Friday, February 10, 2012
Don't Forget My T-Shirt Giveaway Contest
Find it here: http://www.ballseyesboomers.blogspot.com/2012/02/nation-of-riflemen-t-shirt-giveaway.html
Dad Shoots Daughter's Laptop
Well, just let me say this sure seems to be a rather unique way by which to address your daughter's showing of disrespect on facebook.
All the best,
Glenn B
All the best,
Glenn B
Pistol Permit Application
Well, now that I am no longer an LEO, it is about time that I apply for my NYS Pistol License. I have 8 pistols that I had best get on the license. Of course, LEOSA would allow me to carry in all 50 states without the requirement of a license but in essence only those handguns that were of the same type used by me on the job. I guess that would cover my Glock 26 and my 3 Beretta 92 series pistols (especially because I actually did use all 4 of them on the job) but LEOSA probably would not cover my Ruger MKII, my Ortgies, My Beretta 70S or my S&W Model 17-8. Yep, I had best get that license application in to my county PD. I will probably have it handed in on Monday, once I have a few pages of it notarized. I could have applied for the license right after I retired in November but held off because of health issues. Now that I am much more up to getting such things done, it is time to get this particular thing done.
With that end in mind, I picked up my "Good Guy Letter" from my old place of employment today. It was nice to get out, then to see a bunch of my buddies in the office and to have lunch with a few of them. I got to visit with a bunch of good folks I have not seen in all to long. As for the "Good Guy Letter" it is basically a reference letter explaining how long I was an LEO, that I never had problems leading to my firearms being confiscated on the job, and so on. It was signed by the Agent in Charge of the office in which I worked in NYC. Now that I have gotten that, it is pretty much a green light for me to get everything together and then bring it to the police department. if all goes well, I understand I will have the pistol license within a couple to a few weeks. Luckily for me, the $200 license fee is waived but I do still pay the just under $95 fingerprint fee. I know it takes much longer for those of us who were not an LEO and it costs a lot more and I realize that sucks. I think it takes up to 6 months or so.
I am not trying to blow my horn and say how great it is for me to have the process sped up or cost less, I am just relaying the facts that I was told about the process relative to a former LEO's application. I have to say, I think a fee of $200 is way too high as I think a wait of several months is way too long. Heck, I do not believe that people should be required to obtain a license or a permit to be able to carry a handgun and that is one of the reasons I am a life member of the NRA and of the New York State Rifle And Pistol Association. But, that is my opinion and obviously not the same as many other voters who live here in NYS. Yet, there seems to be a growing population of those who think like me along these lines here in NY. If so then laws may ease up a bit someday in the not too distant future.
It will be nice to have the license if and when it gets approved. I feel something is missing when I walk down the street while not carrying. I guess that is due to the fact that I had carried a pistol for so long it is a truly just a strange feeling to be out and about without one. Having the right tool, such as in when you may need to defend yourself or your family, is always a good feeling too. Well, hopefully all that will be remedied soon.
I have to say that the folks in my county's police department have been nothing but courteous and helpful. That is not only because I am a former LEO, they seem to treat everyone applying for a pistol license the same way. That is nice to see because it shows they are not only acting with all due respect but also as true professionals. I tip my hat to them for that.
All the best,
Glenn B
With that end in mind, I picked up my "Good Guy Letter" from my old place of employment today. It was nice to get out, then to see a bunch of my buddies in the office and to have lunch with a few of them. I got to visit with a bunch of good folks I have not seen in all to long. As for the "Good Guy Letter" it is basically a reference letter explaining how long I was an LEO, that I never had problems leading to my firearms being confiscated on the job, and so on. It was signed by the Agent in Charge of the office in which I worked in NYC. Now that I have gotten that, it is pretty much a green light for me to get everything together and then bring it to the police department. if all goes well, I understand I will have the pistol license within a couple to a few weeks. Luckily for me, the $200 license fee is waived but I do still pay the just under $95 fingerprint fee. I know it takes much longer for those of us who were not an LEO and it costs a lot more and I realize that sucks. I think it takes up to 6 months or so.
I am not trying to blow my horn and say how great it is for me to have the process sped up or cost less, I am just relaying the facts that I was told about the process relative to a former LEO's application. I have to say, I think a fee of $200 is way too high as I think a wait of several months is way too long. Heck, I do not believe that people should be required to obtain a license or a permit to be able to carry a handgun and that is one of the reasons I am a life member of the NRA and of the New York State Rifle And Pistol Association. But, that is my opinion and obviously not the same as many other voters who live here in NYS. Yet, there seems to be a growing population of those who think like me along these lines here in NY. If so then laws may ease up a bit someday in the not too distant future.
It will be nice to have the license if and when it gets approved. I feel something is missing when I walk down the street while not carrying. I guess that is due to the fact that I had carried a pistol for so long it is a truly just a strange feeling to be out and about without one. Having the right tool, such as in when you may need to defend yourself or your family, is always a good feeling too. Well, hopefully all that will be remedied soon.
I have to say that the folks in my county's police department have been nothing but courteous and helpful. That is not only because I am a former LEO, they seem to treat everyone applying for a pistol license the same way. That is nice to see because it shows they are not only acting with all due respect but also as true professionals. I tip my hat to them for that.
All the best,
Glenn B
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Nation of Riflemen T-Shirt - Giveaway Contest (not endorsed by or connected with the Nation of Riflemen)
Recently, while going through a chest of drawers in my basement, I found a Nation of Riflemen T-shirt (a similar shirt can be seen at the link), sized medium, still in its original wrapper. I think that I bought it, some years back, with the silly notion I could get my wife to wear it after I got her into shooting. You guessed, neither her getting into shooting or her wearing it ever came about. So, what to do with the shirt. I figured I could hold some sort of contest and give it away. It took me at least a couple to a few weeks, after rediscovering the shirt, to figure out what type of contest to hold but it came to me tonight in a U.S. Mail Priority Mail box.
The idea for the contest, of course, popped up in my head. What came to me in the Priority Mail box was not the idea as much as it was the item that inspired the idea. That is the item that is now pictured here in this post in various views - all in my very own style of lousier than normal point and shoot photography, click on pics to enlarge.
I will allow one entry per person (this is on the honor system) in which all you basically have to do is correctly identify what is the item and you must be specific as to what it is, and then you must tell me to what other specific item it is directly related. Yes, it definitely goes with something else and as a hint I will tell you it fits inside something else for which it was specifically made. You cannot just answer something like: "It is a car part, it fits in a car". If it were indeed a car part, you would have to tell me specifically what part it was and to which car by make and model it went. I will give you all another hint right now, it is not a car part. Be specific in your answer as to what it is and as to the other thing to which it is related, indeed for which it was made to fit.
I will leave the contest open from the publication time of this post until Saturday, February 18, 2012, at 11:59 PM. After that, I will check the answers and see if anyone has guessed correctly. If there is only one correct guess, then that person is the tentative winner.
Note this is restricted to folks who are U.S. Citizens or legal resident aliens residing within the lower 48 of the United States of America and who are not restricted by law or regulation from receiving such a prize (as in not a felon doing time who can not receive a T-shirt like this because prison officials would consider it contraband). I will only ship to an address in the lower 48. Postage paid by me. If you are selected as the winner, you must send me your full name and mailing address so I can send out the shirt.
You must be 18 or older to participate in this contest.
You must have a valid user name, in the comment system, that appears with your comment (such as you being registered for Blogger). I will not except entries from folks identified by the system as anonymous!
Your user name must be linked to a valid email address or you must leave your email address in the comment section in the event I need to contact you to tell you that you won or to ask for your info.
If more than one person has the correct answer, I will select a winner at random from among the entrants with correct entries. If no one has the correct answer, I will still select a winner, this time at random from among all entrants. There will only be one winner at most. If no one enters the contest, then I win!
To enter, leave a comment in the comments and tell me, in your comment, what you think is the pictured item (no spam, or what I think is spam such as comments with links back to commercial web pages, such will be deleted as ineligible). Do not tell me the item is my hand or my couch - the item in question is the metal item on the couch and in my hand.
My decision as to what constitutes a correct answer is binding and final based upon my knowledge of the item.
Do not send me email entries, all entries must be via a comment to this post.
If you sell, distribute, deal, (or work for someone or are married to someone who does likewise) in items such as the one pictured you are not eligible to enter.
Note, I do not guarantee that the winner will receive the prize although if there is a winner although, I will make my best attempt to mail it to him or her. If the shirt is lost or damaged in the mail or otherwise, all I can say is tough noogies you get nothing if lost or a ruined shirt if damaged.
I can change, modify alter the rules at any time.
I can cancel the contest at any time at my discretion.
All rules must be followed and it is a condition of your entering the contest that you agree that you agree to and have followed all the rules' - this, again, is on the honor system.
If someone cheats, oh well he or she cheated and those who did not cheat have integrity while the cheater winds up with the shirt by way of cheating. That would suck but life sometimes sucks, believe me on that one. Please, on the honor system - do not cheat or otherwise fudge the rules. If, after the contest is over, I discover that someone cheated or otherwise fudged the rules to win the contest, what that means is the cheater will have won a friggin T-shirt and lost his/her integrity and my respect but the honest people will have maintained their integrity and my respect.
All contestants agree to hold me harmless and indemnify me for anything directly or indirectly related to this contest.
I will try to announce the winner, in a blog post, on Sunday, February 19, 2012 or soon after that
Enough of the rules, if you agree to abide by all themumbo-jumbo rules, why not take a look at thepics, then enter a comment to this post, with your best shot at identifying the item and the item to which it is directly related, in order to enter the contest.
Serious, crazy, whacky, oddball, obviously wrong, funny, outrageous but only polite and nice answers are accepted.
Good luck to all those who give it a shot.
All the best,
Glenn B
PS: One other thing: If someone gives what you think is a probable correct answer, do not run a Google search of his answer to see if you come up with a picture of the item in your Google search and then repeat the other person's answer. Yes, you can copy another person's answer, but please, on the honor system, do not Google it, or otherwise run an Internet search on it, to see if it was the correct answer first. That would be pretty friggin low. (Now why did I think of that!)
The idea for the contest, of course, popped up in my head. What came to me in the Priority Mail box was not the idea as much as it was the item that inspired the idea. That is the item that is now pictured here in this post in various views - all in my very own style of lousier than normal point and shoot photography, click on pics to enlarge. I will allow one entry per person (this is on the honor system) in which all you basically have to do is correctly identify what is the item and you must be specific as to what it is, and then you must tell me to what other specific item it is directly related. Yes, it definitely goes with something else and as a hint I will tell you it fits inside something else for which it was specifically made. You cannot just answer something like: "It is a car part, it fits in a car". If it were indeed a car part, you would have to tell me specifically what part it was and to which car by make and model it went. I will give you all another hint right now, it is not a car part. Be specific in your answer as to what it is and as to the other thing to which it is related, indeed for which it was made to fit.
I will leave the contest open from the publication time of this post until Saturday, February 18, 2012, at 11:59 PM. After that, I will check the answers and see if anyone has guessed correctly. If there is only one correct guess, then that person is the tentative winner. Note this is restricted to folks who are U.S. Citizens or legal resident aliens residing within the lower 48 of the United States of America and who are not restricted by law or regulation from receiving such a prize (as in not a felon doing time who can not receive a T-shirt like this because prison officials would consider it contraband). I will only ship to an address in the lower 48. Postage paid by me. If you are selected as the winner, you must send me your full name and mailing address so I can send out the shirt.
You must be 18 or older to participate in this contest. You must have a valid user name, in the comment system, that appears with your comment (such as you being registered for Blogger). I will not except entries from folks identified by the system as anonymous!
Your user name must be linked to a valid email address or you must leave your email address in the comment section in the event I need to contact you to tell you that you won or to ask for your info.
If more than one person has the correct answer, I will select a winner at random from among the entrants with correct entries. If no one has the correct answer, I will still select a winner, this time at random from among all entrants. There will only be one winner at most. If no one enters the contest, then I win!
To enter, leave a comment in the comments and tell me, in your comment, what you think is the pictured item (no spam, or what I think is spam such as comments with links back to commercial web pages, such will be deleted as ineligible). Do not tell me the item is my hand or my couch - the item in question is the metal item on the couch and in my hand.
My decision as to what constitutes a correct answer is binding and final based upon my knowledge of the item.
Do not send me email entries, all entries must be via a comment to this post.
If you sell, distribute, deal, (or work for someone or are married to someone who does likewise) in items such as the one pictured you are not eligible to enter.
Note, I do not guarantee that the winner will receive the prize although if there is a winner although, I will make my best attempt to mail it to him or her. If the shirt is lost or damaged in the mail or otherwise, all I can say is tough noogies you get nothing if lost or a ruined shirt if damaged. I can change, modify alter the rules at any time.
I can cancel the contest at any time at my discretion.
All rules must be followed and it is a condition of your entering the contest that you agree that you agree to and have followed all the rules' - this, again, is on the honor system.
If someone cheats, oh well he or she cheated and those who did not cheat have integrity while the cheater winds up with the shirt by way of cheating. That would suck but life sometimes sucks, believe me on that one. Please, on the honor system - do not cheat or otherwise fudge the rules. If, after the contest is over, I discover that someone cheated or otherwise fudged the rules to win the contest, what that means is the cheater will have won a friggin T-shirt and lost his/her integrity and my respect but the honest people will have maintained their integrity and my respect.
All contestants agree to hold me harmless and indemnify me for anything directly or indirectly related to this contest.I will try to announce the winner, in a blog post, on Sunday, February 19, 2012 or soon after that
Enough of the rules, if you agree to abide by all the
Serious, crazy, whacky, oddball, obviously wrong, funny, outrageous but only polite and nice answers are accepted.
Good luck to all those who give it a shot.
All the best,
Glenn B
PS: One other thing: If someone gives what you think is a probable correct answer, do not run a Google search of his answer to see if you come up with a picture of the item in your Google search and then repeat the other person's answer. Yes, you can copy another person's answer, but please, on the honor system, do not Google it, or otherwise run an Internet search on it, to see if it was the correct answer first. That would be pretty friggin low. (Now why did I think of that!)
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Passing of Florence Green, Last Known Veteran of World War I, The Last Of Her Kind
On this past Saturday, Florence Green, the last know surviving veteran of World War I, passed away quietly, she was 110 years old and just shy of her 111th birthday. She died quietly at Briar House Care Home in King's Lynn, England, where she resided, an almost forgotten veteran of The Great War. You see, she was not even recognized as a veteran until 2010 when a war researcher discovered her military records. She was a veteran but not a warrior, not a nurse taking care of the wounded near the battlefields, in fact she never even saw the front lines. She was a waitress in the Royal Air Force and served in the officers' mess at RAF Marham in eastern England. She only served a shot time during the war from September 1918 through the war's end for England in November 1918. Yet, she was indeed a veteran of that terrible war, one who served on the home front; in fact - she was the LAST SURVIVING VETERAN OF WORLD WAR I.
Take a moment and think of that. You young folks may not know one heck of a lot about WWI. Tonight, when i see my daughter, who majored in History as an undergrad, I will ask her what she knows about WWI,. She is still in her twenties and my guess is, even though she majored European History, that she will have learned little about it in college and less when she went for her Master's Degree, in Teaching but also geared toward History. I will be surprised if she can name 6 of the major combatant countries or where and with what event the war started. It would be a pleasant surprise to find out she knows that stuff and that it is still being taught. It would be a shame to find out otherwise because WW had a major lasting effect on the world and the way we live, the way we deal with other nations, the way warfare is conducted and the way we try to maintain the peace. It was a war, in which hostilities ended on its western front with an armistice at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. Some fighting continued on its eastern front but the majority of the fighting was over. That war and the armistice gave us the holiday we still celebrate on that day, the one formerly called Armistice Day. Do you know what it is called today. have you ever given it a thought? This lady, this mere waitress, who never saw one bit of that horrendous fighting was nonetheless that war's last surviving veteran. She is with us no longer and I ask that you take another moment to think of her and of all the others who served in that war and to think of them with honor for their service. On November 11th, of each year for the rest of your life, on Veterans Day, maybe precisely at the 11th hour if you can, I ask that you remember all of our veterans and those of our allies who have striven to protect our nation, her citizens, our freedoms and our Constitution. They are the most important people in the world, people like them should not be forgotten and that includes Florence Green, the last of her kind.
For more info on Florence green, see: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/02/07/last-known-wwi-veteran-dies-at-110/?test=latestnews and http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46297110/ns/world_news-europe/t/time-my-life-last-known-wwi-veteran-dies.
If you are interested, Charles Choule, the last combat veteran of WWI died in May 2011. See: http://ballseyesboomers.blogspot.com/2011/05/last-of-last-claude-choules-has-set.html. He servedEngland aboard a battleship after joining the British Navy at the age of 15 (yep, you guessed it, he lied about his age). In addition, the last surviving United States military veteran of WWI, Frank Buckles, died in March 2011, see: http://ballseyesboomers.blogspot.com/2011/03/last-lonely-eagle.html. All three died within less than one year of each other and with the passing of Florence Green ends not only an era but ends a whole class of people never again to grace this fair earth. Take a moment, think of them with honor, thank them, do not forget them.
On a personal note, I have to add that the death of Florence Green coincides with something I experienced just yesterday. I passed by the entrance to Central Park, just off Columbus Circle in NYC yesterday. When I did so, I took a look at a memorial/monument that I have probably passed hundreds of times in my life without giving it much notice. On it was chiseled the words: Remember The Maine. I took a few more moments to admire it, front sides and back, all adorned with statues. It was then, on the east side of the monument that I noticed the names of they who were lost aboard that ship, the loss of which triggered the Spanish American War. I took a moment to think of them with honor. Today, I will do likewise for Florence Green who passed away peacefully at 110 and, as I have said over and over again, was the last surviving veteran of WWI, the end of an era, and the last of her kind.
All the best,
Glenn B
Take a moment and think of that. You young folks may not know one heck of a lot about WWI. Tonight, when i see my daughter, who majored in History as an undergrad, I will ask her what she knows about WWI,. She is still in her twenties and my guess is, even though she majored European History, that she will have learned little about it in college and less when she went for her Master's Degree, in Teaching but also geared toward History. I will be surprised if she can name 6 of the major combatant countries or where and with what event the war started. It would be a pleasant surprise to find out she knows that stuff and that it is still being taught. It would be a shame to find out otherwise because WW had a major lasting effect on the world and the way we live, the way we deal with other nations, the way warfare is conducted and the way we try to maintain the peace. It was a war, in which hostilities ended on its western front with an armistice at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. Some fighting continued on its eastern front but the majority of the fighting was over. That war and the armistice gave us the holiday we still celebrate on that day, the one formerly called Armistice Day. Do you know what it is called today. have you ever given it a thought? This lady, this mere waitress, who never saw one bit of that horrendous fighting was nonetheless that war's last surviving veteran. She is with us no longer and I ask that you take another moment to think of her and of all the others who served in that war and to think of them with honor for their service. On November 11th, of each year for the rest of your life, on Veterans Day, maybe precisely at the 11th hour if you can, I ask that you remember all of our veterans and those of our allies who have striven to protect our nation, her citizens, our freedoms and our Constitution. They are the most important people in the world, people like them should not be forgotten and that includes Florence Green, the last of her kind.
For more info on Florence green, see: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/02/07/last-known-wwi-veteran-dies-at-110/?test=latestnews and http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46297110/ns/world_news-europe/t/time-my-life-last-known-wwi-veteran-dies.
If you are interested, Charles Choule, the last combat veteran of WWI died in May 2011. See: http://ballseyesboomers.blogspot.com/2011/05/last-of-last-claude-choules-has-set.html. He servedEngland aboard a battleship after joining the British Navy at the age of 15 (yep, you guessed it, he lied about his age). In addition, the last surviving United States military veteran of WWI, Frank Buckles, died in March 2011, see: http://ballseyesboomers.blogspot.com/2011/03/last-lonely-eagle.html. All three died within less than one year of each other and with the passing of Florence Green ends not only an era but ends a whole class of people never again to grace this fair earth. Take a moment, think of them with honor, thank them, do not forget them.
On a personal note, I have to add that the death of Florence Green coincides with something I experienced just yesterday. I passed by the entrance to Central Park, just off Columbus Circle in NYC yesterday. When I did so, I took a look at a memorial/monument that I have probably passed hundreds of times in my life without giving it much notice. On it was chiseled the words: Remember The Maine. I took a few more moments to admire it, front sides and back, all adorned with statues. It was then, on the east side of the monument that I noticed the names of they who were lost aboard that ship, the loss of which triggered the Spanish American War. I took a moment to think of them with honor. Today, I will do likewise for Florence Green who passed away peacefully at 110 and, as I have said over and over again, was the last surviving veteran of WWI, the end of an era, and the last of her kind.
All the best,
Glenn B
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Giants - Super Bowl Champions
I am not a big football fan. As usual, this year, I watched only 3 games. The two semi-finals (I fell asleep before the end of the second one) and the Super Bowl. After watching this game tonight, all I pretty much have to say is that: Whichever team you were hoping would win, I think you will have to admit - IT WAS ONE HECK OF A NAIL BITER. What an exciting game all throughout, all the way to the last play.
Now, being the New Yorker that I am, allow me to say:
All the best,
Glenn B
Now, being the New Yorker that I am, allow me to say:
WAY TO GO GIANTS!
All the best,
Glenn B
I Am Gunna Bake A Pie
Enough of the gun show talk and thinking/worrying about my cancer, and imagining I will be doing this or that soon, I am going to turn off the laptop, in a moment, and go upstairs to bake an apple pie. Flour, ice cold shortening, water, salt, McIntosh and Granny Smith apples, a pie pan, a hot oven and a bit of magic make one one heck of a good apple pie. Are you thinking I forgot to mention sugar. Nope, I did not because there is a good chance I will not use any; if I do use it, it will be a lot less than you would be likely to use, maybe a tablespoon full, or two, and of brown sugar at that.
All the best,
Glenn B
All the best,
Glenn B
White Plains Gun Show Report
So, there I was, up, yesterday morning, showered, dressed, ready to walk out the door at 7:16. I had told Brendan, that I wanted to leave our house by 7:00 or 7:15 at the latest. When I looked around at 7:16 yesterday morning, Brendan was nowhere to be seen. I went upstairs and knocked on his door, then again louder the second time, then heard a mumbled "yeah". I asked if he was up and got another mumbled yeah. I told him it was already after 7:15 and I went back downstairs. Amazingly, less than 5 minutes later he was ready to go. We made a quick stop for some breakfast sandwiches and a bagel for me at the bagel shop, then we headed to Haylie's house to pick her up (Brendan's girlfriend) and we were off. We got up to the Westchester County Center in White Plains by about 0830 or 0835. It turned out, we were about the 6, 7th and 8th persons on line. Not too shabby and we got free parking on the street too. Too bad about one thing. In my early morning haze, I forgot to grab the dollar off coupons I had printed up. I remembered soon after we had left the house but decided it was not worth going back.
At about 0845, they opened he doors and let us inside to buy our tickets and wait on line inside where it was a lot warmer. Well, that is they let in about 25 or 30 people on line, the rest were stuck outside except maybe for another 8 to 10 in the vestibule. That is one of the advantages of getting there early beside the more obvious one of being at the head of the line and thus getting inside quicker to find a good deal quicker and maybe make a really great buy. Oh, before I forget, I wound up wishing I had brought the dollar off coupons after all, the admission fee was a whopping $12 ahead. I paid for all three of us, what are father's for anyhow. It was right about 9 exactly when they let us into the actual exhibition hall and we went in and right to the gun tables. Brendan and Haylie went one way and me another.
It was not long after we entered the exhibition hall, heck only seconds after we went inside, that I noticed there was no way they actually had 350 tables set up or if they did then it sure did not look like it. I also noticed there was a distinct shortage of guns for sale. Yes there were tables with guns, just not enough of them and way too many selling things like: knives, leather goods, books, Nazi and other war memorabilia, a military display that took up the space for at least 20 tables or more. I did not mind seeing the display of military weaponry and vehicles and our some of our military personnel manning the display, in fact liked it. I meant to spend some time looking it over more but wound up not getting the chance as things later turned out.
As for guns, I saw only one that really caught my eye and when I recognized it, I rushed over to it to check it out. It was a Remington Model 8, and if you know me, you know I want one in .35 Remington. The Remington Model 8 was chambered in about 4 different, and new at the time, calibers. Only one of those is still commercially available today and that is the .35 Remington. When I looked at the tag on this Model 8, I saw the price and thought wow, this could be a great buy, a steal, especially if they came down just a little, like maybe $75 or $50. You see, it was priced at only $450 and looked to be in fine to excellent condition. Then, the other thing I saw on the tag made my heart sink. It was chambered in .30 Remington, a cartridge, that to the best of my knowledge, is no longer commercially available and is only produced by handloaders. Too bad, I am pretty sure the dealer would have made a sale of at least one rifle yesterday had it been chambered in .35 Remington!
Soon after I saw the Remington, I got a call from my good friend Pete A. He left me a message saying he was on the line, so I walked out into the lobby to wait for him. As soon as I got out there, I heard him calling me. I don't remember if he has been to a gun show before or not. We walked around a bit, looking at this and that and sure as shit happening we got separated. Not unusual for a gun show if you stop to look at something and the guy with you just keeps going looking for whatever and not realizing you made a stop. Happens all the time. Not too long after that, Brendan called me to ask me a good price for 22 magnum ammo and I told him to hold off because I found some at a better price than he had. I met up with Pete again, found Brendan and Haylie and made the introductions.Soon, we were separated again, at least me from the rest of them.
Oh well, I walked around more and saw some AK's that caught my eye but decided against paying anywhere from $550 to about $600 for each, all Romanian WASR 10s. When I find one with a price like the one I got last year, I will pick it up and go home with it. Otherwise, I may just order one online and have it sent to a local FFL. Most of the rifles I looked at today were really overpriced. It is a shame, you spend gas money, toll money, money on food for the trip, a good chunk of change to get into the show, then find most of the things overpriced! Ammo was likewise for most of it although there were some okay deals here and there. As a matter of fact, the only thing I picked up at the show was 500 rounds of Fiocchi .22 Winchester Magnum at $70 for the brick. That was not a great price but it was a decent one. I could probably find it at about the same price online but then would have to pay shipping and maybe additional tax. This was $70 out the door, so it was a bit of a deal.
Just after I bought the ammo, I met up with Rob, a friend of mine and the brother-in-law of my former co-worker and good friend Charlie K. I asked him if Charlie was there and he said they had just been right next to each other and then Charlie disappeared. I told you, separation from the people you are with at gun shows is common. Then again, you are bound to run into one another again if there long enough. We ran into Brendan and Haylie, I again made introductions, them to Rob. The next thing I knew, much sooner than expected, Brendan and Haylie were telling me they would be outside in the car waiting for me. I guess that must have been around 10! I was surprised but not too much since there were not as many guns on display as one would have expected. I told them I would be another 15 or 20 minutes or so. Rob and I walked around, talking a bit. We found Charlie a few aisles over from where Rob and I had met up. Charlie was happy to see me as I was to see him. He is a good friend for many years, we used to work together in the Customs Service. I told him Pete was there, Pete was also a former co-worker of both of us. All of us are happily retired now but our bonds have not been broken, I am quite happy to say that. After a bit, I found Pete and brought him to where I thought Charlie and Rob would be by then and somehow made the connection on my first try, much to my surprise. Next thing you knew, I was with Pete and could not find Charlie and Rob! Sadly, by then, I had to tell Pete I was taking off. I was feeling really pooped and my hips were aching and Brendan and Haylie already had been out in the car for close to a half hour. It seemed time had flown much swifter than usual. I had hoped to leave the show closer to lunchtime and for us to go out to lunch with Pete, Charlie and Rob but it was not going to happen. As a matter of fact, I did not even get to say goodbye to Charlie and Rob because I could not find them. Oh well, they will understand.
Right at 1049, I was outside on my way to he car. I know that was the time because Brendan had gotten antsy and called me on my cell phone (I just looked to see when he called me). When he called, I already was basically hobbling down the street toward the car, hobbling because my hips were really bothering me. I guess that was due to me standing and walking around, for longer than I have at one given time during most of my recuperation. Perhaps, it will make me stronger. All too soon, I was back in the car and we were off toward home. Heck, not even a full 2 hours inside the exhibition hall and we were leaving. I do have to admit though, I was ready to leave this one, there were not enough guns and those that were there were not priced as good as they should have been. Damned recession has everyone raising their prices trying to make enough to eke out a living. Oh well, there is the upcoming show in Syracuse to think about. It will be in April, I think, and is a 1,000 table show. Both Brendan and I were duly impressed when we went there last year; we both bought rifles and other things while there.
For my more immediate future, I have to think about getting to the range. The Marlin 25MN could use some exercise and I now have more than enough ammo to have a couple hours of fun with it, that is if I shoot it slowly. I am almost willing to bet that today would be a good day to head to the local indoor range. I kind of doubt there will be a big crowd there since it is Super Bowl Sunday. I figure most people will be out shopping for snacks and beer or preparing things like hot wings, dips, and other delectables for their Super Bowl parties. Me, I'll watch the game but I will try to get to the range before that. That will depend on how I am feeling and if I can use one of our cars which is none to easy a feat for me lately.
All the best,
Glenn B
At about 0845, they opened he doors and let us inside to buy our tickets and wait on line inside where it was a lot warmer. Well, that is they let in about 25 or 30 people on line, the rest were stuck outside except maybe for another 8 to 10 in the vestibule. That is one of the advantages of getting there early beside the more obvious one of being at the head of the line and thus getting inside quicker to find a good deal quicker and maybe make a really great buy. Oh, before I forget, I wound up wishing I had brought the dollar off coupons after all, the admission fee was a whopping $12 ahead. I paid for all three of us, what are father's for anyhow. It was right about 9 exactly when they let us into the actual exhibition hall and we went in and right to the gun tables. Brendan and Haylie went one way and me another.
It was not long after we entered the exhibition hall, heck only seconds after we went inside, that I noticed there was no way they actually had 350 tables set up or if they did then it sure did not look like it. I also noticed there was a distinct shortage of guns for sale. Yes there were tables with guns, just not enough of them and way too many selling things like: knives, leather goods, books, Nazi and other war memorabilia, a military display that took up the space for at least 20 tables or more. I did not mind seeing the display of military weaponry and vehicles and our some of our military personnel manning the display, in fact liked it. I meant to spend some time looking it over more but wound up not getting the chance as things later turned out.
As for guns, I saw only one that really caught my eye and when I recognized it, I rushed over to it to check it out. It was a Remington Model 8, and if you know me, you know I want one in .35 Remington. The Remington Model 8 was chambered in about 4 different, and new at the time, calibers. Only one of those is still commercially available today and that is the .35 Remington. When I looked at the tag on this Model 8, I saw the price and thought wow, this could be a great buy, a steal, especially if they came down just a little, like maybe $75 or $50. You see, it was priced at only $450 and looked to be in fine to excellent condition. Then, the other thing I saw on the tag made my heart sink. It was chambered in .30 Remington, a cartridge, that to the best of my knowledge, is no longer commercially available and is only produced by handloaders. Too bad, I am pretty sure the dealer would have made a sale of at least one rifle yesterday had it been chambered in .35 Remington!
Soon after I saw the Remington, I got a call from my good friend Pete A. He left me a message saying he was on the line, so I walked out into the lobby to wait for him. As soon as I got out there, I heard him calling me. I don't remember if he has been to a gun show before or not. We walked around a bit, looking at this and that and sure as shit happening we got separated. Not unusual for a gun show if you stop to look at something and the guy with you just keeps going looking for whatever and not realizing you made a stop. Happens all the time. Not too long after that, Brendan called me to ask me a good price for 22 magnum ammo and I told him to hold off because I found some at a better price than he had. I met up with Pete again, found Brendan and Haylie and made the introductions.Soon, we were separated again, at least me from the rest of them.
Oh well, I walked around more and saw some AK's that caught my eye but decided against paying anywhere from $550 to about $600 for each, all Romanian WASR 10s. When I find one with a price like the one I got last year, I will pick it up and go home with it. Otherwise, I may just order one online and have it sent to a local FFL. Most of the rifles I looked at today were really overpriced. It is a shame, you spend gas money, toll money, money on food for the trip, a good chunk of change to get into the show, then find most of the things overpriced! Ammo was likewise for most of it although there were some okay deals here and there. As a matter of fact, the only thing I picked up at the show was 500 rounds of Fiocchi .22 Winchester Magnum at $70 for the brick. That was not a great price but it was a decent one. I could probably find it at about the same price online but then would have to pay shipping and maybe additional tax. This was $70 out the door, so it was a bit of a deal.
Just after I bought the ammo, I met up with Rob, a friend of mine and the brother-in-law of my former co-worker and good friend Charlie K. I asked him if Charlie was there and he said they had just been right next to each other and then Charlie disappeared. I told you, separation from the people you are with at gun shows is common. Then again, you are bound to run into one another again if there long enough. We ran into Brendan and Haylie, I again made introductions, them to Rob. The next thing I knew, much sooner than expected, Brendan and Haylie were telling me they would be outside in the car waiting for me. I guess that must have been around 10! I was surprised but not too much since there were not as many guns on display as one would have expected. I told them I would be another 15 or 20 minutes or so. Rob and I walked around, talking a bit. We found Charlie a few aisles over from where Rob and I had met up. Charlie was happy to see me as I was to see him. He is a good friend for many years, we used to work together in the Customs Service. I told him Pete was there, Pete was also a former co-worker of both of us. All of us are happily retired now but our bonds have not been broken, I am quite happy to say that. After a bit, I found Pete and brought him to where I thought Charlie and Rob would be by then and somehow made the connection on my first try, much to my surprise. Next thing you knew, I was with Pete and could not find Charlie and Rob! Sadly, by then, I had to tell Pete I was taking off. I was feeling really pooped and my hips were aching and Brendan and Haylie already had been out in the car for close to a half hour. It seemed time had flown much swifter than usual. I had hoped to leave the show closer to lunchtime and for us to go out to lunch with Pete, Charlie and Rob but it was not going to happen. As a matter of fact, I did not even get to say goodbye to Charlie and Rob because I could not find them. Oh well, they will understand.
Right at 1049, I was outside on my way to he car. I know that was the time because Brendan had gotten antsy and called me on my cell phone (I just looked to see when he called me). When he called, I already was basically hobbling down the street toward the car, hobbling because my hips were really bothering me. I guess that was due to me standing and walking around, for longer than I have at one given time during most of my recuperation. Perhaps, it will make me stronger. All too soon, I was back in the car and we were off toward home. Heck, not even a full 2 hours inside the exhibition hall and we were leaving. I do have to admit though, I was ready to leave this one, there were not enough guns and those that were there were not priced as good as they should have been. Damned recession has everyone raising their prices trying to make enough to eke out a living. Oh well, there is the upcoming show in Syracuse to think about. It will be in April, I think, and is a 1,000 table show. Both Brendan and I were duly impressed when we went there last year; we both bought rifles and other things while there.
For my more immediate future, I have to think about getting to the range. The Marlin 25MN could use some exercise and I now have more than enough ammo to have a couple hours of fun with it, that is if I shoot it slowly. I am almost willing to bet that today would be a good day to head to the local indoor range. I kind of doubt there will be a big crowd there since it is Super Bowl Sunday. I figure most people will be out shopping for snacks and beer or preparing things like hot wings, dips, and other delectables for their Super Bowl parties. Me, I'll watch the game but I will try to get to the range before that. That will depend on how I am feeling and if I can use one of our cars which is none to easy a feat for me lately.
All the best,
Glenn B
Friday, February 3, 2012
I Must Have Done Something Right In My Marlin 336 Disassembly Video
I say so because as of about a minute ago, the Marlin 336 Disassembly video had 13,411 views. I don't quite understand why the reassembly video that I have for the same gun only had 5,286 views but am impressed with the number of views that both have received. The videos were uploaded to YouTube on April 3, 2011, so they have been there less than a year, 10 months today to be exact. Not viral by a long shot but still an awful lot of views.
All the best,
GB
All the best,
GB
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Lest You Thunk I Forgotted My Favoreet HoliDay Out Of Em All Happy Groundhog's Day
Yes, today was Groundhog's Day. I did not forget, I knew it soon after I awoke late this morning. I saw that the little furry bastard, Punxsutawney Phil (the real Groundhog of fame), saw his friggin shadow and we have been doomed with 6 more weeks of winter. Really though, is that so bad? I mean winter is not officially over until about March 19th. That would mean that officially, we have 6 weeks and 4 days of winter to go - so what is so bad about him saying we only have 6 more weeks of it! Yes, I know, had he not seen his shadow we would have gotten an early spring. Well you know, it has already hit 60 up here in my neck of the concrete jungle/woods and it is still January, our coldest month of the year on average. Maybe spring has already sprung. Anyway, what does it matter. What matters is that tens of thousand of folks headed out to a tiny town in western Pennsylvania to gawk at a little furball being yanked out of hibernation, thankfully for him on this not too cold winter's day, to see if he would see his shadow or not and heck, I heard the sun may not even have been up yet when they did it today. Still though, you can bet that those tens of thousands of folks had one heck of a party last night into today, my guess would be most had not slept a wink last night, all for the most underrated holiday of the year. Wait a minute, just wait a cotton pickin' minute - what do you mean this is not a holiday. Yes, it most certainly is if only because it is MY most favorite holiday of the year - even if I made it a holiday.
By the way, you'll have to admit, if you watch the video at the link above, he is one heck of a handsome critter. Obviously well cared for and happy at his job. So when some PETA or Humane Society of the U.S. types tell you this is animal abuse, tell them to go fuck themselves - he could have been road killed, filleted, cooked up and on the table in a jiffy with good sized sides of sweet potatoes and corn!
Happy Groundhog's Day,
Glenn B
By the way, you'll have to admit, if you watch the video at the link above, he is one heck of a handsome critter. Obviously well cared for and happy at his job. So when some PETA or Humane Society of the U.S. types tell you this is animal abuse, tell them to go fuck themselves - he could have been road killed, filleted, cooked up and on the table in a jiffy with good sized sides of sweet potatoes and corn!
Happy Groundhog's Day,
Glenn B
Air Force One - Now Invisible
United States Air Force
Solving Problems Since
September 18, 1947.
God Bless Them!
Now that left me laughing my ass off.
All the best,
GB
Scary Because It Apparently Is Sci-NonFi
Yep, it is not only scary because it sounds like a huge swarm of very pissed off hornets or maybe a billion mosquitoes but also because it is not science fiction but falls into the purview of Sci-non-fiction - as is in FOR REAL. You can bet that there will be toys coming out like this within the next year, probably before next Christmas if this is for real as in it being a truthful video and not BS.
You can also bet that those with a more covert nature will be looking into the military use and possibly police use aspects of such a toy (in which case the video, released only 2 days ago on January 31, 2012 to YouTube, may soon disappear forever)! If those of a covert nature are not interested in this model itself then, they will be interested in the technology used to manufacture them and the remotes and chip sets that operate them. I would hate to imagine how the government could not only spy on its people with these (if they could quiet them down which I would bet they could) but am more afraid to think of how a government could harm its people using these. Then again, they might have some really wonderful uses when it comes to fighting terrorism but of course, what our government could use to fight them could also be used by them to fight us. Scary shit, way too much like some nano-tech from the 3 science fiction television series: Stargate (now called SG-1), Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe. Had to know shit like this was coming.
Yet, if they do come out in time for Christmas 2012, I want a set. Then again, maybe they will tie in with the end of the Mayan calendar and the so called end of the world just before Christmas. Man, that would suck, I'd never get a set of them under my tree.
All the best,
Glenn B
You can also bet that those with a more covert nature will be looking into the military use and possibly police use aspects of such a toy (in which case the video, released only 2 days ago on January 31, 2012 to YouTube, may soon disappear forever)! If those of a covert nature are not interested in this model itself then, they will be interested in the technology used to manufacture them and the remotes and chip sets that operate them. I would hate to imagine how the government could not only spy on its people with these (if they could quiet them down which I would bet they could) but am more afraid to think of how a government could harm its people using these. Then again, they might have some really wonderful uses when it comes to fighting terrorism but of course, what our government could use to fight them could also be used by them to fight us. Scary shit, way too much like some nano-tech from the 3 science fiction television series: Stargate (now called SG-1), Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe. Had to know shit like this was coming.
Yet, if they do come out in time for Christmas 2012, I want a set. Then again, maybe they will tie in with the end of the Mayan calendar and the so called end of the world just before Christmas. Man, that would suck, I'd never get a set of them under my tree.
All the best,
Glenn B
Back In The Groove...
...and hopefully will stay out of the rut, at least as far as blogging has gone for me over the past few days. I imagine it is a good thing that for me to have rekindled my interests in getting my blog posts out with a bit more regularity and getting back to some more firearms, booze, current events, related posts has also been a plus.
I hope to keep it up, seems my interests have been picking up in many things lately as I wean myself off of the pain meds I have been taking for months. I did not realize how much of an effect they had on me psychologically and physically but am beginning to realize it now. I think that they really were a big contributing factor in my being in a damned deep rut for the past few months. Of course, battling cancer adds a lot to that too. Still though, I am amazed by what I imagine were the unrealized effects of the Oxycodone and Hydrocodone I was taking. Now I am way down on the meds and things in my life are getting up again. Yes, take that last as you may and maybe you would guess right as to my meaning!
All the best,
Glenn B
I hope to keep it up, seems my interests have been picking up in many things lately as I wean myself off of the pain meds I have been taking for months. I did not realize how much of an effect they had on me psychologically and physically but am beginning to realize it now. I think that they really were a big contributing factor in my being in a damned deep rut for the past few months. Of course, battling cancer adds a lot to that too. Still though, I am amazed by what I imagine were the unrealized effects of the Oxycodone and Hydrocodone I was taking. Now I am way down on the meds and things in my life are getting up again. Yes, take that last as you may and maybe you would guess right as to my meaning!
All the best,
Glenn B
Ballistic Test - I Was Duly Impressed...
...by the 7.62x39 round. Let's face it, I was also duly impressed by almost each round fired, even the poodle killer round. One that failed to impress was the 5.56. That was a it of a disappointment but then again maybe that is why I do not have an AR. Of course, I would gladly take any of those rounds and use them in the proper firearm for my own self defense because I know a secret, you need to be able to hit your target (whoops, not a secret anymore).
After watching the above embedded video, I guess most people might think wow, the .50 round is superior by far even over the .338 Lapua. The thing is though, you have to be able to lug that rifle around. Now for a sniper rifle, where maybe it is just about all you carry and yourwifespotter carries everything else - it would be great. If you had a vehicle to run it around for you, even better. I would probably be pooped after carrying one of those, and say about 50 rounds for it, a few hundred yards at a slow walk. On the other hand, give me an AK47 and 5 full magazines, a 25 to 30 pound backpack (including some water, food, another 5-10 full mags, and other goodies) and I would be good to go for miles. Well, maybe not in my current state of health but when I was in my normal semi-couch potato mode pre-cancer I could have done it. I probably could still go a mile with my choice of set-up if not miles but not with a .50, that is for sure.
When I saw the barrel do its dance after being hit by the 7.62x39MM round, I was impressed enough to think I may have to get another AK at the upcoming gun show this weekend. Man, I do like that round and those rifles. Enough power for a battle rifle, damned cheap compared to most .223 ammo, readily available the great majority of countries in the world and accurate enough out to 100 yards out of an AK to get the job done. I would prefer a rifle in 7.62x51 (.308) that was at least semi-auto but alas they are just to darned expensive and parts would not be as easy to find as they would be for an AK and thus for a rifle that I would carry in 7.62x39.
Oh well, maybe another AK is in my future.
All the best,
Glenn B
After watching the above embedded video, I guess most people might think wow, the .50 round is superior by far even over the .338 Lapua. The thing is though, you have to be able to lug that rifle around. Now for a sniper rifle, where maybe it is just about all you carry and your
When I saw the barrel do its dance after being hit by the 7.62x39MM round, I was impressed enough to think I may have to get another AK at the upcoming gun show this weekend. Man, I do like that round and those rifles. Enough power for a battle rifle, damned cheap compared to most .223 ammo, readily available the great majority of countries in the world and accurate enough out to 100 yards out of an AK to get the job done. I would prefer a rifle in 7.62x51 (.308) that was at least semi-auto but alas they are just to darned expensive and parts would not be as easy to find as they would be for an AK and thus for a rifle that I would carry in 7.62x39.
Oh well, maybe another AK is in my future.
All the best,
Glenn B
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Works For Me
"24 hours in a day, 24 beers in a case.
Coincidence? I think not."
~ Stephen Wright
~ Stephen Wright
I do not know who is or was Stephen Wright but he seemingly got it right! I have not had more than a couple of sips of beer (a sip or two of light beer and that really is not beer as far as I am concerned) at Christmas in the past 6 months give or take a few days! I have been craving a sip of a really good bier or ale but I need to be patient because the docs have told me not to drink while taking the medications they have prescribed for me. The thing is that, within a week and a half, I should be off of the pain medication altogether. I am hoping they then give me the green light for at least one or two of the finer brews.
All the best,
GB
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Epson WorkForce 545 Multi Function Printer - Update
I finally got off of my ass and decided to set up my new Epson WorkForce 545 Multi Function Printer, the one I bought a few days ago. After helping my wife bring 2 of the dogs to the vet today, Roxie and Pepe, then picking up Roxie, the one they had kept for intravenous hydration (both have had gastric problems but the one they kept has been both upchucking and has had the runs for about a week now) and realizing I just paid the veterinarian well over seven and a half large (yes over $750 in fact over $775) I needed something to get my mind off of that shit. Wow, veterinarians sure make lots of money up this way, too bad Brendan changed his major from biology to sociology! Oh well, onto the printer.
I opened the box and everything was packed nicely and was easy to take out. Anything taped closed on the printer had taped that was folded over onto itself on one end, thus making it easy to lift, as if it had a tab on one end that said lift here. That was a nice touch. There was a quick setup sheet that told how to set the thing up. I followed all of the instructions and the setup took me about an hour. Once done, I clicked the button to print a test sheet and it came out fine. Well, I guess it came out fine since there was no preview to look at on my computer screen to show me what to expect! After that I hit the scan icon on my PC and tried to scan a photo and save it on my PC. No go! Tried again, no go and the printer display said there was no USB connection, but there it was, the same one I had just used during setup, the same one by which connection I had just printed the test picture. What to do. I changed USB cables to another USB2 cable. No luck. Then I tried an older plain USB, no luck.
So, I did what I figured was best, I removed the software following the Epson instructions on how they said to do that, then I reinstalled the software fr the printer. his time it said it was fixing an accessory program that had loaded first time around. It was not for the scanner but was related to the scanner, a program to change scanned docs with text to actual text docs, if I remember right. So that all took at least another 1/2 hour or more.
Once done, I tried a scan again and voila, it worked. I tried a second, third, fourth and fifth time and it worked each time, I made scans in both color and gray scale! By the way, when I reloaded the software this time and then connected the laptop to the printer, I used the plain USB cable and not the USB2 cable. I noted that the instructions just called for a USB cable. I don't know if using a USB2 cable was the problem the first time round or if it was that program that got fixed when I reloaded the software but now it seems to be working fine. Th pic of the cat was of our dear Cody about 18 or 20 years ago. He lived a long good life with us. He died, only a few years ago, and we still miss him sorely. I just found a few photographs of him a few days ago and figured why not scan one of them as one of my test photos. It came out nicely done or at least I think so!
So, there was a bug in the works that needed to be gotten out but once I reloaded the software with a plain USB chord, it seemed to work well. One thing I will say is that the printer is noisier than I thought it would be. For me to say that is kind of amazing because I really am hard of hearing since my last chemo session. That one seemed to change my hearing drastically within a few days to a week of the last treatment. So much so, that when I saw my mom last night, she asked me if I am hard of hearing and said she never remembered me being so. Pretty sharp for a dementia patient who has seen me only twice in over 5 months (because of my condition). So, what I am saying, with regard to the printer, s I expected to hear nothing from it. Why, well because I read review after review with folks really excited about how quiet this printer is in operation. That has got to be absolute balderdash because when my prints it sounds fairly loud to me even with my lousy hearing. It is also supposed to be a speed demon at printing speeds. I don't know about that. It seemed to print at a run of the mill speed to me but I will have to try simple text documents to see how it does, then a photograph to see how it does with them. All I printed up tonight were a few of the same Epson test sheet and that is a combination of text and graphics though not much of each. Like I said, the speed seemed sort of run of the mill.
As for the scanner, it is slow as molasses, or so it seemed to me, but then almost all flatbed scanners that I have used have seemed that way to me. It did do justice to my pictures for the most part. It kind of missed the yellowish almost light sepia tinge to one pic I scanned. It really was not a sepia tinge but was a B&W photo yellowed from age. The scan came out in gray scale with no sepia to it. I kind of liked that because it fixed it to what it should have looked like. I imagine a sepia print would need to be scanned as a color print to keep the sepia tone.
As for the fax, I have not even set it up, I hit the option to set it up later. I am not sure I will use that option but if I do, I will write it up later. I was happy to have the option to set that up or not. That was a good touch, a plus for the folks at Epson.
Now as for the copier, I have not tried that either. No, let me correct myself, I just tried it. It copies like a speed demon, that is for sure. I was surprised at how fast it copies. I just copied one sheet but wow, that was fast for a machine like this.
As for the overall construction, almost everything is plastic but what would you expect for a printer selling for $64.99 on sale! Nothing seemed extra strong but then again nothing seemed all that flimsy except for the outbound paper tray and maybe the auto-feeder paper tray. If you take care not to mess them up though, they will last for years is my guess, just like other ones on other printers I have had.
The control panel is laid out nicely. There is a 2.5"display screen off center to the left. There are numerous control buttons on the face of the panel but none are difficult to figure out. Of course you can also operate the machine remotely from your computer without touching one of those buttons on the panel. That is because you can set the printer up on your home WiFi network. I have not tried that yet since the Epson instructions for setup recommended doing the setup with a USB connection first, then later setting it up for WiFi too. I may do that tomorrow. Back o the control panel buttons for a moment; as far as I know, the screen is not a touch screen. I like that very much because all the touch screens I have seen on this type of multi-function printer have been pretty flimsy. I much prefer the control panel button as long as they are laid out as nicely as they are on this printer.
The printer itself is pretty big. It takes up almost double the footprint size of my last printer which was a simple ink-jet printer and not a multi-function printer. I have it on my computer desk right now and need to figure out the best position for it to give me the most room to work in. I wish it was smaller but many others are even bigger than this one. Epson has a smaller model, the NX430 but it only used up to high capacity ink cartridges and not the extra high capacity ones. That means a lot more money spent on ink and a lot more cartridge changes. I am saving big bucks by having bought a model that uses the extra high capacity ink cartridges.
Not much more I can think of right now except to say most of the regular things were in the box with the printer such as the power chord, a telephone connection wire (for the fax) an instruction manual on how to use it, a set up sheet, the software and ink cartridges. One additional nice touch is that Epson supplies full high capacity ink cartridges with this printer. Many other companies reportedly supply their new printers with only partially filled ink cartridges. One thing that was not included in the box was a USB cable - come on Epson - I would be willing to pay an additional few bucks that it would cost you to include one. An Ethernet cable was not supplied either, but you can also hook the computer to the printer with one of them if you prefer it.
I guess that is about it for now. I will report on how well it has done for me at a later date.
All the best,
Glenn B
I opened the box and everything was packed nicely and was easy to take out. Anything taped closed on the printer had taped that was folded over onto itself on one end, thus making it easy to lift, as if it had a tab on one end that said lift here. That was a nice touch. There was a quick setup sheet that told how to set the thing up. I followed all of the instructions and the setup took me about an hour. Once done, I clicked the button to print a test sheet and it came out fine. Well, I guess it came out fine since there was no preview to look at on my computer screen to show me what to expect! After that I hit the scan icon on my PC and tried to scan a photo and save it on my PC. No go! Tried again, no go and the printer display said there was no USB connection, but there it was, the same one I had just used during setup, the same one by which connection I had just printed the test picture. What to do. I changed USB cables to another USB2 cable. No luck. Then I tried an older plain USB, no luck.
So, I did what I figured was best, I removed the software following the Epson instructions on how they said to do that, then I reinstalled the software fr the printer. his time it said it was fixing an accessory program that had loaded first time around. It was not for the scanner but was related to the scanner, a program to change scanned docs with text to actual text docs, if I remember right. So that all took at least another 1/2 hour or more.
Once done, I tried a scan again and voila, it worked. I tried a second, third, fourth and fifth time and it worked each time, I made scans in both color and gray scale! By the way, when I reloaded the software this time and then connected the laptop to the printer, I used the plain USB cable and not the USB2 cable. I noted that the instructions just called for a USB cable. I don't know if using a USB2 cable was the problem the first time round or if it was that program that got fixed when I reloaded the software but now it seems to be working fine. Th pic of the cat was of our dear Cody about 18 or 20 years ago. He lived a long good life with us. He died, only a few years ago, and we still miss him sorely. I just found a few photographs of him a few days ago and figured why not scan one of them as one of my test photos. It came out nicely done or at least I think so!So, there was a bug in the works that needed to be gotten out but once I reloaded the software with a plain USB chord, it seemed to work well. One thing I will say is that the printer is noisier than I thought it would be. For me to say that is kind of amazing because I really am hard of hearing since my last chemo session. That one seemed to change my hearing drastically within a few days to a week of the last treatment. So much so, that when I saw my mom last night, she asked me if I am hard of hearing and said she never remembered me being so. Pretty sharp for a dementia patient who has seen me only twice in over 5 months (because of my condition). So, what I am saying, with regard to the printer, s I expected to hear nothing from it. Why, well because I read review after review with folks really excited about how quiet this printer is in operation. That has got to be absolute balderdash because when my prints it sounds fairly loud to me even with my lousy hearing. It is also supposed to be a speed demon at printing speeds. I don't know about that. It seemed to print at a run of the mill speed to me but I will have to try simple text documents to see how it does, then a photograph to see how it does with them. All I printed up tonight were a few of the same Epson test sheet and that is a combination of text and graphics though not much of each. Like I said, the speed seemed sort of run of the mill.
As for the scanner, it is slow as molasses, or so it seemed to me, but then almost all flatbed scanners that I have used have seemed that way to me. It did do justice to my pictures for the most part. It kind of missed the yellowish almost light sepia tinge to one pic I scanned. It really was not a sepia tinge but was a B&W photo yellowed from age. The scan came out in gray scale with no sepia to it. I kind of liked that because it fixed it to what it should have looked like. I imagine a sepia print would need to be scanned as a color print to keep the sepia tone.
As for the fax, I have not even set it up, I hit the option to set it up later. I am not sure I will use that option but if I do, I will write it up later. I was happy to have the option to set that up or not. That was a good touch, a plus for the folks at Epson.
Now as for the copier, I have not tried that either. No, let me correct myself, I just tried it. It copies like a speed demon, that is for sure. I was surprised at how fast it copies. I just copied one sheet but wow, that was fast for a machine like this.
As for the overall construction, almost everything is plastic but what would you expect for a printer selling for $64.99 on sale! Nothing seemed extra strong but then again nothing seemed all that flimsy except for the outbound paper tray and maybe the auto-feeder paper tray. If you take care not to mess them up though, they will last for years is my guess, just like other ones on other printers I have had.
The control panel is laid out nicely. There is a 2.5"display screen off center to the left. There are numerous control buttons on the face of the panel but none are difficult to figure out. Of course you can also operate the machine remotely from your computer without touching one of those buttons on the panel. That is because you can set the printer up on your home WiFi network. I have not tried that yet since the Epson instructions for setup recommended doing the setup with a USB connection first, then later setting it up for WiFi too. I may do that tomorrow. Back o the control panel buttons for a moment; as far as I know, the screen is not a touch screen. I like that very much because all the touch screens I have seen on this type of multi-function printer have been pretty flimsy. I much prefer the control panel button as long as they are laid out as nicely as they are on this printer.
The printer itself is pretty big. It takes up almost double the footprint size of my last printer which was a simple ink-jet printer and not a multi-function printer. I have it on my computer desk right now and need to figure out the best position for it to give me the most room to work in. I wish it was smaller but many others are even bigger than this one. Epson has a smaller model, the NX430 but it only used up to high capacity ink cartridges and not the extra high capacity ones. That means a lot more money spent on ink and a lot more cartridge changes. I am saving big bucks by having bought a model that uses the extra high capacity ink cartridges.
Not much more I can think of right now except to say most of the regular things were in the box with the printer such as the power chord, a telephone connection wire (for the fax) an instruction manual on how to use it, a set up sheet, the software and ink cartridges. One additional nice touch is that Epson supplies full high capacity ink cartridges with this printer. Many other companies reportedly supply their new printers with only partially filled ink cartridges. One thing that was not included in the box was a USB cable - come on Epson - I would be willing to pay an additional few bucks that it would cost you to include one. An Ethernet cable was not supplied either, but you can also hook the computer to the printer with one of them if you prefer it.
I guess that is about it for now. I will report on how well it has done for me at a later date.
All the best,
Glenn B
Gun Show White Plains, NY
It is really, really, very nice to be able to drive to a decent sized gun show within only about 45 miles, give or take a mile or two, of my home. That would be the gun show at White Plains, NY at the Westchester County Center on February 4th and 5th (this coming weekend). It is sure a lot better than having to drive the 80 miles or so (always thought it was 90 but MapQuest says much closer to 80) to get to the Orange County Fairgrounds for the Middletown, NY show which is the one we went to most before the return of the one at White Plains. While the White Plains show only has 350 tables, I think it beats out the Middletown show by about 50 tables or so. Fifty more tables probably translates to about 30 to 35 more tables showing guns for sale (considering that the other tables will show knives, books, firearms accessories and so on). Not bad and it makes the White Plains show a better bet than the Middletown show for Brendan and I.
Of course, we are planning on going to the show. Right now, the plan is to leave our house at about 0700. That should get us there in time to maybe find a parking spot on the street thus avoiding having to pay a parking lot fee. I don't mind paying to park if I have to but free is free and parking on the street, where legal, is free up there but only if you get there early. When you consider the gas for the ride up there and back is about 2.5 to 3 gallons at about $3.699 a gallon, the tolls are - heck I do not know what they are now but my guess is over $5 - I was close, just check. The toll without EZ Pass NY is $6.50, the toll with EZ Pass NY is $4.80. Whew, under five bucks for us each way, that's great! (I figured a sarcasm alert was not really needed for the last sentence but if you did not realize the high amount of sarcasm in that "Whew" or in the "that's great" it was there in both places! The admission fee is secret this year but I am guessing about $9.00 each with our $1.00 off coupon. Then lunch that will be about $30 for 3 of us (actually there will be 3 of us going along, Brendan's girlfriend Haylie is coming with us). You can see it starts to get expensive so if I can avoid whatever they charge for parking, I think it is from $5.00 to $10.00, well count me in on free parking!
Once we are up at the show, we hope to meet up with my buddy Charlie K. and his brother-in-law Rob. Both great guys and lots of fun and smarts at a gun show. They are both very knowledgeable about firearms - much more so that me and I can always get some advice from them if I or Brendan are looking for an AR or another AK. They are go to guys for info on those kinds of weapons.
Well, enough of my babbling. I have got to go to the secret stash and see how much I have hidden away. In figuring how much of it I can spend on a gun or guns, I have to remember we have to be back to the hometown just before 6PM because my wife made reservations at a restaurant for the family, Haylie and Phil (Celina's fiance). Six for dinner could cost a pretty penny and I may just pay for it in cash if I have enough left over after the show but right now am guessing it may have to be put on my AmericanDistress Express card.
I also need to take a look through the gun locker to see if I have anything with which I would be willing to part for a good chunk of change coming my way. I kind of doubt it but maybe, just maybe, I may find something in there that I would be willing to sell.
All the best,
Glenn B
Of course, we are planning on going to the show. Right now, the plan is to leave our house at about 0700. That should get us there in time to maybe find a parking spot on the street thus avoiding having to pay a parking lot fee. I don't mind paying to park if I have to but free is free and parking on the street, where legal, is free up there but only if you get there early. When you consider the gas for the ride up there and back is about 2.5 to 3 gallons at about $3.699 a gallon, the tolls are - heck I do not know what they are now but my guess is over $5 - I was close, just check. The toll without EZ Pass NY is $6.50, the toll with EZ Pass NY is $4.80. Whew, under five bucks for us each way, that's great! (I figured a sarcasm alert was not really needed for the last sentence but if you did not realize the high amount of sarcasm in that "Whew" or in the "that's great" it was there in both places! The admission fee is secret this year but I am guessing about $9.00 each with our $1.00 off coupon. Then lunch that will be about $30 for 3 of us (actually there will be 3 of us going along, Brendan's girlfriend Haylie is coming with us). You can see it starts to get expensive so if I can avoid whatever they charge for parking, I think it is from $5.00 to $10.00, well count me in on free parking!
Once we are up at the show, we hope to meet up with my buddy Charlie K. and his brother-in-law Rob. Both great guys and lots of fun and smarts at a gun show. They are both very knowledgeable about firearms - much more so that me and I can always get some advice from them if I or Brendan are looking for an AR or another AK. They are go to guys for info on those kinds of weapons.
Well, enough of my babbling. I have got to go to the secret stash and see how much I have hidden away. In figuring how much of it I can spend on a gun or guns, I have to remember we have to be back to the hometown just before 6PM because my wife made reservations at a restaurant for the family, Haylie and Phil (Celina's fiance). Six for dinner could cost a pretty penny and I may just pay for it in cash if I have enough left over after the show but right now am guessing it may have to be put on my American
I also need to take a look through the gun locker to see if I have anything with which I would be willing to part for a good chunk of change coming my way. I kind of doubt it but maybe, just maybe, I may find something in there that I would be willing to sell.
All the best,
Glenn B
A 17 Year Old Golden Treasure...
...is hidden away, in a chest of drawers, in my cellar. It is guarded by two mutts, two Chihuahuas, and me. Note that I have a loaded shotgun at hand. If I cannot reach the shotgun, when and if I catch someone trying to lift my treasure out of the chest of drawers, beware that in with the treasure is one hell of a sharp machete. I am ready to protect it against all comers.Now that I have gotten that out of the way, allow me to say that, I have decided that in early March, I will open the container holding the treasure and I will imbibe of it. I will do so with my son. We will both enjoy it mellow smoothness as it goes through the teeth, over the gums, and down the gullet on its way to our stomachs. You see, the 17 year old golden treasure of which am speaking is a bottle of 1995 Knappogue Castle single malt Irish Whiskey. It is absolutely my favorite whiskey and is no longer available at at liquor store that I have visited in the past year to year and a half.
Now you may wonder just what occasion could make me want to open such a prized possession and believe me it is a prized possession. I kind of thought that I would not open it for a few years yet to come, maybe on the event of my son getting engaged or him landing a career making job or his going into the military or something like that. I always figured I would share it with him, that was never in doubt once I realized that this vintage had been replaced by Knappogue Castle 12 Year Old (no date on the bottle). So what is it, you ask, that will inspire me to open it and partake of it sooner than expected as in early this March. Well, in early March, I am scheduled for a Pet scan and a CT scan. The results of these tests are supposed to determine whether or not I still have cancer. I figure that if I am found clear of the wicked scourge it will be time for a celebration between the two of us, a celebration of the fact that we may yet have years to come of our camaraderie, our bonds, of our enjoyment of travel, the outdoors, of hunting, of fishing, of firearms, of herps/herping and all the other things we shared together that led to good times. If on the other hand, I am found to still be afflicted with this terrible disease, well then it will be drunk between us to help us drown our sorrows, intensify our bond, help both of us take courage regardless of the odds and to celebrate the life we have had together so far with hope that we will have yet more of it together. I can think of no better time to open it - oh shit, I just did and that is not said lightly. In a flash I just remembered that Brendan graduates from college this year, so maybe that would be a better time.
I have thought on it now for a few moments and have made up my mind. No, it would not be better to open it for his graduation. Brendan's graduation would be a time to buy him his favorite brand of drink for both of us to enjoy. Time for my favorite golden nectar will definitely be early this March. I can only hope that circumstances, in early March, will have it tasting as sweet as I remember it and that it tastes that way for both of us.
All the best,
Glenn B
Monday, January 30, 2012
I Had A Nice, Collectible, Remington Knife & Ammo Set...
The knife is a small one (next to a typical toe nail clipper for scale) but enough knife to gut a deer if need be; it sure is sharp at that. It is plainly marked made in the USA and Remington UMC. I guess now it is a keeper. The ammo is Remington High Velocity .22LR. There are 6 boxes of 50 rounds each for a total of 300 rounds, just enough to have fun with at the range for an hour or two.I guess I had best be getting to the range soon or the ammo gremlins will come along and the 6 boxes of .22LR will disappear into the nether regions of my basement, not to be found again for years.
All the best,
Glenn B
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Bought A New Printer Yesterday...
...left it in the trunk of the Toyota or should I say I forgot to take it out when I got home. That was because I was hungry and in a rush for dinner and had other packages to carry inside. Now I am hoping it is still in the trunk when I look later today.
What I picked up, for a darned good price, was an Epson WorkForce 545, multi-function, printer. It was only $64.99, on sale at Staples, not bad at all. I also grabbed 4 extra ink cartridges, it uses 1 black ink and 3 color ink cartridges. I chose the extra high capacity ones. Funny how things work out but the ink actually cost more than the printer by several dollars. The printer companies sure gouge every penny they can with the ink.
I don't know much about how well this printer actually prints but my guess is that it will be satisfactory for me. I am certain that the text mode will be excellent but am not too sure about how well it will print photographs. If it does a good to very good job on the photos, I will be quite happy. If it scans well that will be another big plus. I usually only buy items like this for which I can find a decent review on CNET or from PC Magazine but none were to be found. Still, the features on this one are what I wanted, including the fact that it uses the extra high capacity ink cartridges (only a few bucks more each than the high capacity cartridges but supposedly print double the amount of prints). I did see a lot of user feedback saying this is a great model and I am hoping that at least a few to several of those reviews were for real and not entered by some Epson employee whose sole job it is to enter review after review of Epson products, like this printer, so as to inflate the good to excellent ratings for it.
One thing I do not like about the printer, and yes this is before even taking it out of the box, is the size of it. It is huge compared to any ink jet printer I have owned in the past and this is basically a mid-sized model from what I can tell! I will live with it though since about the only other thing that will be on my desk top (as in real desk top and not virtual desk top) will be my laptop. Well, that is once I clean it off, lots of stuff/junk there now, it has become a repository for anything for which I need a place to sit something. One of those things is my Hova-Bator incubator with five Hermann's Tortoise eggs in it. Once they hatch the incubator goes back on the shelf but for now I guess it will share desk top space with the printer for at least a couple to a few more weeks.
Once I get the printer out of the car, get it set up, and print a good number of documents, graphics, photos and scan a good number of photos and other documents, maybe make a few copies of things and send a fax or three too, I will let you know how I think it works.
All the best,
Glenn B
What I picked up, for a darned good price, was an Epson WorkForce 545, multi-function, printer. It was only $64.99, on sale at Staples, not bad at all. I also grabbed 4 extra ink cartridges, it uses 1 black ink and 3 color ink cartridges. I chose the extra high capacity ones. Funny how things work out but the ink actually cost more than the printer by several dollars. The printer companies sure gouge every penny they can with the ink.I don't know much about how well this printer actually prints but my guess is that it will be satisfactory for me. I am certain that the text mode will be excellent but am not too sure about how well it will print photographs. If it does a good to very good job on the photos, I will be quite happy. If it scans well that will be another big plus. I usually only buy items like this for which I can find a decent review on CNET or from PC Magazine but none were to be found. Still, the features on this one are what I wanted, including the fact that it uses the extra high capacity ink cartridges (only a few bucks more each than the high capacity cartridges but supposedly print double the amount of prints). I did see a lot of user feedback saying this is a great model and I am hoping that at least a few to several of those reviews were for real and not entered by some Epson employee whose sole job it is to enter review after review of Epson products, like this printer, so as to inflate the good to excellent ratings for it.
One thing I do not like about the printer, and yes this is before even taking it out of the box, is the size of it. It is huge compared to any ink jet printer I have owned in the past and this is basically a mid-sized model from what I can tell! I will live with it though since about the only other thing that will be on my desk top (as in real desk top and not virtual desk top) will be my laptop. Well, that is once I clean it off, lots of stuff/junk there now, it has become a repository for anything for which I need a place to sit something. One of those things is my Hova-Bator incubator with five Hermann's Tortoise eggs in it. Once they hatch the incubator goes back on the shelf but for now I guess it will share desk top space with the printer for at least a couple to a few more weeks.
Once I get the printer out of the car, get it set up, and print a good number of documents, graphics, photos and scan a good number of photos and other documents, maybe make a few copies of things and send a fax or three too, I will let you know how I think it works.
All the best,
Glenn B
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The BIG Winner Was...
...not me on my Atlantic City casino trip yesterday. The thing is though, I did win, just not big. I am figuring that I won a total of $58, most of which was spent on one thing or another before we left AC. Most of the winnings came from me playing Texas Holdem against the dealer on a Black Jack style table. Some came from slot machines that was part of the $35 bonus they gave us. Go figure, the bus ride cost $30 and when we arrived they gave us each a casino card with $35 credit for the slots. I got to actually pull just over $15 of that out of the machine once I realized how to cash in immediately on any win, even if only .10 cents. The thing was you could collect your winnings but not get any credit for any amount left from the card, that had to be gambled. So if we hit for a dollar, we hit the payout button and got a certificate for the buck. Then we used credits from the card, removing any winnings after each spin. I figure winding up with just under half of what they gave us on that card was pretty good luck. After that,I played roulette for a bit, losing $50. Then onto Texas Holdem where I was up $100.
Then it was onto the Borgata until we hit what seemed like an impassable highway. We wasted 40 to 45 minutes walking there to be told it would take us another 20 minutes on a convoluted route to reach it, so we took a cab for a 5 minute ride for $9.00. The Borgata is where my son plays when he visits AC. It is much more upscale than Resorts from what we could see. We decided to have a late lunch there in their buffet. Because it was after 4PM, we had to have the dinner buffet at about $34 apiece. Lunch would have been about $20. I cannot say it was well worth the price since I have had better buffets at about half the price but most of the food was very good to excellent such as the steamed shrimp, steamed clams, sirloin steak, pot roast, roasted potatoes, and the like. They had sushi on which the rice was dried out and the desserts were fair to terrible and mislabelled at that as far as I could tell. For example they labelled one dessert as chocolate mousse but it seemingly was a chocolate candy shell around pure whipped cream topped with flakes of chocolate. I think there was no mousse at all. They had a chocolate cannoli that, in my opinion, was absolutely stale as was a fortune cookie I tried to enjoy as was a chocolate eclair. Other desserts were similarly terrible in my estimation. So much for upscale.
I gambled a few slots there, after our lunch/dinner but that was it. We had run out of time, we only had 6 hours there before our bus would take off back to NY. We had to get back to our bus pronto so we took a cab for $13.00, the highest price that a metered cab can charge in the city, or so we were told. I never heard of a metered cab with a limit on what could be charged until yesterday in AC. Well, once back at Resorts, I made another bet on roulette for my friend Bob who said to play $10 for him on anything I chose - so it was number 9 on roulette. It lost. Oh well, back to the bus for the ride home.
By the way there was a total of 6 people on the bus going down and going back. It amazes me how they can afford to charge only $30, then give a $35 slot credit to the folks who take the bus trip. All that with only 6 paying customers on the bus. I guess the expenses for fuel, bus maintenance, the casino credit (if you actually win anything) all go toward tax deductions for the casinos. You could tell though that times are tough for AC, the casinos did not have many gamblers, but then it is the off season for AC. Hopefully they will do better as the economy improves after the Republicans win the elections in 2012.
As for our bus ride down to AC, I cannot comment much. I slept most of the way. As for the ride back, we had fun BS'ing with one another, me and Pete. The bus driver later told us he had a pisser listening to us. The driver, Rich, was a nice guy and although this was his first solo trip, being new on the job, he got it all done like a true and class act professional.
I think I may have to make this at least a monthly adventure, it was really fun. Who knows, maybe I will win big next time (or lose my shirt).
All the best,
Glenn
Then it was onto the Borgata until we hit what seemed like an impassable highway. We wasted 40 to 45 minutes walking there to be told it would take us another 20 minutes on a convoluted route to reach it, so we took a cab for a 5 minute ride for $9.00. The Borgata is where my son plays when he visits AC. It is much more upscale than Resorts from what we could see. We decided to have a late lunch there in their buffet. Because it was after 4PM, we had to have the dinner buffet at about $34 apiece. Lunch would have been about $20. I cannot say it was well worth the price since I have had better buffets at about half the price but most of the food was very good to excellent such as the steamed shrimp, steamed clams, sirloin steak, pot roast, roasted potatoes, and the like. They had sushi on which the rice was dried out and the desserts were fair to terrible and mislabelled at that as far as I could tell. For example they labelled one dessert as chocolate mousse but it seemingly was a chocolate candy shell around pure whipped cream topped with flakes of chocolate. I think there was no mousse at all. They had a chocolate cannoli that, in my opinion, was absolutely stale as was a fortune cookie I tried to enjoy as was a chocolate eclair. Other desserts were similarly terrible in my estimation. So much for upscale.
I gambled a few slots there, after our lunch/dinner but that was it. We had run out of time, we only had 6 hours there before our bus would take off back to NY. We had to get back to our bus pronto so we took a cab for $13.00, the highest price that a metered cab can charge in the city, or so we were told. I never heard of a metered cab with a limit on what could be charged until yesterday in AC. Well, once back at Resorts, I made another bet on roulette for my friend Bob who said to play $10 for him on anything I chose - so it was number 9 on roulette. It lost. Oh well, back to the bus for the ride home.
By the way there was a total of 6 people on the bus going down and going back. It amazes me how they can afford to charge only $30, then give a $35 slot credit to the folks who take the bus trip. All that with only 6 paying customers on the bus. I guess the expenses for fuel, bus maintenance, the casino credit (if you actually win anything) all go toward tax deductions for the casinos. You could tell though that times are tough for AC, the casinos did not have many gamblers, but then it is the off season for AC. Hopefully they will do better as the economy improves after the Republicans win the elections in 2012.
As for our bus ride down to AC, I cannot comment much. I slept most of the way. As for the ride back, we had fun BS'ing with one another, me and Pete. The bus driver later told us he had a pisser listening to us. The driver, Rich, was a nice guy and although this was his first solo trip, being new on the job, he got it all done like a true and class act professional.
I think I may have to make this at least a monthly adventure, it was really fun. Who knows, maybe I will win big next time (or lose my shirt).
All the best,
Glenn
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Heading To Atlantic City Later This Morning...
...so why in Hades am I not sleeping at 0250 in the morning! I cannot stand this insomnia crap but it has me in its grip once again, even after a good night's sleep last night. At least I will be going down to AC on a bus and I can sleep on the way down. My buddy Pete A., who is going with me, may not like it if I pass out for 2 or 2 1/2 hours of the 3 hour bus ride so, maybe I should bring a few good biers to share with him. That should keep him happy even if I am snoring.
I just hope to have about half the luck of my son while down there. That would mean me coming home with an awful lot more money than I with which I am going down there!
All the best,
Glenn B
I just hope to have about half the luck of my son while down there. That would mean me coming home with an awful lot more money than I with which I am going down there!
All the best,
Glenn B
Monday, January 23, 2012
Norton 360 5.0 Premier Edition and My Laptop
I literally ran out to buy Norton 360, version 5.0, premier edition a couple of nights ago because suddenly my PC gave warning that my older version of the same had expired that day. just earlier that day, it had warned me I had two days left in my subscription, go figure! I got to Staples, got a total of $50 in discounts off of the regular price, which made me happy, and took it home to load into my laptop. I loaded it just as i have done before and as in the past it said it was removing an older version of Norton. Then it told me the PC had to be restarted and complied. When it turned back on, a Norton window said there was a problem in that the Norton disc seemed to be missing from the drive. Heck no, I did not remove it but i checked anyway. Yes, it was still in there. Problem was, no matter what I tried, the laptop was no longer registering the fact that there was a Blue Ray/DVD/CD drive any more! That was not good. Not being a computer weenie of any great expertise, I decided that a system restore was in order. I set it to restore to the prior day. It worked, the laptop was now reading the drive as being there. I loaded Norton again. You guessed it, the laptop was no longer reading the CD; what you maybe did not guess was that now it appeared as if tens, if not hundreds, of files had vanished from my computer. Egad, I was not happy that was dreadful. I rebooted and the problem worsened. I decided this called for a system recovery. I was going to try then realized the files for doing the recovery were now among the missing! Somehow, while doing this or that, I found a way to do a full recovery both online and using the recovery discs made at the time my wife purchased the computer as a gift for me 2 or 3 years ago. I tried the online version, I figured it would have been updated many times since I received the computer as a gift. I was wrong. The version of everything was older than what had been on my computer. Then I tried using the discs, there were 4 of them. The computer would not read the drive at first but somehow I got that to work. Then I did the recovery with the discs and while it did not look the same as before, since the hard drive gets formatted during the recovery, thus wiping out everything, it did look like it was working again and luckily it has been working since.
By the way, did I just say the hard drive got formatted. I got that warning before doing it and was warned to back up personal files. I immediately backed up the My Documents file folder. Then, I proceeded. Yikes, I realized, about 2 seconds too late, I had forgotten to back up the only other folder worth saving - My Pictures. I lost at least a year;s worth of family pictures - what an asshole was I! I tried to console myself by saying that is one of the file folders that vanished when Norton apparently screwed things up but I do not really believe it, nor should you. It was late, or early in the AM really, I was tired, suffering from a bad night of insomnia (did not sleep all night, not a wink), I should have waited until after some sleep to do the job but did not, shame on me.
well anyhow, the laptop is working now, better than previously. probably because I wiped out all the useless crap that had built up on my hard drive. I don't mean malware of any sort just overloaded crap. I try to keep malware controlled with Norton 360 and with CCleaner. Of course, there could have been some sort of virus or other malware on the laptop that prevented the Norton 360 from loading properly, I suppose I should report the problem to Norton to prevent such a possibility in the future. I am thinking of running a program they have to double check to see if there is deeply embedded malware on a PC that regular Norton did not discover. The thing is, they warn, this can screw up your computer files and programs. I do not know if I want to do another recovery again. It is not that complicated but at best seems to take about 2 hours to complete. Maybe I should leave well enough alone, call Norton, let them know what happened and ask their advice on how to continue. Can you tell, I got some good sleep last night and also took a nap earlier this evening so, I am well rested and thinking straight for a change as of late! Wish I had waited to do anything the other night, I may have still had the hundreds of family photographs, from the last year or so, that I destroyed by forgetting to back them up! Live and learn or learn from the mistakes of others. You decide next time something like my initial problem happens to you.
I suppose Norton can expect a phone call from me in the next day or two; make it the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow, if I sleep well tonight, I am taking a bust trip to Atlantic City for the day. I am going to try to duplicate at least some of my son's good fortune of last week.
All the best,
Glenn B
By the way, did I just say the hard drive got formatted. I got that warning before doing it and was warned to back up personal files. I immediately backed up the My Documents file folder. Then, I proceeded. Yikes, I realized, about 2 seconds too late, I had forgotten to back up the only other folder worth saving - My Pictures. I lost at least a year;s worth of family pictures - what an asshole was I! I tried to console myself by saying that is one of the file folders that vanished when Norton apparently screwed things up but I do not really believe it, nor should you. It was late, or early in the AM really, I was tired, suffering from a bad night of insomnia (did not sleep all night, not a wink), I should have waited until after some sleep to do the job but did not, shame on me.
well anyhow, the laptop is working now, better than previously. probably because I wiped out all the useless crap that had built up on my hard drive. I don't mean malware of any sort just overloaded crap. I try to keep malware controlled with Norton 360 and with CCleaner. Of course, there could have been some sort of virus or other malware on the laptop that prevented the Norton 360 from loading properly, I suppose I should report the problem to Norton to prevent such a possibility in the future. I am thinking of running a program they have to double check to see if there is deeply embedded malware on a PC that regular Norton did not discover. The thing is, they warn, this can screw up your computer files and programs. I do not know if I want to do another recovery again. It is not that complicated but at best seems to take about 2 hours to complete. Maybe I should leave well enough alone, call Norton, let them know what happened and ask their advice on how to continue. Can you tell, I got some good sleep last night and also took a nap earlier this evening so, I am well rested and thinking straight for a change as of late! Wish I had waited to do anything the other night, I may have still had the hundreds of family photographs, from the last year or so, that I destroyed by forgetting to back them up! Live and learn or learn from the mistakes of others. You decide next time something like my initial problem happens to you.
I suppose Norton can expect a phone call from me in the next day or two; make it the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow, if I sleep well tonight, I am taking a bust trip to Atlantic City for the day. I am going to try to duplicate at least some of my son's good fortune of last week.
All the best,
Glenn B
Obama Cartoon - Reportedly from England
Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did! Click it to enlarge it.
All the best,
Glenn B
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