A Simple Man's Blog

polarpersonaltrainer.com

2008-11-08T10:42:00.000-08:00

Some of you know, I just finished a 12wk program to get myself fit...

Why stop there!
I started the next round this last week...

Here is my diary:

polarpersonaltrainer.com

Let me know what you think!

Gregger

Movie Trivia Question #1 Winner is...

2006-07-17T13:25:00.000-07:00

Digital K...

He correctly identified the drum in the pic as being associated with Karate Kid 2.
Now the Obone dance can be held at the castle and the village is saved from the dozers.
Cue Peter Cetera...

Thanks K, you are truly special...

Watch for my next pic coming soon...

Greg

What Kind of Donut Am I?

2006-06-23T12:56:00.000-07:00

You Are a Glazed Donut

Okay, you know that you're plain - and you're cool with that.
You prefer not to let anything distract from your sweetness.
Your appeal is understated yet universal. Everyone dig you.
And in a pinch, you'll probably get eaten.

What Donut Are You?

Name that Movie!

2006-06-13T06:02:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of an item, while not exactly like the one in the movie, is VERY similar to it...

CAN YOU NAME THE MOVIE?

Theater Stuff... (6/11/06)

2006-06-11T16:27:00.000-07:00

Well, Here is the latest on the progress of my theater room...

I did raise the rear seats up by way of 6" decking, but I have not covered it as yet.
But it did not stop me from starting to have guests over!

The first ever "movie night" we had was a "sing along with the Sound of Music night".
That was awesome. Everybody has seen the Sound of Music right? Well, you might as well have a few drinks and belt out a chorus of "Climb Every Mountain" and "Do, a Dear".

I do have "Oklahoma!" and "West Side Story"... I think I'll be doing this again!

I made some accessory additions as well...

First, in one panel, a pic of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" including a shot of her wearing those gloves, so we found a pair of old womens gloves and pinned them up too...

Next, in another panel, a picture of "Rocky" complete with boxing gloves...

Next, I have a collection of stuff on my equipment cabinet...
Yes, the Rocky figure and the Robot both work!

Here's another shot... Yo Adrian!

Cool huh? Theres a button in the ring you push and he says various phrases and some dialog. Also, on occasion "Eye of the Tiger" will start to play. Through all of this, his head moves and his mouth opens and closes, his fists move and punch...

Anyway, I was at the local antique store recently, here are a few more finds...
Here's a cool Minolta 8mm film camera... Very nice shape!

Here's few books I picked up... Very cool!
The first is a picture book of the original movie "The Blob" with Steven McQueen, his name before shortening it to just Steve in credits.
The book includes stills from the movie.

How about a book about Hollywood Kids...

Here's a couple of updated pics...

These guys think it's right on!

And the winner is?

2006-04-17T05:53:00.000-07:00

The new, 2006 Yamaha Royal Star Venture!

I rode it home on Friday April 21st.
Took it out for about 200+ miles the next day.

I am very excited about this, I am hoping to open my wife Lori up to the wonderful world of motorcycling, and to join me on my adventures...

I am looking forward to taking longer trips to see the country this season. I plan on posting my ride stories here, so keep checking back on new ride reports!

Here's some pics:

My oldest daughter on her first ride.

My wife on her first ride:

Just checking in...

2006-04-11T10:28:00.000-07:00

I hadn't posted a note for a while, I thought maybe I should put an update here on some of the things that's been happening around here.

No April Fools Joke...
Saturday April 1st I went for a ride with a group that I don't normally ride with. It promised to be a nice little ride in the country. That nice little ride however turned out to be not so nice for one of the riders in the group. I was riding third in a group of 16 bikes, I was feeling good, feeling smooth (smooth=fast) through the curves.
Well, as I exited out of one of the banked curves I noticed the guy behind me had not come through yet. The guy in front of me and I quickly u-turned and sure enough the guy behind me did not make it through the curve and was on the side of the road wrapped around a telephone post.
From the description the riders behind him gave, it seemed he lost control of his bike and he high sided off, skidded across the pavement into the shoulder gravel and dirt; his body then wrapping around a telephone pole. it was not a pretty site.
The volunteers came and called a life flight helicopter to fly him to the hospital.
Now for the good news.
No head trauma, no broken bones, and I heard no road rash. Pretty damn lucky for a guy wearing khakis and penny loafers for riding gear. He was released the following day...

Theater update...
I finally got around to building that decking for the rear set of seats. I'll get some pics and post here later, but basically I raised the back seats up 6". I am planning on covering the deck with a piece of the same carpet I bought for the room itself. Also, Lori and I added quite a few movies lately. Theres a link to the collection list in the "links" section.

A new addition to the family?...
I'm currently shopping for a new bike... maybe I'll do a poll of some sort between the 2 I have narrowed the choice down to...

Movie Collection list - Online!

2006-03-03T11:07:00.000-08:00

Maybe it's me, but it seems that when I'm at the store and I run into a bin containing DVD "deals", I can never remember if the title I'm holding in my hand is actually already at home on the shelf...
Is it just me?
Anyways, I downloaded a program that allows me to keep detailed records of my collection on my PC at home. There is a free version if your interested:

http://www.intervocative.com

Lori and I tend to add a few at will...
Check back often for updates!
There's a linky in the Links section.

Greg

It's a small world afterall... Back from DisneyWorld

2006-02-14T13:06:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm back from DisneyWorld. I should say my family and I are back from a week long vacation to DisneyWorld. And by family I mean, Lori and I and our three kids, Mom-In-Law, Sis-In-Law and her husband Doug. And like the aptly named TV show... 8 WAS enough!

The week in Orlando was good, but not without it's share of ups and downs...
Here's the short list of topics:
1. My first plane ride.
2. Mom injures her foot on the first full day there.
3. Mom's power scooter dies at Epcot.
4. American Airlines truly suck.
5. Richard Petty Experience.
6. I don't ride rides...
7. Bus rides.
8. Hydraulic lifts on said buses.

Not to worry, the list could be a listing of chapters, but I'll try and be brief on all topics.

1. My first plane ride, or, why I'm not keen to flying
I'm 45 years old, I've never been on a plane ever... laugh if you will, go ahead mock me.
but I truly am uncomfortable with the whole idea. I've gone this long without doing it, I don't
see why I need to start now. Just because Florida is a long way from Omaha... Shouldn't it be "it's not the destination, it's the journey"?. I was more than willing to start out early on my bike and meet the family in Orlando... but no, I had to go on the plane.
Ok, first flight ever... a guy about 8 rows ahead of me passes out and the pilot has to kick it to get to Dallas to the paramedics... the dude is ok... I'm thinking "is this how its going to be?".
Anyways, no puking by me. I'll fly again, but I'm not thrilled about it.
The vacation includes four flights and three different aircraft.
Omaha to Dallas = S80
Dallas to Orlando = 757
Orlando to Chicago = S80
Chicago to Omaha = EMB (American Eagle)
This last one, the Eagle I sat in the very last row next to the window...

From my seat out of the window...

Looking forward...

2. Sprained or broken?
Mom-In-Law gets a power scooter to ride for the week. On the first full day there she manages to hurt herself by hanging her foot off the edge of the platform and catching it on a post while cutting the corner to sharp. This has the effect of bending it back and doing some damage. To her credit, no complaints the balance of the week! Even when asked to stand for pics or walk some short distances. What a trooper!
But, the bet was either broken or sprained... Doug took her to the ER on our return to Omaha...
Yep broke... she gets an additional week off from work and a snazzy boot to wear...

3. Good exercise... Or... How I pushed that damn power scooter across Epcot
The scooter had to be plugged in every night to recharge of course. When I set up the charger I plugged it in to the nearest outlet to where the only parking spot in the room was. This was a GFCI outlet in the bathroom. I had noticed that the scooter wasn't recharging fully. But payed it no mind... it should be good for the day at Epcot.
WRONG!
Halfway through Epcot it died... we left it at a station and rented a regular push wheelchair. and we went about our day at Epcot. Now, somehow I would have to figure out how I was going to get that damn thing across the park to the bus station and leave the Epcot chair at the park.
Being that I don't ride on rides, I sent the kids back to a ride they wanted to do again, and the rest shopped or had a snack while I hoofed it back across the park, picked up a dead scooter, put in neutral, and proceeded to make my way back to the front entrance. Good thing I'm in shape!
I got a lot of strange looks on my way through the crowd... of course, one old dude had to ask... "easier if you ride it..." you suppose? I wonder how easy would it be to cram this up your ass?
All's well that ends well. I got it back to the bus stop, and once back at the hotel pushed it to the room where I plugged it in to a different outlet. Yes friends, the charger it seems was tripping the GFCI outlet and would stop charging in the middle of the night.

4. Hotel O'Hare
It's time to go home. We are waiting for our flight from Orlando to O'Hare in Chicago to board. Seems the inbound plane from O'Hare is late. I'm sitting right next to the boarding station as I overhear the AA people calling O'Hare to complain that their plane had to wait an hour for de-icing because of a shift change and general lack of motivation. We are scheduled to land in O'Hare at 8:11pm to meet a connecting flight to Omaha at 8:15... Looks like we are going to miss it! But, not to worry AA says, the connecting flight is an American Eagle plane with only 12 passengers booked and 11 of those are on this flight, they will wait!...
The pilot books it to Chicago, we get there at 8:20pm...
AA sent our connecting flight on at 8:15.
So much for waiting for us to get there. Now as soon as we are off the plane AA tells us that they'd be happy to book us a room at the Hilton (8 people in on room), problem? oh yes!
They will call and book the room, we have to pay for it!
Hey thanks! Their excuse? "Act of God"
God de-ices planes now. You learn something new everyday.
Well, lets see:
a) spend $2400 at the hilton
b) stay at the terminal

"B" it is...

Next flight out is at 8:40am, that's 12hrs in the nastiest, most unorganized airport I've ever been in.

5. Left turn only...
I know I've mentioned that I don't ride rides. I'm a very bad date to take to the amusement park. So, Disneyworld is a perfect vacation spot for me. Since I wasn't planning on any rides, I thought there might be be 3 things that I wanted to do while there.
a) Renting a bike and riding around Florida
b) Go swimming all day at a waterpark
c) Take a fast lap at the Richard Petty Experience

No time for "A"
No time for "B"

So, "C" it is...
Although short lived and pricey, it was fun to go around the track at 140-145mph. If your a Neckcar fan, you should do it. It gives you the sense of what those guys go through.
I got me a hat and a cool plaque with my official pic on it. Neat!

Here's your hero:

6. I don't ride rides...
Ok, I 've covered this... I did do a tram car at Epcot (safe), the rapids ride at Animal Kingdom (wet & safe), and the fast lap thing. Does flying in a plane count?

7. The wheels on the bus go round and round...
I knew Disney would have some buses, but cheese and rice, I'd venture to guess they had a bigger fleet than the city of Omaha. Shuttles to every park... nice! I stayed on the Disney property, no need for any rental cars. Nice!

8. Can I get a lift?
I don't think of all the bus rides we took, not one had a working wheelchair lift. Every ride we took we had to "work around" to get the chair on and my Mom-In-Law (remember the broken foot?). The lift would not lift all the way, wouldn't fully extend, leaking fluids, etc...
Plus most were crowded, lot's of standing while moving. Does that count as a park ride?
It seemed out of 6 days at Disney, at least one days worth of time was spent riding shuttles.

All in all, I'd have to say it was a fun time. Even for a non rider like me. I probably won't get back there until it's time to take Grandkids though.
Interesting thought I had there too...
You know how you feel about pennies? You know, what are they really good for? Their not really necessary, and you seem to collect more than you can ever use realistically.
Well...
When your down there at Disney, you'll feel the same way about $1 bills...

And finally...
Don't have a group pic with me but here ya go...

Lori and your hero

My kids and Tigger at dinner...

Ride Report 1/7/06

2006-01-07T14:06:00.001-08:00

Lots of folks busy today, but Bob and I were able to get out for a
"around the block" run...

Started out high 40's

Todays route:

Hwy 50S to Hwy 31
West on 31 down by the river...

Past Schramm Park; North then thru Gretna to "Q" St.
Turned west on West Q Rd. to West Center, where we spied these guys...

Bob and I parted at 156th St. I south, he north...
The temps seemed to get a bit better as the time went by.

It was good to get out again; twice in January already...
We saw quite a few bikes out today.

Miles O'Brien...

2006-01-06T10:24:00.000-08:00

Hey Miles... STFU

I just about fell off of my treadmill this morning when Mr. O'Brien was interviewing the wife and mother of the lone survivor Randy McCloy. Basically, he asked them if they thought since their son/husband was the youngest member of the group, did the older miners share their air with him to keep him going.

Are you really telling us about an awful story or are you adding to it to make it bigger than it already is? As far as I can tell, there is yet to be any information on what exactly happened down there. Two investigations (at least) on in process and we should wait to hear what they can show or tell us. To allude to anything like sharing air to save the younger guy without any basis is absurd. If you are at a loss for more pointed or poignant questions to ask your interviewees, I'm sure there are interns there that can write some for you.

Note to CNN... more Soledad, less Miles please.

One more thing, wear your glasses. Nobody cares that you need them. Whipping them off your face as the camera comes back to you is ridiculous.

Ride Report - 1/1/06

2006-01-02T09:49:00.000-08:00

Took a little ride around yesterday. I didn't even pay attention to how many miles I rode. I just know it was a very nice 2 hour ride.

Cool? yes it was!

But the benefit from getting out far outweigh some chilly fingers.
Didn't stop to take any pics this trip.

Route:
I-680 North/East to Hwy 75 North
North on 75 through Nashville and Ft. Calhoun to Blair
West on Hwy 30 then South on Hwy 31 back home

Not a long trip like I said, but I got out anyway...
A short ride is still better than no ride at all!

I didn't get too cold, the temps were in the 40's, but some heated gloves would have extended the ride time for sure.

My Bikes... Update 4/28/2006

2006-01-02T06:38:00.000-08:00

Thought I'd throw in some pics of the bikes...

2002 Yamaha Roadstar...

UPDATE!

Alas... the Roadie has been sold.
Melvin, you got yourself one hell of a bike! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did...

2003 Kawasaki ZZR1200...

Though I love them both equally, the Roadstar is for sale. I'm using the funds to purchase the A/V equipment for the theater project.

To feel better about it, the audio equipment will be Yamaha.

HERE'S THE LATEST!

Mountain Lion Sightings...

2005-12-31T05:45:00.000-08:00

Let me preface this post by saying that, as a rule, I do not watch local news coverage. It's stupid, who cares if "dog bites man" give me more "man bites dog". Admit it, the last time you watched your local news I bet after at least one story you said to yourself "huh, what the heck was that all about?" and "why on earth do I care?"

Anyway, it seems the regular news topic here in Omaha is mountain lion sightings. It seems they are everywhere, but lately concentrated in a west Omaha neighborhood. Locals who are interviewed by the intrepid reporters state that a large cat has been in their area...

Ok, so patrols are sent out and the Police helicopter is utilized to aid in the hunt. No mountain lions are seen but the interesting part in this story is that the reporter who is telling me this states "No mountain lion was spotted this time, but a coyote was seen, the hunt goes on for the elusive mountain lion... back to you..."

Huh?
Did you catch that?
A coyote...
I don't know about you, but while it's true I don't believe I've ever seen a mountan lion, it's been 20 years since I've seen a coyote, and that was out in the country.
My conclusion is that for this particular neighborhood, this coyote is a frequent occurence.

I want to hear about this!
No mention of coyote capture? a very wiley animal indeed...
"Wait... is that it?.. ah no it's that damn coyote again... crap, keep looking"

I was wondering what possibly could be the next "top story", my guess?
"Next on NewsWatch 99..."
"Fire breaks out at local business, Acme Corp... the fire is beleived to have been started by a carelessly discarded pair of rocket boots...", " but first, Angela has a interesting recipe for filling pita bread... tell us Angela, what is this recipe?", "Well Bob, the locals call it a Mountain Lion Mix", "Now Angela, pita bread has a pocket right?"...

And they call that coyote a really a crazy clown...

My home theater project... (Updated 3/17/06)

2005-12-28T06:58:00.000-08:00

Since moving into my current house 14+ years ago, there has been this room that I always thought would make a good family theater...
The room has been a sitting room, a bedroom, a junk collection room, etc. Everything else but what I had envisioned it could be.

That ends now!

I want to turn this 12x20 blah excuse for a room into something to be enjoyed...
And for those who know my taste in decorating...
(yes I decorate, so what? you wanna fight about it?)
It should be something to behold when I'm done. I'm thinking gaudy, but tasteful.
Purple velvet curtains... gold braid rope tie backs... columns...
But I digress, I have work to do.
I am not purchasing the equipment first because I know I'll never get the room done if I have the toys already bought!
So...
I'm getting the room done first, then buying the toys. Speaking of the equipment.
Sacrifices must be made. Yes friends, in order to afford the equipment I want/need, I will be sacrificing one of my beloved motorcycles... a 2002 Yamaha Roadstar.
Because of this great sacrifice, you know I need to create a room befitting this.

Watch for updates here as I am documenting this for a home theater website as well...

PART I - getting started

Where to begin...
The picture above shows that I've done some work. Removed pictures, furniture and the carpet has been pulled up. I've decided to totally redo the woodwork, so all the trim has been removed.

Now that the room is ready, I need to think about how the lighting should be done. I am hoping some hidden rope light around the perimeter will do the trick for some light. So I moved the center of the room outlet towards the edge to be able to have the rope light switchable from the two existing switches in the room...

With this out of the way, the plan would be to create a center area of the ceiling to simulate a raised ceiling there. My solution is to use a heavy embossed wallpaper(paintable) and trim it out with moulding.

The paper...

The center section...

Of course, before putting the paper up, I had to sand the texture down and size the area. After applying the paper, I treated the rest of the ceiling in tinted primer and a dark blue final color.

Onto the walls now!

Part II - Like I said... it's time to do the walls

Mind you now, the colors for the walls, ceiling and carpet had already been chosen. But I see in my mind's eye a cool way to break up solid color walls. But first, no matter what the plan will be I need to get color on the walls. I started with a gallon of tinted primer and then 3 coats of final color... And the color is...

No, not that one...

This one...

Yep, purple. Although, this pic shows a bit brighter than when looking at it in person. Remember, the plan is to break this up by adding something.
Also, since the curtains were already selected in a shade or two darker than this I wanted there to be a distinction of color between the curtains and the walls.

You can also see that I hung the rope lighting.The rope lights will be hidden from view later. I'm hoping to only need a glow from them by installing a small light soffit of some kind. The details of which I have not quite worked out yet...

The next step then was to get started on breaking up that sea of purple, it seems as though after spending so much time surrounded by this color, I'm affraid that I may start wanting to don a raspberry beret instead of my ball cap.
Ok, panels it is...
Since the ceiling panel is roughly 4' x 8' I thought I'd keep the same proportion and shape on the wall panels. Three on the long wall, two on the short. The inset of the panel is a nice yellowish gold color paper that is in a crackle faux finish. If you are a wallpaper person this pattern has no repeat! sweet... here's a pic...

Now comes the fun part. I've decided on a nice chair rail profile to use in trimming out the 5 wall panels and the ceiling panel. The trim will be stained in a dark mohoganny color.

2 days of trim work...

The long wall...

The ceiling (a bit dark, but you get the idea...)

Next step is to deal with the perimeter rope lights. I want them to be able to wash light out across the ceiling, but just a glow. Also, I don't want them to throw light downwards. I will be installing low voltage can lights to aim light down, washing light on each of the trimmed panels on the walls as well as highlight a few extra areas like the back end of the room, etc.

I had thought I would install some nice crown moulding along the top, but set down an inch or so to allow the light to wash out, but then I thought all that nice crown moulding would then be hidden by the curtain tops after hanging, so it's off to the store for ideas...

In the meantime it's time to start on the front wall where the screen will hang. "But Greg, there's a window on that wall!" yeah, yeah... details, details...
I'm on it.
Thinking ahead a bit, I DO want to hide that window, but I DON'T want to seal it off lest I move and the next guy wants to use it. Since the trim is off, I think I'll stretch a dark fabric over the opening and trim out the window to match the room... I may find and old picture or painting and put it in the opening facing outwards so anyone looking into will see a nice scene.
The front wall itself will be dressed in a backdrop curtain fabric so the screen after being hung will seem to float in air. To the sides of the screen will be swagged curtains and above the screen along the length of the entire wall matching valances, possibly trimmed in some sort of gold decorative trim... not sure of that yet... yeah large gold tassles as tiebacks... that's the ticket!

1/9/06

Since 12/30 (last update) I've been working on a light soffit to hide the perimeter rope lighting.
My solution was to mount 1x3's around the room and then attach trim to the face of the 1x3's.
The trim work is wider than the 1x3 wood creating a lip of sorts to be able to tuck the rope light string behind. Before hanging the 1x3's I added chrome reflective tape to the face of the wood to help reflect some of the light out across the ceiling better; since the dark paint scheme would basically swallow up some of the available light being thrown out.

This was also stained in the same color as the other trims.

Hmm... I've seen a similar pattern somewhere else...
It's very close to part of the ceiling paper pattern.
Good match I'd say...
Granted, it is a bit darker in color than in the pic shown here; and this is only the first coat...
A little steel wool and a second coat for all trim is do be done.

The next step then was to trim out the window (which will be hidden), the two doorways (room entry and bathroom) and the sliding glass doorway leading to the back patio.
These openings were trimmed in a fluted casing and I added corner blocks.

Again, all trim was stained in the dark mahogany color.

Even though the window located on the front wall would be hidden behind the curtains and the projection screen, I did trim the window out and stretched a fabric over the opening to give those who wish to try and look in for whatever reason, something nice to look at.

I then hung the burgandy velvet backdrop curtains across the entire wall. This color should match well with the carpet that is to be installed sometime this week (fingers crossed).

I wanted to get an idea of how the front wall would look with the curtains I selected, so I went ahead and installed the rods for the purple velvet curtains on either side of where the screen will hang and for the valances that will hang along the top just below the soffit and across the entire wall.
Of course, I'll need to pull these back down when the carpet guys show up.
Normally, I would have installed the carpet myself, but I got a discount on the install fee... so, I'm letting someone else do it.

Here's an "in process" of the curtain hanging so you get an idea...
The purple curtain panel will be tied back by some sort of tassle.
And keep in mind, another panel will be hung forming a 90deg corner with both being tied back at the same point... repeat process for the left side of the screen.

I think you get the idea here. The backdrop shows more of a red color, but rest assured it's actually a burgandy color. This velvet fabric is a very close color match to the carpet, which is also burgandy with bits of dark blue and purple speckles...
Also, keep in mind while this does look like it's going to be a mass of fabric, the screen itself at
45"x80" will dominate this area. Yes folks, at 45"x80" this will equate to almost 96" diagonal viewing area... almost 8'!

I did download the pdf file for the screen's mounting instructions, and I may need to come up with a tricky solution to mounting the screen on this wall because of the window.

The next steps (in no particular order):
1. install the can lighting around the room
2. paint the ceiling insert panel
3. carpet install (now scheduled for 1/12)
4. hang the rods and the curtains for the balance of the room

Since the carpet now has been scheduled for 1/12 and it's now 1/10, I'd better "sh*t or get off the pot" so as to have all the messy work, staining and painting, completed by then lest I drip or spill on the new carpet... yikes!
The only exception will be the baseboard which I will install after carpet.

1/12/06...

Ok, the carpet guys were here today... looks fabulous!
I'll put a pic in here later...
I guess it's going to be a busy weekend, unless of course it's nice out, then I'm going riding!

1/25/06

Ok, I've taken a few days off since the last update (1/12). But I did manage to order the low voltage accessory lighting and I received my parts last Friday (1/20).
A little background...
When I say low voltage I mean they are powered by a transformer. Exactly like your outdoor garden lighting. In fact, other than cutting a 4" hole in your ceiling and fishing wire, the fixtures themselves attach to the wire exactly like you do for outdoor garden fixtures. Lay the cable over the 2 prongs, screw the cap down forcing the prongs into the wire making contact.
Viola!
You've got a very simple solution to adding lighting to a room.

Here's a pic to give you an idea:

I chose to purchase the 200W transformer and to install 7 lights total; 1ea for each of the wall panels and 2 in the back of the room. Simple math, 5 of the lights are using 20W bulbs and the 2 in the back of the room are 35W each...
5 x 20 = 100 + 2 x 35 = 70... total 170W, well under the 200W of the transformer. I installed a dimmer unit for the transformer and located it next to the switch for the rope lights at the entry of the room.
In all, I think I spent a total of 4-1/2 to 5 hours installing these lights. I'm impressed with the results.
Here is the website for these units: lightspeedlighting.com

Earlier this week, I buckled down and finalized my video equipment choices. Although, I had pretty much decided long ago which projector I was using by reading reviews and such. But one of the local Theater Stores had one installed in a display room, that just cemented that choice.
But, I was having difficulty deciding on the screen type. I primarily looked at Da-Lite but with so many choices of screen material type, size and frame selections it was a bit daunting. Sometimes one can have too many choices... I did finally decide on one and placed my order.
Some smart internet shopping, and for what the local store wanted for the projector (MSRP exactly) I was able to purchase the projector, screen and ceiling mount for the projector for the same cost. Amazing...

Thanks to projectorcentral.com, LightSpeed, Getaprojector.com and Da-Lite for helping me narrow my choices and their great customer service. This means a great deal to me considering my "day job" as an electronic components buyer has me dealing with a myriad of sales reps/Vendors/Mfgrs on a daily basis... how refreshing it is to deal with good people who know what customer service stands for!
Believe me, I get more than my share of the opposite side of that coin, so I know what I'm talking about...

On to the Audio...
I have the receiver selected, the search continues for speakers.

Update 2/03/06

A lot has happened since my last update.
The screen was received and hung on the wall, I went shopping for the audio equipment and it's all in now. Though I haven't run the wiring yet. I'm just waiting the arrival of the projector now and all the A/V equipment will be done.

In addition, we decided and purchased the seating last weekend and those were picked up, unpacked and assembled.

Here's a couple of pics...

After some tinkering, I think I've settled on this arrangement for now...

Since the seating has higher backs than I had originally planned, I will probably construct a "deck" for the back row, so those people can see the screen a bit easier.
All six seats are leather recliners in a taupe color. I hung a vertical blind over the sliding glass door in the same color and the slats also have a leatherlike faux finish... cool.

As you can see the valances for above the screen haven't all come in yet and I still need to hang the balance of the curtains as well, but it's coming along...

I got the speakers all wired, and the cool thing was that the receiver has a test program in which you place a microphone at the optimum listening area and it checks everything for you.
Wiring, phase, speaker distance set up... very cool!

Update 2/16/06

Getting closer to getting done!
I have the projector hung and tweaked in. Picked up a High Definition cable box and I've been watching some TV in my theater room. The Olympics look very cool on an 8' screen and in HD...

I took this pic this morning with the lights on, you can still get a great picture even with this much ambient light.

This shot is of a DVD, but rest assured, the quality is very much the same watching programs in HD. In fact, one of my fave shows is Nova on PBS Tuesday nights. I was totally enthralled in the show about insects trapped in amber... aka Jurassic Park.

I've watched bits and pieces of my favorite scenes in various DVD's. I'm looking forward to actually sitting down in front of the screen and watching movies for, oh say, a whole weekend!

I still need to finish hanging the curtains and painting the center ceiling medallion. Also adding bits and pieces here and there to finish the room off...

2/26/06

Well, I managed to get the partial curtain panels made as well as all the toppers (valances). After hanging and adjusting them I started with making the tie backs...

Here are some pics...

Ok, now I'm going to do some watching now...

Update 3/10/06

For those techies out there, or just for the curious...
Here is a listing of the equipment I have used:

Projector = Sony VPL-H51A
Screen = Dalite 92" diag. 16:9
Receiver = Yamaha HTR-5990
HD Cable Box = From the local cable company, not sure the model...
DVD = LG model LDA-511
CD Player = Sony 200 disc changer
Speakers = Fronts: Klipsch Synergy III model F-3
Center: Hlipsch Synergy III model C-2
Presence: Klipsch Synergy III model S-2
Rear Surrounds: Panasonics 100W for now...
Subwoofer: Klipsch SUB-12, 12" 650W

I'm not done buying stuff yet, but if you need details on what approx. I've spent, then check in the "Links" section on the main page for a link to my story on Projectorcentral.com...

3/17/06

Improvements are coming slower these days, but I wanted to put some recent pics here. Last weekend Lori and I found these pieces of pottery and filled them with arrangements. There's one one each side of the screen on top of the floor speakers...

Stepping back just a bit...

The next project this weekend will be to raise the rear seating up a bit. I may also decide to push back the front row a bit. This may render the reclining functionality of the rear seats unusable, but I think it may be best so the persons in the front row are not right on top of the screen.

To be continued...

Just Read The News...Please?

2005-12-28T06:14:00.000-08:00

Call me old fashioned, or call me a stiff. I like hearing the news.
The trouble is, news stations seem to be more interested in telling me what they think about the news than just telling me the news straight out.
Just read me the news, it's what your paid to do. I'm intela... intellu... intelligament... edgumucated... smart enough to form my own opinion thank you.

Ok, now I'm going to pick on one specifically.
CNN...
What the hell happened? CNN is where the world goes to hear the news. Now the world and the rest of us have to put up with stories frought with opinions and comedy. It's news for christ sakes, not SNL. Your supposed to be journalists, reporters, or simple script readers. Save your lame routine for when you bomb on your local comedy store amatuer night.

I should say though that I usually watch CNN every morning from 5:30am to about 7am. And sometimes at lunch for the international news which is refreshingly devoid of opinionated crap.

Just read me the news, if I need to be told what my opinion is today I'll watch Fox News...

Switching channels...
A good example of what I'm talking about happened on one of my local news broadcasts at Thanksgiving. Terrible story. An older couple were trapped in their car as the vehicle was ablaze. A quick thinking good samaritan broke the window and helped pull them out. Terrible story.

Could the news readers possibly just leave this awful story alone? I mean, that's really the story isn't it? NO! by god they have to tell you "the rest of the story" (sorry Paul). Now we have to hear how the object the good samaritan used to break the window was a frozen turkey he had purchased at the store. Ok, that would be interesting if the car was NOT on fire and the poor couple weren't being burned. Say if Sparky the family dog had locked himself in the family truckster with the keys inside, car NOT on fire!
As they are finishing the telling the story, as a part of normal news room procedure, the lead anchor must finish with a light hearted joke... here's his:
"That's quite a story Carole, I wonder if the turkey was well done?"
Hey Mr. news reader... how about the poor couple? how did they fair?
Dumbass...