HwOoh!

Well this weekend has been pretty intense. Saturday was our last day in the apartment. Even though we've been living with my parents for a couple of weeks now, we've still been slowing get the last few things cleaned/vacated/repaired back at the complex. It was also the first of my 2 day MSF (motorcycle safety foundation) course. Here in TX, it's not required to take this course to get a motorcycle license, but it helps expedite the whole process, and definitely is a money saver for bike insurance.

Our trusty steeds!

Anywho, the class was long, and it got so hot out there today riding around, that my black helmet actually had glue seeping out of one of the seems because it was softening in the sun. Crazy. Needless to say, I got a good bit of sun out there. BUT, I got my certificate of completion so it was all worth it. Sometime next week I'm going to take a day off and head down to the DMV and hopefully I'll leave with the coveted "M" on my license from now on. WHOO HOO!

--Funny story: When I first got my bike, everyone I showed it to said "Hey man, that looks like the Bat Bike!" (It's all flat black with glossy black accents) and that quickly became it's nickname. So the first day of class, we were all walking around picking our bikes, and I looked down and saw this on one of them...

I figured it was a sign that me+that bike=destiny.

My lovely bride spent her weekend cleaning the apartment, and then cleaning our room, and THEN doing laundry. What a trooper!!!

For Labor Day we had tickets to a Ranger's game, but we were both tired and didn't feel like going, so we had a nice at-home date night. Got a couple movies and ordered pizza. It was REALLY REALLY nice. How was everyone else's holiday weekend?

Cynic

I've always considered myself to be a pretty positive person. And by that I don't mean to say that I'm positive that I am a person (even though I am). No, I mean that I usually have a good attitude and like to stay hopeful. I have noticed as of late, that the more bills I pay, the more bitter I become. And every time I stub my toe, I become a little more skeptic of magazine subscription salesmen, who are "supporting a good cause". (I think buying myself a PS3 is a good cause too)

Recently I have been totally cynical about a new advertising campaign by Microsoft dubbed "The Mojave Experiment". It's purpose is basically to tell people, that the 90% of the tech world that doesn't like Vista is wrong, and that those who believe the thousands of negative reviews, are just falling for the negative hype. The solution: Positive hype. See for yourself...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igSlM3tl2zE

See, all those anti-Vistas were just... well we aren't sure what their motivation is, but they're lying to you! Don't believe them, or we'll make you look stupid on TV.

So after seeing this commercial umpteen times, I decided to send an email to Microsoft's corporate office. I thought I might share it with you.

(ps- for those of you who don't care about computers/techy stuff, I won't be offended if you scroll past the letter. There's real blog further down, I promise)


Dear Microsoft,

I feel I should tell you that your new marketing campaign comes off as arrogant and insulting, not to mention gives an educated consumer the suspicion that as a company, you are having issues with self actualization.

I have no problem with Microsoft and it has been my native platform for years. I have used Vista in multiple stages of updates, and on a range of machines, and while beautiful, I have absolutely no plans to upgrade any time soon. However, your so-called "Mojave experiment" is nothing short of shameful propaganda.

Your straw man approach to dealing with unsavory Vista reviews leaves me to believe that you are either blissfully ignorant to Vista's real problems, or you are purposefully ignoring them in hopes that you can fool people into investing in an inferior product.

I haven't heard anyone complain that Vista is ugly, lacks features, or has a hard to use interface. But that seems to be all the points touched upon in the "Experiment". A real experiment would be to have each person bring in any hardware of software they had lying around, and let them try to install it, on a machine with Vista, without the assistance of a technician.

In a controlled environment, with pre-installed hardware (or hardware that has already been checked for compatibility) and a few hand picked applications to test drive, of course you can make it a good user experience. However as most Vista users will tell you, easily installed hardware, and compatible software are few and far between.

If you are truly convinced that Vista's bugs have been worked out, why not give it to an office full of average users for a month, and videotape that? Maybe with the latest patches and updates, it would show a much more friendly and amenable experience. At least the test would be an accurate gauge of Vista, instead of a pre-designed dog and pony show.

I honestly feel that your best course of action should be straight forward, and honest dialogue to your customer base. Admit that Vista had issues, and then work to gain back the trust lost from releasing a faulty OS. If Vista really has been fixed then tell us that it has been fixed. Your current strategy of fixing problems, then acting like there never were any, then trying to make us feel stupid because of it, it not winning you any points.

Telling your customers that their fears and concerns are ridiculous and unjustified, doesn't make them more comfortable, it just makes you seem oblivious. Best of luck, Matt


On to less techy things!!!

My sweet bride and I are almost done clearing out the apartment. We just have to find places for a few more things like my guitars, and other things that I don't want in a hot storage unit.

We finally got our bed moved into my parent’s house, so we're officially living there now. Millie is having some trouble adjusting to her new home. I think she thinks she's being punished all day, and that Lindsey and I are secretly going back to the apartment without her. Poor kid, we really should take her to a park this weekend and let her play.

I think that if we really work at keeping our room clean, the amount of space we have should be enough. We have things set up pretty well, and there's plenty of function with a little bit of style. Oh the joys of living like a teenager again. I'll post some pictures later tonight if I get a chance.

But for now I should really get back to work. Later!

Changes

There are times when as a whole, I feel like I have a pretty good handle on things. Every once in awhile I find those little moments of pride, when I look at my life and say "I really have it all together". This week has not been one of those times.


Home-

As many of you know, Lindsey and I have started building a house down in Burleson, near my parents. Well rather than sign another lease for our apartment, my folks offered us their spare room to stay in, during the transition. (pretty cool of them I think)


So even though our house will not be ready until early next year, Lindsey and I find ourselves already cleaning and packing. We've been going through all of our things and asking each other, "think you'll need this any time in the next 5 months?" and it's a game that is quite a bit harder than it sounds.


Work-

A lot of you probably already know that in the summers, I work an average of 75 hours a week. This starts the beginning of June, and carries through until mid-September. It becomes a real strain on me physically and mentally. More serious though, is that it strains our marriage. It's hard to maintain a close relationship when interaction is limited to: "What's for dinner" and "good night".


To add to the stress, Lindsey recently received a long over-due promotion. And while it is a blessing, it comes with a 35 minute commute that she is currently un-accustom to. So combine our hectic work schedules, with having to move, and things can get pretty volatile.


Transportation-

Since we got married, Lindsey and I have been very blessed in regards to our vehicular needs. Our cars have, for the most part, been cheap and reliable. Lately this has not been the case. Both of our cars are in need of some TLC, and we have been doubting their longevity. So we prayed about what to do, and (as he tends to do with us) Heavenly Father told us that Lindsey's car should go. He told us back letting an Infinity Q35 slam into the back of Lindsey on her way to work this week.


So with her car out of commission, we went back to a previously discussed plan, and I went and picked this up:




Which, unintentionally, has made my life much more complicated. Now I have added "buy helmet", "sign up for instruction course", "schedule and take course", "get license", to my ever increasing To Do list.





So that's about it for now. We're going through some pretty big changes lately, but I think in the end, they're all for the better. New things, new experiences, new blessings.