Summer 2014 August 9 Saturday (Audiobooks and iPods and ex iPhones)

81 degrees this morning, muggy, although not as bad as yesterday.  After walking yesterday there was a light rain, and, when I rode my bike the temperature had dropped by 5 degrees or so and it was almost cold, no mugginess.  I noticed how much faster I went on my bike in the cooler weather. 

Walked 55:01 minutes this morning, (a new record) meaning I have dropped almost 4 minutes off my time since I  first started walking this route.  Of course , logically, at some point, I will reach a time where I can’t walk any faster, although probably I will reach an time where I take a second or so off every few months and at some point probably will almost never take any time off my “record”. 

Actually I try to avoid trying to do a better time every day, since it puts the focus on a quantitative  goal rather than the journey and I am more interested in the journey and the general goal of maintaining my health and weight.  And listening to my books.

Started listening to “Capital in the Twenty-First Century” during my morning walk..  I may need to rethink that!  Even with my interest in this, my mind tends to wander.  I’ll see how it goes.  There are some interesting parts, I just need to get my head into it. 

 After listening to  the “Bully Pulpit” while I walk and a James Patterson story while I drive, this is a little bit of a shock to my mind!  

I am tempted to listen again to the Bully Pulpit since I am going to see Doris Kearns Goodwin in person in September (along with 3,000 other people!).  I’ve actually seen her three times before (always an excellent and interesting presentation) and talked to her briefly when she sat down by us at lunch.  I have also read all of her books, which are always interesting and I seem to learn a lot from them.  Probably “Team of Rivals” (about Lincoln) is the best, but she is the type of writer it is hard to say anything is “the best”.  I also really liked her books about Johnson and Roosevelt also.

Actually I probably am probably going to start listening to some podcasts about starting my own business in the near future while I walk.  Right now, that is a priority, as soon as I get them on my iPod (formerly my iPhone!).  Actually I have two “ex” iPhones that are now iPods (one Aliene’s and one mine).  I actually jumped from an iPhone 3 to an iPhone 5 and Aliene from an iPhone 3S to an iPhone 5S. 

As long as the batteries are still good, (and they show no sings of failing after, I believeI, about 6 years (for the iPhone 3).  I have an iPod and three iPod shuffles that have batteries that are about 7 years old (I believe, I lose track!) that still have good batteries and are operating well. 

When to retire an electronic device is always a good question.  It seems like there is always a use for an iPod.  My original iPad (an iPad 1) is still going strong, but I do have a little problem finding a use for it.  It is good for music and listening to books but so is all my iPods and ex iPhones.  (Otherwise, it is very slow compared to the latest iPads).  

It is strange how the line of thought in this daily journal finds it own life.  I didn’t have any intention of writing an entire post about my old iPods and iPads and ex-iPhones!  Every day, it seems to develop it’s own life.  

By the way, on my birthday, my internet speed doubled, from 50 mbps to 100 (I actually measured it at 129 mbps download and 36 mbps upload).  Probably much more than I actually need, but it is nice to have it.  There is actually one level higher.  

Family birthday dinner at On the Border last night.  (Katherine and my birthday). Aliene and I invite everyone out to eat to celebrate the birthdays.  It is a nice gathering.  We limit our visits to On the Border for good reason.  I don’t weigh myself for several days after visiting!  I like the tamales, retired beans and the chips, one of the few times I allow myself to each such food!  Like dessert, I don’t avoid it completely, but do limit it.  

Actually I gained some weight during he move, but am now close to my low again, where I like to be.  I can actually tell the difference in how my clothes fit and how I  feel.  

That’s it for now, Saturday, August 9, 2014.

Spring 2014 June 11 Wednesday

63 degrees this morning, but is expected to warm up fast to 91 degrees!  

Ate at "On the Border" last night, and feeling effects of overeating today! We allow ourselves about one trip to On the Border per month, for obvious reasons.  I love the tamales.  

I actually started liking tamales years ago.  When i was in college, after my freshman year, I went to Denver to work at Samsonite Corporation (making suitcases). On the wonderful Denver cool nights, there were street vendors selling steamed tamales.  They were wonderful.  I returned the following summer, but the street vendors were no longer there.  I never found out why.

My experience in Denver changed my vision of life, to say the least.  The biggest city I had lived in prior to that was probably a 1,000 people (other than Hays, Kansas, where I went to college for my freshman year), so Denver was a new experience.  I stayed in the bus station one night and was asked by some others if this was my "usual place".  

I found an apartment, and oddly enough, it was right across the street from where my high school principal was staying (I believe he was working on another degree).  

Since I didn't have a car, I learned to ride the bus, and forever have learned about the disadvantage of public transportation in large cities (and the advantages).  (One night I missed the last bus and had to sleep in the park in Denver, the one across from the state  capital).  I recommend the bus station.  

I also learned about work.  I was on the assembly line making Samsonite "make=up" cases.  I don't recall exactly what they called them, but I still remember the exact motions I took in assembling them.  (i attached the frame to the bottom, the frame to the top and sent it on down the line.)  I enjoyed meeting and knowing many of the permanent workers and how they felt about their jobs. The workers there were very diligent and good workers, at least the ones I knew.  They all warned me not to fall in the trap of working there (or similar) and to be sure to return to college. My grades substantially increased the following year at college.  Actually, the factory itself was clean and they emphasized safety, but it was still a factory, I expect the assembly line duties I did are being performed by robots now. 

I did get out and see a lot in Denver.  Probably I was extremely naive and had someone watching over me.  I traveled all over Denver, met all kinds of people and, didn't save a dime for college.  The two weeks vacation (unpaid) the first   two weeks in July didn't help financially, but it gave me some time to look around.  

I returned to work at Samsonite the following summer, but it wasn't the same.  I had another job, molding handles, and it was very boring.  Sometimes, you really can't "go home again" and I wasn't able to repeat my first experience of the summer in Denver, the wonder had disappeared and the drudgery was all that was left. However I do always buy Samsonite luggage!  When I worked at Samsonite it was somewhere south of the State Capital, it moved to the airport several years after I worked there.  

Overall, I expect the experience changed my perspective on life and was a "life altering" event, although, realistically, any event is a "life alternating" event to some degree.  (I won't get into that today).

Interview tomorrow, going to be researching and psychologically preparing myself today.  Speaking of "life altering events, I guess a job interview can be one of the top ones, if your performance at the interview is actually part of the reason you get, or don't get, a new job.

That's it for now, Wednesday, June 11, 2014 

Fall 2013 October 20

39 degrees this morning.  Didn't seem to be that bad, exercise went fine. 

Weekend half over.  We tried a new place for breakfast yesterday "Brother Juniper's" .  We have a wide variety of excellent restaurants within two or three miles, so we hardly ever get out of our area to eat out anymore.  However, after we decided to stop eating at Starbucks (we'll still enjoy the coffee!), we thought we would try something different.  Brother Juniper's has been rated as the "Best Breakfast" in Memphis.  It was certainly enjoyable and the service was excellent.  Parking was non-existent and there was a 30 minute wait at 8 a.m. (not a bad wait, coffee was available, some seating if you moved fast and some paintings to look at, but don't try it if you're in a hurry).  

My major yardstick, the coffee, rated five stars.  A different taste, but excellent and the service was really outstanding.  Coffee was refilled constantly, which I appreciate.

Speaking of coffee, some of the best coffee places are Starbucks, Steak n Shake, and Firebirds.  Bob Evans and Cracker Barrel coffee isn't quite as good (to me) for some reason, I definitely will drink it, it just isn't quite as good as the others.

 J. Alexanders coffee is luckwarm and undrinkable, just eat there and go across the street to Starbucks.  Also, forget it at On the Border, they just don't know how to do it.  

TGIFridays and Bahama Breeze seem to use some  type of instant coffee which is almost undrinkable.  Save your money.  I don't eat at Logan's Roadhouse much (no reason, just don't, I love their meat loaf) but I believe the coffee is usually ok.  I have learned to just not order coffee at any Mexican or Chinese/Japanese/Thia etc. restaurant.  You're either get some junky instant coffee or they just don't know how to do coffee.

Ruby Tuesday's also has excellent coffee.  Perkins has so so coffee, just tastes somewhat like Cracker Barrel and Bob Evans.  Rafferty's has excellent coffee, just insist on it being fresh (same at Firebirds).  The Blue Plate always has  excellent coffee, although we hardly eat there anymore (too far to drive).  After a weird experience with the Manager at the Texas Roadhouse (she is gluten intolerant and was more or less told to eat elsewhere by the Manager,) we haven't been back, but I seem to remember their coffee was ok.  O'Charlie's is uneven, if you insist on hot fresh coffee you will get it and it is good.

Macaroni Grill can have excellent coffee, but they seem to have a no refill policy, so I just save my money.  Red Lobster?  If I remember correctly, save your money, like almost any seafood place.  

What I resent most is paying $2 to $3 for a cup of coffee and then getting a tepid, old cup of coffee or not getting refills.  I assume the coffee doesn't cost much and they make a big profit on it.  I don't care, I'll pay, I just want a fresh cup of hot coffee with reasonably frequent refills!  

I could go over iced tea, but it is difficult to get tea as strong as I like it, but Steak n Shake has excellent strong tea. Most places in Memphis have good tea.  I don't even think about ordering tea in Oklahoma City, all you will get is slightly favored water.  

It has been a cool, but nice weekend.  I have my annual "audiocardigram" (or something like that) tomorrow.  Like the annual physical, I always am slightly stressed about the Doctor saying "I see a problem", but I believe it is better to know, than not know, if there actually is a problem.  

I have always had a very low heartbeat (38-40) and I'm not that worried about it, but I recently read in Dr.K about how it can indicate problems.  Of course, every new Doctor I sees checks it out and it is just normal for me.  

Looking forward to a day of slightly flexible time.  I have some things to catch up on etc., but at least I can do it on my own schedule.