StewStuph

I have enjoyed Weather Underground for years. I have known about the ability to add personal weather stations (PWS) to their site for years. Well, it has finally happened. I bought a PWS. Recently, Woot  had one for sale at a pretty nice discount. It is an Acurite 5-in-1 weather station . I received it last week and set it up this past weekend. It is now reporting conditions to  Weather Underground  and you can observe the data collected from my backyard here . Temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction, wind chill, heat index, "feels like," dew point, precipitation rate, precipitation amount are the basic measurements the instrument records. In addition to reporting data to  Weather Underground , there is a display console that is inside the house to display the outdoor conditions along with indoor conditions including temperature and humidity. There are apps that are available for both iOS and Android that connect to the weather station and displ...

A vacation 3 years in the making. Camping reservations one year out. A long weekend culminating with the Great America Eclipse of 2017 . As it turns out, an unobstructed view of totality eluded us. Years ago my son asked when would be the next time we could see a solar eclipse near us. After doing a web search and determining our next best chance would be in 2017, I put the date of August 21, 2017, on my google calendar. Over the next few years, I researched the path of totality. I hoped to find some place where our entire family, who would include mid and late teen children, could enjoy a vacation as well as experience a total eclipse. I settled on Charleston, SC as our destination. I would hope that this would provide us beach time, historical sites to tour. At first, I wanted to rent a beach house, but realized, along with Gina, that camping would be one-quarter or less the cost than renting a house. I looked for camping sites near Charleston and made the decision to camp ...

I am sure you can find plenty of playlists to go along with the Great American Eclipse today, but here is mine. You can also listen to this on  Google Play Music , minus "Jealousy Rides With Me"

If you had told me ten years ago that I would travel to Michigan for the Fourth of July I would not have believed you. However, my life has led me down this path and I am grateful for the experiences, new family and friends I have gained. Michigan in the summer, for me, is much more pleasant than the winter. In looking at the kids school calendar earlier this year I was excited to see that we would be able to spend a week in the mitten state. In the past we have gone camping in the UP but this year decided to be trolls and spend most of our time in the Lansing area. This was a good thing as we had a couple of things we wanted to do that we usually don't get a chance to do in the winter or when we travel across the Mackinac Bridge . Gina had planned our week and invited friends and family to join us on our adventures. SATURDAY JULY, 1 We spent most of the day driving on or first Saturday of vacation. Arriving in Lansing around dinner time. We had a relaxing meal with my Gina...

R.E.M. officially disbanded in 2011. However, their impact will be felt for for decades. One of the great things that continues to happen is articles are still be written about the band and their music. This one from diffuser , in particular, is one of my favorites thus far. It is about all the "places" conjured up in the music and lyrics of their songs. Having finally made a trip to Athens last summer, I am reminded of the fun I had finding just a few of the icons of their life and career.

The concert fun continues in just over a week. Another road trip to Charlotte and The Fillmore to see Real Friends , Have Mercy , Tiny Moving Parts , Broadside and nothing nowhere . This came about thanks in part to my son. He heard some of the stuff I was listening to and suggested I listen to Have Mercy. He was spot on with his recommendation and I have been listening to them regularly since that day. At least this time I was able to wait to purchase the tickets and get half off two of the four tickets. Unlike last time , I saved a few bucks.

You know how certain people in your office have special nicknames. Like "dizzy" because that that person is always screwing something up like Dizzy from Bob the Builder. Or Mr. Panic because everything that happens is cause for panic. Well, I just learned mine at least among some here in the office. A co-worker dialed my phone and began to say, "Stewie is working on some elevations... wait... I thought this was... uh.... never mind <click.mp3>." At first I thought that was a fine nickname. Taken from my last name, it seemed innocent until I thought of Stewie from Family Guy. I am not bent on world domination. I am not out to destroy the lives of my enemies, come to think of it, I don't have enemies. I don't have the ability to create a time machine or any other amazing mechanical contraptions. In talking with another co-worker I learned that early in my time here he once called me "Stewie" and asked if I liked that. Apparently I seemed very...

It was another concert weekend. We kicked it off Friday at Local 506 seeing regional bands Youth League , Knowne Ghost and Cuzco . Earlier in the week my son told me that he remembered seeing the bassist for Youth League at Wreckingball last summer. When we arrived at the club I saw the band outside talking. I told my son to ask him if he was indeed there last summer. Being too shy he declined. I on the other hand have not many reservations about approaching people on the street to talk to them. When asked, he confirmed that he was there. Knowne Ghost was a last minute replacement for Outbound and I was grateful because I was able to hear a "new to me" band. Youth League Saturday morning was an early start. I got up early to see Gina off for her trip to the SAS conference in Orlando. I watched the first half of the Merseyside Derby. Then I headed out to watch local soccer as some of my friends were playing each other before my own 10:00 kickoff.  My game was a victory...

One of my favorite things to do is go to concerts. This weekend I am going to see Thursday ,  Touché Amoré ,  Basement   and  Wax Idols  at The Fillmore in Charlotte. Just for fun I entered their drawing to win tickets even though I bought tickets February 2nd. This morning I received an email notifying me I did not win. No big deal, I already have tickets. But the annoying part to me was a mention in the email about DISCOUNTED tickets still available. Curiosity got to me and I checked the price of the same tickets to see the difference. It would have been HALF the price if i waited to buy them now. Of course waiting increases the risk of a show selling out. These tickets are being sold through Live Nation. I wonder how much money they get from the sale of tickets. How much does the venue get? What about the artists? This is not the first time I have seen this happen. Last year when I went to Wreckingball, I could have waited and got my weekend pa...

I love to listen to music. I love to go to live shows. One of my current favorite bands is Young and Heartless . When they announced a tour that would pass through my hometown of Raleigh I was very excited to see them again (I saw them at Wreckingball last summer.) The tour announcement said they were playing at The Radio Shack. Having been in this town for nearly 15 years, I have never heard of this venue. It turns out it is a house. In all my years I have never been to a house show. After discovering the address I went with Gina and my music loving son and his girlfriend. When we arrived were the first patrons to arrive. I guess that is due to my desire to never be late. As we watched the house fill up my suspicions were confirmed. I would be the oldest person at this show. As a by product, my son and his girlfriend would be the youngest. This was a college house party/show. Young and Heartless performed first. After their set I made my way out of the small room in which they pe...

Well, it's happening again. I am getting VERY excited about upcoming concerts this summer. While Wreckingball has already announced a hiatus for this year , there are already a couple of highly anticipated shows that I will be attending. Last years major draw for Wreckingball, for me at least, is back on the road. Thursday will be in Charlotte April 1st! Opening for them will be Wax Idols , Basement and Touché Amoré . Having listened to Touché Amoré more since they opened the aftershow at last years Thursday Wreckingball performance, I am excited to see them again with more knowledge of their catalog. It is sure to be an exciting night at The Fillmore in Charlotte. One other show announced this week is closer to home here in Raleigh. Rise Against and Deftones will be a Red Hat Amphitheater June 19th. Rise Against has been in regular rotation in my music collection since Endgame  was released. I sometimes ask myself how I can afford this Rock 'n' Roll Lifestyle.

No, none of my current relationships are coming to an end (that I am aware of.) One of my favorite things to do is make mixed CD's for my wife. I've also found that I enjoy songs about the end of relationships. Gina has known for a while that I like these songs, however, she does NOT want me to give her a CD of my favorite breakup songs. Well, at least not now. I have made a playlist of some of my favorite songs. This Relationship Is Over Playlist

but when I do, it must be something I find extremely interesting. As you may know, music is something I am very passionate about. I first heard of Against Me! while listening to Sound Opinions . I heard a bit of the story of Laura Jane Grace and heard a few of their songs. I was instantly hoked. So after seeing them perform twice last year and knowing that LJG had released an autobiography, I thought that I should read her story. I bought the book, TRANNY , and began reading immediately. I am a slow reader, which I think is the reason I don't read much. However, this book seemed to go quickly and I was looking for any opportunity to pick up the book and read a bit. I feel like the book really opened a door and provided insight into not only the transformation of Tom Gable to Laura Jane Grace, but to the evolution of the band Against Me! and their struggles throughout their career. I found myself engrossed in the stories and journal entries contained in the text. Some points I ...