Merry Christmas from Santa and Rose (Part 5)

(from the How can she have 5 photos when she's only 4? department)

Hi everyone,

Here's our 2012 Christmas photo:



Rose was a little nervous prior to meeting Santa, but once she sat down for the picture, she was excited about it. She told Santa exactly what she wanted and then we took the picture.

NOTE: Unlike previous years, we have digital copies of two out-takes. They're not quite as good - but I'll post them here anyway:


(taken just before)


(taken just after)

Cheers,
Paul

tsclient for Fedora 15

(from the RPM department)

Hi everyone,

As most folks know, I do like to dabble in Linux. Lately, I've been trying Fedora 15 on a virtual machine - just to see what a cutting edge Linux is like.

One thing I miss from previous versions of Fedora is the old rdesktop GUI front-end called tsclient. That package has been deprecated in favor of newer RDP clients. But - I miss it anyway.

Well - I was able to take the SRPM for tsclient from Fedora 13, and add patches to get it to build in Fedora 15.

(Side note: Normally, I run Yellow Dog Linux on my PS3.)

I don't think this will build on YDL per se - since it's based on RedHat Enterprise Linux - but the patch system is interesting. You basically unpack the SRPM, add your patches in the form of diff files to the SOURCE directory, edit the spec file to include them, and re-package and re-build the RPM and SRPM.

No muss - no fuss.

Unfortunately, Blogger doesn't allow me to add attachments, so I've posted the files on the Yellow Dog board: tsclient for Fedora 15

Cheers,
Paul

Rose, the artist

(from the I am an Artiste department)

Hi everyone,

We went out to brunch today at The Cheeky Cafe. (Highly Recommended!!)

As per usual, Rose got a children's menu and some crayons. She proceded to go to town on the menu, and insisted that we give it to the restaurant to put it on the walls.

The restaurant happily obliged:



Rose was beside herself with glee:



(Rose's drawing is the one with a lot of purple!)

The cool part is that we actually got two menus - and Rose drew on both. So - we had some art to take home as well!

Cheers,
Paul

Pumpkin Hunting - somewhere near Snohomish, WA - Friday, October 21st, 2011

(from the It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown department)

Hi everyone,

Today, Dana, Rose and I braved the mud and rain to head out to a farm and pick a pumpkin!

We went to The Farm at Swan's Trail in Snohomish, WA. Incredibly well run - very family friendly - and great for children of all ages. We got to see a duck race, pet some barnyard animals, ride on a hay bale cart pulled by a tractor, and wander around a big field looking for a pumpkin.

Soon - Rose had found what she was looking for:






This was an event sponsored by our pre-school; King Street Co-Op. It was nice to go in a group instead of just by ourselves - farms are more fun with a bunch of people - and the kids were great.

Rose finished the day with ice cream - an orange creamsicle - which she ate instantly. She apparently doesn't mind the wind and rain when ice cream is involved.

Cheers,
Paul

A Note To Daddy From Rose

(from the I can't make this up department)

Here is a note from Rose to me as transcribed by Dana. I present the entire text verbatim, without any editing whatsoever.

Dear Daddy,

Please be careful. Please be safe and I like you. Every time you have to be careful with my jewelry and with my Merry Go Round and you get a prize.

Don't be angry unless you're the Tooth Fairy. The Tooth Fairy is angry because he wants to keep all of his teeth.

I really like getting milkshakes with you. I like him playing my Princess video game and my Lightning McQueen video game.

Daddy loves me very much. I love Daddy's very much too because I love him.

I love you, Rose. Thank you for the letter - it made my day!

Cheers,
Paul

Butterfly Rose

(from the All You Need Are Wings department)

Hi everyone,

This is just a quick photo of Rose that Dana took. Enjoy!



Cheers,
Paul

Camping at Scenic Beach State Park - July 28th to July 31st, 2011

(from the Camping with Toddlers department)

Hi everyone,

Well - we had our first family camping trip last weekend. Our pre-school - King Street Cooperative Preschool - organized a camping trip to Scenic Beach State Park. We didn't have any camping gear, but we were able to borrow a tent, propane stove and air-mattress, so we ended up camping in style!

We were pretty busy running after toddlers, but I did manage to snap a couple of photos. In the first photo, that's Rose on the far right.







By the way - that was one big starfish!!

UPDATE: Dana just sent me the photos she took. Enjoy!











Cheers,
Paul

Steely Dan "Shuffle Diplomacy Tour 2011" July 2nd, 2011 Seattle

(from the Reelin' in the Years department)

Hi everyone,

I saw Steely Dan July 2nd at the WaMu theater in Seattle at the kickoff of their "Shuffle Diplomacy Tour 2011". They played a great set - nearly 2 hours of songs!

Here's the song titles I wrote down on my smartphone:

• Intro
• Your Gold Teeth
• Aja
• Hey Nineteen
• Green Earrings
• Everything Must Go
• Night By Night
• Time Out Of Mind
• Godwhacker
• Show Biz Kids
• (You Got) The Bear (Aja outtake)
• Dirty Work
• Neighbor's Daughter (Band Intro)
• Do It Again
• Josie
• Peg
• Reelin' In The Years
• Bodhisattva
  -- Encore Break --
• Kid Charlemagne
• Outro

Setlist notes:

The Intro and the Outro were the band - nicknamed the Miles High Big Band - playing without Donald & Walter and the backup singers. (The backup singers had their own nickname - The Embassy Brats.)

I'm not sure of the name of the songs that were played for the Intro and the Outro - they were instrumentals. According to one setlist they were Dizzy's Bidness and Last Tango In Paris, respectively.

(You Got) The Bear and Neighbor's Daughter are tracks that haven't been officially released - the titles are my best guess looking on the Internet and some of the Steely Dan databases. It's my recollection that Donald said The Bear was an Aja outtake. One setlist mentioned that Neighbor's Daughter is a Lee Dorsey cover.

Your Gold Teeth is the first version on Countdown To Ecstasy, not the "sequel" on Katy Lied.

Cheers,
Paul

P.S. I also got this cool coffee mug:

Merry Christmas from Santa and Rose (Part 4)

(from the Christmas in July department)

Hi everyone,

It occurs to me that I never posted the 2010 Family Christmas photo. Well - here it is!



For this one, we figured that Rose wouldn't pose unless we were in it, so I did have a (small) chance to get ready for the photo.

Happy (Belated) Holidays Everyone - from Paul, Dana, Rose, and Santa

Cheers,
Paul

Look - it's the Future! (or at least June 21, 2011)

(from the Century 21 Exposition department)

Hi everyone,

Just a quick photo I took during a sunny day in Seattle. (Yes - they do happen):



That's the Space Needle as seen through Fisher Plaza, headquarters of KOMO TV. Looks like the Future, doesn't it?

Cheers,
Paul

P.S. Looking at old photos of the Space Needle, I found this quote. I offer no additional comment:

The length of the monorail is a mere 1.2 miles long, but plans are already being discussed to extend the track all the way to Sea-Tac Airport. Since the Monorail can achieve speeds of up to 70 miles an hour, it's likely that gridlock and traffic jams will be a distant memory by the year 2001.

Dana's Birthday dinner at Palisade - May 17, 2011

(from the Happy Birthday to You department)

Hi everyone,

For Dana's birthday, we decided to go to one of our favorite restaurants - Palisade. This place is very cool. Every table has a view of Elliot Bay - and there's even a salt-water fixture in the middle of the restaurant with live fish and sea-life.

BTW - the hostess gave us some food to feed the fish. Best kid toy ever! When Rose got a little bored - which is normal for a 3 year old - we fed the fish.

Anyway - as dinner wound down - Rose asked if I would take her picture with Mommy. Thinking that this would be a cute, Mother/Daughter photo, I lined up the shot. This is what I got:




Yup - that's my kid alright. I finally did get Rose to pose a little - but she wouldn't look at the camera:




However - this next video made up for it. When they brought Dana a little birthday dessert, Rose started to sing her own version of Happy Birthday:



Of course, she whispered the whole song. Still - it was a special moment.

Cheers,
Paul

Rose & Dana At Richmond Beach Saltwater Park - May 1, 2011

(from the Life's a Beach department)

Hi everyone,

On May 1st, Dana, Rose & I headed out to Richmond Beach Saltwater Park. This is a nice park just a bit north of Seattle in the Shoreline district.





Rose was really having fun playing in the sand. I don't have video of it, but I kind of have a time lapse set of photos:









Cheers,
Paul

A Fairy Godmother at Sakura-con - April 23, 2011

(from the アニメが好きです department)

Hi everyone,

Dana, Rose & I went to Sakura-con (http://www.sakuracon.org/) this year. We didn't cosplay, but Rose did:






When we asked her what her costume was, she said "Fairy Godmother". That's not really anime - but it should be. Here Rose "decorates" me - while dancing:



Another Rose dancing video, plus more "decoration" and I get turned into a robot. This one is in HD:



All of these were taken on April 23, 2011.

Cheers,
Paul

Rose in a Mini Cooper

(from the Original Mini Cooper department)

Hi everyone,

On Saturday, March 5th, 2011, Dana, Rose & I were at the Safeway up near Roosevelt and 75th in Seattle. Walking back to the car, we stumbled across a mini Mini Cooper get together.

Rose & I went to investigate:





Rose was facinated by the original Mini Coopers on display. One of the owners noticed her and asked if she'd like to sit behind the wheel.

Of course she would - they're Rose sized after all!




Rose had a lot of fun! Special thanks to the members of the Seattle Area Mini Owners Association (aka SAMOA) and the owner of the Mini that let Rose have a drive!

Cheers,
Paul

National Pancake Day - March 1st, 2011

(from the It's better with Strawberry Syrup department)

Hi everyone,

Yesterday was National Pancake Day! Rose and I braved the crowds and headed down to IHOP to get our free pancakes!

Rose is ready:


but not quite sure where to begin:


The pancakes were very tasty! And - although the place was crazy busy - we didn't wait too long at all. Kudos to the staff of the Capitol Hill IHOP in Seattle - we had a great time.

IHOP does this each year to raise money for the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. The pancakes are free, but they ask that you'd consider a donation in return. When we left, the Capitol Hill IHOP was about $70.00 from their goal - and they still had several hours to go. I hope they made it!

The history is interesting:

Since beginning its National Pancake Day celebration in 2006, IHOP has raised more than $5.35 million to support charities in the communities in which it operates. While IHOP's National Pancake Day typically takes place on Shrove Tuesday, this year, the company will host its free pancake event one week earlier on Tuesday, March 1 to build buzz and excitement prior to Shrove Tuesday. With your help, we hope to raise $2.3 million for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and other local charities!

Known also as Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras, National Pancake Day dates back several centuries to when the English prepped for fasting during Lent. Strict rules prohibited the eating of all dairy products during Lent, so pancakes were made to use up the supply of eggs, milk, butter and other dairy products...hence the name Pancake Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday

You can read more about it here:
IHOP National Pancake Day - March 1, 2011
and here:
IHOP National Pancake Day - March 1, 2011 - Pancake Day Details
which is where I got the above quote.


Cheers,
Paul

Rose is wise beyond her years

(from the Sophocles was a kid once, too department)

Hi everyone,

We had a classic Rose moment this morning. I was in a super hurry, trying to get out the door to head to work. Almost simultaneously, I had a fan fail on my main server, lost my checkbook, and had to make the morning coffee.

Running around at full speed in the living room, I finally exclaimed: "I am never getting out of this house!!!"

I then heard a small voice from the couch: "There's a door - over there - in the middle."

I think Dana must have laughed for a full minute or so.

Ladies & Gentlemen, I give you Rose Pietromonaco, the wise voice of reason. Thank you, Rosie.

Cheers,
Paul

Golden Harmonicas!

(from the TV's Craig Ferguson department)

So - I'm an avid fan of The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson. It took a little while to find its footing, and it doesn't always work, but when it does, there's nothing like it on television.

One of the things he does is have guests play harmonica to exit their segment. The fun of the exit is that, normally, nobody knows anything about the harmonica, and hilarity ensues, etc.

But - every once in a while, somebody does know how to play. When this happens, Craig gifts them the "golden harmonica".

So far - we've had two:

• Billy Connolly - actor, comedian, legend
• David Pogue - tech blogger NY times

Well - Friday night we got a third. A physics blogger, Jennifer Ouellette. Congrats to all!

Cheers,

Paul

Who can turn the world on with her smile?

(from the Mary Tyler Moore department)

Hi everyone,

Just some quick photos of the joy that is Rose:







These were taken at a local restaurant called "St. Clouds" - well worth a trip if you're ever in the Madrona neighborhood of Seattle.

Cheers,
Paul

Rose finds the North Pole

(from the Trip to the North Pole department)

Hi everyone,

It snowed in Winston-Salem, NC on Christmas Day (Dec. 25th), 2010. We went out the next day to play in the snow, and I recorded this video of Rose journeying to the North Pole.

Enjoy!



Cheers,
Paul