April 28, 2001
It was an on-and-off day weather-wise, but once again spring has sprung and everything is blooming. Tulips, irises, rhodies, not to mention all the other plants I don't know the names of are bursting with color. Between our front yard and our next-door neighbor Fred's astounding paradise, our little corner of the world is looking pretty cool. Not that either Erin or I had much to do with that. Did some weeding, I guess, but most everything here pops up about this time every year with or without input from us.

* * * * *

Erin and I watched the three-hour Meet Joe Black last night. Despite the hunky goodness of Brad Pitt, this film's level of tedium cannot be overstated. Experienced movie goers will take instant heed of the warning "this film had four screenwriters," while the remainder of the general public should note that movie's tagline was "No one can die—while he loves!" (I would have preferred: "Death gets laid!")

I'd give this movie four out of 10 stars and only because the set design was good, the cinematography excellent, Anthony Hopkins' acting was comparatively above average, and the always-notable Thomas Newman contributed a beautiful musical theme. That said, this was Boring with a capital B.

Interestingly, there's an airline version that's 50 minutes shorter—it successfully deletes all references the clichéd and thoroughly useless business subplot—and was disowned by the director. Too bad, as I suspect it's a much better version.

There's a lot more that could be said or argued about the film's Hollywood-ization of love, death, and, well, just about everything else, but ultimately, the movie (including its dialog) sets far too glacial a pace for me or, I suspect, most anyone else to stay awake long enough to care.

April 27, 2001
Dad and I headed over to Home Depot so that I could gather up various home repair/upkeep supplies and start pricing insulation costs for this summer. We've got a blown in R-19 up there right now, and it's inadequate to say the least. Looks like material costs for rolling in another R-19 (it's additive so that'd give us R-38 in the attic) would run about $400. I don't know that the effect would be so much to reduce our energy costs (because we normally just shut off heat to whatever rooms we're not using), but I'll bet it would help make the house much more comfortable, and that's worth $400 to me.

Including finals, Erin's got seven more weeks to go in this school year, and as I've reported before, it's been a great year. Stress level has remained low, and though it's obviously another seven weeks until we're completely out of the woods, things are looking good. The next two weeks will be a little crazy as I'll be up in Portland a lot and perhaps not able to do as much typing and grade entering as usual, but after that things should even out as we push toward the last five weeks. Hey, spouses look forward to teachers' summer vacations too you know.

April 26, 2001
Received a bid for our electrical work: $1,206. So I under-budgeted by $6. Hehe. We're hoping to have the work done May 8 or 9. After it's complete, we'll look to add an automatic garage door opener then get on with the rest of our house fix-it plans. The electrical panel replacement alone should be a big step forward since the original was manufactured by the electrical product company equivalent of the Marx Brothers.

I tested the backyard electrical system and of the four outlets sprinkled throughout the backyard, two work and two don't. Given that, thus far, our electrical needs in the back yard have amounted to exactly zero, I'm not sure I'm inclined to have the two outlets fixed. I might just opt to have them removed.

* * * * *

I once again declined the opportunity to watch the Blazers make fools and jerks of themselves on the basketball court, this time in Game 2 of their 5-game series with the Lakers. From what I read, it was a loss marred by multiple technical fouls on the Blazers, by the (surprise, surprise) ejection of Rasheed Wallace, and by a head-shaking lack of team chemistry in general.

I remember watching the Bill Walton-led Blazers as a kid when they won the championship in 1977. It was a thing of beauty: A bunch of overachieving role players (star Walton excepted), any one of whom could step up on a given night a score 20. The passing and chemistry was marvelous, and while you might have a favorite player, you just loved the team.

I really liked the '80s Boston Celtics for many of the same reasons. Anybody on the team could step up and get 20 on a given night, and with Larry Bird and Kevin McHale as forwards (not to mention Robert Parrish at center) it was virtually impossible to double down. And if you did anyway, well, both Bird and McHale could beat a double if they had to, but they were also among the best passers of their era.

The early '90s Blazers were a joy to watch not necessarily for the passing as much as their fastbreak-style basketball. For several years they were easily the most exciting team in the league (similar to the Sacramento Kings today) because they would just rocket up and down the floor. They were pretty good guys, too (though Cliffy was an occasional flake and a playoff washout).

Fast forward to the present day Blazers, and it's obvious to me why I dislike this team so much. First and foremost, they don't pass the ball. In fact, with the exception of Sabonis this team stinks at passing. (Let me clear: Sabonis is the best passing center in the game and for his size one of the best passers of all-time. That's one of the reasons the Blazers are a dramatically better team when he's on the floor—just look at the stats and win-loss for when he plays vs. when he doesn't.)

Second, the today's Blazers are heavily reliant on the individual, half-court clear-out style of basketball, and that's so boring I usually need smelling salts well before half time just to remain conscious. Sadly, with the exception of hothead Rasheed Wallace, they're not very good in the half-court set anyway.

Third, and this is a point which I and others have made repeatedly, today's Blazers are a team of whiners and jerks. I have a really hard time cheering for a team like that (which is why I hated the Bad Boys of Detroit in the late '80s/early '90s). I'm sitting here trying to come out with something good to say about this team or its members and all I can think of is that it was swell of Steve Smith to give $3 million to Michigan (his university) a few years back and that none of the players have been arrested...recently.

The truth is that "Trader" Bob Whitsitt has assembled a team of aging egotistical stars who have no chemistry whatsoever. Given enough time to play together they might develop into something, but it takes a few years to do that, and Whitsitt just won't stop tinkering. If this team still had Brian Grant, a lunch-bucket type with some genuine class—in other words, somebody you could cheer for—this season might have been different. I'll admit that at the time I thought the Grant for Shawn Kemp trade was a decent move in that if we were going to trade Grant, I didn't think we could do much better. Of course, Kemp dropped out for the season a few weeks back so he could fight cocaine addiction, so I guess I was wrong.

At this point, I think the team is irreparably damaged psychologically and probably has to be tinkered with by Trader Bob (so we caught a break on that one since he's gonna tinker anyway). If it were me, I'd start by during the off-season offering free agent forward Chris Webber enough money to buy a small country. After signing Webber I tell Rasheed Wallace to get anger management counseling. I also take the hardest line with Wallace as is possible given the various agreements with the NBA players association regarding player treatment. But make no mistake: I'd be suspending him without pay every opportunity I got until he learned to control himself. Other ideas: Let Schremf retire, cut Kemp, and try to trade Stoudamire and Wallace for Jason Kidd (unlikely, but worth a shot).

Ultimately, you'd like to give a group of players a chance to develop chemistry and mature as a team, but the chemistry here is already explosive in the worst sense and waiting for these guys to mature is like hoping for noun-verb agreement in comments from President Bush.

April 25, 2001
Today's great weather sure helped to make up for being stuck in the office all day yesterday. I got a lot of yard work done (with help from Dad on the lawn mower), before heading down to the park for a little 2 v 2 hoop action. It wasn't long at all before I tweaked my calf and played what I'll call sub-optimal defense—not that I was playing great defense before anyway.

Oh well, this is the first time I've played basketball this year, so I can't expect miracles. (Although if US Hockey gets one in 1980 versus the Russians, why not me today?)

* * * * *

In addition to school, Erin's been bopping about trying to set up a student trip to France for summer 2002 which she'd lead. It would have home stays for the kids and everything. It would also mean I'd have to bach it for about 3 weeks, which is longer than we've ever been apart. It also means the cleanliness level of this house is gonna take a beating, as anyone who saw my dorm in college can guess. All I'll need is small fridge and grungy sofa, and it'll be just like old times. Come to think of it, I'll bet I can round those up.

Erin was at a fundraising expo-style thing earlier today where she gathered various fundraising ideas which she'll present to parents next week at the "all the those interested" meeting. The cost is around $2k, which isn't exactly pocket change, but I suspect it would ultimately prove to be a bargain given the experience the kids will receive.

* * * * *

I've converted my first song into an MP3, but it's nothing that I'd consider for release. I mention it more as a milestone than anything else. I've not given up on this music gig; I'm writing new stuff all the time, and I still plan to have something put together by end of year. Now that I'm over the flu, I'm trying to figure out if I want to try formal keyboard lessons or if I should just put an ad out for a guitarist go the jammin' route. Either way, it ain't happening until late May at the earliest.

April 24, 2001
Big-time work day up in Portland with a lot more scheduled in the next three weeks. Next week in particular is gonna be a monster. Good deal financially, but kind of a pain in other respects. Perhaps one week out of every 52 should be painful, though, I dunno.

If today hurt at all, it was simply that I was stuck inside on a sunny 75 degree day. That's bound to happen occasionally, but this was best day we've seen yet this year, so it was a particularly cruel blow, I thought. You watch, it'll be this way all next week, too.

But to return to the upside, I'm pretty close to getting all the company's financial goals taken care of for the year with only a music recording system (MOTU 1212) and a digital still camera (Canon S300) still on the list. If all goes as planned Dave and I will be heading up to the Mac Business Expo next Wednesday, and I'm hoping to check out the Canon camera firsthand.

* * * * *

I've finished the complete stories of Sherlock Holmes, my night reading for the last few weeks. I'd read all of the stories published in Strand magazine previously, but several of the later stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle weren't found in my Strand collection. Even now, 75 to 100 years later, I find the tales of a keen-eyed and clear-thinking detective and his patient sidekick, Watson, as fascinating as they must have back in the day. I'm not much of a lover of fiction, but Holmes I find strangely compelling. Recommended.

* * * * *

I've been a bit of an alternative music kick lately, which means specifically that I've been listening to tunes by Radiohead, Porno for Pyros, Stone Temple Pilots, Oasis, Filter, Faith No More, and Limp Bizkit.

April 22, 2001
I didn't even bother to watch the Blazers lose to the Lakers today. The team is such total disarray that I'd be surprised if they didn't get swept in the series, which is lame not so much because I want the Blazers to win as it is because I want the Lakers to lose. Assuming all teams stay healthy, I'm picking the San Antonio Spurs for the championship (and I'm cheering for them too, since ex-Blazer and all-around good guy Terry Porter is on the team).

Part of a Spurs over the Lakers victory will be contingent on the officials actually calling the offensive fouls on Shaq that he commits virtually every time he goes to the hoop. Just watch the off arm and elbow and see if he doesn't blow a defender back on his heels. It's an offensive foul, but usually the refs call a defensive foul or don't blow the whistle at all. All part of what's killing the NBA game.

Another part is, as I've said before, unlikeable players like Rasheed Wallace, a player so off the wall that Randy Hill of FoxSports describes him as "not...completely cuckoo, but...within walking distance." But perhaps I don't need to belabor the obvious.

* * * * *

Anybody out there listening to a band called Radiohead? I've got a few tracks from Kid A playing, and I'm really digging the Pink Floydian get lost in the music vibe. I know, I know, I'm years behind the times. What's new?

April 21, 2001
Nice sunny weather prompting a day in the garden, Erin and I weeded a bit out front and brought the hammer down on more carpenter ants. Late in the day Bret came down from Portland for a haircut (the Erin special), and we called up Mom and Dad and all went out to dinner at Scholtzsky's Deli.

Dave first introduced me to Scholtzsky's yummy deli sandwiches on a trip to Eugene a couple years ago. Pretty tasty stuff.

April 20, 2001
It's not much of a secret I hope that Apple's web site is host to most of the recent Hollywood trailers. Erin and I don't see a lot of movies in the theaters, preferring to save money and rent the video, but I do check out the trailers every month or so just to see what's coming.

Based on the trailers, my pick for the best comedy of the summer is Cats and Dogs, an amusing take on the age-old battle between the animals. I suspect that there are enough cat and dog lovers out there that the story probably cops and declares both sides the winner, but it should be a fun skirmish regardless of victor.

* * * * *

Is it too early to mention the word "treason" when talking about the anarchists and other rioters who now routinely disrupt events? Today's Summit of the Americas saw tear gas, vandalism, attacks on police, and general mayhem.

Historically, high treason was defined as an act or acts which constitutes a serious threat to the stability or continuity of the state. Article 3 of the US Constitution more specifically defines treason as levying war against the United States or in giving aid and comfort to its enemies. I'm beginning to wonder if the actions of eco-terrorists and anarchists don't rise to that level.

* * * * *

We had the first of what may be several electricians out today to bid on the electrical work we need done about the house. The quick list is: a panel replacement, an outside outlet in the corner of the garage, GFIs in the kitchen, a fix for the 3-way switch kitchen light, a repair to the light over the kitchen sink, a GFI in the upstairs bathroom, and miscellaneous repairs to outside outlets in the backyard.

I'm hoping the bids come in around $1,200 since that's roughly what I've budgeted. After the work is complete, we plan to (finally!) get the garage door opener we've been talking about for a couple years now.

April 18, 2001
You'd think we'd be crying over spilt milk given today's half point interest rate cut by the Fed, but in fact mortgage rates when I looked moments ago were substantially higher than the deal we got. (The "low" rate for a 15-year fixed was 6.625%.) That doesn't make a lot of sense to me either, but I'm told that there are so many people refinancing right now that banks have no need to lower rates; they'll just keep the difference as profit. (It's also true that mortgage rates don't precisely track Fed rate cuts.)

For better or worse ours is a done deal anyway, so no use worrying about it. Interest rates in general are low, so for the most part the best one can do anyway is jump in and hope to get a little lucky. Even a "bad" rate these days is pretty sweet.

Speaking of all this, I called this morning to check up on the Property Mortgage Insurance from our old loan. As I may have mentioned, we had prepaid a few years' worth at the time of closing, and since the new assessment on the refinancing got us past the magic 80% debt-to-equity ratio, PMI is no more. The good news is that the old PMI dollars we paid are refundable to us since we're obviously not going to need it, and we should see that money in another couple weeks. We're talking hundreds, not thousands of dollars, but every bit helps and this was a nice bonus.

In terms of the Fed action, I don't think it's really going to make much difference. We saw a short-term stock market spike today, but I would be surprised if this was the start of a broad, sustained rally. Too many people are being laid-off, consumer confidence is wobbly at best, and corporate profits in most cases are weak or nonexistent. Today's cut may be the best the Fed can do, but I would not be surprised if this recession had some legs and lasted through the end of the year.

April 16, 2001
Shan and Heather hit the road this morning after a happy weekend under our roof. It was wonderful to be able to get back in touch with them, and we consider ourselves lucky to be part of their Northwest Spring Break vacation tour.

* * * * *

I watched the Bruce Willis psychological thriller The Sixth Sense. It's a well-made film with some superb acting. Willis is fine, but everyone else is better. Toni Collette plays a south Philly single-mom to perfection (though Collette is Australian), Olivia Williams is a lonely upper class Philly antiques dealer (though Williams is British), and ex-New Kids on the Block singer Donnie Wahlberg is remarkable as once-upon-a-time child patient of Dr. Crowe (played by Willis).

They are all topped by Haley Joel Osment (the kid who gets to say, "I see dead people"). You can't tell after one performance, and I've not seen enough of his other stuff to know, but this is either a fluke, he's got a great director, or he may just be the finest child actor of his generation—because this is one incredible acting job.

[One wonders how in the world G. Lucas passed on Osment for Anakin role in Episode I; Osment tried out but never got a call back. I can't fathom that he'd be worse than Jake Lloyd, the young actor who landed the role.]

The screen writing isn't as good as the acting, but it's certainly not bad. There's not a lot to hang one's hat on intellectually, but it's an interesting tale well-told, and though the pacing is a touch fast and the film feels a little disjointed in places, it still succeeds. Recommended.

* * * * *

Watched the much-hyped NBC game show The Weakest Link this evening. I liked the rapid-fire trivia, but the host was appallingly rude, and the contrived, heavily-edited exit interviews made every ousted contestant sound like an arrogant, egomanical whiner. (And here I thought I was alone in the world.)

With a different host and a more civil tone, it could be a show worth watching. I'm not counting on either, so I doubt I'll tune in again.

April 15. 2001—Easter Sunday
Happy Easter! We spent a relatively lazy morning reading the newspaper and eating a waffle breakfast. In the afternoon, Erin had some grading to catch up on, so Shan, Heather, and I took advantage of the pleasant weather to walk down to Bush Pasture Park and admire the houses and flowers.

Later, we all gathered together to drive around Salem a bit, take a quick peek at Sprague High School and Minto Brown Park.

Best wishes to everyone for a similarly pleasant and restful day.

April 14, 2001
Our friends Shan and Heather came in from California last night. Shan's taking a week vacation and Heather, an elementary school teacher, is on spring break. Today, we took a road trip to Portland where we checked out Saturday Market, browsed through Powell's City of Books, grabbed lunch at Rocco's Pizza, and walked along the waterfront. (We stopped briefly to watch them film the Tommy Lee Jones movie, The Hunted.)

April 11, 2001
Matt and Ginger were kind enough to invite us along to check out a house here in Salem that they're considering for purchase. I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but I love walking through houses. I love the ideas I get, the possibilities which present themselves, and the potential which seems to exist in every room. In fact one of the things I hope to do this summer is to attend lots of open houses.

April 9, 2001
Spent almost 4 hours in the yard today, and it's not nearly enough. I don't even want to think about how much work this place is going to take over the summer. I was at least marginally heartened by beginning to conceptualize the design of some of it, but even that is only a first step. There is a lot of work to do.

* * * * *

As is evidenced by my new online chess analysis, I've begun to play a little more chess recently. I've been away from the game for a bit, but I'm hoping to recapture some of the old glory in the next few months. I'm not playing particularly well at the moment—which is hardly unexpected—but I also don't think it will be that long a trip in getting back to where I was.

For anyone who's interested, I'll be playing online at Excite games and on FICS under the name Esmark. Hope to see you there!

April 7, 2001
We finally rallied the troops to celebrate Erin's birthday today after a week or so of illness had forced postponement. Mom, Dad, Bret, Erin and I headed out to Olive Garden then returned to play Beyond Balderdash and eat Mom's yummy dessert. Erin was roundly and appropriately applauded, which is my way of saying not too many jokes were made at my expense during the course of the affair.

Bret was able to come down a little before the get-together and we fired up Turbo Tax for Mac and cranked out his Federal and State taxes in less than an hour. Piece o' cake, and yet another anecdotal bit of evidence for Turbo Tax, which to my mind—along with Quicken—remains one of the most useful pieces of software out there.

Speaking of Quicken, it's no secret that while I consider it essential software, I've also been unhappy with the last few upgrade cycles of the product. Well, grabbing the bull by the horns, I've signed up to a Quicken beta tester for Quicken for Mac 2002. I don't know that I'll be able to solve my "lack of new feature" upgrade complaints, but I'll have a better shot than I will doing nothing. I'll be under a Nondisclosure Agreement (NDA) so what I can say about the product will be limited while in beta testing, but you can count on a full review once I'm out from under the NDA.

April 6, 2001
We signed the refinance paperwork downtown this afternoon at First American Title. This will, I'm certain, be the best financial deal of our lives, easily topping the original mortgage we got on the house for first place in the rankings. (This makes our financial lives sound like Billboard's Top 100, which is about as clear a signal as I can send that I've had too much free time in the last few weeks. The flu is like that.)

(An aside: Buying this house the first time around took more courage than last night's signings. It's always a little daunting to sign your name on paperwork which commits you to a debt of over a $100k, but it carries more magnitude the first time around. Last night's event was relatively minor on the "sweating it" scale.)

Ultimately, this refinance should prove to be the thing which ensures our long-term financial security. I'll be 44 and Erin will be 41 when the house is paid off. At that point, the monthly income-vs.-expense calculations, which are already in our favor, will feature some very happy news. This refinance is the cornerstone of my financial plan to combat the iffy status of Social Security for people in our age bracket.

The only question that remains, really, is can we do what we want to do without undue financial restraint in the intervening years? I think so. Short-term will be more difficult than long-term, but I don't foresee anything other than serious health problems having the potential of stopping us. I'd like to see a minivan, the first of several house remodels, and a trip to Europe with kids in the next decade (in addition to various SiteRev.com projects). I think all those things are possible.

Of course, I have no doubt that kids will dramatically change some of the equation and there's no way I can know just yet what they'll mean. But unpredictability is true of life in general, and we can only move forward as best as can.

April 5, 2001
My return to the land of the living is almost completed. Erin's there already, and I probably have another day or two before this nagging cough goes away, but I'm getting really close. About time, too—this has been a total drag.

* * * * *

Longtime readers are well-aware that I consider broadcast TV a vast wasteland (with the exception of PBS). I don't think I'm going out on a limb to say that 95 percent of everything on ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and WB is crap. Heck, it's probably more than 95 percent. Nonetheless, here's a brief review of some stuff I've seen recently that I thought wasn't half bad:

ABC's Whose Line Is It Anyway? was better in its British incarnation, but that's only because Drew Carrey is a relatively weak host. The show concept is a winner, and I've yet to see an episode that didn't make me laugh hysterically. Thursday nights at 8 PM and 8:30 PM.

ABC's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is really Trivial Pursuit with window-dressing, but there's no denying it's entertaining. I'd hardly call it "must-see" or anything of that nature, but the match-wits bit is fun (especially if you play along via the Internet). Too bad it panders so much to the greedy nature of people, but hardly surprising in this day and age.

I know I've said this before, but I'll say it again: NBC's The West Wing, winner of something like 9 Emmy Awards last year, is the best show on television. Erin and I tape them all, and it's not unusual for us to watch episodes two or three times. It's well-acted and funny and all the rest of that, but what makes it utterly compelling for me is that it consistently articulates excellent political arguments from both traditional Democratic and Republican viewpoints. Brilliant stuff, and you can catch it every Wednesday night at 9 PM.

Fox's X-Files is long in the tooth, but this is a network with more stupid shows than you can shake a stick at (including, I'm sorry to say, The Lone Gunmen). Nothing on Fox comes close to being as good as the X-Files (except The Simpsons, but I've not seen it recently). This has been a weird season since Mulder went a-missing for half the episodes. Doesn't matter. The show's premise is so good, you could put Lenny and Squiggy in the leads and still have an entertaining hour.

April 4, 2001
Day 2 in my getting better. Little bit of coughing here and there, but no sore throat. Erin, as far as I can tell, is approaching full recovery.

* * * * *

I attended the Police-Neighborhood Liasison Committee downtown this afternoon as the representative from the Morningside Neighborhood Association. Not a lot of big news, frankly, but there was a good bit on a "Keep Kids Alive—Drive 25" campaign that being pushed by another neighborhood association.

Also, I got to meet the School Resource Officier for our neighboring high school. She arrests kids all the time and will likely know by sight any teens who might be causing problems in the area. I can also call her with license plate numbers if I see teens speeding through the neighborhood. Good contact.

April 3, 2001
Whole lotta nuthin'. That's how I'd describe my last few weeks. I awoke today feeling better than I have for a long time, but there's no telling if that will last all day. I still have a bit of a hacking cough, but the sore throat seems to have abated. Perhaps I'm finally on the road to recovery. Or maybe it's just another detour.

Erin's back at school, yesterday being her first day back after Spring Break. She is, as far as I can tell, recovered with her flu adventure—something which I like to think means there's light at the end of the tunnel for me too, even though her immune system is better than mine. Anyway, she's excited to be back teaching. You can see it in her eyes.

* * * * *

I did a little bit of yard work yesterday, cutting back some of our huge sword ferns so that new growth could spring to life. There's more to do, but the yard debris can is over full already so I'm gonna have to wait until after Thursday's pickup. (I'd already raked leaves and mowed the lawn—the rather large yard debris can wasn't just full of fern clippings.)

We'll probably end up concentrating a lot of our efforts this summer on yard work and landscaping, but I always like to get a head start on things. I have lots more to do, but in another 10 weeks, Erin will be on summer vacation and able to help. I dare say things will go much faster with two people.

* * * * *

We'll close on the house refinance this Friday, in what will be a dramatic financial move forward. We ended up with an interest rate of 6.125 percent (versus our current 7.75 percent) and because of the higher than expected house assessment, we won't have to pay for property mortgage insurance (PMI). (Yay!)

A lot of the closing costs are rolled into the loan itself, and if we wanted to we could have done this entire deal with no money down. That said, we're bringing money to closing because I want everything paid off ASAP. In fact, this refinance will cut 18 months of payments off our current loan (at the rate we were prepaying it). That's a savings of almost $22,000 in interest over the life of the loan. We're now scheduled to have the house paid off in its entirety in just under 12.5 years.