March 13, 2010

Well I thought I had this new web cam figured out only to find I don't. The video streaming is at best hit and miss and only seems to work well under Amber's laptop. If I had known what the web server on board was going to be requiring I probably would have chosen a different camera. I'll try tomorrow to see if I can get it to work again though I'm having some serious doubts about it now.

March 12, 2010

Another issue with the new web cam has been figured out but it still has some issues too. The cameras built in WEB server still prefers the use of IE and in Linux this isn't going to work. I'm going to try running a special build of Firefox that I created at work that I'm hoping runs in my Linux installation but I'll have to keep my fingers crossed. Still the camera works well in the kids room and we can check on them while they're sleeping in the dark so that's a good thing after all it's so we can check on them though once they get older the camera may find some other use.

March 11, 2010

OK the new camera is in the boys room and it's up and running. I haven't added any users other than Amber as I'm still trying to learn how this camera works. This new camera allows me to listen in to the boys as well as watch them but for now I'll keep that turned off as we are using the baby monitors for that and over the net the sound isn't really all that interesting as you really only here the white noise we have playing.

If I have one complaint about the camera it's the fact it favors Internet Explorer over the other browsers and doesn't work well with Firefox running on Linux. I'm sure I'll get this slowly worked out but for now I'm a bit disappointed about that. Even with Firefox on Windows I have to add an Internet Explorer rendering engine add on to make the video work the way it's supposed to. I'm hoping that when they update the firmware this will be addressed. The last thing I don't like is having to place the camera into the DMZ ( demilitarized zone ) of my firewall to be able to view video over the internet. Over my local network I had no problems but when accessing it from the internet I was having issues.

It's still nice to be able to check on the boys without disturbing them now.

March 10, 2010

I managed to add links to my WEB pages for the cameras and though the links work the new camera isn't working as I had hoped. The video stream for some reason is still being blocked by the firewall. I can still log into the camera and change settings but the video stream isn't getting out. I know it's the firewall as internally the video displays properly. I know which ports are open and which are not so I'll have to look more closely into the camera setting and the manual to see if the ports for the video are mentioned and if they are I'll try opening them up. Despite this small hiccup I'm still happy with the quality of video the camera produces and the fact it has a night vision mode makes it all that much better.

March 9, 2010

I received my new camera today and so far though I'm unimpressed with UPS for their delivery skills I am impressed with the camera. It's not using java or flash for the video streaming but instead is using Quicktime so though I can view the feed from my windows computers, viewing it from Linux may be a bit more of a challenge. I have it set up right now in my office in the basement so I can set it up on the network and so far the night vision works really well and I have lots of settings that I can play with to improve the picture quality. I will hopefully have this set up by the weekend time permitting and Amber will be able to watch the boys when they are napping. Once this is running the way we want I'll add links to my WEB pages to the cameras for those lucky enough to have access.

March 8, 2010

I have been watching Gandhi with Amber over the past couple of nights and I have gained I think a bit of insight into who he was now. I say a bit as really I didn't know the man, but I can empathize with him over the events that transpired to cause him to choose the path he did.

The movie is long yet covers such a long period of his life that it must only hit key aspects the writers thought must have been poignant in shaping him to be the man he was. He must have had a keen intellect and the fact that he was a lawyer trained in British schools gave him a distinct advantage over a majority of those he was wishing to help. He had obviously read about most of the other religions though once again I'm drawing on information I've gained only from the movie. The real questions I have are why he chose his path of non violence when others who have seem equal injustices have chosen the opposite path.

The story of the Argentinian doctor Ernesto "Che" Guevara springs to mind. Here too an individual well schooled and intelligent chose to fight back with violence. Both were strong leaders and have developed followings well after their deaths. Despite their deaths the stories they each have played a part in continue to grow and evolve and the injustices they both sought so hard to end seem to merely evolve as well.

The movie is really a part of a course Amber has to take that deals with leadership issues and I think there is much to take away from this story on how to be a great leader. The key element though that I see the most is transparency. Gandhi would speak and his actions reflected what he taught as did that of Ernesto. One cannot expect people to follow you if you do not follow your own plan of action.

March 7, 2010

I wish I had more time this weekend but unfortunately this wasn't the case. With Amber being on call I had no time to work on updating some of my WEB pages like I had hoped. I have some new pictures of the boys I want to add to the site but I'll have to see about doing this later on this week. This of course is depends on whether or not I will have time then. I think I need to get a plan together that will force me to finish jobs that I start. I did manage to get my resume updated though I need to add one thing Kevin suggested I add. This is a short opening statement describing what I can do. I'm not sure what to write and seeing as I'm not exactly creative in the writing department this isn't easy. I may be searching for examples on the internet to use a a guideline. I have two companies that I'll be sending my resume to right now so I want it to sell me. My job right now is still going but I'm tired of being a contractor and would like something permanent so I decided to let the job search begin and see what comes along.

March 6, 2010

I managed to get through the evening with the twins today without the help of Amber which for me as a huge accomplishment. It may be the boys were better tonight rather than I did better but I'd like to think I was able to keep the two smiling when they were thinking about crying. They did have a moment or two when one or the other were crying but there wasn't the screaming that there was on Tuesday. I hope in two weeks when Amber is on call again they will be at least as good as they were tonight. I would still rather have Amber around though and not just because it makes dealing with the boys easier, I miss having her around when she's on call.

March 5, 2010

I've started working on my resume today so that I could start putting it out to see what I might be able to get a response to it for. I wold like to have a more permanent position and not be a contractor. I sent what I have to my dad and with the response I have a bit of work to do. I'm not exactly good at writing these things and wish I didn't need it but such is life. I'll try to work on it tomorrow while the kids are sleeping. With Amber on call at the hospital all day and night tomorrow I'll have to make due with what time the twins allow me.

Early next week I should also have the second IP camera in and with a bit of luck I should be able to watch them in their room as they sleep. The new camera had night vision so that we can check on them without disturbing them.

March 4, 2010

Tyler and Dylan surprised me tonight. Tyler while on the floor playing, Amber was feeding Dylan, decided to lean on me and looked like he was going to stand up. I know he can't yet but he sure looked like he was ready to try it. I'm thinking he might forgo the crawling part and just decide walking is much cooler. He already can pivot himself around and roll places, he just figure out how to get into a seated position on his own yet. Dylan seems content to not move around to much but he surprised me by his fascination with an old diaper box. I thought he was interested in the picture of the baby on the outside but I was wrong. Dylan wanted to play with the box itself. He was content to move it around and then he surprised Amber and I when the box ended up over his head putting him inside the box. This was amazing as he seemed to be pleased with himself and he was quite happy to stay in the box. Needles to say he was sitting up on his own the whole time and didn't fall even once. Not quite seven months and they are already able to entertain themselves without our help.

March 3, 2010

Was I glad to have Amber back tonight. With the two of us working together to manage the kids, it's so much easier to keep them from getting so upset their unmanageable. I even had them playing without any interaction by myself just by having them sit in front of an empty box which seemed to entertain them. They are getting so good at not only rolling over but at sitting on their own as well. I think Dylan would stand on his own if his leg muscles were under his control more. Tonight we had smiley happy babies and very huggable ones at that too. I'm hoping Saturday when Amber is once again at the hospital all night I'll be able to cope a little bit better than last night. I do know that once they go go down for the night though they should be down for the whole night as they didn't wake up at all last night. They may have been just really tired which may explain the real crankiness I had to contend with.

March 2, 2010

Tonight is Amber's first night away from the boys and me. This is the wonderful world of being on call at the hospital. This means that I had to look after getting the twins fed and to bed on my own without her to help me. Normally the two of us work together to manage the two of them. I've fed them on my own before but I've never had to get them both changed and to bed without the help of Amber before. I have to say I'm not to fond of being on my own for the bed time routine. I didn't think it would be that hard but I was sorely mistaken. The funny part is that they were asleep in their cribs not ten minutes from when I put them down and yet they were crying from the time I started to feed them till the were put down in their cribs. I think they new Amber wasn't around and they wanted to voice their displeasure about it. I went in to check on them at around 8:30 pm and they were fast asleep looking sweet and innocent. I sure hope they stay this way the rest of the night.

March 1, 2010

Yippee it's March and soon the snow will be melting away and summer will be back. If I had the time and opportunity to go snowboarding I would probably like winter a bit more but I can't so I don't. I also managed to get my taxes done and filed tonight so hopefully I should be getting my refund before to long. I'm hoping to use the refund towards a cover on the back of the truck. Right now the truck bed is collecting dirt and snow and isn't much use for carrying things we don't want to get dirty. If I can I'll start shopping for a cover and then we can use the truck for hauling more than just lumber and sod back to the house. I also won't feel bad storing some things in the back of the truck either if I know nobody can see that they are there.