BruceArmstrong.net

Cozumel Cruise

Bruce — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 17:40:04 +0000

Michelle, Andrew, Holly and I enjoyed a 5-day, 5-night cruise on the Carnival Triumph. Joining us was Holly’s boyfriend, Drey. We visited Progreso and Cozumel, Mexico. Our off-ship excursions included Mayan ruins, a beach-side resort, and an Amazing Race in Cozumel where we ran about 4 miles through the city, solving clues and having fun. The teenagers got in the ocean, but Michelle and I stayed dry. We also enjoyed the on-ship amenities, being quickly spoiled with food and service. I personally ate more ice cream in that 5-day period than any other 5-month period of my life. Michelle is already planning another cruise.

Even non-Facebook people should be able to see this album, but if you want to see higher resolution images, click here for the Google Picasa version of the album.

Here’s an album of some excellent photos taken by my son. You may have to be a Facebooker to see these. Since I don’t own the album, I’m not sure.

Cycling is My New Hobby

Bruce — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 04:17:14 +0000

For years and years, I’ve wanted to get a bicycle. Finally, just over a month ago, I did. I got a pretty basic hybrid called the Diamondback Edgewood. Each weekend, I’ve done a progressively longer ride. First 17 miles, then 22, 28, and finally 32 miles on Sunday. I’m doing other rides during the week when I can find the time. I’ve got one route that’s about 12 miles that I’ve been trying to beat 1 hour on. Seems easy, but there are some wicked hills to contend with. In flat-as-a-pancake North Texas? You’d be surprised.

I’ve been using my Android phone and a separate bluetooth GPS unit to track my rides. Originally I was using Google My Tracks, but recently, I discovered the Endomondo app and I’m quite liking it. The app tracks your time, distance, and calories burned. The app also uses speech synthesis to announce your time at each mile, which I’ve found surprisingly motivating. Surely, I should be doing 4-minute miles on a bike! The endomondo.com website also provides interesting stats and shows weekly and monthly views of your workouts. I also imported all my previously tracked rides so far and you can see them here.

Today I signed up for my first official event: The Head for the Hills Bike Rally in Cedar Hill, TX on May 7th. I signed up for the 40 mile route. I don’t quite have the guts to take on a 60 mile route just yet. We’ll see how things go. Check back here or on Facebook to see how I do.

Andrew’s Scion xB is Totaled

Bruce — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 04:05:27 +0000

Through no fault of his own, Andrew was rear-ended in his Scion xB and was rammed into the car in front of him. His car ended up looking like an accordion (and was totaled by the insurance company), but he was relatively unscathed. This was a six-car accident and we’re really lucky he wasn’t badly hurt. Click here to see a few photos of the dear departed.

Andrew Graduates High School

Bruce — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 05:29:43 +0000

Andrew graduated from Midlothian High School with the class of 2010. He had lots of family support in the stands, including folks down from Oklahoma. It was a pretty emotional night for the ladies as you’ll see in the photos. After the ceremony, the graduates went to a lock-in at the Main Event entertainment center where they played laser tag, billiards, and video games, and bowled and ate until dawn. It was a pretty neat way to not have a bunch of new adults out on the roads overnight.

We are extremely proud of Andrew and can’t believe there’s only three more years for Holly.

6/11/2010 update: Added pictures from the graduation party.

Holly is an Artist

Bruce — Thu, 27 May 2010 02:40:44 +0000

Great news! My other kid is talented too. Holly brought home her art portfolio today and she’s got tons of excellent pieces. Here’s one of my favorites. It is “scratch art” of our dog Scout. I’ll be scanning and photographing more of her work in the near future.

Ace’s Band Plays in the Concert for Haiti

Bruce — Tue, 18 May 2010 04:22:30 +0000

6 musical acts got together to play in a fund-raising “Concert for Haiti”. Ace’s band was one of them. Because there were so many acts, they only got a short time each, but they made the most of it. Andrew played vocals, keyboard, and even played accordian live for the first time.

Double Rainbow

Bruce — Tue, 04 May 2010 03:01:04 +0000

After a decent thunderstorm, we were treated to a double rainbow.

Andrew’s Art Portfolio

Bruce — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 15:36:46 +0000

Andrew has finally digitized some of the artwork that he has created over the last couple of years. He’s got it on his Facebook page, but I wanted to keep another copy, so I’m posting it here. Below are a few of my favorites. Click here for the full gallery.

Scout Looks Like a Puppy Again

Bruce — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 19:21:10 +0000

Scout’s winter coat was so thick and long that he was really getting hot playing outside. We took him to the groomers for a really short hair cut. He looks so much younger and even a little smaller now. He’s definitely more comfortable and we’re sweeping and vacuuming less of his hair up every day. Click for more pics.

Another Spring Break Trip to Enchanted Rock

Bruce — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 04:14:25 +0000

We once again visited Enchanted Rock on Spring Break. After a fun hike and climb, we headed to Austin to check out the SXSW (South by Southwest) music scene downtown. The Austin area was so crowded that we had to head several miles north of town to find a place to stay. We headed back downtown the next morning and visited an art museum, did some shopping, and tons of SXSW people watching. I have lots of pictures from Enchanted Rock, but I wish I had the camera out for SXSW. Lots of weird, wild stuff.