Daley Ponderings

We have been getting more and more sales calls lately.  I try to take the time to report them to the do not call lists, both for our state and for the country.  We are supposed to get $100 for each violation (where the caller pays $1000).  But, I haven't ever gotten any money.... (More)

This is what the HP technical support person said to me when I called about our printer.  Our faithful HP LaserJet 6L, which was manufactured 10.5 years ago, and given to us 6(7?) years ago.  It printed Mom's boarding pass just fine, and then one day later, all three indicator lights... (More)

Jon asked me to post this essay written by our friend. Life as an Immigrant By Marc Brands From 1993 to 1996 I did an apprenticeship in Electronics Engineering at Siemens. In Switzerland apprenticeships are very common, students attend about 16 hours of classes... (More)

Peter was nice enough to loan me a Kill-A-Watt for a couple weeks to investigate power usage around our home.  I have thought about buying one before, but borrowing one is certainly better, though it is quite a bit of fun to test out devices to see how much power they use. I... (More)

I have been having lots of fun (that's the bad kind of fun, not the good kind) configuring Asterisk for my new IT job.  It has been a pretty big pain getting it to work correctly with a couple different VOIP providers as well as the landlines. I had a good day today, figuring both how... (More)

I was recently asked by a Microsoft engineer why I am still asking questions about Windows XP when I should be using Vista, since it is better for various reasons. My response is below, which he called, "stunningly clear", and said that he had already forwarded it onto his executive... (More)

I am in the middle of a non-direct red-eye flight from Seattle to Pittsburgh.  I was supposed to go to Charlotte, NC on the way, but USAir called(!) last night to tell me to come a half hour early to the airport (I was already there and had already checked in, and having a relaxing dinner... (More)

Just before 7:00 this morning, I thought I heard some sounds, so looked out the window to see a pickup truck but no backhoe.  The backhoe arrived just after 7 and Jonathan watched out the window while I got ready for the day.  Daddy said we could go out to look before breakfast since... (More)

In college, our friend Volus used to say that it was always sunny on Sunday.  Even if it was gray in the morning, the sun was out by the time church was over.  I found that he was right for the vast majority of the time.  This weekend was no exception.  Saturday was rainy,... (More)

We went to Florida for vacation with the Daleys for one week and the Wightmans for another week.  It was a great time.  But this leaves me behind on posting, so here we go... On one of our many walks in Clearwater Beach, Jonathan was walking along with a little stick hanging out of... (More)

Yesterday, I mailed the payoff check for our mortgage.  This is very exciting for us.  To be completely debt free (even of 'good' debt) and really truly own our house.  Sure, it helps to have a house that didn't cost very much to start with.  But we have been... (More)

Note to self: when going to bed, and walking past a heating vent that is blowing cold air, double check that the furnace is working.  52 degrees in the house this morning, and it isn't that cold out (27 or so).The fan is on constantly, but the ignition isn't turning on, so it seems... (More)

At the Shursave today, our favorite cashier, Robert, did a double take when he scanned the package of cheesecloth.   (More)

I heard about bump keys recently, and had a little time to play around this morning.  I read an article about them, and watched a youtube video , and away I went.  It took about 15 minutes to hand-file a key.  And then another 20 minutes to try the "pull-back"... (More)

I was at a small conference last weekend, which I suppose deserves another post entirely, but in summary, God used that conference to stir up and provoke me to love and seek him more. At the conference, one of the speakers (Rick Walth) talked about his experiences over the last couple years... (More)