I spoke to soon

It snowed this morning. I think the accumulation of less than an inch streak continues.

"As of this past Sunday, it had been 278 days since an inch of fallen snow had been recorded at Syracuse Hancock Airport by the National Weather Service, breaking the old record of 276 days, set in 1946. The snowless streak in Syracuse, which is usually the snowiest major city in the nation, reached the equivalent of nine months and five days, or about 76 percent of a calendar year." (from the Post Standard)

That puts us at 280 days with less than an inch of accumulation.

No Snow Yet

I'm pretty sure that we broke a record here in Syracuse. November is coming to a close and we still have not had any snow. No complaints from me. It is a bit colder tonight and the rain on the car has turned to ice. I'm guessing it would be a safe bet to predict snow in December.

Compaq Laptop Screen Replacement

Thanks to Jenn, I had an opportunity to try my hand at replacing a laptop screen. She came to me just over a week ago and let me know that her laptop, on the way from her table, to her bed, came in contact with the floor, aggressively. Not her exact words but close.

I've always heard that replacing the screen is as costly as buying a new laptop. Though the screen was expensive, it was not nearly as expensive as I imagined and it was a relatively easy project.

I found a brand new laptop screen on eBay for about $100. It would have been nice to find a how-to video on YouTube specific to the Compaq CQ50-215NR which is the model we own but I didn't. I did find one for a Dell. Not exactly the same (the Dell looked easier) but close enough.

How-To Video here.

Watching the video gave me the courage to dive in. On a Compaq, you need to remove the hinges. To do this, remove the battery. There are a couple of screws that hold the keyboard in. You remove these screws and pop the keyboard off. This gives you access to the hinges. From here on, it's similar to the video. You remove two more screws and pop the bezel off. Replace the screen and put it all back together.

I held my breath as I pushed the power button and unlike most projects, the laptop screen came to life perfectly. Jenn's happy and I can now say that I know how to replace a laptop screen.

Quick Animoto for Rob and Sara's Wedding

Short yet I hope you enjoy! Sara, keep on smiling!

Congratulations Sara and Rob!!!

Fantastic weather for an outdoor wedding. We wish Rob and Sara all the best as they enjoy each others company full time!

I just finished sorting through the pictures and you can get to them on-line at Rob and Sara's Wedding by clicking here. You can also get to them by clicking on the flickr link on the right and looking for the Wedding Album. I'll be putting the pictures on a CD (might need to use a DVD) for everyone soon.

Prom Night

Jenn and her friends rode a Limo to the West Genesee Prom. Renee, our in house hair stylist, did the hair and make up. The weather was beautiful and it should be a fun night. The full set of pictures are already up on Flickr.

Jenn Hits the Road

As Jennifer's birthday approached, she made it clear that she was going to get her learner's permit as soon as she could. Well she kept her word. The day she turned 16, she went to DMV, took and passed her test and walked away with her Learner's Permit. She sent me a text to let me know and asked if I could take her out on the road when I got home from work.

On her birthday, Jenn sat behind the wheel of our van and began the process of learning how to drive. It was a little tougher than she thought it would be (ask her about the boulders in the driveway) but she did pretty good. She's got several hours under her belt and she's learning quickly. At this pace, she'll have her license in no time.