One thing missing in our lives as renters was the freedom to cook outdoors (without being arrested). That’s all been fixed. Behold- our newest outdoor addition to the family- the Classic Weber Silver Edition Charcoal Grill(e?).
First pictured listed is from Alton Brown’s famous grilled split chicken recipe. Best damn chicken I’ve ever had off a grill. No nasty char marks. No pretending that the chicken wasn’t dry. Nothing. This was PERFECT (recipe to follow later). I know it’s not the little green egg but for $80 it fits the bill nicely at our house.
After some serious searching on Craigslist I managed to find a slightly used iMac G4 for the low, low price of $200. Now, that may seem a lot for a computer that is 5 years old but we all know how well Macs hold their value. Buying a 5 year old PC would be ludicrous, sure. However, this thing is more like a piece of home decor. And, it fits perfectly on the desk in our guest room.
Here are the specs (as purchased):
15″ Display
1GHZ PowerPC G4
512mb ram
Upgrades thus far:
Purchased 1GB ram (being delivered Monday). Although Apple only officially supports 1GB total- the unofficial word is that it will hold 1.5GB total (512mb DIMM and 1GB SODIMM- user replaceable).
Airport Extreme card. Let me say the belkin wireless usb adapter I purchased was a nightmare. After 5 different drivers it still was not working. The airport extreme was purchased at Fry’s, installed in 10 minutes, and working in 5. Sometimes it’s best to just stick to Apple products since they play nicely together.
Installed Apple Remote Desktop (client). This will be for maintenance and general spying when guests are in town (kidding! sorta).
Upgrades coming:
New Keyboard/Mouse!. My wife and I cleaned the hell out of the keyboard (each individual key) because it was 7 layers of disgusting. However, I still don’t like it- too bulky for the desk it sits on. Also, not having the Mighty Mouse really stinks due to the lack of a scoll ball.
All in all, it’s a great little computer. Obviously no where near the horsepower of the current intel-based macs but still a great work of design and engineering.
Ok, so I am definitely a little late on this…what can I say, it’s been a busy couple of months!
I wanted to give my favorite things I/we bought this past year…I’m setting aside music as that will have it’s own post here shortly… The following is a list of things that I have no cognitive dissonance (read: buyer’s remorse) that have more than payed for themselves in one way or another. Without further ado..
10. Leopard - If you remember I stood in line for the new version of Mac OSX this year. I’ve got it running on the two machines here at couldn’t be happier. The screen/file-sharing ability alone was worth the upgrade.
9. Expedit Bookshelf (Ikea) - Revolutionized and organized the “study” (it’s in quotes because nobody actually studies here but it does sound fancy). We’ve got this puppy on it’s side along with some pull-out containers that organize endless cd’s, cords, and abandoned gadgets.
8. Apple Wireless Keyboard - so small and so stylish. For someone who now has to have two keyboards on the desk at all times this is a much-needed upgrade due to size and portability. BTW, I’m selling a slightly used (previous generation) wireless keyboard on eBay if you’re interested.
7. Apple TV - I’m starting to realize I have a problem.. At any rate, this thing is great- streams all my Top Gear shows, every photo, and every song to the TV downstairs. Has been a hit with the “let us see your photos!” crowd.
#’s 5 and 6 are a pair…front-loading washer/dryers are the wave of the future..I’ve seen the future - and it’s paved in ultra-quiet, lower water consumption, high RPM goodness.
#4. LG French Door (Bottom Freezer) Refridgerator - the KING of the kitchen. Two big doors swing wide. Alarm sounds if you leave the doors open for 30 seconds. Can keep an entire buffalo cold (maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration).
#3. Dirt Devil Kruz - Yeah, you totally didn’t see that coming. Let me tell you how great this thing is. It’s the PERFECT vacuum for hardwood floors with it’s angled head, soft rubber wheels, and it’s nifty charging station means it’s always ready to suck. And, it looks like an alien- so, that’s all you need to know.
#1. The House - No brainer for me. We’re loving this new house and couldn’t be happier on our decision. Moving a little outside the city was tough but it was the right choice (and cheaper too). More pictures to come of the inside once we’re 100% unpacked (we still have boxes in the garage, paint to be splattered, and things to be hung).
I hope you’ve enjoyed the list for 2007. If you’ve got a favorite item you’d like to mention feel free to do so in the comments… Also please note that 2008 is looking good for new purchases as well (more to come shortly)
After turning on the car and fishing for the iPod adapter in the glovebox I’m greeted with a lovely warning from Apple stating that I’m not using a “made for iPhone” accessory and whether I would like to turn on “airplane mode” (which turns off phone functionality)- to which I chose “no” :
After that I didn’t touch the phone for a minute and I see the “battery charging” screen with the last track I had playing on the iPhone (bonus points for anyone who guesses the band name):
I turn on the adapter by changing the mode to “cd changer”:
After that it’s smooth sailing. The iPhone is now playing and currently showing the “accessory attached” screen:
Another plus is that while the music is playing you can push the “home” button and be able to navigate throughout the iPhone. This leaves the driver able to control the music via the steering wheel controls or by controlling the receiver. This is handy if your co-pilot might need to pull up the Google Maps application or phone a friend.
All in all, I’m happy that the OEM iPod adapter works as well as it does. I was prepared to only be able to use this as a charger for the iPhone but being able to listen to the music as well makes the money spent on the adapter even more worth it.
Tired of hearing about it yet? Tired of seeing it all over the news? Yeah, I bet you are. And to be honest- I’m a little tired of random people at the mall and coworkers asking to see and play with it (the phone). But I guess I should not complain- I have the phone that I’ve been wanting for a long time. I’ve been using an old Nokia 3650 that I found in a drawer (my old motorola V610 died…and truth be told was the worst phone I’ve ever had) for over 6 months now. I’m sure you are tired of people’s impressions so I’ll keep my short:
Pros:
Beautiful interface, sleek, great ipod functionality, internet is amazing
Cons:
A little expensive (hah), and having to switch to AT&T (formerly Cingular).
I’ve been with T-Mobile for a little over 5 years now and I’ve been very happy with them..and to be honest, I’m a little sad to see them go. Their customer service is first-rate (and about a zillion times better than my 2 year stint with Sprint…what a nightmare…And now Sprint is canceling troublesome customers contracts! BS!). My contract is up in a month so a little overlap…
All in all I’m super happy with this phone. So fun to use, great functionality, and just an absolute pleasure. So, that is all you’ll hear from me about the iPhone- I know you’re a little overwhelmed. (Oh yeah, check out some photos of and taken with the iPhone on my flickr).
Update: Still loving the phone! Here are some pictures:
