Spending Way Too Much Time on the Computer

I got a new computer for Christmas and it is absolutely amazing! My old computer was so slow that even though i needed to use it a lot, I really couldn't use it for unnecessary things. Youtube videos took too long to load to watch more than one, Stumbleupon would freeze the computer after 10 clicks and opening up more than 3 tabs at a time would make Firefox call animal control. But now that I've have this new computer that turns on faster than I can press the button, I've found that I can open up 18 tabs in Firefox at once, listen to music, and watch videos all at once.

Subsequently I have realized that I've been getting very little done. I thought faster computer would equal more accomplished but it has not turned out that way. It used to take about 3 minutes to boot up my computer and so I would collect things that I wanted to look up or research throughout the day and look them all up at once when I had the computer on. But this new computer makes it so easy for me to turn on the computer 8 times a day if necessary and look something up immediately. Unfortunately, every time I look one thing up, I get distracted by a whole lot of nothing.

So in the interest of actually doing other things, like I used to (knitting, reading, practicing guitar, drawing, and researching properly,) I've decided to put a computer time limit on myself. I am giving myself 2 hours a day during the week, which may seem very excessive to most people but most of my school papers and homework requires the internet. It is amazing the number of things you have to do on the computer now, e-mails, banking, shopping, writing, etc.. I am actually very nervous about having these time limits--it seems way too short, but I am sure I will enjoy actually having my life back even better. Today was a snow day from college, and I got to see just how little I did today.   

For those who have been thinking that they'd like some limits for themselves, Here is how to do it:

Go to Control Panel.

Select User Accounts and Family Safety.  

Select Parental Controls. If you only have one user account on the computer, you will need to make a separate one for the time limit as you can't put parental controls if you only have one user account.

Select the Account you want the time limit on. In my picture it is labeled "2 Hour Time Limit."

Make sure the Parental Control button is switched to "on." and Click on Time Limits

Drag the Time Limit Sliders where you want them. I want two hours after school each day and all day on the weekends. I have them backwards for this photo, the white is for allow and the blue is for restricted.

If you have a Mac, here are the instructions: Parental Controls. I like the Mac settings better, I would rather be able to spread my two hours over the day by minutes.

Other ways to limit computer time:

• Minutes Please: This is a website that will limit the amount of time you spend on the websites you spend the most time wasting time. It is free and easy to use. This is probably perfect for people who need to be using the computer for work but don't want to be checking Facebook every three seconds. 
• 6 Firefox Tools That Monitor your Time Online: If you want to be alarmed at where you really are wasting time, check out these Firefox Tools.  
• Leech Block: A Firefox add-on designed to make your use of the internet more productive.

Homemade Penny Whistles: CPVC Tin Whistles

Yesterday Andy and I made homemade Penny Whistles out of CPVC pipes. He made a low D whistle and a whistle with Uilleann pipe fingerings (which means I won't have to listen to those bagpipes when he's practicing a new song. ::jumps up and down:: )and I made a penny whistle with an extra hole to allow the whistle to reach a middle C.

Andy and I originally were just going to make a Low D whistle because they are expensive but the pipes were sold in 10 ft segments so we ended up making a bunch.

It took a lot of measuring and sanding but they did not take very long to make.All it took was The pipe, a wood dowel, a saw and sandpaper.

 It really was a lot of fun and we got three whistles done in a couple of hours.  They sound very pretty too. If I can convince Andy to let me record him, I will post it on here. He always says yes but ends up avoiding it-- he's shy about playing in front of people but is very good.

Some Tutorials, Plans and Tips for making CPVC and PVC whistles and other instruments if you'd like to try yourselves:

• Guido Gonzato's Plans for Whistles : This site has lots and lots of plans for building whistles.
• CPVC Flute
• The Bag Whistle: Directions for a weird bagpipe flute instrument.
• Making Simple PVC Flutes

Colonial Games: How to Play Thread the Needle

This is the second post about Colonial games, the first can be read here: How to Play Blind Man's Buff. 

Thread the Needle, Thread My Needle, Thread the Tailor's Needle is an old game that was popular for both girls and boys.

There are two popular versions of the game. In the first version, all join hands to make a line. The last two people of the line raise their arms to form an arch and the first person in line goes under the arch, leading the rest of the line under. The person who was previously first in the line then becomes the end of the line and will be one of the people forming the next arch. The new front of the line will now try to go under the new arch and the whole completed until the chain is broken. The point of the game is to try and do this many times without breaking the chain.

 The second version of this game was popular in the U.S. and includes a Biblical chant. Everyone holds hands and forms a line the two people at the head of the line chant "How many miles to Babylon?" The end two people chant in response "Three score and ten." The conversation continues "Can I get there by candle light?" "Yes, and back again." "Then open the gates with mere ado and let the King and his men pass through. The end couple then raises their hands up in an arch and the game is played the same as the first version.

School Again

I have finally been to all of the classes I will be taking this semester and it really seems like a lot of work! I am taking a lot of my education and teaching courses.

Things here have been really hectic with the weather. The snow and ice have made school and travel a complete nightmare.

College is a very strange place. I'll never understand the "college experience." For people should be experimenting with budgeting, cooking, studying, working and overall living on their own, a lot of the students seem to be not practicing any of these things at all.

Throughout the sememster, many students never learn to budget their time and end up missing assignments. Some students only show up for class a few times a month.
Many students spend way too much time socializing, going to parties and hanging out with friends. Not to even mention underage drinking and other illegal activity. 

I hear girls in the halls talking to their friend about how "so and so" is cheating on his girlfriend and how stupid people were acting at that "underwear party" on Friday night (I would not believe such a thing existed if I hadn't heard people talking about it myself.)

Something that astonishes me even more is the pure number of girlfriends and boyfriends, I hear fighting over the phone. I can't imagine that people stay in relationships where every call is a fight.  Has the standard of relationships been set so low that people think that daily fighting is "normal?" I know not every day in a relationship is perfect but shouldn't there be more perfect days than not?

I even overheard a girl telling her friend that her father was so mean because he wouldn't let her boyfriend sleep over because he was afraid they would sleep together. She then said that it was pointless because her mother already knew that she had already slept with him and was keeping it a secret from her husband to protect her. This girl said she didn't want to lose her father's trust. I felt like asking her why she does things that she is not comfortable telling her parents about. If she wants to have her parents trust, why deliberately break their trust?

Whatever happened to movies and popcorn on a Friday night or study groups? Some of this stuff is just too much and the worst thing about it is that they really don't seem happy. Many of them are regretful. Why is this behavior cultivated and promoted around educational institutions? Maybe this is a case of "it's always happened at college and it only seems more prevalent now." So, what do you think? Has college always been this way?

Colonial Games: How to Play Blindman's Buff

I think I will be starting a new Colonial Games post on Fridays detailing how to play different Colonial games. I know it's not Friday, but I would like to get a head start.

Blindman's Buff (or Blindman's Bluff) is a very old game that has been recorded in ancient Greece and has been popular all throughout the late 15th century through the 19th century.

The game is normally played outside or in a spacious area such as a barn or large room. One person's eyes are blindfolded. The other players will, make noise, tap and push the "blindman" slightly while the "blindman" attempts to catch one of the other players.

 



Once the "blindman" catches a player, he or she must then try to guess who they have caught. If the "blindman" guesses wrong the other players will clap to let the "blindman" know to let the prisoner loose. The game continues until the "blindman" catches and identifies another player. The caught player will then be the blindman next.




The other players must take care during the game to make sure that the "blindman" does not get hurt. They should signal to them if they are too close to a wall, piece of furniture, hole ect.