Rear Pad Change for my '99 Honda Accord.

So I just changed the rear brake pads on my car. I got a Haynes manual, studied it over and over, and the whole thing was great. Except for a few rusted bolts that took a lot of ummmpfh to crack, the process isn't that bad.
I suppose if I went to an auto shop I would have had to pay at least $150, but with only $60 in parts, and $50 for a pair of jack stands and a Torque wrench from autozone I got to do it myself. Now the next time I change my brake pads it will only cost $40, because I will have all the tools.

Honestly, if you have any mechanical aptitude, i recommend that you get a Haynes manual for your car, and start doing some of the fixes your self. Then with all the money you will save you can buy some of things that you want.

Just a thought.

p.s. Oh, and though I did mention on Facebook that my wife was a great helper, I did forget to mention on my blog that she helped. My bad.

On the go...

So I just found out how to make a mobile post to my blog. If you are curious you can go to go.blogger.com and set it up. All you need to do is text REGISTER to BLOGGER (256447). This will create a new blog, and then you can merge it with an existing blog.

Cool hunh?

Sumo Paint...

Have you ever had the need for an online photo editor? I found this new program called sumopaint http://www.sumopaint.com/ where you can edit your photos without having to use Photoshop, or gimp, or having to pay for an expensive program.
What a neat idea.

A nice touch to the end of my day.....

Over half a year ago I put a post on the BYU bookstore sounding board, and I finally got a response today. Basically the bookstore was getting a little bit of flak from the student body about high prices, and I thought that someone ought to make note of the good things that the book store does. Anyway, without further adieu, here is the response I got to my comment:

Response:

Stephen, this mature comment stunned us. We live in the strident 21st Century where far too often “My View is The Only View,” and seldom see someone with understanding which reaches across the aisle. Thank you for taking the time to write and express your insight. And please give our gratitude to your parents for having raised you so remarkably well.

Stephen Godfrey asked:

This is not so much a question but a thought I would post on this board. This semester I almost accepted that I would have to pay $450 for my books this semester; however, I had the thought to buy online, check the book exchange, and borrow from friends. Though I am grateful that I will only have to pay $230 I still had a question about the bookstore and their price markup. So I read through a large quantity of posts on this board and one thing impressed me. When a student made a hostile post the response was always civil, understanding and professional. I just want to thank whoever is on the other end of this message board for being a good example to the student body. I do not like the way text book prices are rising as much as anyone else, but I think that the bookstore should not be all to blame. They have costs that the have to meet, and some of their costs come from the excellent return policy that they offer us. We as students should be as understanding as the bookstore is to us and cut them a little slack.

Happy Christmas, Intex is over

During the first semester of my ISYS classes we have a major project called Intex, or Integrated Exercise. This assignment lasts all week long, and is critical part of our grades for this semester. Monday morning we are given an eight page case to study, and then we need to make a report and presentation on it. Now our report is not just any only report, it is FULLY comprehnesive report o' evilness. It is full of things I don't even want to speak of right now, but I will let you know that our report was 85 pages long. Then, we were thrown from the frying pan and into the fire, and we had to present this saturday morning. Not only did we have to present, but we had to present to a faculty memember, a grad student, and a high-level manager from Accenture Consulting. That's the bad news, now here is the good news:

First off, we as a group were told that we did an "exceptional job," and coming from those people that is quite the complement.

Second, the Manager from Accenture singled me out from of my team and told me that I was an impressive speaker. He told me I was confident, clear, conscise, and I did a great job. I was really honored by the compliments from him, as well as the compliments from my team. In all honesty thought, I my team did so much for this assignment, infact, I want to publicly thank my group for all the hard work that they put in. They did so many of the tasks that I did not have the ability to do. I truly blessed to have such a great team.

So that is that. This assignment is done. After 12-13 hour days for a week I think it is time to relax. (or at least do the rest of the homework that I need to get done today :P)

My poem...

I was bored today during some presentations that I had to attend, so this is what I came up with to pass a bit of the time:

AS TIRED AS TIRED CAN BE

I'm as tired as I can be,
though that is easy for you to see,
and I wish I could sleep,
a slumber so deep,
and awake when I'm 33.

Thank you, thank you. I will be here all week.

Favored.....

I have been missing my yale hoodie for a few weeks now. It was a christmas gift from my dad a few years ago, and it means a lot to me.
Well today was the opening social of the Masters of Information Systems Management (MISM) lounge. Normally I don't go in there much but I went there today for the free pizza and to celebrate the new lounge. So I grabbed some pizza and bottled water, and they watched some guys play super smash brothers for a bit. Then, I just happened to look on the couch and there was a yale hoodie just laying there. I went over and sure enough it was mine.
I'm so grateful to have it back. The most awesome thing is that I had not even prayed about finding it, but heaven still smiled down on me today. Heavenly Father is awesome.