Weekend Wrap-up

Maia gets to visit with her Aunt Ellen and 3 cousins, fresh off the plane from Rhode Island.

7 out of 8 isn't bad.

Rebecca and Sara made a bourbon peach upside-down cake.

We threw a small yogi party for Sara's return.

Review Day

There are no major spoilers in these reviews.

Arrested Development, Season Five, Part One:
This batch of 8 episodes is far better than the fourth season, but still not on par with the originals. The characters are all in the same room much more often leading to funnier jokes and reactions. The plot boldly picks up right after season four but there are enough flashbacks to refresh your memory so you don't have to rewatch it. I enjoyed the general silliness, although I felt Gob and Tobias were surprisingly overused this time around and I'm not totally sure where the plot is heading (8 more episodes are due later this year to close out the season).

Final Grade: B-

Brother HL-L2370DWXL Laser Printer:
I got this printer after the lightning storm fried my Dell workhorse. The key ingredients I look for in a laser printer are automated duplex printing and a wired Ethernet port. This printer worked right away with minimal configuration and warms up quickly when coming out of hibernation. It's somewhat loud when printing, but not a dealbreaker. I've heard that Brother printers are a little ruthless about toner replacement, but have not printed enough things to experience this.

Final Grade: B+

EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 SC2 (08G-P4-6583-KR):
I got this card to replace the lightning-fried GTX 960 I used to have -- I splurged a bit after work reimbursed me for $1000 worth of AWS certifications. I can run all basic (pancake) games at ultra settings without any dips, and can finally experience some sharp visuals in intense VR games like The Climb, which previously maxed out at about 40 FPS on the lowest graphic settings. Another plus: the fan is normally quiet, but has a consistent noise when running -- none of the annoying "ghost" wavering that some older cards exhibited.

Final Grade: B+ (Would be an A if it were about $100 cheaper)

Dusty Rainbow From the Dark by Wax Tailor:
This concept album by French trip hip-hop (trhip-hop) artist, Wax Tailor, is very cool in a conceptual kind of way. A good example is the track, Time To Go. A variety of soundscapes interspersed with light storytelling result in a cohesive sound that's fun to listen to, if not great for the foreground. It also comes with a 2nd CD featuring all of the tracks as instrumentals, which is nearly as good. This is not my favourite CD ever, but I appreciate that people are still making music like this instead of the neverending line of sterilized singles.

Final Grade: B

Memory Day: Snapshots

This picture was taken two years ago today, on August 15, 2016. Maia did not yet exist.

On our way out of Boulder, Colorado towards Estes Park, we stopped for lunch at the original Oskar Blues for beer flights. These massively American-looking meals were our lunch for the day. Clearly we were bulking up for our attempt at hiking a 14er in the coming weeks. I was also on a mac and cheese kick, ordering mac and cheese at every restaurant that had it in Colorado, in hopes of finding the best one. Although no restuarant's serving was the winner, I won by getting to eat a lot of mac and cheese.

In the evening on this same day, we went hiking at Rocky Mountain National Park and made some furry friends.

Chad Darnell's 12 of 12

12 pictures of your day on the 12th of every month

8:12 AM: Up and at 'em, much later than normal.

8:22 AM: Bagel for breakfast.

10:09 AM: Good morning!

10:49 AM: Rebecca comes home from morning yoga.

11:17 AM: Doing some much needed lines in the yard between thunderstorms.

12:10 PM: Hair is cut for another three weeks.

1:00 PM: Family music time.

3:55 PM: Naptime concludes.

5:06 PM: Car travels.

5:28 PM: Early dinner at Burton's.

7:34 PM: Amber only has one upper canine tooth now, but still enjoys sitting next to Rebecca when she's eating frozen custard.

8:19 PM: Bathtime!

List Day: 5 More New Parent Inventions

A follow-up to this post

• Sink n' Grow: A nanotechnology-based home where the floors get lower as the baby gets taller, so you don't have to keep moving everything on the low shelves just a few more inches out of reach.


• Edible Batteries: AA Batteries made from a non-toxic, cruelty-free, gluten-free substance that eliminate the need for that annoying tiny screw protecting every battery alcove on every electronic toy.


• Camo-food: Augmented Reality glasses for baby that make the boring dinner puree look exactly like whatever complex carbohydrate undigestable nonsense dad is eating.


• Musical Downloadable Content (DLC): Extend your sanity by downloading new songs into your musical toys so you never have to hear Violet's "Morning Song" ever again.


• Amazon One Hour Delivery Baby Gear: Never pack a baby bag when leaving the house again. Simply set up a list of common needs (stroller, high chair, pack n' play, etc.) and tell Alexa where you're heading when you leave the house. Amazon will deliver low-quality, recyclable versions of these supplies to your destination, be it a trip to Target, a friend's house for dinner, or all of the motels on your road trip.