To the Victors Go the Spoils, or How Christmas Came Early to the Houghs

HAPPY FUCKING CHRISTMAS, INTERNET !!!

The Houghs just got PAID.

So remember a month or so ago when the Rain God - whom I must've blasphemed against at some point in time, I don't know - decided to Old Testament-style smite us while we were camping with our group of friends at a Jellystone Campground over in Silverlake?  How my MacBook Pro, SLR and multiple lenses, and several other pricey electronics and miscellaneous items were destroyed in muddy water?  Remember all of that?

Well, the insurance company FINALLY paid up.

The entire process took a little too long for my liking, personally, but hey - that's insurance.  I'm sure they like getting money from their 'customers' rather than paying it back out when it's needed.  We filed our claim after being transferred back and forth between a few different representatives, and told them how the water damage had occurred (how the water came at our tent sideways and was unavoidable, seeing how fast it had come on, and how it hadn't flooded from underneath the tent.) 

Both Kris and I wanted to be 100% honest with them with regards to what was lost - we didn't overstate anything, only looking to replace the value of the items actually lost, that's it - and so we filed our claim and awaited their response.  A couple weeks later, they sent a team of guys out to our house to 'inspect' and 'test' our destroyed items.  They took apart my MacBook Pro, which I've owned since 2009, and - I kid you not - there was mud and even a little water still inside of it, all over the circuit boards.  They tested the SLR - a t4i - and its shutter release, even when switched to 'off,' would fire non-stop.  They tested the lenses, and saw that those were toast as well.  When all was said and done, they verified our initial claim:  everything was a total loss.

A couple more weeks went by, and we hadn't heard anything, so Kris began to call the company.  She'd get the run-around from different reps, saying she'd have to verify this or that with Mr. or Mrs. Random Person in such-and-such a department.  A bunch of red tape, basically.  Fortunately, we happen to live a few houses down from an insurance agent from the very same company, so we had them go over these folks' heads and start asking other people questions.  Within a day we had verification that a check had been cut for us and was in the mail, headed our way.

Definitely helps to know someone in the industry, folks.

We had initially been told that we would have to pay $1,000 out of pocket for our deductible, and that we'd have to make all of the purchases out of our own pockets and that they would reimburse us for the expenses.  This was less than ideal, obviously, but we were willing to take it if it meant recuperating those initial losses.  You can imagine our elation, therefore, when we realized we wouldn't have to pay back any deductible, and we wouldn't have to pay a cent out of pocket - they simply cut us a check for the amount of items that were destroyed.

So, basically, we just got to go shopping.  I want to talk with you about the two big-ticket items that were replaced, if only so I can nerd out a bit, here.

1.  The Canon 77D

I replaced my old SLR - the Canon T4i - with a model that was a few grades or so higher, seeing how the amount the new one cost was equal to what I paid for my old one in 2013 (remember?) After much deliberation, I went with the Canon 77D, which is a quasi-pro, middle-tier SLR that has more professional-grade features to it (which I'm going to have to spend a lot of time figuring out.)

The settings are far more advanced than my old camera's were (the t4 series was a step up from their entry-level SLR, so it was pretty easy to use), but I can definitely get some quality shots with them.

2. The iMac

Having a Chromebook laptop already (which I use religiously for work and around the house just browsing the Internet, and which I'm actually using right now), I didn't really need to spend the high-price of replacing my old MacBook Pro.  Why pay extra for the portability aspect of a second laptop?  For the same price, I could pack far more RAM, memory, storage, graphics, and processing power into a desktop model and keep it down in my office (known around these parts as the Captain's Quarters.)

Therefore, I pulled the trigger on a suped-up iMac (I selected higher specs across the board so it'd be a frickin' workhorse.)  She's gorgeous, and suits my needs perfectly as a graphic design computer (I wanted an Apple for my graphic design work - Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, etc. - as well as my movie-editing and Garageband side-projects.)

We replaced several other items, but I won't bore you any more with the details - I doubt any of you honestly care all that much anyway - but hell, I'm excited.  What, at the time of the storm, seemed to be the End of All Things, turned out to be a Blessing in Disguise.  Sure, we had to go a month without my trusty camera and computer, but after that period of time I was able to seriously upgraded both, free of charge.

If that isn't proof of Divine Providence, hell - I don't know what is.

- Brian

Once Again, 'Twould Appear That Congraduations are in Order...

Hunter's Creek Elementary

I don't know about you, World, but I think it's kinda ridiculous that our culture here in the States celebrates mediocrity to the degree that it does.  I don't know if it's an American institution or what, this idea of rewarding students and athletes and what-have-you an acknowledgement or prize of some kind for simply participating.

Pretty sure the ancient Greeks never awarded laurels to 'Runners Up' in Olympia.

Anyway, I bring this up because, as we did once before, the Houghs attended yet another grand celebration of Mediocrity:

Guess which kid's a Hough.  Go ahead.  Guess.

Abby's Pre-School Graduation.

And, like last time, this fell on my last day of school. . . which I was actually cool with this year 'cause my afternoon classes were a pain in the ass this year.  I was able to leave work at lunch, swing by the house to change into quasi-formal wear and grab my camera gear, and head over to Hunter's Creek Elementary School for what turned out to be. . . well, just what you'd expect.

Smurf it:

Opening statements, courtesy of Ms. Roberta, the head Director at Sunchild.

Exhibiting some serious patience, here.

This ceremony - like Alayna's two years earlier - followed a pretty clear-cut program, clocking in under a half hour ('cause, you know, it has a bunch of four and five-year-olds sitting in chairs on a stage in front of an auditorium full of SLR-wielding parents.)  Opening remarks, a few songs, distribution of diplomas, and - why the hell not - a dance party.

Belting out the hits (not nearly as shy as her older sister.)

Gang signs.

. . . actually, speaking of gangs, I think it's cool that Abby got to dress up as a Blood this year, while her sister's graduating class went as Crips.

Embarrassed by something or other, who knows. . .

No idea.  It's Abby.

Walking up to get her 'diplomas.'

(That's her head teacher, Ms. Vivienne.)

The graduate returns to her seat.

I'm not sure if these were printed certificates, or mere sheets of blank copy paper.  Not that it matters either way, really - it's basically a prop.

(They were instructed to place the diplomas under their seat after receiving them. . . but apparently one of her classmates confused 'diplomas' with 'urine', based on the pool visible underneath the seat behind Abby's to the left.)

She was really, really proud of this 'achievement.'

Impromptu dance party, feat. Pharrell's Happy. . . 'cause mankind hasn't possibly heard that jam enough.

Abby does not appreciate her teachers' dance moves.

A photo op with all of the VPK teachers, as a courtesy to the camera-wielding masses.

Mom and Abby (and flowers.)

Ms. Mary Beth, Ms. Vivienne, and Ms. Marilyn

Not sure who this other kid is.

Yet another photobomb, courtesy of the Cannonball.

For whatever reason, Abby was not cool with idea of having a picture taken with her sister.  

Mid-tantrum.

. . . so of course Alayna has to become overly-emotional about the whole ordeal.  Having two girls is AWESOME.

Color-Coordinated Hough Family Picture.

Mommin'.

Filling in as my photo assistant for the afternoon.

As we made our way to our Tactical Family Transport Vehicle, Abby's teachers rushed out to say goodbye to the kids.

. . . and now we can look forward to repeating this process in twelve or thirteen years. 

- Brian

Walkin' the Green Mile

For those of you who keep tabs on our family, you may remember me mentioning before how Kris and I had determined to terminate my ability to procreate the species.  It was a long time coming, but with my current health insurance kicking ass the way it does, we decided to pull the trigger and get the procedure over and done with.

I go in tomorrow morning for what I'm sure will be a relatively lackluster affair, and honestly I'll be surprised if the whole procedure lasts longer than an hour.  No, what I'm far more concerned with is the aftermath of having my balls sliced open.

Three days of bed rest.

This is both a curse and a blessing.  On one hand, I've been given strict orders by the medical powers that be to stay off my feet until Monday.  I've been given prescriptions for Amoxicillin and Vicodin, and instructions to apply (ice twenty minutes on and twenty minutes off) for the next three days, not lift anything heavy, keep kids and pets off my lap, and not get up unless I absolutely have to use the bathroom.

While this sounds like a complete and utter Borefest, rest assured Yours Truly has taken several precautions to combat boredom at every turn.  I took down one of the bookcases from my Study and transformed it into a video game command center:

Booya.

As you can see from the above picture, I brought in the Wii U console and a few videogames from the living room, along with their respective players guides and some other controllers and accessories needed to play certain games.  The charging dock for the Wii U Gamepad is conveniently nearby, as is a charging station for most of my other gadgets.  Along the bottom shelf are two black, leather cases (you can barely see them) of DVDs and computer games, as well as some Rolling Stone and National Geographic magazines, and, of course, my Kindle.

One of my favorites.  Fully stocked.

My trusty, ol' MacBook Pro and random external hard drives are on hand, too - as I'll have plenty of time to work on my iTunes and iPhoto libraries, I'm sure. And there's probably a shitload of crap for work I should probably work on, too.

(But, then again. . . probably not.)

In the background to the left, you can see the black, mini-fridge I brought in from work (as I can't be walking to the kitchen whenever I want.)  That baby's filled with water, snacks, and - of course - tons of craft beer.

So, when all's said and done, I'm going to be charging down one hell of a gauntlet over the next three days, but I'll be damned if I get bored for one, single second of it.

Anyway, sack-slicing and bed-boredom aside, I had to take today off of work.  Yesterday, about half way through the work day I developed a severe headache and what felt like the oncoming wave of a fever.  That lasted throughout the rest of the evening and into this morning, but by early afternoon I was feeling better.  When I picked the kids up from school we decided to throw up a small Christmas tree I recently bought for the girls' playroom.

'Cause we can.

And so, I'll leave you with some pictures of that whole process.

Enjoy.

I had to split up the ornament sets into identical bowls because both girls wanted the pink/purple/silver balls instead of the red/burgundy/gold ones.  Of course.

I recently bought a 50mm lens for our SLR and took it for a test drive with these shots. . . but with the blinds drawn (so the kids could see the Christmas lights), the lighting (or lack thereof) made everything pretty granulated.

Striking a pose with the final product. . .

Alayna channels her inner Black Power, while Abby inexplicably smells the fake Christmas tree.

- Brian