Tag Archives: fat

Land of the Sun Endurance Ride

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I mark horse butts and time in the riders.

Yesterday was the Wickenburg Horsemen’s Association’s annual Land of the Sun Endurance Ride. And, for the fourth year in a row, I was one of about 80 volunteers enlisted to help out and make the event run smoothly.

For those of you who don’t know what an endurance ride is, our endurance ride is a 25- or 50-mile horseback ride over trails in the Wickenburg area. Endurance riders — people who actually like to cover that many miles on horseback — come from all over the southwest to participate.

The trails are created or maintained and then marked with ribbons by volunteers organized by Robin Ollendick and Nancy Halsey, who manage the whole thing. There are two loops, each of which are 25 miles long. The 25-milers do one loop and the 50-milers do both. There are vet checks, water stops, and check points along the way. There’s food and beverages for riders and horses at the vet checks and riders are required to spend a certain minimum amount of time at each one to ensure the health and well-being of their horses. There are drag riders who follow the last group out and remove the ribbons.

It’s a big deal and a great western event. This year, we started out with 148 riders. A few were pulled early on or on the trail for various reasons — for example, a problem with a horses’s gait or a horse “tying up” — but the vast majority finished their courses.

As a volunteer, I had three official jobs.

The first, on Friday, was to use “paint sticks” to mark numbers on horse butts. Each horse had a number and the number had to be visible by the folks at the check points so each rider could be tracked through the course. We used yellow, pink, or green markers to put the numbers on. The markers are similar to Cray-pas — soft crayon-like markers I used as a kid. But they’re fat — at least an inch and a quarter in diameter — and they’re a pain in the butt (no pun intended) to get off your skin and out from under your nails.

My second job was to make the vegetarian bean soup I make every year for the lunch stop. A lot of the riders are vegetarians and it seems that most other people put some kind of meat in their soups or chilis. I make it without any meat at all. The flavor comes from the root vegetables I include — onions, carrots, turnips, parsnips — as well as celery and leeks. I got it cooking in our camper, which we parked at the rodeo grounds (It’s for sale and we wanted to show it off to potential buyers.), on Saturday and it was ready just in time for lunch.

My third job was to work with Janet, timing in the riders. The first 50-milers, who had left at about 7:00 AM (before dawn!), started showing up at 9:45 AM. That’s 25 miles in 2 hours and 45 minutes. On horseback. Janet wrote down numbers and times on a clipboard while I handed out check in slips with numbers and times. The 50-milers were required to wait for a hour after their horses “pulsed down” before leaving on their second loop. The 25 milers didn’t get check in slips, but they did get champagne. By 1:30, the 50-milers were coming back from their second loop. Janet and I were relieved at 2 PM, when all the excitement was pretty much over.

I didn’t take any pictures yesterday. I was too busy with my jobs. But if Janet sends photos of the winners, I’ll insert them here.

The big surprise: the winner for the 25-milers was a rider on a mule!

A Trip to Macworld Expo in San Francisco

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I go to Macworld Expo, see new stuff, party with the Peachpitters, and still manage to find my hotel.

TehatchapiI took an America West — or is that US Airways? — flight from Phoenix to San Francisco on Thursday morning. The flight departed at around 8:15 AM and took off into the east into clear skies. The plane banked to the right until it was heading west, following I-10. I saw familiar sights out my window for most of the flight: Wickenburg, Harquahala Mountain, Salome, Bouse, the Colorado River, the road that runs past Rice and eventually past the north end of Joshua Tree National Park, the airport at Twentynine Palms, Big Bear Lake, Apple Valley, Edwards Air Force Base, and Rosamond. The jet took a route just south of the one I usually take when flying the helicopter from Wickenburg to California’s Central Valley, but because we were cruising at about 30,000 feet, I could see so much more. The lake at Rosamond seemed huge, the windmills on the Tehatchapi’s southern slopes were clearly visible. The pass was socked in on both sides with clouds, but the town of Tehatchapi, on top of the mountain, was perfectly clear (see photo). The central valley was completely filled with low clouds — so low that I don’t think general aviation flight would be possible. It reminded me of my scud-running adventure from last spring’s Georgetown, CA to Wickenburg, AZ flight. The tops of the clouds had a odd pattern to them, like waves far out on the ocean.

I spent the flight catching up with podcasts. Listening, that is — I’ve fallen far behind recording them. I listened to NPR’s story of the day episodes stretching back into mid December. When I was finished with those, I started on Slate Magazine podcasts. I did the crossword puzzle in the airplane magazine and attempted to take some notes for a presentation I needed to do later in the day. Then we started our approach to San Francisco and the mountains along the coast poked up their slopes through the clouds below us. There was green grass on some of the southern slopes; in a month or two, all the hills would be a rich green color there. But I seldom get to the California coast in the spring, so I’m accustomed to seeing the grass when it’s all dried out, making the hills look golden in the California sun.

The plane got to the gate at 9 AM local time. I had just one bag — a small backpack that held my PowerBook, some books I planned to give away at the end of my presentation, and clothes for the overnight stay and next day — so I didn’t have to go through the baggage claim ordeal. The bag was heavy, though, and it only seemed to get heavier as I made my way from the gate to the BART station.

BART, in case you don’t know, stands for Bay Area Rapid Transit. I used to take a cab from the airport to Moscone Hall for the Macworld Show, but I’d heard that BART went from the airport into the city and figured I’d give it a try. It was a relatively pleasant trip in a train car that reminded me more of a Long Island Railroad electrified train car than a New York City Subway car. The seats had upholstery and I don’t think they were quite as clean as they should have been. That gave the car a not-so-nice smell. But it wasn’t bad and I got used to it. I listened to my iPod and looked at the window when the train was above ground. It took about 30 minutes to get to what I thought was my stop: Montgomery Street. In reality, I should have gotten out one stop earlier, at Powell.

I came up from underground, got my bearings, realized I’d erred about the train stop, and started walking. San Francisco reminds me a bit of New York in that it has that “old city” feel. Lots of old buildings, many of which are pretty tall, some narrow streets, noisy traffic, homeless people on the sidewalks. The weather was pleasant and I was soon warming up inside my jacket.

My friend Ray called on my cell phone with a lead on a helicopter job for a construction company working along the Mexican border. I stopped and took notes on a receipt, wondering if I could be fortunate enough to get the job.

Advertising ScootersIt was less than a mile to Moscone and when I got there, I found the place relatively quiet. It was just after 10 AM and most attendees had already gone into the exhibit hall. I used a free pass to go through the registration process and get a badge, then crossed the street and went into the hall. I saw some scooters pulling advertising trailers — an Apple advertising gig, I knew. (I later got a photo of the scooters parked alongside the street.) My first order of business was to dump my jacket and the heavy bag at the Peachpit Press booth. It took me a while to find it, which was quite embarrassing because I actually walked right by it twice. They said it was near the Apple booth and they weren’t kidding. It was right inside one of the doorways to the exhibit hall, adjacent to the Apple booth.

I ran into a few people I knew, including Connie Jeung-Mills, the production person who’d worked on many of my books. I chatted with her while I stuffed my belongings under a table skirt in the booth, reserving an old Adobe canvas bag and note pad to carry while I walked the floor. I couldn’t believe the number of books in the booth. Most of the titles were about graphics and Web publishing, but I also the books I’ve written for them: Tiger, QuickBooks, and the little Visual QuickProject Guides for Word and Excel.

iPod-compatible carsI walked the floor. There was a lot to see, but not nearly as much as in the “old days,” when the show took up both sides of Moscone’s hall. I’ve never seen so many iPod accessories in my life. I think one out of every ten booths was peddling something for an iPod. Talk about trying to cash in on a craze. There were even iPod-compatible cars on display (see photo).

By 2:30, I was ready for a rest. I also needed to create my presentation, which was scheduled for 4 PM. I’m a last-minute person — I always have been — so I left the hall and found a seat on one of the balconies overlooking the hall entrance. It was nice and bright and airy up there and only about half the seats were occupied. Some people chatting, some people using laptops, other people eating or reading. I was very surprised to find that my PowerBook immediately connected to a wireless network when I opened it up. I was able to surf the net and check my e-mail.

I jotted down some notes about topics I thought my audience would be interested in. Mostly “cool features” stuff taken from my soon-to-be-published Informit.com article titled “Five Funky Finder Features.” (They may change the title, so if you go looking for it online, keep that in mind.)

While I worked, a man sitting nearby began complaining about how few seats were available. Two of the four balconies were blocked off, cutting the amount of available seats in half. But that didn’t seem to matter, since there were still empty seats to be had. One woman sitting nearby made the fatal error of acknowledging him. This resulted in him continuing his complaints. Another woman finally said to him, “I’m trying to enjoy my lunch and you’re ruining it.” He kept up for another minute or so before the woman, who was eating some kind of salad out of a Tupperware container, said, “No, I really mean it. Your complaints are ruining my lunch.” He seemed to get it then and he shut up. A while later, he closed up his iBook and went away. The whole exchange had been pretty funny. I was glad the woman had spoken up, though. He’d been quite a whiner and it was good when he finally shut up.

I did my presentation and it went well. I covered it in another blog entry.

Afterward, I met with Nancy and Cliff, two of my editors, for drinks and a bite to eat before the Peachpit Party. We wound up at an ethnic restaurant about two blocks away. Don’t ask me what kind of ethnic restaurant — I really don’t know. We ordered three different tappas dishes and a round of drinks. We talked business for a while — stuff I don’t want to cover here. Cliff left to go to an Apple party. Nancy and I finished our drinks and headed over to the Peachpit party.

Peachpit PartyI saw a bunch of Peachpit authors and editors and drank exactly one vodka martini more than I should have. The problem was, I still hadn’t checked into my hotel and I wasn’t exactly sure where it was. Or what it was called. Although I didn’t feel drunk after the third martini, I knew it was time to stop so I switched to water. Good thing I did. They must have used delayed reaction vodka in those drinks because I didn’t start feeling drunk until I was halfway done with my water. Still, I never got too drunk to realize that there were lots of people worse off than I was. Kim was probably the worst. It was her last day of work for Peachpit and she was partying a bit heartier than she should have.

I dug out the info for my hotel around 11:30, realized it was only about a block away from where Tom and Dori were staying, and walked with them. The walk took us down Market Street, which was surprisingly active with normal people (and a few weirdos) at that time of night. When we went our separate ways at Fourth Street, I felt safe enough to continue that last long block on my own. But it was good to get to my hotel and check in. I think the guys at the desk suspected that I wasn’t exactly sober, but they didn’t comment. I’m sure they’ve seen worse. And I wasn’t too drunk to realize that the guy had forgotten to give back my credit card with my room key.

I stayed at the Hotel Milano on Fifth Street. It’s an old hotel that has been fixed up. My seventh floor room had two windows that looked out across a narrow ventilation shaft to the two windows of a room in the next hallway. The room was big with a small television at one end and the king-sized bed at the other. I got undressed and into bed and watched a Seinfeld rerun for a while before turning off the television and going to sleep.

The only thing I’d forgotten to do was to check and adjust the thermostat. I was cold enough all night to sleep poorly but not cold enough to get up and do something about it. I hate that.

I woke at 5:30 AM local time. (I hate that, too.) I watched some Weather Channel and started work on this bLog entry before showering, getting dressed, and going out for breakfast. I wound up at the Marriott a few blocks away. I had a nice breakfast from the buffet, then walked back to my hotel and wasted more time on my computer. The show didn’t open until 10 AM and there was no reason to rush.

I packed and checked out at 9:30 AM. My bag was heavy, despite the fact that I’d given away the five books I’d brought with me from Arizona and I hadn’t bought anything else. I did have some product literature on board, but not enough to take the weight of five books.

At Moscone, I took a seat on one of the balconies to check my e-mail and my Web sites. The sites had been down the day before because of a computer glitch, but they were back online that morning. At 10 AM, I was back on the show floor, stashing my bag under a table at the Peachpit booth.

I bought a SightFlex stand for my iSight camera. Heavy.

I called America West and asked about an earlier flight. It was fully booked.

The Apple BoothI bothered an Apple booth guy for a demo of iWeb. It’s a cool little software package and I hope Peachpit lets me write a book about it. The guy who gave the demo was a software engineer and had written Pages, Apple’s word processing program. (I don’t know why they didn’t have him demo that.) I told him I used Word and had been using it for years. He told me that if I tried Pages, I’d switch. So I’ll try it again next week and see how I do with it. Word really is overkill sometimes. But, at the same time, I’m not too thrilled with the idea of software that works more like a page layout program than a word processor without giving you the control over page elements. If I recall, that was my main gripe about Pages.

The Apple BoothThe Apple Booth, by the way, was enormous. I think it gets bigger every year. There’s always a huge theater area (see photo) and this year there were 40-foot high “posters” of the new MacBook Pro (terrible name!) laptop and Intel processor iMac. I felt like a Lilliputian as I walked around the booth.

I wandered around the hall some more, killing time.

I ran into Sandee Cohen, Ted Landau, and Tonya Engst at the Peachpit booth and spent some time chatting with each of them. Then I grabbed my bag and made my exit. It was 11:30. I figured I’d stop by the Apple store before grabbing a bite to eat.

I dropped off my bag at a hotel along the way, checking it with a bellman. It felt good to get that damn thing off my back.

After looking around the Apple Store, I spent about an hour in Cody’s, a very nice bookstore near Market Street, not far from Virgin and the Apple Store. They were expecting President Carter as a speaker later in the day and the audience seats were already starting to fill with people who had nothing better to do with their time than spend the day sitting in a folding chair in the basement of a building, surrounded by books.

I walked up to Union Square, passing a handful of panhandlers and more than a handful of tourists. The cable car runs down Powell Street there and there are always a lot of tourists around. The area itself reminds me of lower Broadway in New York, with lots of discount luggage stores and shops that sell t-shirts and other tourist favorites. Kind of sleezy without being sleezy enough to scare people away.

Then I made my way to the Nikko, thinking about sushi for lunch. I was just about to go into the Japanese restaurant there when I noticed a Chinese dim sum restaurant across the street. I went there instead and had a very good lunch.

By that time, I’d had enough of San Francisco and was ready to head out to the airport. You know, I’ve been to San Francisco dozens of times and, unless you have a lot of time on your hands and comfortable walking shoes on your feet, it isn’t such a great place. I had neither and was more interested in finding a comfortable place to wait for my flight home than shopping or even walking around the city.

I retrieved my bag, gave the bellman a tip, and descended into the BART station. A while later, I was on a train bound for Daly City. I changed trains and got on another one for the airport. I listened to podcasts the entire time: Slate magazine and, when I was finished with those, Slate Explainer. The usual at the airport: get a boarding pass, go through security, find the gate, settle into a seat. I found a seat by an electric outlet and used it to charge up my PowerBook. For some reason, I expected to use it on the plane.

The plane was completely booked. Overbooked, in fact. They offered $400 worth of travel for volunteers, but I wasn’t interested. There was a woman in my seat when I boarded and, since it was my seat and not hers, she gave it up. When all the seats were filled, they closed the doors and we got underway.

I was asleep within ten minutes of departure.

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.)

A Ride in the Desert

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We spend three hours on horseback, enjoying perfect weather.

Mike and I have two quarter horses. Jake, a retired ranch horse, is now about 24 years old and is starting to show his age. He’s sorrel (that’s brown) with some white on his feet. He’s also swayback — that means that the place you put his saddle is way lower than it should be on a normal horse —  and has very high withers. Mike bought a special saddle pad for him and then had his saddle custom made to fit the horse. I got Jake for a good price and I think I know why. He’s an alpha male and likes to boss around the other horses he lives with. He’ll bite them and chase them and generally annoy them. That must have really been a nuisance for his previous owners, so they sold him off. But he’s an excellent horse, serious about work, and can be ridden by almost anyone at all. As far as I’m concerned, he was a bargain.

Cherokee, is another story. Cherokee’s main problem is that he’s beautiful. He’s a paint horse, brown and white, and his face is just so pretty, with big gentle eyes and a forelock that’s just the right length. He was 11 when I bought him six or so years ago, and he’d already had at least three previous owners. They evidently spoiled the hell out of him because when I got him, he was lazy, poorly trained, and extremely spooky. That horse taught me more about staying in the saddle during a Cherokee-style rodeo than any other horse I’ve ridden (or fallen off of). To add insult to injury, he cost more than I should have paid. But like his previous owners, I was suckered in by his good looks.

Jake and Cherokee have completely opposite personalities. Jake was always very standoffish — he didn’t really want anything to do with people on his time off. His definition of time off was any time there wasn’t a lead rope or saddle on him. Cherokee is incredibly friendly and curious and loves to be petted. When Jake is ready for work, he works. He’ll do anything you tell him to. When Cherokee is saddled up and ready for work, he’ll do everything he can to get out of doing it. While they both like to be fed treats, Cherokee will actually beg for them. At least that’s what it looks like to me. And if you’ve been reading these blogs for a while, you’ve probably seen the photo of him eating dropped bird food out of the bottom of Alex’s cage.

Cherokee is a big eater and it shows. He’s fat. Jake’s thin. Now if you recall what I said about Jake being the alpha male and consider that they both share the same space, you might wonder how it is that Jake can’t scare Cherokee away from the food. It isn’t like he doesn’t try. He puts his ears back (a horse’s way of saying “f*ck off”) and chases Cherokee. He even bites Cherokee once in a while, putting three or four rows of parallel teeth marks on that beautiful coat. But Cherokee is accustomed to his place at the bottom of the pecking order and is very stubborn. He also eats very fast. So as Jake ages and seems to get thinner and thinner, we’ve taken to separating them at dinner time and overnight, giving Jake more food than he can eat and plenty of time to eat it. Cherokee, of course, doesn’t like this, and after he gobbles up his food, spends the rest of the night pacing around outside the gate to Jake’s enclosure. Over the years, they’ve both changed a bit. Jake is now more friendly. Although his previous owners probably hit him in the face (he was very hand shy when we first got him), he now lets us pet him, even around his head. Cherokee has calmed down and isn’t afraid of rabbits anymore, so I haven’t had any rodeo practice lately. He’s also been trained to walk when I tell him to — without the use of a riding crop! — and to let me position him so I can open and close gates while on horseback. And a few years back, they both posed for a Christmas photo, wearing antlers on their heads.

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Christmas Horses

Anyway, yesterday Mike and I went for a long horseback ride out in the desert. The horses seemed very pleased about going. Of course, when we got to the top of the hill, Cherokee thought we were going to Uncle Pete’s house. That’s where they stay while we’re away and I think he spoils them. When he realized we were turning left instead of right, heading down the trail instead of down the road, he did some Cherokee dancing. In the end, he just followed Jake, like I knew he would.

We live on the edge of town, about two lots from state land. So we normally saddle up and ride out from our house. We have two choices for a ride in the desert: turn down Cemetery Wash, which runs through our property, and take that or any of the trails that go into it or ride up the easement road from our house just past our neighbor’s house on 328th Avenue to a trail that goes right into the state land. We usually follow the second route, since there are far more trails closer to our house when we go that way. That’s also the same trails that the wranglers at Rancho de los Caballeros use for rides, so most of the trails are well worn in — perhaps too worn in in some cases — and easy to follow.

Jack the Dog came with us, of course. Jack likes to go horseback riding. He doesn’t ride a horse. He just runs along on the trail in front of us, chasing rabbits and birds. We realized that he liked horseback riding more than us when we sent two of our friends out for a ride on our horses and he went with them instead of coming back up to the house with us.

We went through the gate in the fence that separates state land from private property. The fence is there more to keep cattle out of people’s back yards than to prevent people from coming in or out of the state land. It also helps keep quads off the horse trails, although it doesn’t help enough. Every once in a while, a couple of quads will get in there and tear up the narrow trails with their wide wheels. There are so many places the quad riders can ride in town — hell, the hills are just criss-crossed with old mining roads and surrounded by sandy washes. Why do they insist on ruining the horse trails and going through people’s private property?We took the “golf course trail” west along the edge of the state land to Los Cab’s golf course, then we turned south to go around Los Cab’s property. We passed through another gate and followed a trail we’d followed a hundred times toward the west again. Spotting a new trail, we took that toward the east, climbing a small ridge that offered nice views of Los Cab. Then back down onto familiar trails, heading west again.

We spent three hours mixing old trails that we knew well with new trails. More than once, we were on trails I’d never been on before. And we wound up going a lot further southwest than we thought we were. I won’t say we were lost — that’s too strong a word — but at one point we were definitely not where we thought we were.

The ride was wonderful. Cherokee had settled down into a good pace and wasn’t the least bit jumpy. Jack chased rabbits and even a few deer. The temperature was perfect: warm enough that a long-sleeved shirt was fine without a jacket. There was some wind on the hills, but the air was quite still near the ground. We found one trail that took us high up onto a mountain, with incredible views of the town far below us, to the northeast. And we didn’t pass another soul.

It was the first time I’d been out for a good, long ride in a while. I’ve been so busy lately with work on my books, building up the helicopter business, and doing flights that I just haven’t had time to ride. And I seem too good at making excuses: it’s too hot, too cold, too windy, too early, too late. Sheesh. I’m an excuse machine when it comes to riding. I think that the truth of the matter is that I’m just too lazy to saddle up. But the reality is that it really isn’t that much work and it’s worth every minute once you get out into the desert on a nice trail.

I’d like to find a riding partner here in town who’d be willing to ride one day a week for about 2 hours. Sometime around noon or early afternoon. But it seems that few of the new people coming into town have horses and many of the ones who do prefer riding with big groups, so they can show off their riding clothes, saddles, and horse’s grooming. I like to ride in small groups, with people who don’t fuss about the terrain being too steep or rocky, with people who know how to control their horses, with people who have enough sense to wear the right clothes and bring enough water for the ride.

Anyway, there are two things about yesterday’s ride that I regret: 1) I didn’t bring my camera. How stupid is that? There were lots of photo ops and I think this entry would have been a lot more interesting with photos. 2) I didn’t bring my GPS. A few years back, I’d started a trail mapping project. Now I’m determined to finish it. And with 3 hours worth of riding yesterday, I could have mapped a lot of trails.

Anyone out there want to go riding on Wednesday afternoons? Get in touch. Experienced riders only, please. And don’t worry; I have a spare horse if you need one.

ING

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Real online banking.

One of the things a Robinson helicopter owner has to consider is the big bill that comes after 2200 hours or 12 years of flight (whichever comes first). Robinson made helicopter ownership and maintenance easy by having most limited-life parts end their lives at the same time. When that time comes, the entire helicopter goes in to the factory or an authorized overhaul center for a complete overhaul. When it emerges, it’s like a brand new helicopter.

The only drawback is that this overhaul currently costs $184,000 for a Robinson R44, which is what I own. And that amount goes up by a few thousand dollars every year.

So although my normal maintenance throughout the year is quite low (for a helicopter, anyway), I have to remember that big bill. Every hour I fly, I put aside about $85 in a “reserve” account. Right now, that’s a money market account at my local bank.

The helicopter currently has about 184 hours on its Hobbs meter. Do the math and you’ll see that I already have a pretty good chunk set aside.

The goal, of course, is to keep building up the balance in this account so when the big bill comes along, the money’s there to cover it. Lots of people go the other route — they take out a loan to refinance when the big bill comes. But I hate debt and would rather save up and be prepared.

The problem is that it’s very tempting to spend that money when it’s just sitting around, doing nothing. Especially when it’s only earning 1.25% a year. I was thinking of rolling it into CDs, which are less liquid than a money market account that comes with checks. But the rates are equally dismal at my local bank.

In New Jersey the other day, I got into a conversation about this with Mike’s ex-roommate, Greg. He suggested ING, an online bank. I checked it out last night and learned that I can get 3.5% on a savings account and 4.1% to 4.85% (depending on term) for a CD. Holy cow!

ING can offer such good rates because they have low overhead. They don’t have branches, they don’t offer checking accounts. They have very few banking products. Everything is simple and to the point. Even their Web site is simple.

The last time I had a CD was when my grandfather passed away and my little inheritance — about $15,000 — was tucked away in a CD until I turned 25. My father was the executor of the will and he put the money in a 6 month CD. At the time, inflation was running rampant and CD rates were up around 18%. My father thought the rates would keep going up, so he wanted the money to roll over at a higher rate. But the bottom dropped out and rates descended from the stratosphere. Disappointing, but not a big deal, because I wound up putting most of the money toward the down payment on my first house. But every time I think of CDs, I think about those rates in the late 70s. Today’s rates look pretty bad in comparison.

But 3.5% on a savings account is way better than the .5% my bank offers for savings or the 1.25% I’m getting on my “risky” money market. So last night I opened a savings account for my personal money at ING.

It’s an interesting process. You fill out an online form that asks for the usual information. You also provide information about your checking account, which is linked to your ING savings. ING makes two tiny deposits into your checking account and you tell ING how much those deposits were for. This is so ING can confirm that this is indeed your account. You can then initiate transfers between your ING and checking accounts via ING’s Web site or telephone. There are no fees for your ING account and no minimum balance requirements. Transfers probably take 24-48 hours, so there is a bit of a lag. But if you have a relatively large sum of money, it’s nice to have it sitting someplace where it’ll earn a decent return.

My personal savings fluctuate wildly. Most of my income comes in quarterly, so at the beginning of a quarter, I’ll have a nice, healthy bank balance but, by the end of the quarter, I may be scratching around for loose change. The ING account will work out nicely.

I’ll create a savings account and a CD account for my helicopter overhaul reserve. The CD will be short term — probably six months — and every time it’s ready to roll over, I’ll add a little to it. That’ll keep it intact and growing over the next 11 years or 2016 hours (whichever comes first).

Anyway, if you have a bit of money stashed away and you’d like an FDIC-insured way to earn a decent return on it, you should definitely check out ING.