Tail gating at Michigan

Brian and I went to the Michigan/Iowa football game last Saturday. Although we showed up at 10:30 thinking it was a 12:00 game, the game was at 3:00. I guess ABC felt they should move it around. We had a good time. We got to harass some Iowa fans, throw the old football around and eat some good food.

 

Billy Boom Boom Bucky Bob Comes up for Weekend

An old high school buddy, Bill "Billy Boom Boom Bucky Bob" Calvery came up to spend the weekend with Ellen and I a few weeks ago. It just so happens that we happened to get tickets to the sold out Prince concert that Saturday for $12.50 because of a deal through work.

Bill didn't arrive until about 4:30 Saturday morning. We took him downtown Ann Arbor for a late lunch and then headed for the Palace for the Prince concert. We met up with a few of my coworkers, Brian and Kavita at "The Post" and took the bus over to the Palace which is across the street from The Post. The concert was awesome! It was mine and Ellen's second time to see Prince this summer. What made the second concert fun was we got to see the band "The Time" with Morris Day open up for Prince. A total surprise.

I think we got back home about 2:00 in the morning on Sunday and we were all beat. Sunday we watched some movies and Bill and I swapped massive amounts of Mac Software and MP3's (yes, he is a Mac head too). It was a good time.

 

Traverse City Cherry Festival / Macinac Island

The week of July 4th for the past several years, Ellen, has taught piano at the Interlochen Center for the Arts. The camp is a two week camp which is outside of Traverse City. So after Ellen was there a week, Ellen's mom, Sue, flew into Detroit from Hattesburg, MS. I got off of work early on Friday and on Monday, picked Sue up at the airport, and we headed north to Traverse City, MI .

We arrived late on Friday and picked Ellen up from the camp and then drove on into Traverse City to the hotel. The city is very cool since it sets right on the lake. That night we ate at a local place (I can't remember the name) that was really good.

The next morning poor Ellen had to go back to camp to teach so Sue and I decided we'd head to the Cherry Festival. That morning they were having breakfast by the bay so we stopped and had some breakfast, you guessed it, by the bay. They served pancakes, sausage, bacon and of course topped the pancakes with home grown cherry sauce (delicious).

Later that night (4th of July) we went back to the festival and got to watch the Airforce Band play and watch the fireworks over the lake. Quite the firework show I might add.

The next morning (Sunday) we got up early and headed toward Macinanc Island by way of the scenic route. I found 2 places that I am either going to A) own a home on the lake there oneday or B) make it my next weekend getaway town. What an awesome drive up the coast by the lake. Here is a pic:

When we got to Macinac we took the Ferry over to the island (the only way to get there). If you have never been, you have to go. It is very neat. FYI, bring your own bicycle if you want to get anywhere because cars are not allowed on the island. Yep, no cars. So you either ride a bike or a horse which can get very expensive. What a great place though. While there we took a tour of the Grand Hotel. Most people remember the Grand Hotel from the movie "Somewhere In Time" with Christopher Reeve.

The ferry is jet powered (like a jet ski). It runs about 30 miles an hour and takes about 15 minutes to get to the island.

We spent the day riding around the island and taking it all in. The next day I drove back because I had to go to work but Ellen and Sue stayed in Traverse City for the rest of the week.

 

Sat - May 15, 2004

Sat - February 21, 2004

Most watched Tivo shows

We love our Tivo! It is the best thing Ellen and I have ever purchased for the home. As a matter of fact, if something caught on fire I would seriously risk injury to save it.

I found this image today which shows the most recorded TV shows with Tivo for this past week. If I was CBS, I'd be a little worried since Fox is just cleaning house with 5 out of the 10. What's weird is that with the exception of Scrubs and Alias, we recorded everyone one of those shows! Scary huh? This just raises the question as to what other data they are able to track on those nightly downloads / uploads. Being able to learn people's taste and preferences over time is pretty scary stuff. Just food for thought.

Posted at 11:46 AM    

Sat - February 7, 2004

One iCurve just isn't enough

Have you ever bought anything that didn't look like much when you bought it but now that you have it, you don't know how you did without it? This is my experience with the iCurve.

At work, I recently bought an iCurve to set my Powerbook on.

(iCurve)

After getting one iCurve, I now need two more. One for Ellen and one for me when we are home. For those that don't know what an iCurve is, you set your notebook on it so that when you use it, the screen on the notebook is more eye-level, similar to using a desktop. There have also been some studies done on how it helps your spine and other stuff. The iCurve really makes a difference if you are like us and use a notebook as your primary machine. Ellen has an iBook and I have a Powerbook G4. Mostly we use our notebooks in the main room. We used to use the home office but we've started using it more for storage. When I am at home on the weekends programming, I miss my iCurve at work. I wish they made a portable version. Just being stuck in a hotel room without it makes life hard. BTW, don't think this is just a *mac* thing. Those of you using PC notebooks can also get things similar for your machines as well. I would highly recommend it.

Posted at 07:15 PM    

Thu -

January 8, 2004

Sat - November 29, 2003