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Hey Hey, and Happy Tuesday!! So, the Maker fam is into week three of our Cape Town adventures. It finally feels like we are “into the swing of things”. With solid work days from Monday to Wednesday, and family days the rest of the week, it has been really refreshing. I’ve even managed getting back into the routine of running! Woot. Busy days for sure, but that’s the name of the game with two kiddos at this age. But hey, I’ll save the rest of it for below the fold, keep it scrollin’ after the tech round up for the latest family news!
Without a doubt, someone reading is thinking “WHAT? Cape Town??”, and clearly they missed Ray’s Hello Cape Town post. So, if you’re that someone and what to get caught up, go read that post and come back to us afterwards!
First up from last week was Ray’s sort of interesting piece on his Strava Unique Uploads Tally. I thought this was a kinda cool round up of his 2018 uploads. This post has some pretty graphs, and then ultimately gets deep into API geekery. So if that’s your thing, go forth! Next up was the Garmin HRM-DUAL Heart Rate Strap In-Depth Review. When I did a quick read through this post for Ray before publishing, I didn’t think much of it. It was just a HR Strap with added features. But by the looks of the comment section, this is very much a hot topic. I will tread lightly here with my comments, as sometimes what it sounds like in my head can be read very differently. But IMHO, when people start complaining about the durability of a HR straps after their 3rd, 4th, even 5th battery change, I start to scratch my head a little. In comparison to how much we spend on alllllll of our other sports gear, training platforms, race registrations, etc. our HR straps are “relatively” inexpensive. Yet, the HR strap is kind of the most used an abused piece of equipment we have. Think of the corrosive aspects of our sweat, possible swimming conditions, and then the ultimate “chuck it on floor (or in airless gym bag)” while getting in shower. I’m not super confident in the level of care the average person gives their HR strap (definitely not me). And yet after the 3rd or 4th battery change the poor thing dies and the user is mad at the manufacturer? Given that a battery can last you upwards of two to three years, multiplied by three changes, I imagine it would not be out of the question to grab a new HR strap from time to time? I dunno… even hygienically I’d opt to get a new strap? Like I said, that’s just me, and my little opinion.
However, this post also brought up the conversation of the HR Strap chaffing issues! I used to have the worst time with HR straps literally slicing my chest. Like it would make one’s head tilt to take a second look; the cut/ scar would be that bad come bathing suit season. Until I came up with the Band-Aid hack. This is a deep in the archives post, but still has a few good pointers for chaffing suffers. Next up was the Polar Vantage M Multisport GPS Watch In Depth Review. This watch still seems to be “okay”, definitely a better option than its more expensive big sister the Polar Vantage V. I don’t think it’s going to win any user awards this year, but if you’re in the Polar family and won’t be caught wearing another, then this might be a good fit for you.
As always (usually), last but not least, we have the two blog staples. The “Week in Review” featuring lots of links and videos to eat away your afternoon, and my personal favorite the “5 Random Things I Did” posts. I know, you know by now what these posts are all about! Happy reading! And that’s a wrap! Tech talk over and out. Next up we have the fabulous world of Audio-Visual. YouTube Here’s the quick and dirty round up of all the videos posted since the last time we spoke: … ahem, yes. Just one |
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In-Depth Thoughts from The Girl Hey thanks for joining me down here. It’s funny you know, every week, all week long, I’m storing away little tidbits of interesting Maker family stuffs. Things I think are funny or might be of interest to the reader. And then, every week around this time, I end up here. Blank. Second guessing what is actually interesting. So, here I go. Take 9.
As I said up top, we are well into our third week here in Cape Town. Enjoying it we are! If for no other reason other than for the sunshine and later sunsets. I’m back in the grid of running. I’ve struck out on renting a bike that fits me (or as Ray would say, renting a “doll bike”). And the possibility of completing my once a year open water swim is looking conceivable. So I think the warm weather has been a positive influence on me at least. It’s also wildly amazing to see the changes in the kiddos. Where they go to daycare in the Netherlands, they are exposed to five days a week Dutch language, which is great- no complaints here. BUT, now that they have been with us for 3 weeks down here, sans daycare, we have seen the biggest explosion in their English communication skills! I know this must sound obvious to some of you, but to see it in real time is really cool!
A lot of our family excursions have involved animals. Which is really hilarious because for the few days following the introduction to said animal, our household talks non-stop all about the sounds that animal makes. That animal ends up having a mommy, daddy, and baby, and so on. And when these animals include elephants, lions, penguins, and as always “Nemos”, you can imagine the sounds and acting that occurs.
With a road trip to Bolder Beach, a family safari, and the Aquarium under our belts, I’m not sure what we are up to this weekend. I’ll be scanning the mommy-boards for ideas. Ray and I have a few date nights (or day dates as it more often turns out) on the calendar for the next two weeks, so stay tuned.
A shameless self promotion here. If you want more up-to-date pics of what’s happening, and maybe things that don’t always make the blog or newsletter, you can always check out the BBMaker Instagram account. As always, thanks for reading! ~The Girl |
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