I am in process of scanning a large stack of family photos. I came across a vintage Christmas Card:
I find a couple things very remarkable:
In contrast, here is mine from this year.
Here is a screenshot of AccuWeather’s iPhone app last month during a snow storm that we had in Cincinnati. This storm was very interesting because some weatherman said anywhere from 2” to 6” depending how it tracked. AccuWeather usually is the tabloid weather forecaster and usually predicts gloom; however, this time I think it was just a typo. About a week later, they updated their app. It really lost its feng shui. The pivoted alarms table was awesome…the columns could be ice, snow, wind, rain, etc. It was great summary of what/when.
My eight year old son got a Jedi Force Trainer for Christmas. Here is the marketing literature:
May the Force be with you. The Force Trainer by Uncle Milton actually allows you to control a Jedi Training Remote with your mind, by tapping into cutting-edge brainwave technology. Utilizing dry EEG sensor technology, the headset reads and interprets your brainwaves. The deeper your concentration and mental focus, the greater your ability to move the Training Remote up or down the Training Tower. Progress from Padawan to Jedi Master as you master the use of “The Force” through 15 levels of training. Increasingly challenging sequences are aided by training cues and instruction from the master of all Jedi Masters himself, Yoda. Additional STAR WARS sound effects confirm accomplishment and provide encouragement throughout your training. Advancement and current level of your training is displayed on the Training Tower control panel.
The other day we got it out for the first time. First of all, it is a battery hog. 6 AA’s and 3 AAA’s are required. The headset is a little difficult to fit to get the sensors on skin and not hair (except for me). The first level just kinda happens. We haven’t really figured out to get beyond the second or third level. There appears to be little or no correlation to “state of mind” or brain waves. It seems to be entirely random…but it might too early to cast that harsh of a judgment. If you have a child that loves Star Wars and has some ADD tendencies…it is great ploy to get them to stay still for long periods of time. What is a little disappointing is the LED read outs. I feel like it is a throw back to the 80’s. You have to translate the lit pattern in the provided manual. My guess is that my son will get easily bored with it. But all in all, it does a have a certain entertainment value…more like a drinking game.
Googling about it, I found some interesting geek articles. An interesting post is on http://www.clockworkrobot.com/jedi/. He shares the results of some reverse engineering. Hack A Day has really good post about using the output to compose music…a project called Mental Note.
Less than 1 week after fixing my wife’s iPhone, she cracked it again. This time it is not as bad. It more of an inconvenience rather than a “safety hazard.” I don’t mind fixing it again but my biggest concern now is the screws. They are very tiny and are very easy to strip. So when I order the new screen off of eBay, I need to look for some replacement screws. I betcha Apple uses new screws every time they crack open the case.
I just got this today about Cincinnati’s annual Catholic Men’s conference: Answer The Call (http://thecall.org). It looks like they haven’t updated their website yet.
The 2011 ANSWER THE CALL CATHOLIC MEN’S CONFERENCE will be held Saturday, April 16, 2011 from 8:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. at Good Shepherd Parish in Montgomery, OH, northeast of Cincinnati.
The speakers listed below are for the Men’s “Answer the Call” Conference
Brother Loughlan Sofield, S.T., is a Missionary Servant of the Most Holy Trinity, and an accomplished speaker, author and professor. He is Senior Editor of Human Development magazine, been recognized for his work on the laity, and is co-author of numerous books. Brother Sofield has served on the faculty or lectured at many universities around the world, most recently in the area of clergy education. Brother Sofield has consulted with over 200 dioceses on five continents.
Fr. Mark Burger is pastor of Visitation parish in western Cincinnati. He has been recognized at earlier conferences as one of the most impactful presenters. He will lead us into a deeper relationship with Christ and guide us through the Reconciliation Service.
Fr. Anthony Brausch is a priest of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. He was ordained in 2002. Fr. Brausch teaches philosophy at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary of the West in Cincinnati. Fr. Brausch did his studies in philosophy in Rome from 2004-2008. Fr. Brausch has served as parochial vicar and, subsequently, administrator of Our Lady of the Visitation Parish; he has taught at Elder High School where he still serves as the chaplain for the Elder Football Team; and he is the weekend celebrant at St. Margaret of York Parish.
For the last several years, the conference has been at Cincinnati’s Music Hall. This year, Music Hall is unavailable due to scheduling and renovation. Also, they have scaled down the conference due to shear man power to staff the event. I really hope that this annual event remains a tradition here in Cincinnati.
Although I have attended the last three years, I found the 2008 conference especially moving. Fr. Phillip Chavez and Brian Kelly were very moving. You can listen online here.
Due to limited budget, we didn’t send these out to everyone we know. 
However, this is my favorite Christmas Card to date. I think the reason is it so very appropriate. After my third child, life got a little faster.
We had it printed via Vista Print. Single fold card with envelop around $0.40 per card.
Front
You might recognize the Google Calendar in the background. Although those are real calendar entries but they didn’t all occur in a week (basketball and baseball are not at the same time). However, we typically have crazy weeks like that. We often “divide and conquer.” The kids were shot against a white back muslin that was later photoshopped out.
Inside
This was a challenging picture. The lighting had to just perfect. I used a black muslin backdrop. The basket has a string of Christmas lights. Notice: I had to feed the cord through the basket so that it didn’t loop over the edge of the basket. In addition, I think there was a Matchbox car or two for the little guy to look at it. I bet I took over 50 pictures to get this one. Many outtakes.
