House update: We finally have internet & Garden Update

Internet

Since moving in in October 2014, we have been waiting for the NBN.

It was not until a “complex wide BBQ” that I was informed that some people in the complex had access to a separate Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) system, that had not yet moved to NBN. We have now connected to that system that offers 200gb / month. Sadly after already 5 days of connection we have used nearly 50% of our allowance.

All this for under half the cost of the 3G system we were using just to book flights etc.

Garden looking amazing

Frankie has done wonders with our small court yard. It is now both functional and pretty.

Starting to feel like a real Scuba Diver

I have now finished 6 dives following my PADI Open Water Diver Qualification. Of those 6, I have had to share air (essentially, I nearly ran out of air due to hyperventilation and excitement) if you would like to see this process, here is a Youtube clip showing the underwater process

I have now finished the final two, number 5 & 6. Only during these dives did I start to feel like a “real” scuba diver. Not just some one pretending. I was able to settle in to the dive. Enjoy it.

Here is a video of those dives (click on the picture)

Gear update - Scuba Diving February 2015

Recently I was offered the opportunity to purchase some very good quality second hand Scuba Diving equipment. I managed to snap up a family new Buoyancy Control Device (BCD), first and second stage regulator (the hoses you breath through) along with a dive knife, a surface marker (an orange sausage that you inflate to get noticed on the surface) along with a really good quality mesh bag.

Some new kit include a Suunto Zoop Dive watch and a DIY GoPro Dive Tray that will hopefully stabilise some more of my dive videos

Here is a short video using all of the gear above along in addition to the standard here included in my “learning to dive” pack mentioned here

Pebble Watch - 18 months on

Way back in August 2013, I wrote about my first 72 hours with the now famous original smart watch - the Pebble Watch.

Read the original post here http://wp.me/p3SehX-4c.

It has now been 18 months and I am on to my second watch. The first was replaced under warranty due to a funky issue with the screen.

The Pebble has been a daily companion, no much so, I can not remember the last time my watch actually made a sound. I often get strange looks when I dash across a room at work saying my phone is ringing, I can feel it.

I have to say the only minor downsides so far for me is no automatic replies to simple SMS messages and battery life. I am getting roughly 6-8 days from my Pebble.

Since I purchased mine, Pebble have launched the Pebble Steel. A more ‘professional’ looking watch. I personally like my black plastic model.

A new colour Pebble seems to be in the works with images leaked ahead of a Pebble announcement

Gear: BadElf 2200 3 axis bluetooth GPS

I recently picked up this tiny 3 axis Bluetooth tracker from eBay for $147.00 AUD.

There are two primary uses that I will be putting the BadElf 2200 to. Unlike my phone, this device can happily chug along all day turning out a highly accurate GPS track all day and night on a single charge. Not only does this allow us to see where we have been but it helps with the the geo location of photos (more that later).

The 2200 is equipped with Bluetooth which mans that it only can you transfer the created track files back to your phone or iPad it can actually supplement the inbuilt GPS (or supply full GPS in the case of a wifi only iPad) both on and off wifi connection.

This is incredibly helpful. As I discovered while hiking through the hills of Myanmar last year - your iPhone's GPS is deactivated when the phone is set to flight mode. I found no way of turning the GPS only on without taking the phone out of flight mode and draining the battery as it constantly searches for a signal.

Another use I am keen to put the 2200 to is to assist. With geo tagging our hundreds (and thousands) of photos we take while travelling.

With some software wizardry, I can time match the time of the photo taken with an exact location. Regardless of which camera or device I used to take the photo. One of the hardest things to do after coming back from Myanmar was the reconciliation of 6000 photos with which temple or holy site the photo matched. Using freely available software I can import the track file and have the photos located by the time they were shot.

NB - all of your devices should be set to the same Timezone otherwise you will need to do some time correcting.

If you have a lot of travel across multiple countries, I would suggest using GMT or Zulu time and adding the appropriate corrections in segments. There are any number of applications, some web based, who will take the tracking file (usually gpx) and geo code your photos. Simple search geo code photos using gpx track.

I have been using the 2200 on longer road trips and found. That after 6 hours of constant tracking less than 5% battery and 10% memory used. This includes over 20000 individual tracking point

A photo tour of the Buddhist temples of Myanmar

A photo tour of the Buddhist temples of Myanmar

I was going back and looking at more and more photos from our trip all over Myanmar from 2013 and rediscovered many of the amazing temples we visited.

I have broadly divided the photo collection here into 3 segments:

1. The temple city of Bagan
2. Cave Temples
3. The Temple punched on top of Mount Popa
4. The last Kingdom of Mandalay
5. Slowly crumpling temples in the hills of Inle Lake

Temple City of Bagan

Cave Temples

Mount Popa

The last Kingdom of Mandalay

Temple spires in the hills of Inle Lake

House Buying: slight stumble at the final hurdle

House Buying: slight stumble at the final hurdle

So close

So in the middle of last week I received a call from our mortgage broker who was asking if I had the approved First Home Owners Grant (FHOG) paperwork. I was under the impression that it was completed and approved in January.

Sadly I had that mixed up with the clearly different First Home Owner Concession.

With a crazy rush on Thursday this week to get the paperwork sorted. Fortunately due a twist of the Federation of Australia, while ACT and NSW have a public holiday on Monday, Victoria where our bank does all the processing for the FHOG so we may just have this thing settled on time.

In the mean time, here are some new photos from just prior to final hand over condition.

My first few weeks with the iPhone 6 Plus

My first few weeks with the iPhone 6 Plus

I had been holding on to my iPhone 5, waiting eagerly for the goodies that are announced each September by the doyens of product secrecy and marketing.

Hearing the rumours of a larger iPhone really wetted my appetite. I was weighing up getting one of the larger Samsung Note 4s and immediately wipe any remnants of Samsung's gimmick filled bloatware. Thankfully the iPhone 6 plus was the answer I am looking for.

I conceit that the name of the new device is pretty crappy, most people just call it 'the big one'.

While the size is defiantly the draw point, after working with and using closely, there are other features that have really come to the forefront for me - the battery and the camera being amounts them.

The Camera

I have to admit, I am not a great photographer, Frankie is far more the photographer than I am. Most of the fantastic images we took in Mynamar were taken by Frankie.

The manual or dynamic stabilisation is comparable to my mirror-less Samsung NX1000.

The Battery

Any one who knows me knows that I am very far from my phone - to the point of even having my previous iPhone 5 in its Lifeproof case in the shower with me for music.

This often leads to having a dead phone by noon. Not with the iPhone 6 plus. With a fair among of usage, including streaming musics, push notifications, location services, background activity and constant use I easily have over 70% left at 2:30 in the afternoon. Most days achieving 11-12 hours battery life between charges.

I am now really hanging out for the life proof case for this phone

Honourable mention - the external speaker

It is not a make or break feature of a phone for me. I say phone but I am getting more and more annoyed with actually having to talk to people by telephone. I use this device like many others for the consumption of news, media, sound, podcasts along with communicating with you - the lovely people of the inter webs.

The external speaker located on the base of this phone if big, and LOUD. I can hear the sound better and clearer sitting on my sink in my bathroom, than from a bluetooth speaker in the shower.

The bending thing

I know a lot of hoohar has been made about the 'bending' of the iPhone 6 plus in people's pockets - personally I don't have those issues, mainly because I am not stupid enough to put something that cost over $1000 in my back pocket and sit on it - but hey if you did and it bent. I am sorry to hear that.

Why would @fitbit take away a product I loved with no replacement?

Over the past week I have discovered some cracks on the back of my Fitbit Force. As you remember I purchased this device in the US as I am still as yet to see it available I Australia. I contacted Fitbit support first via twitter as then by their support page as they requested. I provided photos. After a follow up request to find out what was going on as I had not heard from Support.

What I received, I thought was sent in error. Basically due to a small number of people (mainly in the US) suffering skin irritations, the Fitbit force was recalled. While I knew about the recall, the issue didn't effect me and I carried on.

As there was a recall in place Fitbit support stated they would not replace my damaged force but would refund me. I don't want to go back to using the Fitbit flex, for one, I had issues with the band breaking after 8 months - the same time I have been using the force, not to mention the shocking battery life of the flex compared to the force.

I am now left with either rigging up some repair or take the refund and look for another product after I have already invested in the Fitbit ecosystem including the matching scale.

Holiday Plans - April 2015

Holiday Plans - April 2015

Frankie has been looking at holiday locations for next year. He is looking at being home in Myanmar for the Burmese New Year Water Festival and usually falls around mid-April.

Taking onto the end of that I am planning some dive spots in Thailand as well as some much needed rest and beach time.

Some probable locations are: Kuala Lumpur Krabi Bangkok Chiang Mai

And for the many may Americans who read my blog this should help

Have you been to any of the above, particularly Krabi or Chiang Mai? Suggestions? Diving Suggestions too?

Working on my Fitness!!

Working on my Fitness!

I know it may come as a shock to some of you, but I am no athlete…

I have just entered week 7 of the couch to 5km running program.

[youtube http://youtu.be/5T0utQ-XWGY]

If this fitness thing all sounds a little familiar, well yes.

I have been using the fitbit ecosystem for over 12months now. First the fitbit Flex which the band died after 9 months and there were little to no replacements available at the the time, so I imported the fitbit force which still does not seem to be available in Australia widely.

Throughout this whole time I have also been using the Fitbit Aria Scale. Because I love data I can see how many steps, how much I weighed or what my body fat as a percentage was for every day of the last year.

For those of you about to smash me saying fitness and weightless are different, just like climate change deniers thinking weather and climate are the same… I was getting to that.

If you look purely at the numbers, I am barely meeting my daily 10000 step count, and I have never had a higher weight or body fat percentage… however, 4 weeks ago I could not complete 2 x 3 min jogs with a walk in between, last saturday I ran more than most of a 5km fun run, and today ran 4.2km non stop.

For any one saying, I can't run - try the program, it slowly steps you up. It is not about speed - I am sure there are snails overtaking me when I get my little grandpa shuffle happening, but I am constantly moving.

For the uber nerds out there, I use my Lifeproof Arm band with my Lifeproof phone case, with Runkeeper and my Pebble smart watch ) to keep track of my runs.

Although twice now, my iPhone 5 has died during a simple 30-35min run. Before you ask, it is not one of the iPhone 5 models that are eligible for battery replacements.

Go on.. try it.. I dare you, better yet… take a friend or friends, other people really help with pace.

Try it Here

There are also many many apps available for your phone for free.

I am now a Student - God help us all

I am now a Student - God help us all

I have resisted it for as long as I could…

I have signed up for a Bachelor of attendance.. I mean Arts ( Internet Communication) with Curtin University in WA.

Looking at the subjects and units, I am actually really excited - most of them will benefit you, throughout this blog and who know what else it will bring.

As can guess, I live in Canberra, and the Uni is in WA. So the course is online based.

First off it will start with some introductory work for those of us like me that have shied away from formal higher education. That should start around the start of September 2014.

Stand by for more when I know more.

Seal Diving - Montague Island, South Coast NSW

Diving with Seals on the NSW South Coast

As you know I recently learnt to scuba dive. I also became a member of my local scuba club, which offers a few times a year, trips to Montague Island off the coast of Narooma NSW to dive with the Australian Fur Seals that inhabit the island .

The boat ride out to the island was choppy to say the least, we anchored in the lee of the sou'easter that was creating the chop, which as (bad) luck would have it was directly down wind from the seal colony.

The day was split into 2 dives with the dive boat captain supplying soup and rolls to fend off the chill (temps were low teens out of the water, even less with the wind, while the water was 17-14ºc degrees depending on depth).

I really can see the ease that having a regular dive buddy creates. I joined a small group of 3 experiences divers.

Any one was more experienced as me - I have not dived since my open water qualification.

Dive 1

I remembered all the safety checks, the buddy checks, the equipment checks - I was feeling pretty cocksure of myself. I entered the water using perfect 'giant stride'

[youtube http://youtu.be/PIsX9jFORNw"]

Almost immediately upon reforming in out little group of four at the bow of the dive boat I realised I was breathing too fast. Looking back at the GoPro video I took of Dive 1, I could actually count I was breathing 1 breath every 2 seconds - basically hyperventilating.

On getting away from the boat under water the Australian Fur Seals come straight up to us and started screaming around like some jet powered underwater labrador. With big brown eyes looking at you.. calling you to come play.

As the dive progressed I could I tell that as a group when we did 'air checks' I was using far more air than the other 3. About 23 minutes into the dive when we did another 'air check', the look on the small group leader's face when I indicated I had 80 bar (started with 230 bar) showed me that something was really wrong. He gave me the hand signal to take his emergency hose and 'share air'. This is a scary sign to receive on my first dive, but I was not going to argue.

We started slowly heading back to the anchor line of the dive boat on the shared air, holding the arm of the dive leader. Once we got to the site were we were going to do a 'safety stop' before ascending, I went back onto my air.

I surfaced with 40 bar remaining.

After drying off and putting some warmer clothes on to have some soup, I got talking to the group leader, he agreed yes I was breathing too fast, mainly because I was nervous. I also removed a weight from my weight belt as I felt weighted down, which adds to the unsettled leading to further nervousness underwater

Dive 2

As soon as I got under water this time, I felt more relaxed, more natural

The video also backs this up to my breathing halving. One breath every 4 seconds.

During this dive we stayed around the 16m mark, seeing a Port Jackson Shark, large rays cruising the rock ledges and of course the seals.

I can see how much easier having your own gear is along with adding to a sense of security- knowing your gear.

I think my next purchase will be a dive computer - I am thinking of a simple Mares Puck for around $180 on Amazon

  UPDATE: Now with videos

[youtube http://youtu.be/gZAyz0g89xU]

[youtube http://youtu.be/En5lFUf4C20]

How to read the news: a beginners guide for Generation Y and the "Millennials"

Two tragic events this year have brought to the fore the fact that my generation and the generation following (Gen Y and the so called a i generation or the millennials). I am often dismayed at the inability of my peers to be able to evaluate and reconcile news stories, rather than just take every word as fact.

Often the hardest realisation that news junkies such as myself come to is that the news is never just the facts. There is always some 'editorial' or opinion included. It might not be out and out bias but when you have x number of words or x number of column inches, x number of second of video or sound grab to work with inevitably some one has to make a call to cut something out. Therefore you receive edited facts.

Another key point that we, as news readers, have to be aware of is the reliability of the source. Not just the actual masthead (publisher) but the source of the information. Is it a 'wire' report coming in from a syndicated journalist on the ground reported by every single outlet or is it a one to one connection, the the story written or presented by some one on the scene.

Further to the source is the publisher. We all know there are differing degrees of bias or agendas being pushed by today's publishers whether newspapers, radio, or individual bloggers. Knowing the inbuilt bias of the publisher can also alter the lens in which we take in the news.

Australian news and analysis blog Crikey published the list of Australia's most trusted news sources HERE from 2013.  Interesting that the national broadcaster here ranked the top. One could say they are not trying to sell advertising or appeal to a 'market segment' they are freer to report the news, also their reporters are in more locations. There is of course the usual calls of bias against the public broadcaster. Those calls of bias are usually calling the ABC 'left' leaning. However the trust worthy poll linked above does not seem to support that.

Top 5 tips when reading or taking the news in:

1. who wrote it (which journalist)

2. Who published it ( which masthead)

3. Who is the intended audience - is the producer writing for a 'market' or stating fact

4. Who benefits from the story

5. Are other reporters reporting the same thing with different sources?

Travel: Winter Road Trips - Ep1

I love going for drives around our region during winter, it is the best time of year to see the region after the winter rains. Starting early we headed off from Canberra to Batemans Bay via Bungendore, Braidwood. The sun was bright over the green dewy fields of Bungendore followed up by a stop off at the Lolly Shop in Braidwood.

Lunch was on the waterfront with fish and chips in Batemans Bay followed by wandering around the marina looking at boats and slips for #ProjectSailBoat, just information gathering.

Heading back south heading through Narooma down to check out our favourite camping site at Mystery Bay, then south to Bega and up to the mountains through Bemboka (remember to stop off for a pie at the famous bakery) then up further into Cooma.

Just before dark we managed to make it back to Canberra having missed most of the first snow of the year but we did catch the trail end of the storm.

Were is your favourite road trip to?

House Update: SURPRISE!!!

I have just had it confirmed by our real estate that our house might be finished a month early. This does throw our financial planning into disarray but I am sure we will sort it. At this stage we are looking at settling in around early October 2014.

#projectsailboat boat features / boat shopping list

I guess to truly explain what I am looking for in a boat I need to further explain why the dream is there. That the dream is split in two parts.

1) This may sound strange to some seafaring folk but the idea of even tinkering and working onboard a boat at mooring all weekend I find incredibly appealing. Even when the weather is crappy, just being aboard a vessel that by definition is part of the sea. Every movement, every wave, ever breeze effects what you do.

2) The actual sailing – clearly this is linked to part one. A safe and comfortable boat that you know well only further enhances the time you have underway – that feeling when you cut the engine and nothing but the unseen force of the wind filling the sails – just like solar power – it’s magic.

I feel I need to set this picture up a bit more.

This was taken on the ‘local’ side of  Kyaiktiyo Pagoda where not many foreign tourists go.  Just over his shoulder is a small local tea house were we spent many nights just sitting at the floral vinyl covered bench seating drinking Burmese Tea mix. Simply talking with locals while either the fog rolled in or the rain tumbled down.

This picture really speaks more than a thousand words to me, I hope to share the feelings with you.

If you would like to read more about our trip to Myanmar or about Kyaiktiyo Pagoda please subscribe >> on the left.