Wednesday, August 20, 2008

The pretty colors of fall

Summer is quickly coming to an end. One of the things I miss about the north is the change of seasons. We have been in Florida now for a year, as such, we have experience all four seasons: fall, winter, spring, and summer.

Up north the seasons are drastically different, leaves change, trees come in and out of live and the landscape changes. In Florida we have really only two seasons, hot and hotter! No matter where you go in Florida it all looks the same, flat and green, with the occasional water spot.

Today, I can officially consider my self a Floridian as we been visited by a snake. This evening my wife went to get the mail after returning from a long workout and a bit of grocery shopping. As I'm putting the last of the groceries away, I hear her scream my name. I quickly ran out to the garage where she was standing to the side of the garage door ranting about some snake, I look over to the right and in the corner was a small and colorful snake.

One thing you don't want to mess with is snakes, they can be quite dangerous and poisonous, although most statistics will tell you that only 17 bites a year in the US turn fatal. We don't want to become a statistic. Needless to say, I quickly reach for a broom and swung the snake a few feet over to the garden where it quickly faded away into the evening. My wife, the obsessive researcher that she is, wasn't able to find a picture of a snake like the one we had, but I'm pretty sure it was not poisonous. The small thing was maybe two feet long and a couple of inches in diameter, but being that it had multiple rings of color, she wanted to be in the know.

The bottom line is that if you come across an unknown your best bet is to be cautious and not to panic. Quickly find a long object to put some distance between you and the creature and shut the door as quickly as possible. Most snakes, like all animals, are usually seeking food and shelter. They are probably more scare than you are. After all you are much bigger than they are. My one regret is that in my rush to rid of the creature I didn't snap a photo, perhaps next time I'll think more clear.

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Friday, June 20, 2008

Melissa Etheridge - Revival Tour

My wife bought tickets to go see Melissa Etheridge for the June 19th concert in Jacksonville, FL. I said wtf, how bad could it be, lets do it. So we went down to the landing for dinner, dine on some fine Italian, the best so far in Jax, but mind you that there just aren't that many Italian restaurants in Jax, and don't get me started on the pizza situation.

I digress, the concert was very revitalizing as marketed by the title. I never thought I would enjoy a Melissa Etheridge concert, but I actually would venture to say that this one was one of the best, if not the best concert experience I have had. It had a very unplugged feel to it, yet all the mechanics of the typical rock band were present. She was very low key, yet her voice was as powerful as it was 20 years or so ago. I think what made this different was that there was some story telling involved. Melissa paused between songs to tell the audience about the song and where she was in her life, both personal and professional, at the time which led to the motivation for the lyrics. I found this type of performance refreshing and honest.

She concluded with her battle for cancer and living with no regrets. She encourage the audience to look deep within themselves and ensure that they live their lives as they would want, because there is only this one.

These messages hit very close to home. We moved to Jax to experience a better live but is a better live a financial statement or a more relax and sedentary one?

The bottom line is that we have made a great home down in the Jacksonville area. We have done well economically as well, but no better than we were doing in CT, the biggest change is the quality time I get to have with my wife. We have now pick up golfing together and sharing more moments together. I think that's what life is about experiencing joy with the one you love and choose to spent your years with. Intellectual curiosity is also another factor to consider, as humans our number one gift is the gift of learning and we should strive to learn at least one new thing a day, whether is to expand and promote growth in your career or to learn a new technique to improve upon your hobby, is just crucial to never stop learning. Once you decide you can't learn anymore, then you might as well select your grave next.

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Thursday, March 06, 2008

US Budgetary Problems

I'm very concerned for our nation. It seems we have spent so much money with the War in Iraq that the president is now eating just Hot Dogs. It's detailed inthis reuters story that McCain paid a visit to Bush in the white house to secure the president's endorsement for his candidacy.

When Bush mention he was having a hot dog for lunch, McCain proceed to request the same. He didn't want to question the president's dining preference. Seems to me that if McCain is to run the country he needs to be more a leader than a follower.

"He said he was having a hot dog, so I had a hot dog," McCain, referring to Bush, told reporters on his campaign plane during a flight to Florida.

The bottom line is that we seem to have run out of leaders and everything has boil down to a pissing contest in which whoever has the less flow of garbage in their trail is set to win. Where have the days of good leaders gone? If you are as undecided as I am, you can login to http://www.votehelp.org/ and see how your preference on "the issues" match up to the current candidates.

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Friday, December 21, 2007

Tracking Santa

Well the time is upon us. All the presents I was responsible for are under the tree and hopefully Santa will be fortifying those with more in a couple of nights. My folks flew in courtesy of American Airline miles. Have I mention how much I hate american airlines? I hate them so much that I used up all my miles to flight my kid in a few weeks ago just so I wouldn't have to feel guilty about loosing them, because I will never fly American Airlines ever again.

Back to Xmas, My first Xmas in Jacksonville has been off to a great start, except for a few days at the beginning of this week is been nothing but 70 and 80 degree weather and I don't miss shoveling the snow at all. I'm very happy is almost here, after all I get four or five days off and we had a great Xmas party at work today to get the weekend started, not to mention the very generous gift ($$$) we all receive from the Boss man.

The rest of the family is driving in and the vehicles are packed. The most distant one is driving a good 15 hours, but will be worth their while.

Santa is the last to arrive and we will be tracking his arrival via Norad. The NORAD Tracks Santa (NTS) program has been around for a long time, since 1955 to be exact! And while NORAD has the "history" and excellent technology to track Santa, NORAD cannot expend government funds on the program. Besides the short time a NTS Project Officer spends "managing" the program, NORAD spends only the minimal amount of funds on NTS. The NTS program is funded through generous contributions, this year one of the biggest contributors is Google.


The bottom line is that Xmas is the most wonderful time of the year and I hope you enjoy it with many love ones surrounding you. Don't forget to make your New Year resolutions as 2008 is only a few days away.

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Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Fingerprint Readers

I recently read an article which detailed the way companies are further making our society lazier. This one particular article focus on Fingerprint Readers and how Shell Gas station is rolling them out at the pump. The idea here is convenience, but my problem with the technology is that it is designed to collect and remember your print for future purchases. How are they securing their database. It wasn't so long ago when I saw an interview with an executive from the TJX Companies where they showed the company utilizing old security wireless technology of the like of WEP. This technology is easily hackable and as such it got hacked allowing thousand of records and personal data to be acquired and sold on the black market.

fingerprint liftingMy concern is that there are already ways to fake fingerprints. It's call fingerprint lifting, use by cops everywhere and with the aid of Fingerprint Lifting Tape, fingerprints can easily be duped.

It is rather interesting that a big company like Shell decided to head into the biometrics direction, but this is no difference than the convenience provided by Mobil Speedpass.

Is your personal data and security important? There is a company who offers a $1,000,000 Service Guarantee, that they will protect your identity against theft and will help you all the way if you loose your wallet or any important document, all for a cheap $10 a month.

There is also another problem with fingerprinting, I once had a laptop which had a biometrics reader and it took four or five tries before it actually recognized my fingerprint. Fingerprint readers are no where near as accurate as bar code readers so I think they will end up annoying more customers than making the process easier.

The bottom line is that there are just too many holes in the technology. I pump gas weekly at Shell, not because is my favorite station or because of the convenience in payment, but because is conveniently located to my home and Daily's, their convenience store co-located with the gas station, provides large drinks at very reasonable prices. Not to mention, they have those lice crushed ice cubes we all have come to love.

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Sunday, November 18, 2007

Crikey! St Augustine Croc Farm Visit

Now that the holidays are here, family has begun to arrive. I, for one, am very excited that they are here. I grew up in a household where it felt more like a hotel than a home. Growing up in the suburbs of NY we always had relatives that felt the need to stay with us when they came to visit the Big Apple. I come from a large family and found myself giving up my bed for relatives quite often.

Now that I'm fully grown and have recently relocated to JAX with my beautiful wife, we are looking forward to hosting Thanksgiving and Christmas with family. As such, we have started to visit the tourist areas of JAX and St. Augustine.

My first stop was with my son Brandon, I'm very proud of him, since he joined the Air Force he has grown and matured quite a bit. I guess the discipline has done him well. He wanted to see some alligators, as such, I took him down to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. The place is designed to house the alligators and cocrodile so that they still feel like they are in their natural habitat. I wasn't expecting much as I thought it was just a local joint, but was pleasantly surprise to find that this was a full Zoological Park that was established in the late 1800's. They offer Florida discounts and the rates, thought a bit pricey, were worth it if you want the Steve Irwin experience. That is, they provide feeding and petting exhibitions where the "Zoo Keepers" feed the crocs and play with them. They called the crocodiles by name and I was amazed to see them respond.

The tour continued with the beach in the afternoon and although the water was too cold for swiming it made it for a perfect walk with the feet cooling down. Who would have thought that I would have my feet in the water in November, but the weather is still quite nice and the Thanksgiving forecast is set for the mid 70's. I still miss my Northern friends, but I don't envy the snow they are schedule to get this week.

We finished our tour this weekend at the Jacksonville Budweiser Brewery. They provide a free tour of the facilities with a little bit of the Budweiser history. Most think that the brewery is only in Milwakee, MO. However, I came across this nicely designed card at the outlet stores pointing out the JAX brewery and to my surprise found out that Budweiser has 12 different factories across the country. They also brewed more that the three flavors that have made them the King of Beers. They bottle and distribute more than two dozen kinds of beers and alcoholic refreshments. The tour is free and is designed to entertain. They take you through every step of the process. Be prepared to smell the barley and oats in the air, it is quite pleasant and makes you forget you are in a factory, a spotless one at that, and takes you out to believe you are in the Missouri fields. They round things out with a quick video and a look at the bottling, labeling, and packing machines. They move more beer than you can think of drinking and discard quite a bit just because of faulty labels. They offer a nice employee fringe benefit of three free cases of beer a month and tickets to Sea World and Busch Gardens in Tampa, FL. They also give visitors two free beers while on the facility and pretzels in a nice lounge while previewing old and new video ads. Quite a fun time, and all for free.

The bottom line is that it is great to have relatives in town. Most people take their families for granted, but it is not until you find yourself 1000 miles away that you start to miss them. As well, remember to enjoy the sites around you, you will be surprise what may be in your own town and experiences to enjoy for FREE!

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Monday, July 23, 2007

Coming to you live from JAX

You may have noticed that I haven't blog for a while now. The reason is that I was in the process of relocation. That's right I now call the sunshine state home.

I drove down from Connecticut to Jacksonville, FL this past weekend. I remember doing the drive about 15 years ago when I drove to Orlando. Orlando is approximately 2 and a half hours from Jacksonville. The drive then seemed longer, but it might have been because I was with my immediate family at the time and you know how family trips could seem endless.

This time I was by myself although it didn't seem like it as relatives were calling my cell phone what seemed to be every 10 minutes. Geez, I have a lot of relatives and it is nice to know that they cared enough to keep me company during my travels.

I did have some breaks from the cell at which time I enjoyed taking in the scenery. It is funny how it seems like every where I turn now a days, everyone is speaking green this and green that. Obviously these folks haven't done the same drive I just did as once you get past Virginia and DC, it seems like there is nothing but green all around.

I enjoyed the time and had plenty of it to think about my new job and responsibilities that are soon to come. You see, I am now the Director of Web Operations for a Magazine Publisher in the Jacksonville Area.

Though I haven't had a lot of time to explore, I really like the area thus far and the places I have visited.

Granted, I have only visited some local restaurants and shopping areas, but the people are much friendlier than up in the Northeast; and they truly seem to enjoy what they do and ensure to emphasize that customer satisfaction is number one.

For example, today I visited Publix, one of the local supermarket chains, the forecast called for rain, but I hadn't seen any. On my way out the sky opened up and it pour cats and dogs, almost literally. The grocery bagger offered to carry my groceries to the car as well as provide umbrella service. I declined, but it was quite a different experience from what I ever had. While I waited for the rain to subdue, I noticed many other baggers offer the same to other customers. After all, I am quite handsome, but I knew this wasn't just the younger girl trying to pick me up.

The bottom line is that so far I am quite happy with my Florida experience and although I have started work, I still feel like I'm on vacation and living in paradise.

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