Monday, July 29, 2013

BOSTON - 2



Monday evening the plan was to meet the lovely Blocked and her handsome husband some place for dinner, but wouldn't you know Spirit Airlines called and said they were going to deliver Robb's bag "sometime" during the day.  So we came up with an alternate plan.  Robb would meet them at the Greek Corner Restaurant, they would get take-out and we would have dinner in the apartment.  So that's what we did.  They got two take-out sampler dinners; one meat and one vegetarian.  Other than the stuffed grape leaves and the hummus, I had no idea what we were eating, but it was super delicious.  Robb stopped at the liquor store and got a bottle of wine, but had to go back to get another.  That too, though it was a name I had not known before, was quite good.  All in all, it was an excellent evening and we really enjoyed getting together with Blocked and her hubby again.  They are very delightful people.  It's too bad we live so far apart (did I mention they live in England?).  Robb would like us to go to London and see them there, but I'm not sure I can do that.  We'll see how it turns out. Oh, it was after midnight before the guy from Spirit arrived with Robb's bag!

Tuesday, Robb got a virus on his laptop.  It was something called System Care.  I tried to run the anti-virus program, but the SC wouldn't let me load it.  I tried to get on the internet, but it wouldn't let me do that either.  So I got on my laptop to see what kind of information I could find about getting rid of it.  I found a few sites that addressed the issue and checked one.  They provided a phone number, so I called.  That was my first mistake.  The guy at Advanced Tech said they could clean the laptop for only $199!  I don't know what I was thinking, but I agreed!  Mistake number 2.  They accessed Robb's laptop remotely and began doing whatever it is they do.  Well, it took forever and several hours later it still wasn't done.  It was around this time I started thinking maybe they were part of the scam.  I went back onto my laptop and checked.  That's when I saw something that I should have thought of in the first place: simply shut down the laptop, wait a few minutes, turn it on again, hit F8 and get on using Safe Mode, then run System Restore.  Why I didn't think of it at first, I have no idea.  But that's what I did and Robb's laptop was back to normal within a few minutes.  Then I decided to call Advanced Tech to get my money back.  I didn't really believe I had a snowball's chance, but figured what did I have to lose?  Surprisingly, they gave me no hassle at all.  So Robb's laptop is working again and I saved $200!  For dinner, I had discovered a Japanese Restaurant on Massachusetts Avenue and wanted to go there because I LOVE their ramen noodle soup!  Sadly, they closed at 19h00!  I couldn't believe a restaurant would close that early, but it seemed most of the restaurants along the avenue were already closed.  So we returned to the apartment where we ended up eating some of the Chinese food we had brought home Sunday night.  It was a bit tastier this time.

Wednesday evening, we called a taxi and went to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts because Robb wanted to see their Impressionist section..  Entrance to the museum is rather expensive, so just getting there and getting in cost us $75.  But it was worth it because they had one of the largest Monet collections I've ever seen anywhere.  The bonus for me was that I was able to get a wheelchair and didn't have to walk around the whole place.  It is a large museum.  Since it was almost 20h00, we decided to have dinner at the museum.  They have two restaurants and two snack cafes.  We dined in the Bravo restaurant (scroll down, click on "Bravo" - the red-haired guy in the bottom photo was our waiter).  Robb had salmon and I had the Red Snapper.  I drank Sauvignon Blanc.  Robb had a wine recommended by our waiter (Loimer Lois Grüner Veltliner 2011), who was very knowledgeable about the food and the wine (he normally works behind the bar). Robb loved the wine.  For dessert, we both had Mocha Crême Caramel.  The dinner was not too expensive and everything was excellent.  If you're ever in the Boston MFA at dinnertime, we highly recommend it.

Thursday = RAIN!!!!

Dumb Law of the Week: In Minnesota, it is illegal to tease skunks.
À la prochaine, mes amis.

Monday, July 22, 2013

BOSTON - JULY 2013



We are in Boston again. We left Fort Lauderdale on Spirit Airlines around 09h45 and got into Boston arround 12h30. My bag was the very last one to come out. Robb's bag never arrived. When he checked with the baggage attendant, they told him his bag was still in Fort Lauderdale. Then they made up some odd excuse about us arriving too late at the check-in, but we were there at least an hour ahead of time. So they're trying to make him come back to the Logan Airport to retrieve his bag...if and when it shows up. He called today but now they say they don't know where it is. Out first dinner in Boston was at Qingdao Garden, a Chinese restaurant. The food was plentiful, but rather bland.

I got my laptop to the point where everything worked except a couple of letters on the far left of the keyboard. No matter what I tried, I couldn't get it to work. I finally had to take it to the shop where they charged me twice as much as the first guy estimated.

  
  


Dumb Law of the Week: In Michigan, under State law, dentists are officially classified as "mechanics."

À la prochaine, mes amis.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Gonna Fly



This time next week, we will have been in Boston for two days. Looking forward to seeing Blocked and her husband again.

A rabbit dubbed "Frankenstein" has what looks like a series of horns growing out of its head

Humans May Evolve To Grow An Endless Supply Of Teeth

Solar system has a tail shaped like a four-leaf clover

Space-Time Loops May Explain Black Holes

Starwatch: What's the dark matter?

Dumb Law of the Week: In Massachusetts, it is illegal to wear a goatee without a license.

À la prochaine, mes amis

Tuesday, July 09, 2013

Ruth's Laptop



Dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House because Robb has been talking about going there for years. It's just around the corner from us but we've never been. We rarely eat steak. Robb started with Mushrooms Stuffed with Crabmeat, they were large and probably would have been a whole meal for me. I had the Grilled Scallops, there were two (count ém...2) grilled scallops on a small plate with absolutely nothing else. Which seems to be the way they serve things in this well-known, expensive restaurant. We both decided on the filet mignon. The filet comes in two sizes, 11 ounce and 8 ounce. We opted for the 8 ounce. They too, came on a small plate with nothing else. They don't seem to understand presentation at Ruth's Chris. For dessert, I had Crème Brûlée and Robb had a chocolate drink with some kind of whiskey. The Crème Brûlée was passable, but not great by a long shot. Robb wants to go back, but I don't care if we never return.

I'm very close to fixing my laptop. I just need to figure out one more step and I'll be able to do it!

  



  
Dumb Law of the Week: In Pawnee, Indiana: Any white citizen has the right to seize any Indian property for 25 cents.


À la prochaine, mes amis.

Monday, July 01, 2013

Tour de Fool



Le Tour de France is currently in progress. In the US (sadly) you can watch the eight hour race squeezed into three hours from 20h00 to 23h00 on NBCSN. Of course, since it is US television, during those three hours, you get an hour and a half of race and an hour and a half of commercials. If I didn't like the race so much, I wouldn't even bother watching. I first watched in France several years ago and became a fan. But on European TV they have this great way of showing the commercials at the very beginning and the end of the show. You're not inundated with them throughout the entire broadcast. The preponderance of commercials is the main reason I almost never watch American TV. It's so damned annoying! Five minutes of race, five minutes of commercials, ad infinitum!!!

 So I broke my laptop! I have an Acer Aspire laptop with a 17.3 screen. That seems like a big screen...right? But it's really about the same size as a 15-inch screen. They just stretched the thing to make it 17.3. Oh well, to get back to my main thought...the letter "N" is broken. I tried and tried to get it to sit back in place but it just won't stay. So I went to CompUSA. The guy there said no problem, they can fix it for about $50. I agreed and went home waiting for him to call. After a month of not hearing from him, I started checking the internet. Without much trouble, I found a place that sold new keyboards for $15, so I ordered one. I also found a video showing how to take out the old keyboard and put in the new one. A piece of cake! Any fool can do that! Any fool except this fool. First, it was nowhere as easy to remove the old keyboard as they made it look in the video. Second, when trying to remove the cable, I broke the part that keeps the cable in place. Bottom line...I have to take it someplace to have it done and it will probably cost more than the $50 the guy at CompUSA estimated!

Virtual reality: Live your dreams in real time

Mouse cloned from drop of blood 

13-Year-Old Designs Super-Efficient Solar Array Based on the Fibonacci Sequence

Man Diagnosed 'Comatose' For 23 Years Was Actually Conscious All Along

Math Cheating Features Money Game Features 10 Mental Math Tricks That Will Make You Wildly Popular At Parties 

Dumb Law of the Week: In Florida, In Florida, it is illegal to tie an elephant to a parking meter, unless the parking fee is paid just as for a vehicle.

 À la prochaine, mes amis.