This year the Cardinal Regime is going to the Rose Bowl parade.
The local band from Golden Valley High School was choosen to represent California Bands at the annual Pasadena Rose Bowl Parade. Its a great honor. It is an amazing experience for a huge amount of students that don't usually get out of our own community. Our community has many families that can only be described at impoverished. For the band to raise money and organize the trip to the Rose Bowl is pretty phenomenal especially considering the economic conditions. The Rose Bowl committee has chosen fewer bands to participate this year. They want the whole thing to conclude within the allotted time.
They are also trying to make sure that all the entrants have a good chance to be highlighted on their time in the sun.
One of my students, Pao (pronounced Pow) is a trumpet player in the band. This band has the most beautiful tone. The band leader, Geg Christiansen is a horn man himself. Pao is a freshman hmong student. He was born in the United States. My freshman students were born in 1994. This is pretty hard to understand because I think of 1994 as just a little while ago. This is most certainly an artifact of old age.. Ha!
Pao's extended family got together and at graduation (from Junior High) got him a really nice trumpet. He represents the pride of many members of his family. All dressed up in red and gold with white pants he represents the pride of this community. This community has really put out to get his band down there to participate.
Greg the band director has only once before had the honor to take a Merced Band to Pasadena. It was in late 80's. I had a student in that band too. He was not such a good player so he was held in backup in case a student fell ill marching down the street in competition. The band was from the one and only school at that time from Merced. It was nick named the Merced Marching 100. We used to laugh at that designation. The reality it is more like the Marching 260. They were marching on the street about 160. They also had backups in every category. When they went to the Rose Parade, they pulled in from their ranks alumni from a couple of years back to inflate their appearance. I do not believe that this will happen this year.
The individual fund raising for each member to go to this event was over 700 dollars. That is too much cash to bring in stand ins in alumni and dress them to participate.
So as you watch the Rose Bowl Parade look for the short Hmong trumpet player from Golden Valley. It just may be my student Pao!
Have a safe New Year's Eve tonight
Love
Pat
A written expression of a 65year old plus retired Speech and Language Specialist in the Central Valley of California.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Life's Lessons- Marley and Me
Sue and I went to see the Movie Marley and Me.
Its got some good drama,and believe it or not Annison can act.
IT follows the progression of a writer/reporter and his wife and eventually his kids as they relate to a Golden Retriver named Marley.
If you love the jerk of the tear, this one is for you. I am one usually fond of this kind of movie. The tear jerk was a little too much this time.
The kids are sweet. The story of the reporter vs the columnist is okay. The story of the dog defying training was cool. There were several variations on it. The life story as we progress and our animals age faster than we do was pretty hard. I really hate that trip to the vet.
So you know what is going to happen in the end.
Sue and I both left the theatre in tears, as did everyone else there too. If you are a dog lover you will really be hit.
Sue said that if she knew it was going to be like that she probablly would not have wanted to see it... yeah I have heard that one before.
: ) Pat
Its got some good drama,and believe it or not Annison can act.
IT follows the progression of a writer/reporter and his wife and eventually his kids as they relate to a Golden Retriver named Marley.
If you love the jerk of the tear, this one is for you. I am one usually fond of this kind of movie. The tear jerk was a little too much this time.
The kids are sweet. The story of the reporter vs the columnist is okay. The story of the dog defying training was cool. There were several variations on it. The life story as we progress and our animals age faster than we do was pretty hard. I really hate that trip to the vet.
So you know what is going to happen in the end.
Sue and I both left the theatre in tears, as did everyone else there too. If you are a dog lover you will really be hit.
Sue said that if she knew it was going to be like that she probablly would not have wanted to see it... yeah I have heard that one before.
: ) Pat
Save the Data..er Your files
What looks like a new toy is really a lifesaver.
My book, a one terabyte hard drive by Western Digital, followed me home from Costco the other day. It is quiet and will save my proverbial a@#. At least that is the plan.
Only 134 dollars after instant rebate, it sits 6 and quarter inches tall beside my mac. My internal hard drive has been giving off some pretty funky sounds recently.So if it does.. I will be ready.
One word of caution, all hard drives will crash and die.. its only a matter of time. While replacing the the hard drive on the IMac 20 incher is not a big deal, losing all of the movies and Itunes library on it would be more than a little tragic. Its amazing.. I let my reunion pages expire a couple of years ago off of GoDaddy, thinking that I saved them on the hard drive and pull them up when needed. Well, the hard drive died before the website could be redone.. so no resources to draw upon, no internet FTP to pull the files from.. This year's reunion website for the class of 1968, El Camino High had to be resembled from scratch and I had to relearn the program that it was written in.. Adobe GoLive. And granted, it was better.. mainly because of the advancements in technology and that we are no longer in dial up mode. Thank goodness for Lynda.com and the ability to pull info from the web to put it together. I had to rely on others to send me scans of their photos from the past reunions and strip them out of the emails and format them for the current site. All of this could have been avoided if by hard drive had not died. It was a big for that time 56 gig hard drive. But don't feel smug, it was fewer years than it would seem. if your internal hard drive is less than 250 gigs this could be you. You are operating on borrowed time.
Go out and get one of those bigger hard drives and back up your data. Or as the dental hygenist would say about flossing, only floss the teeth you want to save.. oh that is bad. Only back up the data you want to save... Sorry for the metaphor.. but only I can talk to you this way..
Saving is better than recovery...
Pat
My book, a one terabyte hard drive by Western Digital, followed me home from Costco the other day. It is quiet and will save my proverbial a@#. At least that is the plan.
Only 134 dollars after instant rebate, it sits 6 and quarter inches tall beside my mac. My internal hard drive has been giving off some pretty funky sounds recently.So if it does.. I will be ready.
One word of caution, all hard drives will crash and die.. its only a matter of time. While replacing the the hard drive on the IMac 20 incher is not a big deal, losing all of the movies and Itunes library on it would be more than a little tragic. Its amazing.. I let my reunion pages expire a couple of years ago off of GoDaddy, thinking that I saved them on the hard drive and pull them up when needed. Well, the hard drive died before the website could be redone.. so no resources to draw upon, no internet FTP to pull the files from.. This year's reunion website for the class of 1968, El Camino High had to be resembled from scratch and I had to relearn the program that it was written in.. Adobe GoLive. And granted, it was better.. mainly because of the advancements in technology and that we are no longer in dial up mode. Thank goodness for Lynda.com and the ability to pull info from the web to put it together. I had to rely on others to send me scans of their photos from the past reunions and strip them out of the emails and format them for the current site. All of this could have been avoided if by hard drive had not died. It was a big for that time 56 gig hard drive. But don't feel smug, it was fewer years than it would seem. if your internal hard drive is less than 250 gigs this could be you. You are operating on borrowed time.
Go out and get one of those bigger hard drives and back up your data. Or as the dental hygenist would say about flossing, only floss the teeth you want to save.. oh that is bad. Only back up the data you want to save... Sorry for the metaphor.. but only I can talk to you this way..
Saving is better than recovery...
Pat
19 second pull
Its important to have a "coffee person running your Starbucks.
My double short cap on my walk today had acceptable foam. After 2 years of going to the same Starbucks, they are getting the foam right. The manager asked me after drinking it if the foam was okay. I replied to him that it was.. but the coffee tasted better.
Some folks feel that if the drink is going to end in an espresso based beverage, it doesn't matter a whole lot whether the coffee tastes good in the drink. It just has to come across as bold and strong. Well friends there is a difference. A slopped up coffee pull can make your drink taste rather skanky. The result is a very bitter less than flavorful cup of coffee.
The manager revealed to me today that he has set the machines at this Starbucks, when he is there to pull at a "slower" than Starbucks recommended speed. The usual setting for an espresso pull at a Starbucks is around 12 to 16 seconds. This is the Starbucks company recommendations. Mine today was set at 19. The manager suggested that I request a 19 second pull for the cap to taste the way I liked it. I suppose that this is the major difference between Pete's and Starbucks. It might be the espresso blend but I suspect that it is also the length of time the pull takes.
My friend in Italy, Franco, says that he hates to get espresso coffee products in the US because the add so much hot water to the pulls. If you do them yourself at home, their is a point in time where the coffee maker just fills up the shot with hot water to even out the pull. He always wants them to stop at that point, let the hot water run into the drain and give him the straight shot. If the machine more slowly produces the shot, there is a chance that more of the oils that give it flavor will go into the cup instead of staying in the grounds..
So what do think about that? My professional baristas?
Love
Pat
My double short cap on my walk today had acceptable foam. After 2 years of going to the same Starbucks, they are getting the foam right. The manager asked me after drinking it if the foam was okay. I replied to him that it was.. but the coffee tasted better.
Some folks feel that if the drink is going to end in an espresso based beverage, it doesn't matter a whole lot whether the coffee tastes good in the drink. It just has to come across as bold and strong. Well friends there is a difference. A slopped up coffee pull can make your drink taste rather skanky. The result is a very bitter less than flavorful cup of coffee.
The manager revealed to me today that he has set the machines at this Starbucks, when he is there to pull at a "slower" than Starbucks recommended speed. The usual setting for an espresso pull at a Starbucks is around 12 to 16 seconds. This is the Starbucks company recommendations. Mine today was set at 19. The manager suggested that I request a 19 second pull for the cap to taste the way I liked it. I suppose that this is the major difference between Pete's and Starbucks. It might be the espresso blend but I suspect that it is also the length of time the pull takes.
My friend in Italy, Franco, says that he hates to get espresso coffee products in the US because the add so much hot water to the pulls. If you do them yourself at home, their is a point in time where the coffee maker just fills up the shot with hot water to even out the pull. He always wants them to stop at that point, let the hot water run into the drain and give him the straight shot. If the machine more slowly produces the shot, there is a chance that more of the oils that give it flavor will go into the cup instead of staying in the grounds..
So what do think about that? My professional baristas?
Love
Pat
Monday, December 29, 2008
Wasting a Day on Football
After all of these years I should know better.
Sunday I wasted a whole day watching football.. granted a High Def screen and signal are compelling.. but..
The 10 o'clock start and the raiders beat the Tampa bay "men in pewter pants." It pretty well kicked the door down on the chances of Tampa Bay doing anything in the playoffs. Its a little sad because their quarterback Garcia has a very compelling piece to him. He is not one of those superman quaterbacks 6 feet four inches and 230 pounds (like the Raiders Jamarcus Russell) He is about 6 feet tall and pretty scrawny. Linzi and I were down to the interview with him after the 49ers demolished the Buffulo team composed of rookies. He had a few cuts and scrapes but he didn't have the "quarterback" presence of a Steve Young or a Montana. So I always thought that for him to succeed in NFL was really great.
The 49ers played a game that followed. Starting at 1 o'clock the 49ers worked the clock even without the major running back. They too won the game but lost the season. There were some good running plays up the middle and the teams looks a lot sharper than they did when they squeaked out a win from behind in the St. Louis stadium. The sun was shinning brightly in SF and the game was beautiful in HD.
The evening game between the broncos and the chargers was played in the San Diego. The winner would get into the playoffs the loser would be out. The ponies (the Denver Broncos in their most depreciated form) didn't have the horses in the tank. While it was an interesting game, the Chargers blew them out in the end.
So those of us on the West Coast will be hoping for the Chargers to make it through the playoffs. Arizona will also be in the playoffs.. but few people are giving the cardinals much chance against their East coast rivals.
Next week the wild card games begin. They are usually the best games of the playoffs.. but there is a time cost.. and how many diet cokes can you drink before you have to find the "facilities". At the park this could be a major issue.. as more is on the ground than hits the hole.. I know I could have gone along time without saying that..
Happy Monday.. Pat
Sunday I wasted a whole day watching football.. granted a High Def screen and signal are compelling.. but..
The 10 o'clock start and the raiders beat the Tampa bay "men in pewter pants." It pretty well kicked the door down on the chances of Tampa Bay doing anything in the playoffs. Its a little sad because their quarterback Garcia has a very compelling piece to him. He is not one of those superman quaterbacks 6 feet four inches and 230 pounds (like the Raiders Jamarcus Russell) He is about 6 feet tall and pretty scrawny. Linzi and I were down to the interview with him after the 49ers demolished the Buffulo team composed of rookies. He had a few cuts and scrapes but he didn't have the "quarterback" presence of a Steve Young or a Montana. So I always thought that for him to succeed in NFL was really great.
The 49ers played a game that followed. Starting at 1 o'clock the 49ers worked the clock even without the major running back. They too won the game but lost the season. There were some good running plays up the middle and the teams looks a lot sharper than they did when they squeaked out a win from behind in the St. Louis stadium. The sun was shinning brightly in SF and the game was beautiful in HD.
The evening game between the broncos and the chargers was played in the San Diego. The winner would get into the playoffs the loser would be out. The ponies (the Denver Broncos in their most depreciated form) didn't have the horses in the tank. While it was an interesting game, the Chargers blew them out in the end.
So those of us on the West Coast will be hoping for the Chargers to make it through the playoffs. Arizona will also be in the playoffs.. but few people are giving the cardinals much chance against their East coast rivals.
Next week the wild card games begin. They are usually the best games of the playoffs.. but there is a time cost.. and how many diet cokes can you drink before you have to find the "facilities". At the park this could be a major issue.. as more is on the ground than hits the hole.. I know I could have gone along time without saying that..
Happy Monday.. Pat
Saturday, December 27, 2008
New Photos on Flickr
Please check out the latest of the pbrownie photo stream.
There are lots of photos of making lemon shooters.. mini lemon meringue pies on top of mini phylo cups and the fun we had putting on beards and acting foolish for the camera on Christmas day.
The Christmas party was great. We missed a major person in it. Kelly had enough of pressures.. who could blame her and opted out. Renovating any part of your house is enough to make you want to sit down and cry. Let alone a phd study and a bi bay lifestyle.
I made two lasagnas. One of them used portabella mushrooms. That was a first for me. Also I made up a meat lasagna that was more like chili mac without the chili. Booth of them were successful and we had plenty of leftovers.
I also tried my had at making crustini with pesto. The pesto was really good.. made with fresh basil and olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and pine nuts. Just a little goes a long way.
Mom made a ham. It was great although there were not many ham eaters in this "going" vegetarian oriented crowd. She was glad there weren't any turkey leftovers.
Linzi and Sean invited a Christmas "orphan" from Oakland to join us. He is a ginger. See her blog for an explanation.
We all tried on funny Santa beard masks for the Christmas shot. It was a lot of fun. I added some strictly casual shots for my flickr stream that you may enjoy. A more formal shot may be referrenced in Cammie's flickr stream.
Hope you had a great one.. One thing can be said today.. it is over.
Love
Pat
There are lots of photos of making lemon shooters.. mini lemon meringue pies on top of mini phylo cups and the fun we had putting on beards and acting foolish for the camera on Christmas day.
The Christmas party was great. We missed a major person in it. Kelly had enough of pressures.. who could blame her and opted out. Renovating any part of your house is enough to make you want to sit down and cry. Let alone a phd study and a bi bay lifestyle.
I made two lasagnas. One of them used portabella mushrooms. That was a first for me. Also I made up a meat lasagna that was more like chili mac without the chili. Booth of them were successful and we had plenty of leftovers.
I also tried my had at making crustini with pesto. The pesto was really good.. made with fresh basil and olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and pine nuts. Just a little goes a long way.
Mom made a ham. It was great although there were not many ham eaters in this "going" vegetarian oriented crowd. She was glad there weren't any turkey leftovers.
Linzi and Sean invited a Christmas "orphan" from Oakland to join us. He is a ginger. See her blog for an explanation.
We all tried on funny Santa beard masks for the Christmas shot. It was a lot of fun. I added some strictly casual shots for my flickr stream that you may enjoy. A more formal shot may be referrenced in Cammie's flickr stream.
Hope you had a great one.. One thing can be said today.. it is over.
Love
Pat
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Its Crab Season!
I fondly remember a great time we had in Sebastapol with my sister Kelly. We had the girls and the local grocery store got its first special on crab.
Kelly went down and bought up. We ate those babies New England style. Spread the newspaper out on the table and have at it.
We demolished them.
This year's carb experience was not as emblematic of the great crab harvest. I bought a medium sized crab.. on sale for 3.99. and I picked and cracked the meat out. Sue and I had a crab salad sandwich apiece.
Crab salad is pretty easy. First you have to peel a crab. You get rid of its gills and its guts. Then carefully washing all the center meat and cartilage you end up with a lump of crab. You crack the legs and pull out the meat. You put all you don't eat in a container. Then immediately take the shell out to the trash. That stuff stinks.
A couple of tablespoons of mayo.. it you dare and a finely chopped up stalk of celery and you have crab salad.. yum..
Our parents had no sympathy for those that were not crab eaters. Their philosophy.. more for the rest of us..
Love to all you crab eaters out there.. go out and eat some crab!
Pat
Kelly went down and bought up. We ate those babies New England style. Spread the newspaper out on the table and have at it.
We demolished them.
This year's carb experience was not as emblematic of the great crab harvest. I bought a medium sized crab.. on sale for 3.99. and I picked and cracked the meat out. Sue and I had a crab salad sandwich apiece.
Crab salad is pretty easy. First you have to peel a crab. You get rid of its gills and its guts. Then carefully washing all the center meat and cartilage you end up with a lump of crab. You crack the legs and pull out the meat. You put all you don't eat in a container. Then immediately take the shell out to the trash. That stuff stinks.
A couple of tablespoons of mayo.. it you dare and a finely chopped up stalk of celery and you have crab salad.. yum..
Our parents had no sympathy for those that were not crab eaters. Their philosophy.. more for the rest of us..
Love to all you crab eaters out there.. go out and eat some crab!
Pat
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Santa Sez
Linzi is getting trees this year,
Today I dropped into Lowes and they had all of their bare root (As usual bagged and tagged) trees ready to go. So on the list were 1)a fig tree (black) 2)a Persimon Fuyio 3) An apricot (Blenheim). All are in full size except for the apricot.. which is semi. So Its a good start. I am hopeful about going up to Sacramento on Monday afternoon and planting them. Linzi said that she would start digging the holes today!
This afternoon we took a jaunt up to Modesto. Sue loves the thrift store up there. We did thrift store and Trader Joes. We topped it off with dinner at Olive Garden. Sue love the way the do Talipia there. I had what Sean would mostly order, tortellini. It has some braised beef and some mushrooms thrown in. I am crazy about their zuppa Toscano. That sausage potato soup is hard to beat. Sue likes the salad. She even order a glass of wine tonight. She said that she is starting to like the red wines... Just a sip or two. I had a sip or two (I was the driver) and she enjoyed the libation.. about 5 sips. It was very busy,but we only had to wait 30 minutes. Service was good... 33 dollars for two. hard to beat.
I hope you had a great Saturday.
Pat
Today I dropped into Lowes and they had all of their bare root (As usual bagged and tagged) trees ready to go. So on the list were 1)a fig tree (black) 2)a Persimon Fuyio 3) An apricot (Blenheim). All are in full size except for the apricot.. which is semi. So Its a good start. I am hopeful about going up to Sacramento on Monday afternoon and planting them. Linzi said that she would start digging the holes today!
This afternoon we took a jaunt up to Modesto. Sue loves the thrift store up there. We did thrift store and Trader Joes. We topped it off with dinner at Olive Garden. Sue love the way the do Talipia there. I had what Sean would mostly order, tortellini. It has some braised beef and some mushrooms thrown in. I am crazy about their zuppa Toscano. That sausage potato soup is hard to beat. Sue likes the salad. She even order a glass of wine tonight. She said that she is starting to like the red wines... Just a sip or two. I had a sip or two (I was the driver) and she enjoyed the libation.. about 5 sips. It was very busy,but we only had to wait 30 minutes. Service was good... 33 dollars for two. hard to beat.
I hope you had a great Saturday.
Pat
Friday, December 19, 2008
Grades are In!
The part that is hardest about teaching actual classes is that you have to actual class kinds of things. One of those is grading each student in your class.
So what do you grade? Some of my students don't read or write.. not even a little. Most of them do however. Much of their written and spoken constructions are not anywhere near their age equivalents. So.. what makes an A or B or even a C?
I think that effort and try should be what my students are graded upon. Students trying their hardest should be rewarded for this. Many have given up long ago and it takes some priming to get the pump working. Most of them have a voice spoken and written. The burden is on the educational setting to allow for that individual voice to be developed. If students are given choices and allowed to express their involvement as they go along they will grow. Most students have been pushed down a certain pathway that making decision and expressing choice is truly an upper level skill. So they need help looking at alternatives and possibilities and trying out choices that won't inflict damage. This builds confidence and eventually independent thinkers.
So the year is half over. The first semester is completed. So far its been a pretty tough year.
We haven't negotiated yet except around the contract violation that sent 300+ cases to the grievance process.
I am glad we were able to come up with a solution for that.
: ) Pat
So what do you grade? Some of my students don't read or write.. not even a little. Most of them do however. Much of their written and spoken constructions are not anywhere near their age equivalents. So.. what makes an A or B or even a C?
I think that effort and try should be what my students are graded upon. Students trying their hardest should be rewarded for this. Many have given up long ago and it takes some priming to get the pump working. Most of them have a voice spoken and written. The burden is on the educational setting to allow for that individual voice to be developed. If students are given choices and allowed to express their involvement as they go along they will grow. Most students have been pushed down a certain pathway that making decision and expressing choice is truly an upper level skill. So they need help looking at alternatives and possibilities and trying out choices that won't inflict damage. This builds confidence and eventually independent thinkers.
So the year is half over. The first semester is completed. So far its been a pretty tough year.
We haven't negotiated yet except around the contract violation that sent 300+ cases to the grievance process.
I am glad we were able to come up with a solution for that.
: ) Pat
Rainbow
Its going to rain in Merced today.
On my morning walk to Starbucks I saw a complete rainbow in the west. The clouds were broken up in the East. Everything in the sky to the East is black clouds. Everything to the West is rainbows and grey blanket clouds,
Today's work is to get the grading done and the grades posted on Aires the computer grading program. The kids took the finals yesterday. I bought muffins from Costco and juice. Cranberry and Blueberry/pomegranate. It went over well.I gave the last 5 to a student that his 5 kids at home. They completely drank all of the juice. Juice seems to go farther than soda. Most kids have completely converted to juice. The schools were mandated to do that under the Governor's healthy schools provision. I think that many parents have converted their students to this too. Many of the classes were watching movies without commentary this week. Many of the students were talking amongst themselves as the movie droned on.
Some of my lower students has a chance to go over to the rest home and make cookies and distribute them to the residents. I am sure they were a big hit. One of my kids with nothing shared his stash of cookies with me. The Sever Handicapped students did not come over for finals which was good for them and for me.
I think this afternoon we are headed up to Modesto to do some thift store scouting. If it doesn't rain. We are kind of fair weather travelers with the powerchair hanging off the back of the expeditty.
: ) Pat
On my morning walk to Starbucks I saw a complete rainbow in the west. The clouds were broken up in the East. Everything in the sky to the East is black clouds. Everything to the West is rainbows and grey blanket clouds,
Today's work is to get the grading done and the grades posted on Aires the computer grading program. The kids took the finals yesterday. I bought muffins from Costco and juice. Cranberry and Blueberry/pomegranate. It went over well.I gave the last 5 to a student that his 5 kids at home. They completely drank all of the juice. Juice seems to go farther than soda. Most kids have completely converted to juice. The schools were mandated to do that under the Governor's healthy schools provision. I think that many parents have converted their students to this too. Many of the classes were watching movies without commentary this week. Many of the students were talking amongst themselves as the movie droned on.
Some of my lower students has a chance to go over to the rest home and make cookies and distribute them to the residents. I am sure they were a big hit. One of my kids with nothing shared his stash of cookies with me. The Sever Handicapped students did not come over for finals which was good for them and for me.
I think this afternoon we are headed up to Modesto to do some thift store scouting. If it doesn't rain. We are kind of fair weather travelers with the powerchair hanging off the back of the expeditty.
: ) Pat
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Scrape the Window Cold
This morning was decisively colder than the week leading up to it.
Its a finals day. The frost had to be scraped off the window with a credit car since it also rained. Today it is more like a Colorado day. It is bright and sunny with not a cloud in the sky. The wind has picked up and so we are in the grips of Winter,
My students are taking my final. I didn't get it printed through the Riezo in time so my home inkjet printer was pressed into action for the two periods of finals that needed to be printed. Each final is four pages. The students also added up to two pages of commentary regarding the two major movies we watched in class this semester. I actually guessed correctly on the number of copies I needed. One student was did not attend and I had one copy to support with and also to use to make copies for the other school.
I bought them some muffins from Costco. They loved them. I also had some cranberry juice and some blueberry pomegranate juice for the liquid part. Overall the activity pretty much consumed the 90 minutes each final period was allotted.
I think that my final wasn't hard. It allowed for some individuality and it covered the main ideas of the semester.
Hope you are having a great day.
Pat
Its a finals day. The frost had to be scraped off the window with a credit car since it also rained. Today it is more like a Colorado day. It is bright and sunny with not a cloud in the sky. The wind has picked up and so we are in the grips of Winter,
My students are taking my final. I didn't get it printed through the Riezo in time so my home inkjet printer was pressed into action for the two periods of finals that needed to be printed. Each final is four pages. The students also added up to two pages of commentary regarding the two major movies we watched in class this semester. I actually guessed correctly on the number of copies I needed. One student was did not attend and I had one copy to support with and also to use to make copies for the other school.
I bought them some muffins from Costco. They loved them. I also had some cranberry juice and some blueberry pomegranate juice for the liquid part. Overall the activity pretty much consumed the 90 minutes each final period was allotted.
I think that my final wasn't hard. It allowed for some individuality and it covered the main ideas of the semester.
Hope you are having a great day.
Pat
Monday, December 15, 2008
What to do when your Pro Football Team is a Dog?
Sue the Raiders are a dog team.
I turned off the TV when the Raiders ran one all the way back from a kick off and then the Patriots on the very next play did the same thing.
There is not a place worse suited for a rainy day then the Oakland Coliseum. It is dank it is dark and with all of the concrete there is nothing poetic to see.
Bob and I shot one game there with the Seahawks in town. The result was there lovely Olympus cameras ended up with water between the lenses. The tele extenders didn't really work and the conditions were such that under that stands was much preferable to playing or watching the game. What a bust. I think the first game that dad shot down on the field was also in such horrid conditions. Those poor guys along the sidelines that have to get a shot.
I think that dad has the right idea about when you team hits the cellar and doesn't come up to see the light in the season. Go out there and prune on your trees.
This week I heard the most likely candidate for his wrath was the lemon tree.
Then again there is always next year...
: ) Pat
I turned off the TV when the Raiders ran one all the way back from a kick off and then the Patriots on the very next play did the same thing.
There is not a place worse suited for a rainy day then the Oakland Coliseum. It is dank it is dark and with all of the concrete there is nothing poetic to see.
Bob and I shot one game there with the Seahawks in town. The result was there lovely Olympus cameras ended up with water between the lenses. The tele extenders didn't really work and the conditions were such that under that stands was much preferable to playing or watching the game. What a bust. I think the first game that dad shot down on the field was also in such horrid conditions. Those poor guys along the sidelines that have to get a shot.
I think that dad has the right idea about when you team hits the cellar and doesn't come up to see the light in the season. Go out there and prune on your trees.
This week I heard the most likely candidate for his wrath was the lemon tree.
Then again there is always next year...
: ) Pat
Sunday, December 14, 2008
News News
Christmas venue to be changed!
We are not far enough along to expect a crowd at our house for Christmas.
We have had a couple of tough weeks and despite significant progress of "moving" in.. after the house was remodeled.. we are not ready to do the Christmas event.
We are hoping that it will all be ready for next year's event.
Mom has agreed to host the event.. so you are not off the hook regarding your homemade-recycled gifts. I have mine and am looking forward to choosing yours. Same event as last year... picking numbers etc.
I hope you all can come. We will be bringing the food so bring your happy face and everything that comes with it too..
Love
Pat
We are not far enough along to expect a crowd at our house for Christmas.
We have had a couple of tough weeks and despite significant progress of "moving" in.. after the house was remodeled.. we are not ready to do the Christmas event.
We are hoping that it will all be ready for next year's event.
Mom has agreed to host the event.. so you are not off the hook regarding your homemade-recycled gifts. I have mine and am looking forward to choosing yours. Same event as last year... picking numbers etc.
I hope you all can come. We will be bringing the food so bring your happy face and everything that comes with it too..
Love
Pat
Christmas Music
Its tiem to get out the Christmas music if you haven't already.
My sister has sent me a couple of new ultimate Christmas albums that we are enjoying. Ultimate is up to 5 and 6 this year.
We always try to add some new ones every year. Sue needs to have actual singing in them for them to be successful. I am little more tolerant of instrumentals. When we were growing up the common radio format was to have an instrumental after each vocal. As you know if you have listened to the radio, this is not the current order of music now.
My latest Christmas acquisition is an oldie from the Tijuana Brass. Its pretty ironic since Herb Alpert, the leader of the band is jewish... but so is Neil Diamond and he is on every compliation of Christmas music out there.. And then there is Barbara Streisand... the list goes on.
The Tijuana Brass was a very favorite group of mine growing up. As a junior high trumpet player, TJB with its Toro lonely bull was the end all. All of us who were picking up the instrument strove for the tone that Herb Albert popularized in the middle 60s.
So on with the TJB and its Latin (what ever that means) instrumental Christmas album, with.. can you believe it? Winter Wonderland? Incredulous.. but then sometimes that is the taste.
Have a great Sunday
Pat
My sister has sent me a couple of new ultimate Christmas albums that we are enjoying. Ultimate is up to 5 and 6 this year.
We always try to add some new ones every year. Sue needs to have actual singing in them for them to be successful. I am little more tolerant of instrumentals. When we were growing up the common radio format was to have an instrumental after each vocal. As you know if you have listened to the radio, this is not the current order of music now.
My latest Christmas acquisition is an oldie from the Tijuana Brass. Its pretty ironic since Herb Alpert, the leader of the band is jewish... but so is Neil Diamond and he is on every compliation of Christmas music out there.. And then there is Barbara Streisand... the list goes on.
The Tijuana Brass was a very favorite group of mine growing up. As a junior high trumpet player, TJB with its Toro lonely bull was the end all. All of us who were picking up the instrument strove for the tone that Herb Albert popularized in the middle 60s.
So on with the TJB and its Latin (what ever that means) instrumental Christmas album, with.. can you believe it? Winter Wonderland? Incredulous.. but then sometimes that is the taste.
Have a great Sunday
Pat
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Navy Beans and Ham Hocks
Saturday seasonal fare:
I soaked a pound of navy beans last night with significant handful of salt. Rinsed the salt off the beans and cooked them up this morning. In the pot was four ham hocks and an onion. They cooked up in an hour and a half. I added two carrots and simmered them in the pot. I also baked up some corn bread and made some honey butter.
Sue completely ate her portion.. did not even get to the corn bread. So it was a success.
People always tout a gas stove for its ability to quickly heat. It also makes a great simmering source. I had completely forgotten about that until I was using the stove to to make the cowboy beans and chicken soup for Thanksgiving. I think that next time I make the soup I will use dried navy beans and start soaking them the night before. I think if you do it yourself they have a better chance of maintaining in the next degree of heat rather than using canned white beans.
We have another couple of meals off of the ham hocks and beans. I was a little shocked that ham hocks are about 5 dollars a package. I used one package. They are hard to beat in this kind of recipe. If you have multiple meals off of them you can amortize the meat... ha
Love
Pat
I soaked a pound of navy beans last night with significant handful of salt. Rinsed the salt off the beans and cooked them up this morning. In the pot was four ham hocks and an onion. They cooked up in an hour and a half. I added two carrots and simmered them in the pot. I also baked up some corn bread and made some honey butter.
Sue completely ate her portion.. did not even get to the corn bread. So it was a success.
People always tout a gas stove for its ability to quickly heat. It also makes a great simmering source. I had completely forgotten about that until I was using the stove to to make the cowboy beans and chicken soup for Thanksgiving. I think that next time I make the soup I will use dried navy beans and start soaking them the night before. I think if you do it yourself they have a better chance of maintaining in the next degree of heat rather than using canned white beans.
We have another couple of meals off of the ham hocks and beans. I was a little shocked that ham hocks are about 5 dollars a package. I used one package. They are hard to beat in this kind of recipe. If you have multiple meals off of them you can amortize the meat... ha
Love
Pat
Drizzled pavement this AM
The walk this morning had damp sidewalks along the route down Yosemite Ave to McKee. The clouds overhead looked like the rain would be likely all morning. Half way along, however, the clouds scooted East and the sun broke through the patch that allowed the clouds to vanish.
Its going to be a warm.. at least for December Saturday morning.
I met a fellow teacher at the Starbucks and then after passing conversation decided to take the "long route." This walk is one that I do only once a week. It make the trip longer than an hour and the actual gain is not as productive as many short walks. I also had an almond brioche from the goodie counter so I felt that I needed to walk it off.. like you really could.
Friday I had a little gimmick in the morning. I used a bit of garland (red) as a mantle for speech. Then each student could name three things that fit in the category that I provided. If they did, they could choose who would wear the mantle and fill the categories. This worked well until two students kept choosing each other back and forth to wear the mantle and answer the category questions. So the game needed to be modified.
In the afternoon the two sides were chosen and then we played category be exclusion. What are 10 things about Christmas that the other team would not put on their list. Then each team would reveal the one item that the other team did not have on their list. The other team would look at their list and see if it was there. If it was not there, then it went on the board for that teams list. The only thing that has to happen as a game master, is that you have to give each team a chance to propose their contribution, and the game master must try to keep track of which team originated the entry. It was fun and the students enjoyed it. It also encouraged the "whisper" response so that the other team would not hear. It requires a writer on each team.. so you have to "seed in" instead of strictly allow chance to take its turn in collaborative learning. Shy talkers need to be the responders. But they can ask for help from the more verbal students. Then the reading writing part is a bit problematic if there are not students that can do this easily.
I hope you have a great weekend!
: ) Pat
Its going to be a warm.. at least for December Saturday morning.
I met a fellow teacher at the Starbucks and then after passing conversation decided to take the "long route." This walk is one that I do only once a week. It make the trip longer than an hour and the actual gain is not as productive as many short walks. I also had an almond brioche from the goodie counter so I felt that I needed to walk it off.. like you really could.
Friday I had a little gimmick in the morning. I used a bit of garland (red) as a mantle for speech. Then each student could name three things that fit in the category that I provided. If they did, they could choose who would wear the mantle and fill the categories. This worked well until two students kept choosing each other back and forth to wear the mantle and answer the category questions. So the game needed to be modified.
In the afternoon the two sides were chosen and then we played category be exclusion. What are 10 things about Christmas that the other team would not put on their list. Then each team would reveal the one item that the other team did not have on their list. The other team would look at their list and see if it was there. If it was not there, then it went on the board for that teams list. The only thing that has to happen as a game master, is that you have to give each team a chance to propose their contribution, and the game master must try to keep track of which team originated the entry. It was fun and the students enjoyed it. It also encouraged the "whisper" response so that the other team would not hear. It requires a writer on each team.. so you have to "seed in" instead of strictly allow chance to take its turn in collaborative learning. Shy talkers need to be the responders. But they can ask for help from the more verbal students. Then the reading writing part is a bit problematic if there are not students that can do this easily.
I hope you have a great weekend!
: ) Pat
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
White Bean and Chicken Soup
I made this for Thanksgiving.. it was a little much for that celebration. It made a hbig pot. It would be great for a soup eating party. It was published in the December 2008 issue of "Food & Wine."
Active 35 min total: 1 hour 35minutes 8 servings for a main course
By using chicken thighs instead of breasts , F&W's Melissa Rubel gives this hearty, jalapeno spiked soup ultra rich flavor.
3 pounds of skinless, boneless chicken thigh, cut into 1 inch dice
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 medium onions diced
3 garlic cloves, diced
1 jalapeno minced
2 tablespoons of all purpose flour
2 tablespoons chile powder blend
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon of dried oregano crushed
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 cups of chicken stock or low sodium broth
three 15 ounce cans navy beans drained
Tortilla chips, sour cream, shredded Monterey jack, clinatro and diced avocado for serving
1. Season the chicken with salt adn pepper. In a large enameled casserole, heat the oil until shimmering. Add half of the chicken at a time and cook over moderately high heat until lightly browned all over, about 8 minutes per batch. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate.
2. Add the onions to the casserole and cook over moderate heat stirring until tender. 5 minutes. Add the garlic and jalapeno and cook until fragrant. Add flour, chili powder, cumin. oregano and cayenne and cook stirring constantly until fragrant. Add the stock, navy beans and chicken and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook until the chicken is very tender. 30 minutes.
4. Uncover and simmer the soup over moderate heat until slightly thickened, about 30 minutes longer. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the tortilla chips, sour cream, jack cheese, cilantro and avocado,
Make ahead: This soup can be refrigerated for 2 days. Reheat gently before serving.
Wine: Fruity, floral white blend 2006 Beringer Alluvium Blanc
As you may have guessed, the cayenne pepper was dropped as well as the cilantro and the avocado.. for Sue. It still was highly successful.. This soup makes a huge pot. It will make your whole house fragrant.
enjoy..
: ) Pat
Active 35 min total: 1 hour 35minutes 8 servings for a main course
By using chicken thighs instead of breasts , F&W's Melissa Rubel gives this hearty, jalapeno spiked soup ultra rich flavor.
3 pounds of skinless, boneless chicken thigh, cut into 1 inch dice
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 medium onions diced
3 garlic cloves, diced
1 jalapeno minced
2 tablespoons of all purpose flour
2 tablespoons chile powder blend
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon of dried oregano crushed
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 cups of chicken stock or low sodium broth
three 15 ounce cans navy beans drained
Tortilla chips, sour cream, shredded Monterey jack, clinatro and diced avocado for serving
1. Season the chicken with salt adn pepper. In a large enameled casserole, heat the oil until shimmering. Add half of the chicken at a time and cook over moderately high heat until lightly browned all over, about 8 minutes per batch. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate.
2. Add the onions to the casserole and cook over moderate heat stirring until tender. 5 minutes. Add the garlic and jalapeno and cook until fragrant. Add flour, chili powder, cumin. oregano and cayenne and cook stirring constantly until fragrant. Add the stock, navy beans and chicken and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook until the chicken is very tender. 30 minutes.
4. Uncover and simmer the soup over moderate heat until slightly thickened, about 30 minutes longer. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the tortilla chips, sour cream, jack cheese, cilantro and avocado,
Make ahead: This soup can be refrigerated for 2 days. Reheat gently before serving.
Wine: Fruity, floral white blend 2006 Beringer Alluvium Blanc
As you may have guessed, the cayenne pepper was dropped as well as the cilantro and the avocado.. for Sue. It still was highly successful.. This soup makes a huge pot. It will make your whole house fragrant.
enjoy..
: ) Pat
December Morning in the Central Valley
Five days of fog
34degrees.. not reallly that cold
cannot see across the street
Its dark outside.. its black except the fog makes it gray
The cars are still making their way.. sharp light burn holes in the cotton sky brought down to earth
Home from the walk and its a little better
No problem getting to work.. the sun has come up.. but it is still gray overhead
After the first hour of work the sun is out..
Oh the glorious sun
We all feel like cats that have found the rightous spot.. oh my
Let me bask in the glory of the that wonderful winter sun that warms your insides
Its still cold outside
But the promise of a warm afternoon.. its 54 degrees
Means
More dense ground fog tomorrow
: )
Pat
34degrees.. not reallly that cold
cannot see across the street
Its dark outside.. its black except the fog makes it gray
The cars are still making their way.. sharp light burn holes in the cotton sky brought down to earth
Home from the walk and its a little better
No problem getting to work.. the sun has come up.. but it is still gray overhead
After the first hour of work the sun is out..
Oh the glorious sun
We all feel like cats that have found the rightous spot.. oh my
Let me bask in the glory of the that wonderful winter sun that warms your insides
Its still cold outside
But the promise of a warm afternoon.. its 54 degrees
Means
More dense ground fog tomorrow
: )
Pat
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Fruit Cake was a Success
After quizzing each student for possible allergies, many of my students got their first taste of fruit cake.
This was a very rich "heavy" fruit cake with candied cherries and pineapple and a little lime for the fruit. Many pecans and walnuts were in the body of the cake. It was sweet. I bought two for 9 dollars each.. my nuts have gone up in price.
It was a good day overall. I helped them storyboard back from the ending of the movie. For each block there was a "why" and then a "what happened next". I hope that they give me some good writing on Wednesday.
Sue won a bid on 14 readers digest condensed books. 14 for 7 dollars plus 9 dollars shipping. Bring it on E-bay. What an invention.
We actually saw the sun today.. for about 3 hours.. how delightful. Hopefully there will be enough light to work the security gates at the school. I am always parked on the outside since my arrival is about 11:30 each day.
Have a good one
Pat
This was a very rich "heavy" fruit cake with candied cherries and pineapple and a little lime for the fruit. Many pecans and walnuts were in the body of the cake. It was sweet. I bought two for 9 dollars each.. my nuts have gone up in price.
It was a good day overall. I helped them storyboard back from the ending of the movie. For each block there was a "why" and then a "what happened next". I hope that they give me some good writing on Wednesday.
Sue won a bid on 14 readers digest condensed books. 14 for 7 dollars plus 9 dollars shipping. Bring it on E-bay. What an invention.
We actually saw the sun today.. for about 3 hours.. how delightful. Hopefully there will be enough light to work the security gates at the school. I am always parked on the outside since my arrival is about 11:30 each day.
Have a good one
Pat
Monday, December 8, 2008
Fruit Cake
One of things that the character Will did in the movie. Iron Will was survive on his mother's fruitcake.
This was kind of a wonder to my students because they did not know what fruitcake is. So tomorrow I have bought a couple of small loaves of fruitcake to share with the students that would like to try it.
Will used fruitcake so that he would not have to carry so much on his winter journey. He did not have to stop and make a fire and all of the stuff that goes with winter survival and cooking for yourself in the winter.
Just like the real thing sometimes sugar bound proteins "pooh out" and don't give you the endurance that you would like. So true with Will. Near the end he has nothing more to give and almost loses the race. Thank goodness for that leader dog, Gus.. to pull him through.
A small loaf of fruit cake is on sale at Raley's for 9.99. This loaf is about the size of your hand in length and about three inches tall. I guess the price of nuts has really gone up when I wasn't looking. Let alone candied fruit.
The Italian panitone is less expensive and have more bread with it. Every time I eat it I think of having lunch at the off ramp restaurant in Italy on the road to Orvieto. Francisco was driving and we had a scoop or two of lasagna and the restaurant was passing out free panatone to each customer. It was fresh and delightful. The lasagna was really good too.
Happy thoughts
Pat
This was kind of a wonder to my students because they did not know what fruitcake is. So tomorrow I have bought a couple of small loaves of fruitcake to share with the students that would like to try it.
Will used fruitcake so that he would not have to carry so much on his winter journey. He did not have to stop and make a fire and all of the stuff that goes with winter survival and cooking for yourself in the winter.
Just like the real thing sometimes sugar bound proteins "pooh out" and don't give you the endurance that you would like. So true with Will. Near the end he has nothing more to give and almost loses the race. Thank goodness for that leader dog, Gus.. to pull him through.
A small loaf of fruit cake is on sale at Raley's for 9.99. This loaf is about the size of your hand in length and about three inches tall. I guess the price of nuts has really gone up when I wasn't looking. Let alone candied fruit.
The Italian panitone is less expensive and have more bread with it. Every time I eat it I think of having lunch at the off ramp restaurant in Italy on the road to Orvieto. Francisco was driving and we had a scoop or two of lasagna and the restaurant was passing out free panatone to each customer. It was fresh and delightful. The lasagna was really good too.
Happy thoughts
Pat
Disney's Iron Will
Today we are finishing up a movie started a week ago.
It is captivating the classroom audience. One of the paras that helps one of the students in my class was particularly interested in me finishing up this movie today.
She is going to be gone tomorrow and certainly wants to know what happened. One of my students thought about not coming today.. but remembered that we were finishing up the movie and decided to come.. there you go
Its one of those classics that was created by Disney in 1994. It stars Mr. Kevin Spacey, the same actor that plays the teacher in the last class movie, "Pay it Forward." In this movie he plays the reporter reporting on a dog sled race in 1917 from Winnipeg, Canada, to St. Paul Minnesota. This is a distance of over 500 miles.
There is some dramatic action sequences which results in some situations. Some critics on line call it a sappy Disney melodrama.. but it introduces students to a different way of life in a different era than there own. It promotes some good "stick to it" kind of morals and the hero barely wins at the end.
There are lots of things to talk about in this movie, so there is plenty to stimulate predictive thinking and choices to be made. Most adults that have seen this movie walk away pretty uplifted. The students love the dogs. The are fascinated by the big white dog that is the dog leader,Gus. He was his dad's dog, and has first loyalty to Will's dad who dies unceremoniously at the beginning of the movie. Will must then overcome his fear of the frozen river that took his father. He finally does this in the final scenes of the movie.
There are many scenes of the rich following the race from the comforts of the train. There is some attempted bribery. Will hangs tough with his principles.
Will initally is in to get money to go to college and pay off the debt on his family farm. The prize for winning is 10,000 dollars. In the process he helps others and learns to keep a straight keel and in the end wins.
So tomorrow its fruitcake to try, and hopefully a look at my experience with sled dogs in Alaska. We will also talk about what they may write about on Wednesday.. writing day of course.
Finals for the first semester are next week.
Love
Pat
It is captivating the classroom audience. One of the paras that helps one of the students in my class was particularly interested in me finishing up this movie today.
She is going to be gone tomorrow and certainly wants to know what happened. One of my students thought about not coming today.. but remembered that we were finishing up the movie and decided to come.. there you go
Its one of those classics that was created by Disney in 1994. It stars Mr. Kevin Spacey, the same actor that plays the teacher in the last class movie, "Pay it Forward." In this movie he plays the reporter reporting on a dog sled race in 1917 from Winnipeg, Canada, to St. Paul Minnesota. This is a distance of over 500 miles.
There is some dramatic action sequences which results in some situations. Some critics on line call it a sappy Disney melodrama.. but it introduces students to a different way of life in a different era than there own. It promotes some good "stick to it" kind of morals and the hero barely wins at the end.
There are lots of things to talk about in this movie, so there is plenty to stimulate predictive thinking and choices to be made. Most adults that have seen this movie walk away pretty uplifted. The students love the dogs. The are fascinated by the big white dog that is the dog leader,Gus. He was his dad's dog, and has first loyalty to Will's dad who dies unceremoniously at the beginning of the movie. Will must then overcome his fear of the frozen river that took his father. He finally does this in the final scenes of the movie.
There are many scenes of the rich following the race from the comforts of the train. There is some attempted bribery. Will hangs tough with his principles.
Will initally is in to get money to go to college and pay off the debt on his family farm. The prize for winning is 10,000 dollars. In the process he helps others and learns to keep a straight keel and in the end wins.
So tomorrow its fruitcake to try, and hopefully a look at my experience with sled dogs in Alaska. We will also talk about what they may write about on Wednesday.. writing day of course.
Finals for the first semester are next week.
Love
Pat
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Saga of Lost Keys
The keys to our little Escape have been lost.. or rather the one key that we have for our little Escape has been lost for more than three months.
I had some serious fears that I had left them outside on the chair lift and that we had driven away and they were living a comfortable life in Timbuktu or Dos Palos.
But no, they were found yesterday, sadly in a chair that I usually sit upon. In the night, the cats had pulled the seat cushion away from the seat I normally sit upon and son of a gun, the keys were there exposed on the side of the chair.
We had scoured the house. We had offered 100 dollar finder fees but no keys were found.
Finally I had the car towed to the Ford dealer, using my trusty AAA. They told me that it would not be a big problem and the issue could be solved in a day.
WEll.. no
The vin numbers did not match the lock. So the locksmith had to be called to make tumblers that worked.
WEll..
The ignition column had to be removed and housings had to be replaced as well as any other keyed part of the car.
6 hours of labor later.. they are only going to charge me for 2, The car is fixed with new keys...
And then I found the old ones..
Sometimes the only luck you get is bad luck.
The internal optimist in me says.. you didn't have to replace the other keys that were on the ring.. so that is good.
Oh well..
Pat
I had some serious fears that I had left them outside on the chair lift and that we had driven away and they were living a comfortable life in Timbuktu or Dos Palos.
But no, they were found yesterday, sadly in a chair that I usually sit upon. In the night, the cats had pulled the seat cushion away from the seat I normally sit upon and son of a gun, the keys were there exposed on the side of the chair.
We had scoured the house. We had offered 100 dollar finder fees but no keys were found.
Finally I had the car towed to the Ford dealer, using my trusty AAA. They told me that it would not be a big problem and the issue could be solved in a day.
WEll.. no
The vin numbers did not match the lock. So the locksmith had to be called to make tumblers that worked.
WEll..
The ignition column had to be removed and housings had to be replaced as well as any other keyed part of the car.
6 hours of labor later.. they are only going to charge me for 2, The car is fixed with new keys...
And then I found the old ones..
Sometimes the only luck you get is bad luck.
The internal optimist in me says.. you didn't have to replace the other keys that were on the ring.. so that is good.
Oh well..
Pat
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Poor Oakland
Tonight the Oakland Raiders played on the NFL network.
The NFL network broadcasts games that are played on Thursday night. So with
games on Sunday, Fox and CBS, Sunday night on NBC, Monday ESPN and Thursday night NFL network it would seem that there is plenty of NFL on TV. More than enough if you are asking my mom.
It seems that if you don't have cable or a satellite connection you could be missing out on some really important games.. well no..
The Oakland Raiders are showing what a dysfunctional family they are. They only scored a touchdown on a run back. Their number one draft pick of a couple years ago is throwing interceptions and in the 3rd quarter twisted his ankle and is out for the game.
The team the Raiders are playing, the San Diego Charges have only one 4 games this year. They look like a tier one team. Sure, the aren't running down the field in wild abandon, but they are consistently scoring on their hapless California brothers from up north,
So goes the NFL on this Thursday night.
Pat
The NFL network broadcasts games that are played on Thursday night. So with
games on Sunday, Fox and CBS, Sunday night on NBC, Monday ESPN and Thursday night NFL network it would seem that there is plenty of NFL on TV. More than enough if you are asking my mom.
It seems that if you don't have cable or a satellite connection you could be missing out on some really important games.. well no..
The Oakland Raiders are showing what a dysfunctional family they are. They only scored a touchdown on a run back. Their number one draft pick of a couple years ago is throwing interceptions and in the 3rd quarter twisted his ankle and is out for the game.
The team the Raiders are playing, the San Diego Charges have only one 4 games this year. They look like a tier one team. Sure, the aren't running down the field in wild abandon, but they are consistently scoring on their hapless California brothers from up north,
So goes the NFL on this Thursday night.
Pat
Sick Doctor
What happens when your doctor gets sick?
If you in Kaiser..not much.. they are replaced by doctors who are not sick.
If your doctor is in private practice.. the office shuts down and you can forget getting drug refills or authorizations.
So what is the economic costs of a day of no billing? A doctor let slip to one of my friends.. 4000 dollars.
We have a doctor that was sick this week when Sue needed a "patch" refill. Luckily she had an out of date refill on one of her patches that game her three day grace period.
Pretty serious.
Tonight I am going down to pick up the refill for the month. I always check to see that they have the medication on their shelves before I leave the pharmacy. Sometimes they don't and I have to take the paper to the cross town pharmacy and hope they have it on the shelf. Its one of those triplicate meds. The patient must request it nearly the same time that it is due. Then the pharmacist must fill it and it must be picked up right a way.
So today I did the delicate dance to get this to happen.
Have a good one
Pat
If you in Kaiser..not much.. they are replaced by doctors who are not sick.
If your doctor is in private practice.. the office shuts down and you can forget getting drug refills or authorizations.
So what is the economic costs of a day of no billing? A doctor let slip to one of my friends.. 4000 dollars.
We have a doctor that was sick this week when Sue needed a "patch" refill. Luckily she had an out of date refill on one of her patches that game her three day grace period.
Pretty serious.
Tonight I am going down to pick up the refill for the month. I always check to see that they have the medication on their shelves before I leave the pharmacy. Sometimes they don't and I have to take the paper to the cross town pharmacy and hope they have it on the shelf. Its one of those triplicate meds. The patient must request it nearly the same time that it is due. Then the pharmacist must fill it and it must be picked up right a way.
So today I did the delicate dance to get this to happen.
Have a good one
Pat
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Fog Fog and More Fog
Fog has hit the valley,
In town our travel is not impeded however. The heat of the city allows for clearer drives.
I have started to prune the trees. The trees in the front (my front orchard) is now 8 years old and in the prime of its bearing. I have a few trees that were planted later that are yet to produce.
It was colder yesterday than today. The fog belt seems to get cooler as the day wears on. It certainly makes for a darker day overall. These are the days that drive the Colorado folks crazy.
One time when Lin and Candy stayed with us for a couple of weeks there were only 6 hours of visible sun.
At least it isn't bitterly cold or even cold by East coast standards. You would not go to work with just a fleece in Colorado either. I had a nice walk today with just a fleece jacket.
Today is the second day that I have yard duty. I will only have it once this year. So I am off to school.
Have a great day!
Pat
In town our travel is not impeded however. The heat of the city allows for clearer drives.
I have started to prune the trees. The trees in the front (my front orchard) is now 8 years old and in the prime of its bearing. I have a few trees that were planted later that are yet to produce.
It was colder yesterday than today. The fog belt seems to get cooler as the day wears on. It certainly makes for a darker day overall. These are the days that drive the Colorado folks crazy.
One time when Lin and Candy stayed with us for a couple of weeks there were only 6 hours of visible sun.
At least it isn't bitterly cold or even cold by East coast standards. You would not go to work with just a fleece in Colorado either. I had a nice walk today with just a fleece jacket.
Today is the second day that I have yard duty. I will only have it once this year. So I am off to school.
Have a great day!
Pat