"Naval Station Great Lakes" "A" School

My son John in the Navy at "Naval Station Great Lakes" took this picture of his room.

Just a Few Pictures my Daughter Cindy took in Chicago

Sunset Over Chicago

Chicago from the Sears Tower




The Buckingham Fountain, officially known as the 'Clarence Buckingham Memorial Fountain' is one of Chicago's most popular landmarks. The fountain is located in Grant Park at the center of a formally laid out garden

My Daughter Cindy Currently in her"A" School with the Navy in Great Lakes, IL took these pictures on a trip she took to Chicago.

Also, my son John in the Navy at "Naval Station Great Lakes" just called and he just did his PFA ( Physical Fitness Assessment ) or PRT and here are his results.

1 1/2 mile run in 10:38
103 sit ups
60 push ups

PRT: Physical Readiness Test. A sailor is required to perform a certain number of sit-ups, push-ups, and a 1.5-mile run in a given time (which varies based on age and gender).

My son John in the Navy bought a cell phone

John took this picture from his window at "A" school at Great Lakes. It's a picture of the Chiefs running during PT.

My son John in the Navy called last night. He bought a cell phone through T-Mobile. That will sure make things easer. The only problem is that he signed up for a plan (myFaves 300) that only has 300 anytime minutes. I don't think he realizes how fast that will go. This is his only phone and I am sure he will talk more than 10 minutes a day on average. The nights and weekends start at 9pm. He did get his Fav 5 ( 5 people that you can call anytime and it won't count against your minutes ) and we are on that list but I figure calls to the bank, and other places plus a few short calls to friends will eat up the 300 min real fast. My daughter, also a T-Mobile customer has 1000 (myFaves 1000) anytime min. They both have free nights and weekends. Johns phone is the Samsung Stripe and my daughter got the Motorola RIZR.

Storm worm hits Bolgger

The Sunbelt Blog has a good post about the Storm Worm "Storm worm hits Bolgger" this is definitely a good read. Be careful what you click on people.

Go here to read their post.


UPDATE: Read "Bloggers battered by viral storm" from BBC News

This post is a reply to Neal from Dell Inc.

This post is a reply to Neal from Dell, Inc. I first posted it as a follow-up comment to his comment to an earlier Post ( you can click here to read that Post ) and then thought it deserved it's own Post on my Blog so here it is. If you want to follow the whole story just click on "Dell" in the Labels section under this post.

Replying to Neal from Dell Corp, First of all thanks for taking the time to read and respond to my Blog post. I'll start with what you said last. I don't know your e-mail address or phone number so there is no way for me to contact you. If you want to give me that info you can by signing my guestbook privately ( so everyone doesn't call and e-mail you ). I have looked the the entire picture and I just got off the phone with my son and he told me that one of his room-mates just bought a Toshiba Laptop and had it within TWO days of placing the order. That's what I call service. By the way he configured it himself.

I have been dealing with Dell for years and have personally been involved in helping people order well over 50 Dell computers and all of them, with the exception of one was over $1000.00 . Until "recently" I never had a "major problem" with your company. The sales person that my son talked to was in Malaysia and didn't even know what the U.S. Navy was. I find that to be incredible in itself. I will tell you that I wouldn't mind paying a little more for a computer that has all North American sales and tech support. I hate calling India and having the support person telling me their name is Tom. That is laughable. I could relate a few other horror stories about Dell that have happened recently but I won't ..."Yet". I think the problem is that Dell is trying to compete with Wal-Mart and such places. Too bad... I don't buy my computers from Wal-Mart for a reason, but you are taking that away.

My son John said today that when he orders a computer he "HAS" to have it fast! If there is a long delay he might not even be at the same address. Remember he is in the United States Navy. He will be going on a Ship soon and I don't think you will deliver to the middle of the ocean. Will you? I look forward to your response.

Again, I am typing this Blog post on a Dell computer and I love it. Hope the company can get itself back up to par, I would love my next computer to be a Dell also.

P.S. It's nice to know that Dell cares enough to read my Blog. I am getting allot of hits on my Blog from an internal Dell website
http://fusion.us.dell.com/Fusion/Core/update.aspx?id=7478160

Confirmed: Vista Bug Slows Network Traffic While Music Plays.

I just read this over at PC World's blog. I first read about it a week ago but was waiting on a follow-up and here it is.

A major Microsoft techie, today acknowledged a bug with Vista's network programming that can noticeably slow down file transfers on a local network if you play music at the same time.

No word yet on when we might expect a bug fix, so if you're copying a lot of data between Vista PCs at work or at home, you might want to turn off your tunes for the duration.

Go over to PC World and read the rest.

UPDATE: Read How To Fix the Vista Network Speed Issue While Playing Sound

Phone Call today from my son in the Navy and also talked to my daughter

My son John called today. He wanted to to get a message to his sister Cindy. They are both serving in the Navy and currently in their "A" schools at Great Lakes. John told me that his Ship "building" might not get Liberty this weekend. His room failed room inspection because one of his roommates got drunk and made a mess in the Kitchen and then went out for inspection in Civilian Clothes when they were supposed to be in uniform. That person was still drunk during inspection and said "Hea Petty Officer" during inspection. Definitely not a good idea. :)

John did say that he and Cindy had a good time last weekend in Chicago and got to go on a Tall Ship with Ten Sails "one of only two in the world like that" and he got to do the line handling and shoot off the cannon. He said that he was worried that someone was going to fall overboard because people were leaning on the lines and he was ready to jump overboard into the water to save them if that had happened. He said that the Coast Guard was not as strict as the Navy when it came to safety. He also saw something in Chicago that he wants to buy Cindy for her 21st birthday that is coming up Sept 19th.

They are both planning to go to Chicago again this weekend if John gets Liberty. He will know soon. He said that school is going good and he loves it. Cindy moved to a new building so John wants to find out where she is. John said that he would call back tonight if he could.

Follow-Up---> It's 4:22pm I just talked to my Daughter Cindy. Cindy said that she is almost done her "A" school and she will be leaving in a few weeks for her next station. She is going out with friends on the 7th and 8th of Sept for her Birthday and has duty on the 9th. She only has a two test and two labs left. She is going to move to another building at Great Lakes Navy Base for a short time before she leaves Il but doesn't know what day she is moving yet. And my son John really needs to buy a cell phone before he buys a computer. Cindy and I both agree on that. :)

Cindy also said that the ship they went on last weekend was the "Windy" she also told me that the Windy II will be in the upcoming Batman movie.

In other news, I go to the Dentist this Thursday morning at 9am to get my stitches taken out from my teeth extractions. I am feeling much better and only look a little like a chipmunk with a little swelling. :) That's all for now and hope everyone has a great day.

More on Dell and how things are playing out.

I talked to "Thomas", a Business Controls Manager from Dell today. He contacted me last week after I posted about my sons bad experience with trying to order a Dell XPS M1330 Laptop and subsequent cancellation of that order. Dell made us an offer that I think is kinda fare ( They would match a competitor's price on a laptop with similar components, and he would also work on getting it shipped quickly ). I would think with all that we went through last week that the offer would be better than that for someone serving in the military, but I digress. I will have to talk to my son and find out if this is the route he wants to take. He really had his heart set on a Dell XPS but the bad experience left a bad taste in his mouth, and mine.

After talking to "Thomas" from Dell today I talked to my Father ( a retired Physicist ) and he was telling me that a friend of his just got a new Dell Desktop and the LCD monitor didn't work when he set it up. After 45min on the phone Dell agreed to send him a new monitor. My Dad said to me "I thought they "Dell" would have tested the monitor before it was shipped". He also conveyed that another of his friends had spent 4 hrs on the phone with Dell tech support trying to get another problem resolved. This is really sad for a company that was always a leader in their filed of Direct to consumer sales. Hopefully Dell can pull itself out of this slump and come out on top again. I currently own two Dell computers and have had others before these. With the exception of a few minor problems in the past I have been very happy with them. By the way, Dad has two Dell computers also...

I am hesitant on recommending Dell to my friends and family at the current time but hopefully that will change in the near future. I will let you know how this all plays out.

Does Your Computer Meet The System Requirements to Run That Game?

Knowing the system requirements of your computer help before you purchase any computer games, the most important thing is to check the game’s minimum system requirement because if your computer doesn't meet the system requirement, you either experience a huge “lag” or bad graphics or can't even play the game at all.
What can you do if you don’t know anything about your computer’s specification? Of course, you can look up the computer sales receipt or call up the computer shop or manufacture hoping that they’ll tell you your computer specifications, but the pain truth is they are not likely to entertain these kinda calls.

Now you can skip all of that and just depend on the “System Requirements Lab” website to tell you if your computer can run that game.

Go on over and check it out.

Currently, the System Requirements Lab works with Windows 98, 98SE, ME, 2000, XP, 2003, Media Center and Vista. The Browsers you need are either Internet Explorer 4.xx and higher or a Mozilla based browser (Firefox, Netscape, etc.) with Java 1.3.1 and higher.

Legal Music Streaming Site Launches In France

The French website Deezer.com has struck a deal with the SACEM (the French equivalent to the RIAA) and is now legally providing Internet users around the world with more than 100,000 full songs, streamed on demand and without restrictions. The site, formerly named Blogmuzik.net, had had to close down last March under pressure from the recording industry.

Storm Worm now with a YouTube look

The Zhelatin worm is a fairly serious plague on the Internet right now, you may have seen it recently in its most pervasive form, an email offering a “free greeting card”. (It’s often loosely referred to as the “storm worm”, since it’s an evolution of the worm that occurred earlier this year, which spammed users with the malware attached as a file, to emails about a storm in Europe. Now, instead of an attachment, it simply tries to get users to a website through spammed emails. The website attempts to install the malware through exploits.)

The latest tactic tries to trick the user into believing they’re downloading a YouTube video. F-Secure has a write-up here. They also have a good video here.

Problems with Windows Genuine Advantage authentication

Yesterday I started reading reports on the Net about people experiencing problems with Windows Genuine Advantage authentication. Users of both Windows XP and Windows Vista were saying that they could not validate their installations using WGA, and one person even said that his installation was invalidated by the service.

Sources at Microsoft say the company is aware of a major WGA server outage affecting users across the globe. The Windows Genuine Advantage support forum has exploded with complaints, as a result, and Phil Liu, WGA project manager, says that he won't sleep until the problem is fixed. Windows Vista and XP are affected, 32- and 64-bit versions.

Talked to both of my kids in the Navy today

I talked to both of my kids in the Navy today. They are going to Chicago together again for the day. They are both in their respective "A" Schools at Great Lakes, IL. I would like nothing better than to have a picture of them together but my daughter does not want to send me her pictures. I think she looks great but she feels otherwise. Oh well. I hope they have a good time and I am glad that they are together. Soon they will both go their separate ways and it could be a long while before they see each other again.

In other Navy News: My son told me they had an "Alcohol Related Incident" on his Ship ( for those of you not up with the Navy lingo, all buildings in the Navy are called Ships ) last night. Supposedly some guy who was under age went out to a local Bar and got Drunk and got in some trouble and then to top it all off he ran from the Police. When one person messes up they all have to pay for it. His ship had 77 days without and incident until last night. If they get to 100 days they all get a day of Liberty and some sort of party but now they are back to day 1 thanks to one person not following the rules. I want to let you know that I agree with the Navy that this is the way it should be. But to say the least that one person will think twice before he does that kind of thing again. Now everyone is mad at him!!! :) My Son said that they also might loose phone privileges because of this so if I don't hear from him for a while that is why. I understand.

That is all for now and if my kids do send some pictures I will post them at that time.

Google Patches Blogger, Adds Video Support

Google Inc.'s Blogger team this week solved a technical problem with the blog publishing and hosting service and introduced a new feature that gives publishers the ability to upload videos to their sites.

An undetermined number of Blogger publishers had trouble performing various editing and posting operations on Monday and Tuesday, but by Wednesday the problem had been solved.

Read more here at Yahoo News

Just some Sunday Fun...Miss Teen USA 2007 -LOL

Miss Teen USA 2007 - South Carolina answers a question

Comcast Cuts Off Heavy Internet Users

But they refuse to tell anyone how much is too much. Just don't cross the invisible line, users told.

Read more here.

The 40 coolest free applications around

If you know me at all you know that I love Free stuff. So when I ran across this list I thought "I have to share this". Here is a good list of 40 free applications for your computer. Go take a look and if you have any other ideas that are not on that list share them with me. I would love to here about them.

The 40 coolest free applications around

I finally had a good nights rest. No more toothache...

Good morning all, It's 8:20am Sunday morning and I got up at 7am. I went to sleep last night around 9pm in my recliner and woke up sometime around midnight and went to bed and slept the rest of the night. The reason I mention this is that is the longest that I have slept since July 24th when my toothache started. It feels great to sleep that long. I am so glad I had my bad teeth pulled and no they were not any of my front ones so I will still have a nice smile ( thank God ). I am lucky that it was just the back ones.

In case you didn't read my earlier post I had 13 teeth pulled Friday. I have been on antibiotics and pain meds for a month after getting an infection in my jaw. That was the most pain that I have ever felt in my entire life. The only way to describe the pain that I have been having before having my teeth extracted was to say it felt like someone was driving a nail into my tooth. OUCH!!!! To say the least. I don't know why my teeth went bad, I brush several times a day and floss, I think it must be herederity. My parents had tooth problems at a young age but were able to get things fixed with the help of dental insurance. I can't understand why we have to have separate insurance for our teeth in this country. I think health insurance should cover teeth problems just like any other part of the body.

If you ever watched that show Dr. G: Medical Examiner on Discovery Health channel maybe you saw the episode that I watched where this young person was found dead and when Dr. G finally figured out why they had died it was because of a tooth infection. I have to tell you that scared the crap out of me. We really do need to get dental problems covered by regular health insurance. We'll anyway I feel much better now. I am still in pain after having the extractions but it is nothing like the pain I was in for the last month. I will continue taking my antibiotics and pain medicine until they are gone and I will go to the Dentist later this week to have the stitches removed. I am on the road to Dental health.. I am one of the lucky ones.

If you want to read my earlier post on this subject just click on Toothache under this post in the Labels section.

You never know who's watching. Or from where. Hidden Cameras

Those employees will really think you're a great person for installing that Honeywell air purifier ... unless they find out that there's a wireless camera hidden inside the unit. This sneaky package delivers 420 lines of resolution, a 92 degree field of deja vu, and a 300 - 700 foot line of sight.

13 Hidden Surveillance Cameras you can buy, with photos. Go take a look.

Two Pictures of my son in the Navy ( Graduation Weekend )

My daughter Cindy sent two pictures of my son John in his working whites that she took when they went to Chicago Graduation weekend. Now all I am waiting for is a picture of them together. The two ribbons that John is wearing on his uniform are the ribbon to the National Defense Service Medal, and A Marksmanship Ribbon for pistol issued to service members who pass a weapons qualification course and achieve an above average score.

I had 13 teeth removed today

I had 13 teeth removed today. I will go to the dentist next Thursday to have the stitches removed. It feels better now than when I had the teeth in. Allot less pain now. Of course my mouth is packed with 4x4 bandages :) The dentist said that the bleeding should stop in a day or two. He did call to check on me and talked to my wife Vicki. She ( Vicki ) gave me a note pad to write notes to her on. ;) I still have all my front teeth so my smile will still be nice, thank God. Vicki is feeding me pudding and Jell-O and a friend Joan is bringing ice cream over tomorrow. The whole thing at the Oral Surgeon took about two hrs. I remember them putting in the IV and when I woke up they were just about done. The pharmacy is going to deliver my medicine tonight and I already had some pain meds here from being in pain for the last month... I am so glad to have this done. What a relief. I also want to thank Doris for driving me to and from the Oral Surgeon today. Thanks again.

Update: The pharmacy did not deliver my medicine as promised and they are closed today.

My Medicine Was delivered. :)

My daughter Cindy in the Navy called and said that she would post those pictures that she took when she went to Chicago a few weeks ago with her brother today so when she does I will post some here. Thanks Cindy. Hope you have a great weekend. Love, Dad

Yahoo is shipping a security update that fixes a couple of holes in the way its Yahoo Messenger client handles webcams

Yahoo is shipping a security update that fixes a couple of holes in the way its Yahoo Messenger client handles webcams. At least one of the holes can result in a "buffer overflow" condition, a type of vulnerability that can often result in arbitrary code execution – meaning your PC could be completely compromised.

Here's what Yahoo's alert says:

"Some impacts of a buffer overflow might include the introduction of executable code, being involuntarily logged out of a Chat and/or Instant Messaging session, and the crash of an application such as Yahoo! Messenger. For this specific security issue, these impacts could only be possible if an attacker is successful in prompting the Messenger user to accept a webcam invitation."

Read more here at PC World

They just finished the jury selection phase of the Michael Vick case...

They just finished the jury selection phase of the Michael Vick case

If you don't know who he is just go here and you can read all about him.

GPS and VoIP with your PSP in 2008

Sony is apparently planning to make 2008 the year that the PlayStation becomes a do-it-all device. In January, new software will be available that will make it possible to use the portable PlayStation for both instant messaging and VoIP-style calling. The wireless software (called Go!Messenger) is being put out by Sony in conjunction with the BT Group from Britain. If it only takes you one month before you re bored with the new uses for your PSP, you can upgrade again in February when a GPS positioning device will be available for the toy. That accessory will cost somewhere around $150. And it s not just the PSP that Sony is upgrading; there s also going to be a new accessory for the PlayStation 3 that will make it a digital video recorder.

Dell's New XPS 420 Details Revealed

Engadget has posted details about the up coming Dell XPS 420. The XPS 420 will have hardware MPEG-4 encoder and Vista SideShow display up top. The other features of the system are Core 2 Duo Extreme or Quad processor, Intel X 38 chipset with DDR2 800, Dell Xcelerator hardware MPEG-4 encoder, ten USB ports, two 1394 ports and audio ports in front and back. The MiniView (SIdeShow) up top shows time, date, calendar, system stats and controls for media access.

You can read more on Engadget.

Most Dangerous Object in the Office This Month: $2 Pocket Shots

It's like sports gel for alcoholics: a generous pour of gin, rum, vodka, whiskey, or tequila in a rip-top, palm-sized plastic pouch that's simple to tote and conceal. What could go wrong?

read more | digg story

Dude, Your Not Getting a Dell

My son John ( in the Navy ) ordered a Dell XPS M1330 laptop Saturday over the phone. He told the Dell Sales Rep the items that he wanted ( the specifications ) for the laptop and placed his order. He was given a total and he told the sales rep that he wanted it fast and the Dell Rep promised he would have it within a week ( he paid for quick shipping ). Sunday I checked his order online and found out that he was not getting the parts in the Laptop that he had told me the night before and the price was $200.00 higher than he had told me, also they had his address wrong. I e-mailed John Sunday morning and luckily he used a computer on base and checked his e-mail and he was very upset and asked me to cancel his order so I did. They had already debited his bank account for the purchase. The estimated shipping date was September 25 with a delivery date of October 2nd, not a week later as he was told. When I called Dell I was told that he would get his money back within 10-15 business days. I advised John to go to his Bank ( The Navy Federal Credit Union ) and tell them what happened, he did that yesterday ( Monday ) and the banker told John that if Dell has not refunded his money to his account that they would take care of it with the help of the Navy Legal Department. I guess he should have known that something was going to happen when the Dell Sales Rep ( this one in The USA ) did not know what the "United States Navy" was. :)

I have been buying Dells for years now and have never had a problem with them. John said Sunday " I loved Dell computers but now I don't know if I will ever buy from them again". I feel the same way.

Once he is refunded his money I am going to help him buy a laptop and I will get a cheaper and better one for him. Just one piece of advice. DON'T order over the phone. Order online, that way you can see what components you are going to get before you pay the company the money. He didn't know that the Dell XPS M1330 has been having build and shipping problems when he placed his order ( he was out of the loop while in Boot Camp ) and couldn't read the latest tech news and the Sales Rep did not tell him.

When we get him his laptop I will let you know what he gets. I can tell you one thing ( It won't be a Dell ).
Read more about the Delays on the Dell XPS M1330 at these links from Dell.

From the Dell Blog Link 1

From the Dell Blog Link 2

Another article about the Dell Shipping Delays

UPDATE: His money was refunded back to him today. :) ( August 23, 2007 )

UPDATE: Dell also blames Inspiron delays on inability to paint stuff

Update: Friday, September 07, 2007

Dell CEO Blames Laptop Delays on Poor Planning

Another Call From My Son In The Navy

My son John called again last night at 12am. He had just got off duty. He is planning on buying a laptop computer this weekend. He is leaning towards the Lenovo ThinkPad T61p He wants Windows Vista Ultimate, at least 2 gigs memory, and a 7200 speed hard drive. It is also Powered by NVIDIA Quadro NVS 140M video card and comes with Intel Core 2 Duo processors. The Lenovo can accommodate all that and has built-in speakers and is very reasonably priced starting at about $1200.00 It also received good reviews from www.notebookreview.com and is an Editors Choice at PC Magazine with a 4.5 out of 5 star rating and an Editors Choice at laptopmag.com. John was majoring in computer science in College and had completed 37 credits before joining the Navy.

Now for the Navy News, John said that he was picked to be on the "Navy Drill Team" but couldn't tell me much more about that until he gets all the details himself. He was exhausted when he called and was falling asleep while talking on the phone. Today is his day off so he plans on buying some food for his room and making a dental appt to get his teeth worked on along with several other things. I am still trying to get my daughter Cindy ( also in the Navy at Great Lakes ) to send me pictures that she took last weekend when she spent the weekend with her brother. Cindy is suffering from stress fractures from all the running and marching and is on light duty right now. As you can tell I am very Proud of both of my children that are serving our country with the United States Navy. :)

CCleaner 2.0 beta can be run from a USB thumb drive

My son and I have been using CCleaner to clear off temporary files, cookies, and unused registry settings for a few years now. The program is updated often and the updates are usually incremental.

Now it looks like the folks behind CCleaner have pushed out a beta of version 2.0, with some exciting new features:

* CCleaner can be run from a USB thumb drive
* Take it with you when visiting your parents for the holidays.
* Faster analyzing and cleaning
* Select files, folders, and registry keys to ignore
* Rebuilt in C++ to support 64-bit compatibility and Windows Vista compatibility
* Redesigned GUI

The fact that you can now carry CCleaner with you on a USB drive is a nig step forward. The file takes up almost no space at all, making CCleaner a great addition to your portable toolkit.

This is beta software, so not everything works as well as it could but CCleaner should have that fixed soon. Best of all CCleaner is free and the software does NOT contain any Spyware, Adware or Viruses....

You can download the Beta here.

My son John called tonight at 11pm from his Navy "A" School in Great Lakes

My son John called tonight at 11pm from his Navy "A" School in Great Lakes. He was doing laundry, tomorrow they have to do a march "Pass-in-Review" in front of an Admiral and several other top Navy brass and he is going to be in the front row and is a little nervous about that. I know he will do just fine. :)

He is going to go to the Navy Bank this week and make an appointment to learn about managing his money. He plans to go every other week for a while until he knows the ropes so to speak, then he said he would go monthly. He said that he went out and bought cup-a-soup and lemonade Kool-Aid so he can avoid the vending machines and spending $1.00 for a soda or snack. John has always been careful with his money. He wants to set up an emergency fund for himself, do some investing and other savings. He also wants to buy a cell phone and a laptop and wants help to set up a budget for that. This is one kid that doesn't waste money.... In college he was always buying Ramen Noodles, and cup-a-soup. No soda except for the occasional Mountain Dew Code Red or Lipton Brisk Iced Tea when it was on sale at WalMart. I am very proud of him. He said that he is going to talk to "Legal" before signing a cell phone contract too. That is a good idea John. You never know where you will end up in the Navy and he doesn't want to be stuck with a big bill for a phone he wont be able to use. Very smart, thinking ahead like that. He has never been an impulse buyer. He said that he spent a good part of the day after classes with his Sister Cindy ( also in the Navy and currently at Great Lakes ) just learning where things were on base. he said that he would call again tomorrow night. We can't wait :)

In other news we are still trying to get Cindy to send us the pictures that she took from their weekend in Chicago. As soon as she sends them I will post them here on my Blog.

U.S. NAVY 2006 YEAR IN REVIEW

I just watched a great Slide show about the USN. You can click here to watch it.

My Navy Daughter... Cindy in her Dress Whites

Cindy's Rating Fire Control Rangefinder

My Navy Daughter Cindy in her Dress Whites ( FCSA USN )

Cindy a few weeks before Boot Camp

Congratulations Division 259 Navy Boot Camp

Congratulations To Division 259 Navy Boot Camp
Graduated from Great Lakes, IL August 10, 2007

Here is a link to two videos that I posted earlier that show some of what they do in Boot camp with the Navy.

Navy Boot Camp Graduation Photo Division 259

Click on Images for larger view.

My son John just graduated from Navy Boot Camp in Great Lakes, IL Friday August 10, 2007. Here is his Division photo and the other photo is of Boot Camp. My son John is in the upper left side of the picture in the corner. Congratulations to Division 259. GO NAVY!!!

I thought I would post a link to this site for the Naval Services FamilyLine. If you or a family member is new to the Navy this is worth reading.

http://www.lifelines.navy.mil/FamilyLine/NewtotheNavy/index.htm

UPDATE: 05/28/08 To see all Comments on this post Click "Post a Comment" at the bottom of this page and then on the comment page at the bottom of all the comments click Newer or Newest. Hope that helps. John

UPDATE: 01/29/08
I have had so many questions and conversations start in the comments sections of my posts and guestbook for this Blog about Navy Boot Camp and Navy life recently that I decided to start a message board to help facilitate conversation between users, and answer questions. You can see the board at http://kansasdad.aceboard.com/

Feel free to continue using the comment sections of the posts if you wish, just trying to make things easer for everyone. :) As always you can also e-mail me at kansasdad@gmail.com too.

Another Hot Day!!! 106 degrees

I have to tell you, I am sick of the heat. It zaps all the energy right out of you. Living in an old house without any insulation in the walls doesn't help much. The air condition runs non stop on days like this... Today's high was 106 degrees as you can see from the graphic below. Just look at the picture where it says "So Far Today"

How Lazy Can we get?

Roller Coaster Shopping






I just saw this video and wondered, how lazy can we get? Maybe I shouldn't ask that... Unbelievable.

Vintage Smoking Ads

I couldn't resist posting these vintage smoking ads. :)

John's pictures from the Navy

I just got my son John's pictures Federal Express from the Navy. He Graduated Boot Camp Friday August 10th. He starts his A School for OS Tuesday in Great Lakes. He went to Chicago over the weekend with his sister Cindy ( currently in her A school for AECF FC in Great Lakes ) and several of their Navy friends and they took pictures. As soon as I can get Cindy to send the pictures to me I will post them. :)

Very Hot for South East Kansas 104 degrees

It's Hot Out There!!! So far the high today has been 104 degrees with a heat index of 111. The temp is vacillating between 101 and 104 degrees here in south-east Kansas with a heat index running up to 112 degrees. Yuck!!!

Still HOT here in South-East Kansas

As I sit here and finish my last cup of coffee for the day at 8:30am, it's 83 degrees outside. It looks like the heat wave will be around for a while longer with the next several days running close to or at 100 degrees. I did manage to mow the lawn yesterday when it was 98 degrees outside with the help of my wife bringing out cups of water for me. :) She also trimmed some bushes that we have in our yard and filled the bird baths and ended up with tons of mosquito bites.

Every day we have a Heat Advisory lasting until the next day. I wish they would just say until further notice. :)

Heat Advisory Remains In Effect Until 7 PM CDT Monday...

A Heat Advisory Remains In Effect Until 7 PM CDT Monday.

Dangerous Afternoon Heat Indices Around 105 Degrees Will Remain Possible Across Much Of The Area Today Through Monday. Heat Indices Of This Magnitude Are Capable Of Causing Serious Health Related Problems... And Can Be Life-Threatening In Some Cases.

A Heat Advisory Means That A Period Of Hot Temperatures Is Expected. The Combination Of Hot Temperatures And High Humidity Will Create Conditions Where Heat-Related Illnesses Are Possible. Drink Plenty Of Fluids And Stay In An Air-Conditioned Room If Possible. Limit Your Exposure To The Sun And Check Up On Relatives And Neighbors. Be Especially Attentive To The Elderly And Children. Watch Your Pets. Make Sure They Too Are Kept In A Cool Environment And Have Plenty Of Water.

Cindy and John ( my children in the Navy )

Cindy and John ( my children in the Navy ) and a bunch of their friends spent the day yesterday in Chicago and Cindy took pictures with her phone. They called us a few times and both might come home for Christmas if they can. :) As soon as I can get Cindy to send those pictures to me I will post them here. She still has not sent her graduation pictures. :( John sent his Federal Express so we should get his any day. I will post some of those on here as soon as I get them.

Google Pack Adds StarOffice to it's lineup

Google Pack added StarOffice to it's lineup. Google Pack, the collection of applications recommended by Google, includes a new software, StarOffice, an office suite developed by Sun. In 2000 Sun released StarOffice's source code, which became the foundation of OpenOffice.org, an open source project sponsored by Sun.

StarOffice 8 is a full-featured office suite that contains a word processor, a spreadsheet tool, applications for presentations, databases, math formulas and drawing. It has support for most Microsoft Office formats (except for the formats introduced in Office 2007), but it can also export documents as PDF out of the box. The software normally costs $70, but it's available for free in Google Pack. It's worth noting that StarOffice has a huge installer ( more than 140 MB ), so you should download it only if you have a fast Internet connection.

Phone Calls from Both of my Kids that are in the United States Navy

My son John that graduated Navy Boot Camp yesterday called again yesterday evening. He sounded great. He told me that he sings the cadence for his Division when they march. He is "ARock". If you don't know what that is, a cadence call is a traditional call-and-response work song sung by military personnel while running or marching. He and his sister Cindy along with some of his friends that just graduated and some of her friends from her A school in Great Lakes are going to Chicago together today. They promised me some pictures today, so when I get them I will post them here. My son also sent his pictures from Boot Camp Federal Express so I will post some of those also as soon as I get them. John starts his A school next Tuesday in Great Lakes for OS.

One other note, John said the gas chamber in boot camp really helped clear his sinuses. The next week we has a stuffy nose and thought about how nice it would be to go do the gas chamber again to clear that up. LOL




Cindy is currently learning about troubleshooting and operating the SPS-64(V)9 radar system. Good job Cindy. :) She is a Fire Control Technician. I'm proud of you Cindy.

Guest Book and a letter from another Proud Navy Dad

I had a private post to my guest book from Jim. I am not going to post his last name or e-mail address here, but the content of his letter is definitely worth sharing. Thanks Jim, best of luck to your daughter. We wish her well. John


John,

We finally got a call from our Daughter in Boot Camp. She says she's fine, but busting her butt to earn another call. She graduates on 31 August, some three weeks after your son. From GL, it's on to Lackland AFB, TX, for her Master at Arms training. I don't care for that too much, but she wants it. Gotta support the kids, as you know. I am very proud of my service, John, but I'm realizing that I'm even more proud of all these kids today who are enlisting during such troubled times. Maybe some day the world will no longer need its military forces. Until that time, though, we can all be secure in the knowledge that our various services are filled with young people who've chosen to do this because they want to, not because they must. Please give both your children my thanks and deepest regard. And, again, thanks for posting your son's letters. It has helped us understand this new Navy thing a lot better.

Take care.
Jim
Retired Air Force

Congratulations to my son John for passing Navy Boot Camp

My son John just graduated Navy Boot Camp today Division 259. He called and talked to my wife for a while but I missed his call. He said that he would call back later. He was going to the movies with some friends. :) Congratulations John on a job well done. I am proud of you. Also Congratulations to all the other men and women that graduated Boot Camp today, TG 37 12 Divisions (253, 255 – 264, 937) . We wish you fair winds and a following sea...

Patches that Microsoft has planned for us next Tuesday

The updates will come as part of Microsoft's regular monthly security patch process, and will be made available to customers late Tuesday morning, Pacific time.

Less-serious updates are also being readied for Windows, Windows Vista, and Microsoft's Virtual PC and Virtual Server software, Microsoft said in a note on the upcoming patches, published Thursday.

With nine sets of patches, August will be a busy month for system administrators. Microsoft released just six updates in July, and has averaged around seven updates per month this year.

Here are the patches that Microsoft has planned for us next Tuesday:

* 6 CRITICAL patches - some of these will require a reboot

* 3 IMPORTANT patches - some of these will require a reboot

Microsoft is planning to release four non-security, high-priority updates on Microsoft Update and two non-security, high-priority updates for Windows on Windows Update.