Tag: papa

Facebook Fights Dirty

As we enter the fifth week of the Facebook boycott, Facebook starts fighting really dirty. Low blow, bro. Right below the belt.

Last night I got an email telling me I had 102 notifications waiting for me. One Hundred and Two. It’s not the first you-have-notifications email they’ve sent, but the last one was after only a few days away. Those bastards saved them up and threw them at me all at once. Assholes!

Okay. Wednesday is the one month mark of this fun little romp of social media defiance. When I left I didn’t think about it, I just did it. I didn’t leave one of those stupid I’m-taking-a-break posts, I just went away (and bitched about it here, over and over and over and over again). Maybe on Wednesday I’ll log in, clear the notifications, make sure there isn’t anything important, and then leave one of those stupid I’m-taking-a-break posts. Then I’ll go away again. Maybe forever. Who knows.

I’m working a half day today. My mother needs a ride to a doctor’s appointment so I am leaving early to take her. I haven’t been over to see my parents in a couple of weeks so it’s time for a visit as well. I’ll be masking up and hittin’ the road around lunch time.

Our house has been a battle ground for a long time now. Two opposing forces fighting to dominate the terrain.

Alexa

Siri

Both are stationed in strategic places throughout the house. Both are able to control the lights and some other things. Both play tunes. It’s been clear for months now that the house cannot sustain both forces. One needs to eliminate the other. In the end, there can be only one.

We bought an amazon echo before Apple’s Home app was really a thing. After having everything in the house routed through the echo for a while, I got all hot and bothered over Apple HomePod Minis and when we got one for the bedroom Jen set up everything through Home as well.

I have slowly but surely found myself using the echo less and less. I can get to Siri through my watch so when I need something I just hold down the digital crown for a tick and ask for it. The only thing the echo is really doing these days is working as an alarm clock in the bedroom. Siri can do that too, but echo somehow handles it a little better. Also, the echo we have in the bedroom is one that shows the time. The HomePod doesn’t do that. It’s a small edge for the echo but a noteworthy one.

Over the last couple of days Jen has been making a conscious choice to start using Siri instead of Alexa. It is clear that finally the war for control of our house is coming to an end. Siri will be victorious. Long live the winner of the personal digital assistant wars.

Now if we could just get Google to let Apple run our Nest thermonstat.

Okay. Time to go to work. Happy Monday, everyone.

ADDENDUM: I got another Facebook email. It’s 106 notifications now. Ugh.

Happy Birthday, Mom

We celebrated my mother’s 75th birthday today.  Everyone wish her a happy birthday!

My Aunt brought a couple of old pictures with her.  There is a red head in this one who is the spitting image of my nephew… 

 
Look at that handsome devil!  He and my nephew could be twins!  Who is that fine looking dude?  It’s me!  Can you believe it?  My sister’s son and I are twins, just 40 years removed.  Not sure how the logistics work there though.

Now check out this happy family snapshot…

  
The fine looking dude in the coat in the center of the pic is once again your humble narrator.  I’m standing on my dad’s lap.  My mother is to our right.  My sister is photo bombing on the lower right corner.  Behind me is my aunt Nancy.  I assume the guy whose face is blocked is Uncle Tom.  The other happy couple is the really important part of this picture.  They are Nana and Papa.  My mother’s parents.

I was at Middlesex in my late 20’s when my grandmother passed away.  I was fortunate enough to have such a stellar person in my life for a very long time.  My grandfather however passed away in 1972.  I was only a year old.  Obviously I have no memories of him, but I knew that I had met him at least.  I always had that.

Now thanks to this picture I have proof.  Aunt Nancy brought this today to show how much my nephew resembles me.  I don’t think she realized that it would mean so much to me for another reason.  I’m very thankful she brought it.  It’s got to be one of, if not the, only picture of me and my Papa.

Corned Beef Dinner

We had a scheduling conflict with the Irish.  St. Patrick’s Day happens to fall on a day that we do not have the kids.  Therefore we had a mini-St Patrick’s Day dinner this weekend.  We invited Jen’s folks and my folks.  The kids told riddles while we ate corned beef.  My father and my step son continued their on going string of cribbage games.  My step daughter somehow managed to read two large books cover to cover (more or less).  It was a nice time.  Thanks to both sets of Nanas and Papas for coming over, and thanks to my amazing wife for the fantastic dinner!