Danny's Stuff

Phone switch...

2011-04-10T08:57:00.003-05:00

Well, I made a decision about my next phone and I'm making the switch from an iPhone to Android. I feel I did my fair share of research and determined it was time for a switch (I do have a 30 day trial period, so not too much risk!).

Blackberry - this was immediately off the list of consideration and I truly don't understand how anyone would willingly choose it over any of the other choices on the market. And yes, I have a Blackberry Bold for work, so I feel I know what I'm talking about.
Windows Phone - made a strong run at the title, but it seems there are so few people with them (I only know one, and he works for Microsoft) I didn't want to be a trailblazer. I think the OS is slick and I think once Nokia gets WP integrated into their lineup it will help with their market penetration and Apps and updates will make it a great phone. That's probably a couple of years off though...
iPhone - my first smartphone. I've had it for about 3 years and it has been a great phone. It's also the longest I've ever had a phone. I've had my complaints with it through the years and some of my complaints haven't been addressed with the iOS4 (ie: no over the air updates, music is synced with iTunes, email client is average, no integration between email and calendar) I know what the iPhone has to offer, but I'm not a "fanboy" so I won't blindly take what Cupertino has to offer as the best on the market.
Android - well, I've been looking at Android since it was offered. I like the open nature of the OS and the integration with Google was the last tipping point. I use Google for all of my personal computing needs and the way it's all tied together in the phone seems like it is going to work best for me. I decided on the Motorola Atrix 4G from At&t. http://www.motorola.com/Consumers/US-EN/Consumer-Product-and-Services/Mobile-Phones/Motorola-ATRIX-US-EN

It should be here tomorrow, so I'm sure I'll spend most of my day configuring it.

BBB_10

2010-10-03T13:43:00.007-05:00

Bikes, Blues and BBQ is in the books for 2010. We didn't stay in Fayetteville this year so we rode over from Eureka Springs on Saturday. There were TONS of bikes that we were passing, probably headed over to Eureaka. Next year, I'm going to try to get something in Fayetteville and maybe take off work on Friday.

We checked out a lot of the vendor at Baum Stadium. Ultimate seats was there and they had their lineup displayed that allowed you to sit on them. I sat on the Stratoliner one and it lives up to the hype. They just charge a lot....maybe someday.. ;)

It was Corvette Weekend in Eureka this week, but I wasn't too interested in them. While they are fun to look at, the bikes had my interest!

Tough Game

2010-09-26T09:54:00.004-05:00

My Razorbacks played a good game yesterday against the #1 Alabama Crimson Tide. We certainly could have played better, but Alabama probably could have too. All in all, I'll accept the result but remain disappointed we couldn't pull out the Win. A timely bye week will help us prepare for A&M on 10/9. Went to the game with a good group of friends, had fun tailgating before the game and was very pleased with the amazing amount of Razorback fans, it was packed!!

Heather's dad came in yesterday and will be staying for a couple of weeks. Bikes, Blues and BBQ starts on Wednesday....it's going to be a full week!!

Tommy want wingy....

2009-09-02T21:17:00.004-05:00

Working on some wings for the weekend....so far I have the dry rub on them and they will get the smoke tomorrow....stay tuned....

Started smoking around 4:30.....

I took them off around 7:00 and will "package" them up for their last stages. Fry them for about 40 seconds to a minute and then they go for a spin in the sauce....

New Turf at Razorback Stadium

2009-08-01T21:05:00.005-05:00

Road the bike over to Fayetteville last weekend and went by Razorback stadium to check out the new "field turf"....looks like grass to me!!

Mini Road Trip

2009-08-01T20:54:00.006-05:00

Ok, so for about....jeez....8 weeks I guess... Caleb has been talking about an Ostrich Egg that we saw at the Promised Land Zoo. Well, he has been saving up his money and we made a road trip over to get the "prized" possession.

The "Welcome Party" at the entrance to the PL Zoo....

Happy 4th of July!!

2009-07-04T12:31:00.003-05:00

Wishing everyone a happy 4th of July!!! Be safe!

We went to Branson on Friday for the fireworks at the Landing. It was packed!! I have never seen that many people there. Went ending up going to the Candlestick Inn. It is a restaurant on the bluff overlooking Lake Taneycomo and the Branson Landing. We met with Nichole and Brandon for dinner and then watched the fireworks after dinner from outside the restaurant. It was nice to watch them at that location overlooking the Landing and all of the schmos down there packed in like sardines.

Headed to the fireworks stand today and then watching the Harrison show tonight.

Father's Day Bike Ride

2009-06-21T21:15:00.006-05:00

Went on a ride this evening down Hwy 7 to Jasper and then over to Ponca and then back Hwy 43 into Harrison. i stopped a couple of places and snapped some pictures. I also saw a couple of baby elk just outside of Ponca, but I wasn't in a position to stop and get any pics. It was a nice ending to a relaxing day.

Father's Day

2009-06-21T14:58:00.003-05:00

Happy Father's Day to all of the dad's out there today.....

I spent most of the early afternoon doing yardwork which gave me some time to remember all of the great things about my dad. This is the first Father's Day without him, and I think about and miss him each day. I try to do things in my life that I think would make him proud or laugh. I believe he was an excellent role model for me and I feel blessed to have him as a dad...

Blues Fest

2009-06-05T20:28:00.002-05:00

Heather and I went over to Eureka Springs for a few hours last weekend for Blues Fest. Caleb was spending the time with Britney so we thought we would take a ride on the bike. BJ and Sara were over there too so we met up with them, had lunch, walked around for a bit and then headed back to H-town.

Cabana Banana???

2009-05-31T09:31:00.005-05:00

Growing up in the early 80s we had a boat. There are only a few things I remember about this boat..

1) It was yellow
2) It was yellow
3) We called it the "Cabana Banana" (because it was yellow, did I mention?)
4) Boats sink without the plug

I don't remember how long we had the boat or even the time frame that we had it. I guess it was the early 80's, because I do remember having to listen to "Ebony and Ivory" ALL THE TIME on the way to the lake.

I haven't thought much about the Cabana Banana in a while, at least not since I gave up my version of the Cabana Banana, but there is a boat in town that is for sale and when I drove past it I had to snap a picture. I'm sure Mom and Kelly will tell me how similar/different this "sighting" of the Cabana Banana is from the original....

Star Trek

2009-05-31T09:07:00.005-05:00

Went to go see the new Star Trek. I stumbled across this pic of the previous "James T Kirk" and just had to post it...

Mom and I went to go see it over Memorial Day weekend. Dad was always a big Star Trek fan and I, in turn, became one too. I haven't see all of the original Star Trek TV series episodes (before my time of interest) but I've seen most everything since. All of the motion pictures and the Next Generation TV series for a while.

The new Star Trek was a great movie. I enjoyed the re-casting of the characters. Kirk, Spock, Bones, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu and Chekov all did great jobs. Aside from the nostalgia of the characters; the plot, action and graphics were all very entertaining. This movie certainly lays the groundwork for another generation of Trekies.

When available on DVD, I will be making the purchase....

One note, this is one of the few science fiction movies that made the "in space" scenes slient. That usually doesn't make for good movies and it is something they only did a few times, but I certainly noticed it and appriciated it. Also, there is quite a bit of fighting in the movie, it certainly earned it's PG-13 rating.

New Bike Goodie

2009-05-21T20:16:00.003-05:00

From 2008 09 05

Installed a "Big Bar Engine Guard". I like the looks. It has a curved look rather than just circular, goes well with the lines of the bike.

'09 Crawdad Days

2009-05-20T07:17:00.003-05:00

Crawdad Days was last weekend in Harrison. It's billed as a "Music Festival", but rarely does the music interest me. Mainly it is good for the rides for the kids and the vintage cars. I didn't get a lot of pictures, but there were plenty of cars around the square, some of them didn't look like they had been driven since they were built. Anyway, Caleb had a good time riding the rides for 4 hours!!! Ah the energy of youth....

Branson Motorcycle Rally

2009-05-16T20:52:00.003-05:00

Went to the Branson Motorcycle Rally on Friday night. The temp was really nice and it made for a good ride. The vendors were average. Talked with Wide Open Plastics. They make fairings for all sorts of bikes, mine included. I have been researching them for about 8-10 months now and being able to see the product first hand was very beneficial. Also spoke with a company out of Nixa, MO that does custom painting. They had some incredible stuff there, about 5-6 bikes and several helmets. The helmets are the only things I managed to snap some pictures of....one for Heather and one for me....pictures only, no purchases.. :)

09 Phloat Trip

2009-03-25T22:17:00.013-05:00

Ok, let the BS begin. So far, the only thing we have are dates. May 1st and 2nd. Location is still to be determined.

Add comments for suggestions, etc....

Link to Map of the River: Buffalo River Map

I found the stork nesting ground from last year....

Zero Inches airspace, Ponca, 04/12

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T07:19:00.005-05:00

We hope everyone has a Happy St. Patrick's Day.

(Caleb just wants more bubbles please....)

Magic Tree House

2009-03-14T12:31:00.004-05:00

We went over to Fayetteville to see the Magic Tree House Musical at the Walton Arts Center. The Magic Tree House is a collection of books that Caleb likes and much to our surprise, he really wanted to go. Being a musical and all, I was a little skeptical, but he really enjoyed it. The place was packed and it was a great time.

You can see in the pictures that Caleb has the "stand up straight" pose down pat. No, he is not a cardboard cut out that we carry around....

Dinosaur footprint artist

2009-03-02T21:09:00.009-06:00

You may not have known that there was such a job as a Dinosaur Footprint Artist, but apparently Caleb is going to be a trailblazer.

Sparky's

2009-03-02T20:55:00.004-06:00

Cool little restaurant in Eureka. Guacamole burger for me, basket of fries and a vanilla shake for Heather.

Bedding+Conner=Heaven?

2009-03-01T16:30:00.001-06:00

When it comes time to take the bedding off, Conner thinks that we are doing it especially for him.

Spring Mt. Ranch, NV

2009-02-25T06:51:00.002-06:00

If you ever go to Vegas and get to visit the surrounding area, be sure to drive through Spring Mt. Ranch. It is a beautiful little ranch with an interesting history smack dab in the middle of the desert. Be careful though, apparently, the burros don't care much for traffic regulations and the horses are pissed.

New Car (at least to me....)

2009-02-22T19:47:00.004-06:00

So this weekend, I traded in the Wrangler. While I loved the idea of the Jeep and the occasional fun factor, it certainly is not the most practical vehicle. We just don't do enough camping/off-roading/etc to justify it. I was looking for something that would satisfy my "tech" need and provide ample room for the family (most notably Caleb's trunk load of toys that are NEEDED on every ride in the car). After looking at several brands and trying to give serious consideration to Ford, GM and Chrysler, I ended up buying foreign (not really surprised given the "tech" factor). Dealership in Springfield had a killer deal on an '06 Infiniti M35 (and payments are less than the Jeep!!)

Some Dealership Pics below.....

Pics from Eureka

2009-02-20T21:05:00.006-06:00

Where we stayed....Flatiron Flats. They have refurnished the rooms as well as new paint, new carpet and cabinets. Two room flat, with balconies on both sides. We were really surprised with how nice the rooms were. We'll definitely stay there again.

Views from the Balconies..

Random Pics from the Wagon Wheel

Birthday Dinner

2009-02-20T20:54:00.007-06:00

Birthday dinner at Local Flavor in Eureka. Grilled Salmon with Raspberry BBQ, organic rice and asparagus....it was very good. Heather had grilled chicken Caesar salad and said it was yummy too.

Before:

After:

Next weekend

2009-02-14T11:29:00.002-06:00

Next week, we'll be going over to Eureka Springs after work on Thursday and taking off work Friday. Heather got us a room at Flatiron Flats (pictured above) for Thursday night.

Looking forward to a short week and then a fun evening.

Probably eat at Local Flavor (or Ermilio's), go to the Pied Piper for a couple of "large beers" (here's BJ with a couple from the last time we were all there), hit Basin Park and a couple of other places too...should be fun!

It's the small things

2009-02-14T11:12:00.002-06:00

Heart Biscuits....she loved 'em

End of the Week....

2009-02-13T19:51:00.002-06:00

As the sun sets on another week in the Ozarks, good weather has allowed life to get back to "normal". There is still a lot of cleanup needed, but the emergency aspect has passed. phew....

No big plans for the valentine's weekend, housework and hopefully a nice dinner at Rocky's.

January Ice Storm

2009-02-09T18:04:00.001-06:00

Well, the January Ice Storm has come and gone for us. But not for all. There are still those without power, but the power/city/county crews are all working as fast as they can, there was just a lot of damage. Our power came back on Sunday morning (02/01) around 11:00 am. It had been out since Tuesday. Again, not bad compared to others, but still....not fun....

We've been spending the rest of our time trying to get the house back in order. It's funny how you let things slide when you don't have power. The weather has been a little better as of late, and Heather and I went on a bike ride to Eureka Springs yesterday. It was good to get out and we both like Eureka a lot.

Sunrise

2009-01-23T20:56:00.000-06:00

Saw a nice sunrise this morning and snapped a few pics. I really like this one of my jeep.

Pictures from Winter Phloat

2009-01-18T13:44:00.001-06:00

Link below:

http://picasaweb.google.com/dannymryan/2009JanuaryTrip?feat=directlink

January 17th

2009-01-12T14:15:00.004-06:00

Ok, so let's meet at BJs cabin (ready to leave for shuttle) at 11:00 for a quick float from Ozark to Hasty. (Brett - you should be good, this is outside of "Brent Rock" Danger Zone). Ideas for shuttling are welcome.

So far here's whose in for the float:

BJ, Reuben, George, Danny, Wilson, Brent and Big Job Quality.

Chuck and Rich will be out later.

As far as food, I was thinking about bring out some stuff for burgers, but I'd like to get everyone's thoughts. Post comments so we can come up with a plan....

Oh, BJ, I found your new phone:

From Shared Folder