Degrees for Super You

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If you could snap your fingers and have three credentials under your belt–complete with all the knowledge and capabilities completing such programs of study would bring, of course–what would they be?

Brainstorm a list of six or seven ideas. Then take a good hard look at that list and ask yourself which of them would truly make you happy–make you more you–as opposed to just being really impressive to others. Do you really need that medical degree from Harvard or that law degree from Yale?

Well, maybe you do! As for me, here’s what I might choose:

  • A bachelor of music from Berklee.

  • An associate’s in culinary arts from Le Cordon Bleu.
  • A bachelor’s in creative writing from Emory.

What would you choose?

That’s a lot of Wi-Fi!

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A strange realization hit me during all this Wi-Fi router nonsense. When asked “how many wireless devices do you have?” I found to my surprise that the answer is nine.

How’d that happen? Well, there are two Windows laptops and one Mac laptop–that’s three. There’s two Android phones and one iPhone–that’s six. There’s two Apple TVs–that’s eight. There’s one iPad–nine.

Wow. And when you consider that two of these devices do almost nothing but stream video, you can see that my insistence on upgrading to simultaneous dual-band 802.11N wireless was completely warranted.

Further Adventures in Wi-Fi

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Good news! I completely resolved all the problems with my Cisco/Linksys Wi-Fi router!

…by ordering an Apple AirPort Express which I will pick up at the local store tomorrow on my way home from work.

I tried, though. You’ll remember that I tried to set it up myself. Then I consulted their tech support. Things still weren’t right. I chatted them up a second time. I kept waiting for them to tell me that there was some known issue, some incompatibility between something on my network and the settings on the router–but no. In the end, they tried to tell me that there was some kind of interference in my apartment.

Interference. With their router in the exact same spot, serving the exact same devices the old Netgear had done for years without issue. Basically they were grasping at straws and had no clue. Meanwhile, I had two Wi-Fi SSIDs, no idea if I should leave them separate or not, a slow web experience on the MBP, intermittent streaming issues on the Apple TV, and I discovered I could no longer push video or audio to the TV from the laptop.

I’d even done my own research, consulted some other clever people I know, and come up with nothing.

So I’m done. I’m casting it back into the fiery chasm from whence it came–Best Buy. And I’m picking up my new Apple unit. The Linksys cost me $82. The Apple cost me $20 more. If it works as well as I expect it to, it’s money well spent.

Adventures in Wi-Fi

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Our Wi-Fi router died today so I bought a new one on the way home from work. The setup didn’t go as planned.

Since we clearly couldn’t wait for even overnight shipping from Amazon, so I swallowed down my revulsion and went to Best Buy. I emerged with a simultaneous dual band wireless N router with four 10/100 ethernet ports, made by Cisco/Linksys. And at $80 it had enough muscle for the Apple TV streaming, but was still inexpensive enough for my inner cheapskate.

Then the fun began.

I plugged it in, connected the WAN port to the cable modem and sat down with my Macbook Pro and the included CD. Upon launchhing the setup program I was told I could not poroceed because Mac OS X 10.7 or later was required–even though I had 10.8.2. I cleverly downloaded a a newer version of the setup software directly from the Cisco web site…only to get the same error.

Fine. I put the CD in one of the Windows 7 laptops in the house and things seemed to go better. There was a setup wizard. I let it “wiz” and answered all its questions. I got my MBP connected, the two Win 7 laptops, my iPhone, two Android phones, one Apple TV…everything seemed to be going well. But I was unnerved. I’d set up many a Wi-Fi router in my day. This was all too easy, too good to be true.

And so it proved to be. Within five minutes I noticed that my MBP was getting really, really slow internet service. Like it took a full minute just to check my Gmail. Not good. The Windows laptops seemed fine. The Apple TV didn’t work. When I tried to watch a show it told me that many hours of download were required before it would be ready to watch. Usually it’s 1-2 seconds.

I decided to fire up a browser and hit 192.168.1.1 to see what’s really going on up in here.

Sure enough, a familiar Wi-Fi router setup was available. I poked around in it. I shut off all the security to see if that was responsible for the problem. I rebooted the unit. Nothing seemed to help.

Next I went to the manufacturers web site. Which is terrible. I could not find any helpful information, so I chose to chat live with a support person.

After waiting 10 mintues or more, Marie asked me how she could help. I explained everything. I think I probably blew her mind, actually. When she asked for the serial number I gave it to her. When she asked about my network devices and their operating systems, I told her. When she asked me to go to 192.168.1.1 I told her I was already there.

She informed me that I had 90 days of support but that if I wanted more I’d have to pay $20 for their extra support thingy. I told her as politely as I could that if she was unable to help me this very evening I wouldn’t own the device tomorrow and thus wouldn’t be attempting to contact her on the 91st day or on any other day.

She told me the router wasn’t configured correctly. She told me to choose “manual” instead of “Wi-Fi Protected Setup” whatever the hell that is. She had me setup both the 2.4 and the 5 GHz signals differently from their defaults. She also had me choose a different-from-the-default security mode, WPA2 Personal.

And then…everything seemed to work!

Here’s the thing that’s astonishing about this. I bought a Wi-Fi router and set it up according to its default specifications only to find none of my Apple gear worked on it. None. What is it this, 1996? Shocking. Just shocking. I expected more from Cisco.

All’s well that ends well, I guess. But I won’t soon forget the Apple-unfriendliness of their product.

Good buds

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I have a new obsession today: earbuds.

You probably remember about a year ago when I went on a similar mission with over-the-ear headphones and eded up with the terrific Sony MDR-V6 studio monitor-style cans. I still love them, no regrets.

But I do get tired of folding them up, putting them in their carrying bag, toting them to and from work in my backpack, taking them on and off when I want to listen to something at work or at home. I’ll always take these to the studio. I’ll always use them for headphone-based music practice at home. But for everyday listening? I could use something a little smaller.

If they are affordable and sound great!

I already know that this is possible. I found Connie’s SUBJEKT “HerPhones” petite earbuds for women around the apartment a few days ago. She says she got them a while back on deep discount, like $6.

Wow. They’re definitely colored, mid-scooped, compared to my Sonys. And they don’t have the same clarity. Still, for cheap earbuds they definitely passed my listenability test.

Armed with the knowledge that cheap earbuds can be good, I went to Amazon to find a few options. In-ear-style earbuds. Under $20. Excellent reviews–reviews that specifically mentioned their faithful reproduction of a full range of frequencies.

I took delivery of my Panasonic RPHJE120D earbuds this evening. In orange. I could instantly tell the audio wasn’t as good as with the SUBJEKT earbuds. The very tail end of the bass frequencies were shelved off–as were the crispest of the high frequencies. Basically, not very hi-fi sounding earbuds. I did A-B them with the SUBJEKTs just to make sure. No mistake. I should have spent more money.

Fortunately I’m only out $5 and change. Maybe I’ll throw these in the car glove box or give them to a homeless person. Then I’m going back to the drawing board.

One obvious answer is to just order the SUBJEKTs. It isn’t their “for women” moniker that deters me. It’s that they aren’t technically available anymore. There’s a newer model, earbuds that include a mic for talking on the phone. But how do I know they’re of the same audio quality? And they do cost $20, not $6.

Sony and Philips both have well-reviewed models around the same price point.

Not sure what to do.

Scrambled, please.

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I’ve been taking more care when scrambling eggs these days. I don’t like them runny, but I do like them soft. I definitely try to avoid overcooking them even by a few seconds. It’s a delicate thing, scrambling eggs, if you want to get it right.

First I thoroughly heat a nonstick pan with a bit of butter. While that’s happening, I crack the eggs into a bowl, add a pinch of Kosher salt, a grind of black pepper and a splash of the fattiest milk I have in the fridge. Then I beat them with a fork–but only enough to make them uniform. The more you beat them, the tougher they become when cooked.

Then the eggs go into the hot pan. Extra ingredients go in at this point–Chihuahua cheese last time. With a spatula, begin bringing the eggs in from the sides, scraping them up from the bottom, keeping everything in the pan moving and letting the heat do its thing.

Before the eggs are completely set, while there is still some wetness showing, I shut off the burner. The residual heat in the pan will finish up any undercooked areas. I gently flip the eggs once in large clumps with the spatula to finish them evenly.

Plate and eat. I added a few generous shakes of Cholula hot sauce and ate it all with warm corn tortillas from Panos, the local Mexican grocery.

Scrambled eggs is a simple thing, but it really can be sublime.

Cosmos

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There are few things more important than understanding the nature of the universe and our place in it. It’s been less than 100 years since Edwin Hubble discovered other galaxies beyond our own Milky Way. It’s just over 150 years since all the planets of our own solar system were discovered–around the same time we discovered that, like all other life on earth, we evolved through natural selection from earlier life forms. It’s only been about 450 years that we have known that the earth revolves around the sun and not the other way around. All of this is simply to say that our understanding of the size and scope of the universe and of our true place in it is relatively new. Thousands of generations of humans have come and gone in complete ignorance of these facts. It is we, those of us who are here now, who know.

Or at least we should. I’d like to think that every human being on the earth has been told the truth, has been taught these facts of our existence. Everyone should know that we evolved by natural selection from other more primitive life forms over a period of 3.8 billion years, that we live on a planet that is 4.5 billion years old, that our sun is one of 400 billion others in our galaxy, that there are at least 100 billion other galaxies in the universe–and that it seems all but certain that life, even intelligent life, exists on other planets. Sadly, there are probably many people who do not know these facts–or who reject them.

young Carl SaganOne of the ways people of my generation learned about these things was the television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, which aired on public television in 1980. If you’ve never seen it–or haven’t seen it in 30 years–you really should watch it. It’s on Netflix instant streaming and, oddly, also on youtube.

Astronomer Carl Sagan hosted and narrated the series. He was an avuncular college professor type whose enthusiasm and passion for the subject was infectious, and whose warmth made some of the more overwhelming truths more palatable–a sort of scientific Mr. Rogers. I know many people of my generation who miss him.

But, hey, good news! Apparently a sequel series is in the works. Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey is scheduled to air this coming spring on Fox and the National Geographic Channel. It will be hosted by astrophysicist and television personality Neil deGrasse Tyson.

This should be good.

EARTH CALLING REPUBLICANS…COME IN REPUBLICANS…

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“Ohio really did go to president Obama last night, and he really did win. And he really was born in Hawaii. And he really is legitimately president of the United States. Again. And the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not make up a fake unemployment rate last month. And the Congressional Research Service really can find no evidence that cutting taxes on rich people grows the economy. And the polls were not skewed to oversample Democrats. And Nate Silver was not making up fake projections about the election to make conservatives feel bad–Nate Silver was doing math. And climate change is real. And rape really does cause pregnancy sometimes. And evolution is a thing. And Benghazi was an attack on us, it was not a scandal by us. And nobody’s taking away anyone’s guns. And taxes have not gone up. And the deficit is dropping, actually. And Saddam Hussein did not have weapons of mass destruction. And the moon landing was real. And FEMA is not building concentration camps. And UN election observers are not taking over Texas. And moderate reforms of the regulations on the insurance industry and the financial services industry in this country are not the same thing as communism.”

- Rachel Maddow

Ode to my Crocs

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Crocs. Those foam shoes. They’re inappropriate footwear for almost every situation, a major fashion faux pas. I know it, you know it, everyone knows it. And yet, they’re so awesome. It’s my secret shame, people: I fucking love my Crocs. Especially the “Cayman” or “classic” clogs.

They’re wonderfully cushy, insulating my feet against the hardest of surfaces. Standing for long periods of time is more comfortable with Crocs. They’re feather light. I can get them wet. In fact, they’re not only immune inside to even the worst foot odor, but impervious outside to every kind of filth I might step in. I don’t have to tie them or zip them or velcro them or anything. There’s only one moving part: the heel strap which lets me choose from slip-on or, swinging it behind my heel, a more secure fit. They come in more than twenty colors.

There’s only two downsides. First, wearing them makes me slightly more prone to electrostatic shocks, such as when reaching for canned goods in the grocery store. And, second, well… It’s the fashion thing. For the most part, I can’t wear them. It’s just not done.

You know what, though? Sometimes I do wear them. I wear them when I’m cooking or doing the dishes. They’re great for taking the dogs out. And, yes, I sometimes even wear them to the grocery store–in public!

If I were king of the world, you’d be able to wear your Crocs more often. Farmer’s market? Yes. Dog park? Of course. Grocery shopping? I already do that. General around-the-house and errand running on a summer Saturday? Why, yes.

Out for dinner? No.

This last summer I figured out how to get Crocs goodness on the sly. I ordered myself a pair of Crocs flip-flops. They look just like any other flip-flops, only they have that Crocs cushion underneath. Best flops I’ve ever owned.

I Said Good Day: Foreign Policy Edition

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If you think the Iraq war was a good idea, I don’t really care what you have to say about Syria or Iran or Lybia or anything, really. It’s not even about whether you’re right or wrong about whatever it is you’re saying, I just don’t trust you. You’ve clearly demonstrated that your judgement is profoundly and irretrievably flawed in the area of foreign policy. So you get nothing. Good day, sir.