Thursday, May 24, 2012

The Dilemma

In the middle of winter, Jen lost our cell phone.  Don't be too concerned, it wasn't an iPhone or any such valuable gadget.  We had survived for years with an old Samsung clamshell phone on a pay-as-you-go plan.  It turns out the phone didn't turn up outside when the snow melted, so it was lost elsewhere.  There is a hobo out there using my crappy old phone as a spoon.

The loss of our phone has brought about the necessity to make a decision on whether to get another pay-as-you-go special or make the leap into the world of smart phones.  We have decided to make the leap.  This is quite an early adoption of technology for us, and quite an investment.  Now that we have decided to upgrade, the next and frankly more difficult decisions have to be made.  Namely, what carrier and plan and what phone?  I use phone in the singular, because Jen already knows she wants and iPhone and that is all.  She has sipped the Apple Kool Aid and decided she likes it.  The only thing I know is that I don't want an iPhone.  As you all know, I refuse to be an iSheep. Not wanting an iPhone has left me with two choices.  I can choose the other heavyweight Android or the newcomer Windows Phone.


Android has the advantage of lots of phones to choose from with more coming all the time.  Android has an established ecosystem of apps and Google services.  I find myself looking at services that say they have an app and 90% of the time the app is available for both iOS and Android.  Android has also recently upgraded its OS with Ice Cream Sandwich, which has a bevy of cool features.  Finally, there are some sweet ass phones that have just come out using the Android platform.  The HTC One X looks beautiful and has received some very high praise from many in the consumer tech industry.  Also, don't forget the current champ Samsung, which has the Galaxy IIIS coming out at the end of the month.  Another beautiful looking phone, but I've heard they're overlay kind of sucks.  My brain says go with Android as the smart choice.


It comes in blue!
Then there is Windows Phone.  Being relatively new to the game, their ecosystem is somewhat sparse.  I have also found that some of the apps I would want to use are not available on the Windows platform.  Who knows what will happen when Windows 8 Phone comes out.  However, I have read many good things about the OS and how it operates.  It is supposed to be very intuitive and smooth.  The flagship phone, the Nokia 900 is quite nice and also quite cheap.  I also have the problem of always rooting for the underdog.  This has got me in trouble in the past.  I've got stuck with things that aren't supported after a time.  I also like to be different than the crowd and this would do it.  My heart says Windows Phone.

If there is anyone out there with opinions (backed by fact or experience) I'd love to hear from you to break the deadlock between heart and head.  We won't be getting our phones until June, so please help me end my obsessing.

Monday, May 21, 2012

Just Foolin' Around

I went out last weekend and fooled around with my not so new camera.  The pictures aren't that great, most turned out a little washed out, but I guess that's all part of the learning curve.  I was just playing with the f-stop and shutter speed. It was a little boring and frankly I was having more fun walking so lost interest in taking pictures at some point.






Well That Was Interesting

We've been on the weather roundabout here for the past week.  We had snow last Wednesday and then woke up to about 1.5" of snow on the ground Thursday morning with more coming down.  It snowed off and on for the rest of the day.  It quite regularly snows over the May long weekend, but it never gets easier to take.

Now for the actual weekend we had sunny skies and temperatures around 20 degrees.  I spent two days out in the yard working hard and getting things done that I couldn't the past couple of weeks because of the 70 km winds EVERY day.

If anyone ever tells you that summer in the North is nice, tell them they are a liar.  There is no such thing as summer in the North, only less winter.

Monday, May 7, 2012

What the Hell?

Ok.  I'm just sitting here watching the Phoenix Coyotes get their ass handed to them on the ice, except they're winning.  I've been watching hockey for many years and I've never seen anything quite like this.  Every time Phoenix gets a scoring chance the puck seems to find its way through a maze of people and into the back of the net.  Meanwhile, Smith seems to stop everything whether he sees it or not.  By all rights, Phoenix should be getting buried.  It makes me a little sick to be honest.

I just wonder whether the luck will run out when they hit L.A. who is steamrolling everyone and has a goalie as good as Smith.  The conference finals are going to be very interesting.  I still say L.A. in the finals.

80's Day

Where's Snookie?
It was 80's day at school last Friday.  Now, a theme like 80's day in a small town like The John is a tough thing to manage, especially for a guy.  If you go into Ardene, it is like a massive 80's flashback.  Lots of neon and bangles.  Unfortunately, its for women.  Our Salvation Army store is not a place most people would like to frequent and it sure doesn't have anything that would help for 80's day.  I am also not a big fan of dressing up, so I was feeling some stress about what I was going to do.  I didn't want to be the dick teacher that didn't bother to dress up.

Basically, I put together what I thought was a lame excuse for 80's wear.  I was either from the 80's or the Jersey Shore.  The only thing to distinguish me from the two was the boom box, which I was kind of proud of.

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Some Thoughts On The Playoffs

I just thought I'd share some thoughts on the NHL playoffs too date.

1.  I'm very disappointed, but not really surprised that Chicago is out in the first round.  I really didn't think that Phoenix had it in them, but Chicago just had way too many problems that plagued them throughout the season, that they weren't able to fix in time for the playoffs.  Abysmal penalty killing and a cellar dwelling power play were major problems all year and were a large reason the 'Hawks flamed out.  Poor goaltending.  The 'Hawks came up against a goaltender that is in the zone and has luck like I haven't seen in a long time.  When your goaltending isn't at least competent, you are going to lose.  Finally, poorly timed and massive defensive zone lapses led to the offensively challenged  Coyotes scoring.

2.  What the hell is with Phoenix?  I have never seen a team get ALL of the bounces in a series and into a second.  Sure, sometimes the puck just goes your way.  But for that many games in a row?  It helps to be a counter attacking team when the puck always seems to bounce onto your stick.  It will be interesting to see if a team with so little talent and so boring to watch can continue to capitalize on unreal luck.  I'm watching game two of Phoenix/Nashville right now and so far so good for the Coyotes.

3.  I'm pretty glad that the Canucks are out.  Is that petty?  Yes.  Do I care?  No.  It warms the cockles of my heart that the Canucks laid an egg this year and makes the pain of another Chicago early exit easier to bear.  As I've mentioned before, I hate the finger biting, soccer diving, referee whining Canucks with every fiber of my being.  Plus, I don't have to see all of those stupid flags flapping off of cars around town.

4.  I read an interesting Tweet to the effect of Chicago, Detroit, Pittsburgh, San Jose all out of the playoffs.  It's not your father's NHL anymore.  This is so true.  I heard on TSN that none of the remaining teams in the Western Conference have ever won a Stanley Cup.  It definitely is a different look in the playoffs this year.

5.  This is my first playoffs watching in HD.  Wow!  Do I wish I had this TV in 2010 when the 'Hawks won the cup.  It certainly enhances the viewing experience.

6.  I predict the the Kings in the Finals, maybe even winning it all.  Take it to the bank, baby!