Instagram / IU / photo / running / Twitter / video / Wednesday — Comments Off on Back to the office, then
04
Jan 17

Back to the office, then

Back at the office, where things are slow, but productive. They’re moving around a few editing bays and I’m dealing with email and various administrative things like deadlines and deliveries and purchase orders and its all great fun.

My watch beeps and I have to walk around a bit. I discovered that someone brought their foosball table. Not sure who, or if there is an expectation that it will be played, but it is in a common area, and does make that particular room feel something like a startup:

Students will be back next week. I bet it sees some use.

I made this video as a quick experiment. I wanted to see which version looks better when it is embedded. There are three versions of the same below, but more words following that.

My mother-in-law always gives me a few office supplies at Christmas …

A video posted by Kenny Smith (@kennydsmith) on

I think the last one has the best quality and look. What do you think?

It was 11 degrees outside, so we went to the gym. I joined the gym. Now I have to see what all they have. They do have a nice track, though:

Eight laps equals a mile. The place is newer, cleaner, brighter and has people on it, which is an improvement from the track I was running on last year. That was 10 laps per mile and about 55 years old and I’ve only just realized how drab and lonely that track was.

But indoor running anywhere beats 11 degrees outside. And laps, when you find a rhythm, go fast. I got in six miles tonight. Six miles before a salmon dinner. Salmon is good, but it fills me like an empty lecture. I’ll be snacking again in an hour, I bet.

adventures / Tuesday / video — Comments Off on Travel day
03
Jan 17

Travel day

We had a large breakfast with my in-laws and then loaded up the car and set off for the airport.

We were early to the airport, which made it seem like a longer day than it really was, but everything went smoothly. The desk people at Delta were efficient. The first TSA person was humorless. The second one must have been new. The flight was easy, but for a bit of turbulence about halfway through.

One of our suitcases was destroyed by Delta. It came off the ramp with a wheel missing, and a big chunk of the frame gone too. The baggage claims folks took one look at it and said “Yep. Hang on just a second.”

They have a closet, the baggage claims folks, and they just reached in and gave us a new suitcase. It has tags on it with a giant price. A fake price, I’m guessing. A “here’s a new bag, now go away” fake price. There was no paperwork. And we were out in a flash after that. We caught a shuttle to the car lot. And the guy driving the shuttle caught us as we were leaving, did we leave a bag?

Yes, we left a suitcase. Turns out when you add an extra one at baggage claim you forget to add it to the calculus when you’re getting out in the cold and rain. But he noticed it and tracked us down just in time. Then the woman at the gate where you exit offered us waters.

Then the drive to the house, the unloading the car, placating the cat and unpacking. Dinner was frozen pizzas because we’ve been gone for forever. Laundry, finish unpacking and so on.

Now to plead with the cat to not keep us awake all night in her indignation. Tall order, that.

adventures / friends / memories / Monday / photo — Comments Off on In exotic Milford, Connecticut
02
Jan 17

In exotic Milford, Connecticut

We met some friends for lunch today. He’s a fireman. She’s a counselor. Also, they are parents, and they brought their kid, who is adorable and interested in pointing at people. They told us of their 2016 real estate horror stories, which were so bizarre and bad we didn’t even tell any of our tales from last year.

And we have some tales, mind you. Tales involving buyers who didn’t understand the concept of boundaries, a realtor who was either a compulsive liar or losing her mind. Tales involving people showing up at inopportune times, and not taking the hint. And we sold our house in less than a week. These are some write the real estate commissioners and complain sort of tales. But our friends’ tales were better. Or worse? Worse. Definitely worse.

Anyway, we had lunch at SmashBurger:

The place where they make burgers like most other places and charge you a bit more. And then they drizzle a little oil on their fries and you think This place is brilliant!

Also, it is the place where the shift leader has to come out and make an announcement that everyone that ordered milkshakes is going to have to wait about 10 minutes because it is just her and three other people working today. They’d been open for an hour.

But the point was visiting and seeing the kid and not so much worrying about burgers or milkshakes we didn’t order. It was cold and wet and raining and it was a good day for friends. We also went to a mall, which is something people seldom say anymore, I gather. We walked into the mall itself through one of the anchor stores and one of the employees there was saying to a coworker that they’d been busy today, but it didn’t especially feel that way. Anyway, we went to a makeup store, which was perhaps the busiest place. It is colorful and full of smells and you can buy a charcoal face scrub product for $47 a pound. I thought about making a video out of it, but remembered I did that in the same store last year:

Which, I suppose, makes this an annual pilgrimage now.

And I took a few pages out of a children’s book, Yellow Copter and cleaned them up. I like these scenes where there is a lot going on:

The theme of this book, if you are like me and unfamiliar, is that the school goes on a field trip and, somehow, the teacher gets stuck on the ferris wheel. Cranes can’t reach her. Jets just zoom on by. But a little yellow helicopter comes to the rescue.

This is the guy on the crane. His original message says something like “Hold on, teach!” I’m going to repurpose it with other positive messages, like this:

I mean, a guy on a crane is holding a sign out there for you? How can you not be encouraged?

adventures / weekend — Comments Off on 2017 Resolutions
01
Jan 17

2017 Resolutions

Be more thoughtful. Help more. Be more cordial, courageous and kind.

Read more. Write more. Shoot more video. Take better photos. Work better.

Make two new friends. Find three new hobbies. Learn four new skills.

Sleep more. Make The Yankee laugh a lot.

(This time last year. And two years ago. And four years ago.)

adventures / photo / running / weekend — Comments Off on New Year’s Eve
31
Dec 16

New Year’s Eve

Chasing my best girl all over on a 10-mile run. That blue dot way off in the distance is The Yankee:

Some days she’s faster than me. Some days she’s really faster than me. Look at her go!

It was a 10-mile run, but it was only 26-degrees. (I do not know what is happening.) And this run was important because those last few miles put me cleanly in the top-third of this year-long running challenge I’ve been taking part in. And I’d probably be a percentage point or two higher, but for the cheaters. (Yeah, Darryl, we know you didn’t run 5,244 miles in the first two days of January. Your plane trips don’t count, DARRYL.)

Anyway, getting in a higher percentile is probably a good goal for next year.

At our last little holiday celebration tonight we had a local delicacy. I’m told this was how they were supposed to taste, and that no one does them better than Neri’s.

And Neri’s pastry is pretty delicious. So when in Port Chester, give them a try.

Also, I’m going to use that graphic for something in the upcoming year. I don’t know what it will be yet, but I’m going to use it. It’s an unofficial resolution.

Hey, thanks for spending part of the year with me. Have a safe and happy next orbit around the sun. I’ll see you next year, you know, tomorrow, with resolutions and the usual frivolities.

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