Just isn't fair!
I have ordered a new Macbook Pro laptop using some account money from me teaching (I can't use that money to eat on but I can use it for school stuff). So my prof talks me out of getting the best one 2.4 Ghrz, because he wanted me to save some money for conference travel sometime. Like that will ever happen.
So OK I don't need the best one I get the 2.2 Ghz (it was a struggle not getting the best one). I order it then Matt (using the same kind of account money) orders himself one a week and a half later, but knowing that I got a 2.2 Ghz he intentionally gets the 2.4Ghz just to have better stuff than me! Also he got the same bluetooth wireless mouse that I did for that same reason. This is a regular pattern with him, and a reason that I continually borrow his stuff to make him use mine.
Well turns out that since he ordered a week and half later he got a discount on it and he got his delivered today! While I am still waiting because his was already here. I did manage to get to it before he did and hide it. I told the secretary to tell him that he won't get it until I get mine which she nervously did.
Well as you can tell from the picture he is enjoying it as I type this vitriol, he is even smiling.... I am thinking about doing things to it when he leavers for lunch. It is too bad our skunk is no longer outside I could give his laptop a nice smell.
The other pictures are of Zeke and Judah writing on the dry erase board in the lab, and Tim the new guy's bike after Zeke and I got through with it using mommy's girly stickers.
Here are some piccs from our travels, The first is at home depot where we always have to drive the lawnmowers around. second is Judah after he got in a fight after drawing a powercat on the OU campus, don't feel bad for him you should see the other guy! (actually he was driving his dump truck and it took off without him and he skidded on his face). the 3rd picture is me and the boys playing with Tim's wheelchair (he is a grad student working a thesis about wheelchairs) this thing goes pretty fast, fast enough to scare us anyway.
fighting for colors
Pictured here is my newest garage sale find, yep it is a official shriners hat. Apparently of the Abu Behr clan. Angie was against investing 2 dollars (they started at 3) in such a find but I held out. That night I had a dream that the shriners were coming after me and beating me up because I had one of their hats. turns out you can purchase them easily on ebay, so I have nothing to worry about. I haven't taken a picture yet of Angie with it yet, it might be hard to get her to wear it.
I also put up a picture of Judah practicing his powercat symbol. We see it as very important that the boys learn how to do the powercat before reading or writing and in Norman it is important to write it fast and then run.
X prize
http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2007/09/lunar-rover-mak.html?cid=82758863#comment-82758863
visit this website and you will see a picture of Matt's rover that he built for the X prize people. He called me yesterday saying he just shook hands with the google founder and that buzz aldren was 50 fifty feet away from him.... punk.
our professor has been beating the bushes for funding to send a rover to the moon for years, I wonder if he is thinking about trying this challenge? If that happens I might as well give on graduating for several years.
Mud
The other day I was in charge of the kids for the morning and so I shoved them outside with some water and they made mud with it. I had to put them in the bucket and give them an outside shower before I took them inside.
Remember that analogy about the Christian life where they talk about coming to God as you are and not try to get clean on your own. it goes "you don't clean yourself to take a shower do you" well you do when you are a little boy that is so muddy that going inside would defile the tabernacle. What can I say every analogy breaks down at some point. With kids in mind the analogy should go "your really dirty and Christ has a fire hose, take off your diaper and get washed, it is time to go in to the AC and Popsicles".
The other pictures are of my testing leg, the motor turns the wheel while the Force Torque sensor measures the forces and torques, the circuit board is the amp for the signals from the FT sensor. It works pretty good I think. I have some more stuff to make and get shipped to me.
Buffalo, basement, blimp
So I am digging through my pictures to find ones for the blog, sorry these are the best I have right now. the ones of my new shriners hat (garage sale) are on the other camera.
The buffalo was taken near Lawton OK, the basement is this hole in the floor in our lab with some interesting things down there, we think this is where the cats are coming in from to our lab.
The last is a one man blimp that we spotted while we were garage saleing, it was an enclosed cabin and everything, really cool. I wish I had one.
USS Batfish
I think Angie looks really good in one of those redneck cowgirl hats, I might have to buy her one.
The rest of the pictures are of our trip through muskogee OK to see the USS Batfish WWII submarine. I must say that it was really cool. We walked through for about an hour and marveled at how people lived in there, how they slept with the torpedoes and a air tank 4 inches above their head. Judah and Zeke both really enjoyed pushing all the buttons and grabbing the wheels.
The proprietor met us in the parking lot (not many people there) and gave a us a little talk out in the 100 degree heat, kind of a prerequisite pep talk before we were inundated with all the WWII memorabilia inside the museum building. After the museum we went out back and went into the sub which was really cool. I was impressed with the 4 - 9000 cubic inch diesel engines that charged the batteries, man what a monster truck I could build with that! It was a great lesson for Zeke in history, we look to do a lot more of this for homeschooling.
I always wanted to make a submarine out of a refrigerator, but the people that care for me throughout the years have always discouraged it. I also think that if we ever get past this antigravity thing we should just outfit old submarines for space travel and send them up for the first wave.
They could be missile ready and everything! that is in case we needed it.
