Category Archives: Days in My Life

I don’t just sit around and watch TV.

2005 News

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Old news from my old Web site.

December 22, 2005
Informit.com has released my latest article for them, “TV to Go: Watching Video on Your iPod.”

December 19, 2005
How often do you get to land a helicopter right next to a major roadway? I did it at the beginning of the month for Don Green, who was photographing a bridge under contruction further up the road. He was kind enough to take a photo of me with Zero-Mike-Lima and e-mail it to me today. Is that helicopter RED or what?

December 15, 2005
Just got my advance author copy of QuickBooks Pro 2006 for Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide. It should be in stores within the next few weeks — just in time for a new year accounting software change.

December 14, 2005
Did my first Classic Rock Cuts radio show on KBSZ-AM. Many thanks to Miss Holley King, the Rock-a-Billy Queen, for helping me out, teaching me how to use the board, and e-mailing me a bunch of Webcam images (including this one) while I worked.

December 10, 2005
Took delivery of 28 baby chicks today! Unfortunately, I only ordered 12. Even worse, all the extra chicks, which were packed in for warmth in shipping, are males! Anyone want a rooster?

December 9, 2005
My Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Visual QuickStart Guide has been translated into French! Just got my author copy today and it’s just as big and fat as the English version.

December 5, 2005
Have just begun the major project of upgrading my Web server to Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger Server. I’m sick and tired of the unreliable operation of WebSTAR and want to take advantage of all the cool Web publishing tools Mac OS X Server has built in. If you’re interested in this project, follow along in the “Call Me a Geek” category of Maria’s WebLog.

November 27, 2005
Just returned from a very short trip to the New York City metro area for Thanksgiving with my family. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

November 22, 2005
Just put the finishing touches on my latest book for Peachpit Press, QuickBooks 2006 for Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide. Look for it in stores in December.

November 18, 2005
Informit.com has published my latest article, “Yes! You Can Use Your GPS With Your Mac!“

November 14, 2005
I decided to simplify my podcasts and have merged Maria Speaks and Maria Speaks Plus into the original Maria Speaks podcast. I’m also actively seeking suggestions on topics for future podcast episodes.

November 13, 2005
Just finished up a busy weekend that included two big charters for Flying M Air: I took two people to Sedona and three people to the Grand Canyon.

November 10, 2005
MacDirectory’s Winter 2005/6 issue includes a rave review of my Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide. Read more on the companion Web site for the book.

November 7, 2005
After a careful comparison of service quality, I’ve decided to shift from Amazon.com to Barnes & Noble.com as my source for books—and my preferred vendor for my books. B&N simply offers better service. Bear with me as I change links throughout my site.

November 5, 2005
Went to a nice airport open house in Boulder City, NV. Mike flew us up in his plane. It was a real pleasure to go to a small-town airport event that was so well organized with so much to do and see.

October 30, 2005

Just had a great weekend in Glendale at the Thunderbird Balloon Classic and Air Show. Flew a total of 131 passengers in my R44, doing rides during the weekend-long event. Best of all, I got to park next to a pair of F-16 fighters while waiting for passengers.

October 20, 2005
I’ve discovered enhanced podcasts. Learn more on the Maria Speaks home page.

October 14, 2005
I couldn’t resist. I had a spare iSight camera with nothing much for it to do and decided to use it as a Webcam. So now you can watch me work. I put the image at the bottom of the Home Page. We’ll see how long it lasts. I’m not so sure I want to give my editors the ability to keep tabs on me when a deadline approaches.

October 10, 2005

My podcast, Maria Speaks, has finally appeared in the iTunes Music Store’s Podcast Directory. Search Podcast titles for Maria and it’ll come up. I seem to have caught a cold, but if I don’t sound too nasal, I’ll add a few episodes this week.

October 8, 2005
Just got back from a week-long trip to Maine. The fall colors were a bit disappointing, but I did get to experience two weather phenomena that I seldom see: fog and rain. Had a great time, but it’s good to be back in sunny Arizona.

October 1, 2005
Had a great time doing a presentation at the Tucson Apple Store. Had a good turnout with lots of folks who had great questions and tips. Thanks very much to the Apple Store folks for letting me come by.

September 26, 2005
After experimenting with podcasting by publishing KBSZ’s podcast, I finally got around to recording episodes of my own. Called Maria Speaks, it’s a sort of audio blog that includes information about my work and some tips and tricks for Macintosh users. To subscribe, use the URL http://feeds.feedburner.com/

mariaspeaks. I’ll also be publishing transcripts for entries related to a specific book on that book’s companion Web site, accessible from LangerBooks.com.

September 25, 2005
Had the weirdest flying day of my life: picked up two campers on top of a remote mesa, dropped 1000 golf balls onto a golf course green, and practiced flying in formation with a car. Want the details? Read more on Maria’s WebLog.

September 20, 2005
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide has been translated into Dutch!

September 19, 2005
Just got back from a 4-day helicopter gig at the Mohave County Fair in Kingman, AZ. I took well over 100 people for helicopter rides — many of them for their first flight! Many thanks to Betty and Phil at the fair for helping make this a smooth (and profitable) gig.

September 14, 2005
Well, that didn’t last long. I gave notice at my coffee shop job. Too much time away from my office and too many editors asking for articles. I need to get back to my real work!

September 10, 2005
Finally completed the tale of my roadtrip. Read up in Maria’s WebLog.

September 6, 2005
I’m starting a job at the Old Nursery Coffee Company in Wickenburg. I’ll help out at lunchtime during the week, making sandwiches, espresso drinks, and smoothies, until the permanent helper returns from an Alaskan “fish camp” in November.

September 1, 2005
Just found out that a lot more people are reading Maria’s WebLog than I thought. It appears that my travel stories have become quite popular. Now if only I can find the time to write up the last day’s story…

August 31, 2005
Did a fun helicopter charter out of Prescott yesterday with three folks dropping paint bags to mark the corners of their remote property. I’m still trying to figure out why they chose lavender paint.

August 30, 2005
Made a last-minute trip to the FileMaker Pro Developer Conference at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort today. Got a personalized demo of FileMaker Pro 8 and can’t wait to start using it.

August 26, 2005
Informit.com has published an excerpt from my book, Creating Spreadsheets and Charts in Excel: Visual QuickProject Guide, titled “Building a Budget Worksheet in Excel.”

August 25, 2005
I’m back from my trip. I put about 4,500 miles on my Honda S2000 visiting 9 states in 16 days. My favorite places: Goldfield, NV; Cedarville, CA; Redmond, OR; Hood River, OR; Walla Walla, WA; Lewiston, ID; McCall, ID; and Cascade, ID. You can read all about my trip in Maria’s WebLog. Thanks to the folks who used my special roadtrip e-mail address to suggest possibilities.

August 20, 2005
My 60th book, Quicken 2006: The Official Guide is now available. You can find this book at Amazon.com. All support for my Quicken books is on the McGraw-Hill/Osborne Web site.

August 15, 2005
My latest eBook, Maria’s Guide to Pubishing an iTunes-Compatible Podcast, has been picked up for distribution on David Lawrence’s 10QuickSteps Web site.

August 9, 2005
I’m off on a road trip. My search for a new home begins with a 19-day journey throughout the U.S. northwest. Follow my progress in my blog. If you live up that way and want to try to sell me on your town, e-mail me at roadtrip@theflyingm.com. No support questions, please—I’m on vacation!

August 8, 2005
I was taday’s guest on KBSZ-AM radio’s “Around the Town” show here in Wickenburg. Host Pete Peterson asked me about the podcasting work I’m doing for KBSZ as well as my recent books and helicopter tour business. Want to hear me? Visit www.kbsz-am.com and click the Podcasts link. The KBSZ podcasts are also available for subscription from the iTunes Music Store.

August 5, 2005
Informit.com has published my article, “Creating a Photo Book with iPhoto.”

August 4, 2005
I just finished my newest eBook, Maria’s Guide to Publishing an iTunes-Compatible Podcast. You can learn more about this book on the Maria’s Guides Web site. And if you subscribed to the LangerBooks.com notification list, check your e-mail box for a 20% off offer on the book—the offers went out today.

July 31, 2005
Flying M Air ended the month on a high note. In the past week, I’ve done 4 custom charters: 2 in the Wickenburg area and 2 to Sedona. (And I thought summer would be a dead season!)

July 29, 2005
Informit.com has published my article about Mac/Windows file sharing, “Setting Up Macintosh & Windows File Sharing.”

July 28, 2005
Appeared at the Las Vegas Apple Store this evening. Many thanks to the folks at Apple for having me.

July 25, 2005
My production Mac, a dual processor G5, is comatose. I dropped it off at the Chandler Apple Store for a new logic board. This $715 repair (ouch!) should be finished by Friday.

July 24, 2005
I’m back from Howard Mesa—at least for a while. It was an interesting and relaxing month away.

July 22, 2005
Informit.com has published the update to my Faxing with Mac OS X article, “Throw Out Your Fax Machine. All You Need is a Little Tiger.” (Hey, I don’t name them, I just write them.)

July 18, 2005

Apple’s eNews newsletter included instructions for getting a free copy of my eBook, Maria’s Guide to What’s New in Tiger. This offer is only available until July 31, so act now if you want your copy for free. Many thanks to Apple and Peachpit Press for making this offer available.

July 15, 2005
Informit.com has published my article on Widgets, “Widget Watch: Dashboard Widgets to Download Now.”

June 25, 2005
Well, I’m off to the middle of nowhere: Howard Mesa, AZ. Although I’ll be back once in a while during the summer, don’t expect many updates to this site. I’m going off-the-grid in the cool, high elevations of northern Arizona and I plan to enjoy every minute of it. I’ll be updating my blog while I’m away, so check in there if you want to see what I’m up to.

June 24, 2005
Finished my latest book revision. Sadly, I can’t say what it is! Look for it in stores in August, when I can reveal the big secret.

June 17, 2005
Just moved all downloadable files and book excerpts to a new, faster server. If you have trouble downloading any of these files, please use the Web Feedback form to report it.

June 16, 2005
Got the French translations for two of my books in the mail today: Creating Resumes, Letters, Business Cards, and Flyers in Word: Visual QuickProject Guide and Creating Spreadsheets and Charts in Excel: Visual QuickProject Guide.

June 15, 2005
Just updated my Calendar to add two rescheduled Apple Store appearances, as well as a helicopter rides gig in September.

June 4, 2005
Two good things today: First, our shed was finally delivered to our property at Howard Mesa. I’ll be going up there for July and August to escape the heat of Wickenburg. Second, I had a great presentation at the Chandler Apple Store. Many thanks to the folks there for hosting me. And if you’re wondering how I survived about 450 miles of driving in one day and was fresh enough to do an Apple Store appearance, here’s the answer: I didn’t. I flew. Total flight time was only 3.5 hours. Sure beats the 8 to 9 hours it would have taken by car!

June 1, 2005
Looking for a good deal on my books? I just discovered that Informit is selling all current Peachpit Press titles I’ve written for 30% off—if you’re an Informit member. Go to Informit.com and create a free account. Then click here to view a list of the books. That link will also display all of the articles I’ve written for Informit, all of which are free to read online.

May 28, 2005
Had a great time doing a presentation in the Biltmore Apple Store. The crowd may not have been large, but it was enthusiastic, and full of questions that I could answer. Many thanks to Robert and the other folks at the Biltmore store for having me.

May 27, 2005
Just got a call from my editor, Cliff. He was pleased to tell me that Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide is currently the #5 computer book. Cool!

May 20, 2005
InformIt has published my latest article on their Web site, “Publishing Your Photos on the Web with iPhoto.”

May 18, 2005
Added excerpts for my two new Maria’s Guide eBooks to the Maria’s Guide Companion Web site.

May 17, 2005
I just released the second eBook in the Maria’s Guide series: Maria’s Guide to Writing a Book Proposal. This book, which sells for $9.95, is available for immediate download via BitPass.

May 16, 2005
I’m the featured author on Peachpit Press’s Web site this month. Look for me right on the Peachpit home page! (Now cool is that?) Peachpit has published details about my Tiger Book Tour on its Web site. You can find other information about my upcoming appearances on my Calendar page.

May 15, 2005
Just got back from a weekend camping trip to the Groom Creek Horse Camp in Prescott, AZ. This excellent facility is one of a few campgrounds in the state that allow people to camp with their horses. We were part of a big group that included the Wickenburg Horsemen’s Association and the Morgan Horse Association (of Prescott). There were great rides every day, up in Prescott’s cool pines!

May 13, 2005

It’s final! I’ve sold the 5-unit rental property I owned here in Wickenburg. That’s a big weight lifted off my shoulders. Best wishes to the new owner. (Better her than me!)

May 12, 2005
Informit has published an interview with me called “Ten Questions with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide Author Maria Langer.” The article page also has a link you can click to buy the book for 40% off—heck, that’s cheaper than I can buy it!

May 9, 2005
Finished my first eBook in the Maria’s Guide series: Maria’s Guide to What’s New in Tiger. This eBook, which was written to introduce Mac OS users to the new features of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, sells for just $9.95 and is available for immediate download via BitPass.

May 7, 2005
Just got back from a helicopter trip to Georgetown, CA (near Sacramento). It was about 11 hours round trip. You can read the details in Maria’s WebLog.

May 5, 2005
Had a busy day with Apple. First, I took part in an AppleCare Vendor Fair in Elk Grove, CA. Later, I did a presentation at the Apple Store at Arden Fair, Sacramento, CA. Had a great time and met a lot of really nice people.

April 29, 2005
It’s out! My Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide was released today with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. Look for it in bookstores or on Amazon.com.

April 26, 2005
Next week, I’ll be flying out to the Sacramento area to do an appearance at an AppleCare Vendor Fair and the Arden Fair Sacramento, CA Apple Store. If you’re in the area, I hope you’ll stop by and say hello. Check my Calendar page for more information.

April 22, 2005
Updated my Calendar page to add some upcoming appearances at Apple Stores.

April 21, 2005
Appeared at an Apple Vendor Fair in Austin, TX. Got to meet a lot of the Apple support folks. Also, Apple has been plugging my book in its Apple eNews.

April 12, 2005
Apple Computer, Inc. has just announced the release date for Mac OS X Tiger: April 29th. Oddly enough, that’s the same day my book should get to bookstores!

April 8, 2005
Just finished up Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger: Visual QuickStart Guide. The book goes to the printer on Monday and should be in stores by month-end. Order your copy in advance from Amazon.com at a savings of 34% off the cover price.

April 2, 2005
Brought Zero-Mike-Lima to Buckeye Municipal Airport for their annual Air Fair event and took 65 people for rides. More the half the passengers, many of whom were kids, had never been in a helicopter before. Some of them had never been in any kind of aircraft! Had a lot of fun, even though I was flying nonstop most of the day. My thanks to the Buckeye Airport Manager for inviting me and helping to make the event a success.

March 29, 2005
What a nice surprise! Found translations of my Creating Resumes, Letterhead, Business Cards, and Flyers with Word: Visual QuickProject Guide and Creating Spreadsheets and Charts with Excel Visual QuickProject Guide on my doorstep this morning. In Italian! The books are in a smaller format and kind of cute.

March 20, 2005
Just got back from a trip to Lake Havasu City, where I was offering helicopter rides for spring break at a local resort. What a waste of time! All those kids care about is beer and boobs. Needless to say, I won’t be back next weekend.

March 14, 2005
Have finalized arrangements with the airport manager at Buckeye Municipal to offer helicopter rides there for their upcoming Air Fair on April 2. If you’re in the Phoenix area, I hope you’ll stop by for a visit — and maybe a ride!

February 24, 2005
I just discovered that you can link to my InformIt articles on Peachpit’s Web site. The benefit: the articles can be read without looking at all the advertisements for high-tech stuff on the page. The drawback: they’re still using a very old photo of me on the book/article list page. Ick.

February 23, 2005
I spent about two hours with iPhoto 5 this morning, creating the Flying M Air Memory Book, a photo album featuring photos from helicopter tours and destinations. The book will be available for sale on the Flying M Air Web site.

February 22, 2005
All the rain we’ve been having is getting a little too close for comfort. My office ceiling developed a leak that drips down about 18 inches from my chair!

February 21, 2005
Got my new business cards, rack cards, and post cards for Flying M Air. They all look great! I spent most of the afternoon distributing the rack cards at Wickenburg area businesses kind enough to let me display them.

February 18, 2005

I’m back at work on my Tiger book. Apple’s getting closer to software completion and I need to be on top of things to get my book out on time.

February 12, 2005
I “rescued” Arizona State Historian Marshall Trimble from the Kay El Bar Ranch in Wickenburg. He was trapped between a flooding river and a flowing wash and needed to get out. I picked him up in my helicopter, took him for a quick tour of the town, and dropped him off at the airport. My reward? An interview on the Arizona Almanac radio show.

February 9, 2005
Got my FAA Part 135 Certificate for Flying M Air. This means I can provide charter and air-taxi services with my helicopter.

February 1, 2005

Just set up a new WebCam for wickenburg-az.com and this one has live motion video! Check it out at http://66.218.237.73:81/Jview.htm and enter visitor as the User ID (leave the password field blank). It appears that WebCams are hot on wickenburg-az.com so I may be adding more in the future.

January 27, 2005
Have been playing with iCal on and off all day long, while writing about it for my Tiger book. Discovered a Web site where you can generate custom calendars based on Amazon.com book publication dates. So I created one for my books (just so I know when I’m supposed to be finished). Weird! Click here to subscribe.

January 23, 2005
Did some air-to-air photography with Jim Wurth and got a few good photos of Zero-Mike-Lima for my Flying M Air marketing material.

January 18, 2005
I’ve decided to try a mentoring program and am actively looking for people interested in writing computer how-to books. Click here to learn more.

January 15, 2005
Had a great day flying at Robson’s Mining World. Took 47 people up for rides — many of them for their first time. Many thanks to the folks at Robson’s for inviting me to be part of their anniversary celebrations.

January 13, 2005
I took Flying M Radio off the air today. It’s cool to broadcast, but not worth having my G5 turned on 18 hours a day.

January 11, 2005
Informit has published my latest article for them: “Absolutely the Last Article You Need To Read About Absolute References in Excel.”

January 7, 2005
It’s here! I went to Torrance, CA yesterday and managed to escape from LA with the new helicopter before the weather closed in. Photos to come.

January 3, 2005
Just accepted an invitation for a radio interview on KBSZ-AM, Wickenburg’s local radio station. Tune in to 1250 AM at 9 AM on January 5 (this Wednesday) to hear me.

January 2, 2005
Got back from a much-needed weekend away, in La Jolla, CA (just north of San Diego). We traded desert for seaside, basic American dining for gourmet cuisine. (The dining choices reminded me why people live in cities.)

The Chickens in My Garage

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A report on my 10-day-old chicks.

It’s true. I have 27 chickens in my garage.

If you’ve been following this bLog, you know that I ordered a bunch of chicks to replace my current flock. The mail order house I used decided to send me a bunch of bonus chicks. It turns out that the 18 additional chicks they sent are all males.

One of the chicks that wasn’t feeling too well last week died. Another one is sick now and I’m not sure if he’s going to make it. I hope that all the ones that die are males. I don’t have much use for more than 2 roosters. And come six months from now, my neighbors won’t, either. They’re already in their second home. Their first home, a big plastic storage box that should have lasted 12 chicks a week, lasted 18 chicks exactly two days. That was replaced with a pair of gas BBQ boxes I picked up at the local Alco store. A little work with a box cutter and some packing tape gave me a pretty good sized box. I had to buy another waterer and feeder, too.

Now I know that the above picture makes it look as if the poor chicks don’t have enough room to move around. But you have to realize that they’re all piled up on each other by choice. I don’t know why. There’s a heat lamp in there, so I know they’re not cold. I think they just like to pile up. Because when I went to take a photo a few minutes ago, they were piled up like that again. It makes for a boring picture and even more boring video.I can’t even get good video when I try. I pulled a little chickie out of the box and put it on my washing machine top, figuring that it would walk around and do cute chickie stuff. But it just stood there, breathing and blinking at me. Even when I moved the camera pretty close to its face. Maybe it’s because I just woke it up? But she is cute. Too bad they have to get big.

Well, I take that back. If you were cleaning the litter for 27 chicks every morning, you’d be pretty anxious to get them out of your garage and into the chicken coop.

Only four weeks to go. And I have the next addition to their indoor coop all ready for them.

The Chickies are Here!

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A day late, but twice as many as I expected.

If you know anything about me, you know that I live in a rather rural area and have been keeping a small flock of chickens for the past six or seven years. My first flock was the best: eight hens who were tame and friendly because I’d raised them from chicks. Coyotes got three of them in a day (which is why I have a coyote tail hanging from the rearview mirror in my S2000), and, as a result, I had to keep them cooped up all day long, first in their relatively small chicken coop and later in a fenced in chicken yard my friend John built for me alongside the coop. The remaining five chickens produced, on average, four eggs a day. We’re not really big egg eaters, so we wound up giving away fresh eggs to just about anyone who showed up at our door — the farrier, the FedEx man, and the APS meter reader — as well as friends and neighbors.

Time passed. I got more chickens and coyotes and neighborhood dogs took some chickens away. We got a rooster from my friend Janet. I hatched one chick on my own, then bought two more to keep it company. One my my hens hatched her own brood of chicks, all of which were killed by the rest of the flock. Later on, I started replacing chickens with older birds that were less likely to be killed by the flock. Neighborhood dogs dug their way into the yard and killed all my chickens but one; we later electrified the outside of the yard fence to keep them out.

As I write this, I have two hens and a rooster that I got from my hairdresser, Sue. She was moving and looking for a home for her flock. When I got the hens from her, one of them was laying. But now neither of them do. We say they’re lazy chickens. And I’ve already decided that they’ll soon go to a new home in Wenden, where my Mexican friend Celia will turn them into enchiladas. She says fresh chicken is a lot better than store-bought. I don’t doubt her, but I’m not about to wring their necks, pluck them, and gut them to find out for sure.

When I decided to replace my little flock, I decided to start from scratch again — no pun intended — with a fresh batch of chicks. I ordered from Ideal Poultry in Texas. They’re one of the few hatcheries that will ship small orders (less than 25 chicks) and will vaccinate for Marek’s disease (which killed a few of my chickens a few years back). I ordered Ameraucanas (Araucanas), which are also known as the “Easter Egg Chicken.” Why? Because they lay colored eggs: brown, green, and sometimes even blue.

I’d had Ameraucanas before and I loved the green eggs. One of my hens laid a beautiful sage green colored egg that was almost the same color I’d painted my kitchen. The colored eggs are a novelty, but what’s nice is that this breed is a pretty good producer. All of my chickens laid regularly until their untimely deaths.I ordered 10 hens and 2 males from Ideal Poultry. I got an e-mail message a few days later, saying my chicks would be shipped out on December 7. Ideal ships via Priority Mail and I knew from experience that I could expect a call from the local post office on Friday morning, around 6 AM, telling me that my chicks had arrived. I prepared a large plastic storage container with pine shavings and paper towel sheets on the bottom. Bought new a new chick waterer and chick feeder, and bought the smallest bag of chick starter I could: 25 lbs. I also set up the heat lamp over my makeshift brooder. All I’d have to do when the call came was to plug in the heat lamp, fill the waterer and feeder, and bring the chicks home.

But the call never came on Friday. I went to the post office to try to track down the chicks, but without a tracking number, it was impossible. I was told to wait for the 11 AM express mail truck. It arrived at 1 PM. No chicks aboard.

Meanwhile, I’d called the hatchery and left numerous messages and e-mail messages. Chicks can survive without problems for up to 48 hours after hatching without food or water. After that, nothing’s guaranteed. All I could think of was a box arriving at Wickenburg Post Office the next day with a dozen dead chicks in it.

But there was nothing I could do. I had to be in Tempe that evening for Mike’s company Christmas party. The plan was to spend the night at the Embassy Suites on South Rural. I was hoping to do some Christmas shopping while I was down there — I needed a Lowe’s gift certificate for my brother and his wife — but I was already out of time. So I hopped in my Honda and zipped down to Tempe.

The hatchery called my cell phone just after I checked in at the hotel. The guy who called was probably the owner and he had a thick Texan drawl. He told me that the shipment had probably been delayed on Wednesday because of an ice storm in Dallas. (I guess I missed that on the news.) A lot of flights were cancelled. But the chicks, which had been hatched after noon on Wednesday, definitely went out. They should arrive by Saturday morning. The hatchery would replace them if they died enroute.

Not much I could do in Tempe, so I tried not to think about them.

We went to bed around midnight, which is almost like staying up all night for me.

Mike had a bad night. Neither of us drank very much at the party, but something he ate didn’t agree with him and he was up half the night. I woke at 7:30 AM and left him to sleep for a while. We had a suite, so I surfed the channels on the television in the other room while drinking coffee I brewed in the tiny pot in our kitchenette. I wanted to go home and get the chicks settled in — if they were still alive — but I was worried about Mike.

We finally checked out at about 9:30 AM. We each had our own car, so we went our separate ways. I got in to Wickenburg at about 10:45 AM and went right to the post office. I heard my new little babies peeping as soon as I got in the door.

The post office folks had been kind enough to cut down a plastic cup, put some water in it, and give it to the chickies. So I think some of them got something to drink. At this point, they were nearly 72 hours old and very vocal. I thanked the post office folks, put the box of chicks in the car, and drove home.

Ideal Poultry ships chicks in a small cardboard box with plenty of air holes. The box is held closed by a plastic strap, making it easy to open up the sides and peek in. The box is small on purpose; it forces the chicks close together so they keep each other warm. And it probably prevents them from falling over all the time. Normally, Ideal puts a rolled up straw thing in one side of the box, since I always place small orders. This time, it decided to fill the empty space with extra chicks. So when I started pulling them out, I didn’t stop until I had more than 20 of them in their new home.

There were two dead chicks on the bottom of the box; they’d obviously died early in transit because they were very small and their brethren had stomped them into the hay. Normally, I’d feel pretty sad about this, but with so many live chicks to occupy my mind, it didn’t bother me as much as it should have.

Most of the chicks were very active. I went through my ritual: taking each one and dipping its beak into the water to teach it how to drink. It sounds silly, but they really don’t know how to drink until you show them. And that’s kind of what gets them started on their unaided lives. Kind of like slapping a newborn baby on its butt to get it to breathe.

I haven’t gotten an exact count yet, but I think I have 28 chicks. The hatchery may have thought it was doing me a favor by shipping so many extras for free, but I have a definite space problem. The plastic bin I bought to house them for their first 3 to 4 weeks won’t last more than a week now. I’m already scrambling for a large box to move them into. Maybe they thought I had a nice, warm Arizona yard to keep them in. In reality, they’ll live in my garage for at least two months. That’s when they’ll have enough feathers and down to handle the cold winter nights.

They are cute. No doubt about it. Most of them already have feathers growing on the ends of their tiny wings. They’re babies, so they’ll walk around and eat and drink and jump over each other and then suddenly get tired and fall asleep. They’re fun to watch. And when they’re all awake, they make a ton of noise.

As for my current adult flock: their days are numbered. I’ll see Celia again right before Christmas. Although I already gave her her Christmas present, she might be taking three bonus birds home with her that day. Enchiladas? Tamales? Or just roast chicken? If those girls don’t start laying eggs soon, they’ll be the main course on Celia’s table one day soon.

Classic Rock Cuts

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I prepare to host my own radio show.

My friend Keri has been hosting a 4-hour radio show on KBSZ-AM 1250 for the past few years. I admire her dedication. And I think it looks like fun.

So I asked the folks at KBSZ if I could host a one-hour radio show on a weekday night. The show would feature classic rock music, presented with a theme. For example, my first show’s theme will probably be classic rock songs from artists who only had one Top 40 hit. (You may be surprised about some of the artists who make that list — they’re not all one hit wonders!) Pete, who has trouble saying no, said yes.

I start next Wednesday. The show will be live on the air at 8 PM MST (that’s 10 PM EST and 7 PM PST). You can listen in on KBSZ’s steaming audio. Or you can pickup the podcast for the show, which should be available the day after it’s aired. I’ll put a link here when I get the podcast set up.

I’m looking for advertisers for the show. KBSZ has incredibly low advertising rates. I’ve already got my publisher, Peachpit Press, tentatively signed up for 2 one-minute ads per week. Because the show will air live on the Internet and be distributed as a podcast, it’ll have a pretty decent sized audience. If you’re interested in advertising, give KBSZ a call during office hours (8 am to 3 pm) and tell them you want to advertise on Maria’s show.

As usual, your feedback is welcome. Use the Comments link.

January 3, 2009 Update: This is an old post and it had a lot of old, broken links. I removed the bad links. I did the radio show for about 3 months before quitting — once the novelty wore off, I found it impossible to stick with a weekly schedule.

KBSZ was sold in April 2008. The previous owner of the radio station, Pete Peterson, passed away this past Monday. Things change but life goes on.

Shopping in Scottsdale

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Mike and I make a day trip down to Kierland Commons.

It was Sunday morning and Mike was looking for an interesting way to spend the day. We briefly seen the shops at Kierland Commons, just east of the Scottsdale Airport, and he wanted to explore them more fully. (Yes, I have a man who likes to shop.) He was also interested in having a “good lunch” (his words).

I wanted to hit the Organized Living shop on the west side of Scottsdale Airport (right near the loop 101’s Frank Lloyd Wright exit) and the Apple Store down at the Biltmore shopping center (Camelback and 24th Street). I was shopping for a color laser printer, tired of sending small print jobs out and having to wait for the print shop guy to get around to printing them.

So we hopped in Mike’s Honda Accord, which has far more trunk and storage space than my Honda S2000, and drove out of town.

Traffic was light. We got off the Loop 101 at Scottsdale Road less than an hour after leaving the house. We both commented on the development that had been going on over the years. When I was just finishing up my helicopter training in Scottsdale, the entire stretch of Scottsdale Road from where the Loop 101 would be (it didn’t exist there yet) to Bell Road was pretty much empty. The only landmarks were the entrance to the Scottsdale Princess Resort and Chauncey’s Ranch, a really fancy horse facility. Now the same stretch is lined with shopping centers, car dealers, and condos. Chauncy’s Ranch is gone — although it’s still referred to as a check point by pilots flying into Scottsdale Airport — and there’s no empty frontage on Scottsdale Road at all. This is all in a matter of less than five years.

We turned into Kierland Commons, drove down its main street, and were fortunate enough to find a parking spot right in front of one of the shops. The place was bustling with people. Mike’s first order of business was lunch and we quickly found a suitable place: a restaurant called North. The sign said it was “Modern Italian Cuisine” and after a quick glance at the menu, we decided to get a table. There was seating both indoors and outdoors, but we took an inside table. A cold front is moving through the area (again) and neither of us wanted to eat with our jackets on.

Mike ordered an “antipasti of seasonal Italian specialties” and some seared ahi tuna with a salad and I ordered a pizza with figs, prosciutto (an Italian ham), and goat cheese. We shared everything and everything was very good. It’s always great to eat fresh ingredients prepared simply but in interesting combinations.

Once Mike’s stomach (and mine) had been satisfied, we took a walk around the shopping center. It had been designed to resemble a downtown shopping area, with a few streets just wide enough for two-way traffic and diagonal parking on both sides. Shops with various exterior designs lined both sides of the streets. There were tall trees, vine-covered awnings, and a real small town feel. Remarkable, when you think that we were deep in the city of Scottsdale. Although there were a lot of people around and all the parking spots were taken, I couldn’t say it was crowded. Most folks were in the shops and restaurants and in a small parklike area where Santa was waiting to get his picture taken with kids.

The shops were of the designer variety you’d fully expect to find in a place like Scottsdale. I don’t remember many of the shop names — I know little about designer clothes — but some that I do recall include Bebe, Clearwater Creek, Tommy Bahama, Restoration Hardware, Crate and Barrel, and Orvis. We went into very few of the shops, preferring to stroll along the sidewalk and just take in the sights. Mike may be a shopper, but I’m not.

The highlight for Mike was seeing a Bentley Continental GT parked in front of one of the shops. Although I asked him not to drool as he went over to check it out, I’m afraid he might have.

My friends Jim and Judith have been making occasional trips out this way in Jim’s helicopter. Jim parks at the airport and they walk over. It’s not a long walk — maybe 1/4 mile — and although the walk isn’t exactly pleasant, the atmosphere once you get to Kierland Commons certainly is. I have to make a trip for business down to Scottsdale in a few weeks and have saved two seats on the helicopter for anyone interested in joining me for the flight and spending a few hours at Kierland Commons while I take care of business. I’m offering the seats as a special deal through Flying M Air, but if it works out well, I might offer it as a shopping expedition day trip. Although most Wickenburg residents would find the $395 round trip charter price tag a bit tough to swallow, some of the bigger guest ranches in town attract the kind of clientele that would see it as the bargain it really is.

After our walk, we got back into the car and went over to Organized Living. We stopped at the Toyota dealer along the way; I’m thinking about buying a small pickup truck and wanted to check out the Tacomas. Sadly the smallest model that I can add the features I want — 6 cylinder engine, 6-speed manual, tow package, 4×4 off road package — is still a bit larger than I want. We already have one big pickup; I can’t see having two. And I’m accustomed to small vehicles. The sales guy who intercepted us in the lot had to be the worst sales guy I’d ever met. A complete loser who knew less about the trucks and their options than I did. He had no clue how to handle us and quickly retreated back into the building to get help. The sales manager he came out with wasn’t much better.

At Organized Living, we discovered that they’d soon be changing their name to Storables. Okay. The place was in the middle of being reorganized and the item I wanted to buy — a laundry sorter with a clothes rack for hanging finished laundry — wasn’t there. Odd, because I was pretty sure I’d seen it in one of their mailings. We bought something else to do the job and headed out for the Biltmore.

My main goal at the Apple Store was to see the print quality offered by some of the color laser printers I’d been researching. I’m an HP printer person; I’ve owned 2 HP laser printers and both of them continue to work faithfully. Mike has the old one, which is at least 10 years old. I passed it on to him when I realized that my print jobs were just too complex for its limited RAM. That was a LaserJet 4MP. I replaced it with a LaserJet 2100TN, a network printer with 3 paper trays. It continues to work well, but it does make a kind of clanking sound as it spits out each sheet of paper. I think some lubrication in the right places would help. But the printer is 5 years old and would cost more to service than replace. So I’ll continue to use it until it dies.

The idea behind the color laser printer is to be able to produce my own marketing materials for Flying M Air without having to send out small color print jobs. Each page on one of those small jobs costs about $1 at the local print shop and I can’t always get them done as quickly as I’d like. This was beginning to become a nuisance. So I’d get my own color printer and continue to use the old printer for my B&W work. I didn’t want to spend a lot of money. In fact, if I could keep it under $500, I’d be very happy.

Unfortunately, Apple didn’t have a single color laser printer on display at the Apple Store at the Biltmore. They had “all-in-one” devices (fax, scanner, copier, printer) and plenty of photo printers, but no color lasers.

The place was absolutely mobbed, with dozens of people milling about the iPod side of the store and the rest sprinkled around other cool toys. I found a guy to ask about the printers and he confirmed what I’d seen: no color laser printers on display. I asked him some other questions I had about printers. Like can I get a non-network printer if I hook the printer up to a computer and use printer sharing to share it. Yes, was the answer, as long as I left that computer on. How about if the computer was running Mac OS X server? He told me he’d tried it without luck. Server seems to work okay if you use a generic printer driver, but if you try the printer driver that comes with the printer, no luck. That means you can’t access printer-specific features. This confirmed a rumor I had already heard. But it didn’t matter. 99% of the printing I do is from my Dual G5, so I’d just hook up to that.

We left the Apple Store and wandered into Macy’s. Mike was looking for a pair of brown pants. (Ick.) I needed to buy something to wear to Mike’s office Christmas party on Friday. None of my party clothes would fit. I looked at what was available at Macy’s and decided that clothing had gotten just plain ugly. Even the mannequins didn’t look good wearing it. What was wrong with simple clothing with simple lines, the kind of thing that relies on the woman inside them to complete the picture? Not that I’d do a good job completing that picture these days. (I’m feeling quite fat and very ugly.)

Mike, of course, found a pair of slacks and two shirts to buy.

We started on our way home with one more stop to make: a pet store just off I-17 at Happy Valley Road. It’s in a new shopping center that’s probably the closest to Wickenburg without stopping at a traffic light. (How’s that for a weird statistic?) There was a PetCo in there and I went in to buy some feeder fish for a very large carnivorous fish I have in one of my tanks. I wound up with some live plants and other fish for my other tank, too. Meanwhile, Mike had gone into Staples next door. He reported that they had 3 HP color laser printers on display. So after stowing the fish stuff in the car, we went for a look. Oddly enough, they had the same three models I’d been considering. I got a chance to look at them in detail. I was hesitant to buy the one I wanted — a LaserJet 2600n priced at only $319 — because the onboard memory seemed low. But the sales guy, who was extremely helpful and knowledgeable, told me that I had two weeks to try it out and make sure it met my needs. Sold! I bought the printer but passed on the extra consumables ($82 per cartridge and I’d need 4 of them!). This week, I’ll give it a good testing by throwing all kinds of complex documents at it. If it passes this week’s test, I’ll keep it. Otherwise, it’ll go back to Staples and I’ll go back to researching printers.

We rolled into Wickenburg at about 6:30 PM, after spending most of the day shopping down in the valley. It had been good to get out of town and see some new things. And although I’d expected to encounter traffic, congestion, and crowds, there had been none of that. Not bad for three weeks before Christmas.