utechblog » family

The Blustery Day

utech — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 13:41:05 +0000

The greater Cincinnati area was hit by Level 1 Hurricane strength winds yesterday as the remains of Ike blew through. We have been without power since around 3pm Sunday afternoon. Right now I am running off battery on my computer and am powering my internet router via my car.
At the height yesterday we heard over 700K without power. Around 140K in our county alone. I will post some photos once power gets restored.
Now that I have checked my work email and talked to one of my PMs. I need to get off and conserve battery.

the camera don’t lie

utech — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 01:52:44 +0000

The day actually started out well. Got up right away and while I really wanted to go back to bed I stayed up and got ready to leave. I was out the door by 7:30 so I swung by Starbucks where my friend and worship leader Mike works. He usually hooks me up with free beverage. Great thing was there was a coworker there but as soon as I ordered she walked away and Mike gave me a coupon for a free drink (what are the odds). Left the Starbucks and swung by the Journey Church office to drop off the giving envelopes that I picked up last week. I got back to the interstate and was at work and sitting at my desk by 8:30 – anything before 9 is an accomplishment for me.
Work is still really stressful due to being between projects and trying to stay busy. Wife and kids picked me up for lunch so we could run down to XU to get parking passes for my wife’s last fall semester! And then we grabbed a quick lunch from a TacoBell drive-thru. I got back to my car just in time to leave to SafeLite where I got my windshield replaced. While I was waiting on the car I got the pleasant news that our power was out (I swear I need to start going to city council meetings). So it was out to the in-laws to find the family and then we headed home to consolidate vehicles to find that power was back on. We hung out at home for a bit and then were on our way back out the door to run to the store to get some dinner. We all loaded up in the van and I started to back up to turn around and head out when I came to an abrupt stop…

Immediately the 3 year old said “Wee! Do it again”. The adults both got out to check the damage – minimal… actually the dent in the car is more from me trying to “fix” the car – you see the lower part where the seam is was sticking out so I kicked the car really hard and it went back in (a little too far).

At the store my 11 year old came and asked me if I was ok, I said yeah and then turned the cart and crashed into a table. We looked at each other and just laughed. Good thing I didn’t end up driving there or back home.

On a positive note, I found a couple shirts that were cheap. I got a nice pair of sunglasses. And we got pizza for dinner and paid less than half of what it would have cost had we ordered delivery/picked up.

On the bright side – the car is fully paid for and I fully intent to drive it until it falls apart. I just have to make sure I quit driving things into it…

practical gifting

utech — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 00:37:04 +0000

As a person who hated getting socks and underwear as gifts when I was a kid, I have to admit that recently I have actually asked for those items for gifts. For Christmas one of my daughters got an inexpensive manicure set from her sister. Turns out that manicure sets are like watches, you can get a low cost $5 blue light special or you can get a precision crafted set from Rubis. Who would have thought.

young girls

utech — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 18:04:18 +0000

As a father of two girls that are quickly approaching the feared teenage years one of the things on my mind is how do I have a relationship with my daughters over the next 10 years to protect them from guys like I used to be or even worse. That really scares the crap out of me, especially now that one of them has received jewelery gifts from a young boy in her class. Granted it wasn’t a gold bangle or something real fancy, it was an inexpensive ring – but it was a step above the plastic jewelery you can get for a quarter from the machines in the front of the grocery store.
I have picked up a couple of highly recommended books but if I don’t read them they really won’t do much good. The challenge is just spending the time where it is needed and not getting caught up in things that won’t make a difference. (I am starting to wonder if blogging is one of those items that needs to go by the wayside.)

we’re gonna make you pop-u-lar!

utech — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 11:53:15 +0000

The more I watch tv/radio and see people achieve fame the more it just seems to be over-rated. I don’t know if it really changes a person more than it just enables them to be who they were headed to be but just faster. My younger daughter has wanted to be a rock star for a couple of years now. I am not sure if that changes because of age and other interests or maybe seeing your favorite artists go in and out of drug treatment centers. Granted I will still encourage her to learn to play an instrument well because I think that has greater returns than fortune and fame but I don’t have to let her know that yet. Heck I was in a “band” in high school that never amounted to anything, and I would still like to hook up with some friends now and make some music but I don’t have any aspirations of it becoming a career.

it’s getting hot in herre

utech — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 00:04:33 +0000

Just about the time that we get some extra funds and I am ready to get a life insurance quote something else breaks. Last night I got home and the house was warm, the A/C just wasn’t creating any cool air. So I shut the A/C off and kept the fan running to let the unit rest for a few, after about 10 minutes I turned the HVAC unit back on. A few minutes later I could smell freon and a hot/burning smell. I went down to check on the unit and discovered that the unit had frozen up solid and there was a lot of water on the floor and all over the unit – I also found that the hot surface igniter was glowing bright orange. Seeing as the heat wasn’t on that wasn’t a good thing. So I shut down the whole system and let it cool down a bit. I tried to power it back one twice last night to see if I could at least get the fan running… no luck.
This morning I went down to check on it again and turned the unit back on – the igniter came back on again and the lower part of the unit was sparking. So now in addition to needed a new inner coil, I also need a new circuit board. I called two HVAC service companies – only one called back and was up front enough to ask a few questions and determined that there was no advantage to come out today as they won’t have the parts until Monday. But on the bright side – at least we have (or as of Monday had) the mini emergency fund.

Piano Man Woman

utech — Fri, 30 May 2008 03:49:35 +0000

YouTube: Kyra’s Recital

Kyra’s 2008 Piano Recital.
Kyra played Sonatia.
Listen very closely towards the end after she sits down, Joah ran up to her seat and said, “Kyra, did you win?”

special needs

utech — Wed, 28 May 2008 18:26:41 +0000

After taking our dog to the vet for the puppy prevention procedure we found out from the vet that we have a “high needs” dog. Just what we were hoping for…
I guess we just aren’t pet people to the extent that we thought we were. We did enjoy the cats but our bodies didn’t. The dog is getting better but has oily skin and when bathed needs to be soaped up and left for 15 minutes before being rinsed. The dog is also a nervous poopper and we also found out that dogs enjoy pooping on concrete floors (like a basement). Also because of the oily skin the dog needs her ears cleaned out weekly – can you say ear wax. So we are trying to figure out if the dog will stick around but given the last of help from the 4 short(er) people in the house I donno if it will work out.
I am all for having pets and the responsibility that they bring but you have to know your own limits – while it would be nice to have a horse to keep the lawn short. I think having to have the extra large pooper scooper and dealing with horse supplements would also be a turn off.
Maybe we will just stick with the fish.

lose yourself

utech — Mon, 19 May 2008 02:32:06 +0000

I know the answer is not found in diet pills. I just wish one didn’t have to work so darn hard to lose the weight that is so easy to put on. That being said, my wife and I are now on a quest to get in better (read: less round) shape. We simply need to make better choices about what we put in our mouth. The nice thing was that the grocery store that we shop at has their branded frozen veggies 10/$10 this week. So I stocked up on veggies – the nice thing is that I like vegetables and with some time (it may take 20-30 years) our kids will like them too.

coming of age

utech — Thu, 15 May 2008 14:26:15 +0000

A new era has arrived in our home. We have officially moved into the realm of preteens and all the joy that comes with it. From grumpiness, moodiness, and sleepiness to all of the other ‘wonderful’ things that those years brought. Human Development books have found their way in to our home and new purchases are being made – deodorants, ‘fancy’ scented soaps, and hygiene products. I am sure in a short few months we will be seeing a number of acne solutions on the bathroom counter.
What happened to my little girls and how did I get this old?