Sorry readers if you visited 07/15 during the day and got some mumbo jumbo sql error.  I tried an upgrade that failed miserably, good thing I backed ‘er up!  So now onto my regularly scheduled rants, raves or whatever!

This public service message was brought to you courtesy of MileHighDad’s next recent post.

Why is it that when the battery dies in your home smoke detector it always happens late at night in the kids room?

Why can’t they put a onetime per battery voltage snooze alarm button on this life saving device so when the battery does start that evil chirp reminder that it is now time to change the batteries so it does not become a full family event regardless the time?

Why can’t they program the dang thing so that when it does start that irritating chirp so the light that flashes to show it is operating properly shine continuously red when it chirps so you can easily find the offender and replace it’s battery first so it’s not a game of roulette finding and replacing the battery?

Why does the smoke detector have to go off when reconnecting the primary power source? Wouldn’t a solid red light ran by the battery be enough warning it’s not connected properly?

Why can’t they have battery backup using a NICAD battery that last more than 8-11 months before the incessant chirping starts?

I have replaced batteries before with half on my fleet using Duracell and the other half with Energizer and have found the Energizer fails first and Duracell rules! FYI, so if your batteries will not make one year till the time change in day light savings as recommended you can use the battery with the longest life.

You can’t live without them so why don’t the manufacturers cut the end user a bit of slack!

I just searched HomeDept.com before publishing this and found the same old detector in a wide range of prices.

Smoke detectors save lives and it’s agreed you need them; this At Home Dad as consumer, think it’s time to upgrade the technology!

We have put men on the moon, are computerized and deserve more from this lifesaving device!

It was totally awesome! I took my son to his first day camp (read: his 1^st all day solo adventures without me) for the day after dragging myself outta bed thinking I would rebound after my first Cup-O-Joe, then I would be good to go. Not so, my legs grew increasingly heavy after a night of dead tired non-sleep on my Select Comfort bed where my sleep number was jacked up so high it hurt, done by a set of little hands when visiting his sick mom over the weekend. I had wishfully hoped I would fall asleep regardless but at 4AM I got up and flicked the lightswitch activated outlet on so I could digitally deflate my side down to a 30.

I fell back asleep and slept soundly till I forced myself up to make his camp lunch at 7, then bam, bam, bam, my 5 YO up at 7:15, him pooped and pee’d by 7:30 and on our bikes headed for the clubhouse by 7:35 for a ten minute ride to camp. Got him checked in with Ms. Lizzie and I am back home by 8. Mission accomplished!

I sat there watching my high def programming for 15 minutes when I decided to fire up the AC and button the place shut so I could take a nap at 8:20 in the morning.

I cranked my sleep number down to 25 and was oblivious to anything for 5 whole hours! Well, that nap lasted till 2PM, and then I had to shower quickly so I could make a research meeting I had at 4 in Denver. I had to rub it in to the lady scientists I work with that I got to sleep ALL DAY TODAY and I feel good!

Not since my son has been born have I been able to wake up, tend to a minimal kindergartener chore list and be back in bed to sleep the day away and I deserved it! Imagine, waking up because you are not sleepy and there are no demands being needed.

I have not had any time where I had to do nothing but sleep since he was born, there was always something somewhere, and doing nothing was all too sweet!

Tomorrow is another day of camp but I think I need to get something done domestically for the day so stay tuned to this Blog channel!

So Wednesday I think it was Mom and my son went to Target to buy him some golf clubs while I tried to find piece mowing the lawns. They got back before I was finished with a 60 dollar – 6 piece graphite set in a free standing bag with backpack style shoulder straps for $60.00 dollars American. Then he got a pack of 12 Whiffle style orange golf balls. First some 5YO ugliness then onto golf and photos.

Then the wheels of my life came off and my spare was already in use and it has been ugly around here, because HE KNOWS ALL and is arguing anything and everything with me and his mom. It seemed to all start after his tantrum and demonstration I just Blogged about so I set a rule to live by “You don’t argue with us and if you do, the answer is automatically no and we turn around right now and go home no matter what.” This has worked well until yesterday after our first outing to the driving range to hit golf balls. After he got the basics on stance and grip, I could tell him no more because he knew it all! To make a non-story even shorter, he didn’t get his McDonalds meal because he argued with me about not going inside and would take no for an answer and yelled at me all the way home at the top of his lungs, pleasant! We got home his golf clubs spent the day in time-out and he spent the next hour there as well; he wanted to show his friends his clubs after time-out but no, they were still in time-out. Enough said about reliving the ugliness of yesterday.

Today was a new day and Mom was not sick so she could go see him swat golf balls at Red Hawk and I hoped the ensuing ugliness would not reappear today, but it did try to rear its ugly head when I quashed it. Now onto the better things of today!

This kid has game! Not only was he hitting longer, he was hitting it straighter as well and, he remembered what I showed him yesterday! So he hit balls Mom hit Balls and I got to hit balls because somebody left a full bucket on the empty range so naturally I felt it was my duty to spray the range with golf balls. I hit some shots that I couldn’t believe came from my swing and then there were the other shots, more my style!

So all in all, it was a good day at the range once I got Dakota to stop driving balls with his Putter because he knew all about the game. He now wants to get a golf cart and go out on the course but I said after your lesson next year and you can hit the ball enough to empty a bucket of balls without losing interest, then I got an, OK Dad.

And they day guidance played on and the monster tried to reappear but was squished! Not sure if I am a bad-ass or a dad-ass I Blogged about earlier! This past weekend was good but had moments I want to forget!

Weighed in this morning, 152.5 pounds!  That puts me with 8 ounces of 50 pounds gone since January 1.  I used to pack the weight of this fish with me everywhere I go and not blink twice!  Well, maybe not blink twice, but instead gasping for air.  Not me in the photo.

Lovely isn’t it? I get called this when my 5YO son gets really mad at me, otherwise I am just a Butt Crack when he isn’t really steaming at me but still mad at something I did.

Case in point, just now on our way home from his morning at the clubhouse swimming, jamming with Mark on the Tumble Boogie and being a part of the Y sponsored Kids Club, oh and we did the playground for 5 minutes before riding the bike path through the tunnel home. He decided after getting to the top of the hill after the tunnel he was thirsty. I did not bring a water bottle because it’s only an 8 minute ride, door to clubhouse door. He remembered he had a diet Pepsi in his Go Diego Go lunchbox inside the Coz and wanted it now, I said how about at the corner? The corner was 100 feet away and further away from what I guessed to be a mom who was doing yard work in her in her front yard by the Barbie toys in the garage; I did not want the usual At Home Dad sucker comments that these kinds of situations bring on. Phrases like, “oh, is it your day with the kids” or “where’s Mom, you got your hands full” type of remarks.

I calmly pedaled my bike and Bob Coz Trailer to the corner while the insults started to rain down on me; I leaned my bike on it on its kickstand, took my helmet off, put my visor on as the effort at insulting me continued. I gazed over at the mom doing yard work and realized she had taken an interest at what was transpiring on the street so I figured I got to play this good!

I took his pop can out of his lunch box, closed the trailer and set the can on the lid and yelled over to him, “here is your pop when you get thirsty it’s right here” and went and sat down on the curb; upon hearing this he yelled back “you’re a Poopy butt crack and I want my Pepsi here by this white Toyota truck” as I sat there not even ruffled because I had nothing but time and I was not going to lose. For being 5 years old, he sure knows his truck makes and models but that is no reason for me to relent to his demands.

At this point, I calmly got up picked up his soda and put it in my water bottle holder and yelled to him, “I am going home, you’re not thirsty and it’s too hot to play your games AND your bike is in a time out till tomorrow.” I then got on my bike without looking his way and rode around the corner, turned around and stopped out of sight of the vexing attitude. He was screaming out of exasperation as he pedaled his bike around the corner, and when he saw me he stopped threw his bike down and ripped his helmet off and bounced it off the asphalt. I said OK, you are walking home and loaded his bike onto the trailer top knowing full well he was going to interfere after I snapped his helmet to my bike pack and started to walk off pushing our bikes and my trailer. He stepped in and pulled his bike off the trailer while kicking me in the shin. I popped him on the buttocks through his nylon soccer shorts with a pop that had not hurt all the while explaining you do not kick people when you are upset or you get spanks. He was now crying, out of pain or frustration, I am not sure but I think it was out of frustration as the spank was loud but not forceful.

To give in a bit, I gave him his soda which he opened, put his helmet on and fastened it. He took his bike back and then wanted me to carry his Pepsi so he could ride but I wouldn’t. I stopped just out of reach in the street and said “if you want me to carry it, bring it here” as I held out an out stretched arm for it. He held his arm out like it was a big burden while saying “I’m not allowed in the street” which he knew was a charade because we have been practicing riding single file close to the curb. I conceded and took the step required to exchange the soda, dumped half in the gutter so it did not spill on my in the holder as I told him to mount up and ride.

I escorted him to our corner, making sure he was across and riding the concrete slab home and took off at my speed to our garage. I calmly opened the garage door when he pulled in and parked. I moved my bike in after giving him what was left of his soda, which wasn’t much, and then he headed inside to watch TV in the AC. I gathered my gear placed it near the door so as not to forget it and gathered his bike up. I placed his bike up and out of reach for the rest of the day and headed inside while not saying anything about his bikes status.

Just now he walked over to me when I was typing this and he said “sorry Dad for being ugly outside” and I said you sure were, and your bike is still in time out till tomorrow. He said OK and went to play trucks in the cool AC.

So it just goes to show you, this butt crack can remain calm and cool even in the deep poop!

I don’t know if this was the right way to handle this or not but with an audience, I had to play it cool and didn’t back down, well not too much anyway!

RELEASE AND WAIVER OF LIABILITY, ASSUMPTION OF RISK AND INDEMNITY AGREEMENT

I have been advised of and fully understand the inherent risks associated with the SAID BUSINESS programs and events. On behalf of me, my child, and our respective heirs and assigns, hereby release, and agree to hold harmless, the SAID BUSINESS it’s respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, directors, officers, employees, owners, players and all agents (collectively, the “Released Parties”) from any and all claims, liabilities, and losses that relate in any way to any injury (including death) to my child’s person or property. I (i) have read this Release, (ii) understand its content, (iii) am over the age of 18, (iv) am my child’s parent or guardian, (v) sign this Release voluntarily on my child’s behalf and intend for it to be legally binding, and (vi) acknowledge that I have had an opportunity and was advised to seek guidance from counsel regarding this Release and blah, blah, blah…

The bold and underlined sentence is pretty heavy isn’t it? How often do you, as a responsible adult/parent, just blow by this text and click OK or Submit? In essence you are releasing them from any wrong doing negligent or not, even death! In essence, signing your kid’s life away!  Go ahead and we’ll do what we want but hey, we’re not responsible because you said OK!

Do you think if something happened the courts would uphold this disclaimer? What if SAID BUSINESS willfully let your kids play in the street and they got run over; by clicking OK or submit or whatever you are letting them off the hook for being a responsible provider for your kids.
But you signed this by clicking OK so it’s not our problem your kid got hurt or died!

Think long and hard the next time you are presented with a release on the web about what it is saying, “(collectively, the “Released Parties”) from any and all claims, liabilities, and losses that relate in any way to any injury (including death) to my child’s person or property. “

Scares me!

Welcome Hubber’s you know who you are, here is the slideshow of the days events at Rhyolite Park.

Local Castle Rock Issue Here…

What If, you lived in Castle Rock and could be People Powered to Downtown Denver and beyond, without having to mortgage the home to fill the tank? I read somewhere the other day, 06-27-2008, that gas prices could be 7 bucks a gallon by 2009! With the inflated prices at the pump we are now, doling out this seemed as if it would happen this fall, if not earlier. Look at the definition of dole, only the gasoline we crave as a population is general, is not distributed as charity to somebody in need; sure we are in need but distributed as charity? Please, it makes me rethink the use of the word! Keep in mind the word “petroflation“, this is my term for the brisk, for a lack of better word, gasoline swindle we are currently having. Back on topic now as this gasoline rant topic is too free flowing, sorry almost got of topic here.

The other day while driving back from Parker we took the newer road from Parker Road just north of Franktown to Castle Oaks and connecting at Founders Parkway to the town’s New Southwest Corridor planned route which led to a lot of “What-If Thinking”.

The way America is heading in both personal fitness and personal finance, we are in need of a big change in living habits and we as a population should be proactive about it instead of trying to play catch up. Being physically fit and catching up are words that do not belong in the same sentence, the harder you try to catch up on being fit, the more likely you are to get hurt in the process. Being caught-up in your finances, well the process hurts, and for the average American never is caught-up and many will never recover.

What-If Number 1:

What if, there was a bike path from Founders Parkway at the Escavera subdivision? Alternatively, in terms that is more realistic, how about making a bike path from where the pavement ends in Castle Oaks subdivision and stretched east along the Castle Oaks dirt road (Castle Oaks Parkway?) to the Cherry Creek bike path/bridge and juncture just west of Parker Road near Franktown. This country in our county needs this bike path, it is crying out to be ridden but people’s skinny tires cannot handle the washboard roads and rocks. Then if this took off maybe our bike shops would form a posse of riders who patrol the routes and aid in repairs in bikes and paths; farfetched? Time will tell but at the current rate of “petroflation“, we are going to find out sooner rather than later.

OK, so you do not work in downtown Denver do not think it should apply to you but it does get you within pedaling distance of the Parker light rail station connecting you to points North, South East and West by commuter bus and North South and West by rail. If bicycling is the way Colorado is the way our future is headed, RTD had better get on the ball making bicycle friendly storage on our mass transit system. It would be interesting what kind of bicycle statistics they keep of being hauled on their system and if it has increased along with the “petroflation” increase.

What-If Number 2:

What if, this cherry Creek Bike Path feeder bike path was the backbone for the town of Castle Rock to build an interconnected bike path system throughout Castle Rock that feed commuters through the Cherry Creek bike path artery.

What-If Number 3:

What if, you decided to get heart healthy and self propel you whenever possible? What’s it going to take? How high does gasoline have to get before it influences more than your pocket book, which is now at an alarming level!

I propose implementing a new onetime fee on all new commercial building applications to help finance either a ½ or 1 mile of grading and asphalt to construct this path. We can listen to all the grand plans and ideas the town leaders may have on biking Castle Rock and DC but unless they get proactive and actually start a bike path system then use it. Our town will continue to be a town with bike paths, and yes we already have them, but those bike paths start nowhere and go nowhere and are separate from one another making you having to negotiate the roadways, and quite a few of those roadways have no shoulder.

Castle Rock is, like it or not, a bedroom community and if the residents cannot afford to pay these outrageous gas prices they will simply move closer to work, and then what happens to our thriving town if its population moves closer to work? There would be no more Starlight Summer Movie Series, no more downtown summertime, music events and the lighting of the star on Castle Rock? If no one slept or lived here, nobody would see it or miss it.

We need to work together, but the town has to act and start moving in that direction.

What-If Number 4:

What If, we rode bikes as the primary mode of transportation in our daily lives?

What is it going to take?

Then there is highway 85-headed back to the metro area; this is another prime bike path route I may expound upon in future Blogs.

So yesterday was my first day not being an on-line Weight Watchers subscriber and it went well.

Today was Weigh-In Tuesday also July 1. Drum roll please… I am down to 154.5 lbs. 47.5 lbs. disappered, gone, vanished, my goal now is 50 lbs. then I will plateau at 152.

I am going to continue to follow Weight Watchers on do it on my own, we got the point value books to help me. I am going to track it all in an Excel data set in 2 files so we’ll see how it goes. I spent the last week or so time permitting updating my history to match what I had on-line and after a day of tweaking yesterday, I am there. 

2 weeks ago I was on Ride the Rockies while on vacation and ate what I wanted when I wanted but still lost.

This weight chart  and two screenshots below comes from MS Excel.  I’m not sure why every dates weigh-in did not graph as I input it all but you get the idea.  It’s pretty cool, you just initially input your starting weight height and goal on the main spreadsheet then in a sub sheet enter your current weight and it figures it all out automatically.

The BMI tool is too cool, depending where you fall in the range it will tell you if you are too high or OK, the take your heart rate for 10 seconds whenever you want, enter it and it transposes to the main spreadsheet for a 60 second pulse.  I could go on and on, but you have to truly see it in action to really appreciate what it does!