Today was a rather quite day.Nothing exceptional going on. Nancy and I finished programing the new TiVo machine. Nancy learned to use all of the controls from the remote. Now she can do the recording, deleting, and playing of programs from the hard drive -all on her own. She never used the old machine. I think we'll get more use out of this one, since it is in a downstairs location and a little more convenient. The lifetime subscription eliminates the monthly fee that we had been paying. All in all, a good purchase. TiVo rules as a DVR, in my opinion.

I did manage to take my afternoon walk today. I try to take a walk of around two and a half miles, several days a week. I saw the Westies, Eddy and Wiggy, while on my walk. Carlene, their caretaker, walked with me awhile and told me stories about how difficult it is to train Westies. She once hired someone to train Wiggy. It was costing her thirty dollars for a half hour of obedience training - to no avail. Wiggy befuddled the trainer and basically continued to do things his way. So, she gave up and decided to get a second dog to keep Wiggy company - and hopefully to be a positive influence. That's when Eddy came on the scene. That didn't work either, as Wiggy taught Eddy some of his bad habits. Now both Wiggy and Eddy do pretty much whatever they want - and that seems to work fine for them - maybe not so great for Carlene, but the dogs seem to be real happy. Carlene has decided to just let them be - you know, Wiggy and Eddy. Both of their pictures are on my "Dog Wall of Fame" - in my garage. They're special animals. Soon there will be a cat picture added to the "Dog Wall of Fame" (Baby Face). I know, it sounds strange, but Baby Face is a special cat and she is deserving of being included. She'll be the only cat that I add to the collection.

More about that tomorrow...

I just finished watching "Friday Night Lights". It is one of my favorite new shows for the fall season - along with "Studio Sixty". Texas football is in a league of its own and "Friday" does an interesting job of depicting the sport from a Texas mindset. As for "Studio Sixty", I feel that it provides viewers with some of the best writing that is currently on television. "West Wing", same producers as "Studio Sixty" and recently cancelled, was another favorite of mine.

Tomorrow is suppose to be a pretty good day, weather-wise. Maybe we'll plan something special to do for the afternoon? We'll have to see...

Guest Blogger - Sir Thomas Henry

Mr. Davis has invited me to be his guest blogger for the day. Today we visited a Chinese Supermarket and then had lunch at the New China Buffet, very yummy. We especially enjoyed having grilled meats and fish. We also ate lots of vegetables and fruit. I even managed to eat some ice cream with chopsticks, most amazing.

Before lunch I went to a cellular store near the Chinese Supermarket and had my cell phone unlocked so now I can purchase a prepaid Chinese sim card that I can use to make local calls when I go to China. I tested out the phone by using Mr. Davis's sim card, and wow, it worked.

After lunch I drove over to Mr. Davis's house and we worked on setting up his TiVo box (with the lifetime subscription). I should mention this box used to be at my house, and now it has a new home. It is working ok so far, no guarantees.

I just sent an email to Lady Wendy in Chengdu, China, and attached a photo of me typing the message.

Now we are just about to have dinner, soup and sandwich. I am having a meatball sandwich, Jim is having prime rib sandwich and Nancy is having a turkey sandwich. Nancy was out running errands on a very rainy and she was kind enough to pick up our soup and sandwich. Thank you Nancy.

Okkkkkkkkkkk, that's it for today.

Signing off, Sir Thomas

Searching for Accessories

The search for accessories for the master bedroom continues. I've been looking for throw rugs to put next to the bed and near the bathroom entrance and today I came across a rug with the right color for that particular area. I also found the frames that I intend to purchase for the back wall. I still have to add the prints that I need for the frames. After searching online for prints, I've found a site that has the size and style of print that I think will compliment the frames that I found at Aaron Brothers Art Mart. So, today some progress has been made towards completing the final look of the master bedroom. I also added a cordless phone to the nightstand by the bed and set up remote on/off/dimming switches for the room lighting. Next will be the addition of a sound system for the room. I need to ponder just what I want to use to add music to the room, before I design the system. I may use my iPod for that purpose. More on that later...

A Good Day to Watch Oscars

Today it was rainy, cool and rather windy in Sacramento. A good day to light the fireplace, turn on the TV, and take in the Academy Awards. From watching the awards I know there will be several movies that we'll want to see on DVD. "The Departed" will probably be the first one, but "Babel" and "The Queen" look to be equally interesting. As I mentioned in a previous blog, last week we went to see "Notes from a Scandal". I really like that movie, but it didn't come away with an Oscar. We'll also want to see "Dreamgirls", and some others, so our movie viewing list is rather long. I can think of another half dozen movies that could also be added to the list for future viewing. I guess we'll just have to make some time for catching up on last year's flicks.

I plan to take Jose's picture to "The Broiler" this week. I'm not sure that he'll be working at the time I drop it off, but I can follow up to make sure he gets his photo. The 13 by 19 size is impressive and I always like to provide a frame when I give someone one of my large photos. It is difficult to find 13 by 19 frames; especially for a reasonable price. It's an odd size. I have an online source that I order from and I usually purchase enough frames to last around six months, or thereabouts. I've attached a picture of the 13 by 19 that I'm giving to Jose. Take a look!

To update, in regards to our visit Wednesday to The Broiler in downtown Sacramento, I have just finished touching up and printing the picture I took of Jose (our host). I enlarged the photo to 13 by 19 and printed it on Canon Photo Pro paper. I will put it in a frame tomorrow. I hope to get it to Jose by Wednesday of this week. I'm almost certain that he will be pleased. It's not that it is such a well composed picture (although the setting did capture the photo on the wall that shows the Broiler sign from the old location...a nice touch), it's more about the size of the print and the detail that comes with such a large photograph. I used my Canon ip9900, the best printer that I have ever owned. It can print a 13 by 19 in about the same about of time that an Epson or HP printer takes to do a 4 by 6. The Canon is fast and accurate - with vivid colors and excellent details. Mine is an older model, but I plan to keep it awhile longer before purchasing one of the latest models, such as those shown at this year's CES in Vegas. At this point , I'm certain that I will replace it with another Canon printer. It makes an amateur photographer, such as myself, look like a pro.

Nancy and I are still "in the hunt" for the master bedroom pictures. No luck today. Maybe we'll find them tomorrow?

Today Nancy and I went shopping for some pictures to hang in the master bedroom. I took lots of cellphone shots of various prints that we came across during our visit to The Home Store, Big Lots and WalMart. We like to check the photos when we return home. It provides a better visualization of how the item will look in the room. My LG CU500 cellphone does a good job of taking indoor pictures, even though it doesn't have a flash. As I mentioned, in the prior blog, we're not looking for expensive prints. We just want something that has a frame that compliments the bedroom furniture and a print that has colors that don't clash with the bedspread. Oh, and here is the difficult part. We have to agree on the choice. Compromise - the essence of being married! So far, no luck in finding what we think will suit our needs. However, we did find a lamp for the dresser. So, the lighting is pretty much completed. We'll pursue the task of finding the right pictures over the weekend.

Phase 2 - Master Bedroom

I've started my search for accessories to go in the bedroom. This phase of the project takes some time. There are lots of products made specifically for bedrooms, but narrowing things down to what is needed to "complete" the style you're attempting to create is somewhat of a challenge. Currently I am focusing on adding a couple of prints for the back wall. It seems that when I see a picture that might work, the print doesn't go with the frame that encases it. I don't plan on buying anything very expensive, just something that is pleasant to view when you enter the room. I will continue the search over the weekend and hope to come across something that I feel will be suitable. I also need to look for window coverings to replace the drapes that were removed when we did the makeover. The windows currently have mini blinds, but no curtains. I'm considering using shutters this time around. There are a lot of new designs available. That should make things interesting.