Why I hate phone companies

Here's a recent article by Walt Mossberg of the WSJ and All Things Digital that talks about freeing the cell phone...

http://mossblog.allthingsd.com/20071021/free-my-phone/

Engadget has a great thread about Walt's article.

Free music...

Just noticed that in addition to the weekly free song from iTunes, Amazon is giving away free mp3s as well. I just downloaded 3 free songs...The nice thing about Amazon's mp3s, besides being DRM-free, is that their downloading engine automatically updates your iTunes library.

Juncos have returned

This past Sunday I saw four Dark-eyed Juncos in our backyard...The Juncos are returning to Minnesota for the winter. Last winter we had quite a few Juncos feed from our deck.

Deck close to completion...

The deck is almost done! It's been delayed by rain but progress was made since Monday...Here is a few photos I took a few days ago...The footings and boards are in and yesterday the builder put up the railings. Today they will install the stairs.

Deck without landing, stairs and railing


Deck with railing and landing completed Wednesday

River birch

The River Birch has been planted in the front yard and is doing quick well. I think all the rain has made that tree happy, happy, happy. In addition to the river birch, we have planted an Autumn Blaze Maple and Japanese Lilac tree. The Autumn Blaze is planted in our backyard in hopes that it will provide shade for the western side of our house (as well as the new deck) which get very, very hot in the summer.

Here are photos of the three trees

River Birch


Autumn Blaze Maple


Japanese Lilac Tree

Getting new deck!

After enduring 3 years of an old and unsafe deck we are finally getting it replaced! The old deck is a 10 x10, without stairs, and wabbly. Simply put, it was unsafe! The new deck will be cedar and 12x18 in size as well as a landing and stairs...

New tree

Just purchased a new River Birch Tree for our front yard. The River Birch is about 7 feet and has four trees in the clump.

Sunflower plants

Here are a few photos that I recently took from our window. The Goldfinches in our backyard loves both the nyger seed pouch as well as the sunflowers that my wife planted in our veggie garden. It's real fun to watch them hanging upside down while feeding on sunflower seeds...


Cardinal saying hi to Goldfinch...

Juvenile Grackle

Here is a photo of a juvenile grackle that I saw at a local park a few weeks ago.

White-breasted Nuthatch

A photo of a white-breasted Nuthatch that visited our backyard a few days ago...My life list includes both the Red-breasted and White-breasted Nuthatch.

Juvenile Cowbird

A few weeks ago I saw the below bird and at first I thought it was a sparrow until a Chipping Sparrow landed next to it. I then then realized that it was not a sparrow as it was much bigger...This past winter I did noticed a few Brown-headed Cowbirds in our backyard and remember reading that they tend to lay their eggs on unsuspecting birds nest...I quickly grabbed my camera and took this, albeit fuzzy, photo of a juvenile Brow-headed cowbird? Also, the Chipping Sparrow was clearly 'taking care' of this other bird while both were on our deck as well on underneath a pine tree...

Red-breasted Nuthatch

2 weeks ago I started to feed birds black oil sunflower seeds. Since then I have noticed a new bird to our back yard...Here is a photo I quickly took of the Red-breasted Nuthatch.

Phone update

This past Wednesday morning a Qwest technician came buy to hook up my phone line as promised! Well, it is now up and running...

iPod battery

My 3g iPod is about 5 years old and w/n the past month or so the battery would not hold a charge. Everytime I tried to play it, the iPod would simply die! I know that the older iPods have had battery problems but my was pretty good until recently.

I did not want to buy a new iPod so I decided to get a new battery. I went to ifixipodsfast.com based on a recent newspaper article and purchased a new battery. The battery came with a pry tool that allowed me to open the iPod and replace the battery. Well, I am happy to say that the iPod is now happy again!

photo of old battery

More birds identified...

My bird life list continues...
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Sparrow
Killdeer
Snowy Egret
Barn Swallow
Hairy Woodpecker

VoIP update

Since my last post, my VoIP service has been up and down. Just called Qwest and they said that my phone number should be tranfserred by Wednesday. I hope this is so as Qwest does not have the greatest track record when it comes to getting phone service to new customers.

VoIP phone down

Yesterday my phone service died a painful death when SunRocket abruptly shut down without telling any of its customer, including me! I am scrabbling to get phone service up ASAP, but I fear that it may take at least a week. As much as I hate doing it I signed-up with Qwest...

White-breasted Nuthatch

This past weekend I saw my first White-breasted Nuthatch while at the Minnesota Zoological Garden and then I saw a pair at Prescott, Wisconsin.

image from Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Garden Photos

Three photos showing the progress of the garden from May, June and mid-July...The garden includes pumpkins, zucchinis, beans, sunflowers, peppers, basil, tomatoes, and tomatillos.

May


June


July 15th

Killdeer update

We recently returned to the Killdeer nest and discovered that the nest, eggs , and Killdeer are all gone. The only thing left is an impression in the dirt where the nest once rested.

Killdeer photo...

Here is a photo of the Killdeer incubating its eggs (there are four):

Killdeer encounter

This past 4th of July, while waiting for the fireworks, my family saw a Killdeer bird. The bird was highly stressed due to the great number of people walking near the nest. The Killdeer was making very loud noises and even spread its wing as unsuspecting people walked next to the nest. My son started to warn people to stay away...Needless to say, after the fireworks the bird left the nest and the four eggs. My boys were worried about the Killdeer and the eggs and had to return the next day. Fortunately, the Killdeer returned to the nest day. The boys even said the Killdeer started to do its broken wing dance when they approached the nest!

image from Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Bird Book

A few months ago I discovered a really good guide for identifying birds. If you are a beginning birder, like myself, and live in Minnesota, Birds of Minnesota, is a great guide to have on hand. The guide is by Minnesota author and Naturalist Stan Tekiela. The guide is organized by color of bird, which is wonderful as I am new to birding. Before purchasing this guide I tried to use another basic bird book, but was frustrated many, may time over because I could not identify the bird...My son and I both use the guide on a daily basis...


Here is a link to bird books for other states by Stan Tekiela.

Evil Spy/Ad Ware...

Last week my hard drive crashed and have thus far been unsuccessful in bringing it back to life. So, I purchased a new hard drive, re-imaged it and began to re-build the pc. I was foolish to browse a few sites (number one went to myspace) before I install AVG and Webroot. Well, my PC became infected w/ adware pop-ups. This is amazing because a number of those evil pop-ups were for anti-virus and spyware software! Have they no shame???

I have now re-imaged the drive again and quickly install Webroot and McAfee Security Center and all is well thus far...

Hairy Woodpecker

This morning was a good day for bird watching...I saw my first Female Hairy Woodpecker feeding from our bird feeder. In addition, I watched a pair of Purple Finches, Blue Jays, and Northern Cardinals feeding in our back yard...

image from Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Photo of American Goldfinch

This morning I was fortunate to see and take a photo of a male and female American Goldfinch which were feeding from the nyger seed pouch...

American Goldfinch

This past week I purchased a nyger seed pouch in hopes of attracting an American Goldfinch. The American Goldfinch is a pretty yellow, white and black bird. This Wednesday morning I saw my first American Goldfinch feeding on the nyger seed pouch! In addition, a Blackcapped Chickadee and both a male and female House Finch have visited the nyger pouch.


Nyger Seed Pouch


House Finch at the nyger seed sack

Garden update

Since my last entry we have planted beans, zucchinis, pumpkins, tomatoes, and peppers. In order to keep the rabbits away from our veggies, we have been using blood meal around the garden. Thus far it has worked...the beans are growing and not being eaten. In fact, I have seen one rabbit sitting outside of our garden eating dandilions! Hope to post a photo soon!

Bill Gates Quote...

A quote from his Harvard Commencement Speech

"I left Harvard with no real awareness of the awful inequities in the world – the appalling disparities of health, and wealth, and opportunity that condemn millions of people to lives of despair.

I learned a lot here at Harvard about new ideas in economics and politics. I got great exposure to the advances being made in the sciences.

But humanity's greatest advances are not in its discoveries – but in how those discoveries are applied to reduce inequity. Whether through democracy, strong public education, quality health care, or broad economic opportunity – reducing inequity is the highest human achievement. "

A much as I have dissed Microsoft, I have to respect BG for his remarks in regards to the inequities in this world and actually trying to do something about it.

This is cool!

Read about the multi-touch screen from David Pogue's blog...the interface is way cool. Why simply use 2 fingers when interacting w/ MS Surface or iPhone when you can use 10...

Our energy dependence

Have read an interesting article about our dependence to energy. It states that although we are more energy efficient as ever, we are using much more energy than the past. One thing that has changed are the number of 'things' that need energy...

• iPods
• cell phones
• laptops
• DVRs
• multiple computers
  
• multiple TVs
• DVD player
• gaming consoles

The article also stated that plasma TVs uses 8 to 10 times more energy as the old tube TVs...Ouch! It doesn't look like a plasma TV will be in my future. Speaking of DVRs, I acquired a first gen. TiVo and use it sporadically to 'tape' a few TV shows. But like other gadgets, that thing is ON allll the time. I wonder how much power it requires to have that thing, among others gadgets, on all the time. It's kinda interesting that my wife recently complaint about our high electric bill. One thing that I have done to try and decrease our energy use is to have a surge Link to protector that I turn off when not using the computer. In addition, I use to leave my iPod and other gadgets plugged in all the time, no more. I've switch most lights to CFL. Turn lights off when no one is in the room. Compost. Buy local as often as possible.

It's also quite interesting to note that for example, businesses have actually done a fairly good job of cutting their energy usage during the summer because it cuts into their profit. And, residence are less incline to do that...

10 Ways to Go Green
Yahoo! Celebrates Earth Day

JERICHO SAVED!!!!

Jericho has been SAVED!!!!

Here is a message from CBS Entertainment.
Here is the link to the message.

June 6, 2007

To the Fans of Jericho:

Wow!

Over the past few weeks you have put forth an impressive and probably unprecedented display of passion in support of a prime time television series. You got our attention; your emails and collective voice have been heard.

As a result, CBS has ordered seven episodes of “Jericho” for mid-season next year. In success, there is the potential for more. But, for there to be more “Jericho,” we will need more viewers.

A loyal and passionate community has clearly formed around the show. But that community needs to grow. It needs to grow on the CBS Television Network, as well as on the many digital platforms where we make the show available.

We will count on you to rally around the show, to recruit new viewers with the same grass-roots energy, intensity and volume you have displayed in recent weeks.

At this time, I cannot tell you the specific date or time period that “Jericho” will return to our schedule. However, in the interim, we are working on several initiatives to help introduce the show to new audiences. This includes re-broadcasting “Jericho” on CBS this summer, streaming episodes and clips from these episodes across the CBS Audience Network (online), releasing the first season DVD on September 25 and continuing the story of Jericho in the digital world until the new episodes return. We will let you know specifics when we have them so you can pass them on.

On behalf of everyone at CBS, thank you for expressing your support of “Jericho” in such an extraordinary manner. Your protest was creative, sustained and very thoughtful and respectful in tone. You made a difference.

Sincerely,
Nina Tassler
President, CBS Entertainment

P.S. Please stop sending us nuts :)

Flowerbed

Here are a few images from our flowerbed. T has been working on the flowerbed since we moved to our current house a few years ago.


Johnny Jumpups


Anemone

Hummingbird visit

About a week ago I purchased a hummingbird feeder for our backyard deck not knowing if a hummingbird would actually show up. Well, it worked! Saturday afternoon I saw a hummingbird around the feeder and this morning it returned. I was able to take a few photos of the hummingbird as it was hovering near the feeder. The photo is a bit fuzzy as I had to crop and zoom the image, but it's not bad for a newbie!

NUTS For Jericho Update

According to NUTSONLINE they have now shipped close to 34,000 lbs of peanuts to CBS. In addition, the site has reached $10,000 for the Greensburg, Kansas Rebuilding Fund.



Buy a Nuts For Jericho t-shirt and all proceeds go to the Greensburg, Kansas Rebuilding Fund.

Yard work around the homestead...

This past weekend we did a lot of work around the yard. We removed more sod from the area of expansion, laid down bags of mulch to create two walkways and planted some veggies. The garden, which resides in the back of our house, has grown from 10 x 10 to about 12 x 12 (less lawn to mown!). In addition to the rhubarb plant, we've planted tomatoes, onions, beans, pumpkins, and a variety of herbs.


In the front yard along the driveway my wife has been working on a perennial flowerbed since we moved to our current home almost 2 1/2 years ago.


Early yesterday evening after taking the above photo I noticed a butterfly hovering around the chives. I sat patiently next to the chives and was able to take this photo:

BBQ and Birds

Yesterday I was a friend's house for a barbeque and had an excellent view of my first Ruby-throated Hummingbird hovering around a shrub. In addition I saw a male and female House Finch perched on top of an evergreen tree.


(found this nice photo on flickr)

Free Wi-Fi at St. Paul Libraries!

This is sweet...You can now get free wi-fi by visiting your nearest St. Paul Library.

Nuts to CBS...

Last week I posted about the demise of Jericho by CBS. I noticed that the wave of fan mania is at full strength...Here is a partial list of articles, save Jericho sites, letter-writing campaigns, blogs, and yes the NUTS TO CBS campaign which have sent many thousands of pounds of peanuts to CBS.

http://savejericho.blogspot.com/
http://www.myspace.com/savejerichonow
http://www.syfyportal.com/news423672.html
http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?id=41626
http://www.nutsonline.com/jericho
http://www.jericholives.com/
http://mediabiz.blogs.cnnmoney.com/2007/05/21/angry-jericho-fans-think-cbs-is-nuts
http://banjosworld.blogspot.com/2007/05/update-save-jericho-letter-writing.html


Boxes of peanuts ready to be shipped to CBS.

Female Red-winged Blackbird Sighting

Saw a female red-winged blackbird at our neighborhood swamp (really a drainange pond). Here is an image of the female Red-winged Blackbird:



With the exception of the Northern Cardinal, House Finch, and Dark-eye Junco, it's interesting to note that most of our bird sightings thus far have been male and not female birds.

Things You Can Do With Google

Ran into this article at Lifehack.org about things you can do with Google. In addition to math, you can now get stock quotes and the latest weather forecast by typing for example weather: 55406.

New Hobby...Birding

Since early March I have been taking up birding as a new hobby. My interest was due in large part because my youngest liked watching (Black-Capped Chickadee is his fav) and feeding birds in our back yard. It is great fun to be able to identify the different birds that hang out in our part of south-central Minnesota.

Thus far we have been able to identify these birds in our back yard:
Black-capped Chickadee
House Finch
Dark-Eye Junco
Common Grackle
Flicker Woodpecker (the only woodpecker that likes to feed from the ground)
Brown-headed Cowbird
Blue Jay
Northern Cardinal
Mourning Dove
Robin
House Wren
White-Capped Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Downy Woodpecker
White-Throated Sparrow
Brown Creeper
Cedar Waxwing (a flock outside work window)
Chipping Sparrow

The next thing I have been trying to do is to recognize bird songs. A great resource I discovered is the Macaulay Library of Animal Sounds.

Jericho gone?!?

I've been reading a number of post that one of my fav shows, Jericho, has been cancelled by evil CBS. Here is a link... I think that CBS did viewers a great disservice when they decided to put Jericho on 6 or maybe 8 weeks hiatus. Which super-duper brain at CBS thought that up that idea should be... By the time Jericho returned most viewers had forgotten about the show. ABC learned it's lesson with LOST and now has committed to have 3 more season of LOST each running 16 weeks at a time without a silly hiatus.

Another Free Wi-Fi Sighting

It is now possible to get an oil change and check your e-mail at our local auto repair shop...Just saw a sign proudly announcing a new plasma TV and free wi-fi. Speaking of autos, I recently noticed that my van was keyed. Yep, someone decided to scratch the side of my van for no apparent reason. Was it racism? I am Asian after all. Maybe I was just unlucky to park next to someone who had a bad day? Did I cut someone off while driving to Target? Maybe I'm just a baaad driver and the 'keyer' decided that something had to be done about my poor driving skills.

Here is a photo of the keyed area...

$40

This past Saturday I dropped off an old tv, vcr, dvd player, and Mac Plus (all broken) at a local Earth Day event. It cost me $40 to get rid of those items which have been sitting in my garage for far too long...Make every day Earth Day...Remember to Reuse, Reduce, Recyle!

T-mobile phone arrives

(could not resist)


The t-mobile phone I ordered the 1st of May arrived this afternoon. I was quite surprise that the 2 to 4 business day shipping time was actually met. Once the new phone arrive the the sim card was immediately removed from the old phone and inserted into the new one...Whamo, the new phone works!

New car, soon?!?

It's becoming more and more painful to have one car! This conflict, that conflict, waiting for this ride or that ride, asking relatives to use their car...this is getting old! I thought that I could hold off on the second car for another year but it looks like this summer will be the moment of truth! We've been a one car family for a loooong time and have tried avoiding a second car by carpooling, bumming rides, and taking the bus...

Here is a quick list of potential second cars based on budget:
Honda Fit: (33 and 38 mpg) heard there is alooong waiting list :(
Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe: (30 and 36 mpg)
Mazda 3: (26 and 33 mpg)
Kia Rio5: (35 and 38 mpg ...auto trans)
Saturn Ion: (~24 and 32 mpg)
VW Rabbit: ( 22 and 30 mpg) Why is this lower than the above?

Note: no hybrid due to high cost of acquiring one, even a used vehicle.

Wi-Fi and more

On the way to my rehab session via the bus I saw a huge sign for free wi-fi at a local laundromat. It is amazing to see how wi-fi has become institutionalized to the point where a person can check their e-mail while doing laundry.

Maybe not...

Just kidding! Lately I have been obessing about cell phones my oldest is not happy w/ her phone. After trying it out I understand her frustration -- that Nokia 6010 has the worse UI and the buttons stink. I've been looking for a new (upgrade from her evil Nokia) cell phone and have settled on the Samsung t319 from T-mobile. I find that the t-mobile prepaid phone works the best for our family. I just can't stand the monthly cell phone bill so I got rid of it last year and switched to t-mobile prepaid plan and have been very happy!

Starting over...

Well after a looong absence I am about to blog again. Maybe this time I'll keep it going!