First Time Building

     So, I’ve only owned two real computers in my life. I’ve owned a couple of others, but they were severely deficient in one way or another. But, since 2000, when I bought my first computer, there have only been 2 computers which I have counted on for all of my day to day stuff. Not bad for 12 years! My first computer was a Compaq Presario, 633Mhz Celeron with a 15 Gig hard drive. I used that computer from 2000 to 2006. Being my first computer buying experience, I wasn’t sure what to look for and I figured that if anyone knew what I needed, it was Radio Shack. I was wrong. All they cared about was making a large profit for themselves by selling me a subpar computer for high dollar. I was miserable with that Compaq for 6 years. It cost me nearly $1400. That was with a monitor and printer – the whole works. It came with Windows 98SE, which wasn’t a bad operating system. I never did upgrade it to XP, so I ran 98SE for 6 years. But for the money I spent on that system, I could have gone to Best Buy and bought a Pentium III, which was the “Big Kahuna” of its day. I regretted that purchase and vowed that my next computer would have a big processor, and that I’d add memory and disk space as time went on. Lesson learned. 

     My next computer was an eBay purchase. In 2006, that Compaq started coughing and choking on simple things like browsing the web. I turned to eBay and found it by typing in Pentium 4, which was the best consumer processor (Intel) that was out at the time. I’m not an over clocker or gamer, but I run heavy memory applications that deal with photo files mainly. Doing family research, I’m finding myself running multiple applications at once, so I needed the extra horsepower. I found a Dell Dimension 5150 with a Pentium 4HT processor running at 3 Ghz. I bought it for $600, but it didn’t come with speakers or a monitor. I bought monitor separately and the speakers I had for my Compaq, were JBLs, so they were good. It came loaded with Windows XP, but this was right before Vista came out. It’s probably a good thing because everyone was complaining about Vista. I stuck with XP until a few years back when I finally upgraded to Vista. It ran fine on this computer. Then just last year, I upgraded again to Windows 7 Professional. I’ve also added a second hard drive for storage, and I’ve upgraded the RAM to 4 Gig. That’s the computer that I’m running today. It’s done me very well these past 6 years. The problem is, this computer is starting to choke like the Compaq. Web pages are starting to bog this girl down, no matter which browser I use. I really notice it with Flash and Java. Anything using those services really puts a drag on this old girl. Plus, if I try and run multiple applications at once, I’m finding this thing is hanging a lot and I have to sit here and wait for it to make up its mind. I’m also finding that I need to reboot it a lot as I’m getting more and more errors. I don’t have an install disk for the OS. Every upgrade that I’ve done to the OS has been from a download from the Microsoft website. This too must change. A buddy of mine recently purchased Windows 7 Ultimate for his machine, and that was pretty slick having the disk. 

     So, I’ve been sitting here contemplating on what to do about my situation. Do I live with it? I can still use the computer even though it’s getting to be a big pain in the ass. I use my computer a lot. I am not in good health. I don’t get around much. This is how I do my shopping. This is how I entertain myself. I use the computer for family history. I use it to write. The kids use it. Having a computer here is almost equivalent to having a good cook stove in the pioneer days. You could have survived without one, but it would have been a major pain in the ass. My computer to me is like many are towards their IPads and smart phones.

     I looked at purchasing another Dell. I’ve helped a couple of friends purchase Dells and they’ve seemed to have good luck with them. Dell makes a good computer. The thing is, there aren’t a lot of options within Dell anymore. It’s my understanding that they closed down many of their assembly plants, which might explain the lack of choice in a computer build. The other problem with a Dell is that if you want to upgrade your motherboard, it’s not all that easy to do. The cases aren’t the greatest. The power supplies are cheap. I want a computer that is easy to upgrade. So, I’ve finally decided to take the plunge and build my own. First, it isn’t cheap to do. It’s about 16% more expensive than the Dell, but is that truly comparing apples to apples? I’m getting an i7 2700K processor as opposed to the older i7 2600K. My power supply is better. I’ll have an SSD hard drive. I’ll actually have the disk for the operating system. My case will be far superior to anything Dell offers. I’ll have 16 gigs of memory as opposed to 12. I’ll have a better cooling fan. Plus, it’ll all be built by me, and I’ll be able to upgrade and change in the future with greater ease than I can now. It’ll be cheaper to upgrade in the future. All I may need then is just a motherboard and processor, and maybe some memory. The case will remain the same. The power supply will stay the same. I won’t have to switch hard drives, operating systems, etc. After this initial investment, I think I’ll be money ahead in the long run.

     Now, as far as choosing my new computer. That’s where I started to get nervous. It's not built yet so I'm still nervous! The processor is one of the most expensive aspects of the computer build, with exception of a high end video card, which I don’t need because I don’t play games. I want a processor that is overkill today, just right down the road, and won’t be underpowered for some time to come. If I can get 6 years out of it, I’ll be happy. I’ve only known Intel processors, so I went with the best consumer processor I could find. I chose the i7 2700K. It’s a quad core processor that uses hyper threading. From there, I chose my motherboard. I don’t know shit about motherboards, so I did some research and found out that the one I chose is supposed to be a pretty slick one, and it is even designed for the next generation of Intel processors, meaning I can upgrade the processor without having to upgrade the board. Yay! This will be my first 64 bit system. This will be my first SSD hard drive. I plan on using the Solid State hard drive for the operating system and keeping my storage drives from my Dell. There’s still some confusion as to whether I picked the right components to play together. I know the processor, mother board, and cooling fan all work together. I’m hoping the memory that I chose will work. I’m also a little confused about the video card. The motherboard said that it doesn’t have integrated video, yet there are jacks for it. The processor claims it has integrated video. This confuses me. So, I purchased a cheaper video card that is separate. I’m not sure if I needed that or not. I tried to pick the best power supply that I could find. I did some research and found out that I would prefer a modular power supply, meaning that the power cords get put on as needed, and you don’t have this big wad of wires in your box that you don’t need. It’s 750 watt. I’m not sure if this is overkill or not. I’ve heard that if your power supply is too large, that can cause trouble too. I’m not afraid of being undersupplied – I’m worried about having too much. It’s also supposed to be an energy efficient power supply. I went with the Corsair case because it just seems like a very well thought out case with a lot of room for expansion. I like the dock on top of the case where you can slide a hard drive in for a quick read. It has air filters that are removable and can be cleaned easily. You can open both sides and access things much easier than those that only open one way. Since I was at it, I added an illuminated keyboard so I can see what I’m typing at night, and a new mouse because this one has seen its better day. All this stuff will arrive this week and probably into next. Then the fun of putting it all together starts. I’m worried about it. I hope the memory works. I don’t know much about the different speeds and latencies. I guess if I’m going to take care of this computer, I better learn. I’d appreciate any thoughts on this build. It’s my first time! 

1 x Corsair Obsidian Series 650D (CC650DW-1) Black Steel structure with black brushed aluminum faceplate ATX Mid Tower Computer Case  

1 x ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard  

1 x Intel Core i7-2700K Sandy Bridge 3.5GHz (3.9GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 BX80623i72700K  

1 x COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 

1 x SeaSonic X750 Gold 750W ATX12V V2.3/EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply 

1 x Corsair Force Series GT CSSD-F120GBGT-BK 2.5" 120GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)  

1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit - OEM  

2 x G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL10S-8GBXL  

1 x MSI N550GTX-Ti Cyclone OC GeForce GTX 550 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card  

1 x SAMSUNG 22X DVD Burner 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM SATA Model SH-222BB/BEBE - OEM  

1 x Kensington K72356US Black 3 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Optical Mouse  

1 x Saitek Eclipse II Illuminated Keyboard

March 6th, 2012

      What a beautiful day! I actually had the energy to go with KinDee to Oelwein today to get a few groceries. I sure enjoyed having the windows cracked and smelling the fresh air. This is my favorite time of year. My father’s favorite time of year is Fall. I like the fall, but it depresses me. Everything is dying and winter comes after. In the spring, it’s all about renewal and rebirth. I love the smell of the earth on a spring day. It takes me back to my youth. It makes me think of Dad out planting corn. He had this old two row planter and would only plant a small patch, but I would go out and walk behind that planter. I’d feel the cool earth with my feet. I would smell that “earthy” smell and that has always stayed with me.  

      When I went outside this afternoon, after my nap, the kids were playing on the trampoline that KinDee just put up again. I sat on the deck and listened to the geese heading north again. I smelled those lovely spring smells and heard the sounds of people enjoying a spring day. I listened as families were out walking, visiting with each other. I heard more vehicles go by today than I have seen in a long while. With gas prices high, people seemed to have really cut back on how much they drive, but on a beautiful day like today, I think it was a case of “gas prices be damned.” It made me think of being on Dad’s farm in the early 1990’s. Sitting there a mile west of Walker, on a day like today, you could hear the hustle and bustle of Walker. Many times I would walk into town to see Toby. It would take me by the Bowling Alley and the taverns. On nights like tonight, they’d be busier than hell. This sort of weather makes people almost giddy. I know it does that to me.  

      I’ve been feeling like shit lately. We found out last year that my thyroid is all messed up. It has been a very large contributing factor to my failing health. They’ve been monkeying around with medication ever since. I thought we had it down pretty good by November, then I went downhill like a lead balloon. I had several infections, and then by late December, I got a bad case of cellulitis in my leg. I really thought it was going to be my swan song. Heavy antibiotics and some more rest cleared that up, but I still haven’t been the same since. I get tired every day between Noon and 2 P.M. I can hardly function. I need to lay down and generally I take a nap, or just lay there for a few hours, then I’m fine until bedtime. Even though this past winter has been mild, it’s been one of the worst for me. I’ve felt worse than I ever have. What was it, last week or so when we had a mild day sort of like this one? Whenever it was, I remember I got outside then and I felt a lot better. Today has done the same thing for me. I’m hoping that spring comes early and stays. Hopefully it will improve my health. Back in the old days, they would call it your “constitution.” Well, this nice weather is certainly improving my constitution. This afternoon, I have felt better than I have in a long time.

Energy Efficiency

I wrote this essay (blog) back in 2009. It still rings true today.

Have you ever wondered why the light company seems so interested in getting you to cut your power consumption? Wouldn’t it make sense that the light company would want you to use more energy so that they make more money? There’s a reason that the light company wants you to use less. It’s so they can make more money. That’s right, the less energy you use, the more money they make. Here’s how it works. Every year, your light bill goes up. It’s not because you are using more energy, per se, it’s because the light company keeps jacking their rates up. Just around here, Alliant has asked for several rate increases and in fact, they got a rate increase last year which still isn’t fully implemented, and they’re back already this year asking for a 20% increase on top of that! If your energy usage remained the same, you would see your light bill skyrocket. You would feel the hurt and would try and stop your company from jacking their rates up. If you used more energy, not only would you feel the hurt, the light company would have to invest in more infrastructure and that hurts their bottom line. Also, if they had to generate more electricity, their cost per unit of energy would decrease because as we all know, when you produce in bulk, the cost per unit goes down. The light company is doing what is in their best interest; getting you to use less of their product and pay more for it. This reduces their cost because they are producing less without having to invest in infrastructure and you are paying more per unit for that electricity. Your bill isn’t going down because they are charging more per unit, year after year. Here’s the kicker; you’re a captive audience. It’s not like you can say that Company X’s rates are too high so you’ll just have your house wired to Company Z’s lines. No, you’re going to pay whatever the light company says or it’s lights out for you!

Next time you see your light company offering rebates for energy efficiency items, think about it and then realize that it’s not for your benefit really. You’ll eventually be paying the same amount each month for electricity. You’ll just be fattening the wallet of your light company all the more. It’s not like you’re going to have a choice either. You better take the incentive and at least reduce your consumption or you’ll be one of those really feeling the pain. It’s the same idea behind the gas companies wanting better fuel efficiency. It allows them to drill less and charge more per unit, which again fattens their wallet. That’s why these companies seem so interested in getting you to use less of their product.

Lunch, Dinner, Supper

I was talking to someone the other day and told them that I was about to eat dinner. They asked why I was eating dinner so soon. I sighed. I get so sick of this old argument. So, I took the time to look up the definitions of these words and here's the low down on it all.
Lunch - a light meal eaten during the middle of the day. You do not eat "lunch" as your first or last meal of the day. Lunch is only eaten as the second meal of the day - generally eaten around noon.

Dinner - the wrench in the cogs - is a meal that can be eaten either in the middle of the day or at the end of the day. It implies the largest meal of the day, whether eaten in the middle of the day, or in the evening. It also implies a formal meal. You go out for dinner - not supper (although there are "supper clubs"). You have a dinner date - not a supper date. You can however, have a lunch date - just to add confusion to it all. Dinner can be used to substitute for either "lunch" or "supper", depending on whether it's a formal meal or the largest meal of the day.

Supper - the term I use - is the meal eaten at the end of the day. You never eat supper in place of "lunch". It is considered to be a lighter meal than a dinner would be. It is almost always an informal meal. If you have a formal, large meal in the evening, then you are considered to be having dinner. If you're just having leftovers, or something quick and easy like most of us have, you are said to be having supper.

Of course, breakfast is always breakfast, and is called breakfast no matter what time of day you eat it. Breakfast is more about the type of food that you're eating, rather than the time of day, although most people eat breakfast in the morning or as the first meal of the day. Being an ex trucker, I can attest to the fact that many people, especially those who eat in truckstops, have breakfast any time of day.

Hopefully this little piece that I've just written sheds a little light on the usage of these words. When I tell you that I'm getting ready to eat dinner around noon, don't give me any more shit. I know what I'm talking about.

August 31, 2011

Supper has just ended and the kids are falling asleep. It’ll be an early to bed sort of night around here. The central air is running full bore. Hopefully these will be the last days that it will be needed this year. Summer is now behind us. This coming weekend will mark the official end of summer to many. I for one, am glad to see it go as I’m no fan of heat. While I prefer spring to fall, only because I know what comes after the latter, I welcome the cooler 70’s for highs. I can’t think of a more perfect day than a sunny, breezy day with occasional puffy clouds; highs in the 70’s, low humidity, and an evening cool enough that a small fire feels nice.

Karen had a fun day today as it was her first day back to school. Preschool here starts later than regular school. It sure whooped Karen as she is already in bed – fully admitting that she is very tired.

We’ve been having troubles with fruit flies as of late. I finally threw in the towel and today we turned to chemicals and bug bombed. It did the trick. While the house was fumigating, we took a trip out to see our new wood ground that we just received permission to enter. It’s pretty rough going. There aren’t any real paths or drives of any kind. You just drive out into this great expanse of pasture. It’s very beautiful out there. We had to make our own paths. Since we received an inch of rain or better yesterday, the ground was soft in spots, so we were careful not to tear anything up. We were in 4X4 and had to climb up over hills that we couldn’t see the other side of. The weeds were tall so we were hoping that we wouldn’t drop a wheel in any holes or ruts. The tires on our pickup aren’t the greatest. If I keep cutting out on this guy’s land, I’ll be forced to invest in better tires.

We were told that the best dead wood was on the southwest side of this property. It took us awhile to figure out how to access this area. Again, we had to make our own path. There are a few really nice oaks that are blown down, and at least one hickory. There were a few hickory trees standing there next to the downed ones. Now I have a spot to pick hickory nuts as well. I wish I had a book that helped me identify trees better. Most books help you if the tree is alive and you can see the bark and leaves. However, for trees that have been dead a year or two, there is very little help. A book that showed the grain of different woods as well as colors of the grain, etc. would be very helpful.

Tomatoes are going gangbusters. We took a break from them today. We’ll be back to canning tomato sauce tomorrow. We had a jar break in the water bath canner last night. Oh, what a mess that made!!! Nothing tastes better than homemade sauce that we make here from these vine ripened tomatoes.

We’ll be doing tomatoes tomorrow, then Friday night we get all the kids for the holiday weekend. Saturday includes a trip to Waterloo to pick up an heirloom and a few other things, then Sunday and Monday will be days to work on firewood. Next week when the kids are in school, I plan on being out with KinDee cutting firewood. I’m hoping that we can fill the basement come mid to late October, just before the snow flies! Finding this source of better firewood is a God send! It takes a load off of my mind.

Got wood?

I burn firewood here to home. My other two options are to burn fuel oil, or freeze. Back in the day, fuel oil could be had for 70 cents all day long. How do I know? Because my dad used fuel oil and he bitched about the price even when it was that low. When I bought this house in 2004, I was happy that it had an oil furnace. Oil was about $1.42 at that time. Then, when gas prices started climbing, fuel oil started flirting with and surpassing $3 per gallon. This place wasn't insulated very well (seeing that it was built in 1925). On a very cold month, I could burn about 200 gallons of oil. What would cost just shy of $300 for a very cold month now was going to cost $600 or better. Mind you, that's each month. My heating bill for the season would have been several thousand dollars. I also grew up with wood heat as a child. Dad would raise holy hell with me if I didn't keep that wood fire going. This is how I remember how much he despised buying fuel oil. This house used to have a coal furnace back in the day. Coal smoke is a little more corrosive than wood smoke, and you need a greater draft. For those reasons, most chimneys built for coal are larger than those for wood, and they almost always are clay lined. Such is the case here. The coal furnace was long gone when I bought the place. They had the oil furnace vented into the chimney, as well as the sewer pipes! Well, the sewer pipe was eventually moved to vent outdoors, but the oil furnace still vents into this chimney. There was a spot to hook into the chimney below the point that the oil furnace connects, so I used that and put a wood furnace in. KinDee was pretty reluctant to go to wood at first as she never grew up with it. It made her nervous. However, she is a happy convert now. She too prefers the warmth of wood heat over any other. I bought my wood from a friend of mine who sold it to me in large pickup loads for $50 per load. I was able to heat my house for under $1200 per season, and I sweat my ass off in the process - even with no insulation. This worked fine for years until my wood man moved away - and left me without a source for wood. Like I said, the man was my friend. I got a good price for a large load of wood. Nobody else was willing to offer me that sort of deal. My buddy still made money off of me at $50 per load, but most people like to make LOTS of money. I have found that with more people returning to burning wood because of rising fuel prices, there's a lot of cut throat shit going on in the field of firewood.

First on the list is price gouging. That $50 load of wood, sold by other people, is at least $80, if not $100 per load, and the quality of the wood isn't all that great. On top of that, the loads are pretty measley in size compared to what my buddy brought me. I was now looking at my yearly heating cost going up half again as much as it was under my buddy. The reason for the expensive wood? I am told by those who are asking for high prices that saw gas and bar and chain oil are really expensive. Guess what, they're not. I've cut about 10 loads of wood this year, if not more and have only gone through about 3 gallons of saw gas and a jug and a half of bar and chain oil. Saw gas (which is standard gas with 2 cycle oil in it) is about $4.50 per gallon, maybe even not that much. Bar and chain oil is about $8 per gallon. Not too damned much when you consider automotive oil is about $3 per quart, or $12 per gallon. It's a bunch of hot air and just bullshit that they expect you to bite on to justify their high prices. Do you want to know the highest expense in cutting wood? Right now it's transporting it. With gas prices so high, a lot of your expense is in transportation. I offered to haul it if they'd give me a discount. No dice. Why do you think they wanted to haul it for me? That's right, so they could justify their high prices and to ensure that you get a measley load. I decided that I needed to find a way to cut my own wood. I had a couple of options.

The first option I tried was to hire someone to cut wood for me. I would find the land, purchase the gas, oil, etc. that it takes to cut wood. I then offered $15 per hour to cut wood. No splitting - just running a chainsaw and cutting wood. I would load and haul it. I even purchased a trailer for hauling wood. Guess what, I was told by the neighbor guy that I was insane and that I was asking for someone to do "slave labor". I couldn't find any takers. I thought it was a fair deal.

The second option was to buy the equipment myself and we cut wood from start to finish. I had to go this route, so I went and bought a chainsaw, and other things needed to cut wood.

I live close to Volga River State Park. I go out there with the family quite a bit and noticed that they have piles of wood just laying out there. When I asked about cutting out there, I was told no. So, I wrote to Des Moines and got permission to cut out there, and I could tell that the park ranger wasn't the most pleased that I went to Des Moines for permission. He said that I could cut out there - but only where he told me. That's fine I thought. He was friendly at this point. He took me to a pile of wood which they had tried to burn a year or so prior, and had failed. He said the quality of the wood was very poor. Sure enough, it was. Then, I've noticed over the course of the year that brush was coming in there - oak and hickory brush (I could tell by the leaves) and there were large patches of sawdust on the ground by this brush indicating that some good wood was brought it, and that they took the good wood and left the brush. Geeze, I wonder who could be cutting that wood? The park ranger told me that I was the only one allowed to cut out there? Could it be a park ranger who burns wood too?

I started asking around to other people about ground to cut on. Some of them say that they don't allow cutting on their property for liability reasons. That's just a fucking cop out in every way. Most people have homeowners insurance. That would be like me saying that I don't want you coming onto my property because you could slip and fall and sue me. You know, liability reasons. As long as the person isn't hiring me, their insurance would cover it - but, beyond that - there is such a thing as a liability waiver. I know - I signed one with the state before I was allowed to cut on state property. This whole thing of "liability reasons" being the reason for refusal is bullshit. So, for those of you that hide behind that excuse, I see through your bullshit!!! I would rather someone say that they think I'm a piece of shit and they don't want trash like me on their property. At least they're honest that way. By them choosing to insult my intelligence with this "liability reasons" baloney - it says more about them than it does me.

I had a really hard time finding a place to cut wood. Not just that, but finding a place to cut good wood. Let me tell you, there are a lot of people who are sure nice to my face, but when asked about cutting wood on their property, by God, you'd think I was asking them to had over their bank accounts or something. These aren't even people who burn wood themselves many times. However, they let their "true buddies" out to cut wood on their property - I know that. Nothing says "fuck off" like seeing certain people given the right to do something while they tell you no. Do you ever remember growing up and wanting to play with the big kids - and they'd tell you no and be mean to you???? Well, that's sort of how this is all panning out. Let me tell you, I consider myself to be a God fearing man. I pray to God. I know there is a God. I believe God listens to me. It doesn't mean that God does anything I say, but I think he listens to me. When these people pull shit like this on me, I can assure you, I pray to God and let him know what's going on. I leave it in his hands. This leads me to the end of my story which is this -

I found a place to cut wood. I may have found a second place. While the ink isn't dried on either deal, both are very promising. One chunk of land is rather large and close to home. Nobody is cutting on it and it has a lot of good wood on it. The other chunk of land is much smaller, but has recently been logged, and also has good wood on it. If I can snag both of these chunks of land, then I should be set for a long time. When people ask me where I'm getting my wood, I'll just shrug my shoulders and say that I don't know.

A funny anecdote - my neighbor guy - the one that originally told me that I was driving a terrible deal wanting to hire him or anyone else to cut for me at a rate of $15 per hour plus fuel and other expenses -well, he recently came over to my home and said that if I paid him for gas in his saw and pickup, that he'd bring me a jag of good wood. I turned him down. I told him that I had a pickup and that I had saw gas already mixed up that he could use. He refused the counter offer. While I need the wood, I know he needed the money so he could cut for himself. He would have brought me some tiny load of shit wood and said that it was good wood. He didn't want me out there to pick the load up - nope - he insisted that he bring it to me - which translates in this cut throat lifestyle as, "I want to fuck you over". Then he could say his saw went through two gallons of gas when it went through half a gallon. No thanks.

My concluding prayer; Thank you Lord for all your blessings. Thank you for showing me the true hearts of those around me. I came to them asking for help and they offered none. These were people who led me to believe that they cared about me and my family. I see the truth. Thank you for those who have offered assistance and helped me. These are people who I wouldn't have thought would have been helpful - which is why I turned to them last - out of desperation. Lord, bless those who follow your ways and help their fellow man. Help me be like those who have been kind to me. Amen.

And that's my 2 cents on this matter.

My two cents.

I'd like to start writing more. A lot of times, I'm noticing things that I would like to comment on, and find Facebook too constricting of a forum for me. I might start putting up my two cents on this blog - short blogs about life - things I've learned - how I feel about stuff, etc. etc. Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one. I feel the need to air mine out in public!!!