Reading

I am an avid reader.  I like murder mysteries, and I like the series books, although I will read a stand alone if it is good.  I am trying to read more non-fiction, also.

This fall, there has been a lot of sports on TV that has interfered with my reading:  Yankee and Red Sox baseball.  The Red Sox in the World Series.  Patrick Mahomes quarterbacking the Kansas City Chiefs.  The New England Patriots.  Texas Tech football.  The Boston Celtics.  

I have season tickets for the Lady Raider basketball games, and some of the out of town games will be televised. It also looks like most of the men's basketball games will be televised.  I try to listen on the radio, if the games are not televised, for both the men and the women. I cannot read during basketball. 

I used to knit when I watched sporting events, but Taki cannot be deterred from trying to play with the yarn, and it is too difficult to try to knit.  I hate to lock her out of the room, or put her in time out, so I do not knit much any more. 

Instead, sometimes I play Words with Friends, or other word games on the computer when I watch TV. But I am re-learning how to watch TV without also doing something else.

Sometimes, during a sporting event that is kind of boring, I will read during the commercials, and continue reading until I get to a good place to stop reading. 

I love to read. I love books. 

Smart Phone

I did not think I needed a smartphone.  What did I know?  Look at me today:  I am working on the computer, and watching the Tigers vs. Yankee (Major League Baseball) game on my smartphone.  The game was supposed to be on TV, but Fox Sports has a full line up of college sports, which has faced a rain delay.  So in an effort to get complete coverage of their college games, most specifically University of Texas Longhorns vs. University of Maryland Terrapins on TV, the baseball game is being aired on the Fox Sports app.  So, I have my smartphone propped up in my book holder, and I can monitor the possible TV coverage, work on the computer, and watch the game!

Yeah smartphone!

Vacation

This was the last weekday of my vacation:  I have a weekend, and Monday holiday before I return to work on Tuesday!

Because I went to a play last night, I arrived home late and it took me until well after 2 AM to wind down, but I slept in the recliner until about 4:45 AM, before I went to bed. I got up early to give the cats their breakfast, then retired till late morning. 

I had planned to run a couple of errands today, but decided I would binge watch Blue Bloods. It was aired from 11 AM until 6 PM today.  So, I did. I had chores to do in the house, which I accomplished, and after wards, showered, and went out and ran the other errands I wanted to run.  No harm done, just changed the order of tasks and errands.  I usually tend to business first, before I indulge in pleasure activities.  

I still have errands and chores to do, including regular housework and laundry, making a delivery to a colleague for NASW, and working on the monthly NASW mailing.  I can tend to all of that the next few days while I watch TV, including Texas Tech Football. 

I have to say, it has been a very good vacation.  
  

Saturdays Are My Down Days

So Saturdays are my down days.  I often do not go anywhere or even take a shower. I do housework, read, computer, take out the trash.  This is my day to just chill.  If WGN America http://www.wgnamerica.com/ is airing Blue Bloods http://www.cbs.com/shows/blue_bloods/ I binge watch.  Today has been such a day.

Return to Access

It was good last night to return to cell phone and internet access, and to watch the news.  Unfortunately, much of it was a rehash of what has been going on in the Trump presidency for the last six months.  He does it to himself.

Watching the news tonight, it just did not feel like there was anything new about it.  Maybe a return to access is not that important.

Lack of Media

We have been without media for all intents and purposes since some time on Saturday.  The radio reception was bad for much of the day, then we entered the National Parks, and there is no cell phone reception, except in very few places, no TV, no radio in our cabin, and no internet.  We could purchase internet, but why?

The most difficult thing for me during this time is being without weather media.  The weather forecasts are posted on most of the Yellowstone General Store doors, which is helpful, but I still like maps, radar, and weathercasts.  But the postings do help.

I feel lost without any electronic media.  But it is a good experience. One of the results of the quiet is that not only am I able to notice and think about things, but my brain is not so busy and impacted that I cannot blog about things. 

I know this to be true.  I do blog more often and more effectively if I turn down the noise at home: no TV, no radio, and if I do music, it is bagpipes, musical scores, Gregorian chants, or classical music.

So, tonight, as we relax in the cabin, we are listening to Andrea Bocelli’s “Concert in the Park.” I could play the DVD, but viewing would be a little tight.  Listening is just perfect.

Talking Boxes

My cats like the quiet.  But they put up with all of my "talking boxes."  Think about it.  I have 2 TVs, a couple of radios, a couple of CD players, a smart phone that broadcasts alerts regarding weather and news emergencies, and a weather radio that broadcasts severe weather and other emergency information.

I wonder what my cats think about the talking boxes, especially the weather radio, because it broadcasts so infrequently, and only when there is severe weather in the area, or an Amber alert or Silver alert.  So, how do they know what to think about these noises and how to re-act.

Instinctively, I think, Haiku, knows to hide in the crate in the closet when there is severe weather. What tells her to do that, I do not know.  Taki just hunkers down in the hall way near the linen closet.

Cable TV

My cable TV provider, Suddenlink http://home.suddenlink.net/ has recently announced they have done some updates, which might mean that we need new boxes to get the HD broadcasts.  The flat screen TV I have is updated, and the box is adequate for this new signal or system, but the TV that dates back to the 1980s is not set up for this new signal or system.  So, I had to get a new box, which will be free for 2 years, and then cost $3.25 per month after that. 

So I went today to exchange my box, and set up the new box. It took a little bit to get it set up, but the solution was simple. My TV was set for channel 3, the box was set for channel 4, so when I set it for channel 3, everything worked.

I have two TVs, at opposite ends of the house, but I often like both of them on so I can traverse back and forth through the house, and keep posted with what is on TV.  When I got the flat screen TV, if I used the HD channels, the TV was not in sync with the other, older TV. Now that I have this new system, the other, older TV is hooked into the HD system, and I have to have the newer, flat screen on HD to coordinate with the older TV. This is okay.

I am just glad that I was able to get the new system set up. 

Late Night TV

Early on, Jimmy Fallon http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show on the Tonight Show made some comments about children and child abuse (or more accurately, the lack of recognition of child abuse) that made it so I could no longer watch him.  I agree he is very talented, but I think he is very insensitive.  So, I started watching The Late Show with Stephen Colbert http://www.cbs.com/shows/the-late-show-with-stephen-colbert/.  I was really frustrated, though, because he took so many breaks and there were so many reruns, but I persevered as a watcher until last week.  I just could not watch the nonsense and silliness that was being presented by that show.  Colbert must be on some really bad drugs.  I just could not stand it any more. 

Oh well, I have a lot of good books that I want to read, and will help me to wind down before I go to sleep. 

A Sports Week

The Celtics are in the NBA play offs http://www.nba.com/playoffs, so I have been able to watch their games the last few weeks. This week, so far, I have been able to watch either a Yankee or Red Sox baseball game or a Celtic basket ball game every night.  Tonight, I am watching the Yankees against the Blue Jays in New York  https://www.mlb.com/. I will watch Celtics basketball tomorrow night.  I think there is no Yankee or Red Sox baseball Friday night, and the only basketball I have a remote interest in is the Houston Rockets against the San Antonio Spurs, but Friday is Blue Bloods https://www.mlb.com/ night so no sports is okay, but if I decide on sports I can watch Blue Bloods on demand.

Antiques Roadshow

I am not an antiques person, a collector, nor do I own fine things.  But I enjoy the TV show Antiques Roadshow http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/ because I love the stories about the items that are brought in.  I did not like history when I was young, when it was memorizing dates and names. I could do it, but to what end?  But, I love history that is the story of people's lives.  And the information about the antiques on Antiques Roadshow are the stories of not only the antique piece, but often of the person's life.  So, I like Antiques Roadshow. 

Binge Watching TV

Okay, so I admit that I binge watch.  I started binge watching TV years ago, when I would stumble upon multiple weapons The West Wing.  I really liked The West Wing. 

So, now, I find myself binge watching Blue Bloods. I really like this TV show, and sometimes I watch the episodes new, sometimes I watch them on demand, and very often I binge watch, usually when I have something else to do on the computer.

Conflict: Baseball

Tonight I am watching a play-off significant game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox (go Red Sox!) on ESPN http://mlb.mlb.com/home TV  http://mlb.mlb.com/home. The post-season play-off races are very tight this year, and ESPN announced tonight that they will televise the New York Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays game on Friday night, September 23,2016.  It will air at 6 PM CDT.  I can watch it!  Yeah.

Conflict.  Sometimes, Yankee games last longer than 3 hours, and at 9 PM Friday night, the season premier of Blue Bloods http://www.cbs.com/shows/blue_bloods/ will air. Well, that is okay.  I will watch baseball, and then if need be, view Blue Bloods on demand on Suddenlink. http://home.suddenlink.net/?inc=1.

Baseball and Chores

The Yankees and the Mets http://mlb.mlb.com/home were playing for the 3rd time in 3 days tonight, and for the second time in 3 days, the game was televised. So, I watched it.  I had a lot of computer chores to tend to: correspondence, bill paying, and other odds and ends like reconciling the checking account.  The good thing about watching baseball is that you do not always have to pay attention to everything that is happening. The bad thing is that sometimes the announcers, who have a very difficult job of filling in during the non-action of the game, have some very boring stories.  Such was tonight.

I got a lot of work done, and I saw the Yankees win against the Mets.  Go Yankees!

Bobbing Heads

I know you have seen it.  When you watch the news, or live sports reporting on the news, or weather, and there are reporters in remote sights, they stand there and nod their heads until it is there turn to talk.  I have to guess that the nodding head is a universal signal that they are hearing the comments of the anchor person. I have to guess this because I see this motion on local news, and on national news and even national sporting events and weather forecasting shows.

But this bobbing head does something to me: It makes me think of a bobblehead doll http://www.bobbleheads.com/  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobblehead.  To me, it diminishes the authority and credibility of the reporter, and I just think about the bobbing head instead of the story about which the reporter is commenting, no matter how serious it is.  I can edit that, if I need to, in order to focus in the actual story.  But the bobbing head irks me, no matter what.

Tired

I have been waking up earlier lately.  I have had some changes in habits that I think have contribute to that.  The habit changes also contribute to more energy.  So, today, when I woke up early, got up and got ready for work, it was earlier than I usually leave for work. I did anyway, got there early, and got my work done.  It was not a crammed packed day, and I had some situations that took longer than they should have, but this did not bother me, as I had the time.

After work, I ran a few errands that took about an hour and three-quarters.  I got home, fed the cats, exercised, then cleaned up to run one more errand that I could not run sooner.  By the time I was almost done with my exercise, I was exhausted. My feet burned.  I was very tired.

But, I kept going.  I was not in real pain, and when I stopped the exercise, there was relief all around.  I ran the errand, and had dinner, but again, felt very tired. 

I am still very tired. I want to watch The Late Show with Stephen Colbert http://www.cbs.com/shows/the-late-show-with-stephen-colbert/.  He had a very interesting conversation with Bill O.Reilly, who was originally booked on the show to talk about his series Legend and Lies, The Patriots http://www.foxnews.com/shows/l-and-l. 

No Wonder!

It was one of those days.  I was racing all day, trying to get too much done, and feeling overwhelmed.  Then, I was given a large chore to do. 

I stayed late at work, and then ran an errand before coming home.

When I got home, I was upset with myself that I had forgotten that the Lady Raiders and Red Raiders http://www.texastech.com/index-main.html had a double header basketball game tonight.  I looked on TV and on the radio, and just could not find the game.  I gave up.

Just a few minutes ago,  I got on line to check the scores. And lo and behold, the games are not until tomorrow night!  Well, no wonder I could not find them on TV or the radio.

Operator Error, Once Again

So, one of my TVs had stopped working: it turned itself on and off at will.  It was time to upgrade.  I did some searching for a new TV stand.  When I realized how low weight the smart TVs are, I did not want to put such a TV on the TV stand I had, because the cats could easily bowl it over.

I did order and get a TV stand that I thought might be adequate. It is a stand that has a mount for the TV, vs. a "table top stand." I picked that up Sunday. So, I assembled the stand.  The next day, I purchased the TV.  The clerk was sure I could set up the connections as needed.  I had some trouble mounting the TV to the stand, but two trips to Home Depot on Monday night made the mounting adequate.  (I actually went back a third time on Tuesday to get what I really needed.) 

I connected the TV Monday night, and was able to get just one channel. No matter what I did.  I sent a request to Samsung http://www.samsung.com/us/ (the brand of the TV I purchased) for help, but they are not available 24/7.  Incidentally, I did not receive a response the next business day, as I expected. I purchased a Samsung based on the advice of a trusted Wal-Mart employee who knows her electronics. 

I called Suddenlink http://home.suddenlink.net/ , and the technician I connected with went out of his way to try to help me to figure out why I was not getting channels from the cable connection. I was double sure that I had made the correct connections, and he and I reviewed that several times.  Our interaction took almost 2 hours. Can you imagine. It is not even a part of his job! He was wonderful.

So, I thought I would wait to hear from Samsung, but that did not happen, so I decided I would upgrade my set top box to access High Definition TV, from Suddenlink. (I had this plan in the back of my mind, anyway.) I did the latter, and when I turned in my old box, the technician thought I could not access anything because I was using the TV remote vs. the set top box remote.  Dah, that made so much sense.  So, I traded boxes at Suddenlink, and went home, and after remounting the TV, I connected everything, and using the Suddenlink remote, I had access to the cable channels I should have had access to.  Yeah!  I felt so dumb.  But the good news is that although I was not originally motivated to get a new cable box that would give me High Definition access, with the connection problems I had, and accessing the new box, I did get HD!  I am paying for it, so you know what, I should get it.  Yeah!

The Blue Bloods

I like the TV Series The Blue Bloods http://www.cbs.com/shows/blue_bloods/.   It is the story of an Irish America family that has 3 generations of Irish American cops, 2 became police commissioners, one child is an assistant district attorney, one child a detective, one a beat cop who went through law school, and one child a cop who died on the job.

It is a story of good down home family values, and the stories of people who face and deal with the hard decisions of command, policing, and family.  It is also a story about how family values can help people do the right thing, or if not, couch the wrong thing in the right reasons.