RichC | November 1, 2008
While driving across the state on Friday, several stations were selling gasoline below $2.00/gallon. It does feel a bit better to be filling and traveling paying $1.89/gallon than twice that much only a couple months ago. (average price was $4.07 for unleaded regular on June 23, 2008 – LINK) We have certainly seen what speculators […]
RichC | October 28, 2008
If you love using a Mac (or Linux machine), but need that occasional windows program, today is your lucky day. Head over to the ‘minimized’ CodeWeavers site and download a copy of CrossOver the open source software that lets you run a Windows program without the need to purchase a Microsoft Windows OS license. It […]
RichC | October 28, 2008
According to Bloomberg.com, Volkswagen AG became the world’s biggest company by market value after Porsche SE announced plans to raise its stake in the German carmaker on Tuesday morning on an unusually short selling sitiuation. Volkswagen share price was up 55 percent on this information in Frankfurt trading. The Germany-based Volkswagen has risen more than […]
RichC | October 25, 2008
I’m not a big fan of Oprah Winfrey, especially after her endorsement of Barak Obama ;-), but I wouldn’t mind having a Kindle in order to pack a few books along with me when traveling. Amazon.com is offering $50 off of the Kindle’s $359 price tag by simply entering the code OPRAHWINFREY at checkout through […]
RichC | October 24, 2008
Wall Street continues to frighten investors, although today could have been even worse considering the 10% drop in Japan’s markets on Friday and the continued fear that we are heading into a worldwide depression. No longer are we tossing the word “recession” around, but now I’m regularly hearing “depression.” Perhaps this is a sign that […]
RichC | October 22, 2008
Although my wallet has appreciated the significantly lower gasoline prices, the price difference between diesel and gas is being noticed. After my last few fill-ups of my “gasoline” Honda Pilot, I have been breathing a sigh of relieve since they have been $2.35, $2.37 and $2.39, at least in the Cincinnati Ohio area. (although I […]
RichC | October 21, 2008
Australians always seem to do things a bit different, especially when it comes to surf fishing — here’s a video showing them paddling the bait out to Great White Sharks on a surf board in Boat Harbour. Although I enjoy swimming and don’t usually hesitate to paddle around on a surf board, I’m not sure […]
RichC | October 17, 2008
Although the polls and news are not positive for McCain/Palin in many parts of the country, in the area north of Cincinnati Ohio, they are a very popular pair. So when Gov. Sarah Palin stopped in West Chester Ohio across from the local Lakota West High School, she had a great crowd — about 15,000. […]
RichC | October 14, 2008
I wonder just how many lawsuits we’ll see popping up around the nation in the coming month? ACORN sued on behalf of Warren County voters “The right to cast a vote that is not diluted by fraudulent votes is a fundamental individual right,” Buckeye Institute President David Hansen said. “ACORN appears to be recklessly disregarding […]
RichC | October 12, 2008
It’s nice to have the kids home from college this weekend for my son to be able to return to his high school for the homecoming game and dance with is girlfriend (a high school senior). They had a great time at the dance and Lakota East even won their Friday night game. (it has […]
RichC | October 11, 2008
As the political campaigns near November, we’re starting to see more from each campaign attempting to discredit the other. Political action committees and independents from Hollywood to news organization are getting in the act to take swipes at either McCain, Palin, Obama or Biden. It is particularly noticeable with the Gov. Palin “troopergate” investigations (smears) […]
RichC | October 9, 2008
The National Debt Clock in New York City has run out of numbers and as a temporary fix has replaced the “dollar sign” with a digit to move past the $9 trillion and to $10 trillion. The sign was put up years ago by a real estate developer when the U.S. national debt was approaching […]
RichC | October 7, 2008
As the economy struggles, Obama and Biden gain as the McCain/Palin campaign take the bruising. There seems to be a backlash against the GOP for the mess we are in? Perhaps its the Wall Street “fatcat” image or just the fact that a Republican has been in the Whitehouse for 8 years. Nevertheless, most polls […]
RichC | October 1, 2008
Plastic Logic‘s touchscreen document and book reader
RichC | September 30, 2008
Life needs a little perspective. I’m spending far too much time concerned over things I have little control over — the economic mess. What I can do, is get motivated to work on my Sonex project and this video of USAF test pilot Roger Tanner and Sonex founder John Monnett might be just what I […]
RichC | September 29, 2008
It was a rough day on Wall Street, but nothing like it will be if they aren’t able to pass a bill to keep money flowing in the U.S. When paychecks are no long being cashed and layoffs start occurring in full force, their will be blood. For most, the losses are currently just on […]
RichC | September 28, 2008
As I watch a bit of news before bed early Sunday morning, congress negotiators look to have come up with a ‘bailout’ plan. The whole group of leaders are walking out smiling at 12:28 AM and Nancy Pelosi announced that they have a “package to stabilize markets” and “protect citizens and taxpayer.” They still need […]
RichC | September 21, 2008
It is not that having a day alone is all that unusual, but its feels a bit more like I’m alone? Instead of driving my son back to college with my wife today, she is doing it alone and leaving me to chores at home (and there are plenty after the latest wind storm) and […]
RichC | September 20, 2008
Its often the small things in a day that can trigger a smile. Here’s a text message from a long distance friend that had me laughing … of course the actual word was “coworkers” but the shortened message that came to my Treo smartphone was a bit more comical. (Thanks for the laugh Scott!)
RichC | September 17, 2008
Whoa … kind of shocking when I walked into our local grocery store to pick up a few items for the kitchen — the coolers and freezers were all bare! I suppose I should have given it a bit more thought since much of the area is still without power. Schools in my area have […]
RichC | September 2, 2008
Although I spent most of my time behind the scenes working with my fellow planners to keep the TDIFest organized, I did take a few moments to walk through the parking lot and Rally destination (Red Stewart Airfield) taking a couple photos.
RichC | July 28, 2008
Obviously timed to the first day of Oshkosh Wisconsin’s AirventureRichard Branson’s Virgin Galactic opened their Mojave Desert hanger for a media announcement today which gave a peak at what their aerospace engineers have been working on — previous posts here and here. The spaceship which is designed to launch their spaceship to the 62 mile […]
RichC | July 26, 2008
After 23 years of mowing with our sturdy John Deere diesel tractor mower, we have finally succumb to the “keep up with the Jones” pressure of a new zero-turn style mower. The neighbor ladies referred to my wife as “the turtle” while mowing with the old slowpoke John Deere, even though it has continued to […]
RichC | July 25, 2008
Just when I thought I might not have time to post something on Friday, in comes an email from a friend with a video link too interesting to pass on (embedded below). The timely video clip ties to a new concern in the news this week over the dangers of cellphones. One such article was […]
RichC | July 22, 2008
As has been the norm lately, I’ve have spent a few quiet evening at home just sitting quietly and looking out over the backyard. Tonight I watched as the storm clouds began to pile up to our south and west. (no rain for us though) Its also been enjoyable to watch a pair of hawks […]
RichC | July 11, 2008
Nice evening. It was good to be home from traveling Thursday night in time to spend a little time with my kids and their friends. I took a swim, ate Chinese for dinner and had a fire in the fireplace — even roasted a few marshmallows (above). It was a great way to spend a […]
RichC | June 30, 2008
Too lazy to post from in the house tonight as the cool quiet evening out on the backporch is far more desirable. I did get a second primer coat of paint o new repair, but that was about the extent of the evening. It has been an exceeding nice couple of days temperature wise for […]
RichC | June 24, 2008
A friend passed along a USAToday article with Google’s Matt Cutts. He didn’t unveil any shocking secrets from the search giant, but offered up some pretty common sense advice: If you haven’t “optimized” your site, here’s how: 1. Spotlight your search term on the page. “Think about what people are going to type in to […]
RichC | June 22, 2008
I’ve been pretty lax at making entries in my “diurnal journal” this past week while on vacation. Nevertheless, my family and I enjoyed the ‘rest and relaxation’ and during our last day on the beach were treated to an enjoyable swim in the ocean with a couple curious Manta Rays. The pair of them would […]
RichC | June 20, 2008
Ok, so I used ChaCha.com to figure out the spider in this post, but its a bit more challenging for a ‘non-snake’ loving guy to figure out what this snake is? We’re in south Florida if that is any help, but I wasn’t going to inch close enough to this fellow/lady to try and figure […]
RichC | June 18, 2008
My own family has ganged up on me in a ‘vacation’ game of Risk. Its been an enjoyable few days on vacation and we’re all getting plenty of sun — although it has been raining on and off here in Delray Beach, Florida. Today was particularly nice as we topped off the day with a […]
RichC | June 13, 2008
Tim Russert, the moderator of “Meet the Press,†and respected NBC Washington news bureau chief died Friday after a sudden heart attack. He was working at the NBC news bureau on voice-overs according to news reports and collapsed. The Russerts had just returned from a trip to Italy where the family celebrated the graduation of […]
RichC | June 10, 2008
It was a nice evening to sit outside with my daughter as the breeze cooled off the 90+ degree day as we discussed the ‘goings on’ of the day. She adjusted her cushion on the Adirondack chair and off jumped a large but fuzzy spider. Yikes! 🙂 As we discussed what kind of spider it […]
RichC | June 8, 2008
The challenge of removing raccoons from our attic continues as varmit number 5 has been trapped today. (click above ‘texturized’ image for real photo) I’ll continue to reset the trap, but wonder just how many babies are in this litter. There have been three babies so far, plus two adults. See earlier post. I’m beginning […]
RichC | May 29, 2008
My son graduates high school on Saturday so we are busy prepping for open house and family. The raccoon is gone, one “dead” smelly baby has been dug out of the insulation in the garage and another was treed last night by Tootsie (probably will try and reenter the house again? All in all I […]
RichC | May 27, 2008
Another year … and another family has figured out how to get into our house — an animal family that is. We’ve had birds in the attic and raccoons once before, but this guy has been a bit more challenging to trap. I’ve moved my live trap in different places around the roof line (where […]
RichC | May 23, 2008
This past weekend my son and I went to freshman orientation at the University of Akron in preparation for his fall semester. The The full day started at 7:45 and ended at 4:30, but the time was well spent in that he’s registered for fall classes and nearly ready to start … and high school […]
RichC | May 14, 2008
One of the advantages of being on the road for business during the week is that I get a chance to see my daughter. Today was no exception … and the highlight was that it was her Birthday! She has been studying for a Neurology test tomorrow and brought along a stack of index cards […]
RichC | May 11, 2008
This might seem odd, but a new Royal Star Magnolia (Stellata Magnolia) is a gift that made my wife happy on Mother’s Day — photo and post from Palm Treo. (EDIT: tweaked post Sunday afternoon) Happy Mother’s Day Brenda … and to all mothers reading this. (in fact I think I’ll give ‘my’ mother a […]
RichC | April 28, 2008
My back is sore and my muscles ach as this past weekend was spent working in the yard … well really in just part of the yard. I’ve been reworking the landscaping as the ‘new porch’ is slowly coming together — this past weekend was the small pond and opening up the pool. (too many […]
RichC | April 23, 2008
Groan … with a bunch more miles to drive yet this week, gasoline made the usual Tuesday move up again. This time it went about 25 cents at most retail stations in Ohio — on average about $3.59/gallon for unleaded regular gasoline after the move. No doubt price increases have something to do with U.S. […]
RichC | April 14, 2008
A couple months ago I posted “Would you like a lemon with your water?” and have personally decided that it is something I can do without. Since my daughter, who is in medical school, was home this past week on spring break, the “Lemon story” came up when we were out to eat.We had a […]
RichC | April 9, 2008
Besides photo sharing, Flickr now offers ‘pro’ users (paying) the ability to upload short video clips limited to 90 seconds. While this limit is hardly competitive to other video sites, it does offer a place to offload those short cellphone video clips. In a quick test, I uploaded a one minute clip of my son’s […]
RichC | March 19, 2008
Newsy couple of items from the last feel days — from politics to the economy. Here’s are the two biggies for March 2008. First, the big news has been the offensive remarks associated with Democratic candidate for President, Barack Obama. The anti-American and racial messages from his long time pastor and friend, Rev. Jeremiah Wright […]
RichC | February 29, 2008
In a press conference on Thursday, President Bush referenced his administration’s heavy investing in renewable fuels and the problem this expansion creates as it competes for food crops (particularly corn based ethanol). The President stressed that we also “need more oil and gas exploration and for less money to be spent on foreign oil.” These […]
RichC | February 18, 2008
I promise this will be the last, but I’m using my cell-phone to post these last two day from Delray Beach, Florida. Its been a nice time away from Cincinnati and both my son and I have enjoyed the visit with family and college visit to Lynn Universtiy. I’m including a beautiful beach art of […]
RichC | February 6, 2008
This is a test to see if the Reply Media Catcher software can be used to capture a YouTube Clip. (works on some Flash .FLV files, but not on streaming Microsoft .WMV files) Testing YouTube Capture VIDEO DELETED
RichC | February 4, 2008
A trend in recent years when eating out at a restaurant is to offer a wedge of lemon with your water. I’ve often thought its was a nice touch and have enjoyed both seeing and tasting the lemon on the edge of my ice water glass … but I might think again after seeing a […]
RichC | January 29, 2008
While I’m trying to repair my blog site, I’ll take a moment to include the final State of the Union address from President George W. Bush … personally I think it was one of his best speeches. VIDEO DELETED
RichC | January 25, 2008
How about an Exhaust Burger? I’ve cooked a meal under the hood before, but never heard of cooking with a grilling device like this using exhaust gas! Well the exhaust gas never hits the meat, but its probably hot enough to barbecue a hamburger — I wonder if I could fix a meal for two […]
RichC | January 21, 2008
As Alan Greenspan would say … “irrational exuberance!“ 🙂 Ebay link. EDIT 1/21 9:30 PM: The mug has been sold ($1025.00) thanks to some outrageously generous bidders (congratulations ‘dorky54‘). They must have realized that this is a highly prized collectible … or at least appreciate the work of RHM. Thanks to all who placed a […]
RichC | January 20, 2008
Time is running out if you want to rescue “the Mug” since there are only a couple days left to place your bid on EBay. (donations to benefit RHM) Who will “win” the rights to my pouting sister-in-law’s favorite UDF coffee mug? This well seasoned UDF Mug has kept my coffee warm for couple months […]
RichC | January 14, 2008
“The Mug” — EBay find of the day! (consider bidding for charity) Since only a couple of my family members regularly make it to my blog, I’ll clue the rest of you in on a ‘feud’ that has been going on for long enough. My ‘dear’ sister-in-law (let’s call her “Chris”), left her favorite United […]
RichC | December 24, 2007
Last night my wife and I enjoyed reading the small Max Lucado coffee table book “One Incredible Moment” in front of our Christmas Tree. Although the book was published in 2006, the segment included below, Mary’s Prayer, was originally part of the Lucado book “God Came Near.” As you prepare for your Christmas celebration and […]
RichC | December 22, 2007
Our backporch project is S-L-O-W-L-Y progressing; about the only thing slower is the airplane project! 😀 The slightly warmer weather this week permitted our contractor a window to pour and stamp concrete although we are in for a change come tonight. Nevertheless, I’m glad to at least get the concrete poured! Click photos for larger […]
RichC | December 5, 2007
I delayed my travel plans as a quick snowstorm and cold weather covered most if not all of Ohio with a blanket of beautiful white snow. Local schools were closed an a short trip in the morning on the road had me rescheduling appointments. By afternoon all was well and I used my Palm Treo […]
RichC | November 30, 2007
It is sort of a tradition in our family to add a few odds and ends to the Christmas tree — this year we’ll add some ‘cotton’ I picked up on my way back through Alabama on this past week’s trip. I’ll also include two quick photos as I spent a morning in Destin and […]
RichC | November 27, 2007
Driving this week and am including a city skyline … who’ll be the first to name it? (hint: I’m not in Ohio this week)
RichC | November 17, 2007
The stone masons (stone artists) continue to make slow progress on our new back porch fireplace. I’m finally giving up on having an evening fire before winter.
RichC | November 4, 2007
Our back porch project continues to slowly progress as the fireplace begins to take shape. I’m hoping the stone masons will show up this week and that the weather continues to remain dry.