Beardmore.net Journal

New year, new Podcast

tom@beardmore.net — 2006-01-22T19:21:14-06:00

Wow - I haven't posted in my blog for half a year... I've been busy! Listen to my podcast to learn what I've been doing.

Journal update

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-06-12T13:41:00-05:00

Looks like I'm long overdue in updating the journal. I've put the house on the market, but I'm not sure when it will sell. It's a buyer's market down in Austin, so we'll just have to see. Hopefully, the fact that there's the new grade school just six blocks away will help convince a family to buy. I flew to Topeka last weekend, and it was really great to see Rebbie, Kenny & Bri. We looked at a couple of townhomes, but haven't found something we all really like. I've been re-assuring Kenny & Bri that we really are going to have a place all our own, and to be patient. I really miss them when I'm down here, but it's just the way things are for the present. Hopefully this will be changing sooner than later.

Hurray for me, dammit!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-05-22T18:47:00-05:00

I finally get it! I think I finally understand why Dad kept this particular cartoon from a 1964 edition of Look magazine taped next to his bathroom mirror. Today, being my 52nd birthday (and I really don't feel like I'm much past 30), I'm able to take stock on who I am, what I've accomplished, and what I have yet to do. All said and done, I think I've done pretty well for myself. And although I'm not one to "toot my own horn", I feel proud about the man I am today. Not perfect, of course, but that only leaves room for improvement. I have a loving wife, two step-children who trust and believe in me, and a clear path looking ahead. And there's more to come, I'm sure of that. Yeah... Hurray for me, dammit!

Regrouping - and new directions

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-05-10T20:43:00-05:00

After letting the dust settle a few days, two things are clear: 1) Rebecca, Kenny and Brianna cannot come to live with me in Texas. 2) My family wants all of us to be together. ...Rebbie & I have discussed every alternative, but it all comes back to these points. We all want to be together as a family, and if Muhammad cannot come to the mountain, then the mountain must come to Muhammad. That's to say that I'm putting plans in place to move to Kansas. I'm scared and concerned; there's absolutely no way I can find a job in Kansas where I'll be able to realize the earning potential that I've found in Austin, but that doesn't matter anymore. Rebecca's friend, Colette, put everything into perspective for me in a late night call a few evenings back. Rebbie, Kenny & Bri need me, but they're not going to say so. ...I don't want to be away from them any longer. We've been apart for too long as it is, hoping and believing that a better outcome would be ruled by the court, but things just didn't go our way. I think I can make an "okay" living in Kansas CIty, not that I'll ever be able to make the income I can here in Austin. After all, there are only three hi-tech hubs in the U.S., and neither Topeka nor Kansas City are among them. My income there won't compare to what I can earn in Austin, so I won't be able to provide for Rebbie, Kenny & Bri as well as I could otherwise. The family budget will be tight, but money isn't everything. Family is, and they want me there with them. There's nothing more important than that. That said, I'll just share that when Rebbie and I came to the decision that I'd move to Kansas, and that we'd get a home for the four of us, I heard the kids cheer in the background. ... To hear their excitement was more than enough for me to know we'd made the right decision. All said, even though it's not what we all had hoped for - or what we believe (even now) is really best for K & B - it's good enough for now.

We lost... :-(

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-05-03T16:27:00-05:00

Just returned home. Things went badly for us. The court ruled that Kenny & Brianna must remain in Topeka. As long as Rebbie remains there, too, she will retain custody. If she moves away, their residential custodies go to their respecitve dads. Of course, Rebbie would never leave Topeka wthout Kenny or Bri, nor would I want (or expect) her to do that. The dads know this, too, and probably was elemental in their plans. We told K & B (along with Grandma, Graddad & Unca' Dan) the outcome Monday evening. Rebbie & I were pretty emotional about it. The kids were visibly upset. We're all very disappointed and saddened. I couldn't sleep at all, and had to fly back very early this morning. At noon Rebbie called to tell me that the kids were both so unhappy this morning that they have tummy-aches, and stayed home from school today. Mom & I aren't feeling much better. We have some decisions ahead of us we'll have to make, but we're going to let things settle a bit so we have clearer heads. This time, it seems that the legal system let us all down.

Off to Topeka again

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-04-27T21:06:00-05:00

Headed to Topeka again on Saturday. Rebbie & I are going to be in court all day Monday, May 2nd. We've both grown concerned because the guardians ad litem appear to have already made up their minds after talking with the dads. Neither guardian as made an effort to contact me, which is frustrating and disappointing. Rebbie is unhappy, and the kids are both worried that they won't be able to come to Texas. It's in God's hands. As difficult as it is for all of us, we have to trust in His plan for our family. More news when I get back on Tuesday.

Testing new RapidWeaver beta

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-04-16T09:21:00-05:00

For the past week, I've been testing a new beta of RapidWeaver, the software I use to generate the family website. It's come a long way from RapidWeaver Plus (a pre-cursor to RapidWeaver 3.0, from about a year ago). While I can see lots of opportunities to improve it, I like how it works. I've submitted my bug report and enhancement requests, and I understand there will be at least one more private beta before we'll see anything officially released. I'm going to work in the yard today if weather permits. The lawn definitely needs to be mowed, and the weeds are starting to take over the back yard.

Chris & Karen wed

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-04-09T23:51:00-05:00

Today, my friends Chris & Karen were married. Chris and I worked together at MessageOne before he started his own graphics and marketing company, MagDesign, last year. Word on the street (and from Chris himself) is that his business is enjoying some well-earned success. Chris met Karen in 2003, when he was living at his apartment. She lived across the way in another part of the apartment complex, and she always had a special interest in Chris (or, at least, so it seemed to me, anyway). About two years ago, he confided that he'd started seeing her and shortly thereafter, he and Karen invited me along with their other friends to North-by-Northwest for their informal "coming-out" party. I remember telling Karen not to break Chris's heart, and telling Chris not to let her get away. Seems that they followed that advice! So today, I'm very happy for the two of them. It's been great watching their lives come together and grow. The only thing that would have made today perfect would be to have had my wife & kids here at their wedding. Soon, I hope, that will become reality. Congratulations, Karen & Chris.

Back to the family website!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-03-19T12:59:00-06:00

Well, it's back to work on the family website. I've just gotten a new beta of RapidWeaver, and I'm very impressed with its new feature set. As expected, it's got some bugs, too, but we'll pass them along to Dan at Realmac Software. I'm going to shoot for an Easter public release of the family website.

A nice surprise!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-03-10T18:52:00-06:00

Well, what a relief! I've got my car back!! I was fearing it would be several hundred dollars, but it turns out that it was a bad battery. Apparently the battery in my 5-year-old car had cracked (and for quite some time, according to the service department), and it finally died on the way home from Topeka. Because the car's system voltage was under-powered, it was messing up the in-dash computer, and wreaking havoc on the car's engine & transmission. After replacing the battery, everything is pretty much back to normal. I'm still getting some "hissing" noises when the car is first started up, but it quickly subsides after a minute or two. The lease on the car is about up (expires in August '05), and the tires and brakes are probably due to be replaced anyway. Time to start looking and some new transportation, I guess.

Back from Topeka and unexpected car problems

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-03-08T22:29:00-06:00

It was really great being with Rebbie, the kids and the rest of her family. The best part of the trip for me was being able to take the kids to school every morning and pick them up in the afternoons. One afternoon, I went to get Bri and waited outside her home room as I'd done most ot the week. ... Normally Bri is among the first, but on that day I hadn't seen her come out. After several minutes, I wondered if her dad, Ron, had already picked her up before class had let out. I was about to go to the office to inquire when Bri's best friend, Lauren walked out of the classroom with one of her girl-friends. I asked Lauren if Bri was still in the room, to which she replied she was. ...We also had the custody hearings on March 2nd as planned, and the judge agreed to appoint two guardians ad litem for Kenny & Brianna. ... They've both asked Rebbie & me repeatedly why no one was listening to what they've been saying, so when we told K & B that now they'll both have someone who are their representatives in court, they were very happy. We told both of them that they can tell the guardians exactly what their wishes are, and the guardians will speak up for them. The next hearing is set for May 2nd, so I'm already planning my next trip to Topeka. ...I continued to nurse it along through DFW and feared that if I stopped, I wouldn't be able to restart it. ... I finally stopped the car in south Fort Worth, adding some gas treatment (because I'd just filled up north of Oklahoma City, and wondered if I'd gotten some tainted gas), then topped off the tank. The car started up again, but with squealing noises I'd never heard before. Figuring I'd gotten something on the belts while I had the hood up, I limped back onto I-35 and headed south. As I got close to home, the car finally just gave up on me. Fortunately, it was just north of Georgetown, only a few miles from home. I called a tow truck and a friend who came to take me the rest of the way home. Today, the car is in the shop, and I'm dreading the phone call from them. ... In the meantime, my buddy is letting me drive his pickup until I hear from the shop.

Headed for Topeka!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-02-25T21:08:00-06:00

Well, tomorrow I'll be on my way to Topeka to see Rebbie, Kenny & Brianna. I can hardly wait. I haven't seen them since Christmas. I'll be taking off around 4 a.m. in the wee hours. It's a nine to ten hour drive, depending on traffic (and how heavy my foot gets), so I should be there between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. Rebbie & I have our first hearings in custody court for the kids on March 2nd. Wish we didn't have to go thru all of this because all that's happening because Rebbie & I believe that bringing them to Texas so we can all be a family together is the best thing for them. It's time they had some stability and a real family environment. In the end, Rebbie & I know that, ultimately, it's going to happen any way; but with the kids dads trying to block every turn, it's taking a toll on the kids. Kenny & Brianna often tell me how much they wish they were already here. I wonder why the dads aren't listening if they are truly interested in what's best for Kenny & Bri. I guess the only way to prove that they want to move here is to work with the court and get the guardians ad litem appointed to them next week.

New chat status indicator

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-04-06T20:58:00-05:00

I've added a new feature on the website today. Visitors will be able to see the status of the family chat cam in real-time. If it's green, it means chat is online; red, means it's offline. To initiate a chat (when it's green), just click the status indicator and it will launch AOL's Instant Messenger (AIM) or Apple's iChat (if you use it instead of AIM). It's really pretty neat how well it works. Give it a try yourself. I also added Cookie's first installment of her "Everlasting Life" memoirs in the "Family Stories" area of the Message Board. Volume 1 is Mom's story of her early years, how she met Dad, and ends just as WWII is over the horizon.

Valentine's day approaching...

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-02-12T14:54:00-06:00

Regrettably, I can't travel to Topeka to be with Rebbie on Valentine's day, but I've ordered a nice arrangement of roses to be delivered to her. I'll be sure to call her, too, to give her my love. I hope we can resolve the child custody issues soon, so we can finally all be together here. Hopefully, we get these matter resolved soon. Rebbie & I will be headed to custody and child-support hearings on March 2nd to finally begin the process. It seems to me, though, that Kenny's & Bri's dads aren't putting their children's interests first, but rather their own. Rebbie & I are going to try to get guardians ad litem appointed to Kenny and Brianna, so that their voices are represented in court. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Pope John Paul II's passing...

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-04-02T14:34:00-06:00

It saddens me that today, even after a lengthy illness and knowing that his death was imminent, Pope John Paul II passed away at 9:37 p.m. (Rome time), 1:37 p.m. Central time. Pope John Paul II was a true man a peace, reaching out to the poor and forgotten, building bridges between the church and other faiths, and helping to usher into the world an era without communism. You have served your Father well, Karol Wojtyla.

Requiescat in pace (5/18/1920 - 4/2/2005).

News from Topeka

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-04-01T20:33:00-06:00

Rebbie called me during the lunch hour today with some good news. Kenny was just named to the principal's honor roll at his school. Kenny has dramatically pulled up his grades from where they were a few months ago. She and I are very proud of Kenny and his hard work. Rebbie was also recognized today by her workers and the management. She was given a certificate of recognition, some flowers and the rest of the day off! Gotta love getting PTO! I've been getting a lot of feedback from family and friends about the new website, all positive. Some have suggested more photos or movies, so I'll see what can be done to accommodate everyone.

Back to the new website

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-02-02T18:11:00-06:00

Okay, I've put it off long enough. I need to get back to work on the family website. The trouble I'm having is that between the tools I'm using and what I want to accomplish, I'm running up against some tough problems. I know that there's a new version of RapidWeaver coming, so I haven't made up my mind whether to publish the site now, or wait for the new version that will do what I know is coming. Being a beta-release tester for Realmac Software has its upsides and downsides. Knowing what's coming is a double-edged sword for me. But after weighing everything, I think I'll continue with the work and publish it when RapidWeaver 3.1 is finally released.

Fixed!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-01-16T21:11:00-06:00

After about 90 minutes working on the iMac G5, I replaced its mainboard with the replacement. The fan on the replacement is considerably quiter than the original, so I'm happy. It was also a very educational process to see how the mainboard is installed and how everything on it is connected. The old one will be on its way back to Apple tomorrow.

It's online!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-03-27T08:57:00-06:00

In celebration of Easter and remembering that Christ rose from his tomb after dying for us all, today I'm re-launching my family website, replacing the old stale and stagnant website that has remain largely unchanged for the past several years.

Family website almost ready

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-03-26T11:54:00-06:00

After several starts, I've almost finished the family website. If all goes well, I intend to publish it Easter Sunday (tomorrow).

Apple's peculiar warranty policies

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-01-15T15:14:00-06:00

After a few phone calls, I finally reached Apple Service and convinced them that the fan noise was too loud. They've approved an advance-exchange under warranty, but it isn't what I expected. All I wanted was for Apple to send a replacement fan with instructions how to swap it out. Instead of a fan, they can only send me a replacement back plane! This is the entire logic board of the computer (on which the fan is mounted). I don't get it! The fan itself appears to be easy enough to remove. It's only held in place with a few torx screws, but apparently Apple things its not the wise thing to do. So now I'm waiting for the back plane to arrive, the replacement cost of which I was required to secure with my credit card (almost $1,000) in case I fail to send the original one back. As long as I return it within 14 days, though, I won't be charged. I'm not sure that this is the best thing that Apple could have done, since it increases increases costs (it costs more to ship a back plane than just a fan), it will take longer to replace (I have to remove the entire logic board board from the computer, rather than just the fan), and it increases the possibility that one of the back planes (either the one in my iMac G5 or the replacement that they're shipping) could be damaged during the swap, or in transit. But at least Apple pays for the shipping both ways.

It's Official: time to replace the fan!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-01-13T20:31:00-06:00

I've taken the iMac G5 back to the Apple store and they've listened to the fan noise. They agreed it should be replaced, because none of the other iMac's on display were as loud as mine. The offered to take it in and fix it for me, but I'd have to leave it there for three days. I've brought it back home with me and I'll contact Apple to see about a self-service replacement. This should be interesting...

LOUD Fan noise in my new iMac!

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-01-11T14:21:00-06:00

Wow! When the fan gets cranked up in my new iMac G5, it's really LOUD. Based on the reviews I've read, the new iMac is supposed to be whisper quite. Hmmm... guess I'll head off to the Apple store to see what they have to say.

New iMac G5 Widescreen

tom@beardmore.net — 2005-01-09T19:10:00-06:00

I just brought home a new iMac G5 Widescreen from the Apple store here in Austin. Very fast. Very cool. This is an all-in-one iMac (like all iMac's), but the entire computer is built into the screen. I've also picked-up the wireless keyboard and mouse, so there are no wires connecting them to the computer. More to come.

Only a few days before Christmas

tom@beardmore.net — 2004-12-21T20:57:00-06:00

Haven't had much time to work on the website the past couple of weeks. I've been too busy shopping! It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, but it's also unlikely the website will be ready for a Christmas unveiling. Oh, well. I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of Christmas. I can barely wait to see the kids faces when they open their presents. Of course, Rebbie's got a couple of nice surprises coming, too!

Getting closer

tom@beardmore.net — 2004-12-10T13:15:00-06:00

The website is coming along nicely, and I hope to make it available in time for Christmas to show the family. Still working on one or two things, like getting the movie to play automatically and installing the message board, and then it should be ready to show.

New website progress

tom@beardmore.net — 2004-11-27T10:13:00-06:00

I've been working on the site now for a few weeks. There are some anomalies in the software that I'm working thru, but it's nice to see how far the new website has come. Hopefully I'll have it done by Christmas.

Initial entry

tom@beardmore.net — 2004-11-17T21:44:00-06:00

As part of the redesign of this website, I've added a weblog ("blog") that will be updated with current musings, comments, and observations. I don't anticipate that this will be anything profound, but it should give visitors a little insight as to what's going on in our world.