I thought, before things go too far, that I would let it be known that my wife is missing. Nothing to be alarmed about, but just in case, I wanted to get this on the record. Don't want anyone suspecting dear old Ken. Especially since I have been moving some dirt out of the crawl-space/tunnel with a wheelbarrow. That has nothing to do with anything other than I wanted to clear some of the dirt out before I put the lawn furniture down there for the winter. If only we lived in a climate where we could just leave the stuff out all year round.
Last week-end we went to Toronto to help with moving Emma and family to new digs. Suhitha's parents, Kumari(mother) and Nalaka(father), also were helping and had their mini-van, too. These people worked their hind quarters off. It's no wonder they are so successful in life. The "kids" new house is very nice. Older, but in good shape. The rooms are large and have nice(to me) wood floors. There is a front and back yard with grass. There is a parkette very nearby. The neighborhood is a mixture of younger families in condos and older people in houses, broadly speaking. For details, check Facebook, if you are interested.
Nalaka and Kumari left Monday afternoon. There was a cricket game he wanted to see. I left shortly after them, bringing Luke back. Brooke was to come later. Not that day, but whenever. Since their phone service wasn't in yet, I couldn't call and check on her. I really wanted to but couldn't. Please print out and save a copy of this, just in case.
I got home Monday night and Brooke hasn't shown up yet. It's Friday. I'm not worried yet because with Brooke you estimate how long it will take her to do something, double that and then double that again.
I really, really hope she is all right. Who would edit my copy? I think I'll get drunk and listen to Conway Twitty, George Jones etc. It's funny though, I've been doing some strange things. Digging in the tunnel and I got my air mattress out of the garage to see if I could fix the leak in it. The last time I was with Brooke we slept on an air mattress together.
P.S. Just forget what I said about printing this out.
Hey, how about those Tigers. I watched them close out the series with Oakland last night.
Friday, October 12, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Computer virus
I'm no expert on computer viruses but lately I've been forced to learn.
I have a laptop that I love. I bought it on ebay and it came with a nice package of software on it, including Windows 7 Basic. That's the first version of Windows that I've used past XP Professional.
It was working just great. A few months ago, I can't say just when, an extra icon appeared at the bottom of my screen. It looks like a shield,*suggesting protection. I'm not sure it was there all the time but as time passed it was there more often and would flash as if there was some urgency.
This is a virus that mimics a security program. The virus is called Live Security Platinum. It runs a fake scan on your computer and shows a fake report that says you have 38 infections. Trojan horses, maleware etc. Of course you are fearful and feel vulnerable.
The program will not let you get on the internet.(says a program is trying to send your credit card numbers out to a third party) OMG. If you want to get rid of all the problems you must register you copy (which it claims is a demonstration copy)
You would use your credit card to pay for it.
In my case, I would think that maybe the Live Security Platinum was part of what came with the computer.
Welcome to the war. I hope you never experience one of these, but I'm feeling we all will. My advice is to take precautions ahead of time. There is a good article on line from the university of Minnesota, which is written for students there, so they can avoid some or all of these problems. One piece of advice is to make a user account on your machine and work from that. Otherwise you will be the administrator and viruses can attack in that mode.
My nephew, Don Miller, is a computer guy. He's worked for computer companies all his life. He has trained me in removing viruses. I am awaiting hardware and software to continue my battle against these malicious programs.
I don't know the penalties for hacking but they should be harsh, dammit.
Bye for now. I'm watching the Ryder Cup.
*After further reading it seems the shield icon is a legitimate part of Win7. I'm still thinking that that nasty virus is still lurking around though.
I have a laptop that I love. I bought it on ebay and it came with a nice package of software on it, including Windows 7 Basic. That's the first version of Windows that I've used past XP Professional.
It was working just great. A few months ago, I can't say just when, an extra icon appeared at the bottom of my screen. It looks like a shield,*suggesting protection. I'm not sure it was there all the time but as time passed it was there more often and would flash as if there was some urgency.
This is a virus that mimics a security program. The virus is called Live Security Platinum. It runs a fake scan on your computer and shows a fake report that says you have 38 infections. Trojan horses, maleware etc. Of course you are fearful and feel vulnerable.
The program will not let you get on the internet.(says a program is trying to send your credit card numbers out to a third party) OMG. If you want to get rid of all the problems you must register you copy (which it claims is a demonstration copy)
You would use your credit card to pay for it.
In my case, I would think that maybe the Live Security Platinum was part of what came with the computer.
Welcome to the war. I hope you never experience one of these, but I'm feeling we all will. My advice is to take precautions ahead of time. There is a good article on line from the university of Minnesota, which is written for students there, so they can avoid some or all of these problems. One piece of advice is to make a user account on your machine and work from that. Otherwise you will be the administrator and viruses can attack in that mode.
My nephew, Don Miller, is a computer guy. He's worked for computer companies all his life. He has trained me in removing viruses. I am awaiting hardware and software to continue my battle against these malicious programs.
I don't know the penalties for hacking but they should be harsh, dammit.
Bye for now. I'm watching the Ryder Cup.
*After further reading it seems the shield icon is a legitimate part of Win7. I'm still thinking that that nasty virus is still lurking around though.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Huge Yard Sale
We finally pulled the trigger and had a yard sale. I say yard sale because we didn't use the garage. I didn't want anyone in there.
I had done my research on how to have a successful sale but Brooke hadn't read them so they had minimal impact. One useful tip was to have a fanny pack to carry your money in. Of course you want good signs and enough change to get started. Another good one, don't badmouth your items. One thing I read that I thought was good, was to think about your goals before you start, and let everyone who is helping know what those goals are. Mainly, are you trying to clear out your house or are you trying to make money.
I'm not sure that we really defined that to ourselves. I'd say eighty percent was getting rid of things and twenty percent higher priced things to make money. The great thing was we sold almost all of the bigger items. We sold a set of chairs that I had been storing in the garage for ten years. I also sold two dressers. One was from the basement and was small, cute and painted...$50. The other was an Eastlake style that Brooke had picked up at a church sale for $60. I tried selling it on ebay but didn't get much interest. It just happened that a young man stopped by and was very interested. He was going to get it for his mother. I was showing it to him and at the same time, an antiques dealer from Montana was looking it over too. The antiques dealer, graciously took over the presentation. He made many of the points that I had made and in the end said the price was fair for that piece. That sold for $325.
We had some items that we didn't know what they were until the customers showed us. The antiques guy, again, bought a little wooden box Brooke had collected because there was a little wooden bird that popped up when the box was opened. It was a Japanese cigarette dispenser. Another item was in the shape of a rectangle with alternating plastic geometric pieces. This turned out to be a Rubik's toy that you could make into various shapes...a cross, snake etc.
There were a lot of little vignettes with people, families, experiences. People were generally chatty and in a good mood. We had a lot of fun ourselves and worked well together.
We sold a sterling silver ring for 25cents. Brass candle holders 25 cents each. Many other bargains if you looked carefully. I served cold watermelon on day one and cold strawberries on day two. How many yard sales serve hors d'oeuvres ? Do you know what an hors d'oeuvre is? So, these weren't technically hors d'oeuvres.
A kid of about 13 who had Down's Syndrome showed up with his sister. The sister was probably 16 to 18. The boy's name was Patrick. He was wearing a t-shirt that read, "I DECIDED TO PUT MYSELF IN CHARGE." We sold him a necklace with a moon on it. He liked it so much he gave me a hug and Brooke a hug. Later Brooke gave him another necklace with a starfish on it. He may have been our most satisfied customer.
I don't know if we could duplicate this sale. I doubt it. The weather was perfect, other people were having sales and there were other activities(like the Crim) that were going on.
This was the perfect way for Brooke and me to spend our anniversary.
I had done my research on how to have a successful sale but Brooke hadn't read them so they had minimal impact. One useful tip was to have a fanny pack to carry your money in. Of course you want good signs and enough change to get started. Another good one, don't badmouth your items. One thing I read that I thought was good, was to think about your goals before you start, and let everyone who is helping know what those goals are. Mainly, are you trying to clear out your house or are you trying to make money.
I'm not sure that we really defined that to ourselves. I'd say eighty percent was getting rid of things and twenty percent higher priced things to make money. The great thing was we sold almost all of the bigger items. We sold a set of chairs that I had been storing in the garage for ten years. I also sold two dressers. One was from the basement and was small, cute and painted...$50. The other was an Eastlake style that Brooke had picked up at a church sale for $60. I tried selling it on ebay but didn't get much interest. It just happened that a young man stopped by and was very interested. He was going to get it for his mother. I was showing it to him and at the same time, an antiques dealer from Montana was looking it over too. The antiques dealer, graciously took over the presentation. He made many of the points that I had made and in the end said the price was fair for that piece. That sold for $325.
We had some items that we didn't know what they were until the customers showed us. The antiques guy, again, bought a little wooden box Brooke had collected because there was a little wooden bird that popped up when the box was opened. It was a Japanese cigarette dispenser. Another item was in the shape of a rectangle with alternating plastic geometric pieces. This turned out to be a Rubik's toy that you could make into various shapes...a cross, snake etc.
There were a lot of little vignettes with people, families, experiences. People were generally chatty and in a good mood. We had a lot of fun ourselves and worked well together.
We sold a sterling silver ring for 25cents. Brass candle holders 25 cents each. Many other bargains if you looked carefully. I served cold watermelon on day one and cold strawberries on day two. How many yard sales serve hors d'oeuvres ? Do you know what an hors d'oeuvre is? So, these weren't technically hors d'oeuvres.
A kid of about 13 who had Down's Syndrome showed up with his sister. The sister was probably 16 to 18. The boy's name was Patrick. He was wearing a t-shirt that read, "I DECIDED TO PUT MYSELF IN CHARGE." We sold him a necklace with a moon on it. He liked it so much he gave me a hug and Brooke a hug. Later Brooke gave him another necklace with a starfish on it. He may have been our most satisfied customer.
I don't know if we could duplicate this sale. I doubt it. The weather was perfect, other people were having sales and there were other activities(like the Crim) that were going on.
This was the perfect way for Brooke and me to spend our anniversary.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
The Lamson Cup
My brother Tom and his wife Rita spend their summers in Michigan and their Winters in Viero Beach Florida. Tom is 11 years older than Kay and I. So in the family dynamics he's part of the first family.(explained in another blog)
He called about a week ago to see if I'd like to play golf on the 14th. I told him I had only played early in the season and not since, but I'd love to play. I mentioned the lack of play only so he would know I might be an embarrassment on the course not to gain any betting advantage. He said,"Then this will be for the Lamson Trophy." Years ago I bought an old bowling trophy at Salvation Army and made it into what I called the Lamson Cup. I thought we could play each year for it and that would assure that we would at least play golf once a year. After a few years we let our Brother-in-law Harold in on the competition and he always won so we quit playing for it. Now, Harold has passed on so we can restart the tradition. That was the joke. We really just played for the chance to get together.
I got on line to find a couple of golf jokes so in case the opportunity arose I'd be prepared. When I arrived at Tyrone Hills, Tom was already there and had got a golf cart and was practicing putting. We greeted on the practice green and I practiced a few putts myself. I had a different putter I had never tried before. Soon we were teeing off on number one and catching up on each others health and families etc. The golf was pretty good and it was just a beautiful day. On the 12th green you can look out over the course and I took a few seconds to take it in.
Tom had brought along a small insulated bag. When I saw it I thought he might have a couple of beers in there. It's a sign of our age though that he had a couple of waters and two Five Hour Energy drinks. He had bought them to try out because Rita had been in an accident awhile back and had very little energy while recuperating. She refused to try them so we each had one. I think they affected my game negatively. I don't think I'll use it again.
After teeing off on 13, Tom noticed some mushrooms out front of the tee. We checked to see if they were non-poisonous and they were. We picked a nice batch of them and later found a few more. I told Tom that I remembered picking mushrooms with our Dad. We would walk though the cow pastures and find the same variety there. Tom said now he would have to buy an expensive steak to use his free mushrooms on.
We said goodby and promised to play again before the weather gets cold this Fall. I'm really glad we found the mushrooms. It made it more than golf.
I fried up my mushrooms and mixed them with some left over ground beef that we had had the day before as taco meat. There was more than I could eat. I hope Tom enjoyed his mushrooms. I'm sure he did. He was so happy to find them and was really anticipating dinner.
He called about a week ago to see if I'd like to play golf on the 14th. I told him I had only played early in the season and not since, but I'd love to play. I mentioned the lack of play only so he would know I might be an embarrassment on the course not to gain any betting advantage. He said,"Then this will be for the Lamson Trophy." Years ago I bought an old bowling trophy at Salvation Army and made it into what I called the Lamson Cup. I thought we could play each year for it and that would assure that we would at least play golf once a year. After a few years we let our Brother-in-law Harold in on the competition and he always won so we quit playing for it. Now, Harold has passed on so we can restart the tradition. That was the joke. We really just played for the chance to get together.
I got on line to find a couple of golf jokes so in case the opportunity arose I'd be prepared. When I arrived at Tyrone Hills, Tom was already there and had got a golf cart and was practicing putting. We greeted on the practice green and I practiced a few putts myself. I had a different putter I had never tried before. Soon we were teeing off on number one and catching up on each others health and families etc. The golf was pretty good and it was just a beautiful day. On the 12th green you can look out over the course and I took a few seconds to take it in.
Tom had brought along a small insulated bag. When I saw it I thought he might have a couple of beers in there. It's a sign of our age though that he had a couple of waters and two Five Hour Energy drinks. He had bought them to try out because Rita had been in an accident awhile back and had very little energy while recuperating. She refused to try them so we each had one. I think they affected my game negatively. I don't think I'll use it again.
After teeing off on 13, Tom noticed some mushrooms out front of the tee. We checked to see if they were non-poisonous and they were. We picked a nice batch of them and later found a few more. I told Tom that I remembered picking mushrooms with our Dad. We would walk though the cow pastures and find the same variety there. Tom said now he would have to buy an expensive steak to use his free mushrooms on.
We said goodby and promised to play again before the weather gets cold this Fall. I'm really glad we found the mushrooms. It made it more than golf.
I fried up my mushrooms and mixed them with some left over ground beef that we had had the day before as taco meat. There was more than I could eat. I hope Tom enjoyed his mushrooms. I'm sure he did. He was so happy to find them and was really anticipating dinner.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Late Night Catch Up
Just thought I'd write something here. There is a lot going on right now. We just spent a week in California with some friends that moved out there about 12 years ago. They put us up for a week and this was after their daughter had married on Sunday. We were treated like royalty, or very nearly so.
California changes like everything does. If you haven't been there in 9 or 10 years, you will notice differences. Part of it may be because you haved changed in that interval. It seemed a little harder to get to the beach. It seems about half the cars are Toyotas. There are not as many old VWs around. It was quite easy to find a tennis court to play on. I noticed there weren't many bumper stickers on the cars. This was Orange County so there may be restrictions on that. The vegetation is still beautiful and the mountains. The sun and cool breeze are the same.
I was a bit out of sorts for the trip. Just difficulties in adjusting to change plus a sore mouth that lingered the whole week.
It was fun though. We did things, saw things, learned a little and had some laughs. We came back on Saturday.
Our house is in upheaval because we are preparing for a garage sale. There was no Sophie to greet us when we returned. We had her "put down" before we left. The garden is doing well, especially the pumpkins. We had our first tomatoes today.
I sincerely hope that you are healthy and happy.
California changes like everything does. If you haven't been there in 9 or 10 years, you will notice differences. Part of it may be because you haved changed in that interval. It seemed a little harder to get to the beach. It seems about half the cars are Toyotas. There are not as many old VWs around. It was quite easy to find a tennis court to play on. I noticed there weren't many bumper stickers on the cars. This was Orange County so there may be restrictions on that. The vegetation is still beautiful and the mountains. The sun and cool breeze are the same.
I was a bit out of sorts for the trip. Just difficulties in adjusting to change plus a sore mouth that lingered the whole week.
It was fun though. We did things, saw things, learned a little and had some laughs. We came back on Saturday.
Our house is in upheaval because we are preparing for a garage sale. There was no Sophie to greet us when we returned. We had her "put down" before we left. The garden is doing well, especially the pumpkins. We had our first tomatoes today.
I sincerely hope that you are healthy and happy.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Comes with the Territory
While going through some things in preparation for a garage sale, Brooke found some old letters from her Mother, Gloria. Her Mom was writing to keep her daughter up to date on what was going on in the family. I was already in the picture at that time and Brooke had been hired in Battle Creek.
One particular item of interest was the fact that a groundhog had taken residence in Percival's(an old neighbor)barn. The animal was wreaking havoc on the garden and Brooke's parents were trying to get rid of it. Ray(Father)and Mr.Percival were taking turns sitting out at the picnic table with their shotguns. Brooke's brother Matt was involved also. I don't know if they were ever successful...like Luke and I were.
When we moved in this house, Percival's grand daughter was living in his old house. She and her husband were restoring the "barn" and that's when the current groundhog moved over to our yard. First, the critter dug a den under the grape vines. (Maybe that's why some of them died off?) Then he moved to a fabulous place, under the shed.
It was a lot of fun to read the accounts in this connection to the past. Gloria's personality shines through and will be shared with family members. Wish she could still be with us in person.
It might be a good idea to send a letter now and then to a friend or family member. It is something they are more likely to keep and maybe years from now it will be reread and appreciated in a much different way than it was originally intended.
One particular item of interest was the fact that a groundhog had taken residence in Percival's(an old neighbor)barn. The animal was wreaking havoc on the garden and Brooke's parents were trying to get rid of it. Ray(Father)and Mr.Percival were taking turns sitting out at the picnic table with their shotguns. Brooke's brother Matt was involved also. I don't know if they were ever successful...like Luke and I were.
When we moved in this house, Percival's grand daughter was living in his old house. She and her husband were restoring the "barn" and that's when the current groundhog moved over to our yard. First, the critter dug a den under the grape vines. (Maybe that's why some of them died off?) Then he moved to a fabulous place, under the shed.
It was a lot of fun to read the accounts in this connection to the past. Gloria's personality shines through and will be shared with family members. Wish she could still be with us in person.
It might be a good idea to send a letter now and then to a friend or family member. It is something they are more likely to keep and maybe years from now it will be reread and appreciated in a much different way than it was originally intended.
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Groundhog Day
One of my favorite movies. Today though was a different story.
Brooke had just left for a wedding in Detroit and I had a list of things to do so we would be ready to leave for Toronto in the morning. I was upstairs looking for something when I heard Luke (my dog) bark. Just a single or double bark and then silence. Luke is like an alarm. Sometimes he just barks and you don't know why. There is a reason and frequently it's just a loud noise like a car door or a shoe dropping to the floor. No one was here so I carried on with my task. Another bark...if only I was smart enough to interpret this unusual bark! I looked out the back door and saw a groundhog looking like he/she was getting ready to claim our hot tub as their new living quarters.
Just recently I had put some moth balls in the den that had been established several years ago under the storage shed.I had heard that it was a good way to keep unwanted animals away. I thought, "Hey, maybe that worked. Now, what?" I let Luke go out to chase off the groundhog.
Luke has no fear when it comes to confronting critters. He has killed a skunk, a baby rabbit and a squirrel that I know of. He chases rabbits and squirrels but has little interest in cats. I thought he would chase the groundhog away but after a minute or so the animal felt trapped and was in a standoff with Luke barking mere inches from it at the base of the cherry tree.
Concerned that Luke might get bitten, I tried calling the dog off but there was no way he was backing down. I have three bows in the garage and a pathetic assortment of arrows. I grabbed a bow and an old wooden arrow with a broad head on it. This should make short work of the intruder. I waited for a good shot from about ten feet away. I thought there was no way I would hit Luke. The arrow flew about a foot over the groundhog. If you've never shot a bow, that is a common occurrence on your first shot. I returned to the garage to get more arrows. I chose a very similar arrow for my second shot with similar results. Closer though, so I was zeroing in. The third shot was a charm, an aluminum shaft with a target tip. I felt no remorse for shooting the rodent. Luke found his chance to go for the throat and did so.
When the groundhog was dead Luke started carrying it off toward the front of the house. Was he going to eat it?! I called him back and took him in the house. I left the carcass out in the yard.
Back to preparing for our trip to Canada where we hope to see Gabe play T-ball and soccer. Ciao.
Brooke had just left for a wedding in Detroit and I had a list of things to do so we would be ready to leave for Toronto in the morning. I was upstairs looking for something when I heard Luke (my dog) bark. Just a single or double bark and then silence. Luke is like an alarm. Sometimes he just barks and you don't know why. There is a reason and frequently it's just a loud noise like a car door or a shoe dropping to the floor. No one was here so I carried on with my task. Another bark...if only I was smart enough to interpret this unusual bark! I looked out the back door and saw a groundhog looking like he/she was getting ready to claim our hot tub as their new living quarters.
Just recently I had put some moth balls in the den that had been established several years ago under the storage shed.I had heard that it was a good way to keep unwanted animals away. I thought, "Hey, maybe that worked. Now, what?" I let Luke go out to chase off the groundhog.
Luke has no fear when it comes to confronting critters. He has killed a skunk, a baby rabbit and a squirrel that I know of. He chases rabbits and squirrels but has little interest in cats. I thought he would chase the groundhog away but after a minute or so the animal felt trapped and was in a standoff with Luke barking mere inches from it at the base of the cherry tree.
Concerned that Luke might get bitten, I tried calling the dog off but there was no way he was backing down. I have three bows in the garage and a pathetic assortment of arrows. I grabbed a bow and an old wooden arrow with a broad head on it. This should make short work of the intruder. I waited for a good shot from about ten feet away. I thought there was no way I would hit Luke. The arrow flew about a foot over the groundhog. If you've never shot a bow, that is a common occurrence on your first shot. I returned to the garage to get more arrows. I chose a very similar arrow for my second shot with similar results. Closer though, so I was zeroing in. The third shot was a charm, an aluminum shaft with a target tip. I felt no remorse for shooting the rodent. Luke found his chance to go for the throat and did so.
When the groundhog was dead Luke started carrying it off toward the front of the house. Was he going to eat it?! I called him back and took him in the house. I left the carcass out in the yard.
Back to preparing for our trip to Canada where we hope to see Gabe play T-ball and soccer. Ciao.
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