November 27, 2011

Thanksgiving 2011


Thanksgiving 2011
Shortarmguy's Diary Update for November 27, 2011


Twas the night before Thanksgiving and we weren't sure what to do.  So we went to the Mall of America and Waterpark of America, but it twas not that thrilling.


On Thanksgiving, we were invited by my bosses, Dr. Bollig and his lovely wife Cynthia, to join them and their family for a most succulent feast.  And a few cocktails to boot!


Cynthia's Dad, Ron, cooked up a massive bird for us all to enjoy.  This picture doesn't do it justice, because that was a huge turkey!


After Ron brought in the bird, the men instantly rushed to line-up and start loading their plate with all the awesome food that was available to us.


While the husbands were distracted by the food, Ron went back to bask in the glory from all the women who were eager to pay their respects to the "Turkey Man"!


After our meal, Dr. Bollig said he wanted to take us out for some "Rhino Rides".  I had no clue what terror I was about to experience!

Here's the video of my crying like a little girl begging him to stop:



Lucky for us, we all survived the rides.  I did take one tree branch in the gut pretty good, but no blood was drawn.  The turkey in my belly may have been stirred up a bit, but that was probably a good thing.


Later that evening, David took us outside to show us his telescope.  He said we were looking at Jupiter and 4 of it's moons, but it honestly just liked a few white dots to me.  I'm thinking he may have just poured some salt on the lens and told us we were looking at Jupiter.


All in all, we had a great holiday and a lot of fun with the Bollig's family and friends.  It showed us that we truly do have a lot to be thankful for in 2011!


At the end of the evening, a nice man named George came up to me and said he occasionally visits my website and likes it, but he was a bit disappointed that I never have photos of me with Miss Sheri.  So he took this photo for me.  I'm sure thankful I have such a good wife also!

We thought it would be fun to get an early jump on Black Friday and went to Walmart for their 10PM opening.  Then we walked in and saw this.  So we left without buying anything.  We liked it better when Black Friday actually happened on Friday.


On Black Friday, our old friends the Zitzewitzes came over for Dinner.  But they didn't wear Black.  So we didn't either.

Riding the Rhino with Dr. Bollig

On Thanksgiving 2011, we spent the day with my boss, Dr. Bollig. He thought it would be fun to take us for some Rhino Rides through the woods. Needless to say, I was pretty scared about the potential of getting my eyes poked out by a stray tree branch.





Luke Swank Channels His Inner Ozzy Osbourne

November 26, 2011

Ditto Christmas Decorations

Harry Potter VS Pepper Spray Cop

Coolest Wine Cellar Ever


Although I'd be a bit nervous having a glass floor in my kitchen, it sure would be fun having access to this much wine so close!






Mieders Alpine Coaster (with no brakes!!)

David Ellis says this is a single-pipe alpine coaster in Mieders, Austria. You reach the summit via a cablecar and then sit on a small car with a brake lever and off you go.



New Mars Lander Shoots off from Earth Today

Since my boys have joined their Middle School Robotics Club, I've become fascinated with anything robotics related.  So today's Mars Lander Launch really caught my eye.


I saw this post on Robots.net that showed a really cool video simulating the Lander and it's mission on Mars.  Here's the link:  http://robots.net/article/3275.html


Here's an excerpt from the post:


One of the biggest steps in space exploration, the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) named Curiosity was launched today with an Atlas V 541 vehicle and it is now on its way to Mars. The Curiosity rover is similar in size and weight to a small car and it will be the largest spacecraft to ever land on Mars. A very elaborate landing procedure not only enables it to reach safely the Martian surface but also to land in a relatively tight spot whith great geological interest. The mission cost approximately 2.5 billion dollars and it was scheduled for launch in 2009 but various delays forced NASA to abort that goal. The optimum launch window when Mars and Earth are in the relative position that makes the trip as short as possible occurs every two years so two years after 2009 it is now the time for launch. The primary mission will last one Martian year (98 earth weeks) and if the rover is operational it could be further extended for much more. Landing sequence is scheduled for August 2012. Go To Robots.net for more details.


Here's video of what the MSL is going to look like:




The Cat in the Cobra Pose

November 21, 2011

Lemon Breasted Turkey Recipe

Happy Thanksgiving!!


Here is a recipe I thought you would like for the holidays!


Ingredients: 


1 whole turkey 
1 large lemon, cut into halves 
salt and pepper to taste 
butter or olive oil, whichever you prefer 


Heat oven to 350 degrees.  


Rub butter or oil over the skin of the turkey until it is completely coated.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and any other seasonings you prefer. Take a knife and gently separate the skin from the breast meat; Slide lemon halves under the skin with the peel side up, one on each side. This way the juice from the lemon will release into the breasts. 


Cover and bake for 30-45 minutes. 


Remove cover and continue to roast until juices run clear, basting every 15-20 minutes. 


If you've followed these steps correctly, your turkey should look like the one in the picture. 


Bon Appetit!







Bob

This short video is really cute.  Reminded me of a Pixar Film!  It's about a Hamster and it's about Desire...


BOB from Jacob Frey on Vimeo.
Make sure to watch the film past the credits, enjoy!

After running on over 100 festivals BOB finally reached Vimeo with his little running wheel. We would like to thank everyone who enjoyed the film, voted for us on festivals and gave us a laugh during the screenings. It's an incredible feeling to make people happy.

This was the first time we created an 3d animated movie during our studies at the Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg and we would have never thought that it became that successful.
There are a lot of things we would have done differently nowadays but for a small team, six months and almost no knowledge of the software, we are proud with the result and finally want to share it with everyone.

Credits:
BOB: Tom Zahner
student producer: Anna Matacz
director: Jacob Frey & Harry Fast
script: Jacob Frey & Stefanie Ren
character design: Harry Fast
lighting & rendering: Michael Lederhuber
music: Karol Obara
sounddesign: Marco Manzo

for further info check out www.bob-film.com and leave us a comment in our guestbook.




Video: Braking hard on the stage floor carpet.

November 20, 2011

First Snow of 2011


First Snow of 2011

Shortarmguy's Diary Update for November 20, 2011


Mystic Lake Casino has a brand new multimedia display outside on their big road sign and I learned this week that they used a couple graphics servers I designed for them to power the video.  Therefore, I find it to be the coolest sign I've ever seen in my entire life!


It certainly felt like Christmas was in the air this weekend.  Not only did we get our first snowfall of the season, but we also had the opportunity to help Boy Scout Troop 331 set up their delivery of wreaths and Christmas trees for their annual Christmas Tree Lot Fundraiser in Prior Lake.


There were a lot of boxes of Christmas Wreaths to be unloaded and sorted.  Avery and Aaron stayed in this position for about 15 minutes because neither one of them wanted to be the guy who had to walk backwards.


Luke seemed like he was helping out quite a bit, but in all actuality was probably walking around in a circle for an hour or so with the same wreath.  He's our little Lolly Gagger.


After our tree lot obligations were complete, we decided to take the boys and a couple of friends bowling in Eden Prairie.  Naturally, that's when the first snowfall of the season started to fall.  I read online that 200 car accidents happened in the Twin Cities around the time that we made our venture to the bowling alley.  Lucky for us, we weren't in one of them.


The boys seemed to have a lot of fun playing their first game, but by the middle of the second game we found ourselves needing to drag them out of the arcade to take their turns.  I guess bowling just doesn't thrill the kids the way it used to back in my day!


Although the snow was pretty slippery on the roads, Avery discovered there really wasn't much to make a snowman.  He insisted to me that he created a really small one and was trying to show it to me here, but I couldn't see it.


I told Sunny I'd take him down to the lake to throw him the ball and go swimming, but was a little distressed when I got down there and discovered it to be frozen.  When I tried to explain the situation to Sunny, he just looked at me like he couldn't understand what I was saying.


So I went ahead and threw the ball down the beach, but of course it had to bounce off to the left and roll way out on the thin ice.  It was then that Sunny discovered that this stuff wasn't much fun to walk on.


He whined at his ball for awhile and looked at me as if pleading for me to go get it for him.  When I told him no way and that we were done with ball throwing for the day, he decided to venture out to get it.  He'd walk for awhile and fall through.  Then walk for awhile and fall through.  He'd swim against the ice cutting into his chest and try to pull himself up on to it only to fall right back through again.  Just as I started to fear for his safety, he thrust forward and snagged his beloved tennis ball.  Then he ran back to me and begged me to throw it again.  I'm thinking this may be our last swimming event of 2011 which really sucks.  Because that means that winter is coming.

Sunny Has Some Nasty Looking Ear Goober!


This was really gross in real life so I thought you'd want me to share it.




Prior Lake Middle School Robotics Team #4 "Real Steel" 1st Attempt at Autonomous Programming

Gloves from Karl

My friend, Karl, discovered that some stores are now selling Gloves made exclusively for Shortarmguy.

Talk about Target Marketing!






A man took his Rottweiler to the vet


A man took his Rottweiler to the vet and said, 

"My dog's cross-eyed, is there anything you can do for him?"

"Well," said the vet, "let's have a look at him."

So he picks the dog up and has a good look at its eyes.

"Hmm," says the vet, "I'm going to have to put him down"

"Just because he's cross-eyed?" says the man
.
"No, because he's heavy," says the vet.

Can the World Hold That Many People?

November 17, 2011

Shock Poll Iowa: Gingrich 32%, Romney 19%, Cain 13%

Looks like that Pep Talk I gave him in Iowa is really starting to pay off!



Shock Poll Iowa: Gingrich 32%, Romney 19%, Cain 13%


Highlights of Newt's Recent Performance on the CNBC Debates 



Intel Targets High-End PC Market with New Six-Core Sandy Bridge Processor

Todd Swank, vice president of marketing at Nor-Tech, a Burnsville, Minn.-based systems integrator and reseller, told CRN that although the new CPU has potential to give resellers a leg-up in this niche space, it won’t necessarily be a game-changer for VARs.


"Evolutionary-wise, it’s a great processor. Power-wise, it’s very efficient. It’s definitely one of the best CPUs ever created," Swank said. "But with the price point, and lack of revolutionary capability, it’s still delegated to that high-end user niche. Most business users and casual users are just not going to use a CPU like this."




November 13, 2011

The Minnesota Vikings Stadium Push to the Lakeville Chamber of Commerce


The Minnesota Vikings Stadium Push 
to the Lakeville Chamber of Commerce

Shortarmguy's Diary Update for November 13, 2011


On Tuesday, Dr. Bollig and I went to a Lakeville Chamber of Commerce Meeting to hear the Minnesota Vikings pitch the community on why the state should contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to help them buy a new stadium.  This is Lester Bagley and he's the Vikings  VP of Public Affairs/Stadium Development.  He made a pretty good argument for why it makes sense for the state to do this.  Personally, I love the Vikings.  So I hope they do whatever it takes to make sure they stay in town because it would really suck to lose NFL football in Minnesota!  What else are we going to do in the winter?


The team didn't miss a trick and put on a great show and served us AWESOME food!  There was a stadium theme to the menu, although it tasted better than any food I've ever eaten at the Metrodome.  Chili dogs, pulled pork sandwiches, rootbeer floats and more!  I was ready to write them a check for a hundred million dollars myself before the time I even cleared my plate!


They invited the "Voice of the Vikings" radio announcer Paul Allen to come to the stage and interview a couple Vikings players.  It was great to get some behind the scenes talk to hear how the Vikings are preparing to play the undefeated Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football this week.  They said they're going to "Kick their Ass" which I thought was pretty cool.  I can't wait to watch it happen on Monday night!  


This is Michael Jenkins and he's one of the top wide receivers for the team.  My co-worker, Nick, has him on his Fantasy Football team and isn't very happy with how he's been performing on his roster.  Nick told me before I went to the event that morning to tell Mr. Jenkins that he was going to drop him from his team.  But after meeting Michael and finding him to be a very pleasant person, I just didn't have the heart to tell him.  I'm sure it would have just crushed his spirit.


This is Brian Robison.  He's the new starting Defensive End for the Vikings in 2011 replacing Ray Edwards.  I told him he's been one of my favorite players to watch this year.  Brian made all the highlight reels a few weeks ago, but probably not for the reason he wanted to make them.  I'm sure once you watch this video, you'll remember him:





This is Paul Allen and he's one of my personal heros.  He's the voice of the Vikings, has his own radio show, is a genius on all things sports, gets to travel to the best sporting events in the country to report on the games, and is one of the best broadcasters in the business.  I hope to be just like him one day when I grow up!


Back on the home front, our family spent much of the week preparing for the upcoming Middle School Robotics Competition in December.  We spent a lot of time doing trouble shooting this week and learning how to program our robot so it can run by itself in "Autonomous Mode".  I still haven't figured out when we get to arm the thing with it's weapons, but I'm hoping that part comes soon. 


We also spent a lot of time "Road Testing" the robot to ensure that it's not going to get hung up in competition when it has to navigate the ramps on the course.  We're trying to teach the boys how to plan for contingencies that don't involve yelling, fighting, or crying.  And that's just from the parents...


Our other excitement of the week was Luke's Holter Monitor.  He has to wear the thing for 24 hours to measure his heart activities.  He does this twice a year before his 6 month cardiologist appointments.  Now my understanding is that the thing just sticks to his chest via various electrodes and it only measures the speed and pace of his heart beat.  Luke insists it has much more sinister intentions.  He tries to tell me that it's delivering massive shocks to his system on a regular basis, but I don't believe him.  I'm sure he's just teasing me.  Although how he creates that smell of burning flesh and those snaps and crackle sounds of electricity, I'll never know!

Fun Deserts from Portland

Good morning Todd, check out the fun deserts I found at the store in the above attachment....Fried




It Was Clint Eastwood's Birthday Last Week....(Naughty Content Warning)

The Sky Writing Didn't Work Out The Way They Wanted...




Discount GPS Unit