Mike Garlick

Ok, I need to have a few photos easy to find, and this is a convenient location..

2010-09-16T08:50:00.001-07:00

For various reasons, I need a few photos up where I can show them to several people as examples of things that can be done with Geocoins. So, you all get to see them here!

I’ll probably be updating this post several times, to keep everything in one place.

So, to start with, we’ll examine what can be done with “2d” coins.

Butterfly 2o1o (Tie Die)

This coin is a great example of multi-level 2D under translucent (hard) enamel. The right-hand picture only uses 2 colors of enamel, yet because of the multiple depths appears to have far more. The left picture only has 5 colors of enamel. I believe this is 4-level coin on each side, 3 recessed and then the raised/exposed metal.

Eat, Sleep, Cache (Blue front)

This is another multilevel under hard enamel, this time with both translucent and opaque enamels. In this case, the under-enamel raised details are used to add shadows in the lake, and detail to the sun, along with implying some depth.

Digital Hell (Copper with Green)

This coin is hard to get good pictures of with the really shiny copper, so I’m using a few I found around the web. In this case, the enamel used is soft but also translucent.

MindBender (Coinclub)

This coin is particularly interesting because it uses a combination of 2D and 3D techniques, and a combination of both soft and hard enamels.

-- More to Come --

We went for a drive yesterday, and saw this…

2010-08-16T10:14:00.001-07:00

I took this picture from a viewpoint as we went around the east side of Rainier yesterday. That is “White River” down below.

Wow. I guess things have been busy…

2010-06-02T22:42:00.001-07:00

So, a lot has happened in my geocoin/geocaching stuff since I last posted, and as of today, I’m officially starting the countdown until GeoWoodstock VIII in Carnation on the 3rd of July!

I haven’t hit very many caches recently, because I’ve been so busy, but I’ve added a few coins, including this month’s club coin (which, once again, my private speculations were WRONG).

So, here’s some of what has arrived:

GCC May 2010 “10 years of giving back” (Title is a guess)

Elements Compass – Sun

For this one, I actually picked it up in 3 finishes, Shiny Silver, Shiny Gold, and Antique Gold. The pictures above are the Shiny Gold. There are some differences in the Antique coins, here’s a shot of the back of the Antique Gold as an example:

Davy Jones Locker

I also have ordered an interesting set that I’m looking forward too, titled the “Axial Intervals” set. It should be here later this week.

Axial Intervals: Winter, Spring Summer and Fall respectively (fronts)

And for the backs:

The Insanity-Inc Pathtags are here, and look fantastic!

2010-05-12T08:30:00.001-07:00

I think that most of my readers are familiar with the fact that with the help of a friend, I ordered some pathtags that were based on the Allegiance/Kinship/Guild name a bunch of us use when playing things like Asheron’s Call, Lord of the Rings Online, etc…

Well, without further ado:

These things are 23mm in diameter, and make GREAT keychains. If you are a member of Insanity-Inc, and are interested in acquiring one, please contact either myself or NepoKama privately, and we’ll get it worked out.

So, on a slightly more personal note (but still related) I’ve also traded a few of these for other interesting tags, and I’ll probably post a few pictures of them here and there over the next few weeks. Right, now, I need to get my end of the trades mailed off!

A visit to “Mission 9: Tunnel of Light” aka The APE Cache

2010-05-09T12:18:00.000-07:00

So, Saturday a couple of friends and I took the hike out here to the APE cache, since it’s the last surviving one in the US, and picked up a few other caches along the way, including one I believe is the oldest surviving cache in Washington State!

I took a few pictures along the way, and I know my friends took even more (they had a nice DSLR along, I was just using a cheap pocket cam) but I wanted to share a few of mine..

APE Cache Hike

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Another couple of coins…

2010-05-01T14:49:00.001-07:00

Here’s a couple of ‘anniversary’ coins, for different things.

First off, the coin I picked up this morning for the 10th anniversary of Geocaching (one of many coins commemorating that.)

I will be acquiring other 10 year anniversary coins over the next months, but this is my first in hand.

“10 years of Geocaching Multi Event Coin”

And a bit older one that I acquired:

“CC Geocoin” GCC 1 Year Anniversary Contest

So, this is the first time the pictures are my own work, rather than stock. Sorry if they are not quite as crisp.

So, I decided to take a few pictures outside while the sun was out…

2010-04-24T16:36:00.001-07:00

I recently received a new digital camera/camcorder as a gift, so of course I needed to step outside and take a few pictures..

Spring Flowers and Shrubs

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So, since things have been quiet here.. a few more coins for your perusal..

2010-04-24T11:41:00.001-07:00

Last night, I received this month’s coin-club coin, and was a bit surprised at the subject matter. The icon has been posted for a few little while now, and it looks like this:

Looking at that, My first thought was “Roast Chicken?”

But I was very wrong.

So, the title of this coin is “Cache Tick”

Oh, my. I just realized I hadn’t talked about my GeoCoinClub membership before! The “Cache Tick” is actually my second monthly coin from them, the first was the March coin: “Beware the Hex” which looks like:

“Beware the Hex” GCC March 2010

Now, to let the speculation on next month begin. Here’s next-month’s icon:

What we know so far about the May coin: It’s a “Geocaching 10 year anniversary” coin, but that could mean many things. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Here are some pictures of a few other GeoCoinClub Coins that I’ve acquired other ways, either through friends, the club store, or EBay. As usual, these are stock pictures, or pictures I’ve gotten from other sources, as I have yet to start taking my own.

“The Original Micro” GCC January 2010

This one snaps on to the top of a 35mm film canister!

“El Muerto del Ammocan” GCC July 2009

“GCC Second Anniversary” GCC August 2007

Note: I actually have the Special edition of this one, which is Bronze in color, but don’t have a good picture of that.

“Pot of Gold/Lucky Horseshoe” GCC March 2009

“The Original Masters of Cache” – GCC Bonus coin for new Subscription

“Not Every Cache Surrenders” GCC July 2008

“Pathtag Puking Pumpkin” GCC October 2009

“The Blarney Coin” GCC March 2008

So, I wasn’t going to do this…

2010-04-06T17:27:00.001-07:00

But I can’t help it.. Really..

I received a few more coins on Thursday and Friday of last week, and several of them are really spectacular. So, I figured I’d share a few pictures. All of the photos below are stock, grabbed from the original sites that sold these coins, or other places where I found good photos.

Celtic Tree of Life, green enamel on gold:

The West Coast Eco-Totem:

Raith Gras:

As you can see, some of these are really spectacular. I’ve not included the backs of the Eco-Totem, but they basically are Black on Silver, with the text you see under each of the individual pictures above.

So, I’ve been distracted with a new hobby…

2010-03-29T15:46:00.000-07:00

Actually, some would say several of them.

Last fall, I started doing a little bit of Geocaching with some friends, and this spring I discovered geocaching trackables, specifically GeoCoins and started collecting them.

Oh my, there lies danger! It’s been a very long time since I’ve done any collecting of much of anything, and I’ve always loved the idea of being able to collect serialized/unique items, and since each GeoCoin is individually trackable as it moves from cache to cache, they all have unique alpha-numeric numbers engraved on them.

I’ve already collected quite a few, and have begun building databases to keep track of my collection. When I start writing software for something, it’s a good bet I’m going to be investing in it for quite some time to come, given my track record.

Here’s a picture of the coin I just released for travel a little over a week ago:

(not the actual coin, but the manufacturer’s picture)

For the one I released, I actually kept one and released one.

Here’s a few more pictures of coins that I have in my collection (one side only):

These came from two different stores, they are: GeoCoinStore and GeoSwag. At last check, the two from Geoswag (the smaller pictures) are currently sold out and may stay that way (they often are minted in limited quantities, and one of them is a limited edition, and I know the edition is sold out).

Recently, I went and visited a very special cache: “The Original Stash” just southwest of Portland, OR. Here’s the picture I took of the commemorative plaque while there:

That’s what I’ve been up to lately. I probably missed a thing or two, but ah well.

Holidays are over, and it’s time to think about the next steps…

2010-01-05T13:56:00.001-08:00

So, We’re settling in nicely, and I’m starting to plan what is next with the house. By no means are we done with all the little bits and pieces of things yet though. Some of the already planned stuff that is still pending:

Curtains for the Theater
Finish wiring in the wiring closet (it currently looks like a rats nest, and the door won’t close)
Set up the “Geek Cave” in the third-car area of the garage.
Add a few miscellaneous pieces of furniture here and there where needed…

Now, it’s time to plan the next phase of this project, the smarthome conversion.

As we enter the depths of the Seattle winter, I’m already adding and changing my plans around this, since there were categories of smarthome tech that I’d intended to not get involved in originally, that I am now considering. One example of this is that I’m now thinking I want to do some upgrades to our heating system to make it multi-zone, by adding baffling capabilities to control airflow through the house.

By no means will I start any of this soon, I want some more time living in the house to know what I want to change first…

And the sconces are in!

2009-11-17T09:16:00.001-08:00

So, with a little help from a friend Saturday, the sconces for the theater were finally installed, and they look fantastic!

Here’s a bit of a look at the final product:

These pictures would only work with the flash as backfill, so there is a bit of reflection on the shades that washes out the colors of the way the bulbs look through the shades. But you can get a good idea in a couple of the pictures, and looking at the color on the walls behind the lights.

And, this phase is basically done..

2009-11-11T12:40:00.001-08:00

So, we’re basically done with the changes and move in. There are still a few small things to do, but the list is SHORT comparatively speaking.. It isn’t much more than:

Install Sconces in the Theater (They should arrive today)
Build/Install Soffit to cover the hole in the ceiling in the theater (Likely to wait a while, to ensure that we don’t need more wires)
Hang pictures/art etc…
Add a few more pieces of furniture to various locations around the house over the next year or so.

So, here’s what it looked like Saturday morning:

More progress..

2009-10-23T12:30:00.000-07:00

We’re actually living in the house now, and we’ve made progress on quite a few things. Here are a few more pictures (In somewhat chronological order), including some with furniture..

Work in progress….

2009-10-05T17:16:00.001-07:00

I don’t have much to say, other than this is exhausting. Here’s a few pictures of things as they are in progress…

The green accent wall is in the master bedroom, and there are a few pictures from two phases of the theater wiring project, the ‘plan’ and then after we’ve cut the holes for the new equipment.

It’s ours!

2009-10-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes. It has been since last Friday, but I’ve been swamped since then dealing with all the small projects that have needed to be done.

Some of the things that have happened in the last few days:

Carpets torn out
Furnace and 2 Fireplaces serviced and cleaned
Water Heater Expansion tank replaced
Cable installed (providing internet, TV, and phone)
Hardwoods are in the process of being refinished, and should complete sometime Friday
Evaluation of the yard by a yard service (We have to keep it to neighborhood standards)

That’s only the stuff we’ve had people come do, that’s not counting what I and several friends have been doing, like:

Replacing the Structured Wiring Closet
Tracing a lot of wiring to identify source and destination
Misc repairs (replacing cracked drain assemblies in sinks, etc)
Identifying all the places to touch up the paint
Marking locations in the theater for installation of new hardware & wiring
Planning new lighting for theater
Much shopping for supplies (and building of shopping lists)

And there is plenty more scheduled, here is a general outline (subject to change, naturally):

Saturday/Sunday (10/3-4):

Parents and Brother visit to see and help
Theater Wiring
Theater Painting
Theater Hardware installation
Reinstallation of hardware removed from old structured wiring cabinet
Finish off plumbing projects
Paint touchup throughout the house
Paint Master Bedroom accent wall

Monday (10/5):

Security Alarm activation

Tuesday (10/6):

Theater storage consult

Wednesday/Thursday (10/7-8):

Carpet Install

Friday (10/9):

Pre-furniture Cleaning

Saturday (10/10):

Final Finish of any projects left from previous Weekend
New Furniture delivered
POD delivered

Sunday (10/11):

POD unpacked
Cats moved to new home
First night in new home!

I’ll try to get some pictures of some of the interim processes over the next few days, and will be posting them as I can.

Oh my, is it getting close…

2009-09-18T17:50:00.001-07:00

There are several things going on that are making this whole process very “real” now.

Today we signed all of the paperwork
We purchased our first bit of ‘new’ furniture bits last weekend
We’re shopping for furniture and fixtures this weekend.
We’re getting the house measured for carpet next week
We get keys ONE WEEK from TODAY! (provided all goes according to plan)

I haven’t had much chance to think more about the overall process that I’ve been documenting here, other than to start identifying some question about some of the smaller details that might effect what wire we run and what hardware I need.

Next week, after we have the house measured for carpet (and I can get in and double check a couple of things like the height of the wiring box) I will probably start purchasing the hardware for the wiring projects.

And on Saturday, September 26th, let the process begin!

Phase 1 of the Enhanced Home Theater project

2009-09-09T18:34:00.001-07:00

So, I know it’s taken me a while to put this post together, and I’m sorry for the delay. As is, I’m not going to cover this in the detail that I originally planned, because the deeper I get into it, the more unknowns seem to keep coming up.

So, I’ve been doing some research on parts, and even dropped by Lowe’s yesterday to see what they had in stock. The stuff I’m looking at is things like:

I’m also looking at speaker mounts, since the speaker that are in place today in the front are on towers, and I don’t have any towers at the moment, so I’m thinking I’m going to mount them all the wall, around the screen.

As for other location related issues, in doing some research I’ve found that where the projector is mounted can differ depending on projector, as they each have unique “throw” requirements. Since I’m going to run an HDMI port up by the projector, I find that I’m having to do more research and planning on specific models than I’d originally intended. I may find myself either delaying the HDMI port installation, or acquiring the projector earlier than originally planned.

I’m going to leave as much of the wiring alone as I can, but I don’t know how much that will actually end up being. I’m still researching the best solution for the in-wall audio cable, since there is *some* that I will have to replace. I will also probably have to run at least one network drop behind the audio equipment, but that should be similar to other network drops that I may re-pull elsewhere in the house.

I’m also going to drop some ‘extra’ cables behind the audio equipment for future expansion, planning for phase 3. I also have at least one issue that I don’t yet know what I need to do for wiring, and that’s the IR repeater that I want near the screen.

Most of the wiring work will have to happen on the weekends, and I have 3 weekends set aside for ‘messy’ work before I actually take up residence in the house. My plan is to start installing the hardware and wiring changes on the second weekend, and finish anything that doesn’t quite get done on the 3rd.

This is going to be quite the project, though it’s currently looking like I may have some help for the wiring, thanks to my brothers, and a couple of friends from work.

~16 days until we close, and I can get in and start this project.

Enhanced Home Theater

2009-08-25T08:16:00.001-07:00

So, I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about this when I’ve not been in front of a computer, and even asked help of a few people in doing research to understand what this is really going to take.

Let’s start off by describing the what I’d like it to be someday:

It’s Friday night, and a couple of friends are coming over to watch a movie with us. Before they get there, my wife and I spend a few minutes preparing some refreshments for before and during the movie, and carrying them upstairs to the home theater.

When our guests arrive, after greeting them, we all head upstairs to the theater, and pass through the double doors into the entry way to the theater, and through the blackout curtains over the entryway. The lights are low (but not yet at movie watching dimness), and the projector is fired up, showing a slideshow of some recent pictures. While we had picked a movie earlier in the week for this evening, the sight of Blu-Ray collection across from the entry way sparks a debate on the choice of movie, but we quickly settle on watching the original movie, and we’ll look through the collection after for ideas for a future movie.

Everybody settles into a seat on the two couches in the room, and we push the button on the remote to start the show. The lights dim even lower as the movie starts, and the walkway lighting becomes more obvious, though not so bright as to be distracting. The movie comes on the screen in FullHD (1080p) and the sound test rumbles the 7.1 sound system through unobtrusive bookshelf and embedded speakers around the room.

So, I’ve been looking at this, trying to identify what needs to happen to get there, given the work that’s already been done to make the current home theaters. There are several phases that will need to happen to get there, partly due to the goal to have it running throughout the process.

Before move-in
First upgrade phase
Second upgrade phase

So, during phase 1, the work will be about doing the things to the room that can’t easily be done while living there, and taking the chance to do stuff that might be on the messy side, to prepare for later phases. This will be primarily about changes and additions to the current wiring, along with making sure that the platform is carpeted, etc.

Phase 2 will be about upgrades to the home-theater electronics themselves, and may be spread out quite a bit, since some of the pieces can be upgraded independently. It may also include some replacement of furniture, as the room will initially have furniture that came from our previous house, but it’s not ideal for the space long-term.

Phase 3, is about unification, and while it may overlap some parts of phase 2, it will be really part of the bigger Smart home conversion, which I will be discussing in more detail later.

My primary interest right now is in phase 1, so watch for a follow-up post about my current thinking in the next several days.

And.. some lighting shots

2009-08-23T22:48:00.001-07:00

Yeah, yeah.. I’m working my way through the pictures I took today..

Here’s some shots of all the different light fixtures through the house.

Because I can!

2009-08-23T22:12:00.001-07:00

Here’s a close up of the front door that I took today

Today was the inspection…

2009-08-23T19:12:00.001-07:00

And I got a bunch more photos, though I’ll probably be posting them in phases.

The first bunch I’m putting up is more detail on the home theater space, as I consider those a prerequisite for the next step in the planning discussion, the “Enhanced Home Theater”

So, here’s the new photos of the theater room:

A few details:

The projector appears to have an 800x600 native resolution, with a DVI connector running down to the electronics
The wires you see going into the floor appear in the ceiling of the Garage.
Yes, the platform is wafer-board with no covering (currently).

Now that you know a bit about what the house is..

2009-08-20T20:33:00.001-07:00

It’s time to start talking about what the house could (and hopefully will) be in the future.

There are all sorts of things we’ve talked about doing, here’s a short list of some of them (ordered by complexity, simplest first!)

Server Space
Enhanced Home theater
Smart-home Conversion

Seems like a short list, doesn’t it? Oh, how I wish. Each of those items is worthy of a whole post on it’s own, and I’ll be posting about them some over the next several days. I’ll probably not talk much about the smart-home conversion right away though, as I want to focus on the things that we’re hoping to do before moving in, and the conversion won’t take place for a while (probably at *least* 6 months before it begins.)

Server Space

Arguably, this is the simplest of the list to talk about, since all it really means is picking a space to store my server and proxy machines, and running wire to hook them up. Where it gets complicated is understanding *why* this is such a big deal.

As all of you who are reading this know, I spend a lot of time “playing with computers.” One of the things I do, because I can, and enjoy it, is run a fairly advanced network in my home. You could probably safely call my network “Enterprise Class” since I’m running software that is often only found in medium to larger business environments. Most of this is for self-education, but some of it is simply because it’s familiar, since it’s the same sort of environment I deal with at work.

So, I have two machines, my ‘big network server’ and my firewall/proxy server that I need to find a home for. Preferably one that is dry and cool. And then I need to make sure that there is power available, followed closely by making sure that there is at least one network cable running from that space to the central wiring box with the network hub.

In Chez-Fou (my last house) this space ended up being the closet in my office, but that tended to get warmer than I like. At one point, I moved them into the garage, but that tends to fill the insides with dust a bit faster (and actually get too cold in winter). So, I will be looking at a couple of spaces when we do the inspection (Which by the way, is scheduled for Sunday afternoon) and figuring out which will become the new server space.

Once I know where, then I just need to schedule a weekend (after closing, of course) with a second person to help with running the wire, and get the network cable run to the space. Ah, the fun of crawlspaces and fiberglass filled attics.

I forgot to add the floor plans!

2009-08-20T07:47:00.001-07:00

Here’s some more details about the house:

3,490 square foot (finished living space)
Built in 2004
10,062 square foot lot
4 Bedrooms upstairs
Bonus Room upstairs (This is the Theater)
Laundry room upstairs
Den downstairs
Formal Living room and Dining rooms on either side of the entry
Walk-in Pantry
Butler’s Pantry
All kitchen appliances are Viking appliances
Slab-Granite countertops
Built-in desk next to kitchen in breakfast nook
Fireplace in the Master bedroom/bathroom
Jetted tub in the Master bath
Double Shower in the Master bath
Structured wiring box for distribution of data and media (in laundry room)
Whole house has network drops
Security System
20’ Ceilings in the family room, with upstairs balcony overlooking it
Fireplace in family room
Several of the bedrooms are set up for wall-mount TVs, including Master bedroom
Several Skylights
Sprinkler system in yard
Huge patio with views of the valley, and some mountains on clear days
3 car garage (The third car area is likely to be a tech-workshop for me, along with a server room)
Lots of storage, including under the stairs.

We have Mutual Acceptance!

2009-08-19T16:32:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of neat things about this house, including:

Built-in Home Theater
Attic Fan to help cool the house
Dimmer switches throughout the house
Electric Awning on the Patio
80 gallon water heater
Ceiling fans in Master Bedroom and Family Room
Hall lighting that comes on when dark
InstaHot faucet in Kitchen
and much more..

Here’s more pictures:

Now begins the paperwork…

Another teaser picture…

2009-08-19T07:40:00.001-07:00

Well, the house saga continues, we’re expecting to hear back on our most recent counter-offer this afternoon, and we’re optimistic that it will either be acceptance or something we can accept ourselves.

Here’s another picture, with more to come if/when we reach agreement.

Some pictures to tease…

2009-08-18T17:34:00.001-07:00

As you probably know, we’re in negotiations for a new house. Here are a few pictures of the house we’re negotiating for, but these are only a tease. Far more will be available if we reach mutual agreement with the sellers.

The back door:

A portion of the back yard:

The accent tile in the kitchen:

Ah, slow down and remember the quiet times..

2009-08-07T19:05:00.001-07:00

Taken in Hawaii, May 8th, 2008.

Plans for this weekend:

2009-08-07T18:59:00.001-07:00

Clean the apartment
Extract remaining items from Chez-Fou(1)
Shopping for last items to leave in Chez-Fou(1)
Install Win7 RTM on my desktop (Gotta love that MSDN subscription)

editors note:

Chez-Fou(1) sold, and the sale closed on 8/17/2009