Apple News+. I'm already subscribed. Not sure if I'll use it much, but I use Apple News enough. Apple Card. I'll get one. Assume it'll become the daily driver. The Amazon Prime card gets relegated to Amazon only. The Barclaycard Apple Rewards card probably gets put out to pasture. Just another backup (like the Sony Rewards card). Apple Arcade. Interesting. Not necessarily what I think was expected, which I think is good. Makes me think of Apple as a patron of the arts, in this case the video game arts. Apple TV+. I think it's similar to Arcade. Also interesting that Apple is pushing values. Overall, I find it interesting they're pushing the + moniker. Just as Google+ is getting killed.

Forgot to mention I tried donating blood earlier this month, my usual Power Red, and I got turned away. All because I went to Coron. Apparently it's a malaria risk area of the country. If I had stayed in Manila, I could have donated. Don't think I have malaria, but something I wouldn't have thought of when planning a vacation. Not that it would have stopped us from going I guess, but I wouldn't have made the appointment if I had known. Just didn't think that I was going to a malaria risk part of the world.

I've started using the iPad Pro 11-inch either without a case or with just the Smart Folio instead of always with the Smart Keyboard Folio, and it feels so much better that way. Like it feels amazing, like so super thing and light. So I swap back and forth between the two. And the magnetic attachments make it super easy. But definitely feels like I'm using it more. I think that means I'm using the phone less, so my screen time is staying constant. Going to try using Toggl for some time tracking stuff, mostly at work. Maybe I should just do it 24/7, to start tracking how much time I waste on things.

Figure I need to update, but not really sure what to post. I had something about unintended consequences, and it was both work and personal life related, but I've forgotten what it was. So instead, I'll just ramble on for a bit. I miss being able to eat whatever I want, whenever I want. I look forward to the weekends when I decided to not be full keto. Yet, I enjoyed getting down to my lowest weight in a decade? So trying to get down again, and hopefully just have a 5 pound window that I gradually lose over the work week, then gain over the weekend, and repeat. Made Earl Gray Ice Cream last night. So good. And a surprise I don't see it more often. Used a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer Ice Cream Maker attachment. Super easy. And I remembered to not use a metal utensil to get the ice cream out. Finally put the deadbolts on the fence door on the west side. Oh, I had my broken collarbone annivery followup. Everythign's good. Need to start riding again to work though. Although the streets are pretty awful with potholes. Wouldn't want to run into any of those. Maybe I'm just looking for excuses not to ride again. Yes, I'm gunshy. Been reading a lot. Just finished up Mistborn and started the Wax and Wayne trilogy. Not quite tired of the universe, but getting close. Not sure what's next. Also finished up Marvel's Daredevil S3 on Netflix and in the middle of Punisher. Finally saw Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse. Quite good, and I'll have to watch it again soon. Been drinking a lot of coffee, so maybe I should tune that down. Also really tempted with the new iPad mini (2019) announced yesterday. I really do like that form factor. Wonder if it'd ever get the rounded corners and FaceID in that size, or if that's it? Also got me wondering if I'm going to bother upgrading my iPhone this year, or maybe I'll just hold on to it. Maybe need a compelling reason. Might need new Airpods though, I get about an hour charge out of them, just about my commute length. Would be tempted to get an over the ear headset like a Beats model, but kind of holding off for an Apple branded one instead.

So I'm like 4 weeks behind on my podcasts, so I'm trying to plow through those. Haven't decided yet if I want to declare podcast bankruptcy and start fresh. However, I would have missed the back and forth on the Bill Simmons Podcast with Ryen Russillo on the size of people's heads. I was close to laughing out loud on my way home on the L when I was heard it. It made me think if jokes about people's head sizes are always funny, or if they way they joked about it was funny. Because that bit in So I Married an Axe Murderer is hilarious. Anyway, it's also pretty interesting hearing about things, roughly 3-4 weeks in the past, as if it's news. But then again, I don't necessarily have any breaking news sources. In Pokemon GO news, the kids accounts are at the same level as their previous accounts, although with much worse Pokemon. As soon as they hit level 30, we'll start worrying about filling out the stable. But I'm actually close to completing the Let's Go Meltan task on my old account, since I was stuck on the Kabuto and the Aerodactyl tasks, and those are current available research tasks. So that'll be nice. Oh, and since you can switch teams for 1000 coins, I'm tempted to switch my old account over. Of course by the time I get that many, we'll all hopefully be best friends and we'll have traded for all the good ones. Tried to take part in the Q1 Hack Days at work, digging into node.js for the first time. Finally have a beginner grasp of it. Tempted to put together this rickety old system in node.js, but not sure if I'll ever get around to it. Switched over to a Sports Loop on the Apple Watch. Also, coming up on a year since I broke my collarbone. Might be time to start biking to work again. I've forgotten all it entails, what to pack, how to pack, parking, showering at the gym, all of it. I should find out if my bike even still works.

So while on the boat tour that first full day in Coron, it's like mid afternoon, and finally Jackson said he'll go into the water. It's one of those lakes, I forget which one, and we're anchored far from the entrance, so we'd have to get in, then tow Jackson over (while we're all in our life vests). It'd be the first time that I got in the water. So I jump in, start swimming on my back, pulling Jackson in his life vest, and I suddenly notice, my Apple Watch is gone. I give Jackson to Tracy to keep heading to the lake with the kids, and I go back to the boat. Because a couple on the boat that got stuck on this tour were free divers. Had the huge flippers and everything. So I get on, ask if they might be able to help find my watch that dropped somewhere close to the boat. I was hoping they'd be interested, because they hadn't really done much on this trip, because they got stuck on because the tour they wanted to go on probably got shut down because the coast guard shut down some of the islands and tours because it was too windy. So they hadn't really been going out on any of the snorkeling or lakes because I think they've already done it. I'm happy because they agree. Turns out, the boat next door had scuba gear, and the guy had been with them before, so they borrowed a tank and the couple went down. I was on board the boat just watching. 15-20 minutes later, they come up holding my watch. Absolutely amazing. I offered a finder's fee, but no takers. Amazing. So thanks, to whoever you two are, and hope you got in some good dives later that week. Although, I wouldn't have minded having to get a new Apple Watch, but still, thanks.

So back for my Dad's 75th birthday, my mom surprised him with almost all of his family on a trip to Disney World. This year is my mom's 75th trip around the sun, so we wanted to do something for her. She goes home to the Philippines every year to visit her sister and nephews and niece and other relatives. So, my dad, my brother and his family, me and mine, surprised her by being there. She loved it. She loved having her grandkids there, because she always wanted to take them. That's why I got passports renewed last fall. And turns out planning and organizing a surprise halfway around the world is hard, but all the hard work was done by Auntie Agnes, and cousins Jay, JP, and Jenny (and Thom). We actually made flight arrangements before my mom made hers, so we ended up being in the Philippines before she got there, and my family was staying an extra week, so she was flying back before we got back. Too much to change her ticket, so she'll have to go back to spend more time with her family soon. But yeah, Tracy, Lucy, Jackson and I made it to the Philippines and back. Took Cathay Pacific, went through Hong Kong (16 hour flight). Kids did surprisingly well. Took a couple days for jet lag to wear off. I think the melatonin helped. Stayed in Bonafacio Global City, which is I guess the new Makati. Mostly new for me, since the last time I went was in 2000. But we did get to visit the Flores Compound, which is where I always stayed when I went before, and it was like I remembered it. I kinda wish we had stayed there so my family could experience what I had on my trips before. But great seeing Auntie Agnes and cousins, and they were so helpful driving us all around through Manila traffic, out to Hidden Valley for a day of swimming, to the fabulous Spiral buffet, to and from the airports, to various malls and kids activities. Al and family only stayed a little longer than a week, Dad went down to Davao, and we went to Coron for 5 days. It was pretty cool. And coming back was fairly straightforward, jet lag again took about 3 days to get over, and once again I think melatonin helped. But it was a good trip. But makes me determined to learn tagalog, because people would see us and start speaking to us, and we'd have to apologize and ask for English. Definitely wasn't keto for the trip. We'd like to go back, but not sure when, have to save up, learn the language, and maybe over winter break for the kids because taking them out of school for 2 weeks is a bit much, especially when they get older. Worth it.