58

A good day today. Started out with a phone call from a recruiter with a very interesting job. It would be my first choice, if offered. We'll see how this one progresses.

Then Christine and the grandkids came over. They had each made me a birthday hat, and I got some homemade chocolate covered marshmallows. They were great! We all watched some Disney shows - their favorites whenever they come over. We have a good supply of 'Mickey Mouse Clubhouse' and 'Handy Manny' (among others) on the DVR. It's fun to watch them interact with the shows.

They left about lunch time, so Pam and I went out for lunch, and then stopped at Wally World for a few things. While finishing checking out, I got a phone call from a potential employer about a web programming position. Talked with him while sitting out in the parking lot. It was a nice day outside - clear but cold (temp about 40F).

Then home for book/computer/TV. For dinner, I fired up the BBQ on the back (covered) porch, which has nice lighting - helpful, since it was full dark by then (and only 33 degrees). But the steaks were great.

Some more working on the computer in front of the TV. Pam went out and got me a three-scoop banana split from the local Artic Circle. That was yummy while watching TV.

So, a nice day. As for that number up there: my philosophy is that I have to grow old, but I don't have to grow up.

So there! Nyah-Nyah!"

Catching Up

I have been keeping busy, although lazy at times.

I'm working on a couple of web sites for some friends. One is for a non-profit advocacy organization, and the other is for fans of BBQ. Neither is ready for prime-time yet, although they are getting close.

But they have given me some experience working with a couple of different platforms. One of the sites is based on WordPress. It uses the excellent Atathualpa theme, which allows you to customize just about every aspect of the 'look' of a site. I used that theme for the site I did for a niece (LeAnn's Designs, a custom jewelry e-commerce site at www.leanns-design.com ). It has the WP e-Commerce add-in, along with a few others. I think it turned out quite nicely, if I do say so myself.

So one of the current projects is also based on WordPress. I had originally built it with a simple CMS (Content Management System) that I wrote in PHP. The site owners wanted a way to post new content, and I determined that the easiest way would be to convert it to WordPress. I built a test site at my CellarWeb place (www.cellarweb.com , which is also WordPress-based) and they approved the new design. So I have spent the past couple of days moving the content to their hosted site (on a new host, so as not to interfere with their existing site). Learned a few tricks on how to move WordPress content from one domain to another that worked quite well. The process of moving the content took less than an hour.

The other site is based on MediaWiki, which is the open-source software behind Wikipedia. I've been working with a variation of the base 'Monobook' theme (the visual look behind Wikipedia). The client wants the Monobook look, but with the addition of a header and footer, and some advertising area on the right side of all pages. A bit of PHP and CSS, and I was able to demonstrate that for him. Right now, the content is being slowly updated, and I am waiting for some graphics to add to the theme. Once that is done, I'll move the theme over to the actual site (which is still in 'stealth' mode).

There will eventually be paid advertising on that site. I've been looking at some open-source ad server software, but haven't found anything that I like yet. I've tried out the "OpenX' ad server software, but am having problems getting that to work. Support for my problems has been less than stellar. I'm thinking of a simple PHP/MySQL-based application that I may write myself.

So the web programming projects are keeping me busy, although not bringing in any actual income. I look at them as learning experiences that I may be able to convert into actual clients.

And I am keeping indoors. The weather this month has been mostly pleasant, with temps in the 50-60 range and mostly sunny. It's turned colder since yesterday; I think today's high is only going to get to 41 (all temps in F). The weather dweebs are predicting a bit of snow for Saturday, but not more than an inch on the valley floor here in Utah. And that will probably melt after a couple of days.

But I have been contemplating about snow. I got a nice pair of snow boots yesterday. I am not sure about snow removal equipment. I am inclined just to get a nice snow shovel for the little bit that I need to remove. The front of our house faces south, so there will be some solar-based snow removal. Both cars are in the garage. One of the neighbors said that he never shoveled his driveway. He just opened the garage door, and powered his way out to the street through the snow. When he got home, a similar power push up the driveway was all he needed to get into his garage.

And my thought is that if it is snowing enough, I'll just stay home. Being retired means that I don't have to go anywhere if I don't want to.

But I think that I will need to get some sort of snow shovel. I was looking at them at Home Depot yesterday, and note that there are several styles. Being a California native, this purchase will be new to me.

So, do I get a snow shovel with a straight or curved handle? Should the blade be metal or plastic? Or will just a plain flat garden shovel be enough? Don't know -- looking for advice.