Tom's Diary

Today’s Activities

• Shower. DONE.
• Cat duty.  DONE.

Log

08:00 AM: I’m up.  It’s mostly cloudy outside, and the temperature is a little warmer than yesterday morning, at 54 degrees.  I’ll be taking no walk this morning however; I’m rather tired.

12:00 PM: Continued working the Tommy’s Tunes software build issues on Windows 7.  Many of the components are no longer required, as I now do all music searching with Wimanp’s Media Library search function.  So I removed said components from the build, and this eliminated many of the errors.  Most of the other errors have been fixed as well.  I’ll continue working this project later today.

12:50 PM: Posted the   Solving Access Denied Errors in File Copying PERL Scripts in Windows 7   piece.

04:00 PM: Added capability to decend through sub directories to my music volume normalizer program.  Now, it will find files in the specified folder AS WELL AS in sub folders, and maximize their overall volume levels.  I’d like to add this feature to all my other batch music file processing programs, as this would reduce the amount of manual intervention required to normalize, tag, and convert new music files for addition to my Tommy’s Tunes music library.

06:10 PM: Watched today’s episode of   The Young and the Restless   via the DVR.

06:15 PM: Leaving now for walk 67 of 100 for 2011, to the south cemetery.  Back later.

07:15 PM: I’m back home.  A nice and warm yet crisp walk this evening.

10:00 PM: Watched tonight’s episode of   NBC’s Nightly News   via the DVR.

11:00 PM: Talked with   [Emmy].

12:05 AM: Reviewed the daily traffic stats from yesterday for my blogs.  The monthly keyword hit count dropped again, and currently stands at 1284; down from 1308 the last time I checked.  The record high for this dimension remains at 1788.  The next goal: 2000.

12:10 AM: Bed time.  More tomorrow.  Good night.

03:30 AM: Woke up early.  The bedroom is too warm at 76 degrees and I probably ate too many calories yesterday.  I sleep best when I hold calorie intake below around 1500 calories currently.  But unfortunately at times, my appetite overpowers me and I end up going above that, as was the case yesterday.  So, I’ll putter here in the blog and listen to the iPod until I grow sleepy again, which usually takes about an hour or two.

05:30 AM: Heading back to bed.  Good night.

Tom Hesley

Received Mail and Shipments

• Analog Science Fiction magazine; the 2011-10 edition.

Related Posts and Links

• Solving Access Denied Errors in File Copying PERL Scripts in Windows 7
• Today’s Diet: 2011-08-31

I keep this food diary to stay aware of just how many calories I’m eating daily, with the hope that it decreases the likelihood that I’ll overeat.    It seems to work, so here we go with another day…

Today’s weight: 183.0 pounds.  That’s unchanged from yesterday.  The 2011 year low weight so far: 177.5 pounds. The high weight is 185.5 pounds (established on 2011-04-13).

Today, I consumed the following items:

• Herbal tea throughout the day. 0 calories.
• 08:45 AM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 12:30 PM: 1 serving of mixed nuts.  170 calories.
• 12:35 PM: 1 can of Campbell’s Chunky Soup; Classic Chicken Noodle.  240 calories.
• 05:00 PM: 2 tomato and rye sandwiches with Parmesan cheese.  600 calories.
• 05:10 PM: 2 cups of orange juice.  220 calories.
• 06:30 PM: 1 multivitamin.  0 calories.
• 08:30 PM: 1 serving of smoked almonds.  170 calories.
• 09:30 PM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 10:10 PM: 2 bowls of Wheat Chex with maple syrup and skim milk.  1000 calories.

Total calories: 2520

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Other Food Diary Entries
• Today’s Business: 2011-08-31

I have a   PERL script   that installs software on a PC by   copying files   into the Program Files (X86) directory.  I’ve run this from a   Command Prompt.  for years without troubles on Windows XP.

Problem:

But when run on   Windows 7,   Access Denied  error messages display for every file the PERL script attempts to copy.

Solution:

One way I found to solve this problem is to set my Command Prompt to run as administrator.  Do that as follows:

1. Right-click your Command Prompt shortcut.  This causes the Command Prompt Properties window to appear.
2. Click the Shortcut tab in that window.  The available options in the window change accordingly.
3. Click the Advanced   button.  The Advanced Properties window then appears.
4. Make sure the Run As Administrator checkbox is checked.
5. Press the OK button to close the Advanced Properties window.  This action once again reveals the Command Prompt Properties window.
6. Then, back in the Command Prompt Properties window, click the Apply button.
7. Finally, press the OK button.  This closes the Command Prompt Properties window.

Now, when you open a Command Prompt, you’ll be prompted by Windows 7, asking if you want to allow this program to make changes to your computer.  Press the Yes button.  This closes the UAC window and takes you into the new Command Prompt window just opened.   Now you’re running it as an administrator.

At this point, I was able to run the heretofore offending PERL scripts in this Command Prompt window without further Access Denied error messages.

Be careful not to run other commands in this “super user” authorized Command Prompt window, lest you risk serious damage to your computer if the program(s) you run turn out to be malware.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts and Links

• Copying DTBs To NLS Player Cartridges
• Folder Sync Program

Today’s Activities

• Shower. DONE.
• Cat duty.  DONE.

Log

08:00 AM: I’m up.  It’s mostly sunny outside, and the temperature is, like yesterday morning, 51 degrees.  I’ll be taking no walk this morning however; I’m a little sore from yesterday.

03:15 PM: Nap time.  Back later.

05:45 PM: I’m awake again.

06:30 PM: Watched today’s episode of   The Young and the Restless   via the DVR.

06:35 PM: Leaving now for walk 66 of 100 for 2011, to the south cemetery.  Back later.

07:35 PM: I’m back home.  I’ll have to start these evening walks ten or fifteen minutes earlier now, as the days are growing shorter (intentional contradiction in terms).

09:00 PM: Installed Microsoft’s Visual Studio 2008 on this (my new Dell XPS 8300) computer.  My Tommy’s Tunes software does not run well on Windows 7 as-is, and so, requires recompilation in that environment (this computer).  I’ll get to that later this week.  Until this is done, I cannot add new music to my library automatically.  So getting it done quickly is important; particularly since Promo Only has been making significantly more music available each weak for download.

09:45 PM: Skimmed the past few weeks of rerun episodes of CBS’s   60 Minutes   news shows via the DVR.

10:00 PM: Watched tonight’s episode of   NBC’s Nightly News   via the DVR.

11:00 PM: Talked with   [Emmy].

12:05 AM: Reviewed the daily traffic stats from yesterday for my blogs.  The monthly keyword hit count dropped again, and currently stands at 1308; down from 1330 the last time I checked.  The record high for this dimension remains at 1788.  The next goal: 2000.

12:10 AM: Bed time.  More tomorrow.  Good night.

Tom Hesley

Received Mail and Shipments

• Periodic coupon mailer.

Related Posts and Links

• Today’s Diet: 2011-08-30

I keep this food diary to stay aware of just how many calories I’m eating daily, with the hope that it decreases the likelihood that I’ll overeat.    It seems to work, so here we go with another day…

Today’s weight: 183.0 pounds.  That’s unchanged from yesterday.  The 2011 year low weight so far: 177.5 pounds. The high weight is 185.5 pounds (established on 2011-04-13).

Today, I consumed the following items:

• Herbal tea throughout the day. 0 calories.
• 08:45 AM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 08:50 AM: 1 cup of orange juice.  110 calories.
• 01:00 PM: 3 soft chicken tacos, minus the cheese and sour cream.  600 calories.
• 02:00 PM: 2 servings of chocolate milk.  360 calories.
• 02:30 PM: 1 pack of peanut M&Ms.  250 calories.
• 06:30 PM: 1 multivitamin.  0 calories.
• 07:40 PM: 1 cup of orange juice.  110 calories.
• 09:20 PM: 1 bowl of oatmeal with blueberries, organic skim milk, and pure maple syrup.  600 calories.
• 09:30 PM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.

Total calories: 2150

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Other Food Diary Entries
• Today’s Business: 2011-08-30

Today’s Activities

• Shower. DONE.
• Cat duty.  DONE.
• Wash (2) loads of pending laundry.  DONE.  134 loads done in the washer now.

Log

07:00 AM: I’m up.  It’s mostly sunny outside, and the temperature is 51 degrees.

07:20 AM: Leaving now for walk 64 of 100 for 2011, to the south cemetery.  Back later.

08:25 PM: I’m back home.  I walked around the cemetery as per usual while listening to Dr. Joy Browne’s podcasts.  I’m up to the 2011-11-03 episodes now.  This was the coolest walk I’ve taken this year, with temps in the low 50s.  But wearing a sweatshirt as I was, the experience was by no means chilly.  I still broke a sweat.

09:00 AM: Red up the kitchen in preps for an insurance salesman who is visiting today.  I’m looking into long-term care insurance for myself, and while I have no intentions of buying any today, I thought that an explanation of how these policies work and what they cover would be helpful.  So, I’ll listen to his pitch.

11:30 AM: The insurance fellows visited and ran the numbers for me, to determine how much I’d have to pay for long-term care as well as whole life insurance.  They were not pushy at all; not even when I told them I wouldn’t be signing up for any policy today.  These costs would be significant.  So I might have to wait until these blogs make me a million before I sign up.  But then, if I had THAT much money, I suppose there’d be less of a need for these types of insurance.

03:00 PM: Nap time.  Back later.

04:00 PM: I’m awake again.

04:45 PM: Watched today’s episode of   The Young and the Restless   via the DVR.

05:30 PM: Watched the 2011-08-29 (today’s) episode of   Dr. Phil,  called   In Laws Face Off.

05:50 PM: Watched the 2011-08-14 episode of CBS’s    Face The Nation   weekly news and public affairs broadcast.

06:45 PM: Leaving now for walk 65 of 100 for 2011, to the south cemetery.  Back later.

07:45 PM: I’m back home.  A cool, crisp walk tonight.  Very sunny with temps in the low 70s.

08:30 PM: Watched the 2011-08-21 and 2011-08-28 episodes of CBS’s   Face The Nation  public affairs news show via the DVR.

09:40 PM: Downloaded today’s music release from Promo Only Express Audio (13 tracks).

10:00 PM: Watched tonight’s episode of   NBC’s Nightly News   via the DVR.

11:00 PM: Talked with   [Emmy] and the two of us watched tonight’s rerun episode of   Hawaii Five-0.  We’re looking forward to the season premier, to be shown on 2011-09-19.

12:05 AM: Reviewed the daily traffic stats from yesterday for my blogs.  The monthly keyword hit count dropped again, and currently stands at 1313; down from 1330 the last time I checked.  The record high for this dimension remains at 1788.  The next goal: 2000.

12:10 AM: Bed time.  More tomorrow.  Good night.

Tom Hesley

Received Mail and Shipments

• Promo Only’s Country Radio music series; the 2011-10 edition.
• Mom’s pension pay stub.
• Privacy policy for my renter’s insurance policy.
• DirecTV advertisement.
• Another attempt by First Energy electricity company to get us to lock in an electricity rate for the next two years.  No thanks.

Related Posts and Links

• Today’s Diet: 2011-08-29

I keep this food diary to stay aware of just how many calories I’m eating daily, with the hope that it decreases the likelihood that I’ll overeat.    It seems to work, so here we go with another day…

Today’s weight: 183.0 pounds.  That’s unchanged from yesterday.  The 2011 year low weight so far: 177.5 pounds. The high weight is 185.5 pounds (established on 2011-04-13).

Today, I consumed the following items:

• Herbal tea throughout the day. 0 calories.
• 08:30 AM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 08:30 AM: 1 cup of orange juice.  110 calories.
• 01:00 PM: 1 serving of mixed nuts.  170 calories.
• 03:00 PM: 3 turkey sloppy Joes on whole wheat flat bread.  1200 calories.
• 06:30 PM: 1 multivitamin.  0 calories.
• 07:50 PM: 2 cups of orange juice.  220 calories.
• 09:30 PM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 11:30 PM: 2 servings of smoke-flavored almonds.  340 calories.
• 11:30 PM: 1 cup of orange juice.  110 calories.
• 11:45 PM: 1 cup of Trop50 pomegranate blueberry juice.  50 calories.

Total calories: 2320

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Other Food Diary Entries
• Today’s Business: 2011-08-29

Today’s Activities

• Shower. DONE.
• Cat duty.  DONE.

Log

07:00 AM: I’m up.  It’s partly sunny outside, and temps are in the  60s.

12:00 PM: Leaving now for walk 63 of 100 for 2011, to the south cemetery.  Back later.

01:40 PM: I’m back home.  I walked a second loop around the cemetery this time while listening to Dr. Joy Browne’s podcasts.  I’m up to the 2011-11-02 episodes now.

02:00 PM: Looked in on CNN’s Hurricane Irene coverage.  It’s up into the New England states now, and points south (where the storm has already been) including Philadelphia, New York, Atlantic City, Ocean City, et al, are preparing for cleanup.

02:00 PM: Nap time.  Back later.

03:00 PM: I’m awake again.

06:00 PM: Vacuumed the entire first floor.

07:00 PM: Downloaded all remaining outstanding music via Promo Only’s POOL application.

08:15 PM: Watched the 2011-08-24 episode of   Dr. Phil,  called   Intervention: Saving Tony.

10:00 PM: Watched tonight’s episode of   NBC’s Nightly News   via the DVR.

11:00 PM: Talked with   [Emmy].  Again, she’s been following the hurricane news coverage for much of the day too.

11:55 PM: Shopped online for a treadmill as a means to step up my weight-losing effectiveness.  I used treadmills in the early 1990s with good success.  Nowadays, since I understand more about how the calorie-burning mechanisms work in the human body, I’m anticipating much success.  This assumes of course that I buy a treadmill.  The one I’m eying costs $5000.  So this is not a purchase that I take lightly.  It will be a couple months before I buy; if I buy it.

12:05 AM: Reviewed the daily traffic stats from yesterday for my blogs.  The monthly keyword hit count dropped again, and currently stands at 1330; down from 1341 the last time I checked.  The record high for this dimension remains at 1788.  The next goal: 2000.

12:10 AM: Bed time.  More tomorrow.  Good night.

Tom Hesley

Received Mail and Shipments

No mail deliveries on Sundays.

Related Posts and Links

• Today’s Diet: 2011-08-28

I keep this food diary to stay aware of just how many calories I’m eating daily, with the hope that it decreases the likelihood that I’ll overeat.    It seems to work, so here we go with another day…

Today’s weight: 183.0 pounds.  That’s unchanged from yesterday.  The 2011 year low weight so far: 177.5 pounds. The high weight is 185.5 pounds (established on 2011-04-13).

Today, I consumed the following items:

• Herbal tea throughout the day. 0 calories.
• 08:30 AM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 08:30 AM: 1 cup of orange juice.  110 calories.
• 04:00 PM: 1 serving of mixed nuts.  170 calories.
• 06:30 PM: 1 multivitamin.  0 calories.
• 08:35 PM: 3 tomato Parmesan sandwiches on rye bread.  750 calories.
• 09:30 PM: 1 tablespoon of Metamucil in water.  60 calories.
• 11:30 PM: 1 cup of orange juice.  110 calories.

Total calories: 1370

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Other Food Diary Entries
• Today’s Business: 2011-08-28

Today’s Activities

• Shower. DONE.
• Cat duty.  DONE.

Log

08:45 AM: I’m up.  It’s overcast outside, and temps in the  60s.

09:15 AM: Leaving now for walk 61 of 100 for 2011, to the south cemetery.  Back later.

10:20 AM: I’m back home.  For the past few days,

I’ve taking my podcast iPod on the walks with me, and thus, I’ve been catching up on the many Dr. Joy Browne episodes that I’m behind on.  Listened to all hours of the 2008-10-28, 2008-10-29, 2011-10-30, and 2011-10-31 shows.

10:30 AM: Sister Diane was waiting for me when I returned home from the walk.  She had planned some running around today and invited me to join her.  So, off I went.

11:00 AM: We drove to the recycling place in Pine Croft to drop off some of her rubbish and recyclables.

11:15 AM: Next, we drove to Oak Springs Winery, to pick up a few bottles with customized labels (birthday gifts for a few of sister Diane’s friends).

11:45 AM: Then, we dropped off some clothes she wanted to give to the Salvation Army.

11:50 AM: Our last stop on the trip was a visit to sister Jojo.

12:30 PM: We hung out on Jojo’s porch, talking of the coming fall season, end-of-summer flowers, and other light topics.

12:40 PM: I’m back home.

12:45 PM: Nap time.  Back later.

01:30 PM: I’m awake again.

01:35 PM: Heading out now to cut the grass, for the fifth time this year.  Is barely grew throughout July and most of August.  But over the last week or two, with all the rain we’ve been getting, the grass has turned green again and grown several inches.  It needs cut.  Back later.

04:00 PM: I’ve finished with the lawn tractor portion of the grass cutting.  The next time we have good weather, I’ll break out the weed whacker.

05:30 PM: Talked with [Mentat] to prepare for our get-together in September in Pittsburgh.

05:50 PM: Facebooked a bit.  Friend count: 564.  Fan count: 111.

06:20 PM: Watched the Hurricane Irene coverage on CNN.

06:20 PM: Leaving now for walk 62 of 100 in 2011, to the south cemetery again.  Back later.

06:40 PM: I’m back home, early.  Had to end the walk after just 20 minutes due to the appearance of threatening weather, including dark clouds from the south east, mildly forceful wind gusts, and rain.  I know we weren’t supposed to see any weather from the hurricane.  Yet those dark clouds appeared in the south east part of the sky, which would in fact be the direction of the hurricane.  So I think we did get a little something from it.

10:00 PM: Downloaded lots of music via Promo Only’s POOL application.  It’s getting harder to keep up with their updates, as they’ve begun publishing lots more music to this service.  But though I’m not really a DJ anymore, I’ll keep updating my music library just in case I get requests to play at occasional parties.

10:00 PM: Watched tonight’s episode of   NBC’s Nightly News   via the DVR.

11:00 PM: Talked with   [Emmy].  She’s been following the hurricane news coverage for much of the day too.

12:05 AM: Reviewed the daily traffic stats from yesterday for my blogs.  The monthly keyword hit count dropped again, and currently stands at 1341; down from 1374 the last time I checked.  The record high for this dimension remains at 1788.  The next goal: 2000.

12:10 AM: Bed time.  More tomorrow.  Good night.

Tom Hesley

Received Mail and Shipments

• Death notice for Robert Longmore; a former WPSBC student.
• 1 credit monitoring offer from my bank.  Not at this time, thanks.
• Privacy policy document from one of Mom’s credit card companies.

Related Posts and Links

• Today’s Diet: 2011-08-27