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Four Weeks Old It has been four weeks. In the quiet times, when...

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:16:00 -0700

Four Weeks Old

It has been four weeks. In the quiet times, when there is a chance for reflection, time seems to have passed by rapidly. At other times, especially during the crying spells, time seems to move glacially. Either way, it still amounts to four weeks. Mia is now four weeks old.

Things Learned

There are only so many books you can read, so many stories you can hear from others who’ve been through it, to prepare you for a child. I’m sure what we’ve learn is contained in a book, a web site, or a friend’s story, but nonetheless here are a few things we’ve learned:

Crying doesn’t always mean she is hungry. Sometimes she just want to be held, especially at 3am.
Baby acne just happens. Seriously, it wasn’t the gangely beard I grew that caused her face or arm rash.
Changing one diaper can rapidly digress into changing three diapers.
During a diaper change, if her butt is angled correctly, she can project a poo stream a good foot away. Yeah, it happened. Luckily I was beside of her when it did.
She’s not cross-eyed. She’s just trying to focus at something far away. Whew!
Hiccups happen. It seems to not bother Mia as much as us.
It’s probably wise to do a load of laundry a day, both for yourself and the baby.
Amazon.com is a great site. It is especially great for subscription services. You can subscribe to diapers, wipes, etc. It’s convenient and saves some money as well.
Another good site is Diapers.com. I had to call their customer service because of a missed shipment. They were very quick in correcting the issue. They also ship as quick as Amazon does.
The Baby Geek app for the iPhone / iPad has been very helpful.

The Cuteness

There are many cute things Mia does. I’ve tried to capture the moments on video, but sometimes it’s not possible. Here are a few that I don’t want to forget about:

After she sneezes, Mia lets out this exhaustive sigh, as if the sneeze took every ounce of energy she had.
When Mia wakes up, she stretches multiple times, contorting her body in an “S” shape, getting the most out each consecutive stretch.
She can lift her own head when doing the over-the-shoulder burp. This makes it difficult to hold her at times.
From time-to-time she makes an “O” shape with her mouth, as if she’s about to say something. As long as it’s not crying, it’s good.
She sleeps with her arms raised as if she’s crossing a finish line.

I’m sure the future holds more to come, both in learning and cuteness.

Searching for Answers? Ask Facebook Questions

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:00:47 -0700

Searching for Answers? Ask Facebook Questions:

I’ve used the other “ask question” services only sparingly, such as formspring.me and tumblr. Facebook’s implementation may work better since everyone seems to be on Facebook.

San Jose’s Japantown bucks the recession I haven’t...

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 17:58:49 -0700

San Jose’s Japantown bucks the recession

I haven’t been to San Jose’s Japantown in a long time. Perhaps it’s time for a visit.

Green Lantern Characters Revealed in New Character Posters |...

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 15:56:45 -0700

Green Lantern Characters Revealed in New Character Posters | /Film

I’m not liking the Green Lantern movie posters. I got a bad feeling about this superhero film as well. I hope I’m wrong.

GPOMW - First Week Photo Edition Now I understand why so few...

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 10:16:00 -0700

GPOMW - First Week Photo Edition

Now I understand why so few photos are taken during the first few weeks of a baby’s birth. First off, the baby is often asleep. Seriously, there are only so many photos you can take of a sleeping baby. I suppose you can take photos in various outfits, but nonetheless they are still sleeping. The second reason so few photos are taken is that you - the parents - are really freakin’ exhausted! So when your baby is awake, and you have you’re camera ready, capturing the moment in a photo is a gem.

This photo of Mia was taken on July 8, 2010. At this point she was one week old. She was very active for a few hours before falling asleep once more.

coconut chocolate chip bread pudding. This looks worth...

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 07:00:43 -0700

coconut chocolate chip bread pudding.

This looks worth trying.

(via edatrix)

I’m seriously hoping “The Avengers” movie...

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 18:02:00 -0700

I’m seriously hoping “The Avengers” movie doesn’t suck. But it has great potential to do so.

(via agentmlovestacos):

The Avengers! From the @Marvel Studios panel at Comic-Con (L-R): Robert Downey Jr., Clark Gregg, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, director Joss Whedon and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige.

Iron Man, Agent Coulson, Black Widow, Thor, Captain America, Nick Fury, Hawkeye and Hulk. Boom. We win. Another photo and more details on Marvel.com.

Red Cliff - Theatrical Version The Netflix synopsis: When a...

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 15:00:00 -0700

Red Cliff - Theatrical Version

The Netflix synopsis: When a warmongering prime minister (Fengyi Zhang) advances his armies against two rival kingdoms, he unwittingly prompts his adversaries (Chen Chang and Yong You) to work together in this martial arts action-adventure. The ensuing conflict culminates in the epic battle of Red Cliff, a struggle by the sea involving more than one million soldiers.

My Take: A John Woo film without guns isn’t bad. And it doesn’t hurt to have Tony Leung in the cast. I was captivated by the story. But I wished it was fleshed out more. I then realized there is a longer two-part original version available. Albeit it is four hours long, versus 148 minute for theatrical version I watched. I think the trade-off would be worth the extra effort, especially on blu-ray.

Rating: Matinee

Whiteout The Netflix synopsis: “The lone U.S. marshal at a...

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 10:00:00 -0700

Whiteout

The Netflix synopsis: “The lone U.S. marshal at a research station in Antarctica, Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale) stumbles upon the continent’s first murder victim. With only three days left until the sun sets for six months, Carrie races to solve the complex mystery before darkness falls.”

My Take: Unfortunately, Whiteout was a weak mystery-thriller where you could predict the culprit(s) in the first 10 minutes. The only saving grace of the movie has going for it is the Antarctic setting and the Kate Beckinsale shower scene. I’m guess the latter was added due to the overall dullness of the movie. The source material must have better.

Rating: Cable TV

I miss the rain a little bit. (via laureolaibri, ausgruenden)

Sat, 24 Jul 2010 18:01:42 -0700

I miss the rain a little bit. (via laureola ibri, ausgruenden)

Rick Astley and Morrissey? Wow. (via thedailywhat): From The...

Sat, 24 Jul 2010 14:58:43 -0700

Rick Astley and Morrissey? Wow.

(via thedailywhat):

From The Archives: There is a light and it never gives you up: Rick Astley and Morrissey, backstage at Top Of The Pops in London, c. February 1989.

[timemachinego.]

I always pictured Clint Eastwood as Batman in The Dark Knight...

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 18:27:54 -0700

I always pictured Clint Eastwood as Batman in The Dark Knight Returns.

GPOYW is GPOMW to Me GPOYW - Gratuitous Picture Of Yourself...

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 07:00:00 -0700

Mia Bee

Mia in her crib with flash cards

Mia Bee - different angle

Mia Bee - another angle

GPOYW is GPOMW to Me

GPOYW - Gratuitous Picture Of Yourself Wednesday - is a tumblr tradition I’ve never participated in. But I think I’ll start, but change it up to be GPOMW - Gratuitous Picture Of Mia Wednesday. Let’s be honest, I’ll post photos of Mia anyway. So why not make it an every Wednesday occurrence?

For the inaugural post, I’m using a few photos. The above series of photos were taken in Mia’s newly built crib on July 13, 2010. Mia’s cousin Kayla help me put the crib together earlier in the day. So we placed Mia down for a test run. In a few photos, she is laying next to a Bee flash card, which represents one of the nicknames we gave her and often call her by.

NASA SDO AIA - July 20, 2010 Flare I don’t understand what...

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 15:38:02 -0700

NASA SDO AIA - July 20, 2010 Flare

I don’t understand what is said about this clip, but it looks incredible.

Repeated activation of a filament in what looks like a decayed, dispersed small active region. One of the activations is associated with a flare, with post-eruption arcade. The corona SE of the region appears to dim and/or change thermal structure for a considerable time after the eruption.

Credit: NASA SDO / Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company AIA

Mia getting ready for her first pediatric appointment.

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 09:03:01 -0700

Mia getting ready for her first pediatric appointment.

Would you call this a hairography of the...

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 23:33:19 -0700

Would you call this a hairography of the Beatles?

(via thedailywhat):

Infographic of the Day: “A History Of The Beatles As Told By Their Hair” by deviantARTist mozzarellapoppy.

RIP John & George.

[deviantart.]

I plan on watching Tron Legacy. But enough of this 3D stuff...

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 10:38:42 -0700

I plan on watching Tron Legacy. But enough of this 3D stuff already.

(via suicideblonde):

Olivia Wilde in Tron

Star Wars Subway Car Another Star Wars post! For more...

Sun, 18 Jul 2010 19:39:44 -0700

Star Wars Subway Car

Another Star Wars post! For more information on how Improv Everywhere pulled off this stunt, see their page.

Warranties

Sun, 18 Jul 2010 14:38:33 -0700

I seem to be having problems with the appliances lately. Last week, the Sony LCD television we bought just last year has decided to go on the fritz. Weird horizontal lines started appearing in the image, as well as ghosting. And just a few days ago a small part of our Whirlpool dryer, also purchased last year, broke. The part is key in enabling the door to latch closed.

Luckily both are still under warranty, but just barely.

I was surprised how (somewhat) easy it was to get help with the Sony television. In Google, I put in “Sony television repair” which took me to Sony’s online support. I filled out the relevant questions and was given one of two choices: (1) have an authorized Sony repair person come out to service the set, or (2) receive a similar replacement via UPS. Sony’s site was pushing the latter option, so I took it. A refurbished replacement was sent and received - a Sony XBR9 versus the XBR7 it was replacing. It’s a nice television set.

But now I think it was a mistake to go this route.

I have to now box up the old television set, and lug it down to UPS to send back. I have a deadline of 15 days to do this in or I will be charged for the replacement set. It sounds like a good deal. But boxing up the old television wasn’t exactly easy. At least televisions nowadays don’t way 50 plus pounds like an old Sony set we have in another room.

Getting the dryer fixed was a straightforward service call. It wasn’t great being on hold for 10 minutes before anyone picked up the phone at Whirlpool. but at last we have a service call scheduled. The part looks small and simple to replace. I’m hoping it doesn’t turn into something more than it appears to be.

Of the two methods to receive service for a product purchased, I think I prefer online support than over the phone. Filling out an actually form, and being able to print out the results, made me feel more confident in getting proper service than actually calling someone. Plus, Sony offered a ticket number and a follow-up toll free number to call if I had further questions. Whirlpool’s support didn’t appear to be anything more than a poor ticketing service. I wasn’t so confident giving my details to the person on the other end, who repeatedly asked me to spell every bit of information I gave him.

The Dyson Air Multiplier Balloon Track These little fans cost a...

Sun, 18 Jul 2010 04:19:43 -0700

The Dyson Air Multiplier Balloon Track

These little fans cost a bit, so reproducing this trick would get very expensive. But they do look like cool fans.

(found via Unplggd)