Friday, June 30, 2006

The Big Lebowski

The Big Lebowski is a great movie. Any movie that involves a bowling alley, Steve Buscemi, and John Turturro has no choice but to be great.

The Dudes first encounter with "The Jesus"...



Great cover version of "Hotel California" by the Gipsy Kings as well...

Interesting articles

Here are a couple of interesting articles I came upon...

In the ever-popular Dilbert blog, Scott Adams has a great post on flag-burning.
http://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2006/06/burning_flags.html

This article gives new meaning to the phrase, "put that where the light don't shine".
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060629/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_pakistan_bulb_1

Weekly Page Views and Visit Statistics

Just a small part of the information that I can get via Google Analytics.

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Google Analytics Info

I use Google Analytics to get a sense of viewership, how people are finding the blog, how many visitors per day, what postings are most popular in terms of views, etc...

I also get information about location of viewers. For example: I can tell that Julie has viewed the site due to number of visits by somebody in Indianapolis.

The big mystery is that I seem to have regular visitors from San Diego, CA and Mount Vernon, NY.

Is it somebody that I know? Care to make yourself known? If so, drop a comment to this posting.

Masterpiece Board Game

Did you know that the paintings in the game called Masterpiece by Parker Brothers reside at the Art Institute of Chicago?

Definitely plays a significant role in my desire to go to the museum.

Interesting article: Masterpiece Canvass - A real-life tour through the Parker Bros. art game

Review of Superman Returns

From a great comic book blog: Dave's Long Box

Superman Returns is better than Batman Returns, but not as good as Batman Begins. It's also not as good as X-Men 2, but it is better than The Fantastic Four and is about a third as good as both Superman and Superman II combined. It's no Blade, but it's twice as good as Daredevil and five times as good as Catwoman. It would take all the combined good parts of Elektra, Batman and Robin, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze to equal half of Superman Returns, but Superman Returns would have to be twice as rad to equal The Incredibles or Spider-Man 2. Having said that, I'd say it was a little better than X-Men 3 and four times as good as Superman III and IV (separately.) It's no Swamp Thing, though.

I hope that clears thing up.

Read the entire review at Off-topic: The Official Dave's Longbox Review of Superman Returns - Like You Care

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

A Place I Want To Visit

The Art Institute of Chicago

Current home to Seurat's La Grande Jatte and Jackon Pollock's Greyed Rainbow. As well as others...

Information was learned from reading the article "What Kind of Genius Are You?" in the latest Wired Magazine (July). The article will be made available online at the above link on July 11th according to the site.

Interesting article about two types of individuals relating to creativity, quick and dramatic (best work done when young) and careful and quiet (best work done when older).

Seurat is an example of the first, while Pollock is an example of the later.





btw: American Gothic is also at the Art Institute of Chicago.

OK... I last update to this posting: check out the link from American Gothic. They have a lot of very important and famous pieces at the museum.

Status of my new computer

Just got a phone call from Dell about my new machine.

The delivery date has shifted out to 7/22. I am not surprised due to the "newness" of the machine. Still disappointing though.

I am impressed with Dell's Customer Support. Never would have expected a phone call from them. Didn't even expect an email. Was expecting to be notified simply by myself viewing my order status online with no explanation. Instead I got the phone call, was able to ask questions (and get answers).

Disappointed? - yes, I am looking forward to the machine. Would I buy from them again? - yes at this point.

One Example Of Why I Want Kids

Read I'd Say Wow Sums It Up from one of my favorite blogs, The Sneeze.

Funny stuff and the type of experiences that I am really looking forward to experiencing.

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Spider Man 3 Teaser Trailer



Looks very very interesting, very exciting for us "comic dorks"!! Check it out at http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/spider-man_3/

U.S. Citizen Test

Do you have what it takes to become a citizen?

Take a quick test via MSNBC.com: the test

I missed a single question... though I was definitely shaky, not so sure on at least two others. Good thing it was multiple choice.

This is the question that I got wrong:
8. Which of the following amendments to the Constitution does NOT address or guarantee voting rights?

Can anybody do better??

Not many things funnier than a fart

Monday, June 26, 2006

Quote of the Day

What greater thing is there for human souls than to feel that they are joined for life - to be with each other in silent unspeakable memories. ~George Eliot

Funny Blog Posting

Made me laugh at loud in my office. It is a little "blue" or risque (is that the right word?)...

A Tail by Any Other Name from the Dilbert Blog.

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Weekends Suck

Not sure if I will ever make this post public or not... but weekends really suck to the point that I hate them at the moment.

All I want in life is to have a loved one next to me with a family. My job, my financial security, my house, none of that matters without a family.

Weekends are particularly tough for me. It is very hard for me to ignore that I am quickly approaching 40 years old, without a family in sight. When I am at my lowest, I feel like I have wasted the last 12 years of my life.

It causes me a great deal of pain. I do have moments of motivation, seeing more positive than negative, but it is tough for me.

For people in my life, please understand that if I am short or not open or not communicating, it is for this reason. I also understand that I need to be more open, communicate more, to allow the individuals that love me to help me.

I do appreciate each and every one of you. I also know that life will get better, that I will love the weekends again, it is just a matter of time.

More "upbeat" postings later this week...

Friday, June 23, 2006

A Quick Statistics

The Everett Family Blog is getting on average 5.43 visitors per day for this week.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

THANKS!!!!!


Thanks Uncle Steve, Aunt Sharon, Amber, Dale and Ben. Here is picture of me in the skirt outfit - my first skirt. Maybe I will actually like wearing skirts unlike my mom. Serena

My Summer List

I have a list of things that I need to get done. Some are simple, some are easy, some are not so simple and easy... I will leave it up to the readers to make their own determination on which is which.


  • Deal with the house situation

  • Fix a broken tooth(not a front tooth, back left molar)

  • Visit Dr. and get back to paying attention to my cholesterol

  • Get tire fixed on the Civic

  • Visit the Eye Doctor - should really think about lasik

  • Stop being a stranger at Gold's Gym



Anybody else have such a list? I always find it useful to make such a list public, helps to keep me motiviated.

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Calming Night at Home

I am sitting out in the backyard
just finished cooking dinner for myself (BBQ chicken breast)
working/interacting with the world via my laptop (wireless is very cool)
feeling a breeze in the air
hearing and then seeing a hummingbird
flowers blooming, red, purple and white
listening to the kids play next door in the park
calming, cool night

Downstair Remodel Plans

I am starting to put together a skeleton plan for my downstairs remodel.

I am going to get help from an interior decorator to put together basically a "Master" plan for the house (I am thinking to get her suggestions on the entire house). Something that can be staged, with the downstairs obviously being "stage one".

I need help with color coordination, flooring coordination, etc... I am not color blind, but I definitely don't have strong instincts in terms of color, especially in a large scale situation. It should be interesting and fun since my house is essentially a "blank slate" once again.

I am reminded though every morning which direction is North, due to the big arrow over the letter "N" that was written on the concrete slab that is now my family room floor when the house was being built.

It has been a rough month or so for me personally, and it is time for me to get moving again and living.

Monday, June 19, 2006

"Isn't she cute"



Here are couple of pictures of Serena. We got her a new hat to protect her from the sun in Kenya. The blanket in the one picture was a gift from Tristan. She sent Serena a Blankee which is perfect since she (Serena not Tristan) was becoming very attached to a diaper. We leave on Tuesday the 27th for Kenya but will keep posting pictures as she grows.

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the fathers in my immediate family.

To Patrick (the newest member of this group of 3): Enjoy Serena! Enjoy seeing her smile .

To Steve: You have have always been like a brother to me (oh yeah, you ARE my brother).

To my Dad: Thanks for everything Dad. I love you dearly.

I still dream about joining this exceptional group some day...

btw: I would highly recommend the movie Big Fish. Once you have seen the movie, you will understand why the recommendation on Father's Day.

One of many favorite lines in the movie is "Then you spend years trying to corrupt and mislead this child, fill his head with nonsense, and still it turns out perfectly fine."

Saturday, June 17, 2006

Left Handed Alert (Multiple)


I haven't done a "Left Handed Alert" for quite a while. Today I have four. I was informed about two of them today from a friend, and the other two I spotted myself.

The Left Handed Alert is:

Rebecca Romijn (Stamos) (She is pictured in this posting)
Greg Kinnear
Chris Kattan
Denise Richards

The four left handed folks were spotted in two different movies: Godsend and Undercover Brother.

I haven't seen Undercover Brother (it has been stated as funny by a reputable source), but Godsend is simply bad...

Problems Leaving Comments?

Anybody else having problems or issues with leaving comments? I have gotten an email stating that the word verification wasn't appearing.

Let me know if you are having such a problem. You can reach me at teverett96@yahoo.com

Friday, June 16, 2006

Dead Room Status

For those familiar with my house, you know that there is (was) a room that I called the "Dead Room".

The "Dead Room" room is effectively gone. It is something that I have been working on for about the last month to a month and half.

What is left is a lot of Grateful Dead stuff (thus the name of the room). It is boxed up.

Anybody interested in it?

I do have a possible home for the stuff. If that person isn't interested, I am really not sure what to do with it.

Don't get me wrong, still stuff to deal with, crappy coffee table, crappy end tables, crappy book shelf, and crappy poppazon chair (however you spell it) in the room.

I am going to rename the "Dead Room" as "The Office". The original Everett Family Blog computer (the one that died), as well as my very first desktop is currently in the room.

The room formerly called "The Office" is still a victim of the flood. Maybe I will make progress on the ground floor within the month. Not sure what I am going to do with the room once it is back together. But that is a decision for a later date.

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Who Is Out There??

I have always been curious who is reading my little part of the Internet. If I know you, please leave a quick comment (or more if you desire). It will be interesting to see who is there...

More Good News

More good news via my Mom:

Hi Everyone, I just got off the phone with Meghan and Tristan came through the surgery with flying colors. Meg said that she has already had some Jell-O and apple sauce. I guess she indicated that she was hungry and that is all she was allowed at this time. Meg thought she would be home in four or five days so if you wanted to send her a card you could send it to her and Mike's home.

The baby is still doing well. Breathing on her own and maintaining her own body heat. She has to go under the blue light tomorrow because she is a little jaundice. They brought her to Tristan so she could see her.

A Dream


This morning around 5:30 am, I found myself having a dream while sleeping.

In the dream, I was fully dressed wearing a fairly heavy jacket. I was being lead into a spare doctor examination room by the Doctor. The doctor was Susan Hammer (former Mayor of San Jose, CA).

The examination room was being used as a storage closet, lots of just plain junk scattered about.

Doctor Hammer had a stack of papers that she was going thru. One of them involved an animal organization (Humane Society, PETA, don't remember the exact group) being given money by the city to track a sea animal (otter, sea lion, don't remember the exact animal).

In the dream, she then hands me a bag that has the examination gown in it. I start to look around the room, seeing all of the stored junk, wondering where I am supposed to change...

When I was woken up by an earthquake. Not a "dream earthquake", but I real life, "shaking the bed" earthquake.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Everett Family Blog New Permanent Home

I have made the "executive" decision to leave the Everett Family Blog at this site, even when the new home computer arrives.

I like that other individuals other than myself and my brother can post easily. In fact, if you are a Everett family member reading this blog (either blood relations or extended family) and would like to participate, just leave a comment. After an extensive trial, review, and interview process, you too might be a contributer.

Oh heck, if you ask... it is yours.

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Baby News!!

Congratulations Mike and Tristan on Hannah Joann.

Below is part of the email from my Mom:

Hi Everyone, Good News, Tristan had the baby at 8:03 this morning. She weighs 4 lb, 2 oz. is 17 3/4 inches long. Meg said that she has a lot of black hair. Tristan is doing fine and I guess the best news is that the baby is breathing on her own. The heart surgery is planned for Thursday but Meg didn't know exactly what time yet so will let you know. Mike was in the room the whole time even though she had a C section.

Sounds like everything is good but keep her in your thoughts. Meg said that the first thing Tristan wanted to know when they could see her for the first time was if everyone was okay and to be sure to get something for lunch. Doesn't that sound like our Tristan.

Oh yes, the baby's name is Hannah Joann (in honor of Sandy).

Weekend at the Parents



Here is a picture of Serena and her grandparents - Koko (grandma in Luhya) and Kuka (grandpa in Luhya). Luhya is Patrick's mother tongue or the tribal language his tribe speaks. Patrick's grandma (pictured above as well) only speaks luhya and understand no english and very little swahili.

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

Monkey Chow

Check out this dude, eating Monkey Chow for a week.

Imagine going to the grocery store only once every 6 months. Imagine paying less than a dollar per meal. Imagine never washing dishes, chopping vegetables or setting the table ever again. It sounds pretty good, doesn't it?

But can a human subsist on a constant diet of pelletized, nutritionally complete food like puppies and monkeys do? For the good of human kind, I'm about to find out. On June 3, 2006, I began my week of eating nothing but monkey chow: "a complete and balanced diet for the nutrition of primates, including the great apes."

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Monkey Sniff

It is such small things that can be so funny. Monkey Sniff is on the blog for anybody who needs something in their life to make them smile, as we all do at times.

Sunday, June 04, 2006

Secret Wars Re-Enactment Society



Funny funny video... this was the last posting that was on the Everett Family Blog prior to the machine dying. You might not find it as funny if you are not as much of a comic book "geek" as I am.

Specs of the New Machine

I am getting a Dell XPS 700 .

It will have 2 Gig of RAM and 3.2 GHz processor. It should be a significant upgrade from the prior computer (384 Meg of RAM and 850 MHz processor.

It will be interesting to see how long it takes to "transcode" and burn a DVD of a "Tivo'ed" show. With the prior machine, it was a overnight (12 hour) activity.

Friday, June 02, 2006

The Everett Family Blog computer has died

I think my old computer has finally gived up the ghost. It is simply behaving badly to the point of not being useful. I believe it is at least 6 years old, so it has had a good life. Only one failed hard drive and two burned out graphic cards. The current issue is hard to determine whether it is a hardware issue or WinXP problem.

I have been working on it about 1-2 hours a night for the last few nights.

It has served well... but it is time for a new machine. The new machine has been ordered and will make its appearance probably at the end of the month.

I am getting excited about the new machine. Expect the "original" Everett Family Blog to reappear sometime in early July.

In the meantime, I will be using this location for the blog.