The Clarks my son gave me this past year after I admired his, are quality constructed shoes/boots and no doubt will last a long time and seem to hold up to heavy use. I am however disappointed into "tongue creep" which seems to be getting worse each wearing. I’m not sure if it was stitched off center or happens to naturally move to the outside ?
EDIT: Someone suggested that I send an email to Clarks, perhaps they can shine a little light on this before I opt to purchase another pair. We’ll see how they handle it.
For those who backpack or have planned challenging hiking trips, few offer the impressive views and strenuous climbs that the trails along the Na Pali Coast of Kauai, Hawaii. My son Taylor has sent back and posted a couple photo from his trip this week. Amazing trip.
It is a little disappointing to not get the number of hours out of LED bulbs as they advertise … something in the neighborhood of 50,000 hours. I’m not sure there is any warranty on Chinese Ebay bulbs, but I do know that I really liked these smaller "very low wattage" bulbs as outdoor end of garage lights. I have 5 of them on each night from dusk till dawn and knowing my total wattage is somewhere close to 50 watts total is nice when it comes to efficiency. Unfortunately if I’m going to be replacing often, it defeats the purpose over curly CFLs.
Chuckling at the difference between how relaxed Taylor’s “walk” on Kauai looks (while on his backpacking trip to Hawaii) compared to the walk Katelyn and Drew took this weekend in Wayzata, MN (our September trip).
Taylor’s message to me after a few days “offline” — “We made it!”
A photo of the Three Amigos on their trip somewhere on the Na Pali Coast.
Jay Leno’s Garage on CNBC is one of the automotive programs I record and one my dad would have enjoyed watching with me … too bad it is just a couple years late. Anyway, last week he had musicians who love cars on the program and country music star Brad Paisley shared his first car … and I shared it with Brenda.
This was the lower priced commuting car we bought new to replace her college car, 1978 Chevrolet Monza Wagon (as usual, I had a variety of odds and ends used cars … eventually plan on creating a post). The “new” 1984 baby blue 5-speed Cavalier was yet another disappointing Chevrolet from the late 1970 thru 1980s. About the only thing good about this car was that it was $6200 (still more than either of us ever spend on a car before).
Posting problem — adding photo of Brenda in her 1984 Chevrolet Cavalier from our first Aurora, Ohio house in the Spring of 1984
No visits to the mall, stores or even online shopping for me on Black Friday, but I have started the process of looking for a new camera "system" to replace my aging DSLR.
With my first granddaughter on the way, it might be time to get back to my roots and revisit my old hobby of photography again. I have been thinking about upgrading my Canon and have looked at the improvement since the early 2000s (last upgrade) but I really needed an excuse to buy something modern. Oh there were the TDIClub and CinciTDI HowTo videos that I would have enjoyed a better camera, but the Canon was good enough up to this point.
The most desirable for me at this time is the Lumix GX8 mirrorless 4K camera (above). There are a few standout features like the smaller micro four thirds format, 20.3 MP, 4K video, and being "splash proof" … but really the fantastic software feature built into the system take optics and quality to the next level (although most modern cameras do as well). As someone who has learned photography fundamentals since my first darkroom even before high school, I still wanted the ability to apply my "dying" skills manually and have offer a near professional level platform to enjoy the hobby now. As for a current single lens, I’d be happy pairing it with a fair all-around lens like the Lumix G Vario Lens 14-140mm F3.5-5.6 powered Optical zoom.
Could I live with a less expensive camera … yes, but this may be my last so might as well enjoy something nice and start learning the MANY feature associated with the Lumix system while I can still grasp it!
It is easy to forget just how much software one ends up with after 9 years using a computer. There was everything from odd ball utilities to a variety of outdated Adobe Creative Suite design software that I occasionally need. These were all versions installed from CD and are not openly supported anymore. Unlike my prefer subscription based business model I prefer for web hosting, I am not a fan of software companies employing it … especially for lessor used software.
Adobe software aside which I have somewhat installed on the new Lenovo, I may opt for Microsoft Office 365 when the trial runs out. A big reason is for the large chunk of OneDrive cloud based storage and Skype minutes that comes with the subscription. I still have a copy and "I think" acceptable license to an older version of Office, but would not mind the up-to-date suite on not only the Lenovo, but my iMac and iPad too.
Because my kids are out of town and Brenda is working today, I didn’t intend to post anything for Thanksgiving this year; I just figure I would just let an uneventful day pass. BUT, after mentally reflecting on this past year, I realized just how much I have to be thankful for … considering what a difference a year can make.
So Thankful … praise God:
Brenda has recovered unbelievably well from her injury … not 100% but well beyond what the surgeon expected.
My mother-in-law is good, dementia stable and she is happy
My niece Sarah graduated high school and started college; she is smiling and adjusting to another round of chemotherapy between classes and college fun.
One cousin has successfully beaten back her cancer while my other cousin “survived” a stroke and is on his long road of recovery.
My children are employed, healthy and enjoying life. They are thoughtful and do for others … including making their mom and dad happy with regular calls and messages (and I’m thankful for “Baby Oostra” too — it’s a girl!).
After my dad’s passing, my brother and I were able to take our time to finalize his estate, sell, his house and amiably divide treasured memories, etc.
My friend Keith whom I help with GroupBibleStudy is back to 100% after his heart surgery
That I’ve been blessed with good health, a great family and comfortable life.
… and finally I’m thankful for the prayers and hard work from like minded, freedom loving, commonsense, patriotic Americans who love their fellow citizens and country … AND that voted for new leadership in Washington DC which better reflect (and respect) those who founded and fought to build this country. May President-Elect Trump make good on his intent to “Making America Great Again” … so far in staffing appointments he is off to a GREAT start. As I did for President Obama in 2008, I will give him my support and pray that he will govern this country with wisdom and the values penned by our founders.
Psalm 100
A psalm. For giving grateful praise.
1 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. 2 Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs. 3 Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
On the recommendation of Carolyn Goodlander (wife of Fatty Goodlander), I’m giving the FastSeas.com weather routing and passage planning online tool a try. Not that I’m planning a bluewater passage to Bermudajust yet, but it is interesting how technology has changed route planning.
Where it seems to help is in tweaking departure dates and routes depending on changes in weather patterns. Although forecast models are only "so good," it is better having something rather than nothing at all. The Goodlanders are currently in South Africa waiting for a weather window to safely sail around the Cape of Good Hope.
A little “behind the scenes” history and commentary from my family’s favorite TV show of the 1990s — Home Improvement. Of course anything that Tim Allen does is a favorite of mine. I love his current Last Man Standing show too.
