Daily Grit by Wes Thorp

Doing Apple's Face Time with our one-year-old granddaughter and her family overseas

November 16, 2013

How many of you older baby-boomers have kids and grandkids who live on the other side of the country or the world?

Our kids live great distances which are shortened by Apple's Face Time. What a great tool that easy to use to maintain family contacts and relationships.

These big eyes and smile really brightened our weekend. Our three-year-old grandson had been in the picture, but got drawn away by the cries of his monkey.

Posted at 10:45 AM in Baby-boomers, Family | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fill your tank if your in Belding, Michigan today with $2.99 gas

November 12, 2013

Check the price for a gallon of gas at this station. That's really cheap for our region.

While super-wife is meeting with a new student teacher at one of the local schools, I'm using the wi-fi at the local McDonalds here in Belding, Michigan about 55 miles northwest of our State Capital city of Lansing.

Gas is getting cheaper in our city, but it hasn't gotten below the $3.00 a gallon mark. What are other drivers paying in Michigan and around the country. This is really cheap for our region.

Posted at 12:06 PM in Michigan | Permalink | Comments (0)

Should you take your laptop or your iPad on vacation?

November 11, 2013

My son and his wife are vacationing in Thailand right now and they faced the dilemma of deciding whether to take or leave their laptop and or iPads. Their professional worlds revolve around the web to the point where it is an extension of themselves.

In his blog, Justin Thorp's Brain, he shares what they decided. It's an interesting solution.

Posted at 10:19 AM in Family, Social Media | Permalink | Comments (0)

Are there any baby-boomer/senior citizens using GoPro cameras?

November 10, 2013

I was fascinated watching the piece about GoPro cameras on 60 Minutes and how they are being used by younger types to get all kinds of great action video and still shots. There were surfing shots, underwater stuff and skydivers. There's a whole collection of great photography with this camera that can be purchased at any Sam's Club or from Amazon.

What about senior citizens? I'm 67 and not into extreme sports. My wife and I have had some adventures. We have grandkids who live in another country and we have a son who with his wife live in the west. Check out this video about the camera and the visual revolution that it has started.

Posted at 08:59 PM in Baby-boomers | Permalink | Comments (0)

How many times should you listen to a sermon to make it part of your life?

November 10, 2013

Super-wife and I heard this weekend's sermon at Ada Bible Church twice. It was part two of an explanation of why John The Baptist set an example for all of us to follow. Pastor Dan Wright described him as being truly great.

As we talked about the sermon last night when we first heard it live-streamed and then this morning when we worshipped at church. John hit a wall of opposition for his belief in Jesus. He was put in prison for pointing out to King Herod that it was wrong for him to get a lap dance from his step daughter. It resulted in him getting his head chopped off.

So, what can we learn from this story that will be helpful in the 21st century? A bunch, according to the sermon.

How does one internalize these truths so they are part of one's everyday life? It takes a firm resolve to stay focused in the right direction. Then it's time for a sermon on another topic and text. The learning is non-stop.

Posted at 07:50 PM in Spiritual walk | Permalink | Comments (0)

Can a blog help you sort through the stages of your life?

November 10, 2013

This blog has been part of my life for more than nine years and I've used it to write more than 2,500 posts. I started it on a whim as a place where I could do a brain dump on any topic that tickled by fancy.

In that period of time it has become a repository for my personal history. I've written about transitioning from the work world to being retired. I've written about my family, my wife, kids and grandkids. There are posts about my late mother and about my wayward late father. There are bits and pieces about a lot of different topics.

My blog platform is Typepad.com which was state of the art when I started almost a decade ago. Since then, it has become rusty and archaic. I've tried to transfer it to WordPress.org, but it didn't work. Next month, my subscription to Typepad comes due. Do I hold a funeral for this blog or do I keep it going?

As a member of the first class of baby-boomers, I'm nudging up to a whole host of issues that I haven't faced before. Writing about them might be able to help me and to help others. What will I do? I'd like to continue. But, I'm not sure.