In the 21st Century, I have lost track of time.
It has been a few weeks since my last post/update on my steps into the 21st Century with my Samsung Galaxy Note II.
I think I left off with the dropping of the 21st Century device...Still have not had it replaced...lost track of time....
Here I am with my life in the 21st Century, I have taken on fostering two little kittens:
They have been with me since October 6,2013 when they were 1 1/2 weeks old.
A male and a female, they are about 6 weeks old and less than 2 pounds each.

The white kitten is a male named Mr. Fluffy and the black and white kitten is a female named Wanderer...
They are a handful. They are funny, very adventurous and lovable. Their names fit them well.
That photos is about 4 weeks old. They are wanting their bottles at that time at 4:30AM. Now as of today, they both eat dry kitten food and drink water, so no more bottle feeding. YEAH!

I decided to go on vacation on the last day of October, so I had to find a kitten sitter, thankfully, through a network on Facebook, Kitty Corner, I was able to secure a kitten sitter, who is also a foster parent to kittens. In those 5 days while on vacation, the piglets (named this due to the fact they can eat twice their weight), I almost did not recognized them. The person and their family did a great job of taking care of these two furry piglets, they wanted to keep them :) These kittens I think personally, are harder to watch than human toddlers, they tent to go separate and go in opposite directions at the same time. At one point one of the kittens was able to shut off power to the Entertainment Center, not sure how but it happened....babies er oops piglets :)

Now on to vacation, I stepped back into time, The place I chose was Townsend, TN.

This is the day view from the back of the cabin, Laurel Valley. As you can see, the clouds are touching the top of the mountains.

This is of the morning we left to return home. I so enjoyed myself by stepping back in time, a slower time, a time of reflection. The 21st Century can be a fast paced of life, sometimes, too fast.
I would tell all who can, take a step back and relax and look around you and enjoy what you have and not be so consumed with what is happening in the 21st Century.
One funny side, NEVER under estimate the knottiness (not an English word but it fits for my purpose) of a branch banister...OUCH@#$%

 It was a FREE but painful souvenir.... as you can see, in the of the knoll post part of a knot sticks out, as you step down from the last step and make a right hand turn into the foyer, you can , I did, hit your knee.....BUT the vacation was well worth it the pain and bruising....:)
 This is the panoramic view:

 That is not a lake in the valley, that is fog that rolled in one morning.....All from the main deck on the back side of the cabin. Taken with my  Samsung Galaxy Note II. All of the photos were take with my 21st Century device, so actually, I never left the 21st Century while on vacation :)

In the 21st Century, It has been awhile since I last posted.


 Technology has become overwhelming at times for me. In the last few weeks, my cell, my land line and emails exploded with stuff.
I did not have enough hands or ears or eyes to take care all that needed to be taken care of that moment in time. What do I do to ease this, I decided to foster a pair of 2 to 3 week old kittens that need around the clock care.
Am I insane?????
Am I NUTS???
Have I completely lost control of my faculties????
The answer to those three questions is : MAYBE!
Isn't this new technology to make our lives simpler?
Not in my case, I am a glutton for punishment.
 I do enjoy being busy and multitasking when i have my 8 hour sleep but not lately.
At one point today, I fell asleep while in mid chat, online no less...


I enjoy being in the 21st century, I enjoy fostering these kittens , I do not enjoy being sleep deprived.
I think I have the time now to take a nap that never ends, wake up sometime in the 22nd Century :)

THE BABIES:

UPDATE:
After two months of work with my cell provider and after the 3rd party insurance company declined to cover the damage and after finding out 2 years ago, my line was dropped from the insurance coverage, I have been paying that since 2005, I was given a brand new Samsung Galaxy Note II. Needless to say I am very happy with the outcome. Until I had to load all my contacts that was totaled to 1000..!@#$%^%%#Q seriously?! I do not have 1000 people on my contact list.....Had to take a full day to change it back to only 300. Then came the updated from my provider, I am no longer happy with the 21st Century and its devices (between the apps, games, widgets and sorting out my contact list again).... :( 

Yes, I am addicted,I am using my device.... :P






In the 21st Century, my device jumped out of my hand and onto a concrete driveway....

 

I was standing on my driveway and my cell in my hand, talking to friends then all of sudden the case separated and the top of the case and my cell headed towards the driveway..it was in slow motion, nothing I could do to stop the carnage I was about to witness. I looked down at my cell and I cried inside " WHY! WHY did you jump out of my hand to your unexpected death! WHY!" 
As I stooped down to recover the mangled body of my cell, I check for a heart beat, YES, it was still ALIVE! I jumped for joy only as a woman could do..... I was jumping around up and down, friends and family were looking at me as if I was in  a fit of NUTSO! I did not care, my cell was still alive. 
As I looked closer to the screen, that is when it happened, I cried, not like a little girl who had their lollipop taken away by some politician but as a woman whose favorite shoes were run over by a BIG, HUGE 18 wheeler...... The tears ran down my cheeks, I was sniffling, I could not see because of the large tears..... I was becoming MAD at my precious...MY PRECIOUS! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?!
The crack on my screen is not as bad pictured above but still UGH, I was so enjoying the 21st Century with this device.
I can use the S Pen on the screen just not my finger, I like the idea of not bleeding to death as portrayed in a commercial for a certain Cell Provider.
Now what to do, Should I go ahead and have my Cell Provider replace my Samsung Galaxy Note II or just deal with the crack until I no longer can use it? The idea of doing a backup of all my files and apps and games and photos and video basically everything on my cell is my world now, does not appeal to me.

In the 21st Century, A U-haul, VHS Tapes and Booze and a new man.
 

The day I met Mr. Horton McClure it involved, a U-Haul trailer, VHS tapes and Booze along with a 6 piece sectional.
Mr. McClure and my husband are longtime friends.
It was June 13th, I remember this date because it was my birthday. It was a beautiful day, sun was out, not too hot nor was it too cool, just a perfect day for a 4 hour drive from Charleston, South Carolina to Wake Forest, North Carolina.

The drive up was uneventful, traffic was lite, great music playing on the stereo, just a beautiful day until we arrived at Mr. McClure's apartment complex. Mr. McClure's complex did not have an elevator and he lived on the third floor. As I walked in his apartment, I met his parents, very nice people, much older than I had expected. I looked at the sectional thinking to myself, how in the world are we going to move this piece by piece down three flights of stairs, thankfully we had a trolley. With the guidance of Mr. McClure's Father the move was completed in an hour or so.

Each time Mr. McClure, my husband and I returned to the apartment for another piece, his Mother had gone through his apartment picking out more items for me to take.The addition of a coffee table that could not fit onto the trolley had to be hand carried down by my husband, Mr. McClure and myself, not fun, I was concern one of us going over the open stairwell as we maneuvered this huge coffee table around the corners, that table was a beast, at one point , the weight of the table shifted and I lost my grip, the table drop and slid down the last of the steps, I thought I heard the table exclaim "DAMN IT, you dropped me" I was hoping it was damaged beyond use but alas it survived.

As we stood outside to talked outside, Mr. McClure's Father went back upstairs and return along with his wife, they had two bags full of VHS Tapes and arms full of bottles of booze.
What were they planning? Why the tapes and opened bottles of booze? I was not in the mood for a movie and a drink....I was tired, sweaty and had a 4 hour drive home.... His Mother said I was to take the tapes and open bottles of booze....AH no...I relented and took the tapes but not the booze.
We said our good-byes and left before anything else could be added to our little U-haul trailer.

On the drive home,an hour or so into the drive home, something weird happened, something I have never ever experienced. Our Jeep with the U-Haul trailer, started slowing down as if the transmission had shifted into low gear, but that was not the problem, the problem was a sensor on the right rear wheel and gone (figured this out after we arrived home).
When a wheel sensor stopped working, the Jeep went into survival mode, a drive that takes no more than 5 hours with heavy traffic took 8 hours.
The dash boards light flashed on and off the headlights would dim and we could not speed above 45mph. Other drivers beeping their horns, giving us the look of " GO home, Get of the road, you idiots" I even saw a few one finger salutes as we were fighting the Jeep and the trailer.
The trailer was slightly swaying as we drove in that condition. After 30 minutes of this, it stopped, all was well until the dash boards lights went out and stayed out for the rest of the drive home. It was late, no one to call, could not abandon the jeep and its contents along side the road and leave, so we drove 45 mph.
When we finally arrived home it was after midnight, I looked at the stuff we had loaded hours before and wonder, was it worth all we went through and the answer I came up with was a big fat maybe......
The meeting of Mr. McClure and his parents were the highlight of the trip, the addition of the sectional, coffee table, VHS Tapes not so much.......
6 piece sectional = Free
Coffee Table = Free
2 bags of VHS Tapes = Free
Bad wheel sensor = Not so free
Memories = Priceless
The lesson I learned about FREE stuff: Hire a moving company!

In the 21st Century, Thinking back on my travels, Part 2

We are still in Spain, no one in my group has dared to use the bidet since :)
We decided to head out into the country side from Madrid to Seville.

So we took the train, it was not the modern high speed rail but an old train at the time. As we boarded the train a small group of men started speaking to us in Spanish, a few us that were fluent in their language understood what they were saying and let me tell you I do not blush that often but when I do, I am red from my face down to my nether regions <blushes>. One of my travel companion kept repeating " No Molesto No Molesto" which seemed to spur them on.....Finally I step in and stated the following" NO,Violencia contra monjas católicas " a rough translation would be "no, violence towards Catholic nuns "The group of men apologized, helped with our baggage and left us alone, they were bowing to us as they were leaving......My friends asked " what did you say, I repeated the saying and then informed them they are now NUNS" YES, I did it again.....I am such a prankster, I am so EVIL!!!!!
Thank you god, the men left the train at another stop and did not depart in Seville when we did or I would have been saying "NO MOLESTO" myself.....LOL

We checked into our little hotel run by a family. It was a very old building, it had a courtyard in the center and three floors of rooms on the perimeter of the courtyard, it was beautiful. Another three rooms for 6 girls.
My room was on the ground level facing an alley, as I looked out the one and only window, a floor to ceiling window it had bars, long thick black bars.I was thinking to myself, were these bars here to keep the guests from running out on their bill or to keep the street hoods from coming in....I think the latter was the reason:/

We decided it was time to exploded and enjoy the local fare, food and drink that is.....
We found a "bar" more like a whole in the wall type joint.....It was dark lit ground level dungeon.It was going to be fun or so I thought.......The Sangria flowed, the bar food was heavy the smoke from the cigars that the locals enjoyed made my head swim but I was determined to have fun.....So I did.....One of my travel companions stated, she needed to use the loo, well, in this place the loo consisted of two stalls with the side walls stopped at the bottom of the toilet bowl, the stalls were placed on a wall inside the bar not behind a door then proceed to the Men's side and Women's side, oh no no no anyone and everyone could see your feet either facing the said toilet or facing the room full of patrons, needless to say, NO ONE from my group ventured into the stalls.....I am adventurous but not adventurous.We left and headed back to our old hotel...All I remember was opening the door to my room and waking up with the sound of a vacuum in the hall ,the next day. I had the world's worst hangover......I saw stars and I took a deep breath.....I think years later I am still suffering from that hang over.
From what I remember after that night, We walked around, look at old churches,streets, parks and old people..... 
If you are interested in more of my travel pranks, er, stories email me at mary.mccune@gmail.com and I might tell you. :)
 

In the 21st Century: Thinking back on one of my world travels.



I have had the luxury of traveling to other countries,some centuries behind the western world and some ahead the western world. In my travels I went with a group of friends, great friends, great friends that love my sense of humor. Friends that love my love of pranks played on them by me ( insert evil laughing).

Spain and a Bidet
 

 In my group, there was 6 girlfriends, we had to split into 3 rooms. In my room, my roommate had no idea what a bidet was. I did not explain what it was until after her actions with it. She thought it was a really low water fountain. She exclaimed " They really do care for short people, look how low the water fountain is"
(she stands 5'8") and she proceed to take a drink from it. I waited and almost died from holding in my laughter.....I could not stand straight, I fell to the bathroom floor in a crumbled pile of hysterical giggling, almost wetting myself while giggling. When I explained what she drank from, she cried.. Not a whimper but a a cry that made me sad from allowing her to do that, but none the less I let my evilness take over...I am such a great friend, aren't I?
In the adjoining room to mine, they too did not know what a bidet was, they thought it was for washing their clothes......OMG! They heard my roommate crying after they washed the clothes they had on and asked why she was crying, I explained  what had happened and they yelled at me for allowing her to do that.......:)  I asked them if they knew what it was and they both clammed up, nothing, nada, so I knew they had done something that was not in the designs for a bidet use.. Later one informed me what they had done with their bidet. Seriously, I am the only blond in the group I knew and they didn't...Yes you can insert a blond joke here....LOL In the third room, they witnessed all the shenanigans and decided not to use the bidet in any way, form or fashion....Ahhhh, the smart ones!

How did I know about a bidet, as I child while traveling with my parents, I did the grown-up thing, I asked BEFORE I did anything with a bidet......:)

In the 21st Century, United States Postal Service and Junk Mail
You know, the kind of junk mail we all receive day to day.
For instance: The Political mailers, Sales ads,Credit Cards  Apps..... and the like.
What I received was the be all that ends all for junk mail:









I am accustom to junk mail but a box from Scott...Hmm I wonder what is inside the box:






A free roll of toilet paper...not sure if this a comment on my daily life or the S!@# is going to hit the fan?!
What's the catch?
Is there a tracking device embedded in the roll, to measure how much you use or if you use it at all?
Are you placing the roll right-side up on the holder or upside down?
Is there a penalty if you choose the paper to hang down and touch the floor?
With the modern plumbing we have, who is NOT using Toilet Paper? (I know a few that chooses to use wash clothes, to save money and be green)
There are quite a few commercials entailing the special needs to each brand of toilet paper, I personally would not want to choose a toilet paper that is strong enough for a family of Bears to use....I am sure my time spent in the Toilet Room needs that strong enough paper...It is not like i am eating enough fiber that was a tree at one point.....
With all the kidding aside, I understand the marketing strategy " Purchase our Brand"
But really...shipping a roll of toilet paper to all in my zip code area.....
That is taking the crapper by hand and say" Our brand of toilet paper can handle your type of CRAP!

In the 21st Century, I am having troubles with the pronunciation of this word:






Yes, IMPROVISE.....Apparently I can not Improvise with the pronunciation of this word today.....

There seems to be a block in my brain pertaining to this word......I ask myself, WHY? and the resulting response is laughter from my brain...... Yes, my brain is laughing at me today....go ahead make fun of the fact
I can pronounce almost any word in the English Language but IMPROVISE!

I don't know if this is an early warning sign of Alzheimer's or I have a mental block.

I have sat here and listen to the pronunciation of this word over and over and every time I say IMPROVISE, It sounds weird to me....
I took the time to say it phonetically and it is still weird sounding to me.....

My Motto for today is"

"I will ADAPT and OVERCOME the inability to pronounce IMPROVISE!

In the 21st Century, When I am sick:

I want to heal rather quickly, say in less than 5 minutes.
I do not like to be sick, take pills, meds or see a doctor, I want a hypospray, as in Stark Trek...a fast and no pain type of cure...Where is the hypospray? Where is Bones or Beverly when I am sick?



I am the type of person who does not becomes sick easily or often...it take something bad to take me down, I can work and focus with a cold, sinus infection, ear infection and the such. But when a 24 hour bug invades my body, I do stupid things.... For example, I have a twitter account (@marychampion), I thought I was sending out funny sayings but in fact, they did not make sense to anyone let alone myself, I reread what I posted a few moments ago and I was a appalled at what I tweeted.....so much for interacting with people outside my family when I am sick. No one un-followed me over this, THANK YOU FOLLOWERS!
One tweet was to Wil Wheaton, I blamed him for getting me sick , he tweeted he was sick...I thought it was a funny tweet but alas it was not........Not good Sorry WILL WHEATON! :)

Now that I am on the road to recovery...I promise not to do anything stupid today.

In the 21st Century, On this date 19th of August 1920, Women were given the right to vote by the passing of Amendment 19. HAPPY 93RD BIRTHDAY 19th AMENDMENT!
Up to that point ALL men had the right to vote but not women.......There is a book that i highly recommend for ALL to read :
Founding Sisters and the 19th Amendment


I was inspired by this book and I will in detail share my experience with this book and the right to vote.


 Since finding this book many years ago  I started a tradition to bring this book with me every time I vote.

When Barak Obama was running for the Office of President of The United States of America in 2004, I stood in line to cast my ballot, I had my book open and reading the pages when the poll manager came to me and question what I reading. I showed her the cover of the book and she deemed this book as a Campaign Material. I asked how could this be and she informed me it was of voting, I stated it was of the history of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns and the 19th Amendment. I asked the poll manager if she knew what the 19th Amendment was and she stated she did not, I was astonished. I informed her the 19th Amendment gave the Women of the USA to vote. She then stated if I wanted to vote, I had to put the book away and out of sight of the other voters. I said NO. I stood my ground and explain there is no difference in this book than a newspaper or magazine or any type of reading material that others in line had.
Across the room, a poll watcher, noticed the interchange between myself and the poll manager and interjected himself into the conversation, he asked to see the book and then stated it could be considered campaign material, I said it could not and stayed in line.

The poll manager called her contact at the main voters registration headquarters and informed them of the situations and would they send an investigator to the polling place.
When the investigator arrived, she was brought to me by the poll manager and was told, I was not in compliance with the rules of the polling place. The investigator asked to see the book. She informed the poll manager and the poll watcher, the book was NOT of campaign material and I was in the right.
I requested a public apology from the poll manager and the poll watcher, the investigator asked the poll manager to apologize, she did. The investigator asked the poll watcher to apologize he declined. I asked for the name of the person he was working for and informed them of his infraction, he declined again.
The investigator applauded my actions and for taking a stand. I felt great in my actions and reactions of that day.I did not raise my voice, I did not reaction with anger but with questions and stubbornness.
I did get his information from the investigator and contacted his boss and the candidate wanted to informed me his poll watcher was no longer working for him and the candidate ask for the name of the book.

I felt proud for taking a stand for my right to vote and to read whatever I wanted.

I left the polling place with a HUGE smile on my face knowing I did my part to further the right for women to vote and to enlighten people on the history of the 19th Amendment.
I am not inferring I am as great as Alice Paul and Lucy Burns but I am glad I did my part on that day.

To this day, I take my little book of history and read and smile at anyone in power at the polling place...
I dare them to say any thing to me other than Hello and please take your place in line to vote.

In the 21st Century, This is what i have learned so far:
NEVER EVER TAKE 2 pills of Melatonin at night.


The dream i had, scared the boogie man out of me.
The dream:
I was living in the house i am in now but as a child of 6, the youngest of 7 kids and the only daughter.
Across the street was a little girl named Violet Krissler, she was of the same age as I was but she had Down Syndrome. My older brothers watched out for her in our neighborhood and in school. No one bullied her or made fun of her while they lived at home.
In the dream, I was twelve and it was my turn to watch over her, as the days turn into months, we became closer and one day, I lost Violet, I could not find her at any of the usual spots we visited daily.
I finally found her, with some older bully, mean type boys, they were trying to hurt her....I stood my ground and got her out of there and told her Mom what had happened. Then next day, I returned to the spot where i found her and harnessed one of the boys with a Horse Harness, I tied him to his 2 brothers, their Father came in and said he was going to call the police on me and I said, " Go ahead" your sons were trying to harm Violet in the most painful and violent manner that could happen to a girl. He stated, the police would believe him that i was harming his sons, I said, They will not I am MacCalister and my family is in good standing in this town. The Father was shocked that his boys were doing that and said, " I told you boys not to touch her, she was mine". I told the Father, he and His boys better leave town or I will have my brothers come home and have them take out the trash that they are...They were gone by the next day......

I sat straight up in bed, I could not catch my breath, I was trembling and shaking my head and yelling " I lost Violet, I have to find her, It was my job to look out for her, VIOLET, WHERE ARE YOU?!" It was such a real image, I believed it had happened...My husband was very concern.
I woke up..... I still had the feeling it happened...
It is after noon and I still have the feeling it happened......

So, my lesson of the 21st Century, is to never to take more than 1 pill of melatonin in a 12 hour period!

End note:
(In my family I have 1 brother and no other siblings and my last name is not MacCalister and i do not know a Violet Krissler)

In the 21st Century, It is scary out there!







 Just watched a video pertaining to photos that are shared through cells to social media sites are now able to be manipulated into showing the gps of the person(s) in the photos and all information pertaining to that person's identity.
I turned off the gps ability on my cell to insure that could not happen to me..
But are we safe?
My home PC is protected by a firewall, router and by IT GEEK of a hubby.
But what about all of the other devices in your home or workplace that are reliant on a wireless connection?
There is a video about a baby monitor being hacked and how that hacker is tormenting a child through the use of baby monitor. SCARY!
My question is: Could any camera that is using a wi-fi signal to transmit images be manipulated?
The answer is YES!
Street cameras
Laptop cameras
Web cams
Baby monitor with cameras
Home security cameras
The list goes on and on.....

On a personal side note:

Our baby monitor was analog and i was able to listen to my neighbors phone conversations....
My laptop camera, i thought was off , was making a clicking sound every time i opened it...I put black tape to cover the camera and disable the damn thing.....
In November of last yea, in my State, The Department of Revenue was hack and 4 million residents personal information was taken.....now have to have all of our personal identity watched and protected for years to come...
If this is what is it like to live in the 21st century, I do not want to live in this "NEW" century.....unplug me please!

In the 21st Century...Why are we still repairing appliances?

Where is my  HAL (Heuristically programmed ALgorithmic computer)?

Last week my 9 year old dryer broke down.....ordered the parts, the belt, new idler pulley and a replacement bulb (not needed for the workings just wanted to see inside the dryer)...now the dry is working but a few days later my 6 year old dishwasher stopped working.
Ugh! this will be the third electronic control board in 6 years.

Thankfully, I married a geek, handyman, grease monkey of a man. He can fix anything around the house as well as my 17 year old Jeep :) That is why i married him.....LOL
Not like myself, I have duct tape, I will fix it!

From the movie and novel of the same name : 2001: Space Odyssey, they had sentient, Hall 9000, He would foretell of a break down in the ship's communication ( but of course that was not case).

I want a Hal 9000, not a murderous one but one that will foretell of a break down among all of the appliances and electronics in my house .
I want advance notice of a break down so that i can ensure of parts being ordered or set up an appointment with a repairman ( hubby or an actual one).

It can not be that hard to invent a Hal 9000 for the home.
I know Microsoft has a home of the future but i can not wait nor can i afford the price tag. I do not need my kitchen counters to light up and tell me how to cook...that should be already be completed by the virtual chef and on the table...LOL

I want a little Hal 9000...not a VW size as in the movie.
I would gladly dedicate a full wall to a Hal 9000 in my house.

Check it daily as I drink my coffee and smile, all is okay for today, go on and enjoy your day!

Hubby, when you read this, please implement this, have a wall in the kitchen with nothing on it...start laying those wires and writing the code for the Hal 9000 or in my case Mar 21st Century :)

In the 21st Century, I found this video collection about "The world of Tomorrow" by Tex Avery
ENJOY!

http://vimeo.com/32889552
Have to copy and paste this link

In the 21st Century, where is my self cleaning house?


Where is my self cleaning house?

As I look around my house this morning after having 2 cups of coffee, I sigh.

I wish there was a button that would empty my house out from the dust, crumbs and clutter, instantaneously.
I know there is the robot-vac and a self cleaning cat ( i have two of those) but what about a self cleaning house?
I have a self cleaning oven but I still have to wiped that out after the cleaning cycle is complete.
I have an automatic dishwasher, I have unload then reload with dirty and used dishes.
I have a working washer and a dryer ( finally had that repair last night) but to load and unload, fold and put away is too much.
I have a Dyson vac, it works great on the wood floors but I too, would have to push that around.
I could go on and on but why bother?

This is what I want my house to be:

Clean of all the dust bunnies
Clean of all the crumbs that humans and pets leave behind.
Clean of all the clutter that multiplies over night.
Not much to ask for, is it?

How to implement my ideas.

Train the hubby, again?
Train the kid, again?
Even train the cats and the dog to clean?
I could tie cotton mop heads to the cats and the dog but I think the SPCA would take issue with that idea.
Attached a upside down cone shape bib to the hubby and kid might work...they may balk at that idea.
Or maybe just move to a new place :)

I am not an anal retentive, clean freak person mind you but I would love to have a clean house when friends and family drop in unannounced....or just for me to admire.
It has become a daily battle to clean and I am losing the war rather quickly.
The only sane solution to my problem is to encapsulate all living animals ( hubby, kid and the pets) in plastic bubbles.
I would be free of all the dust bunnies, crumbs and clutter!

Yes, I am a complaining, lazy person today.
I would rather sit at this computer and dream of one day in the 21st Century, someone will invent a self cleaning house or if not in this Century, maybe in the 22nd.
NOT!
Time to clean
I rarely complain about anything or about anyone but toady is the day I start.

In the 21st Century, Grocery Shopping is the worst of all the chores i have.

Those people in the photo are too DAMN happy to be grocery shopping. I have never ever been that happy about it.
I trudged and dread shopping for food.
To make my life easier I installed some apps from the stores I patron. What a mistake that was...UGH! The amount of texts i receive from each store is unbearable.
I used one this morning at Target and the cashier informed me, it was invalided, WHAT?! I just received it this morning. The date on it started yesterday. I purchased the quantity and the brand name of the products. Your company sent me the text that is why I am shopping in your store.....UGH! The cashier relented and gave the coupon off as an over ride. (so overly dramatic, a writer choice and poetic licensing :) )
Am I the only person that uses app coupons from stores?

I did not seen anyone this morning using the app. coupon in place of paper coupons.
There was a lady behind me in line with a handful of paper coupons, I hope the cashier was ready for her.

I know the marketing department for the stores keep track of the app. coupons that are being used and how frequent.
Paper coupons verse the app.coupons.
What is the difference other than stop using paper, save the trees.
More tracking of when, by whom and how much is spent by using these app coupons.

This part of the 21st century, I detested. I am going back to paper coupons.

I will only used copy paper that has a high percentage of used consumer products in making of the paper.
Have to save the trees for the politicians to use for their many unwanted solicitations.

In the 21st Century, it is full of Murphy's IRONIC law!
 "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong"
UGH!



I am going back to bed! 
I am giving up today...I am surprised that i am able to post to my blog this morning after all that has transpired in the last 24 hours......I am not complaining, i am glad to be alive and experiencing Murphy's Law. I am happy to be here but sometimes it is better to give up and try again at a later time or date.
Maybe tomorrow Murphy's law will take a day off or better yet a week off.
I could list everything that went and still is going wrong from yesterday until early this morning, but i do not want to pass the contentiousness of Murphy along to any reader of my blog.
So go out and have a wonderful, great. fun filled day :) :/

In the 21st Century, SOYLENT  green is a reality!




Rob Rhinehart, the creator of Soylent powder formula, has not had a meal for a month other than his soylent.
His powder from a biochemical  level is made up from — a drink mixture of vitamins and minerals which includes calcium, potassium, zinc, vitamins A, B, C, D, E and K.(cited from www.news.com.au)
The article states that Rob has replaced 90 % of food intake with Soylent.
I can see this being a supplement as in daily vitamins not a food replacement.
You will feel better with these vitamins and minerals in this powder but how is this better than what is out on the market today?
He has a website and has raised a large sum of monies, but just because he didn't have the time or the wiliness to make the time, Per Rob's ideology: "By taking years to spoil, dramatically reducing cost, and easing transportation and storage, soylent could have a dramatic effect on hunger and malnutrition".( cited from his website: https://campaign.soylent.me/soylent-free-your-body)
That is a bold statement to make.
I did my own fact checking pertaining to world hunger:

There are 5 reasons to world hunger, they are: (cited from 2013 World Hunger and Poverty Facts and Statistics, http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/world%20hunger%20facts%202002.htm ).

1. Poverty is the principle cause of hunger.
2.Harmful economic systems are the principal cause of poverty and hunger.
3. Conflict as a cause of hunger and poverty.
4.Hunger is also a cause of poverty, and thus of hunger.
5. Climate change.

How does he plan to overcome all of the obstacles of world hunger?
 
I read his website and all that he has put into detail, but what concerns me the most, no one on his team is a nutritionist or dietician.

Could this be the "Be all, End all" solution?

When i read the article all i could see was the movie with Charlton Heston "Soylent Green" and the line
"Soylent Green is People".

Not my cup of Soylent Green Tea....

I do not endorse this product nor philosophy.

In the 21st Century, Why are still reliant on washers and dryers?
 



On Saturday Morning, I loaded the last of the laundry for the week into my 9 year old dryer, i set it and forgot it until the buzz sound alerted me the drying process was complete, but alas, that was NOT the case....... The belt broke......The clothes were wrinkled but dry, had to pull out the iron and board to DE-wrinkle the clothes, another ancient device to chain you to laundry.....
I could not find the belt, the idler pulley in my local home improvement stores, online was the only recourse i had. I order what i needed, $44.00 is more affordable then a new dryer at $500.00.
Side not: Thank you , 21st Century for the ever expanding uses of online services. :)

But as i iron my wrinkled clothes,shaking my head, holding a wrinkled shirt, thinking out loud "should we not have self cleaning clothes by now??????"

Why, in the 21st Century are clothes are not self cleaning? Why hasn't  Science/Technology come up with a solution?
Is it because the laundry institutions have lobbyists at WASHINGton, D.C? (pun intended)
Are they keeping technology from inventing a self cleaning materiel for us to wear?
Are the Laundry Lobbyists so afraid that no one will purchase laundry units anymore or use laundry detergents?
Are the dry cleaners involved with this as well?
Are Laundromats involved as well?
How far does this go?
Yes, I am grateful, that the washers and dryers of our time are automated VS. the manual and deadly machines of the past.

I believe at this point in this century, we should have materials that are self cleaning and self deodorizing clothing.
Star Trek (never saw a laundry room on a star ship or space station in any episode) had the technology why not us, come on NASA, MIT, maybe even the average Joe geek. help us out, disregard the laundry lobbyists ( if they do exists) invent the material for the human race. :)

Speaking of another ancient device, Iron and Board.....I will use it when needed.
Not a fan of the iron, had a HOT iron fall on my leg as a child, have the burn scar to prove how dangerous a hot iron is.
I hope the washer doesn't get any idea of dying any time soon, it is only 8 years old....

In the 21st Century, i thought i would take a step farther inside this century by paying bills via apps and etc apps..
OMG!!!!!

 


One piece of advice to anyone who has not done this....make sure you know what you are doing!.....installed my financial bank's app......I forgot to register/verify the cell BEFORE i input my information to gain access to my account, well, needless to say, I LOCKED MYSELF OUT of my accounts....:/
Had to wait until the next morning to talk with a human being to have all reset....I was not a GEEK that day.

Later that morning, i got a bright idea, why not go all the way and........install more apps.....REALLY?! Why did my brain turn on me, why did i allow myself to do that, why, why , why? ( banging head on the desk)
I installed some retail apps, you know the kind, Target, Dunkin Donuts and the like....GOOD LAWRD!!! my cell was buzzing and whistling and vibrating, i dropped it, not knowing it was notification alerts...thought the cell was going to explode.....still not a GEEK on that day....The hubster looked at me as if i was having a conniption fit... my cell on the ground me looking at it as if it had grown arms and legs to jump out of my hands to run to someone that knew what they were doing.....I mean come on, I am smart, intelligent and all knowing...(sure i am, but not on that day) I have the ability to deduce the problems i face as well as to help other with theirs but not on that day.....It seemed like all of my GEEKNESS had left me, my brain had switched to a 2 year old mode.....I was like WTH is going on......Did i load a Trojan virus, a piece of Malware...WTH did i do?????
As all of this was going on, i was imaging this visual situation, if the hubster could do this, would he (All the while, the hubster laughed to the point of having to squat down to the ground and point at me, he was making sure all around us, near us, even in the same city, look at my wife, he was pointing at me and laughing)....grrrrrrrrr HE NEVER DID!!!! That was my brain on overload of the lack of GEEKNESS.

YES! I am a GEEK maybe not on the same level as the hubster or anyone else in the 21st century but i am GEEK and I AM PROUD!

 Update: They took my money and i got a receipt! No Murphy's Law will come and kick me in the butt in the future over this! HAHA



In the 21st Century, Technology has screwed me over!




Yesterday decided to shop at Sam's Club, picked out what i wanted/needed.went to check out and the cashier was doing her thing, i swiped my card all was approved at POS (Point of Sale) and then the computer system did a reboot while the transaction was being completed......The cashier was dumbfounded and spastic, she called for her supervisor and the supervisor acted in the same manner.....OMG!!!! was said over and over again by these two ladies.....i am thinking to myself "Has the world ended? Has the zombies attacked the sever room and took down the system? Will i ever be allowed to leave?

Needless to say, It took an hour to resolved this quagmire...... What follows next is a step by step of an hour of torture.
So, I was taken to the Customer Service Desk and was told the have to find the history of the transaction before i could leave.....Am i being held hostage at a Sam's Club, I paid for the items but could not leave with the items.....So, one of the many employees came up with a brilliant idea, we will do a price scan, get a NON-receipt and let me leave with the said items.......REALLY?!
The employee in charge informed me it was take up to 48 hours to this to clear up.....i asked cleared up as in refund or another charge to my account? No answer was given.......UGH!
I am walking out with $107.66 worth of items without an actual register receipt.....I called my bank and yes indeed the money was withdrawn but the store had no history of the transaction....what to do...should i be honest and return to the store to pay for the items or wait and have someone from the store call me and ask for the money?
By the time i return home, the $107.66 had been refunded to my account.

I decided to be honest and call them, this is what has transpire since 9AM this morning:

Called the store was transferred to accounting and the phone rang and rand rang, no one is in the office at 9
Called the store again was transferred to accounting, phone rang in a continuous manner this was at 9:30
Called again at 10:00 same results....phone rings no answer....UGH!
Called at 10:15AM.....OMG! they do have human beings that work in the accounting department.....Explain the situation and as of 10:15AM this morning, they do not have any history of anything connected to my name for shopping on 07/31/2013.....Still going to be honest, heading to Sams' to pay them the $107.66.
I wonder if i will get a halo or earn my wings over this? Nah, I am too evil for a halo or wings :)

In the 21st Century, there was the "new: Technology.....Tablets which is not the same as PADDs from Star Trek.
The people that designed this prop, Michael Okuda, Denise Okuda and Doug  Drexler had  great imaginations. The idea of telling a story of what was going on in any scene with a PADD, this prop was its own character.
Did the viewers of Star Trek want to see what was on that PADD,I know i did. As a kid, I would record an episode and stop and look at the PADD but could not read what was on the screen.....my eyes are paying for that experiment from doing so with the VCR machine now.... :/
You know, today's engineers may have watched Star Trek and knew they could invent a PADD.
Now I can say I have a PADDs, just like Captain Janeway. :)
This is a standard Star Trek Voyager PADD:

 




And now we have mobile tablets!

 I purchased a Google Nexus 7  Tablet last year. It was a fun toy. I tried to read a E book once, once was enough. Holding the tablet while reclining in bed was too much, I kept dropping it on my lap or on my cat      (who would conveniently lay underneath the tablet as like the cat is reading along with me or just trying to suck off the heat the tablet generated).
The Google Nexus7 for me, has been relegated to video games and surfing the internet.
I enjoying holding a hardcover and paperbacks books. The tactile feel of the pages, the smell of a book when open, is the best feeling i have when reading as well as getting lost in the story or learning something new. Yes, I do have a library card...I am one among the few that still have them.
I might give the Nexus 7 another try, i might :/


This is the last post in this series of Star Trek Props into the reality of the 21st Century.

In the 21st Century, Are we ready or evolved enough to handle a Star Trek-isk Bio-Matter Resequencer or in laymen terms a Replicator.

We have 3-d printers that can print chocolate on a cookie (youtube video). This was presented to NASA by Systems & Materials Research Cooperation, which won them a $125,000 grant to produce a pizza for astronauts (cited from universitytoday,com).

 What a great invention. Producing food for NASA and possible producing habitats for man kind on other planets and moons in the future.

SMRC’s prototype 3D food printer will be based on open-source hardware from the RepRap project.RepRap (cited from Quartz, Christopher Mims)

Malphin (UK Company) will be the first company to sell a home use 3D printer for $1100.00, we too, could have a home based 3D printer, granted the printer will be in a kit form and takes only 10 hours to assemble and the item you want to print has to under the size of 8 inches or 20cm. Not sure what that could be, use your imagination i suppose.

If 3d printers are the way of the future, what will happen to man kind? Will we live to work to eat to survive..would this technology put the average farmer out of business? Would we, man kind, lose the will to survive to forage for food if this technology was to replace our food sources? Would we become lazy and a non-producing/productive society? I think not. This would open up so many possibilities of evolving our creativity, artistry, possibly lead us to the ever out of reach Utopia. Is man kind ready for this? Possibly.

3D printing of food is a great use of today's thinking...can we use this technology to recycle all of the consumed trash? How far away is this technology? As we consume more products the less land fills we have on this planet. Would not it be a better use for recycling trash into new products?

 I would LOVE a food replicator in my kitchen. The time it takes to make a meal could be used for other activities, for instance, write a blog about my joining of the 21st Century :)

 Tomorrow's post will be on PADDs ( Tablets for us non Star Trek people)

In the 21st Century, Where are we with technology?
There will be multiple posts pertaining to Star Trek Tech starting with the original tv Star Trek show through all of the franchises of Star Trek and how we enjoy their usage in today's life.
I am not a true Trekkie, but a fan of Star Trek.
Gene Roddenberry's imagination intrigued many youths to encapsulate his props and bring them into reality.
I am not speaking of mobile phones (MTS, IMTS, RCC,) only of Digital Cells. There are many articles and write up on these devices.
What i am writing about is the "second generation" of mobile phones .Below is my take on this matter:

Star Trek Communicators :
  From the original television show, each crew member had handheld communicators, as the franchise matured with each decade of the series, the communicators were no longer handheld but worn on their uniforms.
With Gene Roddenberry's imagination are we using "his" vision of communication in the form of cell phones?
The Engineers of the mid to late 20th century to now have taken Gene's ideas and expanded on them. We have handheld devices that are computers. We are encouraged to do more on these devices daily. These devices are capable of reaching out to others around the world via, calls, text and social media. We use these devices to report and record daily events. We check emails, bank accounts,search for information and play video games. I never thought any of the props from Star Trek would be part of my life ( that is why i am NOT an engineer, do not have the knowledge nor the know how). The idea of contacting a person somewhere else in the world via a cell phone was and is mid blowing to me.













 How in the 21st century, i have come to LOVE my cell and all that has changed about me and my daily life since joining this century. I can no longer leave my cell at home or go without checking it every 3 to 5 seconds or reach for my digital camera, i must use the camera in my cell. I even gave my cell a name (not giving out her name), seriously, what is wrong with me :/ I am surprised i have not taken my cell into the shower with me so that i would not miss any incoming texts, call or whatever......If i could make my cell waterproof, that would make me deliriously happy :)
What i have not done is to ignore my family, friends and society because of my "new" addiction. But my world has been opened, I no longer have to travel to the far ends of the earth to learn about history, cultures or rituals.I learn all of this from my cell. Does this make me a hermit, NO, well,  maybe to a point, okay, i am a wiser hermit :)
 I have been to functions, restaurants, movies, even at a park, where many of the people are looking at their cells and is not engaging with the person with them or all parties in their group are looking down at their mobiles....This is worrisome to me.....is our society becoming so intrigued with today's technology, it has become easier to deal with human emotions/interactions through a cell?
I have heard of people, breaking up with their boyfriends/girlfriends through texts...seriously? Have we become a society unable to deal with emotions from other human beings when they are in pain, happy, sad, etc.?
In my post about losing a friendship of 20+ years, was my one and only ending via a text....not so good feelings......I enjoy interacting with other humans, i can read their facial expression, eyes movements and body language much easier than through a cell. you can only put some many LOL's, smiley faces and emoticons in text and email and still not know that person emotion, truly.

Have we taken Gene's ideas of communicators and ruin our society? Or, have we evolved into a society of non engaging people?
Next post will continue tomorrow: Replicators (food and materials)