Piano tune-up

It's that time of year again when our piano gets its "well baby checkup" and annual tuning. It's a little frustrating to me that I can hear when this piano is out of tune more than the previous piano we had. I don't know if the old piano kept its tune better or just sounded like it did. In any case, I can really tell when this one gets its annual tuning.

The tuner Michael Musial told me that since he's moved to Vacaville (from Dixon) he's given up his customers in Rocklin, Roseville, and Citrus Heights. Carmichael is about as far as he travels this direction anymore. I wouldn't be surprised to see him drop Carmichael within the next year or two.

One of the reasons I like him is that he's a real technology geek. (He's the one who led me to Mapopolis for my GPS solution.) At the end of today's tuning (and after I had captured his image for this blog) he stepped back to take a picture of me and our piano with his phone then transmitted the image from the phone to his laptop (using Bluetooth) and inserted the photo into his customer database. He says a picture helps him remember who's calling or who his next appointment is.

Meals on Wheels - update

Now that I have officially been delivering Meals on Wheels for a couple of months, I thought it was a good time to give an update about it. First of all, I really enjoy seeing the folks on my route each week and having a short visit with them. Many of them sound like they would really enjoy a longer visit but understand that I have to get food to the other clients. Still, I try to visit a little longer than the UPS delivery person. Weekly is just about right also. I think it would be burdensome and feel more like a job if I had to do it daily. Weekly is just fun.

The meals aren't much to write home about. Usually there is a modest entree and two warm vegetable servings in this cardboard serving container with a clear plastic cover. A couple of times we've delivered cold salads and fruit servings. The clients seem to like them even better than the hot meals but that could be because they're rare. In addition to the cardboard serving container, we also usually deliver cool supplements such as a carton of milk, a banana, or a piece of cake. Often these are bagged together to make it easier to deliver.

And speaking of delivery, we get all the cardboard serving containers (hot or cold) delivered to us in an insulated fabric carrier with a hot or cold "brick" at the bottom to keep the temperature as long as feasible. The cool supplements come in an ice cooler with some blue-ice blocks for temperature maintenance.

My route size has varied from a low of 12 customers to as many as 16. That includes two homes where I deliver two meals so there are only 10 to 14 actual stops. The route itself is less than 5 miles long but it is 10 miles from the meal pickup point which is 10 miles from home so I end up putting about 45 miles on my car each week for Meals on Wheels. Supposedly I do get some reimbursement from the county amounting to about $10 a week which probably covers the gas used.

The Gospel According to Disney - book review

Mark I. Pinksky's The Gospel According to Disney works on many levels. It has a wonderful bibliography of books and articles describing Disney movies, theme parks, and merchandise; a great collection of movie reviews describing most of the major Disney movies and their religious or moral content; and it provides a historical context for the reader to evaluate the "gospel" that Disney's corporate kingdom intentionally or unintentionally has spread.

According to Pinsky, who is a religion reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, and according to the materials he presents, Walt Disney tried very hard to steer a middle of the road approach in presenting moral themes without religion, an ethic that would appeal to the broad public without offending. After Disney's death, the company has continued the attempt while also moving into direct presentations of religion in the background of movies such as Catholicism in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and new age religion in "Pocahontas". And for the most part this has worked well. American churches on the whole praise Disney for family oriented, wholesome entertainment.

The one exception has been the Southern Baptist boycott of Disney products and theme parks in 1997 and 1998. It was such an "utter flop" that the Baptists could neither proclaim victory nor call it off. No one had really paid enough attention to it to make a bit of difference to the Disney corporation. At best 30% of the church participated in any way.

Pinsky feels that many, if not all, of the Disney movies are worth watching but that parents should watch them with their children to point out areas where their values differ from the movies'. But that's probably a good idea with all movies.

A sucker for gadgets

If you know anything at all about me, you know that I'm a sucker for gadgets. A gadget, according to Wikipedia is:

a device that has a useful specific practical purpose and function. Gadgets tend to be more unusual or cleverly designed than normal technology. In some circles the distinction between a gadget and a gizmo is that a gizmo has moving parts, whereas a gadget need not have them. For example, a nifty digital watch would be a gadget, while an analog watch would be a gizmo.

Philip and Jenny recently gave me one of the better gadgets I have seen in some time. Yes, it is a desk clock with date and day of the week, but it also includes a countdown timer and an alarm clock and a thermometer. And the trigger to display each of these modes is gravity. Turning the clock 90 degrees changes the display mode between the four options.

And the kicker to the whole thing, it is powered by a battery that claims to be water driven. Instead of the usual AA battery, there is a green and clear tube that one fills with water to "charge" the battery. I suspect the water is just a gimmick to provide enough of a conductor for a real battery hidden in the green part of the tube but maybe some chemist out there can set me straight about how a water battery really works. In any case, I'm delighted with my new gadget.

The Superbowl of Advertising - a book review

It's that time of year again! Not everyone watches the Superbowl to see fine football being played. Some of us watch to see the commercials and others to watch the tight ends of the tight ends. This book, subtitled "How the Commercials Won the Game", by Bernice Kanner is a book that could appeal to those who watch the Superbowl mostly to see the commercials. While the rest of the participants in the superbowl party use the commercial breaks to refill their drinks or empty their bladders, commercialphiles can get the best seats in the house to see what the greatest minds in the advertising industry think we'll fall for this year.

"The Superbowl of Advertising" would definitely be more interesting as a DVD or an on-line publication. Talking about a commercial, even very descriptively, is just not the same as seeing the commercial. The background information is nice to have (how much it cost to make or how much the time costs to air it, for example) but I found myself several times saying, Stop describing the damn commercial! Show it to me. A couple of still shots was the best the author could do. In many cases, the description just wasn't enough to convince me the advertisers knew what they were doing or the companies that paid for the time were getting anywhere close to their money's worth. For example, there just aren't enough words in the language to describe this ad by EDS (click on the triangle in the picture to start the video clip):

I'm probably the last person in the world to see this but I still think it is wonderfully done.

In spite of this problem, there is some historical value in the book. And for those who faithfully watched every superbowl commercial, the book could bring back tons of memories. For anyone else, I would recommend checking it out from you local library.

There goes the neighborhood

We've known for some time that our next door neighbors had purchased a large RV and that they were preparing the side of their driveway with a large concrete pad where they intend to keep it when they're not on the road. But we hadn't fully realized what the actual presence of the vehicle was going to look like and how it was going to change our little corner of the world. This weekend, they finally took delivery on their new baby and pulled it into its new home. And there went the neighborhood!

The RV can be seen from the other end of our Court. It can't be ignored. Except for the oak tree at the end of the regular street, it is the first thing that catches the eye - and not in a good way. We're hoping that with the greening of trees in our front yard and that of the neighbor, it will lose some of it's starkness but I'm not convinced it will. We're also hoping that they'll love it so much they'll be on the road most of the time. In the meantime, I guess we learn to accept that which we cannot change. And, fortunately, except for this we just couldn't ask for a better neighbor.

A Renaissance Society

On the advice of two friends of mine, I have joined the Renaissance Society on the campus of Sacramento State University. This Society's purpose is for the continuing education of people over the age of 55, primarily those of us who have retired but want to continue to share our thoughts, experience, and curiosity. We had an orientation program this morning for the 50 to 60 persons who are interested in joining for the Spring Semester and a registration session this afternoon for the close to 900 current members of the Society to select the on- and off-campus seminars that they find interesting. And a wide range of topics there are. Everything from Ancient Greek Civilization to Contract Bridge, from Watercolor to Consumerism, from Great Decisions to Finding Spirituality Today. In addition to the seminars that carry the same topic through the semester, one class per week, there are also forums (fora??) and mini-seminars that cover a different topic each week and bring in special speakers or discussion leaders for just one class and topic. There are also special excursions and walks that are more or less one of a kind throughout the semester.

Although designed as continuing education, it was obvious from the interaction between the participants at the registration that there is a significant social function. People greeted old friends that they had taken previous classes with and were attempting to update each other. With no tests and much more class participation, this will definitely be different from the city college classes I was taking but should be a very positive experience.

Continuing relationship

We were notified by email that the DMTC was looking for volunteers to help "finish the theater" so Carolyn and I made a special effort to go over there one day early this week. We were two of four volunteers that evening. The other two were skilled at installing railing while we were asked to paint the floor under the seats.

Carolyn, being the more nimble of the two of us, volunteered to brush around the seat legs while I used a roller to catch the wider area in front of the seats. The floor really should have been painted before the seats were installed as it would have been much faster and more thorough. But you can't always do things the best way.

One of the nicest things about volunteering that evening was listening to the cast of Camelot rehearse some of their musical numbers on stage. It is still very early in the rehearsal schedule but I can tell already it is going to be a fun play to watch.

Another great Christmas present

We have this wonderful arrangement with our daughter-in-law. Since she has to cope with two young boys who love to play, we store our carpet shampooer/cleaner at her house and borrow it for free when we need to use it. But this time, she went us one better. As a greatly-appreciated Christmas gift, Tiffany brought over the carpet cleaner and spent the whole day cleaning all the wall-to-wall carpeting in our house, a not inconsiderable task given the size of the house and the fact that the cleaner is a standard Hoover model, not some industrial strength machine. The floor almost sparkles!

Thanks, Tiffany.

Today's world atlas

Today I was once again amazed at the power of the Internet and programs such as Google Earth.

We have lately been watching the series Brother Cadfael (produced by PBS and available on DVD) about a 12th century monk in the village of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. It's a medieval version of CSI where Brother Cadfael prevents all sorts of injustice by careful examination of the crime site and other evidence he comes across. We highly recommend the series.

But my original topic has to do with the town of Shrewsbury. The plots of many of the episodes rely on the fact that this town is close to Wales. Wanting to know just how close, I opened up Google Earth and "flew" to Shrewsbury, feeling like I was riding a magic airplane that traveled many times the speed of sound. But Google Earth, even better than an airplane, overlays the view of the ground with major roads, towns, and regional borders such as than between England and Wales, making identification of local features easy. Turns out the Shrewsbury is about 10 miles from the border making it definitely possible for a person to walk or ride between the two in less than a day.

While we were looking at the satellite views of the countryside, we "flew" over to Monmouthshire, Ponty Pool, Liverpool and other towns that come up in our family history. Every once in a while, Google Earth would offer a link to Wikipedia for further details about a locality or a link to some spectacular pictures of the area. What a treasure!

The aftermath

I knew, of course, that after participating in an actual production at the Davis Musical Theater Company (DMTC) it would never be quite the same going to see plays. So it was with some surprise that I felt nothing different when we recently saw a performance of "Steel Magnolias" at the Chautauqua Theater. And it was then another surprise that I really felt different when we recently saw the performance of "Mame" at the DMTC. I think it has something to do with knowing the layout of the theater, the style of the production staff, the schedule of the rehearsals and tech week, and, yes, many of the cast members. As "Mame" played out, I could easily visualize myself in a couple of the roles or as an additional member of the ensemble. After the play we congratulated the cast who came out to greet the audience and all the members I knew from Oliver greeted me by name. I felt part of the company even though I hadn't participated in this play at all. And I felt that maybe, just maybe, I'll try out for another part some time.

The Bush Dyslexicon - book review

In The Bush Dyslexicon author Mark Crispin Miller wants us to look past the pathetic grammar and misstatements of our 43rd president and see something much more troubling - a president who is above it all, who is saying that once the votes were counted he is accountable to no one. Miller includes enough of the misstatements for us to see what we're supposed to be getting past but the book really is about politics and about a man less skilled in use of the English language perhaps than any other president before him.

Writing a book about politics before history has time to sift through the various facts is always a little risky. And Miller's book comes off just a bit dated because of that. Written in 2001 before the September terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, this book reflects the early "ah shucks" President who still thought his term as president was going to be at least as easy as his term as governor of Texas. The quotes and analysis in this book aren't about bad intelligence and even worse strategic decisions. They're about campaigning, working harder than he expected to get elected, and even then having to call on family and friends to settle the election perhaps prematurely.

Perks of being on the road

As I stepped into the shower this morning, I was greeted by a dozen little bottles neatly lined up on the side, bottles of shampoo and hair conditioner, something I haven't much need of anymore. They are part of a collection of freebies that Carolyn collects from the hotels she calls home away from home. Always being the thrifty person, she carefully packs the unused and half-used bottles and brings them home. As you can see, we get the partially used ones in our shower. The still-sealed ones are donated to a woman's shelter for personal hygiene kits.

Occupational Therapy??

While waiting for the Meals on Wheels truck today to bring us the meals from the central kitchen, one of the other volunteer drivers told us of a wonderful small family home care provider who had just taken over a home with 5 elderly men who were just a few inches this side of the grave. They rarely spoke, walked, or even moved much. The place was very depressing. After checking their health records, the provider decided what the gentlemen needed most was to get out, get some exercise, and see something besides the same old walls every day. Being a creative provider, he decided to take the group out to lunch - at Hooters.

According to first hand reports, after just a few outings, the men were actively talking to each other, asking for their best clothes to wear for their luncheon outings, and really looking forward to visiting the "nice ladies" at the restaurant. The provider showed that there was still a lot of living left in the old gentlemen.

Hats off to the care provider and the nice ladies at Hooters!

Barry Trotter and the Unauthorized Parody - book review

Michael Gerber wrote Barry Trotter and the Unauthorized Parody in 2002 and it apparently was successful enough that he retitled it Barry Trotter and the Shameless Parody and packaged it in boxed set with Barry Trotter and the Unnecessary Sequel and Barry Trotter and the Dead Horse, thus making a parody of the Harry Potter "book a year" publishing sequence as much as the books themselves.

I was impressed with the effort that Gerber went to in mimicking the characters but also in choosing names that are so close but not quite enough to get sued. Griffindor becomes Grittyfloor and Muggles become Muddles, for example. Barry's birthmark is the "interrobang" a combination exclamation point and question mark appropriate for such sentences as "You did what"

Since Barry is now in his 11th year at Hogwash, the situations and the language are a little too old for most of the young readers of the original series and that is probably just as well. If they knew their hero had moved from butterbeer to butterbourbon, they might lose a little faith in him. Bumblemore suffers similarly.

The plot is a complex issue of Barry trying to stop the making of a movie about the book about the making of the movie. Well, you get the drift. It's just enough plot to keep things moving without getting in the way of making fund of the plot, movie, book, or whatever.

Of course, parody can get a little tiresome but fortunately this book ends on page 174 several hundred pages earlier than the original books. But it was fun while it lasted.

Tim's Birthday party number 7

The weather really cooperated for Tim's party this year. Although we've been having below freezing weather at night and not all that warm during the day, the sun shone brightly and made it very bearable to play outside as long as you kept moving. And what 6 and 7 year olds aren't always moving?

The theme was "Dancing with the stars" so of course there was lots of dancing and even the food carried the theme of the stars. Thanks to Tim and his family for a good time!

Rosebush attack

People at work were shocked to see my face all cut up as indicated in the photo above. Many offered sympathy as well as suggestions about how I might have gotten such wounds - ranging from "shaving my cat" to "taking up the sport of fencing". But I told everyone the truth - I had a fight with our rosebush. Everyone then assumed I had lost but in truth it was pretty much a tie. There are a couple of branches on the rose that won't ever grow as straight as they might have.

Actually, I was working on my fountain in the front garden and tripped over my own shadow, catching myself gracefully on the only thing that appeared to have some substance and ripping my face, ear, and hand in the process. Too bad it didn't happen last October when I could have dressed up as a pirate.

The self-employed who isn't happy with his boss

I recently got a card in the mail from our piano tuner reminding us that it has almost been a year since our piano was last tuned and giving the (new) phone number of the tuner so it would be a simple matter to call for an appointment. It was therefore with some surprise that when I called, the initial response was, "I'm on my break. Can I call you back this evening?" I could almost understand "I'm in the middle of an important meeting" or "I'm just about to finish this job. Let me call you right back." Or even have his answering machine take my call and promise a return call. But the response "I'm on my break" just floors me. I got the message, intended or not, that he has all the business he wants and could I just stop bothering him> Especially during his break!

An Unreasonable Woman - book review

Diane Wilson, the author of An Unreasonable Woman, has written a captivating autobiography of the time she spent fighting one of largest regional industrial forces in her corner of east Texas. The company, Formosa Plastics Corporation, had one of the worst records of environmental pollution of any manufacturer in the country and they had a virtual stranglehold on the economy and politics of the towns of Point Comfort and Seadrift, formerly known for its fishing and shrimping industry.

In this book Ms. Wilson details the dying days of the bay and the slow disintegration of the lives that depended on the bay. She describes the callous attitude of Formosa company officials towards anything that appears to stand in the way of company goals and profits. And she most tellingly describes the almost panic-like state of local, state, and even federal officials who are afraid to face the pollution problem for fear of alienating the company. This is not a book to encourage those who want to fight city hall.

Ms. Wilson writes with an eye to details such as the smell of the breeze, the sounds of the waves, the stench of the pollutants, the squabbling of the children. So detailed is her narrative that at times I was bogged down in so many trees that I couldn’t see the forest. Oh yes, she is also much more original with her analogies than I am.

The story has a happy ending – sort of. The company is still polluting when it thinks it’s necessary but not as much as it used to. The local and regional elected officials are still toadying to the company but also listening to local residents’ concerns. The regulators are still applying the lightest of touches to try to reduce emission problems. And the environmentalists are seeing some change in the level of pollution. Not an ideal result but maybe the best that can be accomplished in this real world.

Evolving flashlights

One of the presents I found in my Christmas stocking this year was a very handy flashlight (upper left in the picture) - one that doesn't need batteries. Of course, the big advantage of such a flashlight is that in an emergency you won't be surprised to find your batteries dead and the flashlight all but useless.

When I went to put the new flashlight away I found that we have at least been consistent through the years. The first thing I found was flashlight 2 (upper middle in the picture) in the glove compartment of my car. Then I found flashlight 3 (upper right in the picture) in the computer room closet. And finally, flashlight 4 (bottom red in the picture) in the kitchen "junk" drawer. All the flashlights work - after a fashion but I was struck by how they have "evolved" through the years.

Flashlight 4 (the red one) has a squeeze handle which, when pumped, powers the old fashioned flashlight bulb. When you stop pumping, the light goes out. There is a small flywheel so that you have about a second of light before you need to pump again. But that is virtually continuous effort.

Flashlights 1, 2, and 3 all are built similarly with a crank on the bottom and three white LED lightbulbs. And all claim that 1 to 2 minutes worth of cranking will allow up to 1 hour of continuous light. Quite an improvement over number 4. With number 3 you can select 1 LED or 3 with the light intensity varying inversely with the length of time before you have to recharge. With light 2 you have the option of 3 LEDs steadily shining or 3 LEDs plus 2 red LEDs flashing. Light 1 is at the top of the evolutionary design. You have the option of 3 LEDs either steadily shining or flashing PLUS independently an AM/FM radio and a shrill alarm sound. I wonder what next year's improvement will be?