Life is Good

Sibylle’s sister (Hi, Schwesterchen!) asked today, via email, how I was liking my new job, and how we were liking living in Manhattan.

Location, Location, Location

Living in Manhattan is great.  I told Sibylle this evening that living here feels like coming home on several levels.  Through the nine months Sibylle lived here, and we were bi-residential, I got to know the city a bit.  Since she moved to Overland Park eighteen months ago, we have made regular trips back.  Manhattan reminds me in many ways of Decatur, where I grew up. It has the same small-town feel; nothing is more than ten or fifteen minutes drive away; without the rust-belt cancer that plagues Decatur.

Having a decent sized university in town adds considerable vitality to the atmosphere.  We both enjoy the coffee shops here, and are looking forward to patronizing some of the culture events.  That we already have a wide circle of friends here is icing on a very good cake.

It Isn’t About Ego

The team I have joined is proving to be wonderful. They are energetic, motivated, creative, professional without losing a sense of fun, and best of all, not caught up in their ego. Every one has been friendly and helpful, willing to explain and to answer my endless questions.

We face some challenges, and I am sure there will be tough days, but this is the first job I’ve had in a long time where I feel like I am getting paid to play.  Moreover, it is the first job in at least a dozen years where I started out conversations or questions with “How do we…” or “where do we…” or “why do we…” instead of “how do you…”, et cetera.  I felt included, and I felt like I belonged from the first day.  Something I wasn’t able to say about the last position.

In short, I am very happy with my new position, and very happy to be living in Manhattan.

President Barack Obama's Inauguration Speech

Text of President Barack Obama’s inaugural address on Tuesday, as prepared for delivery and released by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

OBAMA: My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

“Let it be told to the future world … that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive…that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it).”

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Waiting For DSL

Of the many details needing to be addressed in our recent move, one that was high on both our lists was getting DSL service established at the new house quickly.  When I called to switch the service I learned that the “DSL Only” option that we preferred would take eight days to establish.  Getting new phone service in addition to DSL would cut that wait to only three days.  So, we got a new phone number.

Actually its a pretty good phone number, with a palindrome and a repeated pair of numbers. 

What we don’t have, however, is DSL.  Friday came and went with no service.  Late in the day I took some things to the shed out back and realized that I could see the end of the phone line sticking out of the exterior wall of the house.  Not attached to anything, just coiled up, hanging in space.  The television cable too.

I called the landlord who said that I would have to call the phone company and tell them that the house is “new construction” and would need “the drop completed.”  Good information, but it would have been better to know this three days earlier.

One 40-minute phone call to AT&T later (and at least three departments there, and as many service representatives) I had a repair order in place to establish phone and DSL service by 5:00 pm today.  Late this afternoon I called to get a status on my order and was assured that the ticket was still open and I should have service by 6:00 pm.  Hrm.  I wasn’t happy about the additional hour wait, but was still hopeful of getting service today.

At 5:30 I called again and was told that they were running behind, that if my order wasn’t completed today that they would get to it first thing in the morning.  That since my work wasn’t going to happen today, it would be a priority tomorrow.  Right.

Tomorrow we are tentatively planning on being gone much of the afternoon.  I have a fear that we’ll no sooner be on the highway than the cell phone will ring and the repair technician will need access to the wiring box in the garage.

For now I’m going to put my faith in AT&T, and believe that we will be a priority order tomorrow, that the technician will come and complete the drop first thing in the morning, and that we’ll enjoy high speed access once again.

Too Good For Lowe's or Home Depot

On our drive between Manhattan and Olathe we pass a prominent Billboard that asks the question,

Turns out that Stihl feels their product is better served by the chain of nearly 8000 independent retailers than by a large home improvement chain.  I though it might be a labor or liability issue.

On the subject of not selling your product in certain outlets to maintain an image, Daring Fireball has a link today about Snapper Mowers pulling their product from Walmart.

Hoisin Chicken

Sibylle and I have been experimenting in the kitchen of late and have discovered an Oriental-style chicken dish that I’m going to call Hoisin Chicken.

Start by peeling and dicing two medium or three small yellow potatoes.  The size of the dice isn’t as important as all the cubes being roughly the same size.  Cover with ample water and set to boil.

Peel and slice a carrot, or two.  Add to small skillet with water to cover and a bit of olive oil.  Toss in a green onion or two for flavor.  You may dice these if you like.  Slice (julienne) half a red pepper and add to carrots and onion.  Bring to a brisk simmer and cover.

Wash two chicken breasts, and then cube.  Smaller bite sized pieces seems to work best.  Put three or four table spoons of corn starch in a shallow bowl and sprinkle on a generous amount of ginger.  I also add a bit of black pepper for taste and color.  

Heat two or three table spoons worth of olive oil in a skillet.  When a drop of water jumps off the oil, add the dredged chicken pieces and brown, turning frequently.  Once the chicken is browned add the vegetable mixture and combine.

I use two heaping table spoons worth of hoisin sauce, and stir until everything is even coated.  Drain the potatoes and add them to the skillet last and toss to coat.

Serve immediately.  Makes 2-4 portions, depending on portion size and amount of chicken and potato you started with.

An Adventure with UHaul

We are taking a 14’ truck full of boxes, Select Comfort bed pieces, two bicycles, and a variety of other small items to Manhattan KS today.

We were blessed with near 70º temperatures Friday evening when we started loading, but had to contend with freezing temperatures and snow yesterday evening when we finished the process. Today the forecast is for sunny skies and 45º.

It’s going to be a good adventure.

The Morning Comics

I have been an avid reader of the comics “page” for as long as I can remember.  Page is in quotes since I rarely, if ever, read the newspaper anymore, instead I use a wonderful piece of software called Comictastic.  Comictastic, available only for the Mac operating system, is, according to Andy Ihnatko,

Unfortunately, some of the comic syndicates are determined to force you to view the product under their control, their way and only their way.

The worst example, from my point of view, are those comics syndicated by “Go Comics.”  (I’m deliberately not linking to their site, as I don’t wish to support their practices.)  Any comic available through Go Comics shows up as unavailable through Comictastic.  Other syndicates substitute an ad for the strip when it is scrapped from the page by my viewer.

I understand that the syndicate has purchased the rights to publish the comic, and that they want to exercise their exclusive control of the product.  However, I am not going to buy a daily newspaper just for the comics.  I am also not going to visit site after site, each of which is burdened with ads, to view the comics.  As much as it pains me to no longer read “The Buckets” or “Pearls Before Swine,” that is what is going to happen as a result of the ham-handed read-it-on-our-site-or-else approach of Go Comics and others.

Newspapers are increasingly facing rising operational costs and decreasing subscriber numbers.  Our way or the highway tactics like the comics syndicates are employing will reap the same loss of viewer numbers.

Shedding Weight

Four and a half years ago, when Michele and I moved to Kansas City we went from a 2000 square foot house, with ample storage and a huge three-bay garage, to a comfortable apartment that had but a single garage stall, barely large enough for the car, and only a 1000 square feet of space.  We ended up with two 5x10 foot storage lockers.  I liked to tell people that the difference between a 2000 square foot house and a 1000 square foot apartment was 1000 cubic feet.

Since July 2004 I have made numerous trips to the lockers, sometimes to get things, sometimes to search for things, sometimes to add more the already cramped contents.  It was easy, especially with an automatic payment setup, to forget about the lockers for months at a time.  At least once a year, however, the monthly rent was raised, and, over time, the lockers became burden; a mental and financial weight.

One of the goals Sibylle and I had for our move to Manhattan was to eliminate the lockers.  Living in the same town with them was one thing, maintaining them from 125 miles away was another thing entirely.  Plus we could use the savings every month by not having to pay their rent.  

My sense was that many of the items buried in the boxes were no longer meaningful to me and could be donated.  We did clear a lot of old clothes, board games, and three CRT monitors, among other things, to donate.  After just a couple of trips to the locker we managed to empty nearly half of it, and it felt like actually getting all of the stuff out ourselves would be possible.

Friday evening we rented a U-Haul truck and emptied both lockers.  Emptied.  Completely.  The sense of weight was gone

Today (or tomorrow, weather depending) we will transport those items, and a good portion of the boxes we’ve packed at home, to the house we are renting in Manhattan.  Initially the things we’ve kept from the locker will be stored in the garage.  However, the goal is to unpack everything and either find it a home inside the house, or get rid of it through selling, throwing it away, or donations.  Emptying the lockers makes our move with Allied next week less complicated.  We will save weight charges on the move, as well as charges for an extra pickup point, and distance/elevator charges at the locker facility.  That we are also able to move some things from the town house ourselves is an added bonus.  Not bad for a couple hundred dollar U-Haul rental fee and some sweat equity.

In addition, we’ll save $180 a month on locker rental fees.

Best of all, the weight of the locker is gone now.  Stuff that I’ve been mentally dragging around for over four years is now being dealt with.  This is good.  It feels wonderful.

Apollo 8

Forty years ago today, Apollo 8 was circling the Moon.  This iconic picture was taken.  The first Earthrise viewed by humans.

Here is the Apollo 8 Christmas Eve broadcast.

Thoughts on Commuting

The first paid job I had, post college, was 50 miles away from where I was living at the time.  I started in October, and didn’t find an apartment I liked until April the following year, so I spent two hours a day in the car for nearly six months.  After moving my commute was on the order of 10 to 12 minutes.

I kept that 12 minute commute for most of the next fifteen years.  At one point my daily drive was short enough that my muffler rusted out in only three years; apparently I wasn’t using the car enough to fully dry the exhaust system.  Fortunately I discovered the issue before the 36-month bumper-to-bumper warranty expired.

After moving to Vancouver Washington, I still had a 10 minute commute.  However, my luck changed living in South Carolina.  There I spent nearly 50 minutes on I-26 every morning and every afternoon.  At the end of my 15 months in the Palmetto State I discovered that the stretch of I-26 I had been driving all those months was considered one of the most dangerous roads in America.

Upon returning to central Illinois my commute time was cut down to 20 minutes or so, with a slightly longer option that avoided Interstate driving at all.

The last four and a half years, living in the Kansas City area, I’ve had commutes of roughly 30 minutes every morning and evening, with nearly all of that time spent on the highway.  I currently live some 24 miles from work, and on a good day, can cover that distance in as many minutes.

After the first of the year we will be living in Manhattan Kansas and my commute will be a mere 10 minutes again.  All of it on surface streets.   The past week or so, Kansas City, like much of the northern United States, has had some wintery weather which has more than double some commutes.  Three times I’ve crept home at barely 5 or 10 miles per hour, spending well over an hour getting there.  Knowing that I will soon be enjoying a four mile, 10 minute commute has made the longer the usual travel times both more bearable and harder to stand.

Only four more days of I-35.  Only four more days of the back log at the I-435 - I-35 interchange.  Only four more days of driving 250 miles per week, just to work.