VoIP

Skype is a wonderful service! Cousin in Toronto convinced me to sign on and it allows us to talk using voip at no charge. Since my first talk, I've also found a longtime friend online, who lives in Saipan. She also skypes to keep in touch with her daughter, who lives in Japan; and now we skype, too. It's a trip to consider the time difference: I called her on Memorial Day, and it was already Tuesday in Saipan.

Now I've got a new toy: Magic Jack. We needed to replace our telephone, so I went shopping at Radio Shack. Got the phone, and a 20% discount would apply if I purchased the Magic Jack. So, what the hey! I like gadgets, and this one looked useful. It's a portable phone jack that you plug into any USB port on your computer or laptop, and the phone cord that normally would go from your phone to your wall jack plugs into the other end. This allows you to use your phone handset to make and receive VoIP calls. Free in the US and Canada. To land lines or cell phones. Unlimited minutes. For $19.95 per YEAR! And the purchase price includes the first year of service.

It installs its software that manages the calls, your contacts, and your voicemail; you get a new phone number that can be forwarded; if you are calling from your home address, it even works for emergency 911 calls.

I bought it because when Husband travels out of the country, our cell phone bill skyrockets due to international roaming fees. With his Magic Jack, he can make free calls home. The difference between Magic Jack and Skype is that with Skype, the calls are only free to another Skype user who happens to be online at the same time; if you call a land line, there is a fee. With Magic Jack, calls to a land line are free, and the person you're calling need not be online. Also, if you have a cordless phone, you don't need to be tethered to the computer! Walk around! It's wild!

No Excuses!

I entered myself and Marty in the 5th annual Buzz Oates "No Excuses 5k" run/walk several weeks ago, because it is held in beautiful Land Park and winds around ponds, old houses and the golf course under stately shade trees. Then Marty got the flu, and a week later I got a cold. My hip started to hurt and I stopped walking for a while.

Although neither of us is 100% recovered, we picked up our race packets on Saturday, which included a T-shirt with all the excuses pre-printed on the back: check all that apply!

Today was race day. Marty and I found a parking spot along one of the side streets, and took our places near the end of the pack - about 1,000 strong. At the sound of the horn, we were off! We finished the 5k in under an hour, but I don't know yet what my time was - we left fairly quickly afterward, so I'll have to check online later.


And my hip was fine, and Marty didn't cough, even when we passed the horse. And we were not the last to finish - what more could I ask?

Mother's Day

I may be on to something! If you've ever had a recalcitrant teen refuse to do household maintenance just because you said it was needed, you will appreciate this.

Both Husband and Daughter asked what I wanted for Mother's Day, and I said, "ten bags of stuff we can take to Goodwill." I figured it would be easy to fill three grocery bags each and I already had a full bag standing by the door. So - Husband had actually done some possession-weeding a couple weeks ago, but he filled one bag. I went through my closet and a storage bin of clothes and packed three bags full of stuff I haven't worn in a couple of years - and am never likely to wear, tell the truth. Daughter filled up two trash bags with clothes, and a box with stuffed animals. We took it all to Goodwill yesterday, and it felt GOOD!

Don't see much of a dent in the amount of stuff crammed into the apartment, but - get this - Daughter actually picked everything up off her floor, and vacuumed under her bed. There's space to walk, space for clothes in the closet, and space for the laundry basket. Amazing! Who knew a request to help someone else could get her to clean her room! I'll have to remember that trick when it gets to be my birthday in a couple of months.

Walking Around Sacramento

I picked up a little book in Doubleday a few weeks ago that details hikes for families around the Sacramento area. So for the last two Sundays, Marty and I have begun exploring some of the trails.

Two weeks ago, we went to Beek's Byte in the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area and enjoyed the dirt trail around the end of the lake. Last weekend, we revisited Ancil Hoffman park. We used to take the kids there sometimes, for events sponsored by the Effie Yeaw Nature Center. This time we saw wild turkeys, a deer, ducks and a kayaker. There are lots more hikes, of varying lengths and difficulty, and we plan to explore them all over the summer, as much as we can. This weekend it's raining, so we'll probably hunker down with split pea soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.