I FINALLY got the scrolling picture thingy to work! This was the original idea when I designed the website, but I could never find the right code. I scoured the web looking for free Flash templates I could use, but there was nothing. Someone finally created a module in Joomla to do exactly what I was looking for. I was super excited. I spent pretty much one full day figuring out how to integrate it with my header section. It was a major headache. I was having some formatting and layout issues that were totally kicking my butt. And although I used to code alot in my Accenture days, I was having lots of trouble with this because I don't have much experience with PHP or CSS, the newer stuff. I guess I'm old school. But I kept tinkering with the code and searching online for help, and finally, after many frustrating hours of going through the code line by line trying to figure it out, it finally came together. Yippeee!
Laptop cooling fans rock. I had seen them online at the deal sites that I frequent, but I didn't decide to buy one until my friend Christina showed me hers. I played around with it and she said it worked pretty well, so I thought I'd shop around for one. I found one for really cheap at ProVantage, so I decided to get one for me and one for Jocelin. (This is weird. I bought mine for $5.39 each, but now the price is $7.71? That's a 40% markup in less than 3 weeks!)
Soon after that, Jocelin's cousins (Jason and Jacob) came to visit, and being young and Asian, they brought their laptops (of course). Jacob, a gamer, also had a laptop cooling fan. So in a matter of just a few days these things were popping up all around me.
As usual, credit goes where credit is due: My sister Renee told me about this deal. w00t!
For those of you who use Sprint as your cell phone provider, whenever you get a dropped call, you can get a $0.50 credit for it on your statement. Just call customer service by dialing *2 on your cell phone, and when the computerized lady on the other end asks you what you want, just say, "Dropped call credit." She'll say, "I can help you with that. Sorry for the inconvenience. I'll credit your account for one minute at the highest local rate." SAWEET!
I am a consumer. A consumer of web data and internet information. A hitchhiker on the information superhighway. That's what I am.
Whenever I need an answer to something, I hop on the internet. What is this unidentified algae growing in my saltwater tank? Does Jocelin's car REALLY need premium gasoline? How do I access the internal RAM chip inside of Jocelin's laptop? Just today, I googled the phrase, "MosCE problems in Joomla" and found exactly what I was looking for in the first result!
Sometimes when I'm reading through forums or newsgroups, I feel a little guilty because I've never contributed to these forums to help others. When it comes to posting information on the web, I'm just not a very helpful person. For example, I've never started a website to share my knowledge in my areas of expertise: how to start and maintain a saltwater aquarium, how to cook and eat bratwursts every weekend and not die, or how to find deals and use coupons. I suppose I could make the excuse that I just don't have any knowledge that other people would care to know, but that's not true (there's at least someone out there would would appreciate it). The real reason is because I'm lazy and I'm selfish. I just don't care to share my knowledge with others.
I have a new theory about myself: I cannot handle caffeine, specifically the kind that comes in chocolate. It's 3:15am in the morning and I'm wide awake. And all I had was one lousy chocolate chip cookie. Kind of far-fetched, you say? But this isn't the first time. There is much more evidence:
The first time I had this problem was Blog #36 on May 2nd. Joce and I were taking a trip to Houston and I drank some coffee mixed with hot chocolate to keep me awake during the drive. I didn't sleep all night. Ok. So I can't handle coffee. That makes sense. I never drink coffee, so my body must not be able to handle it. No more coffee for me.
The second time I had HEB Creamy Creation's Toasted Almond Fudge late at night. Didn't sleep until like 4am. This is weird. Why can't I sleep? It's not like I'm not stressed or anything.
Did the same thing a week later. Apparently, the ice cream hadn't run out yet and I hadn't figured out the eat-chocolate = no-sleep relationship either. Why is this happening again? This is so weird. I wonder what is wrong with me? Maybe I'm not exercising enough and tiring out my body? All I do is sit in front of a computer all day. OR, maybe my body is figuring out how to operate with less (or no) sleep! That would be so sweet!
Last week I had a whole Marble Slab Chocolate Swiss with an Orea mixin' at 8:30pm, and I didn't sleep at all. Hmmmm... Now I'm starting to see a connection...
Tonight Jocelin baked chocolate chip cookies and I had one. It didn't even occur to me that it would affect my sleep. I thought I had narrowed this down to ice cream. This sucks.
Last week Joce and I were asked to become community group shepherds (known in other churches as small group leaders) at our church, the Austin Stone. We were really surprised by the invitation, especially since we've only been attending the Stone for 6 months, and been a part of our community group for less than that. But it felt nice to be asked!
Our current "small" group is approximately 40 people. That's alot of people for a community group. We need to multiply into smaller groups so that we can be a true fellowship community, and also be small enough to allow room for future growth. From our group of 40, 4 couples are starting new groups in their respective neighborhoods (and taking some people from our group with them), and Joce and I were asked to assume leadership responsibility for the people that will remain in our Arboretum community group.
This past Sunday Joce and I helped out again with Church Under the Bridge, a ministry sponsored by Mission: Possible for to the homeless in Austin. I think it was our 3rd time. All we do is help serve lunch to the people that come for the morning service. And then we clean up. That's it. It's pretty easy.
I've always been the "drink man". I'm either filling styrofoam cups with water/lemonade, or passing out bottled water or soft drinks. I'm pretty chill about it, too: if people want more than one water/lemonade/soda, I'm like cool, man, whatever. Take whatever you want. I figure these people don't get to enjoy these things often, so why not give it to them? I'm here to serve.
Inspired by the World Cup, I went to the IM fields yesterday with my friend Alvaro to play soccer. They have pick up games every evening, so getting into a game was not a problem. And let me tell you - I STUNK. I hadn't played soccer in over 20 years (since Pee Wee league), so "rusty" would be a gross understatement. After 15 minutes of running around the field, I was seriously sucking wind. I can't remember the last time I was so out of breath. I felt like I couldn't get enough air into my lungs! Obviously, I was not in soccer-shape. I thought that playing Ultimate Frisbee would help me with my conditioning, but now I realize that soccer requires a different type of conditioning. It requires short bursts of speed vs. long runs down the field, and lots of short steps vs. long strides. It's much more of a stop-and-go type of game.
After watching the Dallas Mavericks choke and lose 4 games in a row after being up 2-0 in the NBA Finals, I was pretty upset. Watching the three losses in Miami were painful enough, but four in a row? What were the odds against that? Did the Mavericks even lose four in a row during the regular season?
So I wonder: why do I care so much? Does it really matter if the Mavs win the NBA Championship? Win or lose, it's not going to change my life one iota. Why do I care? I'm still going to wake up tomorrow. Life will be the same. Why the emotional investment? Aren't there a ton of things that are way more important in life, like starving children in Africa, Muslim nations who don't know Christ, or whether to slowplay Aces?
Today I protested my property taxes. More accurately, I went to a hearing to protest my property appraisals, the purpose of which was to lower my property taxes. Every year for the past three years, I have protested my property appraisals in an effort to lower my property tax obligation. But I had always done it through the mail. And I had never been succesful. So I decided to try something new this year: I would attend the formal hearings that they hold at the Travis County Central Appraisal District.
If you think you'll ever protest your tax appraisal, or if you're curious to know what it's like to do so, read on. If this sounds super boring, feel free to move on to another friend's blog. I won't be offended...
I FINALLY got the scrolling picture thingy to work! This was the original idea when I designed the website, but I could never find the right code. I scoured the web looking for free Flash templates I could use, but there was nothing. Someone finally created a module in Joomla to do exactly what I was looking for. I was super excited. I spent pretty much one full day figuring out how to integrate it with my header section. It was a major headache. I was having some formatting and layout issues that were totally kicking my butt. And although I used to code alot in my Accenture days, I was having lots of trouble with this because I don't have much experience with PHP or CSS, the newer stuff. I guess I'm old school. But I kept tinkering with the code and searching online for help, and finally, after many frustrating hours of going through the code line by line trying to figure it out, it finally came together. Yippeee!
Laptop cooling fans rock. I had seen them online at the deal sites that I frequent, but I didn't decide to buy one until my friend Christina showed me hers. I played around with it and she said it worked pretty well, so I thought I'd shop around for one. I found one for really cheap at 
This is the 2nd article of the 
I am a consumer. A consumer of web data and internet information. A hitchhiker on the information superhighway. That's what I am. 
I have a new theory about myself: I cannot handle caffeine, specifically the kind that comes in chocolate. It's 3:15am in the morning and I'm wide awake. And all I had was one lousy chocolate chip cookie. Kind of far-fetched, you say? But this isn't the first time. There is much more evidence:
Last week Joce and I were asked to become community group shepherds (known in other churches as small group leaders) at our church, the 
This past Sunday Joce and I helped out again with 
Inspired by the World Cup, I went to the IM fields yesterday with my friend Alvaro to play soccer. They have pick up games every evening, so getting into a game was not a problem. And let me tell you - I STUNK. I hadn't played soccer in over 20 years (since Pee Wee league), so "rusty" would be a gross understatement. After 15 minutes of running around the field, I was seriously sucking wind. I can't remember the last time I was so out of breath. I felt like I couldn't get enough air into my lungs! Obviously, I was not in soccer-shape. I thought that playing Ultimate Frisbee would help me with my conditioning, but now I realize that soccer requires a different type of conditioning. It requires short bursts of speed vs. long runs down the field, and lots of short steps vs. long strides. It's much more of a stop-and-go type of game. 
After watching the Dallas Mavericks choke and lose 4 games in a row after being up 2-0 in the NBA Finals, I was pretty upset. Watching the three losses in Miami were painful enough, but four in a row? What were the odds against that? Did the Mavericks even lose four in a row during the regular season? 
Today I protested my property taxes. More accurately, I went to a hearing to protest my property appraisals, the purpose of which was to lower my property taxes. Every year for the past three years, I have protested my property appraisals in an effort to lower my property tax obligation. But I had always done it through the mail. And I had never been succesful. So I decided to try something new this year: I would attend the formal hearings that they hold at the Travis County Central Appraisal District.