Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms out there.

Saturday I did a day trip to Debbie's for a visit. While there, we did a web video with Doug and the kids and had a good time. We ate our standard "Saturday Visit" locally made pizza for dinner. I left in the early evening so I could get home by sunset due to my eye issue with headlight glare at night.

The time flew by so fast we didn't get to do all the things we had planned so next time I will do an over-nighter.



I left the dogs at home since they could now go in and out of the house with their new "Doggie Door" and when I got back home in the evening they seemed to have done well.

I received my new 55" HDTV and Blu-Ray DVD player Friday so I was excited about that. Somehow I managed to move the old TV off the stand but could not get the new TV on it since it weighs 83 pounds and my right shoulder still doesn't have the strength. Luckily my neighbor helped me get it up on the stand.

It took me quite a while to get everything reconnected and I had a few issues. First, I could not get the High Definition from the cable box to the TV as the existing one is coaxial and the new TV requires HDMI. Cable company coming out Monday to swap out the box for the HDMI connector.

Next while playing a DVD the audio going to my Home Theater amplifier was real muffled (character voices) and sounded terrible. I spent hours trying all the different audio options and still couldn't resolve it. Finally I did an audio test on my 7 speakers plus bass speaker and found no audio coming from the center channel which is the predominate voice channel. I check the speaker and the wire came unconnected while I was moving everything around. DUH! Fixed that and the Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound now works great.

Let me tell you right now, once you watch a Blu-Ray DVD on a LED Plus LCD 55 inch screen, you will never go back. The video quality is amazing. I used the movie Avatar as a test since I had a DVD version and Blu-Ray version. Words cannot describe it.

My new setup also allows me to connect to the Internet and stream Netflix Movies, Since I am already a member there is no Extra charge for it. I can also go to You Tube and watch mine and other videos, Plus many other services. I was also able to update my Blu-Ray player on line for the latest firmware version. I can even access my computer in the office and view my photos and videos.

Plus I don't have to turn off the lights to see the TV. The picture is very bright and self-adjusts based on the ambient room lighting.

There are many additional features to numerous to mention here.

IT IS AWESOME!!!!


Some of the services I can access:




I watched my You Tube video of the HD camera test.

I tested the NetFlix streaming video. Guess what movie this is??

And here is a shot from Avatar.

Of course the photos shown here on the blog do not have the quality as seeing it live but it will give you an idea.

I guess when I retire, I could easily become a real couch potato.

Next I will be installing a snack machine, beverage server and popcorn machine right next to my viewing chair!

Rain - Rain...

...Go Away and Come Back Another Day!

In the last 24-hours I had over 3.5 inches of rain. The ground is just bubbling with water and my sump pump is working overtime. From that extreme now it is supposed to get into the 90's in the next few days. Wow, crazy weather.

I decided to stop being a doorman for the dogs and also for emergency reasons. I replaced my back door from a full glass to 1/2 glass and installed a "Doggie Door". If you remember, when I was admitted to the ER with my blood clots, the dog's were locked in the house and had no way to go out and do their "business". Now they can.

They learned to use it pretty quick and Max is a pro. Buddy sometimes forgets he can go in and out on his own but he is following Max's lead and doing OK. Here are a few photos.

"COME ON BUDDY, YOU CAN DO IT - SAYS MAX.