Whew!!! Last week was a full week (on paper it was only 4 days of work, but it seemed like an eternity). If work wasn't enough to keep me busy, my tech situation at home went to the shits. In fact, since the year began, we (Kikukat house) have been besieged by all sorts of technical issues.
At the beginning of the year, D1's hp laptop suddenly was unable to connect wirelessly to the internet. I had an ex-military techie, BC, help out, but even he couldn't figure out what was wrong. In the end, The Help just had her use an Airport Express to hook up.
The second big issue was the Netgear wireless router crapping out. We had to re-load the wireless networks on all of the devices, including the tv (so I could continue watching
CSI: Miami on Netflix).
My beloved Sony Vaio (The Help calls it Sony "Vile") also began giving me trouble. A few months ago I had to wipe it after a virus, and it hasn't been the same since, but last week things seemed extremely sluggish. At the urging of The Help (he kept telling me I could use the hp monitor), I switched teams and bought a Mac Mini. The Mac Mini and hp monitor worked well for a few
hours before the monitor lost function of the magenta color and everything took on a green tinge. Then my efforts went into getting a new monitor, not an easy feat in Hilo. Officemax, that corporate giant, had nothing but a display Acer model. The sales guy reluctantly offered to try and find me the box of the display model. I declined his offer. WalMart had a few odd-sounding brands, save for an hp, which was overpriced (shame, shame). The Help was kind enough to order me a nice monitor from Dell. The shipping to Hawaii was $20, and it arrived within 48 hours.
In the process of trying to transfer old (but important) files from the Vaio to the mac, I found that one of my hard drives is on its deathbed. I am now in the process of trying to find out what is on that drive. Sounds simple, but its been taking hours to even mount the hard drive onto the computer. I'm assuming its a problem with the iomega drive, but it could just be an extension of all the Vaio's ills. I like Sony products, and it makes me sad to think about all the issues I've had with the Vaio.
While all this was happening, D1 was busy too. Not only was it Homecoming week, but the HOSA (Health Occupation Student Association) blood drive was on Wednesday. I allowed D1 to invite her friend KM to spend Tuesday night here. . .the girls had a cheering assignment at a basketball game on Tuesday night and I thought it was an opportunity to give KM's mom a break from having to drive into Hilo to retrieve her. As we were driving home from the basketball game, D1 informed me that the drop off time for the blood drive was not 5:30 am, but 6:00 am! I almost swerved off the road!!! When was she planning on telling me?
Anyway, where I meant to go with that story was that D1's friend was over another time, and I served spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. Her friend loved it, and even D1 had to admit it was pretty darn good. In an effort to eat healthier and cut down on red meat consumption, I made the meatballs with ground chicken instead of ground beef. The shortcut was using a bottled sauce instead of
making my own. We like Ragu Traditional best.
click on recipe title for printable recipe
1 lb ground chicken or beef (can use a little more)
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp finely minced parsley
3/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 c dry bread crumbs
4 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil
Combine chicken (or meat), pepper, salt, garlic and parsley. Add cheese, bread crumbs, and eggs. Form into large marble-sized balls. Heat oil and brown meatballs on all sides. Drain. Serve with pasta and marinara sauce.
Friday night was spent at the Homecoming game. The Rents and CAE were also in attendance. The Vikings beat the Daggers, 51-43. Nice to win your homecoming game!
Okay, this was too good NOT to share. On Saturday, I went to feed my face at the dinner buffet (Thursdays and Saturdays are crab night) at the Sky Garden Restaurant at Imiloa Astronomy Center. I was almost done with my meal when a group of Asian (Japanese?) college-age boys walked in. I couldn't help but notice that two of the boys took more crab than I ever saw fit on one dinner plate. This was AFTER they had raided the other part of the buffet line, which also featured a delicious steak and salt & pepper shrimp. Those boys could pound!!!
 |
| Sky Garden Restaurant at Imiloa Astronomy Center |
Whew!!! Last week was a full week (on paper it was only 4 days of work, but it seemed like an eternity). If work wasn't enough to keep me busy, my tech situation at home went to the shits. In fact, since the year began, we (Kikukat house) have been besieged by all sorts of technical issues.
At the beginning of the year, D1's hp laptop suddenly was unable to connect wirelessly to the internet. I had an ex-military techie, BC, help out, but even he couldn't figure out what was wrong. In the end, The Help just had her use an Airport Express to hook up.
The second big issue was the Netgear wireless router crapping out. We had to re-load the wireless networks on all of the devices, including the tv (so I could continue watching
CSI: Miami on Netflix).
My beloved Sony Vaio (The Help calls it Sony "Vile") also began giving me trouble. A few months ago I had to wipe it after a virus, and it hasn't been the same since, but last week things seemed extremely sluggish. At the urging of The Help (he kept telling me I could use the hp monitor), I switched teams and bought a Mac Mini. The Mac Mini and hp monitor worked well for a few
hours before the monitor lost function of the magenta color and everything took on a green tinge. Then my efforts went into getting a new monitor, not an easy feat in Hilo. Officemax, that corporate giant, had nothing but a display Acer model. The sales guy reluctantly offered to try and find me the box of the display model. I declined his offer. WalMart had a few odd-sounding brands, save for an hp, which was overpriced (shame, shame). The Help was kind enough to order me a nice monitor from Dell. The shipping to Hawaii was $20, and it arrived within 48 hours.
In the process of trying to transfer old (but important) files from the Vaio to the mac, I found that one of my hard drives is on its deathbed. I am now in the process of trying to find out what is on that drive. Sounds simple, but its been taking hours to even mount the hard drive onto the computer. I'm assuming its a problem with the iomega drive, but it could just be an extension of all the Vaio's ills. I like Sony products, and it makes me sad to think about all the issues I've had with the Vaio.
While all this was happening, D1 was busy too. Not only was it Homecoming week, but the HOSA (Health Occupation Student Association) blood drive was on Wednesday. I allowed D1 to invite her friend KM to spend Tuesday night here. . .the girls had a cheering assignment at a basketball game on Tuesday night and I thought it was an opportunity to give KM's mom a break from having to drive into Hilo to retrieve her. As we were driving home from the basketball game, D1 informed me that the drop off time for the blood drive was not 5:30 am, but 6:00 am! I almost swerved off the road!!! When was she planning on telling me?
Anyway, where I meant to go with that story was that D1's friend was over another time, and I served spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. Her friend loved it, and even D1 had to admit it was pretty darn good. In an effort to eat healthier and cut down on red meat consumption, I made the meatballs with ground chicken instead of ground beef. The shortcut was using a bottled sauce instead of
making my own. We like Ragu Traditional best.
click on recipe title for printable recipe
1 lb ground chicken or beef (can use a little more)
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp finely minced parsley
3/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 c dry bread crumbs
4 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil
Combine chicken (or meat), pepper, salt, garlic and parsley. Add cheese, bread crumbs, and eggs. Form into large marble-sized balls. Heat oil and brown meatballs on all sides. Drain. Serve with pasta and marinara sauce.
Friday night was spent at the Homecoming game. The Rents and CAE were also in attendance. The Vikings beat the Daggers, 51-43. Nice to win your homecoming game!
Okay, this was too good NOT to share. On Saturday, I went to feed my face at the dinner buffet (Thursdays and Saturdays are crab night) at the Sky Garden Restaurant at Imiloa Astronomy Center. I was almost done with my meal when a group of Asian (Japanese?) college-age boys walked in. I couldn't help but notice that two of the boys took more crab than I ever saw fit on one dinner plate. This was AFTER they had raided the other part of the buffet line, which also featured a delicious steak and salt & pepper shrimp. Those boys could pound!!!
|
| Sky Garden Restaurant at Imiloa Astronomy Center |
In the process of trying to transfer old (but important) files from the Vaio to the mac, I found that one of my hard drives is on its deathbed. I am now in the process of trying to find out what is on that drive. Sounds simple, but its been taking hours to even mount the hard drive onto the computer. I'm assuming its a problem with the iomega drive, but it could just be an extension of all the Vaio's ills. I like Sony products, and it makes me sad to think about all the issues I've had with the Vaio.
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