I don’t currently have plans for a summer vacation, but I still enjoy the benefits of a slightly less crowded commute. Most likely, the commute will gradually get lighter each day or week until the middle of June when the last schools let out. Unfortunately, it won’t last forever. Schools have a closer start date at the end of August or beginning of September.

It was getting expensive buying the books on CD. To save money, I would repeat listening to books. I definitely caught some details I had missed the first time, but I could only listen to the same book so many times.

I had some free time one day when I was at the library and was checking out the shelves for ideas on other books to buy when I discovered they had a large collection of books on CD. They actually had a few books that I was unable to find elsewhere. I decided to get a library card and started checking out books instead of buying them.

I have enjoyed most of the books I have selected. Most of the books have some sort of “magic” in the story. I find it interesting to see how the various authors explain magic, its source, and the limits of its use. I imagine that one of the hardest parts of writing such a book is defining the magic.

I often think about writing a book…. now, I don’t have a story, or character, to write about. I somewhat think it is more like a dream of winning the Lottery… I would love to be able to write a series like Harry Potter.

I guess you can call me cheap. When a bulb burns out, I only change the one bulb that burned out and not the other bulbs in the fixture. I guess I should know better because bulbs should have a relatively even life. As a result, I may be saving a few cents by not throwing away a working bulb, but I am setting myself up for having to go back in the near future.

Currently, I have three bulbs out in the master bathroom. I had to make a special trip to the hardware store to get replacements. For some unknown reason, I didn’t run to replace the bulbs as soon as I got the replacements.

Today, I noticed I had a burned out headlight. I think it is the third time that headlight has gone out. Since I am doing a fair amount of driving before sunrise and after sunset, I made it a priority to change the bulb. I ran over to an automotive store during lunch and changed the bulb right away… Now, I have a replacement for the other headlight, but decided not to change it just yet. Changing the headlights isn’t too hard, but due to their placement, I can’t see in very well, so it is more a thing that I need to feel. I have done it enough times that I knew how to get the old bulb out, but it still took me 10 minutes to figure how to get the new bulb ligned up properly.

There was an article in the Washington Post last week about community clocks, those big clocks on sides of public buildings. I can’t say I notice too many on my daily commute. The article made an interesting comment about how their ability to keep time makes a statement about the community. I used to laugh whenever I passed a bank with a clock or temperature listing that was clearly wrong. I don’t think I ever made a decision about the quality of the business based on the functionality of its clocks. I guess that if I can’t set the clocks in my own house, I shouldn’t have a problem if others have the same problems with their clocks.

Personally, I don’t think we need the sun to rise before 7:00am. I would be happy with a few more weeks of Daylight Savings Time as that would also mean a few more weeks where I can get home from work before the sun sets.

 Well, when I was eating out at a local chain, I noticed the walls were plastered with articles and signs telling of their many awards for best food in various cities. But, after looking around, I noticed that most of the awards were at least 3 years ago. It made me wonder, had they decided to stop putting up the newest awards or had they stopped winning the awards?

I know a bit of the history of the chain. It is about 10 years old and started in the DC area. Years ago, I would hear my friends talk about the chain several times each month. I know they have grown and expanded to other parts of the country, but the local buzz seems to have died down. Either growth has caused them to loose some of whatever it was that made them special or they are no longer the great new place that everyone just discovered. The food is OK, but I know why I never made it a regular place to stop.

But it made me think about the restaurants that have walls plastered with pictures of famous people who at there. Any place open long enough could eventually fill a wall of fame. But places change, staff comes and goes, maybe the awards and pictures do need to be reset each year. Just because a business was voted the best value or any other award last year doesn’t mean they are still the best value today. You can’t rely on the past, you need to be the best each and every day. And being the best actually means you need to get better all of the time.

One of the movie theaters replaced all of their traditional menu board/price list with a video display. But, I think they have gone overboard. Not because they have replaced all of their menu with a video display but because they are animating it too much. I was checking out the offerings when suddenly, the entire menu board changed to a picture of pizza. OK, yes they have pizza, but I was trying to read the menu and now it is gone. It eventually comes back and I have to find where I was looking. I check out the prices and decide what I want (or can afford) when it again changes, this time it all becomes a giant Coke ad. Once again, none of the menu/price board is visible.

If they were smart, they would NOT animate the entire display at one time and maintain at least some of the menu/prices. Just because you can animate the menu board does NOT mean it is appropriate to do.

Usually, a fast food place has a paper tray liner on the tray. If the tray can’t fit into the trash can, the tray liner won’t fit either unless it is folded. You can’t just walk up and tip the tray over any more. Now you have to throw each item away and push it into the trash. Personally, I think this is harder and dirtier than before. I have seen many places upgrade their trash cans, but wish they would go back to the old methods.

One of the books I picked up, was Magyk by Angie Sage (part of the Septimus Heap series). I enjoyed the book, but when I went to see if I could get the next book in the series, I discovered that new copies were not available from Amazon, or just about any other seller I could find. They had the print copy and an MP3 version, but not the book on Audio CD.

Well, this past weekend, I was at the Burke Center Library and had some time before making balloons for the kids and decided to check out their collection of books. I was surprised to see how many Audio Books they had. I walked up and down the aisle, but really didn’t see anything I liked. I then went over to the kids section, and stumbled upon the Septimus Heap series and discovered they had the books on CD. Now, I don’t actually have a library card. I was tempted to get a card and check out the books, but this library location isn’t exactly close to home. I pass two libraries every day on my way to and from work, so I decided to wait and planned to make a visit to my local library.

I checked online and discovered the Fairfax County Library System has their card catalog online, and they even indicate which libraries have the books and if they are currently available. The library closest to my home has the complete series, but the books are currently checked out. The other library that I pass has the first three books and they are available.

Now, it just so happens that I have been listening to the first book in the series again and I am almost done. It would be perfect timing if I can get the next book in the series now and continue listening to it as soon as I am done with the first book. So, now may finally be the time to get a library card, something I haven’t had since I was in high school.

I know that it is unlikely that we will ever get to the day when the Internet is ad free. But it seems like companies are making ever more desparate attempts to force people to see their ads. Websites still have the much hated popup or pop under ads. But for me, one of the most annoying is the rollover ads. The problem, in my opinion is that they are too easy to trigger and too hard to dismiss. As the ad grows to fill the page, there is very little room to move the mouse that is not ontop of the ad. And some will be triggered as the page loads and not be dismissed even though the mouse is NOT over the ad. It takes too much effort to find ways to close the ads.