The Last Month

It's been over a month since my last update, but since then, I've moved over to the CRJ700 / CRJ900 making an extra $1.00 for flying 20-26 more passengers while operating an aircraft approximately 20,000 pounds heavier.   It's been such a great aircraft but the mere fact that I'm flying something new and learning again keeps me grounded.

I've also started up another venture called "peak interest" so make sure to visit the website.  You can also follow @whatspyi on twitter for more up-to-date messages and happenings.  I've always wanted to start a podcast, so I finally found someone I can jibe with back and forth for countless hours and "peak interest" is the culmination of our efforts.  Beyond being a work in progress, it's rough on many edges, but fine tuning it is something that will keep me busy throughout the next few weeks.  I'm sitting here at Starbucks in Rancho Penasquitos and within the first 40 minutes, I've already added a few widgets to the new Thesis theme that I deployed a couple of days ago.  I know it's dangerous to go live right away with kinks, but since we're growing, I'm sure you wouldn't mind growing with us.

If you haven't already, listen to our podcast on www.whatspyi.com or subscribe on iTunes via this link (opens iTunes).

what's peaking your interest?

Review: Contour Showcase for the iPhone 3G

It's about time that I'm able to finally review the Contour Showcase for the iPhone 3G.  I've been flying around the Eastern Seaboard without a case on mi iPhone blanco for the last month and half ever since Contour replied to my inquiry that they were in fact releasing a better case.  So, without further adieu, I bring you some photos.  Staying true to all other Contour products, the packaging remains the same except for name of the product on the lower left hand corner of the box.  It's definitely a little confusing when actually trying to find the right case in the Apple store when all the Contour cases are hanging in a vertical configuration with all the same black boxes.

The case comes with a side clip for those tools like me that like to have their pockets free from clutter.  You can clip the device to the holster either face in or face out, your choice.  If I did carry the phone in my pocket, I would have a lot of scratches on the device, so it definitely adds to the longevity of the device.  You can configure the clip at any angle, whether you like it horizontal along your hip, perpendicular or prefer some type of cowboy angle.  The releasing from the hip clip is a little more tricky and sometimes it feels like you need to use two hands to release it but you get the hang of it after a while.  It's just a little tight when you first start using it.

The case itself opens from the top with ease but shuts securely around the device.  The iPhone drops in from the top and fits snugly into the bottom fourth of the case leaving the bottom open to allow syncing with a cable.  Since I don't have the newest dock, I'm not sure if it will allow for dock usage, but I'll update this soon when I try it at the store.  The case itself allow access to all the side buttons and headset jack without any obstruction while the top sleep button is covered but easy to trigger.  You won't even know that it is covered as the response is great compared to other cases.

The front of the Showcase protects the top quarter of the iPhone 3G leaving an opening for the speaker while the bottom quarter protects the area around the Home button.  The Showcase has a clear back shouting out to the public the version of device that you own.

Conclusion: The Contour Showcase is the must have case for the iPhone 3G due to the premium construction of the molding.  "Starting with a base chassis of light weight (dual injected) polycarbonate, each Showcase is then bordered in a supple rubber finish."  This provides for a good shock absorber for those clumsy moments and trust me, you'll want the extra insurance.  It was a long time waiting and after going through 4 different cases, I'm glad that I was finally able to get my hands on one while having an overnight in Stamford, Connecticut.

Pick one up online at Contour's Website or at your local Apple Retail Store.  The stores haven't been able to keep a steady stock on these cases, so I'd call in advance.  Enjoy! rating: Perfect 10

The last picture below just show how much of a tool I am with the hip clip situate horizontally along my waist.

Interesting Tidbits

Surfing around the web today, I came across a couple of interesting sites. 

Health: Avoid These 9 Worst Food in America by Lifehacker

It's always just interesting to read about the various foods that are out on the market.  One of my friends recommended that I check out the Men's Health's website that is dedicated to what to eat and what not to eat conveniently called, "Eat This, Not That!"  It has quite a few interesting comparisons.  One that I was a little shocked by was the listing of 15 Secret Restaurant Swaps where they compared the McDonald's Big Mac to the Burger King Whopped with Cheese.  Guess what?  You're better off eating at McDonald's.  (I'm not sure if that's with or without the secret sauce but if you are trying to lose some weight, I'm sure that you are better off without it.)  Oh yeah, Chick-fil-A was the only A+ on their list of fast food chains being that they don't have any one sandwich cross the 500 calorie mark.  That's of course if you don't add on the awesome tasting special honey BBQ sauce on top of your Chargrilled Chicken Club with bacon included...my personal favorite!

Another neat thing that I found after getting annoyed by not being able to read the Wall Street Articles in their entirety was a Firefox add-on that enables you to spoof a website such as digg.com.  Directions and more details can be found at the link provided below.  Now, I'm able to peruse the WSJ without having to pay!!!   I just cut and pasted the directions here.  You could just also skip it and go directly the the link below for the full article. 

Remember that the Journal is set up to disarm its pay gate if it thinks you're coming from Google News or Digg. In order to get free access, then, you've got to convince the Journal that you've clicked on a link on one of those sites. How to do that?

The technical name for this is "referer spoofing" (with the misspelling). Spoofing is an easy thing to pull off in Firefox -- all you've got to do is download this add-on, refspoof.

Now follow these steps:

• Go to WSJ.com.
• In the refspoof toolbar's "spoof:" field, type "digg.com."
• Also in the refspoof toolbar, click the R icon, and select "static referrer."
• That's it. Click around the site; the WSJ thinks each click is coming from Digg. The WSJ is now yours for free!

Here's the link that I promised if you want to read the whole article. 

The Wall Street Journal's Web site is already (secretly) free by Machinist at Salon.com

Leave a comment below on what are some of your interesting sites for the day!

Importing DONE!!!

It's 5:30AM... for everyone that wanted me to convert and be able to peruse through the archives of my travels beginning in 2005, there you have it.  Everything from all the trelijah picture blogs to my CAPT experience, luxembourg, Focus Air and now ASA, it's all here. 

The only problem that I had was the massive emails that were sent out to my subscribers.  I apologize to you all and  I promise that I'll create a better plan the next time I migrate. 

I have a lot of work to do in tagging and categorizing my past posts, and that goes too for the new phonenews.com.  Oh its going to be a legendary week!

Smooth Beginnings in 2008

My first landing of 2008 was so awesome, I didn't even know that I was on the ground.  I can't say that the approach was handsome, but I got the plane down and safe while greasing the runway.  Why do FOs care about this kind of stuff?  I have no idea but I think that 1) it might be the fact that we aren't that grumpy yet being 'stuck' in this industry 2) we still care just a little or 3) we're just nerds and its fun.  Tomorrow should hopefully prove to be a lot prettier in terms of flying a nice approach but either than that, I'm excited for my career in 2008.  It's going to be a good one with good schedules, more pay coupled with ludicrous expensive loan payments and a good old time with family being that I'll be home more often.  I'm definitely looking forward to every minute of it. 

I think that I'm settled one way or another with my template, so now I'll just see to adjusting certain things here and there.  I'm still debating much of what I want to write about in this personal blog being that I really just like writing about everything.  From my own life stories to tech news and flying.  I hate being all over the place but maybe that's what makes this website ME!

Also of note, PhoneNews.com is or should be completing a redesign as we speak and being that I haven't contributed as much as I would have liked in the month of December, January is looking up to me reporting full time on my days off and whenever I can while I'm stuck at a hotel in some random city. 

Fort Wayne Overnight / Discover kwiry

Well, with Fort Wayne being one of my favorite overnights in the ASA network, I was unable to hit up the 412 Club as we came in rather late.  I really wasn't that disappointed but I did have work to do such as bid for my January schedule.  I'm now #213 on the CRJ 200 with another 262 first officers behind me.  It's definitely kind of ridiculous after only being here for just under 1 year.  (Anniversary date = 27 December 2007)  I still won't necessarily get the choice of a premium line, but I'm hope that it works out.  I might end up heading out to the Gyro place just behind the Fort Wayne Hilton Convention Center Hotel.  It's close proximity to places that I know of and like make it a premium choice for destination but the biggest draw back of this overnight is the hotel where the Internet registers at 128K speeds.  It's record slow speeds make it too painful to browse the web sometimes. 

Not much has been done on the side of my other project, but of note comes the introduction of kwiry.com  I just started one today but its features are rather interesting.  First, you send a text to your profile, for instance a reminder of the song that you just heard or the artist, and then it shows up in your kwiry homepage.  You then are introduced to multiple links regarding the txt that you sent to yourself from web searches, favorites and even shopping.  It's basically an expanded post-it / sticky type deal but online.  It's quite useful really.  You should check it out and add me to your friend list. [my kwiry page]  

Blogging Contests

I've never really believed in actually tried any of these "Leave a Comment" and win type deals, but a friend of mine just won, so I thought that I might give it a try.  It's one of those things that you think could never happen until you know someone that has won.  It's definitely kind of a cool gig and I wish that I could have some random give aways.  Maybe just sending out my old DVDs or something like that.  =)  Anyways, head over to http://biglakersfan.blogspot.com/2007/12/great-runs-athletics-shoes-giveaway.html if you want to give it a try.  There are many others out there, but I'll leave it up to you to find the those ones.  This is just one of the few that I thought was actually worth while. 

I still don't know if there is any catch to these such as a harvesting bot for emails and adresses, but so far, its been all good.  Go check it out!

Traffic

My website has gotten a tremendous influx of traffic ever since it was added to stumbleupon and tagged as "aviation related."  I'm ecstatic but the help.  It can all be attributed back to the comments that I left about the Sorapot Tea Pot designed by Joey Roth as he's the one who added my website to stumbleupon.  Thanks Joey! I've also gotten hits from the stories that I have been writing in my experiences flying.  It's just nice to see the influx. 

Sorapot - A Must for Tea Enthusiasts

For anyone that is drinking tea, wants to start drinking tea or for anyone that is even slightly interested in the world of teas, you can jump start your hobby with this new tea pot designed by artist Joey Roth.  After almost a full year of constant retooling, Joey Roth has finalized the design and has made the Sorapot available with an initial run of 300 pots.  There's not much else that you can say about the pot except for the fact that its beautiful!  It's something that you can display, converse about and even watch as your tea leaves unfurl in the glass tube.  Not ever has tea been brewed this elegantly.  Some people are already referring to this pot as the one that would have been if designed by apple.  What do you guys think?

Below is a picture of the final design for the Sorapot. 

Pre-order yours now! / Portfolio pictures

Bird Guts

There is an interesting photo slide show posted on Airline Pilot Central.  You should definitely check it out and see what a bird can actually do to an aircraft on takeoff or landing.  For that matter, it can happen anytime an aircraft is cruising at the birds flight level.  It's pretty ridiculous!  Now serving hot meals on today's flight, fresh flock of geese.  Served as is. 

Online TV Viewing

Well, since flying, I've been missing quite a few of my shows broadcast on live TV, so I am reduced to watching them on my friend's Tivo / DVR, or via online at their perspective website.  Due to the Writer's Guild Strike, I've noticed that most of the shows I watch are slowly going into replay status.  It's definitely a good thing for me so that I don't waste more time being a human wasteland but back to the subject at hand.  I can't watch a single episode without commercials now.  I know that's how they are paid with ad revenue, but its starting to get annoying that you have to stream that crap.  It only adds a minute or three, but on the DVR, its all good.  Better yet, you can probably grab them off some torrent sites and watch a show thoroughly without interruption.  I really don't mind an opening commercial and maybe ending one, but have two in the middle of one break, its just as bad now.  I've gotten so use to fast forwarding them that when one is on, I end up browsing a website, researching some article or finding something to eat.  There are so many now whether on live TV or online, you just can't get away from them.  You got them on YouTube / Google Video, every page you view, its just all over the place.  I was just rather surprised that I ran into more than just one while catching up the latest episode of The Office. 

Oh yeah, I don't think that I posted the links to the World of Warcraft Commercials so head over there now and watch Mr. T and William Shatner share their characters with you!

[Warcraft Commercials via Gizmodo via Blizzard]

BlogRush, Twitter and trelijah and some little icons

I just got approved to add the little Blog Rush Widget on my 3'rd column.  It's pretty cool the way that it works because it sends me hits from all over from other people's blogs that have had it approved on their site as well.  I just thought that adding it should provide a little bit of fun for others on my site.  Click on someone else's and check it out.  I'm not necessarily trying to drive traffic to my website, but more hits would be nice. 

I also just installed the Twitter Tools Wordpress Plug-in from Alex King.  I'm trying it out just for a little bit to see how well it works because it just seemed easier than adding the whole twitter thing to my sidebar.  I definitely don't want too many things there, but if you can't find it already, its on top, next to the title.  I decided that I would rather have a rolling type subject / blog title than just some random one that wasn't creative.  So, read away and refresh.  I'm able to update my 'status' from my mobile phone so I'll get back to doing that. 

I hate that every time I change my links, my photos stop working or whatever, but I'm going to trash the entire trelijah blog and just recreate it under the same name.  All the archives don't work and I think that it's about time that I get it going again.  Blogger seems to have it best so that I can upload pictures straight up from my phone to the blog.  I haven't found a suitable WordPress deal yet and I'll try looking once again so that maybe I could just add it to the top of my webpage rahter than juts making it a link.  But, stay tuned.  I'll have it up shortly.  It is already available at http://www.elijahnicolas.com/trelijah but nothing is there really. 

I also thought that I could had some little widget for some neat icons on the bottom of each of my posts.  It just looks nice, but it also serves as a portal so that you can easily "socially bookmark" my website (link it to other websites, etc. like digg, de.lirio.us, technorati, stumbleupon, etc.  I was bored, and it looks cool so just leave it alone!  It's call Share This! and it works seamlessly so far. 

I know that I have a lot of junk now, but it still loads quicker and I like it better than "the battle" layout.  I'm still making adjustments and stuff, but just have some patience.

Flying on the Day After Thanksgiving

The flight to Montgomery, AL was pretty packed but for a change, it was nice to walk in a terminal without physically running into people left and right.  I definitely understand that a full terminal is a good one, but sometimes it just gets too ridiculous!  You have to wonder if fire marshals approve of some of the airport terminals with all the record breaking passenger traveling that is being these days.

It was also particularly pleasant because I got the chance to grab dinner without having to wait in a line for more than 10 minutes at one of the busiest restaurants.  I got to eat it my chicken salad, french roll and banana nut muffin top from Atlanta Bread Company (all for just under $4.00 --> a trade secret of regional pilots) right next to my gate and just relax.

I only had two legs today and the last one from Atlanta to Montgomery was quick being only a 27 minute flight.  Taking off to the west and landing to the west, it all just makes for a nice way to end the work day.  Why couldn't this ever be on the 4th day of my trip!?

It's my 5th year anniversary with Adelle!  Happy Anniversary babe!  Time definitely has gone by fast huh!?  Sorry I couldn't be there, but Christmas and New Year's this year will top last years for sure!

Here's a picture of us on Halloween 2002!  We weren't actually going out yet, but this was the beginning of it all! Who knew back then that I would end up a pilot?

Oh yeah...there's a really cool website too that is a basic dictionary but it serves the words in record lightning speed!  Check it out at http://definr.com/ and try typing in anything!  It's awesome!