Simple Living

Hmm...maybe I'm the first to post a pic of a Rolex Explorer I on the Red/Black Hirsch Robby Performance Strap.  The 20mm band fits snugly and does chafe a bit on the middle edge, but otherwise works.  The Red/Black color scheme accents the Explorer I quite nicely. I was curious and pleasantly surprised at how good it looks and feels on the wrist. At times I almost forget I'm wearing a watch.  I'll likely get another Hirsch strap in the Black/Blue color design for the Omega and that'll give me a nice pair of versatile watches.

I bought my 2016 Highlander new and paid $31k.  It’s been a good car and served me well.  Hope to keep it for many more years. Specs - 2016 Highlander V6 LE FWD Engine 3.5L V6 - 2GR-FE HP: 270 @ 6200 Torque: 248 @ 4700 Transmission - 6 speed Performance: 0-60: 6.9 seconds 1/4 Mile: 15.2 @ 89 mph EPA MPG: 19 City / 25 Highway Dimensions: Length: 191.1 inches Wheelbase: 109.8 inches Height: 68.1 inches Width (without mirrors): 75.8 inches Why the Highlander?  The V6 Engine The main reason I wanted this car was the V6 engine.  It’s one of Toyota’s best motors ever created and provides performance, reliability and decent gas mileage.  It’s probably one of the best engines ever made for a car and if they had one available for my 2015 Camry I’d have bought one too. Overall how has it been? So far so good.  After 7 years of ownership other than preventive maintenance, it’s been an excellent car.

To complete my headphone collection I needed a good pair of earbuds and selected the Klipsch R6i Earbuds.  I tried to look for the now discontinued prior model S6i, but couldn't find any for a reasonable price.  Other contenders included the Jaybirds, but I wasn't ready to try bluetooth just yet. The R6i's are quite nice and little touches like the anti-tangling flat cable and in-line volume control make it useful.  This will be for traveling as I want to keep things light. Basic Specs: 6.5mm Drivers 10 ~ 19,000 Hz 110 db/mW 18 Ohms -22 Noise Isolation 3.5mm Plug

Finally did it, purchased a bottle of Laphroaig 10 Year old Scotch Whisky.  I had tried some at a party a few years ago and wanted to get into Islay Single Malts.  The first dram didn't disappoint and I could feel the 'peatiness'.  It's certainly an acquired taste and most of my drinking habits have centered around Speyside or Blends, but I can see Islay's as a natural progression.  It was only my first drink in a while and I'll see how it goes over time.  I do plan on making this a regular staple in my collection and adding more Islay's from Lagavulin, Caol Ila and more.

Building back up my Whisky Collection for 2016.  After being on the fence for a number of years, I am going to go all-in and focus on learning more about what are my preferences in various Scotch Whisky.  Basically, this means I'll be buying more bottles of Whisky... Consumption Rates My overall Whisky consumption has held at around 175mL/week; equivalent to a six-pack of Lite Beer, fairly pedestrian numbers.  This translates to: Month -- 750mL (1 Bottle) Year --  9 L (12 Bottles) Consumption Ratios (Blends vs Single-Malts) First Half 2016 (80 / 20) -- 5 Blended ; 1 Single Malt Second Half 2016 ( 50 / 50) -- 3 Blended ; 3 Single Malt The 80/20 Ratio turned out to be rather boring and left me room for only a single bottle of Single Malt (Glenfiddich 12).  JW Black was pleasant and JW Red acceptable, but drinking the same thing for several months is uninteresting.  I am hopeful a 50/50 Ratio is more palatable and not that much more in cost to add-in additional bottles of Single Malt.

I've always wanted to try a DAC (Digital Audio Converter) and Amplifier for my headphones.  It's difficult at first to pick one and I settled on the Fiio model e10k Olympus 2.  In hindsight I should have gone with a model that's portable and accepts an audio line in...but the e10 proved okay when hooked up to my laptop. And I have plans to build a 'soundbook' with the Netbook. How's it sound? In some ways it improved the sound quality.  Certain frequencies are clearer and I do hear things that were not as noticeable before.  The music sounds more 'forward' if that's what they call it.  It's a bit overwhelming at first, but after a while I kinda like it and getting used to the refined soundstage.  Another thing I noticed was how awful sounding some of my cheaper headphones are with the e10.  I was hoping with increased power they might sound better, not so.  The exception were the Sony ZX100's...not bad. Overall For the price I paid

By luck I was at a thrift shop and saw a pair of Sony MDR-ZX310 for sale.  I scooped them up as I've heard so many positive online reviews that they are great for the price point of $18. Basic Specs: 30mm Drivers 10 ~ 24,000 Hz 1,000 mW -- Max Input Power 98 db/mW 24 Ohms 125g -- Weight 1.2m -- Cable Length I  also own the lower end model ZX100's and can compare the two. Sound Quality The 310's have a wider response range than the 100's and I can both feel and hear it on the bass.  Mid and treble are almost the same to me, but due to the weaker bass on the 100's it feels more pronounced on the Mid and Treble, but with deeper listening the 310's are at least on par with some frequencies coming through more that were not as clear on the 100's.  If you like vocal and mids the 100's might be better. Even with EQ bass reduction the 310's sound tinny and need the full bass to sound decent.  Overall the 310's are tuned for bass

Surprised I never discussed in more detail my pair of Audio Technica ATH-WM77 on-ear headphones.  I got these two years ago from Yodobashi Camera in Shinjuku Tokyo for $40 in Yen.  They are a fun pair of headphones and one of my favorites.  The one downside has been the plastic housing on the left speaker popped out of place and I had to use krazy glue to fix it.  They work just fine, but the left speaker has lost the ability to swivel making it no longer convenient to stash into my backpack. Basic Specs: 38mm Drivers 10 ~ 23,000 Hz 500 mW -- Max Input Power 103 db/mW 36 Ohms 133 g -- Weight 1.0m -- Cable Length

Having second thoughts about taking 70-411 Window Server 2012 Administration in lieu of 70-463 SQL Server 2012 Data warehouse.  I'm not a System Administrator so 70-411 while interesting to study and learn some things about the Server OS is not where I'm going to be spending my time professionally.  It's kinda late in the game to switch, but for longer term value I should study and pass 70-463 and get good at SSIS - SQL Server Integration Services, as I'll be doing lots of ETL.  Gotta think about this.... Yes, 70-463 is the right choice for me! I cracked the book open and wow, the first page sucked me in.  This is by far the most interesting book out of the several I've read by Microsoft so far.  This first page just sold me on 70-463.  They should also call this book SSIS as it appears to be so heavily involved with that topic.  Glad I opened the book, time to get cracking... Initial Thoughts? Book is cool and after some casual research I'll likely try reading

I took the plunge and purchased a Seiko Orange Monster model # SKX781.  It is a very popular model from the Seiko 5 lineup that rivals the equally popular SKX007.  Both are Dive Watches rated for 200 Meter Water Resistance.  Having previously owned an SKX007, I always wanted to try an Orange Monster. There are many reviews on the Orange Monster, this is just my personal notes of why I decided to get one.  It was surprisingly a fairly difficult decision for me as I already own more expensive automatic watches and got rid of several Seiko 5 watches over the years as I wanted to simplify my collection, but in the end I needed something to fill that niche of an inexpensive automatic beater.  Quartz, while accurate and reliable just didn't feel the same as a true automatic mechanical watch. Enter the Seiko SKX781... 20mm Lug Width What drew me to the Seiko SKX781 was the 20mm lug width.  This helps me standardize and keep simple my collection of watch bands across all my wa

Exam prep.  Reviewing my notes and taking practice questions on the CD.  Starbucks Green Tea Frap.

The battery died in the Seiko SSB003.  Popped it open to see what battery it needs and replaced it.  It needed an SR936SW battery. Kinda cool looking at the 6T63A movement.  Nothing fancy, but interesting all the same.  Standard screwback. The battery is locked into place by a thin metal strip running across it.  You can gently unlock it from pushing slightly on the part of the metal bar nearest the edge of the case.

On April 2016 Starbucks will make another change to their Gold Card program.  I've been a Gold Card member since 2010 and experienced all the changes since.  For the most part I don't really care what they do as I'm there to buy coffee or a snack.  It was nice to get 'some' discount by way of a free item every so often, but in reality you can save money by simply shopping elsewhere.  7-Eleven and McDonald's have excellent coffee for a lower price and often that's all I want...a plain cup of hot coffee black.  This new change was something I anticipated they would eventually do and in some ways is 'better' as it makes the program more exclusive.  You now must spend at least $150 per year to maintain Gold status.  Now it all depends on what they will offer to members who spend that much as they raised the cost of earning a free item to $62.50 when you could easily earn one under the old system of 12 stars by spending about $30 ($2.50 X 12).  For me?  I

[Study Only ; Cancelled Exam] I'm taking the optional exam 70-411 Administering Window Server 2012 in lieu of 70-463 Data Warehouses, WS 12 is more relevant and useful to me.  I've always wanted to learn more of the nuances and basics of the Window Server Platform.  Here's my chance and have it count for the MCSA SQL Server 2012 certificate.  If all goes well, I may consider taking 70-410 and qualify for the dual MCSA Window Server 2012 along with MCSA SQL Server 2012.  But no promises. Study Plan 2/6 - Chapter 1,2,3 2/7 - Chapter 4 2/10 - Ch 5 2/16 - Ch 6 2/17 - Ch 7 2/18 - Ch 8 2/19 - Ch 9 2/24 - Ch 10 HOLD - Until I pass 70-462 Cancelled.   Going to study 70-463 instead, makes more sense for my career.  Was a good read though. 2/7/16 Omega and Grado keeping me company as I begin Chapter 5... 2/10/16 I'm a bit behind and haven't gone past 5.  I'll play catch up tomorrow and try to break into 6 and 7.  That would put be back on track.  Learning some great new s