SMART Technology Is Driving Grandma CRAZY!

Well maybe I should say..."CRAZIER!"

I finally got my estrogen problem straightened out to my satisfaction and was feeling pretty good about that snafu when my printer and USB camera cable decided to go on the fritz at almost the same time. That meant I had no way of downloading my latest photos to print. I have become quite the amateur photographer loving to save precious memories of my grandkids and their pets.

I bought a nice Nikon last year and have really enjoyed it but found out the USB cable it comes with is a piece of crap. I looked it up and read reviews and probably would not have bought the camera if I knew I was going to have trouble with the cable. I read several reviews about it and they were not good, most of them were not as kind as I'm trying to be. :).

When the cable first went out I ignored it because my Kodak printer allowed me to put the memory card in it and download photos that way and I did...until the cartridge carrier jammed and I broke it trying to get it unjammed. I know they cost as much to repair as a new one so I went looking for  a new printer at a large electronic chain store yesterday. Found out Kodak went out of business which made me kind of sad. When I was a kid that was the only brand of camera anyone I knew owned. Guess new SMART technology and copy-catters took their toll on them.

I told the clerk I mostly printed photos and he suggested an HP Photosmart that seemed to have all the functions I needed and a few I didn't. It did have a slot for a memory card I assumed worked like my Kodak had...put the photos directly into my picture file so I could edit or crop them before I printed them.

 I was so wrong! After I brought it home and installed it, I found that memory card slot would only allow you to send them to Snapfish online. No...I do not want to publish my grandkids photos online!

I was back at the electronics store when they opened this morning to find out if maybe I just couldn't figure it out, or to trade it in for a printer that does what I want it to do. Low and behold...I find out they don't make anything but "wireless" printers anymore that don't allow you to use a memory card to download photos to your computer. They want you to keep everything on the memory card and edit on that tiny little screen and print directly from it...and I suppose if you lose that over loaded tiny memory card you must be sheet out of luck..not to mention how much time you would have to spend looking though that tiny screen for a  photo you wanted to print.. I had always erased the memory card after downloading to my computer from it. Smart Progress? Not according to this old grandma!

So then the clerk talks me into buying a memory card reader I can plug directly into my computer and download from the card thataway. So I bought it, came home and plugged it in and it did download to a file somewhere in the bowels of this SMART Windows 8 software I hate that came on this SMART computer and I have yet to find the file...it darn sure didn't go into my picture file where I expected it to. The one I know how to use and email from.

Then the kids wonder why I won't get a SMART phone and I tell them it's because I use a flippin phone to talk on...not to download SMART Apps dumb Grandma's can't figure out..

Stay tuned for my next crisis.

 

Insurance Companies Now Decide How Much Estrogen I Need?

I learn more and more each day just how the insurance companies are going to make Obamacare work and I'm not liking it.

 I'm a senior citizen on limited income and have been on a Medicare supplement for over 10 years and was happy with it. The co-pays were reasonable and so were generic prescriptions....but, they took a huge jump this year when Obamacare went into effect. I didn't mind paying a little more for specialists visits or diagnostic tests but I do mind what I found out this morning.

The mail order pharmacy my doctor recommended called with a recorded message saying my estrogen refill was denied by my insurance company for the second time my doctor sent it in and an explanation was being mailed. Well I didn't want to wait for the postman so I called my Medicare supplement I've been on ever since I went on Medicare.

I was prescribed estrogen almost 40 years ago by a little Jewish lady doctor who told me to stay on a low dose for good and don't let any "man" doctor tell me different...my bones and body would thank me for it in my old age. She looked pretty darn good physically and mentally alert in her 70's so I obeyed her. Every time I changed doctors I told them the story and they prescribed it for me.

The last bone scan I had they told me I had the bones of a 25 year old...healthy. I silently thanked the old lady doctor. My "sexual" organs have remained in good working shape and I "occasionally" thanked the lady doctor for that satisfying side effect.

When my Mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in her early 80's, the doctor asked if she had ever been on estrogen replacement and she hadn't so they put her on it...a little too late. The lab lady who does my yearly mammograms told me to let her know if I ever went off the estrogen because it would make a big change in my breast tissue. I didn't like that idea.

Now my insurance company tells me my generic estrogen tablets were raised to a "tier 4" drug the first of the year and even if I can get an exemption from my doctor to continue the estrogen it will cost me $95 dollars a month... rather than the six dollars I paid for a three month supply.

Say what? Who the hell decided old women don't need their estrogen?

MY INSURANCE PROVIDER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Strange & Improbable Animal Friendships

After spending a lot of time alone in the same room  of the owners house, they grew fond of each other. The crow is almost always on the dog’s back, the dog even barks when people try to touch his pal. The owner built a custom harness for more comfortable rides.      A black swan feeding fish at a public park.       After a devastating forest fire, fire rescue ran out of crates for the animals saved from the blazes. This fawn and baby bobcat were placed together in the office. Hours later, firemen noticed they’d taken a liking  to one another and cuddled for the duration they were kept together.     A duck and house cat raised together by a family.  Supposedly the duck hates water and hasn’t figured out yet that it can fly.     A wild life park in China adopted two tiger cubs,  which were soon adopted by a worker’s dog that happened to be in the pen frequently.      The Fernandez family adopted a tiger cub after he lost his family. He’s been raised with the family dog  since youth and they are inseparable.       A five week old boar plays with Candy, the Jack Russell terrier in           Ehringhausen , Germany .     Humphrey was a house pet that became too large           and was moved to the Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve  in South Africa , where he was safe but lonely. Cameroon Pygmy Mountain Goat climbed Humphrey’s  enclosure fence and befriended him.         Sobe the iguana and Johann the cat were both rescued by a woman in Brooklyn , NY .  Every day when the iguana is let out of her cage,  she seeks out Johann for play time, along with a rabbit also kept as a pet.       A baby hippo was swept away by a tsunami and  rescued by a wild life reservation. A 130 year old tortoise immediately befriended him.   Everyone knows who Koko the gorilla that speaks sign language is. For her birthday one year, she signed to her  teacher that she wanted a kitten. Koko’s teacher wasn’t surprised, as Koko’s two           favorite books were about cats. They adopted one from an abandoned litter  and Koko showed it tender care and gentleness.       A lioness abandoned by her pack decides to adopt a baby impala after killing its mother. Several times, she tried to leave the baby in the company of other impalas, but ended up having to take the baby back under her wing  after the adult impalas were frightened away by her.       A lion, tiger, and bear raised together in the same enclosure  at Noah’s Ark Sanctuary in GA play ball, cuddle, and chase each other.        A giraffe and ostrich form an odd friendship at Busch Garden ‘s in Florida .       A baby impala was left behind after the rest of its group  ran away from the cheetahs. Instead of preying on the impala, they played gently with it a bit before simply getting bored and leaving it.       Owls that hatched at a hawk conservatory were adopted  by the park keeper and became friends with his pet dog.        A few morn unusual animal friends. They make me smile.

  

 

 

"When Hell Froze Over Theory"

The following is reputed to be an actual question given on a University of Arizona chemistry mid term exam, and an actual answer turned in by a student.

The answer by one student was so “profound” that the professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet,which is of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well:

Bonus Question: Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic (absorbs heat)?

Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle’s Law (gas cools when it expands and heats when it is compressed) or some variant. One student, however, wrote the following:

“First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell and the rate at which they are leaving, which is unlikely. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for how many souls are entering Hell, let’s look at the different religions that exist in the world today.

“Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell. Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyle’s Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are added.

“This gives two possibilities:

“1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until all Hell breaks loose.

“2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes over.

“So which is it?

“If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year that, “It will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you,” and take into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then number two must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already frozen over. The corollary of this theory is that since Hell has frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is therefore, extinct-leaving only Heaven, thereby proving the existence of a divine being. Which explans why, last night, Teresa kept shouting, “Oh My God!”

 This student received an A+.

I thought his logical chemistry thinking on the subject exceptional also and worth sharing. :) 

 

When It's OK to use the 'F' Word....

 

 

It's OK when.....

 

 

 

Hope 2014 is a GREAT year for you!

Self Publishing With Confidence

Mystery writer Jill Paterson has published an excellent Self Publishing Pocket Guide to help those who want  to self publish their books rather than use a traditional publisher. It is written in a concise step by step format to help anyone with the entire process including formatting the manuscript.

This guide includes information on all aspects including deciding on a cover and book blurb to decisions on price, ISBN, and choice of categories. It also includes helpful web site links plus marketing and author platform ideas to enable you to start your self publishing journey with confidence.

The guide can be found at the link below. 

http://www.amazon.com/Self-Publishing-Pocket-Jill-Paterson-ebook/dp/B00H4IG8F2/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1388153976&sr=1-6&keywords=Jill+Paterson 

 

Jill Paterson was born in Yorkshire, UK, and grew up in Adelaide, South Australia before spending 11 years in Ontario, Canada. After returning to Australia, she settled in Canberra.

After doing an arts degree at the Australian National University, she worked at the Australian National University's School of Law before spending the next 10 years with the Business Council of Australia and the University of NSW, ADFA Campus, in the School of Electrical Engineering.

 

Jill is the author of three published novels besides the Self Publishing Guide. They are The  Celtic Dagger, Murder At The Rocks and Once Upon A Lie. All are part of the Fitzjohn Mystery Series.  They can be found on Amazon.

 

 

Historic Fort Sam Houston

Fort Sam Houston originated in 1845 when the Post at San Antonio was established in the Alamo City.

After the Civil War, the Army began to move out of the city onto land donated by the City of San Antonio. In 1876, the construction of the Quadrangle began and the Quartermaster Depot moved into it in 1877. The garrison moved into tents west of the Quadrangle in 1879 and the Headquarters moved in 1881. The Post at San Antonio continued to expand with the addition of the Infantry Post in the 1880s. It was designated as Fort Sam Houston in 1890 and expanded again in 1905 with the Cavalry and Light Artillery Post. These areas, plus the New Post of the 1930s, constitute the largest collection of historic buildings in the Department of Defense (800+) and form the Fort Sam Houston National Historic Landmark.

 

Located in the heart of San Antonio, the post is the birthplace of military aviation and saw the development of the concept of airborne operations. The post evolved into the “Home of Army Medicine” after World War II and into the “Home of Military Medicine” with the establishment of the Medical Education and Training Campus in 2010. 

I love old post cards!

Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) is the Flagship of Army Medicine! BAMC is the command, comprised of ten separate organizations, that provides inpatient care, outpatient care, advanced rehabilitative services and troop leadership.

Original BAMC
Many of our wounded warriors are brought
here to rehab and recuperate. The burn center
is second to none.

BAMC today
 

Yes, the "infamous" Geronimo was at Ft Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas in 1886.    He stayed in a tent in the Quadrangle. Today there are deer,  peacocks, geese and dove ...What a peaceful and serene setting with a remarkable history.

When my grandchildren were young they loved for me to take them to the Quadrangle to feed the peacocks, geese, and deer that would walk right up to them looking for a handout.

Well fed deer resting around the old watch tower

From some of the story's I've heard about the infamous legend...It wouldn't surprise me.

Geronimo and other Native American POW's at Fort Sam Houston in 1886..the Apache War Chief remained a POW for 27 years until his death.

Geronimo 1829-1909

  In 1905 Geronimo  published his autobiography, and that same year he received a private audience with President Theodore Roosevelt, unsuccessfully pressing the American leader to let his people return to Arizona. He was never allowed to return to his homeland and in the end regretted surrendering, wishing he had fought to the death.

The Post Chapel

Edge of parade field

Fort Sam Theatre

Barracks

More Barracks

The row of historic Officer's homes is quite impressive.

 

 

The Grandkids also loved the war machines on display.

 

 Another old post card.

Before 9/11, a city street ran through the center of the post. Within a day or two after the attack, the street was barricaded and remains so to this day.

Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery on Memorial Day

I lived within a half block of Fort Sam for seven years and occasionally late in the evening
I would hear the eerie sound of Taps being played on a bugle...slow, clear, and beautifully. I never knew why or who it was for but a wave of sadness always accompanied it.