May 22, 2008 by dave.

A few years ago while I was teaching a class at Plymouth State University I was focusing a chapter on Internet technology. As part of it I was educating the class about Internet Domains and how ‘everything works’ on the Internet and World-Wide-Web (note: many people consider think they are the same but the WWW is actually a sub-set of the Internet) and as part of my lecture I decided to look into buying my own domain.

I had seen ads for ‘hosted’ domains in PC Magazine provided by 1&1 Internet, Inc and as I investigated further I realize that was the way to go. I won’t go into the technical details regarding how domains work but rather, I’ll point out what you get for a very low cost. Realize that 1&1 has a number of different packages that serve the needs of the individual or large business. Additionally their documentation and help is outstanding so almost anyone with a minimal knowledge of technology can be successful with them.

I have the 1&1 beginner package that costs $3.99 per month….yes…for about $48 per year I get the following (but realize I actually end up only using a small part of it):

• The domain www.carpentiere.net
• This blog site (blog.carpentiere.net)
• Up to 600 email addresses attached to the domain (such as dave@carpentiere.net)
• 10GB of web space
• 2GB of email space
• An assortment of free tools, etc….

So….for $48.00 per year you can set up a Blog, reserve (or actually create a web site on your own domain) and issue email addresses to all your family members, etc.

What if you don’t want a blog or web site?….well my family and I do have email addresses from our local ISP (Metrocast Cablevision) but for some reason they insist on blocking all email coming from some pretty popolar domains (yahoo.com for example). This way we control our destiny.

If this is something that interests you please make sure to visit 1&1 by clicking on this icon (because I supposedly get something out of it if you end up joining):

Posted in Web Sites, Technology | 1 Comment »

May 20, 2008 by dave.

I used to feel privileged to receive solicitations from credit card companies. I also used to enjoy getting the occasional unsolicited catalog, and even junk mail once in a while. Well once I bought a house it got a bit crazy - the amount of unsolicited ‘crap’ that I was receiving. I recall a few years ago my wife and I had looked in to ways to cut down the amount we were receiving and we did succeed…things got better. I recall the solution had a finite time period attached to it. Recently though it seems to have picked up again….so I assume we’ve passed that time period. It also makes me aware of all the wasted paper. Go Green and stop some of the junk…..

Here’s some helpful sites to help you out. Don’t worry - they are not scams:

OPT-OUT of Direct Marketing (junk mail)

OPT-OUT credit card offers (they look at your credit report…don’t let them!)

While you are at it….don’t forget that we all get a free annual credit report. You can get a report from ALL of the 3 major credit reporting companies. You simply start at this web site:

Annual Credit Report

Lastly, since I’m being so helpful - here’s a way to get a ‘free’ long-distance phone number: See….in order to have an unlisted number you need to pay a monthly charge. The simple solution is to put your phone in another name. We use my wife’s maiden name which helps even more when we get an unsolicited call (don’t forget to sign up for the national DO NOT CALL list) and they ask for Mr. <insert wife’s maiden name>. I’ve also heard of others putting the phone in the name of a pet. I’d love to be able to tell a marketer that <insert cat’s name’> can’t come to the phone because they are busy in the litter-box.

Posted in Household Stuff, Health & Environment, Web Sites, Annoying Things, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

May 14, 2008 by dave.

I’ve always been a big coffee drinker but about 3 years ago a co-worker turned me on to chai tea and since then I’ve added various teas to my selection of ‘regular beverages’. Good chai tea with the addition of cream is a wonderful treat. The best chai I’ve had is prepared at a local establishment called Cafe Monte Alto. After having their chai I developed an interest in other teas. I’ve tried many and really the only one I dislike is Earl Grey - I find it has a flavor characteristic that I dislike.

In my quest for new teas to try I ran across a particular version of chai made by Stash Tea that I liked and I’ve since ordered lots of different teas from the company. They have a very wide selection of teas (loose and in bags) and also have a selection of ‘iced teas’ that are ready to brew in oversized tea bags. You can order specific teas in varying quantities and they even offer special assortments or gift packs so you can try out multiple types without buying whole boxes until you’re sure you like them.

My current favorites are:

• Super Irish Breakfast
• Fusion Red & White
• Double Spice Chai
• Decaf Chocolate Hazelnut
• Mangosteen Green with Matcha
• Decaf Pumpkin Spice

Posted in Food / Beverage | No Comments »

May 12, 2008 by dave.

I already raved about the Kettler Trikes in an earlier Blog but this weekend we found an accessory to one of the bikes in my shed.

It is a component that basically changes one of the bikes into a tandem. I recall seeing this a while back and had asked that relatives give it to one of my kids for Christmas. Well when we got it and tried it out we discovered that it is really not for use until the kids can actually steer them self - because the bike ends up being too unruly to maneuver.

I had shared this frustration with Kettler because they didn’t have any notation regarding this on the product or on sites that sold it. After I complained they ended up sending me a new rear wheel assembly where the wheels are able to swivel from (left-to-right).  That was better but it was still awkward since we were still in the stage where we used the pushbar and we controlled where the bikes went. I never got around to pushing the issue further with Kettler and the accessory ended up in the shed.

Well….now that my kids are older and can peddle and steer I put the tandem accessory on my son’s bike and it is actually kinda cool. One child can drive and the other can ride. It’s built well but again….they need to be old enough to control the bike them self and have the strength to transport the extra weight. I left my daughter’s bike alone so now they have a tandem they can use and a regular bike. You can see how it works by checking out this Flash movie from the manufacturer.

Posted in Fun!, Parenthood | 1 Comment »

May 7, 2008 by dave.

I had a vegetable garden for about 3 years in a row but gave it up several years ago when I found I didn’t have time to maintain it. I also had gotten very frustrated with the weeding. I had lots of stuff other than the vegetables that wanted to grow in the location I had placed the garden and, though I did get vegetables, it was a mess.

Now that my kids are a little older and I have time to ‘get into another project’ I am starting another garden - but I’ve decided to change the location and go with a ‘raised bed‘ design. There’s a lot of information on doing gardens this way and I found the concept was something I wanted to try. It will enable me to control my garden better and if I find I like it I can add another one elsewhere in the yard.

As you can see, the raised bed consists of an L-shaped garden of about 80 square feet. The height is about 10 inches and I constructed it at almost no cost with wood that was destined to be bed parts for where I work….but the company that sent them made them the wrong size and told us to toss them in a dumpster. I rescued them and figured I’d have a use some day. I used vertical limber to tie it all together. The location of this is great for sunshine though at this point it looks a little odd from the road (I’m usually a but nutty about making sure the yard looks good so ‘lightening up’ a bit these days).

I also decided to line the bottom with permeable landscape fabric solely to keep anything else that was already growing in my yard out of the garden. I’m not sure if any of this is ’standard practice’ but we’ll see how this works. I’ve purchased organic garden soil and will combine that with a bit of peat moss and free compost from my local ‘dump’.

I hope to get the soil all set this weekend and will plant a few cold-weather tolerant vegetables (lettuce / spinach). I’ll plant the rest on the last weekend of May (traditional date for planting gardens in NH - to avoid ‘death by cold’). In addition to these vegetables I have cucumbers, carrots, and tomato plants. I know there isn’t an abundance of room for all these items but I’ll see how it works out. I picked up my seeds(and will soon receive the tomato plants) from burpee.com

Expect follow-up reports in the future to highlight how this project is going….

Posted in Household Stuff, Fun! | 1 Comment »

May 2, 2008 by dave.

I’d have to say that Sanibel Island is one of my favorite places to visit. I’ve been there twice and both times it has been fabulous. Sanibel is a small island located off the coast of Ft. Myers Florida….connected to the mainland by a bridge as well as another smaller island (Captiva Island). Both times I’ve visited were in March and the temperatures were in the 80’s. The island has great beaches, wildlife, small stores / shops, and is laid out with bike paths throughout. I think it’s best to use bikes on the Island rather than drive around. It’s actually small enoughthat you can get anywhere on bike.

The island boasts a very nice and unique grocery store called Jerry’s. As you approach the store you are greeted with exotic birds in cages out front. Strangely enough Jerry’s has three locations…..one in Sanibel and two locations in Minnesota - which makes me believe the owner was probably from Minnesota and vacationed on Sanibel…..and figured they would open up a store down there also. This is just a theory!…but a good one!

The most unique thing about Sanibel is the ’shelling’…..Sanibel has some of the best seashells anywhere. Actually they are home to the Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum. I recall my first visit seeing a beach covered with literally millions of seashells. There are so many that you can easily be very finicky about which ones you decide to take for a souvenir. People who walk the beach in search of the best shells are said to sometimes suffer from the ‘Sanibel Stoop’.

I have been lucky enough to have visited other islands in the Northeast and I still feel Sanibel is the best. Compared to Nantucket (off the coast of Massachusetts). it is reasonably priced, friendly, warm, and not very congested. Nantucket, on the other hand, is pretty expensive and ‘high class’ - not my type of place. Similar to Nantucket is Martha’s Vineyard (again - off the coast of Massachusetts). ‘The Vineyard’ as it’s known is also pricey….but a little less congested and a little more friendly than Nantucket. I guess my second-favority island would be Block Island off the coast of Rhode Island. It’s actually very similar to Sanibel except it’s not as warm. Sanibel is more ‘clean looking’ and better maintained. Regardless….these have all been good places to visit - but Sanibel is the best!

Oh - I almost forgot….if you ever go down make sure to visit The Bubble Room on Captival. I can’t describe this place other than to say it’s quite unique. Check out the web site for details and make sure to get the Carolina Moons with your meals (they are basically homemade potato chips)….and get dessert! Their desserts are homemade cakes that are absolutely huge and have very unique flavor combinations. Check their site for the menu….

Posted in Fun! | 1 Comment »