Apparently Heff has finally gotten tired of having no outlet to abuse me on the Internet, since I've been heavily censoring his comments here for the last year or so. It appears that his blog has returned. Before you rush over there, be warned that Heff is one of the most disgusting and despicable bloggers that you'll ever meet, but he's also my best friend and my Fourth Cousin, Once Removed. His blog is NC-17 on it's best day, while I strive to maintain at PG-13 rating.
Don't click on the link Nana!
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Hatcher Implants
Jack has had 5 ear infections in the last three months, so when we visited the ear, nose, and throat specialist on Tuesday he said we should definitely get tubes inserted as soon as possible. Both ears were full of fluid and it's probably been affecting his hearing for the last few months.
So we woke up this morning at 6am and got to Summit Hospital at 6:45 to check into the Same Day Surgery area. It was pretty nerve wracking, since they had to put him under for a few minutes to do the surgery. Everything went fine though, and he's already feeling a lot better this afternoon. The doctor said both ears were full of fluid and pus, and he's been on a strong antibiotic for a week now.
Jack now has something implanted within him just like his Daddy. Fortunately, his will be gone naturally in about a year, while I still feel like I'm part Borg. Actually, I don't really notice my pacemaker much now after having it for three years as of yesterday.
So we woke up this morning at 6am and got to Summit Hospital at 6:45 to check into the Same Day Surgery area. It was pretty nerve wracking, since they had to put him under for a few minutes to do the surgery. Everything went fine though, and he's already feeling a lot better this afternoon. The doctor said both ears were full of fluid and pus, and he's been on a strong antibiotic for a week now.
Jack now has something implanted within him just like his Daddy. Fortunately, his will be gone naturally in about a year, while I still feel like I'm part Borg. Actually, I don't really notice my pacemaker much now after having it for three years as of yesterday.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
102nd Anniversary
Yesterday was the 102 year anniversary of the Virginia Mines Explosion that killed my great-uncle Bruce Hopkins father, Irvin Hopkins. Bruce was the half brother of my grandfather Luther Vernon Hatcher.
Here's a nice collection of articles from back then about the disaster that I just happened to come across last night while I was doing some research on my family tree after talking on the phone to my uncle Eugene for several hours.
I've started doing some more genealogy research, which I haven't really done since about 1986. I've already added several more generations of Hatchers, which was a complete dead end for us when we were researching before the Internet came along. It turns out there's now a very large online Hatcher research site, and they're even doing some genetic testing to help fill in some of the missing generations.
Here's a nice collection of articles from back then about the disaster that I just happened to come across last night while I was doing some research on my family tree after talking on the phone to my uncle Eugene for several hours.
I've started doing some more genealogy research, which I haven't really done since about 1986. I've already added several more generations of Hatchers, which was a complete dead end for us when we were researching before the Internet came along. It turns out there's now a very large online Hatcher research site, and they're even doing some genetic testing to help fill in some of the missing generations.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Limrock Pictures
Here's a couple of pictures that Joey sent me from our trip to Limrock Blowing Cave last weekend. In the first one, taken at the entrance, I'm showing everyone that I need to buy a larger caving shirt, while Joey appears to be scratching his butt on an icicle.
The second picture is the first waterfall in the cave, about 150 feet or so inside. The water is coming out of a V shaped hole, and just above my head was a large gathering of cave crickets. The water flows around the large rock I'm leaning on and goes out through a small hole in the cave wall to my right.
The second picture is the first waterfall in the cave, about 150 feet or so inside. The water is coming out of a V shaped hole, and just above my head was a large gathering of cave crickets. The water flows around the large rock I'm leaning on and goes out through a small hole in the cave wall to my right.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Weekend Caving
This past weekend I finally got motivated again and decided to go caving, which is the first time I've been since the trip to Big Bone Cave back in December, which I guess I still haven't talked about on the blog. I'll have to try to sneak in a Big Bone trip report while Heff is distracted. I can only imagine the heinousness of the comments he would come up with for it.
Joey was camping near Scottsboro with an old friend of his, another friend of that friend, and their wives. They wanted to go caving, and Joey wanted to go somewhere new, so he decided on Limrock Blowing Cave and then a trip up to Stephens Gap to rappel the big pit there. I had been to both caves, so I told him I'd come along and act as guide for Limrock.
This was my second trip to Limrock, and it was a bit different this time. I went during SERA last year, and the cave was warmer and drier. The cave wasn't blowing air on Saturday, it was sucking air in. Cold air. It was right at freezing outside I think. There was also a lot more water in the cave. I was dressed in my standard caving outfit, which is cargo shorts and a synthetic t-shirt, along with Smart Wool socks. As long as my feet stay warm I can take pretty low temperatures.
As we got deeper in the cave, it warmed up significantly. We reached one point in a 50 foot dome with a waterfall where we guessed it may have been as warm as 60 degrees, which felt like a sauna compared to the cave entrance. We spent about 2.5 hours in the cave, and we made really good time. We pushed down the main bore hole passage until we hit the large pile of breakdown and turned around. We skipped the loop on the way out where we'd have to swim for a bit, and managed to find a crawl that skipped another medium sized pile of breakdown that we had climbed over on the way in.
After a sandwich break in the parking lot, we drove over to the parking area for Stephens Gap. This was my third trip here, and I was dreading the one mile hike since my legs were already tired. I almost backed out, but decided to go ahead and hike up. I warned the rest of the group that I would be slow making it all the way up, so just go on ahead. They needed to rig the pit anyway.
I was really huffing and puffing by the time I made it up to the entrance, but the trip up there is always worth the hike. Stephens Gap truly is one of the natural wonders of Alabama. On Saturday there was a lot more water going into the pit than the last two times I was there. I sat and watched them rig the rope through the keyhole for a bit, then went down into the cave through the horizontal entrance, which was trickier this time due to the ice coating the breakdown. At least I didn't have to worry about copperheads this time of year.
From below the big pit was very interesting. There were actually two waterfalls in the pit, the big one at the top and another one that entered from a crack about 50 feet down and across from the other one. The water from both merge about 50 feet below that, but it's a strange effect since the water from the big waterfall is moving a lot faster at the point where they merge. It's hard to describe, but it's cool to watch.
I sat on a ledge and watched Joey rappel the pit, then I decided I'd had enough for the day. I wanted to get home in time to put Jack to bed. Joey asked me to make sure his truck was OK since he couldn't lock the back of it and he was worried someone would break into it. I trudged down the valley, having to will my legs to take one more step. They were pretty much shot by that point. When I got back to the vehicles, I immediately broke into Joey's truck and stole a sandwich and a beer. I made good time back to Nashville, and was there to give the boy a bath and put him to bed. I took an Aleve, fell asleep on the couch, and didn't move for about 14 hours. My quadriceps were complaining the rest of the weekend, but they were fine by Monday.
Joey was camping near Scottsboro with an old friend of his, another friend of that friend, and their wives. They wanted to go caving, and Joey wanted to go somewhere new, so he decided on Limrock Blowing Cave and then a trip up to Stephens Gap to rappel the big pit there. I had been to both caves, so I told him I'd come along and act as guide for Limrock.
This was my second trip to Limrock, and it was a bit different this time. I went during SERA last year, and the cave was warmer and drier. The cave wasn't blowing air on Saturday, it was sucking air in. Cold air. It was right at freezing outside I think. There was also a lot more water in the cave. I was dressed in my standard caving outfit, which is cargo shorts and a synthetic t-shirt, along with Smart Wool socks. As long as my feet stay warm I can take pretty low temperatures.
As we got deeper in the cave, it warmed up significantly. We reached one point in a 50 foot dome with a waterfall where we guessed it may have been as warm as 60 degrees, which felt like a sauna compared to the cave entrance. We spent about 2.5 hours in the cave, and we made really good time. We pushed down the main bore hole passage until we hit the large pile of breakdown and turned around. We skipped the loop on the way out where we'd have to swim for a bit, and managed to find a crawl that skipped another medium sized pile of breakdown that we had climbed over on the way in.
After a sandwich break in the parking lot, we drove over to the parking area for Stephens Gap. This was my third trip here, and I was dreading the one mile hike since my legs were already tired. I almost backed out, but decided to go ahead and hike up. I warned the rest of the group that I would be slow making it all the way up, so just go on ahead. They needed to rig the pit anyway.
I was really huffing and puffing by the time I made it up to the entrance, but the trip up there is always worth the hike. Stephens Gap truly is one of the natural wonders of Alabama. On Saturday there was a lot more water going into the pit than the last two times I was there. I sat and watched them rig the rope through the keyhole for a bit, then went down into the cave through the horizontal entrance, which was trickier this time due to the ice coating the breakdown. At least I didn't have to worry about copperheads this time of year.
From below the big pit was very interesting. There were actually two waterfalls in the pit, the big one at the top and another one that entered from a crack about 50 feet down and across from the other one. The water from both merge about 50 feet below that, but it's a strange effect since the water from the big waterfall is moving a lot faster at the point where they merge. It's hard to describe, but it's cool to watch.
I sat on a ledge and watched Joey rappel the pit, then I decided I'd had enough for the day. I wanted to get home in time to put Jack to bed. Joey asked me to make sure his truck was OK since he couldn't lock the back of it and he was worried someone would break into it. I trudged down the valley, having to will my legs to take one more step. They were pretty much shot by that point. When I got back to the vehicles, I immediately broke into Joey's truck and stole a sandwich and a beer. I made good time back to Nashville, and was there to give the boy a bath and put him to bed. I took an Aleve, fell asleep on the couch, and didn't move for about 14 hours. My quadriceps were complaining the rest of the weekend, but they were fine by Monday.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Tuesday Morning DBAN Coming Down
So the DBAN today was 281.3. It's been slow going, but progress is being made. People at work are asking me if I've lost weight now, so it must be starting to show. I know my belt is getting really loose again and it's on the last notch.
Sunday I put over 10k steps on the pedometer for the first time since I broke my toe in early January. I clocked 11.6k for the day and the next day the toe only ached a little and my legs were pretty much worn out. I put over a mile on it Sunday morning by pushing 1 year olds around in a large cart at church. I made six laps around the church with them and broke a pretty good sweat doing so.
Yesterday I only did 6.1k steps since I was just plain tuckered out by the time I got home and got Jack ready for bed. Plus it's cold and I hate walking on the treadmill. I'm going to try to do 10k again today and then slow it down the rest of the week since I'm going caving in north Alabama on Saturday.
Sunday I put over 10k steps on the pedometer for the first time since I broke my toe in early January. I clocked 11.6k for the day and the next day the toe only ached a little and my legs were pretty much worn out. I put over a mile on it Sunday morning by pushing 1 year olds around in a large cart at church. I made six laps around the church with them and broke a pretty good sweat doing so.
Yesterday I only did 6.1k steps since I was just plain tuckered out by the time I got home and got Jack ready for bed. Plus it's cold and I hate walking on the treadmill. I'm going to try to do 10k again today and then slow it down the rest of the week since I'm going caving in north Alabama on Saturday.
A Hatch Book Meme
I don't normally do these, but Wilfred keeps doing them and I'm jealous, so when I saw one that was related to sci-fi books I decided to snag it from Eve who snagged it from some other blogger.
A Feast for Crows - George R.R. Martin
The Night's Dawn Trilogy - Peter F. Hamilton
Dune - Frank Herbert
Voice of the Whirlwind - Walter Jon Williams. (I re-read it every few years. Probably my favorite book.)
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard (Yes, I love this book. I've read it multiple times since I was 16 and haven't seen any signs of Scientology in it. It's just a great big campy sci-fi book that's a lot of fun to read.)
X favorite genre series? (Where X is 5 or less)
A Song of Fire and Ice - George R.R. Martin
Wheel of Time (The first 5 books) - Robert Jordan
The Belgariad - David Eddings (You can safely skip The Mallorean, the sequel series.)
The Night's Dawn Trilogy - Peter F. Hamilton
The Riftwar Saga - Raymond E. Feist
Science Fiction, Fantasy or Horror?
An even mixture of Sci-Fi and Fantasty. I rarely read Horror. I read Amityville Horror back in elementary school and I think it scarred me for life.
Hardback or Trade Paperback or Mass Market Paperback?
Honestly, I don't care. I even read online books occasionally, especially at Project Gutenburg. In 2005 I read Candide there. At home I have mostly Hardback and trades. I do avoid the Mass Markets for the most part because they fall apart so easily.
Heinlein or Asimov?
As far as Sci-Fi goes, it would be Heinlein, who I read voraciously as a horny teenage geek. I've read most of Asimov's Foundation series, and I've read a lot of his non-fiction as well. The man wrote an insane amount of books on vastly different topics.
Amazon or Brick and Mortar?
I buy a lot from Amazon, although I pick up an impulse buy a few times a year at a Brick and Mortar. I hit the local library a lot too.
Barnes & Noble or Borders?
There aren't any Borders in Nashville that I know of, so I don't really have a choice usually. When I lived in Atlanta we would drive to the huge Borders in Buckhead several times a month. It was an insanely great bookstore and was big enough to require escalators. It had a huge selection of science, computer, and sci-fi/fantasy books.
Hitchhiker or Discworld?
I've been meaning to read some Discworld novels for years now, but I've never gotten around to it. I read the Hitchhiker books a lot when I was a teenager and loved them at the time. I tried to read the first Hitchhiker book again a few years ago and found it unappealing.
Bookmark or Dog ear?
About once a year, a certain someone in my house tries to be helpful and saves the place in a book I've left lying open by dog earring the page. This drives me completely nuts and there's usually an argument involved.
Magazine: Asimov’s Science Fiction or Fantasy & Science Fiction?
Neither. I prefer Analog and I've read it for years.
Alphabetize by author Alphabetize by title or random?
Totally random. Boxes of books laying around in the garage random.
Keep, Throw Away or Sell?
I did a huge purge several years ago and so far it hasn't built back up too much. I tend to use the library more now, so that helps. I also tend to gather up a pile and give them to Paul and he will do the same for me.
Year’s Best Science Fiction series (edited by Gardner Dozois) or Years Best SF series (edited by David G. Hartwell)?
Haven't read either, so can't comment.
Keep dust jacket or toss it?
I often take the dust jacket off to read and then lose it, so it's not a planned action.
Read with dust jacket or remove it?
See previous entry.
Short story or novel?
I like both. I buy a few issues of Analog magazine every year and I'll tend to read an anthology every once and a while.
Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket?
I haven't read either. I'll probably read Harry Potter along with Jack when he gets old enough. I think Victoria read Lemony Snicket books a few years back.
Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
Sometimes in the middle of a paragraph depending on how tired I am. If I've already stayed up too late but I really want to keep reading, I'll make a deal with myself to stop at the end of the next chapter.
“It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time”?
Once upon a time.
Buy or Borrow?
I do both in equal measures. It's been a while since PC and I did a swap, so I may need to take a pile over to his house this Sunday.
Buying choice: Book Reviews, Recommendation or Browse?
I rarely read reviews, so it's usually a recommendation or browsing.
Lewis or Tolkien?
I've only read the first Narnia book and that was a looooonng time ago back in middle school I think. I've read The Hobbit and The Ring Trilogy by Tolkien. I tried to read some of his other stuff but it's like reading an atlas. On three occasions I've tried to slog through the Silmarillion, but I get bogged down about 1/4 of the way through.
Hard SF or Space Opera?
Hard Sci-fi all the way. I did recently read a great Space Opera though. Check out the 2006 reading list.
Collection (short stories by the same author) or Anthology (short stories by different authors)?
Both. I'm in the process of reading The Compleat Enchanter (collection) and The Enchanter Compleated (anthology), both about the character created by L. Sprague DeCamp.
Hugo or Nebula?
I've read many of the books awarded the Hugo and I've never been disappointed. Forever War is one of the best, as was A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge. I'm not very familiar with the Nebula so again I can't comment.
Golden Age SF or New Wave SF?
New Wave for the most part. I'm not sure when the "Golden Era" stopped, but I tend to pick up a 1970's Sci-fi book every time I'm near Hillsboro Village and I'm able to stop in Book Man/Book Woman, which has an insanely great, if random, selection of old sci-fi paperbacks.
Tidy ending or Cliffhanger?
Tidy. Cliffhangers suck unless there's another book to resolve it later.
Morning reading, Afternoon reading or Nighttime reading?
Almost always at night. Sometimes I read at lunch, but lately I haven't been taking long lunches.
Standalone or Series?
I like series, but they usually bog down if they go longer than 3 books. The best example of this is the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. It started out being insanely great, but after the third book it slowly ground down until the last couple have been almost intolerably bad and boring. He says he's going to wrap it all up in one more novel, but I can't see how he will without rushing things and leaving a lot of plot lines open.
Urban fantasy or high fantasy?
I'm not sure what "urban fantasy" is. I pretty much like the traditional fantasy worlds where magic is rare, feared, and often misunderstood. I did enjoy the Thieves World books, but again, like most series they bogged down soon after the third book.
New or used?
I buy both, but often used. I tend to go to Book Man/Book Woman and buy a stack of used paperbacks for the same price a new hardback would cost.
Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
I don't tend to read unknown books. Since I tend to read some of the older stuff, I'm sure a lot of people my age and younger have never heard of some of them. Check out anything by Alfred Bester, but if you only read one, read The Demolished Man, which won the first Hugo award. If you read two, go with The Stars my Destination, which is probably the original "Cyberpunk" novel.
A Feast for Crows - George R.R. Martin
The Night's Dawn Trilogy - Peter F. Hamilton
Top X favorite genre books of all time? (Where X is 5 or less)
Dune - Frank Herbert
Voice of the Whirlwind - Walter Jon Williams. (I re-read it every few years. Probably my favorite book.)
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard (Yes, I love this book. I've read it multiple times since I was 16 and haven't seen any signs of Scientology in it. It's just a great big campy sci-fi book that's a lot of fun to read.)
X favorite genre series? (Where X is 5 or less)
A Song of Fire and Ice - George R.R. Martin
Wheel of Time (The first 5 books) - Robert Jordan
The Belgariad - David Eddings (You can safely skip The Mallorean, the sequel series.)
The Night's Dawn Trilogy - Peter F. Hamilton
The Riftwar Saga - Raymond E. Feist
Top X favorite genre short stories? (Where X is 5 or less)
I don't tend to remember short stories much after I read them. They're sort of like eating M&M's. I really enjoyed the Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser stories by Fritz Leiber, and I need to read them again soon. The short stories in Thieves World and Wildcards were always enjoyable too. I've read a lot of sci-fi in Analog magazine over the years as well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
