Update on our Outdoor Living Space

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Deck and patio projectYou may remember that we started exploring creating more outdoor living space here at Ramsgate Manor. The project is well underway and taking a bit longer than we had expected.

Construction started in early May. We were planning on being out of town for about 3 weeks—which presented the perfect opportunity to get most of the project complete (in our eyes). When we returned from our trip to San Francisco and Honolulu, the deck had been framed and the planks installed. Unfortunately, the railing was not installed and the patio was an after thought. Continue reading →

Shibby’s Samplings | June 24 edition

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Here are some posts from other places that I write, including opensource.com, southwestraleigh.com (Raleigh’s Creative District), and CityCamp Raleigh. It was an exciting few weeks that included an awesome CityCamp Raleigh event on June 3, 4, and 5th. Also, a key initiative for an economic development proposal was in front of City Council for Southwest Raleigh related to the efforts happening on southwestraleigh.com. It passed on June 21 by a 7-1 vote.

See what else I’ve been saying around the web over the last few weeks. Continue reading →

First Early Girls of the Season

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Early girlsThe garden is doing well. Despite being away for most of the month of May, my neighbors helped out and kept things watered and growing. Late last week, the first of green tomatoes started to turn a yellowish-orange. I had a suspiscion that by mid-June, the Early Girls would be ripe.

I could have picked the first of the tomatoes on Sunday, but thought it would be better to let them get a bit more vine ripe for the first batch. Continue reading →

DrupalCamp SC Session Notes: Making Drupal Admin Easier

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Roger Soper presented Making Drupal Admin Easier at DrupalCamp SC here at SouthEast LinuxFest in Spartanburg, SC. The purpose of the talk is to make our lives as Drupal Admins a little easier. At the same time, the modules that he presented also create a better user experience for people who enter content. Ultimately, it makes it a more pleasant experience for the users, saving time for admins and users.

Here are my notes from the session: Continue reading →

SouthEast LinuxFest 2011

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opensource.com at SELFI’m here at the SouthEast LinuxFest in Spartanburg, SC. I arrived late Thursday night, technically Friday morning, and spent most of Friday setting up the Red Hat / opensource.com table and networking with folks. Last night, opensource.com sponsored the SELF pre-party at Marriott 299 Sports Bar. We made a lot of great friends.

The conference kicked off today with a keynote by Continue reading →

Open source letter to Raleigh City Council

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Over on citycampral.org, I recently added a post asking to support Raleigh’s Open Source Directive. Here is the letter I sent to City Council today. By posting it here, I’ve essentially open sourced it. Feel free to cut/paste, re-use, re-purpose, or whatever. (Don’t forget to add your name.)

To: citycouncilors@raleighnc.gov

Subject: Please support the proposed open source resolution Continue reading →

2011 Guide to the Outer Banks

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Wright Brothers Memorial, KDH

Wright Brothers Memorial, KDH

So you want to head to the Outer Banks of North Carolina for a weekend getaway or a week away from it all? There are a variety of things to see and do, lots of great food to eat, and the beaches are some of the best in the US.

Whether it’s your first time or your twentieth, this post can help get you started to an awesome vacation. You’ll want to go back again and again. Let’s get started. Continue reading →

Arrival in San Francisco

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Yesterday, the family started a two-week adventure away from Raleigh. We left the house a little after noon and headed to RDU airport. We hopped on the FastPark&Relax after we got the same exact spot from last week when Merri Beth and I were in Boston. How crazy is that? While on the shuttle to the airport, we talked with Chief Dolan from the Raleigh Police Department who was also headed out to the Bay area. Continue reading →

Transparency in energy usage

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Solar panelsI’m pretty passionate about renewable energy. After I read Thomas L. Friedman’s “Hot, Flat, and Crowded” I was sold on higher prices for gas and putting solar panels on every roof in America. In fact, I was so eager to contribute, I had 18 solar panels installed on the roof of my home.

When I was checking out the energy infographic, “Interactive Transparency: America’s Energy, Where It’s From and How It’s Used” over at GOOD, I was re-energized on the topic of renewable and sustainable energy. Continue reading →