I Use Beard Oil Now

Towards the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, I decided to quit shaving my beard.  Similar to the playoff beard concept, I decided I was going to let it go until the pandemic ended.  At this point it is noticeably bushier.  I have done very mild trimming here and there, but for the most part have let it grow.  Along with the bushiness, comes roughness and stray hairs and everything else that comes with a growing beard.  A friend recommended I start using beard oil.  He said it would soften the beard and help eliminate stray hairs so I decided to give it a try.  It works pretty well, making the beard at least a bit softer and reducing most of the stray hairs.  The best part though is the smell. The type Sarah picked up for me smells like a pine forest, which really hits home the attempted lumberjack look.  This especially hits home for me when I have to wear a mask at work, which traps the aroma close to my face all day long.  I hope the stuff isn't toxic.  It's probably not, right? I would recommend some oil if your beard is a bit longer.

Voting In America

The following is a summary of my voting experience in this year's elections.

During the first week of early voting, my wife and I showed up to our voting station with our two toddler girls on a Thursday afternoon to be greeted by a 2+ hour line.  We decided to pass since we had our two young children with us.

Last week I went to our county seat to try to early vote again.  I had business in the area to begin with and I had heard that the lines were 2+ hours but decided to check out the situation for myself anyway.   Voting was downtown and our county seat features what I would call a very traditional American downtown with a courthouse centered in a block with surrounding businesses and only on-street blocking - no parking lots.  I circled the block twice, encountered lots of traffic, and couldn't find a single place to park.  I decided against continuing to circle the block like a shark waiting for a surfer to fall of his/her board and went home.

At this point I was left with voting on election day.  Polls opened at 6 AM on a random Tuesday.  I say random knowing that there is tradition and reason for this date but simultaneously am questioning the validity in modern society.  I arrived at 6:15 AM to what seemed like a large but reasonable crowd.  I waited an hour in line.  I was approaching the voting booths, to be surprised to find the line curved to my left down a hallway which nearly doubled the line.  Based on the number of people in front of me and the pace of the line up to that point, I estimated I had at least an additional 45 minutes to wait in inline.  I had to be at work by 8 because I had a full day of patients scheduled and couldn't be late and it takes me 30 minutes to get to work so there was no way I could stay.  I ended up bailing to get to work on time and keep the appointments I said I could make.

I've heard numerous excuses for this situation, including that the voting machines are so old no company supports them anymore and repair parts have to be purchased off Ebay.  I don't care about the excuses, this situation is absolute bullshit.  There has to be a way to make this experience easier and more feasible.  Get more (or updated) machines, hold the election over multiple days versus one, hold the elections in venues with parking lots.  Whatever it takes.

Revenge of the Sandwich

Interesting how in the first post of 2015 I discussed how I lost a battle with 10 boneless wings and some fried pickles.  Some things apparently do not get better with age.  On New Year's day I ate a tenderloin sandwich that absolutely ruined my night.  I spent the rest of the night generally feeling terrible.  Not really nauseous or bloated, just not feeling great.  I don't really know any other way to describe it.  I even had to lay down for about 40 minutes to regroup enough to just watch TV for the rest of the night.

Partly because of my bad reaction to the sandwich and other similar foods, and partly because of my developing "dad bod" (minus the biceps), I'm making an attempt to eat healthier.  Specifically at lunch, where half of the time we have catered lunch from places like Chilis, and the other half of the time the office gets fast food.  I have eaten more fast food in the recent months that I ever have in my life.  I've never been big on new year's resolutions, but I'm calling this my resolution.

With the holidays now over, I feel like there isn't a whole lot to look forward to until spring.  Gray weather, snow (though maybe not too much this year), and cold for two months until spring arrives.  Plus I was starting to get used to the lack of traffic on the commute and the 3 1/2 day work week.  Tomorrow will be a harsh reality slap to the face.

A Half Decade Behind the Times - The New Norm

Historically I've never understood Twitter.  I created an account a year or so after the service became popular to check out what all of the fuss was about.  I didn't really understand the appeal and I have since essentially let the account collect dust.  This changed once I upgraded my phone to the new 6s.  Because of the larger screen I tend to consume much more internet content with the device than compared with my older cell phone.  I started out using the new Apple News app but found it to be inconsistent with the types of news stories it showed, despite countless attempts to fine tune the news feed.  I really enjoyed the stories from Wired so I decided to try to use Twitter to follow their stories instead of Apple News.

In the weeks that followed, I went from following 3 people to nearly 30 (interestingly enough I've dropped Wired - too many re-tweets).  I've made checking my Twitter news feed a part of my daily routine.  I use it as one of my main sources of news, sports, and technology information, as well as a way to keep up with Sara Underwood.  For the first time, now several years after everyone else in the developed world, I get the appeal of Twitter.  Just don't expect me to try to explain Instagram or Snapchat.  I have no idea why I would ever need to use those services.

Revisiting Los Santos

By the time online gaming was available on consoles and reaching mass popularity, I had already surpassed the peak of my gaming experience.  Because of this timing I have very little experience playing games online, save for a few sessions of Gran Turismo 5 with some friends a few years ago.  Despite having Grand Theft Auto V since its release nearly two years ago, I have never played the game online for more than a few minutes until this weekend.  Motivating me was my desire to get back to Los Santos, which is such a wonderfully done LA-based city that is the setting for the ridiculousness that is Grand Theft Auto.

Playing Grand Theft Auto online does have a bit of a learning curve, despite playing the "off line" version for ~60 hours.  The versions share a lot of similarities but there are some important differences.  For starters, there are conversations going on by random people that you are forced to listen to.  Frequently, the conversation has nothing to do with you and makes little sense.  Also frequently, the conversation is littered with over-the-top foul language.  It's so obnoxious at times that it made me want to quit the game.  I finally Googled how to turn the conversation off.

Secondly, other players will frequently come up to your character and shoot and kill you for no reason.  This happens periodically on the single player game, but not often.  Also, players who have logged a lot of online hours have access to better guns, ammo, and other aids which gives them a huge advantage in any fight with a beginner.  I give the game some credit as it labels players who kill other players often as "bad sports" but this didn't prevent two different people from killing me 4-5 times in a row.  I did some research and figured out how to enter an online environment of Los Santos either by myself or with people I invite only.

I was able to successfully eliminate the biggest draw to online games - interacting with other people.  But most people online are jerks and I don't have much interest in interacting with people I don't already know.  This gives me a chance to do online stages created by the game while also building up points and money for my character.  I even bought a Vapid Dominator to cruise around town, which looks suspiciously like a Ford Mustang.

 
A couple of my friends have the game and we plan on playing stages together once we get a chance and some more experience points.  Meanwhile, this online version of the game gives me a reason to revisit Los Santos and enjoy all of the updates that come to the online version, which is one of the advantages.  This is the current era of games, and though it comes with cons, there are positives as well.  I think it will be a lot of fun once we are able to join together to complete missions.  Until then I will focus on cruising in my Dominator to underground street races to raise cash.  Next on my list - possibly a Coquette.

What, For Free?

If I had to list my favorite type of music, I would say rock or alternative or whatever label you want to apply to a small group of guys who play guitar and drums and occasionally piano.  I have some artists that I like and listen to who fall out the traditional rock band realm, music I call "guilty pleasures." Most of these artists I don't go out of my way to listen to, but at the same time if they're on the radio or TV I won't change the channel either.  Probably my favorite artist that falls in this category is Rihanna.  I don't even try to hide this guilty pleasure.  I'll tell anyone who will listen that I am a fan of her work.  I think her music is catchy and fun to rock out to.  Anyway, I've kind of been waiting for her to come to our city for a concert while on tour (I'd fit right in for that crowd, right?). Then to my surprise it was announced she would be coming near by.  Not on tour, but instead as part of a promotional concert for free.  I briefly thought about going, but the more I thought of the logistics of such an event the more I thought it probably wouldn't be worth it, and I have since decided not to go. 

How could something free not be worth the trouble?  For starters, the concert is being played in an open field setting where essentially they could pack people in like cattle for the show.  Secondly, she is playing in a concert with several other people and there is no schedule (at least none that I'm aware of), so I would have to potentially sit through a day long concert just waiting for her to go on stage.  Thirdly, I'm guessing you get what you pay for and I am half expecting her to perform just a few songs before they move on to the next act.  You know what?  I'll pass on this despite being a big fan.  I would rather buy my $100 ticket to (a) get a reserved seat, (b) not have to listen to hours of other acts I don't care about, and (c) ensure I get to see a decent show.  I am starting to get old and grumpy.

Internet 101

If you were teaching an introductory course to the internet, say for senior citizens, and you were discussing internet safety, probably one of the first things you'd mention is to never click on emails from unknown people or on suspicious ads that look like games.  I'm embarrassed to say that I broke that rule today.  Fortunately it wasn't on my home computer but instead on my work computer. 

We get minimal spam through our work email and I work for a large company and frequently get emails from people who are unknown to me.  So today when I sat down at my computer and saw an email from an unknown person labeled "accounts summary" I didn't really think much of it when I downloaded the file and opened it.  That changed when I immediately received three more emails labeled "accounts summary" but from different people.  By that point it was too late and the damage was done.  I wasn't the only person in my office to open this email and I'd say likely 100s of people across the network did the same.  We called IT and were instructed to unplug the computer for them to pick up tomorrow, presumably before it explodes.

A friend once told me you could easily tell someone's knowledge of basic computer skills by noticing if they inappropriately single or double click items.  It could probably be argued the same skill set could be noticed by people who inappropriately download email attachments from unknown people.  Quite silly, really.

A New Year Means I'm Getting Older

Welcome to 2015!  I worked a half day yesterday so I decided to pick up some wings on my way home.  Generally after I get off work I proceed directly home to avoid fighting with all of the traffic.  I got 10 boneless wings and some fried pickles which were fantastic.  However I knew before I even started eating them that I would pay for it for the rest of the day.  Over the past 1-2 years anytime I eat wings or pizza or similar type foods I have a predictable and unpleasant response to the food.  It mostly involves feelings of being bloated, belching, and generally feeling disgusting, i.e. dyspepsia.  I used to be able to hammer down food like this and not think twice.  Not anymore, however.  The symptoms extended into the evening.  I tried to have a few beers to celebrate the New Year but I couldn't even stomach that.  I developed a headache around 10:30 and ended up in bed at 11.  What a pathetic performance on my part.  I talked to a few of my friends this morning.  Both of them made it past midnight, though one of them was already in bed when the ball dropped and promptly fell asleep he said.  Obviously everyone is aging every second of the day, but the fact that I am showing physical signs of aging can be somewhat depressing if I really think about it.  But honestly, who has time to dwell?  I woke up this morning feeling great, helped take care of my kids, and moved on with life.

Overall 2014 was a great year and I expect 2015 to be great as well.  I hope everyone enjoys their holiday weekend.

A Link To The Past

Last week I came across a link on IGN where they ranked their top 125 Nintendo games of all time.  The list brought back all kinds of memories from old Nintendo games, from Mario to Zelda to Excitebike and Punch-Out!.  I became so nostalgic, in fact, I downloaded an SNES emulator for my computer so that I can play some SNES games (I have most of these games on the Wii too, but it is in storage.).  My first order of business was to download A Link to the Past, one of my all time favorite games from 1992.  The music alone (see below) is enough to get me excited. 

Interestingly enough, this weekend was my birthday and Sarah got me the Zelda version of Monopoly as well as this really cool map of the Chicago transit system with Zelda logos and theme to hang in my man cave (see below).  The title of the game is really appropriate as it does provide a link to my past, growing up and playing video games.  I don't play them too often anymore but it is always fun to go back periodically and remind myself of how much I enjoyed certain games when I was younger.  Thanks to all for the birthday wishes, especially Auntie.

iPhone 6 == Bleh

I remember when the specs (processor speed, amount of memory, hard drive space, etc.) on computers were really important.  Not long ago, you actually had to pay attention to the specs because the computer you selected may not be able to adequately run the programs you want and need.  For the overwhelming majority of people, those days are gone.  Sure, if you're running a business or doing something very specific with your computer, the specs probably matter.  But for the average computer user who is checking email, surfing the net, and running basic programs, any computer on the market will be able to handle their tasks easily.

My current iPhone, the 4S, is about 4 years old.  It runs well but is getting to the point where battery life is becoming an issue.  It is time to upgrade.  I've been waiting all summer to hear about the iPhone 6 to see if I wanted to get one.  Now that the details have been released, I'm not sure I want one.  I'm not jumping to Android.  I'm happy with the iPhone, and now that I have a Mac I really enjoy the integration between the phone and the computer.  I'm just not sure that I need a 6.

The iPhone 6 release was filled with specs: which processor the phone uses, the screen resolution, the camera pixel number, and on and on.  Thing is, the 4S, which is years old, does everything I want and need in a phone.  I run a few basic apps, check my email, and text.  That's about it.  Also, I'm generally against larger phones.  I use my phone for work while I'm at work on a daily basis.  I want something small enough to comfortably fit in my pocket and be transported without feeling like I've shoved a laptop down my pants.  But the market is going towards larger phones and there isn't anything I can do about it.  Sarah has an iPhone 5 with a larger screen (but smaller than the 6 screens) and I think the 5's screen size is fine. 

I think I'm going to wait for the 6 to come out and then get a 5S once the price drops to $99.  It will be faster and lighter than my current phone, it will do everything I want and need it to do, and it will cost $100 less.  I'm placing the label "I'm getting old" on this post because there was a time, probably 5-10 years ago, where there is no way I would settle for anything other than the latest and greatest.  I wouldn't use logic like I am currently displayed in this post. 

Making Plans

Having a social life as an adult male can be pretty challenging.  Throw two young kids into the mix and the challenge escalates exponentially.  The first challenge is finding someone to watch the kids while you go do what it is you want to do.  Sure, you could take the kids with you but sometimes you want to go someplace where the kids aren't welcome, such as the local beer fest.  Luckily, we do have some family nearby and this weekend Katie was nice enough to watch our young twins for several hours on Saturday.  Challenge passed and great gratitude to Katie for accepting the challenge.  Sarah volunteered to be the DD this weekend so challenge number two was passed easily.  What follows, however, is a cluster of planning trying to determine where we were going to pick up our friends (their house or their parent's house because they too have to come up with a plan for their little one), which vehicle we are going to take and preparing the vehicle to be able to handle adults in the back seat who don't require baby seats, what time we are going to leave the festival and where we are going to eat to be able to get back home in time to resume responsibility for our kids.  We literally had to start planning for this afternoon event weeks before it happened.  And it all worked out because we had a baby sitter, our friends had a baby sitter, we both were available to go to the festival and had interest, and Sarah was willing to drive.  It takes lots of variables and planning to pull something like this off.  Long gone are the days of doing something on the fly.

As for the beer festival itself, it was just OK.  I had a good time but it one of those things where I can say I've been there and done that and can check it off my list of things to do in the city but I don't think I really have much interest in going again.  At least not in the near future.  It was basically like a big carnival that only contained concession stands.

Buying A New Computer

My current computer is 9 years old which is ancient by computer standards.  It still runs pretty well but I realize that I will need a new computer sooner rather than later so I've been looking at options for a replacement over the previous few months.  I've found that finding a computer that I like and that is in my budget has been quite difficult.  I have found that buying a computer these days is much different than it used to be.  In the past I would just purchase the fastest, most powerful computer I could afford and that would be the end of it.  Today there are so many choices that it is difficult to find the perfect fit.

The first decision was whether I should get a desktop or a laptop.  I currently use a desktop but I've had laptops in the past.  I've found laptops to be a bit cumbersome in the past because I don't really have much need to travel around with my computer and I always have so many peripherals (hard drives, mice, etc.) plugged in that it really diminishes the portability advantage.  But in this day and age, desktops seem so outdated (heck, to an extent laptops seem a bit outdated with all of the tablets out there) that I had a hard time justifying buying another desktop.  Plus so many peripherals are wireless now that the wire burden on your desk isn't quite as bad as it used to be.  So the first decision was made - I would get a laptop.  Now which one?

You can get a larger, more powerful, "desktop replacement" laptop or a smaller, lighter, more portable laptop.  I decided to get a smaller, more portable version.  One of the biggest advantages of having a laptop is portability, and who wants to lug around a monstrous computer everywhere?  Plus my computer needs are relatively simple and I don't need anything with cutting edge speed or technology.  Any computer these days can email, look at pictures, and listen to music without trouble, even the smaller, less powerful laptops.

This next decision was the toughest one to make.  Which operating system should I get?  I've been running Windows 7 on my computer for the past 18 months and I like it a lot.  It is fast, secure, and stable.  Trouble is it is several years old at this point and has been succeeded by Windows 8.  I'm not a huge fan of Windows 8.  Also almost all of the Windows 8 laptops have all kinds of crazy features like touch screens that I don't need or want.  You can still buy computers with Windows 7 but they are becoming fewer and farther between.  And by the time you filter for other options that you want (screen size, memory, etc.) the selection becomes even more scarce.  So with that being said I jumped ship and bought a Mac. 

Call me a hipster, call me a fit-in, call me what you like.  The MacBook Air seemed like the perfect computer for me.  It is small, light, and has a great battery life making it very portable.  It has enough power for me to do the things I want and need to do with a computer.  It has a more traditional operating system that is stable and quick without all of the touch screen bells and whistles.  It integrates perfectly with my iPhone.  It has a sleek appearance and is designed well.  And it fit into my budget.  I am planning on buying an external monitor to hook into when I'm at my desk that way I have a screen a bit larger than 11 inches to look at.  I'll also need to buy a hard drive to expand its storage.  But so far I've been using it for a week and I like it a lot.  I'll have to let you know in the future if I change my mind.