DIS Dads The DIS Dad's Club XII: Oh... There You Are Perry!

[IamTrike]

some people bring gnomes, we bring this guy!! remember him from the contemp.?

Hurray! not drinking Nescafe for the win.

We did the Gospel Brunch at HOB in Myrtle Beach. We had a really cute waitress and I was confused as to how something with a religious ties had me checking lust and gluttony off the seven deadly sins. Come to think about it there wasn't much going on that weekend so sloth was probably in there as well!

We've done the Gospel Brunch at that HOB. It was during the winter and was basically our family, the band and the waitstaff. Our kids got to get up on stage and play the tambourine with the band. A good time and BACON was had by all.

Says the man who apparently hides in the bushes and watches the golfers go by.

Nice coffee maker Do you have a custom traveling case for it? DW got a sample pack of all the flavors of instant Nescafe in the mail last month. I asked her if they came with a threatening letter because obviously someone wants us dead!

Well at least you know they weren't cannibals. Nescafe probably makes people taste funky.

Typically, we've found that it's more cost effective to "do it right" the first time with hot mix than to do a temporary fix with cold mix. But it depends on a lot of factors:

--How much of the road needs to be repaired? If it's a low-volume road or just a small damaged area, the quick fix may be all that's needed.
--How much money do you have to spend? When you have to take care of every road in the state, you only have so much to spend per road, and not all roads get equal priority. I don't have the cost figures in front of me, but cold mix is significantly cheaper than hot mix ($75/ton on a project I had bid a couple years ago--it fluctuates with oil prices).
--Is there a project coming on that road within the next few years? If so, it would make more sense to throw down a quick fix now just to bide the time until a major project comes along.
--Has the government sent you "stimulus" money and then tied your hands by stating it can only be used on "shovel-ready" projects? If, say, your state has been efficient and built projects as they've become ready instead of letting them sit on the shelf, you may not have many "shovel-ready" projects, and may find yourself scrambling to spend that money on re-paving roads as part of a political shell game in order to show that you're putting people to work and not "wasting" stimulus money. Ahem.

I really wish politics didn't intrude so much on our decisions, but that's reality.

In any case, we've been experimenting lately with "warm-mix" asphalt, which is "green" technology that reduces fossil fuel use and is available for use on project faster because it doesn't need to be heated as much, which helps us build projects faster. Supposedly it has similar load-bearing characteristics to hot-mix. In Delaware, we typically use cold-mix only for temporary patching (we actually call it "cold patch") jobs.

This was extremely insightful. I saw the question posted earlier and had been waiting for your reply, cause it was sure to be full o' learning.

My wife was going to order me a Kindle for Christmas, and in fact did so 2 days ago. Now they just announced the Kindle Fire, which doesn't cost a lot more and works more like a tablet. So do I

a) stick with the original order, since all I really wanted was an e-reader.
b) cancel and wait until they drop the prices on the original Kindles
c) cancel and order the Fire since it provides more value for not much extra $$
d) don't do anything until the reviews come out
e) buy an iPad
f) all of the above, or
g) take the money and invest in bacon instead?

I think they posted on Techcrunch today that they also announced a price drop on the original kindles. They'll range from 100-150. As such I think I would either cancel the order for that kindle and re-order it at lower price point or switch to the kindle fire. Of course, it is very hard to beat a bacon heavy portfolio so G is good option too.

 

[theduck619]

Oh, ok. I thought we were talking about the team that moved to Indianapolis about 30 years ago.

And what an improvement it turned out to be Maybe they can move their minor league team lmao to here as well?

 

[afwdwfan]

No, that team is out for the season with a neck injury.

Well played, sir, well played.

 

[Cinderella's Fella]

And what an improvement it turned out to be Maybe they can move their minor league team lmao to here as well?

That team is out for the season with a neck injury!

 

[theduck619]

That team is out for the season with a neck injury!

Covering ears: la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la I can't hear you

 

[DEA]

My wife was going to order me a Kindle for Christmas, and in fact did so 2 days ago. Now they just announced the Kindle Fire, which doesn't cost a lot more and works more like a tablet. So do I

a) stick with the original order, since all I really wanted was an e-reader.
b) cancel and wait until they drop the prices on the original Kindles
c) cancel and order the Fire since it provides more value for not much extra $$
d) don't do anything until the reviews come out
e) buy an iPad
f) all of the above, or
g) take the money and invest in bacon instead?

I can't seem to manage an investment in bacon very well. It always seems to lose its value by the end of the meal. Because I ate it.

Reviews are starting to come out on the new hotness today. I've seen a couple on Mac-related sites, actually. You'll be lagging the Android software releases by a significant degree based on what they're running now.

My pick would be "e". I tried my DW's kindle and got a Drobo for cheap that I returned because I could not deal with the amount of time it took for page turns. The Nook Color seems to be a lot better at this (different display tech), but the e-ink interface just doesn't work well for me. The new Kindle Fire will be more like the iPad and Nook color, but with a 7" screen size, I believe.

If you want the plain e-reader experience, I think that the touch interface on the new Kindle would be worth waiting for a little bit. The iPad does a lot more, and I like the display a lot better, but it is significantly more expensive and uses up battery faster.

I don't know alot about E-readers.

But my mother has a Kobo, and she loves it.

According to her (and I am not sure how accurate this info is). The Public libraries offer E-books - but ONLY for the Kobo. That was her deciding factor when buying. She can now download books free, and they stay on the device for 2 weeks, and then automatically delete themselves.

Amazon just announced (last week) a deal for library lending through Kindle.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

g

Somehow I knew you'd say that...

That said, those lower traffic roads also endure more punishment from farm machinery and semis. I need to get a picture sometime, but I have an asphalt driveway that is older than the road and in great shape, but the road is torn to shreds at the end of my driveway where we're always turning in and out with semis and tractors.

I would hope they're taking farm machinery into account when making the decisions about the road surface. But it's possible that they would just be looking at the overall traffic on the road and making the decision based on that.

The tax went into effect and they put up signs saying "Your Wheel Tax Dollars at Work" Those signs coincidentally enough, were posted along some of the worst roads in the county for about 2 years before any work was started. To say that became a running joke would be an understatement.

Would it surprise you to learn that DOT's have PR departments? And that many times they do things on their own without really having the best information available to them (like, say, when a project will actually start)?

I think I would go with d... kind of take a wait and see approach. See if the new one is getting good reviews or if the drop the price on the old one, then make an informed decision!

That's kind of what I'm thinking. Cancel the order now, and then wait and see if we get a better price on the old one or if the new one is worth splurging for.

According to her (and I am not sure how accurate this info is). The Public libraries offer E-books - but ONLY for the Kobo. That was her deciding factor when buying. She can now download books free, and they stay on the device for 2 weeks, and then automatically delete themselves.

That's pretty cool. I did not know that.

No, that team is out for the season with a neck injury.

This was extremely insightful. I saw the question posted earlier and had been waiting for your reply, cause it was sure to be full o' learning.

I think you have me mistaken with somebody else. I had a hard enough time putting down my shovel in order to type that.

I think they posted on Techcrunch today that they also announced a price drop on the original kindles. They'll range from 100-150. As such I think I would either cancel the order for that kindle and re-order it at lower price point or switch to the kindle fire. Of course, it is very hard to beat a bacon heavy portfolio so G is good option too.

Very sound advice. And if they throw in some cheese with the bacon...

 

[Cinderella's Fella]

Covering ears: la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la I can't hear you

 

[IamTrike]

I think you have me mistaken with somebody else. I had a hard enough time putting down my shovel in order to type that.

In general it'd seem that complimenting the man holding the shovel is probably good advice. I've seen Mystery Men so I know what happens when you cross the shovel man.

 

[theduck619]

I thought the DOT just used magic and voo doo to get roads repaired

 

[theduck619]

Has anyone seen or heard from Carlnix lately?

 

[Cinderella's Fella]

Somehow I knew you'd say that...


Very sound advice. And if they throw in some cheese with the bacon...

You put it there for a reason and I didn't want your time to go to waste.

( I've got a Duck and I'm not afraid to use him!)

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

I can't seem to manage an investment in bacon very well. It always seems to lose its value by the end of the meal. Because I ate it.

Reviews are starting to come out on the new hotness today. I've seen a couple on Mac-related sites, actually. You'll be lagging the Android software releases by a significant degree based on what they're running now.

My pick would be "e". I tried my DW's kindle and got a Drobo for cheap that I returned because I could not deal with the amount of time it took for page turns. The Nook Color seems to be a lot better at this (different display tech), but the e-ink interface just doesn't work well for me. The new Kindle Fire will be more like the iPad and Nook color, but with a 7" screen size, I believe.

If you want the plain e-reader experience, I think that the touch interface on the new Kindle would be worth waiting for a little bit. The iPad does a lot more, and I like the display a lot better, but it is significantly more expensive and uses up battery faster.

My problem with the iPad was mostly the cost. I was thinking I might prefer just a simple e-reader and then save up to get a laptop at some point rather than the iPad.

I was also figuring the display on the Kindle would lend itself to reading better, since it's not backlit. The iPad and other backlit displays would tend to give me a headache after a while.

Does your wife like the Kindle? What's up with the page-turn lag?

 

[declansdad]

No, that team is out for the season with a neck injury.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Well, son of a Beverly, I just found a few seconds to catch up and post. My usual DIS time (work!) has been taken up lately since we have a consultant in last week and this week and I have to babysit him. He knocked off early today so I had a few minutes to get back to my desk and catch up on everything.

My secondary DIS time (sittin' around on the couch at night after putting the kids to bed) has been non-existent with the new house remodel job I'm working on. (To catch everyone up: with the new baby coming in the spring, we're moving our kitchen into what is currently a "office" because it has the patio doors to the backyard and thus can't be used as a bedroom. The current kitchen will be converted to my daughter's bedroom, with my son moving into her old room, and they baby getting his room - which is more of a nursery anyway.) And yes, as much of a pain as it is to type that, it's just as much to actually do it.

I've taken the room down to the studs (to facilitate new insulation, new electric, etc) and knocked out the closet so we can expand the room an extra 24 square feet or so. I've still got a bunch of clean up before this weekend's big project: plumbing!

Oh, and I've got our first Disney Cruise coming up in 32 days that needs planning, packing and attention. So no distractions there or anything.

 

[Cinderella's Fella]

 

[afwdwfan]

I've taken the room down to the studs (to facilitate new insulation, new electric, etc) and knocked out the closet so we can expand the room an extra 24 square feet or so. I've still got a bunch of clean up before this weekend's big project: plumbing!

You're going to attempt plumbing again????


Good luck!

 

[cj9200]

Don't know if anyone saw this. Got it from the Disney Parks Blog. Thought it was interesting. Its Walt announcing the Florida Project at a press conference.

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2011/09/flashback-walt-disney-world-announced-in-florida/

 

[AirGoofy]

Pictures or it didn't happen.

Just kidding, good luck. I hope it isn't anything too bad.

I wish I had those pics to share. Everything went well. I knew I wasn't going to be fired, but I now have to write a justification memo. That could not be related in an email. It needed 400 miles and a 30 min meeting to convey. But, while I was at that meeting, one of the other bosses made a surprise visit to my office to check on outstationed coworkers. Interesting!

 

[WanderinMickey]

I'm adding Teppan Edo to our list for consideration. Do you happen to know how the food works there with the dining plan?

Scott, T.E. is pretty simple as far planning… If you have the “standard” plan you select which kind of meat (entrée) you would like (beef, chicken, shrimp or mix of two, in some cases) when you first sit down. The chef will take the meat you select, and add a mixture of vegetables (and other various items) that you would find in a typical Japanese show style steakhouse. The show is the biggest part of the dining experience. The chefs and their antics are very, very entertaining (and funny) for all ages. You will also receive a drink and dessert (typical dining plan , and if you have the “deluxe” plan, an appetizer (the selection there is pretty basic). But my kids (and their mom and dad) also have a good time. My 8 year old twin boys always try and use chopsticks when we go there (which is a whole other level of entertainment for us!).