Another month goes by. Still home schooling Jackson. Went back to just the laptop for work from home setup. Otherwise, life goes on. Built a couple big LEGO sets, LEGO 70620 Ninjago City and LEGO 10255 Assembly Square. Had those for a while. Not sure if I want to build more or wait until I can set up future modulars on the MILS bases. Not sure what would be up next. Maybe LEGO 70618 Destiny's Bounty since that doesn't need a MILS base. Decided go get back on keto. Weight started to pack on. Simple home workout every morning seems to be paying off. Watched a bunch of different shows. Finally watched the first season of Homecoming. Watched Bodyguard (from Netflix). Had another neighbor movie night with Spies in Disguise. Watched Salvation. That one was interesting. Finally watched Triple Frontier and Extraction. Finally watched Dark Phoenix. Kids recently discovered Avatar: The Last Airbender. Finally got temps getting logged to influx from both the 1Wire setup and the Google Nest Temperature sensors (that one through a python script pulling through homebridge). Finally setup a home behavior clip chart for Jackson (also through influx, and Shortcuts, with a php page to display his color). Bleached Lucy's tips, and colored them purple. Tried to bleach Jackson's tips and color them blue, but didn't take as well. And bleached my full head of hair and tried to do purple tips with blue underneath. Been about 20 years since I've done that. We've stopped having game nights pretty much. Every now and then. Found out we're officially not going back to Willis Tower before we move to the Macy's Building for work. So won't have to go into the office at least for another month or two.

So still living the Q-Life. Kids are eSchooling for the rest of the year. Got a new MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) for Lucy (and Tracy), since the MacBook Air (11-inch Late 2010) she was using couldn't even do the Google Hangouts Meets for school. Figure a new laptop every 10 years works out. Jackson's good on the iPad Pro (9.7-inch) for his Zoom morning sessions and video watching and Happy Numbers, Raz Kids, Flocabulary, Mystery Science and Brain Pop websites. Contemplating another printer because of all the printing we have to do for Jackson, since he doesn't want to use the iPad to do any of it, even though we do have an Apple Pencil that works with it. I've upgraded my work from home setup, got a Twelve South Curve stand for the work MacBook Pro, another Magic Trackpad 2 to go with the Magic Keyboard I originally got for my iPad Pro 11-inch as external trackpad/keyboard, and a couple TaoTronics LED Desk Lamp which helps working at the kitchen table. So been spending some money getting all set up. A couple of the most useful purchases were a couple 3 tier storage carts that fit under the table where the kids put their school stuff and I put my work stuff, since we all work at the kitchen table. For non school/work stuff, put up a wire between trees in the front so we can hang the screen and do movie nights with the neighbors. Had to get a couple Anker SoundCore 2 speakers that do fancy wireless stereo pairing. Using an extra Roku 3 as the source, and I think it'll get a wifi signal in the front yard. So excited to do that when the weather gets nice enough. Haven't been eating all that healthy, but trying to get back on that horse. Trying to do a little exercise daily for a change. Watched through a bunch of things. After polishing off Mr. Robot, moved on to Star Trek: Picard, all 9 Fast and the Furious movies, and the newest season of Kim's Convenience. Think I want to finish reading the other Witcher Anthology the Netflix Series is based on before watching that. Still working on repurposing the Hackintosh hardware, and I think I'm using Docker for the installs, which is pretty cool. Think I'll eventually want to dockerize this site to make it easier to develop/deploy/builld. Back to food, had my first experience with Alinea via carryout a couple times. Good, but I'm sure no where nears as good as eating there. Best thing was the cocktail kit (which included a full bottle and enough mixers for it) (that was from The Aviary. Pretty cool. Finally upgraded to a bigger coffee maker, OXO BREW 9 Cup Coffee Maker. Typed this out on the new Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro 11-Inch (2nd Generation). It's amazing. Also decided to wear a suit today. Never really would otherwise. I do get dressed for work like I'd be going (to get into the work mindset).

So last post, about a month and a half ago, was about new phones and watch, and what TV I was watching. Now just more TV. Repurposed my old hackintosh and put Ubuntu on it. It's been much more stable. Thinking of getting an eSATA disk enclosure, using ZFS, and moving the Plex server there (instead of my current mess on the Mac mini with TV and Movies spread out over 4 different volumes. Started finally watching Mr. Robot, about midway through the 4th season there. Before that ripped through Dark (great) Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet (great), the John Wick movies, the Fantastic Beasts movies. Also put Unbound (dns server) on the PiHoles as well as PiVPN (WireGuard), which means we should be good when we get to leave the house again. Oh yeah, Covid-19. I was supposed to go to Ottawa for a work trip March 8-10, but decided not to go because this virus was becoming a thing, didn't want to go through an airport or anything. Then started working from home the rest of that week (I was in on March 9 because there was a blood drive and I could finally donate again). Then the NBA cancels the season, CPS closes schools for a couple weeks, we started self isolating pretty much on Friday, March 13. Grocery stores went bare for a bit then I think got restocked, but I haven't been lately. It's only been 1 week for the kids at home, Lucy's doing well, organized, doing homework. Jackson on the other hand has been a challenge. He does rip through his morning work and his worksheets pretty quickly, and they started up like 30 min of elearning (via Zoom) with Ms. V on Thursday go forward, but even that's a struggle. He's definitely going to be a second job. I think I've left the house twice in 8 days or so. So, a pretty normal week for me. Been having family dinners at the kitchen table, and game night afterwards. Self quarantine means everyone's home for dinner at the same time. Tracy got some more board games, although been playing more mahjong than anything lately. So getting things done that have been on the plate for a while.

Missed a January update completely. Went back on a keto diet. Tried intermittent fasting, but didn't seem to be losing any weight, and just didn't make me happy at all. At least on keto I'm seeing results and I'm not so hangry. Found out my pneumonia induced normal blood pressure was because of the illness, and not because I wasn't drinking coffee or eating. Started looking into Nerf and modding a lot, because Jackson got a bunch of Nerf guns, thinking I'd get one to mod for my birthday. But I ended up dropping and breaking my Apple Watch 4, which was out of warranty. Went without one for a couple days, contemplated trying a kind of smart watch (Withings Move or Steel HR), but realized I actually use the smart watch functionality of the Apple Watch. So, after getting confirmation it would cost about half as much as getting a new watch as it would be to get the old one fix, moved up to an Apple Watch 5 Titanium Space Black. Same week Tracy was complaining about the battery life on her iPhone 8, so first got her a Morphie Juice Pack Air, but while that was shipping, managed to talk her into just getting a new phone instead. So ordered iPhone 11 Pros for both of us, gold for her, space black for me. So a little weird getting Apple Watch and iPhone not immediately after release. Think we're off the 2 year cycle for good, start stretching device ownership out longer. Also now fully Space Black (iPad, iPhone, Apple Watch). Also, no birthday presents for me. Besides a Nerf gun or two, was also thinking of a second Nintendo Switch for the house, or a RetroPi Arcade cabinet. Maybe Arbor Day? Oh, really enjoyed watching Kim's Convenience. Like The Leftovers, but that's a rough watch. A to Z was also pretty good. And caught the first episode of Star Trek: Picard while it was free on YouTube. Definitely getting CBS All Access] in March once all the episodes are available, unless I give in before then. Also realized we now have Apple TV+ for a year. So need to check out For All Mankind and Little America.

Finished removing DRM from my iTunes purchases so I can put them on Plex in 1080p resolution where available. Took a while. Now have decided to try pulling down from streaming services to watch via Plex, however, only available in 720p max. Trying to limit to stuff I can't purchase, stuff that's streaming only, but giving in to some. Promise to delete if I ever cancel my subscriptions. Santa was pretty good for me this year. Got a bunch more merino wool hoodies (from Wooly), which is pretty much what I wear exclusively. Got a new 55-200 zoom lens for the camera. Should be useful for the kids sports activities, since they have them now. Oh yeah, Lucy had her first swim meet. Hence the lens. Jackson's got soccer at the CIBC Fire Pitch (indoor soccer setup for the Chicago Fire). Hence the lens. Jackson got a few Nerf guns, so I got some Nerf guns, and Lucy got a Nerf bow and arrow. I got Christmas Eve off for the first time. That was nice. Been working from home a lot, and not all that productive, so going in when I can, like today. Had to bring Lucy to morning swim clinic a couple times on break, so she had two a days for the first time. Gained all my weight back that I lost from the pneumonia. Got Airpods Pro, which are my first noise cancelling headphones, and they're amazing. However, my ear canals are 2 different sizes, which is annoying. Can't quite find a good size for my left year. Oh, went to my work party (Roaring 20's theme) in a tux with tails and top hat and cane, pocket watch and everything. Definitely weird though, cause I only know a handful of people even though I've been there for 16 years. Finally made it down to Uncle Mike's Place, found it to just be ok. Don't really have to go back. Went on a quest for lychee's after Jackson had a lychee drink at Jin Ju, and eventually found it at the H Mart downtime, where I saw live king crab for the first time. They're enormous.

Missed an entire month. But I think I had a pretty good reason. Pretty much on November 1, I came down with pneumonia. At first I thought it was the flu, but after a week of high fever, figured I needed to see a doctor. Got an order for a chest x-ray, just to make sure. Turns out I had some stuff in the lower right lung. Got some antibiotics and a couple days later, no more fever. Now just been dealing with the pneumonia recovery. Worked from home the entire month. So thanks to Numerator. Although it sounded like the Engineering team in Chicago got wrecked by other diseases including strep, so maybe I didn't miss much after all. Actually gonna go to the holiday party (yes, we're having one, yes, I got invited, but no, I don't think Tracy's allowed to go). It's themed, so got to get a costume before then, hopefully I can find it at a thrift shop between now and then. Been watching a lot of TV. Watched Superstore (where my fever induced dreams took me to), Impulse, Fleabag, Jack Ryan S2, The Mandalorian and our family's new favorite on Disney+, Forky Asks a Question (What? Nooooooo), and almost completely caught up on Silicon Valley. Successfully pulled off Friendsgiving while recuperating (milk bar birthday layer cake for Tracy, thai tea parfait for the adults, salt baked red snapper for an entree, and made the turkey for Thanksgiving. Already planning for some different things for next year. Haven't left the house much, but planning on heading back into the office tomorrow. Also been reading again on the Kobo Aura, although I seem to have misplaced it today. Kids have been playing a lot on the Nintendo Switch, mostly Splatoon 2 with Super Mario Party getting some recent playtime. Had Jackson's Birthday party at Windy City Ninjas. Went with the Thorngren's for Tracy's Birthday dinner at Mordecai. Had a joint birthday brunch with my parents at Dutch & Docs. So maybe I have left the house a little. Oh, forgot that on Halloween, because of the snow, I dressed the house up with Christmas lights on the fence, wreath on the door, and answered the door when handing out candy wearing an ugly Christmas sweater and a jolly "Merry Christmas!". And going full circle, pneumonia seemed to be going around the 4th graders, at least Lucy's friends, with more than a handful coming down with it (both before and after me, so I wasn't patient zero).

Think this entry was originally auto inserted when Safari tried to suggest this url. So, figured it's time for my monthly entry. Watched Succession. That's some good stuff. Made my own Viking shield for our halloween costumes. Of course that meant I had to get a jigsaw, but it's pretty cool. Heavy though. And I got a sword. And an bearded axe. You can get anything on Amazon these days. The leather armor and bracers came from Viking Shield. So of course, way too much money, somewhat authentic costume, and Jackson (wearing a store bought Link costume) got all the compliments. Which makes sense. Not that much cool about my costume (authentic Viking warrior, like from the Vikings tv show). Too late I realized I should have been the old man from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, that would have been much better. And just today went as a businessman to work (wore a suit and everything, and the short brim Fedora hat, and a long wool coat). Couldn't find my beige trench coat or a briefcase, that would have completed the look. I should get a 3 piece suit, just to have. Also think a John Wick costume would be a nice one to have in the back pocket, but I didn't have a black dress shirt. Dressing up is fun. Not sure if we'll be heading out for trick or treating tomorrow, weather seems pretty nasty. People are headed to our house to pre-party though. Oh, and the kids have been off school for 10 days because the Chicago Teacher's Union went on strike. So that's been good for them. Relatively good timing since Jackson was sick for like a week. Had to go get things fixed on the CrossTrek a couple times at the dealer. Finished replacing any 720p HD versions in Plex with full 1080p versions. Started the tv shows. Oh, Jessica Jenkins crashed in the guest room last weekend, in town for our 20th college reunion, which I had no idea was going on. Good to catch up with her. Trying to get to bed at a decent hour, since I started meeting with my India based team members early in the morning (later in the day for them). Also started reading again, back on my Kobo Aura since Lucy took my Kobo Forma. Had to start the Heroes of Olympus pentalogy by Rick Riordan since Lucy finished it already and won't stop taking about it. New iOS and iPadOS and macOS releases, no nuke and paves this time around. No new devices either. Main iMac is stuck on High Sierra, don't want to upgrade the Mac mini server to Mojave, so pretty much 2 macOS releases behind for a daily use machine. Also have to find sometime to nuke and pave the Windows Intel NUC. It's not getting updates.