Friday, September 30, 2005

California Historical Landmark #817

Site of the First County
Free Library Branch in California

California State Historical Landmark #817
See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located at 9125 Elk Grove Boulevard, Elk Grove, California. There are 57 other California State Historical Landmarks in Sacramento County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 24.547 W 121° 21.689.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.


In 1908 Elk Grove acquired through the efforts of Miss Harriet G.
Eddy, then principal of Elk Grove Union High School, the first county
free library branch in California. Subsequently California's county
free library branch system has become the most outstanding in America.

Thursday, September 29, 2005

Wolf Bridging Ceremony

Jack and I attended the monthly meeting of Cub Scout Pack 233. Jack's den had a bridging ceremony from Tiger Cub to Wolf Cub.

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Longest Aerial Tramway

An initial e-mail from Wallen last Friday triggered several e-mails back and forth between Wallen, Nooter and I. In part, John's note made me think of the time that Nooter dragged me on to the world's longest aerial tramway to the top of Sandia Peak in Albuquerque, New Mexico [I am not crazy about heights!]. Rob ended up calling from his daughter's soccer practice and we spent some time catching up.

Afterwards, I started thinking that I had some digital pictures from the trip to Albuquerque. For part of 1997, I carried an early Casio digital camera. With Sharon in the city Friday night, I pulled my old IBM Thinkpad 760CD out of the closet and started digging around. I found about 90 digital pictures from 1997. I posted some of the pictures from the Albuquerque trip in the entry titled the Nooters in Albuquerque.

I had also been wondering recently how much of my old e-mail was on this computer. It turns out that there is a lot of old e-mail. In a quick review, I was able to find several things including a long e-mail that I wrote to Nooter after my first two dates with Sharon in early 1995. I am going to post some pieces of that e-mail in the future.

Google's Seventh Birthday

Official Google Blog:
We wanted something special for our birthday?

Monday, September 26, 2005

2005 Indian Summer Golf Classic

I played in the Sutter Indian Summer Golf Classic at the Cameron Park Country Club. This scramble tournament is a fund raiser for the Sutter Medical Center Foundation. The foursome included the CIO [my boss], the IT CFO and one of the other department directors.

We were ten over par; we had two birdies, eight pars, four bogies and four double bogies. I had a hard time getting my drives going, but had a couple of long fairway woods and putts that helped us. We got rained on pretty hard for two plus holes towards the end of the day.


Saturday, September 24, 2005

2005 Soccer Game 3

Jack scored the first goal of the game as his team built up a 4 to 1 half-time lead. The other team then scored three goals in the third quarter to tie the game at 4 to 4. In the last quarter, the coach put Jack at goalie. Unfortunately, late in the fourth quarter, Jack gave up the winning goal. His team lost 5 to 4. He did not take it very well; he was very upset after the game. His team now has 2 wins and 1 loss on the season.

2005 Soccer Game 3 pic 1


2005 Soccer Game 3 pic 2


Kings open Camp Oct. 3

The Sacramento Kings open training camp Monday, October 3, beginning with the annual Media Day at the team's training facility adjacent to Arco Arena. The Kings' first official practice will be Tuesday, October 4.

Friday, September 23, 2005

Shopping in the City

Sharon and Janie spent the day shopping in San Francisco. They had lunch at Swan Oyster Depot and dinner at Kuleto's Italian Restaurant in Union Square.

Long, slow run

I took a long lunchtime run around the Mather Airport and through the Independence at Mather subdivision. I covered 9.01 miles at an average pace of 9:43 per mile; the splits were 9:42, 9:38, 9:58, 9:53, 9:31, 9:36, 9:32, 10:01 and 9:34. This is the farthest distance I have run from our building in the Mather Business Park.

click on the map for a larger copy!
run Mather Airfield Airport

Thursday, September 22, 2005

My Life 1977

After Christmas break, my college roomate and I drove to Southern California and picked up my girl friend and a ski boat. The ski boat belonged to someone who lived on our dorm floor. Over the first six months of 1977, a group took the boat out on Lake Oroville and the Sacramento River. This picture was taken on Lake Oroville.

1977

click on the picture for a larger copy!
Mark Heringer 1977

All of the My Life Photos can be found here.

Another Stormy Chapter

For Google, Another Stormy Chapter

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

Calfornia Historical Landmark #657

Grave of Alexander Hamilton Willard
California State Historical Landmark #657

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located in the Franklin Cemetery, Franklin, California. There are 57 other California State Historical Landmarks in Sacramento County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 22.612 W 121° 27.372.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.



Willard, a native of New Hampshire who died march 6, 1865, was perhaps the last survivor of the exploring party sent out by President Jefferson under Captain Meriwether Lewis to discover the course and sources of the Missouri River.


External Links:

Alexander Hamilton Willard - The Lewis And Clark Rediscovery Project

Alexander Hamilton Willard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

wall-to-wall wireless access

City's heading for wall-to-wall wireless access - sacbee.com:
Aiming to make wireless Internet accessible citywide, the Sacramento City Council on Tuesday approved a plan that could blanket downtown and midtown with Wi-Fi coverage by early next year - and the entire capital within two years.

Monday, September 19, 2005

2005 Informationweek 500

For 17 years, InformationWeek has tracked the technology practices of the nation's largest and most innovative companies and published an annual ranking of the top 500 users of technology.

Sutter Health ranked 98th in 2005 InformationWeek 500 survey. This is the fifth year running that we have made the survey and third year in a row that we are in the top 100.

Intel ranked 97th. Other healthcare systems in the survey included: Baylor; St. Lukes (Kansas City); St. Joseph Health (Orange, CA); Texas Health Resources; and, the University of Penn Med Center.

First Day off in 20 Days

I took Jack to soccer practice and had my first day off from running since August 29. In spite of a back that is giving me some trouble, I ran almost 127 miles in the last 20 days, an average of more than a 10k a day. I still have some visions of running a marathon at the end of 2006 and a 50 mile run in early 2007.

Sunday, September 18, 2005

love the bonus room

I really like the way we have the bonus room set up with the treadmill in the corner. It makes it very easy to put in a long work out on the treadmill without going stir crazy.

Saturday afternoon, I ran on the treadmill and watched the end of the Giants versus Dodgers game. Omar Vizquel lined a tiebreaking single to right with two outs in the eighth to help the Giants to a 2 to 1 victory. Then I shifted to the Norte Dame versus Michigan State football game and watched Norte Dame rally back from a 38-17 deficit only to fall in overtime 44-41.

Sunday, I ran on the treadmill and flipped back and forth between the High Defintion broadcasts of Denver's 20-17 victory over San Diego and the Cleveland's 26-24 victory over Green Bay.

Best of the Web

BusinessWeek Magazine: Best of the Web Special Report and Survey Results

Saturday, September 17, 2005

Jack under the weather

With Jack under the weather, the schedule for the day turned out a little differently than planned. We held him out of his soccer game. Nevertheless, his team went on to win 5 to 1 with four different kids scoring goals. The team has started the season with 2 wins and 0 losses.

While Sharon spent the day serving as the wedding coordinator for two different weddings, Jack and I stopped briefly to visit with the Bell's. Their youngest daugther plays on a select soccer team and had a game at Laguna Community Park.

Sharon finished the day attending the St. Mary School 50th Anniversary Welcome Reception. Sharon and both of her brothers attended this elementary school.

Santana Podcast Interview

A podcast interview with Carlos Santana from the Sacramento Bee's pop music critic's Weblog.

Friday, September 16, 2005

Wolf




While Sharon helped with not one, but two wedding rehearsals, I met with a group of parents to do some planning for Jack's Cub Scout Den for the coming year. Jack finished up the Tiger Cub Requirements and will be working on the requirements to gain the rank of Wolf this year.

My Life 1976

Over the last five months, I have published about one picture a week. Each picture represented a year in my life. I have had a pretty good selection of pictures to choose from; in some years, I have had a difficult time selecting just one picture. For my college years, I do not have good selection of pictures. While I may not be happy of how I look (i.e. heavy), the pictures do represent a window into my life.

I dated Laurie Littenberg (now Slama) for more than two years in college from the Fall Quarter of 1976 to the Winter Quarter of 1979.

1976

click on the picture for a larger copy!
Mark Heringer 1976

All of the My Life Photos can be found here.

Thursday, September 15, 2005

California Historical Landmark #591

Captain John A. Sutter's Landing
California State Historical Landmark #591

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located at the northeast corner of 28th and C Streets, in Stanford Park, Sacramento, California. There are 57 other California State Historical Landmarks in Sacramento County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 34.905 W 121° 27.965.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.


Captain John A. Sutter, after coming up the Sacramento River from Yebra Buena in August, 1839, landed approximately two hundred feet north of here, at what was then the South Bank of the American River. A short time thereafter he moved to the site where he established a permanent camp, and later built a fort. Sutter and his men were the first settlers within the present city limits of Sacramento.

Google Blog Search

Google Blog Search

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Third Season of West Wing

Sharon and I finished watching the third season of West Wing on DVD. Although we got sidetracked watching the Tour de France in July and vacations in August, we typically watch a couple of episodes a week after Jack goes to bed. We finished season one in March and season two in May.

2005 Management Symposium

I spent Tuesday and Wednesday at our Management Symposium at the Sacramento Convention Center. This meeting includes all levels and types of managers from across the organization. There were about 750 people each day.

I attended break-out sessions on our Electronic Health Record project and on "What Others are saying about us."

Moblog 2005 Management Symposium

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Morgan's 2005 Fall Schedule

Morgan's schedule for this semester.

Mon--Yoga and Vocal Jazz.
Tue--Buddhist Philosophy; Music Composition and Theory; and Greek.
Wed--Conference with her Don and Chorus.
Thu--Buddhist Philosophy; Music Composition and Theory; and Greek.
Fri--Voice lessons and African Dance.

iPod Nano Review

iPod Nano: Introduction; Usage; Stress Testing; and Autopsy. I found the stress part of this article [What does it take to destroy an iPod nano?] particularly interesting!

Stevie's Little Wonder

TIME.com: Stevie's Little Wonder

Monday, September 12, 2005

iPod Nano

I bought a 1GB iPod shuffle when they were first introduced. Paired with an armband, it is perfect for running. I also occasionally use it in the car.

The iPod Shuffle either plays all of its music randomly or staight through; there are no other controls. Over time, I have found myself lusting after the iPod Mini that I got Sharon. It would be nice to be able to build specific playlists to listen to while running and download podcasts to listen to in the car.

When the iPod Nano was announced last week, I decided to order one with an armband. I was pleasantly surprised to find that iTunes would let me connect both the Shuffle and the Nano to my music library; I was expecting to be able to connect only one of the two.

Eleven Days Gone

Eleven Days Gone

Most Expensive Colleges Take 1

Sarah Lawrence ranked second in a October 2004 CNNMoney survey of the most expensive colleges.

Sunday, September 11, 2005

moving a little slow...

After being out late at the Bell's, both Sharon and I were moving a little slow on Sunday. Sharon spent the afternoon taking food to her parents and working on a loan, while Jack went to a party birthday for one of his classmates.

Saturday, September 10, 2005

Dinner at the Bell's

Sharon spent the afternoon serving as a wedding coordinator for Good Shepherd. This was the tenth wedding that she has done since she started as a wedding coordinator in June of 2003.

After she got home, we took off for the Bell's. Matt is a huge Ohio State fan. He and Sherry invited us, the Larkin's and Heather and Bill over to watch the game. It turned out to be a great game with Texas scoring with 2:37 left to win 25 to 23.

Matt barbecued some steaks for dinner. By the time we got home, it was after midnight.

2005 Soccer Game 1

Jack had his first soccer game of the season. After falling behind by two goals, his team came back to win 6 to 3. Jack scored the team's first goal in the first quarter. He played goalie in the second quarter and gave up one goal to the other team. Jack had four or five other good shoots on goal.

The team that he is playing on this year is much stronger than last year's. Last year, he scored most of the goals and the team ended up with a .500 record. This year, there are at least three or four other kids on the team that are capable of attacking and scoring goals. It is going to be adjustment for Jack to go from being a featured soloist to being part of the orchestra.

2005 Soccer Game 1 pic 2

2005 Soccer Game 1 pic 1

Friday, September 09, 2005

Thursday, September 08, 2005

CA Historical Landmark #633-2

Old Folsom Powerhouse
Sacramento Station A
California State Historical Landmark #633-2

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located at the northeast corner of 6th and H Streets in Sacramento, California. There are 57 other California State Historical Landmarks in Sacramento County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 35.034 W 121° 29.874.

You can log your visit to this site at waymarking.com.




The first distribution point of electricity for a major city, Station A was constructed in 1894. Built by the Sacramento Electric Power and Light Company to receive power generated from Folsom Powerhouse. The first transmission of electricity was on July 13, 1895. This power distribution network resulted in the first overhead wire streetcar system in the Central Valley.

New Apple Stuff

Apple - iPod nano

Apple - iTunes for your Mobile Phone

Apple - iTunes 5.0 Overview

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

Tonight's Sunset pic 2

There was a very interesting sunset this evening with Venus, a crescent Moon and Jupiter low in the Western sky. Jupiter looks very red in the larger copy of the picture; Jack and I were looking at some other pictures with a higher magnification and you can make out some of the rings and possibly the spot.

click on the picture for a larger copy!

Tonight's Sunset pic 1

Venus, a crescent Moon and Jupiter
click on the picture for a larger copy!

Monday, September 05, 2005

Prisoner of Azkaban

While Sharon and Janie went to dinner at Mikuni's downtown, Jack and I watched Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. As the books get longer, I think that it is going to be increasing difficult to capture the books in a two plus hour movie. I felt like there were a number of nuances in the plot of the book that were not very well captured on the screen. Jack is now reading the Harry Potter books.

Early Monday morning, Sharon took her bike to the American River Trail and rode about 15 miles around Lake Natomas.

Finally: Wi-Fi Cameras

Finally: Wi-Fi Cameras

Sunday, September 04, 2005

No Harness Races

After church, tuning up Sharon's laptop and shopping for fountains for the front entry, the plan was to spend the evening at the harness races. Sharon had been talking up the idea for a week. Unfortunately, when we got to Cal Expo, we found out that the harness races were not running! Although Sharon had checked the web site, it turns out that there were a couple of different posted calendars.

After some teeth gashing, we headed towards Old Sacramento for dinner. We walked into the middle of Gold Rush Days. After walking around, we ended up having dinner at Fat City. We finished the night taking a carriage ride along the river.

Fluffy Dinosaurs

Dinosaurs may have been a fluffy lot

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Bridget Jones

After working the yard, we watched Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. Sharon had read both the Bridget Jones books and seen the first movie. From my perspective, there was not much redeeming in the movie other than some Southern Thailand beach scenery.

Outside Webcam Back!

For a number of years, I had a wireless camera from X10 capturing an outside picture and uploading it to my web pages. A couple of months ago, I replaced that camera with a Linksys Wireless-G Network Camera. I struggled to find the right software to work with this camera to duplicate what I was doing before.

I finally got everything back up and running this morning.


A thumbnail of the most recent picture appears towards the bottom of the right sidebar on this page. The last five pictures from the camera can be found on at:

http://www.heringer.org/outsidewebcam.htm

The camera also allows people to connect to it from the outside world and watch streaming video, but I am still poking around at that configuration on my router and DSL modem; I am not sure that my ISP will allow me to see my IP address from the outside.

Friday, September 02, 2005

NGM 10/2004

Louisiana's Wetlands, National Geographic Magazine, October 2004:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency lists a hurricane strike on New Orleans as one of the most dire threats to the nation, up there with a large earthquake in California or a terrorist attack on New York City.
It is worth reading the first couple of paragraph of this article printed in the National Gegraphic Magazine almost a year ago!

Don't give Kings the title ... yet

Mark Kreidler has a column in today's Sacramento Bee looking at ESPN's declaration that the Kings are the second-best team in the Western Conference entering the coming season. He expresses some concern about expectations being set so high when this combination of players has never played together and Adelman is in the last season of his contract.

Thursday, September 01, 2005

Pre-season NBA Look

In ESPN's pre-season look at the NBA's Western Conference, Chad Ford writes:

The skinny: It looks like the window never closes completely in Sacramento. Just when it looked like time to write off the Kings for good, GM Geoff Petrie had a stellar summer and the Kings suddenly look very formidable again. Their starting five (Mike Bibby, Peja Stojakovic, Brad Miller, Abdur-Rahim and Wells) is terrific. And for the first time in several years, they have a very solid bench, with Kenny Thomas, Corliss Williamson and Brian Skinner anchoring up front and Hart in the backcourt. If either second-year guard Kevin Martin or rookie Francisco Garcia step up, the Kings will have the ammunition to give the Spurs a run.