Another Christmas Season Past.

Well 2010 is in the books, and I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! We are looking forward to great year ahead!

Our Christmas was quiet, but very nice. My son Lyle was here and we enjoyed some nice weather, hanging out by the pool,

watching some movies using my new outdoor projector and the new inflatable projector screen (an early 'Merry Christmas to me' present),

and took a motorcycle ride in to the hills towards Globe.

We also golfed,

and took in a Phoenix Suns vs. Miami Heat basketball game (pretty much an NBA all-star game).
Being of Scandinavian heritage, our family celebrates on Christmas Eve, so we opened up a Skype video chat with the rest of the family back home, they had a traditional turkey dinner, while we feasted on Alaskan King Crab (not a traditional Christmas dinner)!

Lyle left on Christmas Day, and Sandy and I went for a twilight round of golf to complete our Christmas.

We were able to squeeze in another round of golf last week between working on the website, and spent New Years Eve with our good friends Rob, Judy, and Sharone over at the Turner residence. The final highlight of the season is Sandy's birthday (January 2), and as per her request, we spent the day hiking in the area on Superstition Mountain.

The route we took was the Hieroglyphic Canyon Trail, and the hike takes you up to the Hieroglyphic Spring, and on the rock walls around the spring you can see many petroglyphs carved in to the rocks by the ancient Hohokam Indians.

The Christmas season always seems to get me thinking about the really important things in life, like family and friends. We've been blessed with such good families on both sides, and our siblings fit in to both groups, family and friends. I'm lucky to have both of my parents (Dad Lyle, 84 and Mom Agnes, 82), and they are coming for a 2 week visit here on January 5th, so we're looking forward to spending some quality time with them.

There's a lot of new content on the website so check that out. Sandy has been putting together clips that we have from my appearances on a nationally broadcast television show a few years ago, and I have put together several new posts as well. The easiest way is to check the recent articles section on the homepage.

I had a question from a website client that needs some immediate attention.

Question:

What causes an outlet to get hot, melting the varnish on the wall, and the white wires are burnt at the ends where they connect to the receptacle?

Answer:

This is a very dangerous situation caused by a high resistance connection at the receptacle on the neutral side as a result of a loose terminal, or more likely that they used the push-in terminals at the back of the receptacle. This needs immediate attention as it poses a fire risk. This is something that the homeowner can repair if the proper safety precautions are observed (shut off the circuit), and a proper repair is done. If not, refer this to a qualified electrician. The device needs to be replaced, and the heated sections of the wires need to be cut back, and a new device installed.

Keep the questions coming! I will attempt to answer the quick ones here on the blog, and if the question warrants a detailed response, I'll post it as an article on the website.

Again, Happy New Year, and all the best to you and yours in 2011.