New Phone

I must admit...when I first heard someone talking about a Droid I thought they were talking about some Star Wars character. Turns out there's this whole new android market niche in the cell phone industry!

This past weekend I got a new phone. The Samsung Moment. My brother, Daniel, who is 11, knows more about this phone than I do. (He has also installed 30+ apps that I am positive I will never need, including a Bic lighter?!?!)

Although I am still figuring it out, it's pretty cool. I can listen to music, watch You Tube, change my Facebook status, check my email, text like crazy, and so many other things I have never dreamed about doing with a phone!

So, I'm a bit behind the technology curve...but I just got a little closer.

Another Fire

It's freezing out. It's freezing inside too. I didn't think much of it, I woke up to a light dusting of snow outside, I thought it must just be cold. Then I decided to turn up the heat, only to realize the heat wasn't even on and my house was at 57 degrees. This explains why I kept feeling the need for more blankets last night.

I turned on the furnace and cranked up the thermostat to 67. Then I decided to get online and test my luck with a space heater aimed on my feet while I searched the Internet. It made a few strange noises but was producing heat so I just let it go. Then it made a noise like that of a spaceship landing and burst into flames. I instantly hit the "off" button but that seemed to have no effect. I decided my best attempt was to try and remove it from my house. (If it were going to implode I thought it could best do so outdoors.)

I picked it up and started to run...still plugged in. Oops. Unplugged it and started to run. It was definitely on fire. I started to blow on the fire as I ran for the exit. I got it outside set it down as the fire was becoming more evident and shooting flames from the vent below the handle. I sat it down and blew and blew and finally put out the fire. Relief.

This is the second time in 6 months that an electrical device I was using has caught fire. The first was my heated seat (as I sat on it) and now this. I think I should stay clear of them for awhile...

Calliou & Mr. Hinkle

Today, while watching PBS with a couple of preschool aged friends, I caught an episode of Calliou. I've included a summary of the episode I found online to bring you up to speed:

"Get Well Mr. Hinkle" Episode Summary (http://www.tv.com/caillou/all-around-the-block!/episode/212711/summary.html?tag=blackout#)

Caillou is in the living room, playing with Rexy, when the mail comes. He gets the mail from the mailman and then takes it to Daddy. He asks if there's anything for him, but Daddy says that there isn't. He does, however, point out a catalogue that was actually supposed to go to Mr. Hinkle. He asks Caillou to deliver it to Mr. Hinkle. Caillou gets into it and has Daddy dress him up as mailman. He and Daddy then take the catalogue to Mr. Hinkle, who shows him that he's already received a copy of that particular catalogue. So he lets Caillou keep it. Back at home, Caillou notes that Mr. Hinkle still had his pajamas on. Daddy thinks that maybe Mr. Hinkle wasn't feeling well. So Caillou and Daddy put together a get-well package for Mr. Hinkle, with a card and flowers in vase which Caillou paints himself. They take it all to Mr. Hinkle, who is happy to receive it. He notices that the card features a bluebird, which is appropriate because he just got a new birdhouse. He asks Caillou to come back tomorrow and he'll show it to him.

First of all, replace all the word "Daddy"with "Mommy" because that was what I saw in the episode, at least what I think I saw...but that is a moot point.

My real concern is the way they automatically insinuate Mr. Hinkle is ill just because he answered the door in pajamas. If he was really ill why would he have answered the door at all? I mean come on, is it illegal to answer the door in your PJ's? For crying out loud, maybe Mr. Hinkle is having a bad day, maybe he's suffering from depression, maybe he lost his job and doesn't have a reason to get dressed. Anyone ever think of that?

Just an unbiased observation.