German restaurant - My new favorite lunch spot

One of my co-workers recently directed me to a new German restaurant here in Jacksonville that serves authentic German cuisine -- along with a full pizzeria menu for the less adventurous patrons. This is my new favorite lunchtime spot. The role of Jamie's favorite lunch spot was recently vacated when the local pizza-and-subs restaurant "Duo's" closed.

My new favorite is the "German Schnitzel Haus." The owner operated a restaurant in his home town of Kiel, Germany, for 27 years before coming to Jacksonville to start this one. He even brought over the furniture from the old restaurant. It definitely looks German.

The two dishes I had have been great. I tried the wiener schnitzel and the jagerschnitzel. Both delicious. The side dish was incredible -- Bratkartoffeln (slices of sautéed potatoes with bacon).

http://www.germanschnitzelhaus.com/

More Jude Antics

Jude is about 16 months old now. It's been a while since I wrote about what Jude's doing lately. So here's a brief list:

• recently started learning to take naps in crib
• spins around in circles for fun (self-taught)
• learns and repeats words on first hearing, if he's interested
• puts on cowboy hat whenever he has the chance
• pushes little tractor around house until parents get tired of helping him turn it at every corner
• puts his head on one's shoulder when asked for a "hug"
• predicts what's happening next (says "bye" when I'm getting ready to leave for work; points at my shoes and says "off" when I come back from walking the dog)
• plays with Maggie by picking up her toys or bones and giving them to her
• likes to grab or sit on Maggie's tail (we're trying to get him to stop)
• asks people to read books to him all the time
• holds phone toy next to his ear and says "hello" (sounds like "allo")
• kicks balls around the house like a soccer player (and like Maggie)
• sits on rocking horse by himself and rocks back and forth and says "riding" (sounds like "wy-deeen, wy-deeen, wy-deeen")
• says "riding" when sitting on rocking chair or glider, etc.
• for a while was saying "good morning" ("mor-neeen") as a general greeting
• indicates that his toy whale is "in the water" by pointing at the floor and saying "water" (sounds like "wah, wah, wah...")
• does same with toy boats
• corrects Maggie, when she picks up a sock or toy, by wagging his index finger at her and saying "No! No! No!" in a baby-harsh tone while he walks toward her or chases her around the house

He also learns new signs quickly, often combining the sign with the word. I put him on an ottoman and said he was on "top" as I patted the ottoman with both hands. Later in the day, he started saying "top" and using the same hand gesture I had used -- palms down, in a downward patting motion.

You can see he's really starting to learn and explore the world at an exciting pace. And, he's as delightfully happy and nice as ever.

Jude's sign language skills

Jude's been learning sign language, thanks to his mom and a class she takes him to each week. His favorite signs are for "fan," "hat," and "more." I think "fan" was the first one he really did well. He learned "more" pretty soon after that. He picked up "hat" after Grandpa Burga put a hat on him for some photos.

Charline figured out that Jude also started using "hat" to mean something like "let's play" -- because we always played with the hat for a while when he used his sign. "More" also has a broader meaning, because he uses it to say "food" or "let's eat". That makes good sense, because he mainly saw us using the sign when he was eating. Of course, we're trying to show him the sign for "eat" too, but as long as we understand him, we're not too worried about which sign he uses.

It really was exciting for Jude, and for Charline and me, when he started using his signs. We could see how happy he was every time he communicated with someone. It seemed to really open up a new world for him.

Even before he used any sign language, he showed that same excitement over the ability to point at things. He discovered that people could understand that he wanted to play with something or see something up close, or that he just liked something. The other communication step that he really enjoyed was learning to clap his hands. He saw how people laughed and smiled when he did that -- and that made him laugh too.

Now that I think about it, I suppose smiling and laughing was one of the earliest steps in learning that he could communicate with people. He's very good at smiling and laughing. Probably better than anyone I know.

How to keep an eye on your elected officials

Here's a great site for finding out who represents you in the U.S. federal government, watching their voting record, and contacting them to straighten them out.

www.congress.org

For example, you can see who represents the people of Springfield, in Jacksonville, Florida.

Rotavirus strikes the Bargers

Last week, Charline caught the very pesky rotavirus while babysitting for a one-year-old child of some friends. They didn't know he was sick when they dropped him off, but it soon became apparent. A pediatrician diagnosed it as rotavirus.

So, I stayed home Thursday and Friday to take care of Jude and Charline. Fortunately, Jude never got sick. By Saturday, Charline was feeling normal again. Of course, that's when I came down with the bug. Then, I spent the whole weekend in bed.

Rotavirus was a pretty horendous experience. I don't recommend it. I can only imagine how bad a one-year-old child would feel, if afflicted with this abomination. It apparently much worse for children, as you would guess.

rotavirus explained on Wikipedia

Jude does flips (sort of)

Today I sat down at the computer with Jude in my lap and he seemed really interested in the keyboard, so I figured I'd open Notepad and let him bang away at it for a few seconds to see what he could come up with. If it started to look like the opening lines of Macbeth, I might let him continue.

Well, after less than two seconds, he had somehow hit exactly the right keystroke combinations to do something that I did not even know was possible. He turned everything on my monitor's display upside-down. Everything. The background. The icons. The taskbar. Every image and word. Even the mouse pointer was upside-down, so that it moved in exactly the opposite direction one would expect.

Needless to say, it was fun trying to operate the mouse and read the screen to correct the situation. Fortunately, I stumbled on the solution right away. (My display software, it turns out, has a feature that lets you "rotate" the display 180 degrees.)

So, now I'm wondering if there is a simple utility to put a Windows computer into "child" mode. I'm sure there is. I need to look into that someday.

Why I love Chick-fil-A

How many fast food joints have managers who come to your table and offer to refill your drink and replace your fries with some fresh, hot ones (at no charge)? That's what happened today when I ate lunch at my local Chick-fil-A. I was stunned. I declined the offer. But, as I was leaving, that same manager took my tray and offered again to refill my drink. This time, I accepted.

I had already been impressed with the place before I witnessed the great service. When I came in, I saw lots of happy children playing in the kids area at the front, where I also heard some "top 40" music playing over the sound system. I thought, "that's nice, but I was hoping for a more relaxing environment." I got my order (served so quickly I was amazed) and headed toward the back of the place.

Here's the cool thing. They had different music playing in the back of the restaurant. It was soothing and quiet -- exactly what I wanted. I have to assume they had an architect or interior design expert put a lot of thought into this. They realized that the people who headed to that area were trying to get away from the noisy Kid's Zone, so they adapted the music accordingly. Perfect.

Of course, the food was pretty tasty too. Plus, they have those cool cow mascots.

Jude's language

People think Jude can't talk yet. Of course, that just means they aren't speaking his language. Here are some of his favorite words:

• prego (one of his first; not the sauce brand, or is it?)
• wiggew
• boom (often used as "boom-boom-boom")
• waggew

There are plenty more, but these are the ones that I've been able to transcribe so far.

Tibetan Buddhist Monks in Jacksonville

Charline and I had the privilege of meeting some very nice Tibetan Buddhist monks from India this weekend. They are on an awareness-raising, money-raising trip around the world, as they are wont to do. (They want the world to put pressure on China to allow Tibetans to have religious freedom, for example.) They put on a great show of dancing and singing/chanting - and even a crazy and fun form of "debating" - at FCCJ. It was wonderful.

We also saw the nearly finished sand mandala they've been working on all week. Spectacular stuff. Built one grain of sand at a time.

If only I could attain a small portion of the serenity and joy those guys seem to have. That would be nice. But, I'd probably have to watch less television. I think Buddha said something about less TV, didn't he?

Sand Mandala Photos

Jude and Charline on TV

Jude and Charline were on the local television news. You can see the story on the First Coast News web site. This was quite a coup after already being featured in a full-page photo feature on the city newspaper (see entry about that below).

The TV news item was a nice piece about the stroller fitness classes Charline attends near the beach. Charline will soon be teaching these "Strollerjize" classes in the San Marco area. You can read about that on her new web site, www.Pramenade.com.

They showed Jude in his stroller and Charline doing her exercises, along with a few other moms who were at the class. The story ran early Tuesday morning, then again, in a slightly different version, Tuesday evening.

And this is a major news program in Jacksonville. It runs on both the ABC and NBC affiliate stations, due a strange arrangement in Jacksonville. And hardly anyone watches the local news on the CBS and FOX affiliate stations. The only real competition is an independent station (Channel 4, WJXT).

Mission Stardust: Jamie in Space

Sunday morning, January 15, the NASA spacecraft Stardust will return to Earth after a seven-year, three-billion-mile mission to collect -- you guessed it -- star dust. (You'll be seeing this in the news, if you haven't already.) And the name "James D. Barger" has been along for the ride the entire time. That name, along with many others, was etched into two microchips that were placed aboard the spacecraft while it was being assembled, way back in 1997. You can read the details about how that happened on the NASA web site.

The craft is expected to bring back particles from a comet and from outside our solar system. These particles will provide new insights into how the solar system, and everything in it, was formed.

See "James D. Barger" on the Stardust craft

National Geographic explains the Stardust story

NASA's Official "Where is Stardust now?" Page

NASA's Official Stardust Photo Gallery

Map of the Landing Site

Google News search for NASA Stardust stories

Jude is on the move

Jude has been crawling around like crazy ever since he figured out how, on Christmas Day, at grandparents-Bargers' house. Now Charline and I have a whole new set of challenges to keep him from getting into trouble. But, it's wonderful to see him so happy and having so much fun. He really seems excited about his new ability.

My Fantasy Football Record

Yahoo! now provides a way for everyone to see how my fantasy football record is shaping up. You can see my whole three year profile. Here's the link:

Jamie's Yahoo! Fantasy Football Profile
http://profiles.sports.yahoo.com/jamiebarger

Gas main breaks in our neighborhood

We had a little excitement in our neighborhood recently when a main gas line broke during some construction a few blocks directly east of our house. It was quite an event. The city evacuated 20 square blocks. The Red Cross swooped in with buses to help people who did not have cars. The news crews reported throughout the night. The fire department devoted all their resources to shutting down the leak and clamping off the pipes. The gas company did what they could to avoid an explosion that would lead to the Great Fire of 2005.

Charline found out about it right away when Dad called her to tell her the news. I think he heard it on the radio. She could smell the gas already, so she took Jude and Maggie (the dog) to my parents house in Fruit Cove, south of Jacksonville.

We returned home the next day and everything was fine. The fire department and the gas company avoided a disaster. The neighborhood was intact. All is well.

Jax Gas Main Breaks: from First Coast News
... or ...
Jax Gas Main Breaks: from Yahoo! News

Jude's first teeth

Jude is finally getting some teeth. Charline noticed a couple days ago that Jude has two teeth coming in. At eight months old, it's about time. I was starting to worry.

While I'm on the subject of the kid... We need to get some new photos up on our Kodak site again soon. We've been slacking. I haven't even posted anything on the Flickr site in quite a while, and that's really easy to do. Maybe this weekend. We've just been so busy, with the extra time I'm putting in at work, and some small extra projects at home... But, we'll get on the ball.

Topamax: It is working. Goodbye Inderal. (but still more side effects)

I'm still at 100 mg. per day (50 morning, 50 evening), but now I'm sure it's working. One bit of news: my doc now has me ratcheting down my old dose of Inderal, so I can get off that stuff. The theory is I won't be needing the Inderal anymore. I'll be totally dependent on the Topamax instead. :-) I'm gradually reducing the Inderal, using 40 mg. tablets. I had been on a daily dose of 120 mg.

The side effects of the Topamax are mildly annoying. The fumbling for words and saying the wrong words is just not like me and it is embarrassing. It's also not like me to leave out letters and misspell words so often when writing. Plus... Does Topamax mess with motor skills, like hand-eye coordination? I think I it does. I keep dropping things, like pens and keys. I dropped my truck keys and broke the key fob this morning, which was really aggravating, because I then could not turn off the alarm to start the vehicle. But, at least the stress did not trigger a headache, like it would have in the past. (Eventually, I got the fob back together, sort of, and got on the road.)

The most precise Google search EVER

I just encountered the most precise Google search EVER. I put in my search term -- the name of a file that appeared in an error related to some programming that I'm doing -- and I got exactly one result from Google. Did you hear me? ONE result! Not one million. Not one thousand one hundred and one. Just ONE! And it was exactly what I was looking for. It was a discussion of the exact error I was receiving, in the exact circumstances under which I generated it. Plus, it was being discussed on a respectable forum. Amazing!

See the search results for yourself...
The most precise Google search ever

Who I'd invite to dinner

Charline recently asked me who'd I'd invite to my ideal dinner party (I think this was inspired by a recent edition of Oprah, in which O posed this classic question to George Clooney). So, with no further ado, here are the five people I'd invite, if I were guaranteed they'd accept and show up -- listed in no particular order:

• Former U.S. president Bill Clinton
• Debt-relief champion and rock star extraordinaire Bono
• His Holiness The Dalai Lama
• The Daily Show host Jon Stewart
• Comic, political scholar/author, radio host Al Franken

That's a pretty well-rounded list, I think. A semi-retired politician, a rock-star who has turned into a global economics leader, one of the most beloved religious figures of all time, one of the most populare entertainers in America (who has also become the main source of news for young adults), and, finally, a man who has evolved from Harvard graduate to Saturday Night Live writer to political scholar and author to wildly successful radio host.

Now, I just hope they all like barbecued ribs.

Where were the Bargers?

Have you ever wondered where the Bargers were in the 1920s? Well, now you can see a graphic representation of that very thing...



So, now you know. You're welcome.

My own ancestors were right there in that dark Pennsylvania patch in 1920. Right in the middle of Pennsylvania, actually. Some of my relatives are still there. It's a nice place. Maybe I'll move there someday. They have good weather and nice rolling hills and mountains.

Topamax: I think it's working!

I'm on a regular dose of 100 mg. per day now -- 50 in the morning and 50 at night -- and I think it's working. My headaches are no longer a constant droning ordeal. I'm still getting them a few times per week, but at least it's not all day long, every day, like it was through most of the summer.

The respite might be more due to a regular sleep pattern than the Topamax though. Charline is doing all the Jude work and is letting me sleep straight through every night. That made an immediate, substantial difference. It was like night and day, if you'll excuse the pun. Suddenly, I was able to think and work and function almost normally again.

Another big factor is the weather. The ungodly humidity and heat finally lifted from Jacksonville in mid-October, as it always does at this time of year -- allowing life to return to normal until about March, when the oppressive temperatures and rain and dampness and heaviness of air will descend on us again. When the weather changed for the better, last Friday, it was amazing. I felt like a completely different person. My head was clear. The pain was gone. The pressure was gone. I felt like I was on vacation.

So, with more Topamax, more sleep, and a change of season, I have quite a bit of relief from the migraines. That's all for now.

The next hot housing markets - Jacksonville makes the list

My home town of Jacksonville makes the list of the next hot housing markets, according to Liz Pulliam Weston of MSN Money.

The list is described as "latecomers to the real-estate party but where values have recently zoomed." It's good to see Jax continuing to show up on these round-ups. Of course, if the entire market nose-dives, maybe nobody will be safe. But, you'd like to think you're in one of these "bargain" cities, rather than one that's overvalued already.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Liz!

San Marco Heat errr.. Art Festival

Charline, Jude, our dog Maggie, my parents and I went to the San Marco Art Festival this Sunday. It was a nice little event. Pretty typical for a Jacksonville arts and crafts festival, in my experience. Just the right amount of good paintings, sculptures, photos and whatnot.

There was even a strange, crazy guy in a full pink unitard (?) on a high unicycle zooming around the area singing some kind of song about himself. I think he called himself the "pink man." Every time Maggie saw him, she went nuts and started barking angrily. People seemed to think that was funny. It was.

Maggie was the belle of the ball. She got a lot of attention from kids and adults alike. Plenty of compliments and questions and pats on the head. I walked her all around the San Marco plaza, trying to keep her in the shade and in the breezy areas as much as possible. She got water in a bowl from the waiter at the restaurant where we ate at a patio table. A vendor poured some water in a bowl for her also. And, she drank out of a fountain too. She got to see and bark at several other dogs during the day. After she got hot and tired, she calmed down a bit.

The ultra-muggy Florida heat and humidity was the big downside to the whole day. Maggie, with her double-layered coat, was miserable in the heat if we walked too long and I felt almost as lousy.

I cannot wait for this summer to end. And, yes, I do say that every day of every summer. I start saying it around March 1 and don't stop until about October 15, by my best estimate.

In the longer-term picture, I cannot wait for the day that we can move out of the god-forsaken south and into a more humane climate where I don't have migraine headaches triggered by heat and humidity during three quarters of the year. Every time I have travelled to a colder, drier climate, at any time of year, in any weather -- in other words, any time I've left the south -- I have loved the weather and felt much better.

Autumn is just around the corner and it won't be one day too soon. (On another topic... why doesn't anyone use the term "autumn" anymore?)

Topamax: 50 mg. and Rising

I'm up to 50mg per day now, and plan to increase the dosage another notch soon, maybe this weekend. It does seem that the Topamax is decreasing the frequency of my headaches. I wish I had kept a strict log, but I've never been one to do that. It would be far too much hassle -- especially considering how often I was getting them.

The side effects seem to have dropped off a bit. I think that was due to some kind of tolerance or adaptation effect. Some people talk about it as if increasing the dose in gets rid of the side effects, but I think I dispelled that myth by staying at 25 mg. for far longer than I was supposed to. Some minor side effects came and went with no change in dosage.

Anyway... I'll post more when I increase the dosage again.

Back in Jax

I'm back from my trip to D.C., for a class on usability research. Washington was much cooler than Jax, which made for a nice visit. I walked around plenty in the evenings, doing my siteseeing thing and taking dozens of photos.

View my Washington D.C. photos on Flickr

I could tell the security level was higher than usual in D.C. There were a lot of cops around, especially on the subway, which I rode a couple times each day. I sure wish we had a subway in Jax. It would make life a lot easier.

It was a nice surprise to see that some of the Smithsonian Institute museums had extended hours for the summer. Some open until 6:30 (Museum of American History) and some until 7:30 (Museum of Natural History). It was also good to see that the Washington Monument was open again. It was closed for renovation, or some such thing, the last time I was there. The views of the town from the base of the monument are beautiful.

I visited the Jefferson Memorial at sunset and took some photos over there. If it weren't for some confounded scaffolding they had up, those photos would be perfect. It's always something.

Topamax: Day X+ (side effects noted)

Lately, my headaches seem to be abating slightly. And, I have noticed some very slight side effects. Here's what I've noted so far:

Tingling
Yesterday, I felt very noticeable tingling in my face for several hours while I was at work (I'm back in Jax after my trip to D.C.).

Memory Tricks
I have a peristent sense of everything sort of reminding me of things that happened about 15 years ago, even though there is no literal connection. Maybe this would be considered a very slight case of lingering déjà vu?

Lousy Cola Taste
Another expected side effect: cola has started to lose its appeal. I normally love the taste of Dr Pepper or Mr. Pibb. Now, every soda/cola/pop/Coke I drink, including my cherished Dr Pepper, tastes like something's just a little "off." My best analysis is that the fruity flavor is enhanced and the carbonation sensation is minimized relative to the flavor sensation. Yes. I just took another sip and that is definitely my verdict at this point. Subdued carbonation feel and amplified sweetness/fruitiness. End result: lousy taste.

These side effects are happening in spite of the fact that I've been sticking to a meager 25 mg. of Topamax daily, even though I'm past the first week and should, therefore, be taking more than that each day. I will increase the dose soon. The main reason I've delayed is that I keep missing a dose here and there. I want to get into a consistent routine.