Kallie and I found a nice groupon getaway to the Lowes Annapolis Hotel.  We stayed a Saturday and Sunday night.  During the first night, there was an event held in the main atrium of the hotel.  I could imagine the noise from that event carried into the 6 floors of rooms that surrounded the atrium.  Our room was off a separate hallway though, so it was pretty quiet.  The room was great and Kallie seemed to enjoy that she got a nice robe with the room.

Breakfast was included with our deal, and it was fabulous both days.  Our waiter, Eric, had a thick accent, but he was extremely pleasant and fun.  Our vouchers were good for $40, but when our bill only came to ~$32, we were willing to just walk with that.  He suggested that he put on 2 bottles of Fiji water ($4 a piece) and have us just take it.  We appreciated the thoughtfulness and took his suggestion.  They also had a wonderful juice bar menu which included orange, pineapple, cranberry, strawberry, banana, and a bunch of other juices that you could ask them to mix together.  It was a great treat.

As for location, it may seem a little off the path from the main street and bay of Annapolis, but it was a nice flat ~1 mile walk.  The weather was great, and the walk was perfect to capture all the old buildings and history of Annapolis.  I pulled down an app which guided us around the major tourist sites of the town and provided some great historic background.

We weren’t in crab season, so we skipped that and just ate the Middleton Tavern.  The dining area is a little cramped, but the food and beer selection were pretty good.  They do have their own amber ale, which I do not recommend.  It was more of a light pilsner.  We also grabbed dessert at Reynolds tavern, which is a very historic and interesting building.  It was around 8pm or so on Sunday, so the place seemed a little empty, but as we left we noticed that there were people in each of the rooms of the building, as if they purposely gave each party their own private rooms since they could afford the space.  We really appreciated the feeling of having the place to ourselves.

So this device was announced back in September of 2010 when Apple announced their Airplay technology. I was stoked for this technology. Kallie wanted a way to play her music in the kitchen, and throughout the house for that matter, and her laptop speakers…well, they’re laptop speakers. I didn’t want to go buy a new stereo system and I didn’t just want to figure out a way to play music through the TV because that wasn’t portable. Then I stumbled upon iHome’s iW1. It was exactly what I wanted. There are a bunch of other airplay solutions out there, but none offer a rechargeable portable solution.

So I waited. for months. Finally in August 2011 I got an email that said they would start taking orders for special people like me.  I must have placed my order within 20 minutes of the 2pm EST Aug 31st.  It was reported they sold out within 45 minutes.  I must not have been quick enough though, because I was sent an email that the item I bought was out of stock and that I would receive an email when they are able to send it.  I received that email last Thursday, and got the package yesterday, Sept 29th.

In appreciation for being so patient for them to release the iw1, they also sent a free IP37, which is a nice little portable speaker for an iphone or ipod.  Great for camping or needing music on the go.  Heck, a $99 product for free?  Thanks ihome!!!

So, on to the review.  It’s not as large as I expected, but it’s still pretty sturdy and lightweight.  One thing I learned in my reading is that it does not support WEP wireless encryption.  The reason being that WEP is easily cracked and is an outdated technology.  I get that, honestly, but not to support it really seems like their enforcing network security standards.  If you have WEP like me, you are forced to decide between opening your wireless network or to change it to another form of encryption, like WPA2.  In a house with multiple devices set up on WEP, it’s a pain in the butt to do.  I’m the type of person that sees it as iHome just giving me the kick in the butt to change my wireless security, but really, I don’t appreciate that coming from them.  Really, if they’re going to force what kind of encryption is good enough, why not force people to use encryption and not support open networks?  Whatever, I’ll get over it.

Set up was pretty easy.  you can either connect an iphone/ipad/ipod with iOS 4.1 or later by the supplied(!) usb charger cable and download the free set up app.  All you have to do is give your speaker a nifty nickname and configure the wireless.  The other option is to push a button on the back of the speaker that essentially turns it into a wifi access point, get your laptop or other wifi device to connect to it’s signal, and then open up a browser configuration page to give it a nickname and configure it for your wireless network.  That it’s.  You should be all set to go.

Open up your itunes 10.1 or later, down at the bottom right corner click the speakers option and either send sound only to your new wireless speaker or send it to your PC and the wireless speaker at the same time.  Independent volume controls too.  Once it’s playing, you can leave your itunes station alone.

Back to the iw1, you have a nice remote to control next track, volume, and bass/treble.  You can also use the illuminated touch sensors for the controls on the speaker itself.  response time seemed great when using the remote.   One quirk I noticed though, I stood back about 12 feet from the speaker and tried to use the remote, and the indicator light on the speaker flashed, acknowledged I pressed a button, but it didn’t do anything.  No next track, no mute, no volume change.  As I got closer, it worked reliably though.  Weird, right?  I seemed to be within proximity for it to know I pressed a button, but not close enough for it to carry out the action?  I was bummed for like 5 seconds, until I realized — IT’S PORTABLE.  Just take it off it’s charging base and move it closer and you’re all set.

Other nice things about the unit is that you can just plug your iphone, ipod, or ipad into it and play from the usb, or you can can stream over wifi with them as well.  You can switch between wifi or cable on the remote.  The remote also allows you to turn off the device, but it will still be active on the network, which allows you to “turn it on” through itunes.  This saves a lot of time in having to set things up or configure it when you want to use it.  It’s just ready for you to play music.  So far so good.

It seems like it doesn’t have any special requirements to use and is user friendly.  We’ll see how well Kallie warms up to using it instead of relying on her laptop speakers.  Next time we have a house party, we’ll be able to play music throughout the house and control it with our remote app on our iphones, which lets you control itunes over wifi.  CONNECTED.  I’m already thinking about applications with having a baby.  Turn some music on in their room and be able to turn the volume up or off without having to go into the room and risk disturbing them.

Awesome.

First off, as an action/super-hero movie, it has everything. It could have done a little more mutant fighting and special powers, but over all it was nice because it wasn’t over the top. Not much CGI (and the bits that exist are very well done) so it’s believable. No MAJOR plot holes, logic fails, etc and it was pretty engaging. There was a point that I thought it was getting a little long, but it cleaned it up nicely.

I have to admit though, this one is going to make the die hards a little upset. If you love the x-men franchise, meaning, know all the history from the comic books, be prepared to fork off your understanding of everything. Without giving too much of the movie away, it doesn’t stick to the historical context of the comics for magneto, charles (Professor Xavier), or a bunch of other characters.

The big realization that I had after the movie though was that the x-men franchise that I know and love is in danger! Professor X and Magneto are going to need to die here, and right quick. They’re old! The whole franchise is going to need a story arch and reinvent leadership. Maybe I’m just ignorant of the new comics, but since we’re given specific years, and the assumption that these certain mutants are also mortals, there needs to be a transition to new leadership, and eventually we need to run into the mutants and characters from the future, like sentinels (I LOVE SENTINELS!).

Anyway, it was nice not to see a movie blow it’s budget on big names and give a solid and entertaining story line.

5 feet out of 6.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1270798/

First off, if you have never seen a Cirque De Soleil show, right off the bat you’re obligated.  It will be the most amazing thing you’ve ever seen.

If you’re in Pittsburgh, you have until June 5th to see Totem.  http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/totem/default.aspx

I saw Quidam twice, O in vegas, Alegria, and now Totem.  Each time I’m left awestruck by what the performers just did.  I think the general public has an impression that Cirque Du Soleil is just some acrobatics and flexible people.  As if you’ve seen it once, you’ve seen it all.  Cirque is not that show. What any Cirque Show is though:

1. Absolutely beautiful - from the costumes, to the tent, to the dance, to the interaction between the performers.  No detail is left untouched and no corners are cut.  Everything is exact and precise, and it shows.
2. Engaging – from the all live music, to changing stage and scenery, to all the movement on the stage that is supplementary to the actual performers.  You simply can’t look away.
3. Entertaining for everyone - There are clowns, love stories, danger, skill, feats of strength, and examples of dedication to their talents.

One of the other things I love about Cirque is that it’s not some big greedy corporation trying to make a bottom line.  They are  environmentally aware and raise money for clean drinking water around the world.

If you do go see them, don’t feel the need to buy the most expensive tickets for right up front.  It’s actually worse in my opinion.  You want to sit back a little higher than the stage so you can see everything going on, because believe me, there’s a lot going on.

You might be asking why I went to see Quidam twice.  The answer to that is that a performance includes about 10 acts, but there are more like 15 acts for each show.  Sometimes it’s just in case they need to make changes to the lineup, but they do keep rotating performers and acts, so what you saw one night could be different by a couple acts from the next night.  Basically, never think you’ve seen it all.  After my 4th Cirque show, I’m still wanting to see more.

As for highlights specifically in Totem, the stage is a lot more “active” than previous traveling shows I’ve seen.  When I saw O, I actually said that the stage itself is one of the main acts.  That was true for Totem too.  To pick out one act seems unfair, but the most mind blowing for me were the two twirling girls.  I want to see you lay on your couch, stick your foot in the air, throw a dish towel on it, then start spinning it.  Then do the same thing on the other foot at the same time.  RIDICULOUS.  The things done with hula hoops is amazing as well.

Go.  See it.

Don’t ever buy from Skate-buys.com.  Ever.  Kallie is a size 11 figure skate and no stores carry that size.  I couldn’t even find a decently priced pair on amazon.com.  On Monday, Januar 17th, I bought a pair through Skate Buys for ~$80.  I was billed the next day. 

On Friday the 21st, at 2pm in the afternoon, I received an email that said the skates were on backorder and to let them know if I want to cancel my order or if I just wanted to wait the estimated 2 weeks to receive them.  I replied expressing my frustration that it took all week for them to tell me that, but then I asked for my options, ie free expedited shipping when they come in.  I received no response.

I emailed them again on Feb 2nd, telling them I never received a response or options.  I received no response back from that either.  I called them on Feb 5th, after hours, and it just said “no one can answer, good bye”.  No message system or anything.  I called back during business hours the next day, and the person who answered was so offensive and rude, raising his voice at me that he just checked with the manufacturer and the skate will ship directly from them.  He offered no explanation or solution or estimate on how long it would be.

I waited a few days, and filed with the BBB for poor customer service.  Now, I’ve left a voicemail for them during business hours saying I want a refund and also sent them an email saying I want a refund and have yet to receive a response back.

ridiculous.

Kallie and I drove to Chicago on Oct 15th for the Urbanathlon on the 16th.  We were a little scared about the 7.5 hour drive since our car has been giving us so many (expensive) problems.  It lasted though, and hopefully we didn’t shave off too many days of it’s life.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn in the West Loop, which was a nice short walk to the starting line.  when we got to our room, it was a 2 double bed suite.  Whenever something is not as it should be, I let Kallie be in charge.  I’m too nice and just suck it up and take the hand I was dealt.  Kallie goes to the front desk and she gets us a room with a king bed, the only “downside” is it’s a handicap room.  So, where we asked for a different room because we’re tall and need a larger bed, we got a larger bed, but the room has light switches and counters at about half-height.  The bathroom was just a big tiled room with a curtain and shower head off to the side.  I’ve never seen that before.  It was very mental hospital-ish.  Whatever though.

The race was fun, but I didn’t get the time I wanted due to muscle cramps around mile 7.  It took me nearly an hour to finish the last 2 miles.  It was frustrating and embarrassing.  I don’t know what caused them.  It wasn’t unusually cold and I should have had all the nutrients I needed.  I hadn’t had anything like that come up in my training.  When I got to the finish line, as I was jumping off the first taxi hood, my right calf cramped and I almost fell on the ground since I could use it to balance when I landed.  I also couldn’t get up over the second cab until it stopped, so I just stood there stretching and rubbing it, while all these bystanders looked at me.  Ugh.  I think the picture to the left sums it up pretty well.  Even after the race, just sitting on the ground drinking water, my muscle was cramping.  Ridiculous.  Nothing I could do about it though, and I raised a bunch of money for the Living Ministry, so it wasn’t about me, it was a race for the ministry.  Now it was time to have a great weekend in Chicago with my wife.

So we were going to meet up with Kallie’s cousin, Julia, for lunch.  Julia was thinking a place called “The Girl and The Goat” (check out my review) but they were only open for dinner.  She also had to work, so that limited our time.  What we decided to do was Kallie and I would go to eat dinner, then come see a show, where Julia worked, and then we’d get drinks afterward with her.  I’ll tell you more in the reviews of the restaurant and the play “Detroit” at the Steppenwolf theatre (review here), but to sum it up, we had an awesome day.  So great.  We couldn’t have planned it better ourselves.  THANKS, Julia!  Sunday morning we got some fruit sushi / frushi at Orange before heading out for home.  We had eaten there last year and thought it was so good that we made a point to go back this year.  If you’re in the Chicago area, I’d recommend it.

Kallie’s cousin, Julia, works at the Steppenwolf Theatre, and while we were in town, she hooked us up with tickets to see Detroit, by Lisa D’Amour.

First off, Kallie and I had never heard of the theatre, let alone the play.  Maybe it’s because we’re not from Chicago, or maybe it’s because we are uncultured neanderthals.  Either way, we were thoroughly entertained.  The set was beautiful and even the theatre itself told me that I’m in a place that’s taken seriously.  As I browse the program, I see that Gary Sinese and 2 friends started the company back in the 70s, and now there’s a ensemble of MANY familiar faces!  I was very impressed, to the point where I felt ashamed I didn’t know anything about this place before hand!  I would think a place with the caliber of it’s ensemble would be as well known as Second City (which we tried to get tickets for, but they were sold old 3 days out).

To the actual play, a cast of 4, most recognized by Laurie Metcalf (Jackie from Roseanne), Detroit is a play that tackles very modern american ideals and circumstances.  A long time married couple without children in the suburbs of Detroit struggle in their relationship while a younger, recently clean and sober, couple moves into the house next door.  There are some great laughs, but it also has a lot of deep meaning.  Something I’ve never heard of before, after the play, they have a discussion group with an assistant producer of the play.  They talk about the characters, how the definition of the American dream has changed, and what changes we saw in the characters.  It was awesome.  Kind of like a college class, with a bunch of old people in it.

It was a great play, a great place, and a great night.  Consider it RECOMMENDED.

Related:  Detroit is a focus for Palladium and Johnny Knoxville in their exploration how Detroit Lives – http://www.palladiumboots.com/explorations

So, I called this Girl and the Goat place after looking online and seeing they were booked for 2 weeks out.  They did have a cancellation at 11:30pm if I wanted that.  I had just read an interesting article about getting into elite restaurants, and was excited to try my hand at some of the tactics.  The first one, is just show up.  They opened at 4:30, and we got there around 4:50.  We got seated right away, but at a table for 8 they call the lounge.  It’s actually a pretty sweet idea.  It’s a very wide table, and couples sit next to each other.  We were seated at one end, and a guy and his son were at the other end across the table.

The menu was “interesting” to me.  I’m not all that adventurous with food, so I look for familiar things on menus.  There was a lot on the menu that I wasn’t sure what it was, let alone if I’d even like it.  I found a few things that I would be comfortable with though.  It is served “small plate” style, so you order like 3 different items and split it between the 2 of you.  So we got the ravioli, the mussels, and skirt steak.  I also had been told by a few friends to try the Golden Monkey from Voodoo Brewery, so since I saw it, I got one of those as well.  Later, I also downed an Left Hand Brewery Polestar Pilsner.  Left Hand has a dear place in my heart, originally just because of the name, but I really like their beer.

Anyway, back to Girl and the Goat.  As they’re bringing out food to Tony (the guy at the other end of the table) and his son, the server is giving him the full schpeel about what it is, what Chicago Magazine had to say about it, and used a bunch of colorful adjectives to describe what went into it, almost as if Tony was a food critic.  There was too much laughing and smiling about it though, as it turns out, Tony was an employee just stopping in with his son.  Tony strikes up a conversation with us, and tells us about the sharing food idea, and he said that a little known secret is to use the sauce from the mussels with the fries, which he had, so we ended up putting the dishes together.  As we’re doing this, 2 other couples join our table and join in on the plate sharing.  Tony ended up passing around his extra lamb shank.  It was soooooo good.  Everything was so good.  I have no idea what was on the skirt steak, but it was awesome.  This could very well have been the best food I’ve ever eaten in one sitting, and I don’t usually get excited about food.

One dish had brussel sprout leaves in it, and since Kallie has been growing brussel sprouts, she asked Tony and our waiter if it was indeed the leaves of the brussel sprouts, or if they were the bigger leaves of the brussel sprout plant itself.  Tony said that particular dish was just the sprouts, but there was another dish that had the large leaves.  We ordered that so Kallie can see if it’s something she wants to learn how to make.  A few minutes later, our waiter brought the owner, Stephanie Izard.  Wow, what a surprise.  The waiter was just so surprised about Kallie growing brussel sprouts, that he asked Steph to come out and share the recipe with us.  It was a short conversation, and you could tell she was very involved in taking care of the restaurant, but it was an awesome surprise.

This place was awesome.  The food, the staff, the atmosphere were all exceptional.  It was a little on the pricey side for small plate, but it’s one of those great date dinners where you get dressed up for a night out.

I’ll give it 10 feet out of 10 (that’s a good thing).  If you’re in Chicago, GO.

Kallie and I went to see “The Social Network” yesterday, and I was surprised to see a lack of emotional tensity or even having the story being “Hollywood-ized”.  The story was fairly believable and down to earth.  I can’t comment on the accuracy of any of it, but from what I was already familiar with, it seemed like they got it as best as anyone could without breaking some non-disclosures.

I came home and did a little research.  On the drive home, I wondered, what ever happened to Tom?  Seems like he’s pretty much out of the limelight at this point.  The reason I thought about him though, was that Myspace turned out to be exactly what Eduardo Saverin seemed to be envisioning with facebook.  Ads.  Who gives a flying crap about Myspace now?  The corporation that owns it, that’s about it.

The movie puts emphasis on Mark Zuckerberg‘s stance on how things “should be” and not what will make him the most money.  To this day, Mark’s been offered upwards of 1 billion dollars by Yahoo! for facebook, but he has turned down every offer.  Why?  Because it’s his baby, he says.  He takes pride in it.  He’s not your typical money hungry entrepreneur.  He’s different, and that is why I respect him, despite any poor tactics.  In this New Yorker article (I highly recommend/require you read it), it’s not hard to deduce Zuck knew his actions were unethical from a legal standpoint, but I don’t question his motives.  To this day, he is showing that he did it because he was going to pour his heart and soul into it, making it his life’s work, and for that, there is nothing that can hold you back.

The movie also reminded me of one of my ideas back in Jan 2005.  Thinking about it more today, one of the latest crazes is to “check in” at bars and cool spots you go.  What if that data was tracked and indexed, especially large events like concerts, parties, sports games, etc.  You would be able to find out if you and someone else were ever at the same place at the same time.  Practically speaking, Kallie’s been to Pittsburgh before, I wonder if we “checked in” while we were here, how close we ever were to each other.

Anyway, this turned out to be not much of a review.  If you’re interested in the story of facebook at all, I’d say go see it.  Even though it’s really based of a book and the characters are stories are just augmented to fit, it’s a good depiction of what probably transpired in the creation of one of the most successful websites ever.  I’d label it inspirational to see someone be passionate about something they believe in, despite having extreme costs of losing best friends, girls, and a lot of freedom.

I’ve been meaning to post a review of Joy Ike‘s new Album, Rumors, but I’m just getting around to it now.  If you’re already a fan, this album reminds you why.  If you’re not a fan yet, here’s a review through bias eyes and an unprofessional (and unapproved) opinion.

In retrospect, Joy’s first album, Good Morning, was coming from someone who loved to play music and write songs and was entertaining the idea of people actually paying to listen to it.  It was…but, it also worked.  Joy’s sound was original, familiar, raw, and somehow catchy all at the same time.  I was hooked right away, and I’ll be the first to admit her style is certainly a departure from my normal listening.  She had heart, believed in her music, and it showed.  Something about someone doing something they are passionate about is so engaging.

With Rumors, I was expecting more of the popular sound that I was used to from Joy.  What I got, was something a lot more serious and a lot more -real-.  That isn’t to mean that the previous songs were superficial at all, but I think they succeed at being the catchy, groovy songs they were meant to be.  The songs, and more specifically, the lyrics, on Rumors, are not as secular or topical as her first album.  Where we talked about children growing up too fast (“Hey, Where are the Kids?”), we’re now honestly talking about faith and personal struggle (“Untitled)”.  Where we were talking about getting lost in the city (“City Lights”), we’re now confronting the earth’s mystery and that man alone doesn’t have the answers (“Power”).

The result is a more potent message and it’s delivered with more powerful melody.  She stays true to her stripped down mixing, going with hand drums and a piano and the occasional strings, so we still have the same Joy Ike sound, but she’s pulling us closer by revealing, what I assume to be, herself, and her own thoughts.  An undeniable Christian philosophy is threaded through her lyrics, which wasn’t present in Good Morning. In tracks like “Power” and “Rumors” (not to mention the “Amen” at the end!!), we hear a progression that is something similar to a hymnal.  It’s moving.  It’s great.

To put it simply, I think Joy’s matured, as well as her music.  She’s giving us quality tracks, original and inspiring lyrics, and an honest message that’s not somber, but engaging.  If I had to compare her to someone more mainstream, I’d say Sarah McLachlan, which is appropriate seeing that Joy has been selected to join her in the Lilith Fair line up for Philadelphia on July 28th.  That’s going to be a big show for her, and I’m positive that we’ll hear a lot more of her, sooner than you think.  Better get your gear on while you can.