I Like the Notion of Learning to Code

I've always been intimidated by coding because, well, programming isn't exactly my strong-point.  I always feel like I'm only sort of understanding all of the slippery syntax.  I know enough pseudo-code to break things down into logical sequences and tasks, enough SQL to take care of my queries in Microsoft SQL Management Studio and enough VB to figure out what macros are doing, and that's pretty much it.  But, as I get older, I find that I want to expand my options both in the technology industry and in professional growth, particularly after completing a Masters in Info Management program and now that I'm looking for career opportunities.  So, when I came across this Code.org promotional video today, it just seemed like providence.  This is just the catalyst to get started!

I Like My New Vacuum Vroom Vroom!

I gave my somewhat average Hoover vacuum to my Dad as his was a complete piece of junk that couldn't even suck up lint.  So today, my husband and I went out and invested in a new one to replace our old one.
 
 We got this Shark model NV502 (click there for a video that shows all the cool stuff).

Photo from Bed, Bath & Beyond

So far so good; we're impressed with its power and versatility.  Overall, it consistently had very high reviews everywhere we looked.  The negative reviews for it said that it was top heavy and inclined to fall over when using the attachments.  We found that yeah, that can happen, but it's not a big deal because it's also overall lightweight, so big whoop - pick it up if it falls over.  And, if you bother to put it into the included wheeled base cart which turns it into a canister vac, then that takes care of that whole falling over issue, anyway.  Meh, the negatives with this machine are ultimately meaningless, while the positives are truly tangible - you can see how well this machine works immediately with dust, dirt, hair and lint -- and the air filters work great as the exchange vent blows out clean air instead of dust.  It is a lean, mean cleaning machine!

While not cheap, it was considerably less than the high-end models like Dyson and such, and had fabulous reviews everywhere we looked.  We bought it at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $250 in addition to the 20% off coupon, so 200 bones (plus a pile of tax because AZ has ginormous sales tax).  Not too shabby for a vacuum that I think works as well as the $600 ones, though.  Hopefully we won't need to buy another one anytime soon because the expenses really hit this month -- I also need new tires, my 40K tune-up, and car insurance renewals are due. 

That reminds me... I need to go buy a lottery ticket!