Thank you for calling Mark’s home office, this is AI speaking, how can Mark help you? When I started my job at HealthEquity, Inc., they set me up with the full hardware buffet: a laptop, two HUGE monitors, a docking station, a wired keyboard, wired mouse, and a wired Bluetooth headset (which, yes, makes no sense, but…
Tag: The Dad Speaks
Minnesota Driving
These are my words, but I filtered them through ChatGPT. Moving out-of-state has been a real adventure. The biggest downside? I have no idea where anything is. I rely on GPS like it’s my long-lost twin who finally decided to help with directions. Even on my morning walks—yes, walks—if I stray from the designated trail and…
1,200 Miles
I drove from San Antonio, TX on Thursday, June 5th and arrived in Big Lake, MN on Saturday, June 7th. I stopped several times for gas, food, and bathroom, and stayed two nights in a hotel; one in Ardmore, OK and the other in Ottawa, KS. For most of the drive, I was able to…
Little Boxes
Little boxes, medium boxes, large boxes, wardrobe boxes, and plastic bins of all size encompass our house. They are all labeled and have colored stickers on them which tells us and the movers where that particular box or bin goes in the new house. After I finished working on Friday, I packed up the “home…
The Lost Watch
Have you ever lost a smartwatch and not hear it vibrating because it has a Lock Screen? Well, that happened to us last week with Niko’s AmazFit smartwatch, and he had me and Nina looking everywhere for it. We knew it was in the house of boxes as the app on his iPad was able…
Early Wake-Ups (AKA non-functioning dad)
On Friday, Niko woke up at 4:45 am, on Saturday, he woke up at 5:45 am, and today, it was 6 am. A bit early for me, so when that happens, I hear him and see the lights being turned on as his bedroom is next to mine. He knows that he can’t grab his…
Another Mother’s Day
Well, I have written many many many many ODES TO THE WIFE here, and I am going to repeat it again, but she really is the BEST MOTHER. Mother’s Day needs to be celebrated daily, as moms everywhere are awesome and deserve more than just one day of pampering. If you have been living in…
My 9th Birthday
As soon as my dad’s birthday was over , I told moo (that is what I call my mom and I have no idea why), that I wanted a vanilla cake with lemon frosting and strawberry filling. I wished I had watched her create it from scratch on Thursday, because if so, I would have…
48 Candles
Last Wednesday, I celebrated my birthday and I am very glad that the cake Nina made didn’t have 48 candles on it, because, honestly, I don’t think I could’ve worked my way to blow out 48 candles. That’s a lot of work and, also, I don’t like fire. The cake was homemade with chocolate frosting,…
The Dad Speaks – UPDATES
In July of 2011, I shared my thoughts on the high school football games I worked as a stastician, posted photos, and of course there were stats, stats, and more stats. I would often compare my stats to the official newspaper stats, and I was always very close to them! When Nina (my wife) and…
Niko and Percy Jackson
A few nights ago, I opened ChatGPT and requested a story about Niko and Percy Jackson. Niko has actually been reading and listening to the series both at home and at school. He really likes it, and pays attention to what is happening. For me, I zone out and read my book. It’s also not…
The Apple Keyboard Crisis
Last Saturday at Best Buy, I bought an Apple Keyboard Folio for Niko’s iPad. It’s basically a case and a keyboard. Its was not cheap, and Niko asked me why are Apple products expensive and I replied, it’s because of the brand, the technology, the fact that they all work very well together, and the…
Walking
I finished my rehab on March 31st. Since I was the only one that graduated that day, I can add valedictorian to my mighty titles! Although I don’t have the equipment at home that rehab has, I am walking outside and have even walked a few times on the treadmill at the neighborhood fitness center….
New House – Part 2
Last week, Nina was in the Minneapolis area house shopping. She saw something like 25 houses. On our Realtor list, we had several that we really liked and I thought one of those would be the one. Well, new ones were being added through another app, and we liked them better. Nina did a…
New House
This morning, Nina left us for Minneapolis where she is looking at houses and hopefully, for one of them, we will buy. Yes, that means we are leaving Texas (we are tired of the weather, construction, and traffic) and Minnesota is a very safe choice. I am not at all worried about snow and cold,…
Spring Break
Niko has been on Spring Break, and he goes back to school tomorrow. We didn’t do anything exciting. Nina took him to the cold pool once but it was too cold for her and I took him once as well and although I got in, I got out quicker than you could say Super Mario! …
Niko’s Technology
Last Saturday, Niko got new wireless headphones for school from Best Buy. Yesterday, we went back to Best Buy as Niko wanted a new bluetooth speaker and a fitness tracker. We saw a few fitness trackers, and one of the brands, I have never heard of, so I wanted to research before we got one…
Niko’s Saturday Plans
Last Tuesday, I was telling Niko one thing I really wanted to do on Saturday, and that was to bring Nina’s bicycle to the shop to get the tires pumped and the handlebars changed. I am mainly doing it for me as I want to use it. If I enjoy it, I may end up…
Shipping, Donating, Selling, and Eating – The Adventures of our Day
Yesterday, I was able to get Niko out of the house. It’s been really challenging to accomplish that as he wants to stay home and watch his iPad and play video games (sometimes, both at the same time). So, I was mean dad and took both away and told him, until you get dressed and…
What I Wanted To Write
I really wanted to write about how yesterday Niko and I went to Barnes and Noble and got book 6 of the Percy Jackson series. Yeah, he has been listening to the books at home and reading the physical books as well. I have no clue what is going on, but Niko pays attention and…