It's good to have competition.
Comcast internet service offers maximum download/upload speeds "up to" 8/.768 Mbps for residential customers. The "up to" is key since the more people that are using the cable in your area the slower your speeds will be.
FIOS has a variety of packages but the middle tier residential package I have provides download/upload speeds of 20/5 Mbps. Comcast offers a "business" package that provides download/upload speeds of 16/2 Mbps.
My FIOS TV service is working great, the installation went smoothly, and the technician was competent, friendly and helpful. I ordered service Friday and had it on Saturday. FIOS TV includes over 200 channels and the picture quality is excellent for standard and HD broadcasts. Comcast has to use video compression for their video due to bandwidth limitations of their infrastructure, which leads to the blockiness you occasionally see.
The cost of FIOS TV is the same as what I was paying for Comcast basic cable.
It's good to have competition.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Verizon FiOS - Tips
Verizon has rolled out new national bandwidth tiers which are available to current FIOS internet customers free of charge. The kicker is that existing customers have to either call Verizon, or go to their website, to ask for the free upgrade to the higher speed. In my case I was getting 15/2 Mbps download/upload speeds which will increase to 20/5 Mbps. Additional information is contained in this Wikipedia article.
A money saving tip for anyone who is getting FIOS TV service and wants to connect multiple TV's is to call 1-888-GODIGITAL (1-888-463-4448) and ask for two free digital converter set top boxes. If you don't do this Verizon is happy to charge you $3.99 a month per box...so you are saving about $100 a year by calling 1-888-GODIGITAL. There are some comments on this program at Engadget HD. The Motorola DCT 700 boxes you get are for analog TV's. If you have an HD capable TV and want to watch HD you will have to pay $9.99 a month for a HD box.
Everett is the second city in Washington to get FIOS TV, thanks to an approval vote by the City Council on July 23. In case you are curious Lynnwood was the first city in Washington to get FIOS TV.
I'm expecting the installer to show up sometime today and am pretty excited about getting to watch CSpan-2 (which Comcast pulled from their basic cable), TV Land, Turner Classic Movies and actually see some HD shows on my LCD TV.
A money saving tip for anyone who is getting FIOS TV service and wants to connect multiple TV's is to call 1-888-GODIGITAL (1-888-463-4448) and ask for two free digital converter set top boxes. If you don't do this Verizon is happy to charge you $3.99 a month per box...so you are saving about $100 a year by calling 1-888-GODIGITAL. There are some comments on this program at Engadget HD. The Motorola DCT 700 boxes you get are for analog TV's. If you have an HD capable TV and want to watch HD you will have to pay $9.99 a month for a HD box.
Everett is the second city in Washington to get FIOS TV, thanks to an approval vote by the City Council on July 23. In case you are curious Lynnwood was the first city in Washington to get FIOS TV.
I'm expecting the installer to show up sometime today and am pretty excited about getting to watch CSpan-2 (which Comcast pulled from their basic cable), TV Land, Turner Classic Movies and actually see some HD shows on my LCD TV.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Montana Sunrise
Montana is a good place to watch the sunrise. In fact about any place is a good place. I like hearing and watching a city wake up just as much as out in the countryside. I was on my way to Anaconda, Montana when I took this picture.
We had a fun quick four day trip to Montana. We drove over 1500 miles in that time. The cost for gas works out to about 60 dollars per person so it's still the cheapest way to get there. You can't fly to the places we went anyway - so we would have had to fly to Butte or Bozeman and then rent a car.
Highlights of the trip were Owen's Meat Market in Cle Elum, WA. (best jerky), seeing "bears" in the Pioneer mountains that turned out to be a herd of cows, Elkhorn Hot Springs and the owner who told us to help ourselves to beer and wine from the cooler in the dining room during the night and just write down how much we took, seeing lots of kids having fun at Elkhorn including the ones outside the pool on the rocky slope where the hot water mixes with the cold creek, seeing Dillon and having coffee at the Kick Ass coffee shop, showing up at Fairmont Hot Springs and contrasting it to Elkhorn (Fairmont's current claim to fame is that Barack Obama stayed there), riding tandem bicycles (including having the seat on Rachel's bike come loose), seeing the little boys fishing in the pond from their home made raft and one of them who was about six jumping on his little motorbike and give us a riding exhibition with hill climbing and jumps, Betsy winning on the poker machine, going to see Mama Mia at the historic Washoe theater in Anaconda, going to Phillipsburg, and most of all just being together.
We had a fun quick four day trip to Montana. We drove over 1500 miles in that time. The cost for gas works out to about 60 dollars per person so it's still the cheapest way to get there. You can't fly to the places we went anyway - so we would have had to fly to Butte or Bozeman and then rent a car.
Highlights of the trip were Owen's Meat Market in Cle Elum, WA. (best jerky), seeing "bears" in the Pioneer mountains that turned out to be a herd of cows, Elkhorn Hot Springs and the owner who told us to help ourselves to beer and wine from the cooler in the dining room during the night and just write down how much we took, seeing lots of kids having fun at Elkhorn including the ones outside the pool on the rocky slope where the hot water mixes with the cold creek, seeing Dillon and having coffee at the Kick Ass coffee shop, showing up at Fairmont Hot Springs and contrasting it to Elkhorn (Fairmont's current claim to fame is that Barack Obama stayed there), riding tandem bicycles (including having the seat on Rachel's bike come loose), seeing the little boys fishing in the pond from their home made raft and one of them who was about six jumping on his little motorbike and give us a riding exhibition with hill climbing and jumps, Betsy winning on the poker machine, going to see Mama Mia at the historic Washoe theater in Anaconda, going to Phillipsburg, and most of all just being together.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Taking Time
Life's a journey not a destination.
As Harry Chapin wrote, "It's got to be the going not the getting there that's good."
If you want to foster happiness and creativity, take the time to slow down and smell the roses - and while your at it try nibbling a few and later reading a book to learn more about them. Slowing down and taking our time, allows us to see all sorts of things to be curious about - providing us with opportunities for learning, growth and new discoveries.
We frequently treat our lives like a road trip where we want to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible. We pass a lot of interesting attractions on the way and think to ourselves, "one of these days I should stop there". Unfortunately in some sense - we will never pass this way again. That day, that time, that moment, is never going to be repeated.
Think of a river - if you sit down by the side of the river, or float along on top, you will see a lot of interesting things passing by. If you dive into the river, keep your head down and swim with the current you'll see the same thing in the water surrounding you, even though you have the sensation of movement. A lot of us are swimming frantically with our heads down every day.
Some of the most interesting people, places and ideas come to us on those unplanned moments. Take the time to allow for some serendipitous events each and every day - life's too short to do anything else.
As Harry Chapin wrote, "It's got to be the going not the getting there that's good."
If you want to foster happiness and creativity, take the time to slow down and smell the roses - and while your at it try nibbling a few and later reading a book to learn more about them. Slowing down and taking our time, allows us to see all sorts of things to be curious about - providing us with opportunities for learning, growth and new discoveries.
We frequently treat our lives like a road trip where we want to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible. We pass a lot of interesting attractions on the way and think to ourselves, "one of these days I should stop there". Unfortunately in some sense - we will never pass this way again. That day, that time, that moment, is never going to be repeated.
Think of a river - if you sit down by the side of the river, or float along on top, you will see a lot of interesting things passing by. If you dive into the river, keep your head down and swim with the current you'll see the same thing in the water surrounding you, even though you have the sensation of movement. A lot of us are swimming frantically with our heads down every day.
Some of the most interesting people, places and ideas come to us on those unplanned moments. Take the time to allow for some serendipitous events each and every day - life's too short to do anything else.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
Clarissa Park Rules
I thought this sign in the small town of Clarissa in central Minnesota was interesting. It would be unusual to find a place to camp free in most towns and cities but in Clarissa you can camp free for a week. The latest census showed 609 people in Clarissa, and it's off the beaten path, which probably explains how they can manage to allow free camping - with playground equipment, swimming (in a creek), electricity, barbeques and bathrooms.
It's nice to see the civic pride of people in small town America by taking some of the Blue Highways. Driving north on highway 71 from I-94 you will pass through several small towns including Bertha, Browerville, Long Prairie and Sauk Centre - the home of Sinclair Lewis and the inspiration for his novel Main Street, which provides a less than rosy look at life in a small town. You are also in Lake Wobegon territory, where "all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average," so it can't be that bad.
It's nice to see the civic pride of people in small town America by taking some of the Blue Highways. Driving north on highway 71 from I-94 you will pass through several small towns including Bertha, Browerville, Long Prairie and Sauk Centre - the home of Sinclair Lewis and the inspiration for his novel Main Street, which provides a less than rosy look at life in a small town. You are also in Lake Wobegon territory, where "all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average," so it can't be that bad.
Saturday, August 09, 2008
Grand Marais Donut
something heavenly. I was there first customer this morning.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Thursday, August 07, 2008
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Berliners Welcome Obama as They Did JFK
This article from the Christian Science Monitor, written before Barack Obama gave his speech in Berlin today, predicted 100,000 people would attend. The article also states that 76% of Berliners would vote for Barack Obama.
It turned out that approximately 200,000 people were on hand to hear him speak.
This is a YouTube video of his speech.
It turned out that approximately 200,000 people were on hand to hear him speak.
This is a YouTube video of his speech.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Kiteboarding - A Jetty Island Kind of Day
I was watching the kite boarders on Jetty Island Saturday and it looked fun!
A definite plus is that is totally fuel-free (ther than getting yourself and a kayak to the 10th street boat launch on the Everett waterfront). The kiteboarders carry their gear in backpacks on kayaks from the boat launch over to Jetty Island.
The west side of Jetty Island is a great place for that sport since it has fairly steady winds and shallow water that is warmer than the rest of Puget Sound (although not so warm that they aren't wearing wetsuits or drysuits). When they fall they are often in water that is shallow enough to stand up in.
I've been reading about kiteboarding and learned the first step is to learn to fly a Beginner Kite which costs about 100 dollars. Knowing how to fly the kite will make kiteboarding lessons much more productive. If it looks like a sport that would appeal to you Seattle Kiteboarding at 17230 Bothell Way NE, Seattle WA. has equipment and kiteboarding lessons.
A definite plus is that is totally fuel-free (ther than getting yourself and a kayak to the 10th street boat launch on the Everett waterfront). The kiteboarders carry their gear in backpacks on kayaks from the boat launch over to Jetty Island.
The west side of Jetty Island is a great place for that sport since it has fairly steady winds and shallow water that is warmer than the rest of Puget Sound (although not so warm that they aren't wearing wetsuits or drysuits). When they fall they are often in water that is shallow enough to stand up in.
I've been reading about kiteboarding and learned the first step is to learn to fly a Beginner Kite which costs about 100 dollars. Knowing how to fly the kite will make kiteboarding lessons much more productive. If it looks like a sport that would appeal to you Seattle Kiteboarding at 17230 Bothell Way NE, Seattle WA. has equipment and kiteboarding lessons.
Monday, July 21, 2008
This is Your Brain on Music
If you don't have time to read it you could listen to some short samples of the music discussed in the book...or you could listen to this YouTube of Herbert von Karajan directing Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C minor and see if that has any effect on your brain - some people think this song in particular helps with concentration and creativity.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
According to this SFGate.com article you can watch Dr. Horrible free until Sunday night, after that you have to buy it on iTunes or wait for the DVD.
Here's a link to a YouTube video on Wired.com from a fan who wants to be Dr. Horrible's sidekick.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Singing About Working at The Wal-Mart
Free Range Studios has an animated video with a Garth Brooks-like voice singing about working at the Wal-Mart.
Free Range creates a variety of socially conscious videos like the Story of Stuff with Annie Leonard, and this National Partnership for Women & Families piece supporting paid sick days for all workers, where I learned that nearly half of private sector workers don’t get a single paid sick day to recover from illness, and 94 million workers don’t have a single paid sick day to care for a sick family member.
Free Range creates a variety of socially conscious videos like the Story of Stuff with Annie Leonard, and this National Partnership for Women & Families piece supporting paid sick days for all workers, where I learned that nearly half of private sector workers don’t get a single paid sick day to recover from illness, and 94 million workers don’t have a single paid sick day to care for a sick family member.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Sharing Is Healing - Noémi Ban
I was fortunate to be able to hear Holocaust survivor Noémi Ban tell her story today.
Noémi was a young woman when the Nazi's invaded Hungary and forced all Jewish people into a ghetto, then a factory, and finally onto rail cars destined for Auschwitz.
Her mother Julishka, sister Erzsébet, 6 month old baby brother, Gábor, and her grandmother, Nina were killed at Auschwitz.
Noémi is a peace-filled and loving person; telling a story to honor those she lost and to remind us how precious life and human dignity are. Even though she suffered terribly she is thankful for many things - simple things like a cold glass of water, and wonderful things like having two sons, grandchildren and great-grandchildren on the way. She received a Golden Apple Award in 1997 after more than 30 years of classroom teaching and continues to teach by sharing her story to this day.
When she talks about the Holocaust, he asks one question we all need to keep asking....
Why?
Noémi was a young woman when the Nazi's invaded Hungary and forced all Jewish people into a ghetto, then a factory, and finally onto rail cars destined for Auschwitz.
Her mother Julishka, sister Erzsébet, 6 month old baby brother, Gábor, and her grandmother, Nina were killed at Auschwitz.
Noémi is a peace-filled and loving person; telling a story to honor those she lost and to remind us how precious life and human dignity are. Even though she suffered terribly she is thankful for many things - simple things like a cold glass of water, and wonderful things like having two sons, grandchildren and great-grandchildren on the way. She received a Golden Apple Award in 1997 after more than 30 years of classroom teaching and continues to teach by sharing her story to this day.
When she talks about the Holocaust, he asks one question we all need to keep asking....
Why?
Monday, July 14, 2008
Typing Practice
Got an iPhone and I'm practicing typing with my thumbs.
I wish I could upload a picture from my iPhone..
Figured it out - this is my only picture right now.
I wish I could upload a picture from my iPhone..
Figured it out - this is my only picture right now.
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