/5364556545_d71d4b5d38_m.jpg" width="159" height="240" alt="DSC_6768" /></a>It's <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas.html">been weeks</a> since I posted here, and those weeks have passed in a blur of sleep deprived adjustment to a <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/elijah-otto-eck.html">new baby</a>. Elijah turned six weeks old on Friday, hopefully marking the peak of his refusal to go more then 3 hours between feedings. Three hours probably sounds pretty good until you subtract out the time actually spent feeding him, changing him, soothing him, and getting him back in his crib. That makes it more like 1.5-2 hours between feedings assuming there is not an extra wet diaper or just some disgruntlement on his part over being left all alone in his crib.<br /><br />And so we've fallen into a <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2007/01/survival-skills.html">survival-mode</a> pattern that allows no time for superfluous activities like blogging, reading, exercising, or even leaving the house some days. But on the plus side in the past week there have been two occasions where Elijah went four hours between feedings at night, which makes a huge difference. And both of our parents have been helping out: my mom takes the boy on Wednesdays during the day to give Linzy a break, and Linzy's parents came down and spent this weekend with us and helped out immensely. So there is light at the end of the no-sleep tunnel.<br /><br />Elijah is growing at a crazy rate. Already we're looking at having to retire some of his newborn outfits. And he's getting more responsive every day, so all in all it is pretty cool, if tiring.<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-55110531313344081512010-12-26T20:07:00.000-06:002010-12-26T20:07:38.663-06:00Christmas<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5295299462/" title="DSC_6527 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5003/5295299462_175ce5d411_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_6527" /></a>Another <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/01/best-laid-plans.html">Christmas</a> has come and gone. The Christmas holiday is among my favorite of the year, but this year I never really got into the swing of things, I suppose because of all the other distractions happening recently. Still, even though I felt unprepared, we had a great holiday.<br /><br />On Christmas Eve we were able to spend a long time (much longer than I was thinking Elijah would allow us to) with my parents, Sarah, John and Evie. A good dinner, lots of fun presents, and some catching up with each other made for a good evening. Then on Christmas Linzy's parent and Lonny came down from Duluth and my parents came over. That was a good time too, especially watching the grandparents and uncle dote on the <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/sobriquet.html">newest arrival</a>.<br /><br />Today Larry, Lonny and I went to see <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1403865/">True Grit</a>, which I thought was quite good, while Linzy and Sandy did a little post-Christmas shopping. Now it is back to work, but thankfully only for a short week. Hopefully things will be quiet, so I can spend a little extra time at home. Well, the boy has been screaming in Grandpa Larry's arms for a bit, break time is over!<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-76478458224400640372010-12-19T20:46:00.000-06:002010-12-19T20:46:33.301-06:00Back to Reality<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5274665731/" title="DSC_6460 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5047/5274665731_6e3ef61db2_m.jpg" width="240" height="200" alt="DSC_6460" /></a>Today was the final day of my two-week <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/elijah-otto-eck.html">paternity leave</a> at work, so tomorrow morning it is back to the grind. The time off has been <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/sobriquet.html">very rewarding</a>, although it is certainly nothing that could be construed as a 'vacation'.<br /><br />I was talking with Linzy at some point and prior to this leave, as near as I can remember the last time I took two weeks of consecutive time off from work was for our wedding and subsequent honeymoon. That too was reasonably stressful, at least until the wedding was over and we were off to San Francisco.<br /><br />I fully expect the next few weeks to be <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/one-thing.html">equally as challenging</a> as the last two have been, as we try to adjust to life with a child and a very full-time job. At least we're easing into things, with two four-day work weeks.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-65987205144160607492010-12-17T20:33:00.001-06:002010-12-17T20:34:20.346-06:00Sobriquet<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5269091637/" title="DSC_6386 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5121/5269091637_e6fb8ea9b3_m.jpg" width="159" height="240" alt="DSC_6386" /></a>One of the most common questions we have been asked regarding <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/elijah-otto-eck.html">Elijah's name</a> is whether we are going to be calling him Elijah or Eli. The answer, as it turns out is both, or perhaps neither.<br /><br />Initially one of the reasons we chose the name was because we liked the shorter version 'Eli'. However once he arrived, I've actually preferred to call him Elijah instead, while Linzy prefers Eli. So either works just fine. As it happens though, over the past few weeks he has also gained two <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2007/06/nicknames.html">nicknames</a> that are pretty commonly used to refer to the boy.<br /><br />The first, "The Gator", refers to his crazy extremity flailing efforts to avoid breastfeeding, leading an exasperated Linzy to complain that trying to contain him was like wrestling an alligator. The name, especially as the antics have continued, has stuck in a big way.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5269702092/" title="DSC_6393 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5049/5269702092_a79b857587_m.jpg" width="240" height="188" alt="DSC_6393" /></a><br /><br />The second, "Lord Fussypants", was coined thanks to his frequent <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/one-thing.html">refusal to be soothed</a> by ... well ... anything. Too little holding, too much holding, having a soothie pacifier, not having a soothie pacifier, being in the swing, wearing a hat to bed, being cold without the hat on, etc, etc. I was describing it to Linzy as envisioning him sporting a suit, carrying a cane, monocle, and little baby top hat while looking down his snooty nose at all our efforts to appease him.<br /><br />Hopefully he will grow out of the Fussypants stage, although looking at the description makes me realize that the timeline might be more like 'moved away to college', rather than 'turned a month old'. The Gator, on the other hand, may just stick.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-48443134981923784162010-12-16T20:38:00.000-06:002010-12-16T20:38:08.364-06:00One Thing<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5258898454/" title="DSC_6319 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5083/5258898454_193d4e64e1_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_6319" /></a>It is hard to believe that tomorrow <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/12/elijah-otto-eck.html">Elijah</a> will be two weeks old. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity and adjustment, even more-so then I or Linzy were expecting. Mostly in a good way, although sleep around these parts has been fleeting and elusive.<br /><br />Elijah is settling in, and is busy bending Linzy and I to his will. Between feedings, post-feeding soothing, diaper changes, additional soothing, <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5258179388/in/set-72157625461380367/">clothing changes</a>, more soothing, and the few minutes of alert time each day when we can interact with him (usually conveniently scheduled at 3am!), it is painfully apparent just who is in charge in this house. And it isn't Linzy, myself or Pippen.<br /><br />All of that activity, none of which you might have noticed involved sleeping, means that it has been shockingly hard to do much of anything over the past few weeks. I told Linzy a few days in, after the reality sunk in, that I can relatively reliably accomplish one task each day outside of baby-related things. It might be going to the store for groceries, shoveling the driveway, or <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/06/tv-shuffle.html">exercising</a>, but as much as I might intend to get more done, it won't (or hasn't) happened. Just ask the three towel bars that I unpacked in the boy's bathroom two weeks ago, and have intended to install for the same two weeks.<br /><br />Similarly, that's been the story with the blog as well, as today was the first day when I managed to squeeze in two (admittedly minor) tasks, shoveling the latest couple of inches of snow from the driveway and blogging. But even then, the crafting of this entry has been interrupted twice.<br /><br />Next week things will get even harder as I return to work and Linzy tries to handle all of the care that two people were just barely getting accomplished together. She unquestionably has the more difficult assignment.<br /><br />Luckily Elijah is <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/sets/72157625461380367/">super cute</a> and we love him a ton, so it is all well worth it.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-23467628102536705422010-12-03T23:29:00.000-06:002010-12-03T23:29:01.003-06:00Elijah Otto EckElijah Otto Eck was born at 6:42pm on December 3rd. Linzy and Elijah are doing well, and I am a proud Dad!<br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://picasaweb.google.com/steveecksblog/SteveEckSBlog#5546694725618480882'><img src='http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4QLEunSgl2M/TPnRdx4FtvI/AAAAAAAAFI8/gSHXkJ2GkLU/s288/iphone_photo.jpg' border='0' width='210' height='281' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><span class="shortpost"><br />Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-20038587560449407492010-11-30T20:33:00.000-06:002010-11-30T20:33:22.004-06:00False AlarmAfter discussing it with Linzy, I didn't go to today's doctors appointment. We have three a week (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday), and based on our results from the end of last week <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/thanksgiving.html">the message</a> was that we were going to be making it closer to week 39 than originally thought. So the plan (Linzy suggested/approved I might add) was to only go to the Wednesday and Friday appointments this week.<br /><br />Originally, I was thinking that just to be safe I would drive in to work on the off chance that something unexpected happened. But then I was running late and with the ice/snow this morning I figured the roads would be a mess. So I decided that if I drove I wouldn't have made it to the office in time for my first meeting, and rode the bus instead.<br /><br />As it turned out, this appointment the baby passed with flying colors, but Linzy herself had some things that concerned them, and so got sent right over to labor & delivery. Since this was at 3:15pm there were no buses, so I got to take the $60 cab ride from downtown to Lakeville.<br /><br />Luckily everything checked out just fine after more detailed tests and so we were sent back home to keep baking the baby. Perhaps we'll find out more at the remaining appointments this week. Then again, perhaps not as the doctors can be certainly be what might politely be referred to as '<a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2006/03/come-back-when-you-arent-doing-well.html">cagey</a>'. Things would definitely be termed day-to-day at this point though.<br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-81033628151995021102010-11-29T21:36:00.000-06:002010-11-29T21:36:53.472-06:00ThwartedI've mentioned my love of Amazon many times, especially for the past few years when we've <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/07/accidents-happen.html">had Prime</a>. The two day shipping on everything is great and makes all the difference in not wondering when something is finally going to show up. It's also fast enough that even with my impatience, I don't often succumb to the 'I need it now' impulse.<br /><br />Anyways, one of the things that I like about Amazon with or without prime is their lack of screwing around when it comes to shipping stuff. No multi-day wait for processing, no 'billing information received' by the shipping company but yet no actual shipment, etc. You order it, they send it out. With Prime it's even more dramatic since there is no 'collecting' of orders into <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/02/piecemeal.html">one shipment</a>, stuff appears to go out asap.<br /><br />Unfortunately this weekend that came around to bite me in the ass. We ordered some towel bars and other hardware for one of the extra bathrooms upstairs. After some debate about the color to get, we settled on one. After placing the order I was upstairs and looked at our other bathrooms (which each have different colors) and changed my mind on what color I wanted.<br /><br />So I went downstairs, told Linzy I was changing the order, only to find out...it was already being prepared for shipping and couldn't be changed. I ordered it, they shipped it. Exactly what I normally want. Except when I don't.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-85754394709483787032010-11-28T22:15:00.000-06:002010-11-28T22:15:51.315-06:00Thanksgiving<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5216296251/" title="DSC_5938 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img style="float: right;" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5084/5216296251_19043386d8_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5938" /></a>Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I like any reason to have a few free days off work and spend time with family and friends, but <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2009/12/thanksgiving.html">Thanksgiving</a> for some reason has a special place in my heart. Strangely I think it is at least partially because of the association with the start of the holiday season, and the lead up to Christmas (my favorite holiday). But I do enjoy Thanksgiving on its own merits as well.<br /><br />This year we stayed close to home, which was fortunate since the weather wasn't all that nice on Wednesday. We spent Thursday at my parents house having a good time, watching some football and eating way too much delicious food.<br /><br />The rest of the weekend was laid back and filled with miscellaneous chores around the house trying to get all the last minute things done for the baby and some shopping. We were able to avoid the crowds for the most part, which I didn't mind at all. On the baby front we had our 37 week ultrasound and things there are going better then <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/babys-room.html">they were last week</a>. So the waiting game continues. Week 38 (Friday Dec 3rd) is possibility, and the latest we would go is Week 39 (Friday Dec 10th).<br /><br />Linzy, the baby, and Pippen waiting for dinner<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5216883906/" title="DSC_5936 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/5216883906_7deaf75e1d_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5936" /></a><br /><br />Thanksgiving Dinner<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5216297813/" title="DSC_5946 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5207/5216297813_b245d443a5_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5946" /></a><br /><br />Skyping with Sarah, John and Evie<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5216887144/" title="DSC_5955 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5047/5216887144_dca42dafb6_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5955" /></a><br /><br />Mom and Dad<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5216320809/" title="DSC_5932 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5045/5216320809_0e84720112_m.jpg" width="240" height="185" alt="DSC_5932" /></a><br /><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-20959387829066756612010-11-23T21:55:00.000-06:002010-11-23T21:55:30.690-06:00BackscatterAll of the fervor over the backscatter machines they are using at the airports these days seems destined to result in their removal. Certainly enough people seem up in arms about them, and the whole scheme seems rife for perverts, privacy concerns and questions about the effectiveness in the first place.<br /><br />On my trip to <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/10/tight-schedule.html">San Jose</a> last month I was selected to go through one for the first time. I did not object and went through the machine, but the whole process actually took much longer then I was expecting. The delay after having gone through until they reviewed my image was significantly longer then it would have taken to go through the metal detector. Especially when they had to do an <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/01/phony-paper.html">extra inspection</a> of my arm to look at my watch.<br /><br />I can only imagine what it will be like as they try to ramp up the number of people going through it, and have people objecting, are doing the extra pat-downs, and generally just having problems. Seems like a disaster for anyone traveling this holiday week.<br /><br />On the positive side, thus far I haven't grown any strange appendages. On the negative side I also haven't yet developed super powers, so perhaps it takes more then one trip before the XRays take effect.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-3456145948347390092010-11-22T22:07:00.000-06:002010-11-22T22:07:31.170-06:00Well CoveredA few weekends ago I spent some time installing the car seat base into one of our cars. After testing getting the car seat in and out, I ended up leaving the car seat in the car for Linzy to see. She tested it out later and afterwards we decided to just leave it in the car since that's where it will be <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/babys-room.html">needed eventually</a> anyways. One less thing to <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2008/05/remember-camera.html">forget to bring to the hospital</a>, was the theory.<br /><br />That night we had some errands to run and ended up going out to dinner. While getting seated I realized a serious flaw in leaving the car seat in the car: the car seat happened to have a fleece cover over it, that we were testing out to see how it fit. With the cover on, you couldn't see anything in the car seat. And that fully covered seat was left unattended in a parked car.<br /><br />On the way out, I was explaining our folly to Linzy and joking about how I was expecting to find a horde of people and <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2005/11/real-handcuffs.html">police</a> surrounding the car concerned about the idiots who had left their baby in the car while going in for a meal. Luckily no one noticed and/or cared (it was a relatively empty restaurant parking lot) and so we were spared trying to explain how our inexperience dealing with car seats didn't mean we were unfit future parents.<br /><br />While the car seat is still in the car, the covering is now sitting on the seat next to it. So at least we can say we learned our lesson.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-69472764662186455122010-11-21T21:50:00.000-06:002010-11-21T21:50:22.379-06:00Baby's RoomWe continue to inch closer to being more-or-less ready for the arrival of the baby. Among the things finished this weekend was the baby's room. Where as a few weeks ago we literally had nothing in the room, it is <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/10/pumpkin-orange.html">now painted</a>, <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/11/undamaged-goods.html">filled with furniture</a> and the drawers and closet are bursting with soon-to-be-outgrown clothes.<br /><br />It's looking like the room may be done none-to-soon as we had a trip to the hospital this weekend to have the baby checked out. Everyone got a clean bill of health, but as the weeks go by it's looking more and more likely that the baby will be joining us early. My money's on Friday, but we'll see.<br /><br />Finally, some pictures of the baby's room:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5196662786/" title="DSC_5907 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4149/5196662786_2b2bb4f79e_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5907" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5196662232/" title="DSC_5906 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5281/5196662232_c14e2f88b3_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5906" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_eck/5196061083/" title="DSC_5904 by sottoeck, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/5196061083_1c04b1b928_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="DSC_5904" /></a><br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6958836.post-58294604030720986232010-11-18T22:09:00.000-06:002010-11-18T22:09:33.973-06:00Much ImprovedI had an appointment this morning so I drove in to work. The trip home was my first in rush hour since they finished the 35/62 crosstown project, and I was impressed by how nice it was. Over the past three years they've obviously been completing it a bit at a time but because of the lane closures and funky <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2007/04/slow-route.html">rerouting</a> of traffic, traffic was actually worse or at best not any better. But now that everything is done, there were hardly any slowdowns even though I was leaving in <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/07/cracked-mirror.html">prime rush hour</a>. I imagine it will be even better once the HOV/MNPass lane opens up.<br /><br />Obviously the bus drives on it every day, but I am officially <a href="http://soeck.blogspot.com/2010/05/complacency.html">immersed in my DS games</a> at that point so I hadn't noticed the improvement. Interestingly because my normal bus home has shifted a bit later, even if the trip is faster I get home around the same time. Two steps forward, one step back.<br /><span class="shortpost">Steve Eckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14565421298486839812noreply@blogger.com0