braden photo post...

playing with his friends...


at the fresno fair...

i can't believe i'm saying this...

I know, two days in a row...impressive, to say the least.

Well, as the title says, I can't believe I'm saying this...but HP may have outsmarted Apple. Let me explain: Last January, Apple introduced the MacBook Air and there were a lot of rumors out there that the new laptop would have a touch screen. I was so excited that this might be the case. I watched intently as the announcement was made.........but the touch screen never materialized. At the latest announcement, they updated the laptops again and no touch screen. A reporter asked Steve Jobs why they haven't looked at touch screen for laptops, Jobs said that "they don't make a lot of sense to us."

Am I the only one who thinks this is crazy talk?? With the wild success of iPhones and their wonderful functionality, Apple obviously has the knowledge and expertise to make this work for laptops or desktops. Instead, HP has beaten them to the punch and come out with a REALLY COOL computer that steals a lot of the mystique from Apple. I know touch screens and tablets are not revolutionary technology but Apple is the perfect company to bring them to the mainstream and make them standard features. I'm starting to ramble, but I just can't believe that Apple, a company that is always so good at reading the market and consumers, would let HP bring their Touchsmart to market while they sit idly and laud their "multi-touch trackpad".

Whew! At least I got that off of my chest. Maybe some Apple intern will read this and send it along to Steve Jobs. My message: "Steve, listen to me. Trackpads cramp your hands. Touch screens are a 'game changer'. Make it happen."

AWOL blogger...

I've been offline for a long time now...but I'm making an attempt to return.

So here's a video that makes me chuckle uncontrollably everytime...

"That's right! Ice...Man. I am dangerous."

the more you know...

I learned two things today...

1) Baby saliva ruins these:

...especially this part:

2) They cost $79.00 to replace...OUCH!

youtube of the day...

Funny on so many different levels...yet very awesome.

i love olympics...

Jamie and I have been watching the Olympics pretty intently this year. It's almost time to go to bed (about to turn midnight), but a lot of the good stuff doesn't come on until late...I'm gonna pay for this in the morning.

Well, I never posted any of our cruise photos...but I guess it's better late than never...although, just a few weeks time have passed and already Braden looks older than he did on the cruise....he even has two teeth now.

Everyone (including Braden) had to do the mandatory lifeboat drill. Notice the green ankle band in case we misplaced him.




I got to go on a four-wheeler tour of Mexico's Wine Country...which basically was one small town and a winery.

singalong...with braden....

Vacation pictures are still on their way...

Phil Wickham thought that I had a really cute son...so he put him on a promotional poster...can you find him?

and we're back...

...pictures to follow.

sailing the high seas...

For the next 5 days, the three of us will be enjoying our first family cruise. We are leaving (any minute) to drive to Long Beach and we will return on Friday. This will also be Braden's first extended car ride, so we're hoping everything goes smoothly. See you when we get back.

breaking news flash...two weeks late

About two weeks ago, Braden started scooting around. We took a few videos and here is a short one that illustrates his unique "army crawl with paralyzed legs method". Once I have a good video of him learning to use his knees, I'll post that too.

has anyone ever told you...

one curious talent that I've always considered my own, is the ability to find random look-alikes.

to showcase this talent (is talent the right word?), i have decided to start posting them when I see them (look-alikes, that is)

LOOK-ALIKE EPISODE #1
STEVE NASH vs. JACKIE EARLE HALEY (the tough kid from Bad News Bears)

happy july 4th...

even more pictures...

Being the proud father that I am, my blog often turns into an online photo album of my son...









These were taken about a month ago by Danielle McEntee, a friend of Jamie's. Unfortunately, on this day, Braden was not the most cooperative little guy. But she took some great pictures anyway. She has started her own photography company, Dani Mac Photography. She also has a blog. Check her out.

traffic update...

As I told you before, I started using Google Analytics...and I was happy to discover that 57% of my traffic comes from users with the Mac operating system...including one iPhone user...so congrats to the many Apple lovers out there...and extra congrats to the lone iPhone user (ie. iPhoner)...

If you are my iPhone reader...make yourself known...

google comes to fresno...

I'm assuming that most of you know about a wonderful Google innovation known as Street View. If you haven't heard...it's only the coolest thing ever created. Basically, it takes Google Maps and adds street level photography. In other words, you can see a picture of your house (under construction), your parent's house and anywhere else that the Google Car can get to. It already was one of my favorite Google products...but now Street View has invaded Fresno and it is awesome.

Also, the new Street View technology (used in Fresno) automatically blurs faces. However, in the beginning stages, there was no such technology, leading to cameras catching funny stuff such as: Cubs manager Lou Pinella outside of a Wrigley Field bar.

positive post thursday...

My positive post series has been pretty non-existent...(does that mean it has been neutral?)...so I'm going to fix that and bring back a little positivity.

My wife and I have been married for nearly four years now (June 26th...I haven't forgotten) and to be real honest with you, the viewing audience, they have been the best four years of my life...(that's right, even better than high school). So I just wanted to gush a little bit about how awesome my beautiful wife is. She is a ridiculously super-mom. Braden and her have been the best of friends for about seven months now.

Month #1


Month #7

When I get home, they are usually playing and you can tell that he loves his mom a lot already. He usually wakes her up at the crack of dawn (5:45-6:15ish) but she is always excited to see him and they get an early start on playtime.

Jamie can be pretty quiet around most people, but at our house she makes me laugh daily...nay, hourly. Her sense of humor is dry, sarcastic and really funny. Even Braden has been laughing at her lately....see here:


I could go on and on about her incredible work ethic or her humble attitude, but I think that I'm already gonna be in trouble for writing this much about her...

I did want to add...although she didn't want a single person to know about this....Jamie was recently inducted into the Athletic Wall of Honor at Fresno Christian. She really deserved this honor because she absolutely is one of the best soccer players that I've ever seen....and although this doesn't necessarily qualify her for any other awards, you have to trust me when I say it....

If you took a bunch of different sports...maybe eight to ten....and had the very best female athletes in the world compete at all of them....I honestly think that she'd win...I know that sounds crazy, but she can play any sport better than you...I guarantee it.

You should read more about the Wall of Honor and check out her accomplishments.

In closing, my wife rocks...I love her very much

thanks gene...

Gene sent me this awesome photo today...it is now one of my favorites.

google is my friend...

I discovered Google Analytics a long time ago...yet I hadn't started using it until I read a post by this guy...so now I'm using it...which means I'd better start posting so I don't go into a state of depression when I look at my poor numbers and realize nobody is watching....(at least I'll know how the Arrested Development folks felt)

papa schultz day...

If you are a Fresno Christian Alumnus...
stop by and give Papa Schultz an online hug at his retirement blog...he would love to hear from you.

If you attended some other high school that was not nearly as awesome...
go to the blog anyway and read about how much we loved our principal for the past 30 years.

http://www.fresnochristian.com/fcnews/?p=15

Braden photo post

Braden's accident

-WARNING!!-
IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH OR ARE OPPOSED TO POTTY HUMOR...DO NOT WATCH THE FOLLOWING VIDEO

positive post thursday...

in an effort to infuse some positivity into the often-depressing world of the internet, a couple of my friends (gene and luke...who are also approximately 66% of my readership) have begun a weekly post series called "positive post tuesday" (i believe the tradition started here)...i am following suit, however, i don't want to cram too much positive-ness into one day...so mine will be called..."positive post thursday"....

i will keep this post short since i am at work...and my break is ending...and my phone just started ringing...

check these guys out...they are some college friends of my brother's...they are going to be kayaking down the entire mississippi river from minnesota to the gulf of mexico to raise money for an organization that fights human sex trafficking...their website is very informative and really opened my eyes to what a huge issue this is around the world...

so if you are asking yourself, "how is this a positive post?"...well, i was really encouraged to see how young people are tackling tough issues and using the internet to get the word out...if you have a few extra bucks, send it their way...if not, give them an encouraging comment...that's all....

http://www.upstreambattle.blogspot.com/

braden photo post....SUPERSIZED

after a nearly two month hiatus...i am back with a vengeance and an all-new supersized episode of braden photos...

this photo session took place yesterday afternoon when i got home from work...unfortunately, jamie decided that after we were done taking pictures she would fling the camera out of her hands and onto our concrete driveway...the camera perished...fortunately, the pictures did not.

and without further ado...

hucka-tee...

i was excited to wear my new huckabee rock shirt today...

more video...

here is another gem in a long series of camp videos by grant harms...check out the rest..

macworld review...

I know that some people are a little disappointed with the MacWorld Expo
2008 keynote but I was actually pleased. Most of my disappointment (and
probably others also) stems from the fact that the products that were
unveiled are not core items (iPods, traditional laptops, desktops, etc).
But they really came out with some innovative products that continue to
impress...

Scores on a scale of 1-10:

Time Capsule- 10
I really thought that this was an awesome innovation. It is a wireless
base station and a 500MB or 1TB hard drive that syncs itself...for
$300-$500?!?!?!?...they must not be making much money on those because
you can't buy anything else even close to that for the same amount of
money...

Movie Rentals- 7.5
I think that this was long overdue...I know that most people probably
won't agree, but I'm really excited to watch movies straight off of
iTunes...I would much rather do that and have a month to watch the movie
than go to Blockbuster and have three days, plus the price is
equivalent...the next product solves the "watch on your computer"
problem...

Apple TV- 9
I really thought this was a great update of an existing product...Apple
realized that the original AppleTV was not working and they took steps
to fix it. You don't even need to own an Apple computer...you just order
your movies or TV shows straight from your TV and watch them in all of
their HD glory...

MacBook Air- 8.5
MacBook Air (the name)- 2
First things first...the name is terrible...now, on we go...
When you think about it, this laptop will blow your mind...it's thickest
point is thinner than the thinnest point of any other laptop...with a
multi-touch pad...and an 80GB hard drive. It truly is an amazing piece
of technology...having said that, I hope that Apple didn't over-estimate
how many people need/want an "ultra-portable" laptop when a traditional
laptop will do just fine...

My initial impression of the keynote was: "That's it?" but after
thinking about it...this is a solid offering of updates with a really
impressive centerpiece (MacBook Air)...not every MacWorld Expo will
produce an iPhone or an iPod...

Final Grade:
Technology, Innovation, Impressivityness = A-
Marketplace Awareness, Will People Buy It? = C+