Waddaya Say Cardinal Fans?

I never saw the guy play.  I never actually met him personally.  But he was a part of my life.

Growing up a Cardinals fan you can't help but admire Stan the Man.  His legend was enormous.  Even larger than the huge statue that stands outside of Busch Stadium.  The stories you heard passed down from generations before were never fabricated.  They didn't need to be.  The stories that you read about him in his post-playing days only reinforced the fact that if there was one thing that could over-shadow his playing career, it was the way he treated people.

We are lucky here in St. Louis to have such a rich baseball tradition.  So much of that tradition is linked to Stan Musial.  When you learn from a true gentleman what it is like to wear the Birds on the Bat...you appreciate the team and the history so much more.

Because of Stan Musial, my dad became a Cardinals fan while growing up in central Kansas.  I don't know if his love for the Cardinals and admiration for Stan brought him to St. Louis, but it all somehow lead to me growing up a Cardinals fan and hearing countless stories of what a great ballplayer Stan was.

There is nothing more I can say about Stan that you can't read elsewhere today.  This Man was bigger than life to millions of people.  I am lucky that I was able to see him deliver his smile and pantomime swing at season opener after season opener.  I was lucky to see MLB honor him when the All Star Game was held here in 2009.  And I know that we are about to embark on a season of tributes.  Yes, there will be a patch on the Cardinal uniform...but I suspect there will be so much more.  Tribute games, #6 mowed into the outfield grass, video montages - and I suspect that the rest of the baseball world will all find a renewed interest in our great warrior.

It's too bad someone has to die before they get the recognition they deserve.  Stan's real victory lap began Saturday night and I expect it to last all season long.

"Waddaya say" Cardinal Fans?

"I work in the upstairs of a flying saucer...seriously"

Osborn Barr just moved offices, to Cupples 9 building - just across the metrolink tracks from Busch Stadium.  But that's not the most exciting part about the new space.

Though the building is over a 100 years old, it is also a Flying Saucer.  At least it will be round about the time the Cards take the field on April 8.  The regional chain of gasto-pubs and 100's of beers lands in St. Louis this spring and I am sure it will also be considered meeting room 1A for Osborn Barr.

So when the season is in swing, let me know when you'll be downtown for a game and I'll meet you in our building for a cold brew in the latest restaurant bar to try to lure fans before and after games.  And who knows...maybe there will be a way to beam me up to my office from the bar in this Flying Saucer too.

Geeked About Heat

Why wouldn't you pay next to $200 for a thermostat?

Soon after I moved into this house in U. City I decided that the vintage 1930's thermostat was not what I needed.  After all, technology had progressed to the point where you could program multiple temperatures throughout the week in your home.  The manual adjusting was about to be a thing of the past.

Then came Nest.  I learned about this product about two years ago when it was just launching.  Nest is a programmable thermostat that also learns your habits.  But what's more, it can be operated via your smart phone or tablet.  Their true selling point is that is should save your energy bills in the long run.  By the Nest knowing when you are home and when you are not...it will keep the house cooler (or warmer in the summer) when no one is home...then adjust when you are there.  Reducing the amount of work your heater and AC are doing.

But the real selling point is the design.  I never thought I would say that a thermostat is cool, but this one is.  From the shape, to how it turns to the lit up display that coordinates with hot and hold (red vs. blue) this thing not only should save a few pennies in heating and cooling...it is also cool to display on your wall.

It will likely be years before the Nest pays off its $180 price tag (I was able to get a dented box model off eBay - otherwise they are $200 for Gen1.  But in my mind it has already paid for itself in design and connectivity.  However...it has created a monster.  Now Misty won't get up to adjust the temperature...she asks me to adjust it via the Android app.  So add "makes you lazy" to the "benefits" of the product".

http://nest.com

Lessons learned while in Hawaii

Here I am, my first trip to Hawaii and I am spending most of my time on a corn field.  Not at all how I envisioned my maiden voyage to our southern most state...

I am here with a film crew as we document some Monsanto growing and breeding practices.  Rally quite interesting how they can speed up the time to market with locations like this where they can harvest several times a year.

We started our video shoot around 7am.  Before the sun rose over Pearl Harbor.  As is typical there was fog and vog (volcanic fog) that settles over Honolulu in the early hours which blocked our natural sunlight.  But patience...and taking more videos than planned helped us nail the shots we were looking for.  As I snapped off a few of my own photos from my DSLR and smart phone I got to thinking about patience.  Patience is hard to come by these days.  Honestly, had we wanted to we could have rigged a light to act as our sun and shot the video in any conditions.  But we waited...and watched the clouds...and waited some more.  Then...there it was.  The perfect natural light shining down on this small plot of corn.

Sometimes waiting makes you appreciate what you get even more.  Today I was reminded of that lesson.  Here's a couple of shots from my phone that show the natural light.

Life on the island moves a little slower in general.  Perhaps they all live the lesson I was reminded of today.  But for me, I'll exercise a little more patience in my life...and I'll plan to enjoy the rewards.

Favorite Albums of 2012

2012 brought tons of new groups and new music into my life.  Here's a quick rundown of what I found to be the best albums (meaning collection of music, not just a few good songs) of 2012.

1. Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods
2. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals - The Lion The Beast The Beat
3. Jack White - Blunderbuss
4. Temper Trap - Temper Trap
5. Miike Snow - Happy To You
6. Band of Skulls - Sweet Sour
7. Imagine Dragons - Night Visions
8. Tu Fawning - A Monument

What are your thoughts?  What great albums did I miss?