The Urbz RSS Feed

The first Swedish Project Video is done.

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-05-18T20:48:07-07:00

You can see the whole video here. It is a large download, so please be patient.

Dinner at the Urbz

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-21T20:38:48-07:00

Well, today's full house dinner went very well. Rose cooked, or I should say catered, a full dinner for our supporting bosses, staff, families, and students of the Swedish visit. Full bellies abound!

World's Oldest Tree

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-16T16:48:19-07:00

Swedish researchers have uncovered a stand of spruce trees with an 8,000-year-old tree root system in Dalarna, making it among the oldest in the world. http://www.thelocal.se/11054/20080411/

A week gone by...

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-13T19:38:16-07:00

I have posted a few more pics in the gallery, but I have so much more. ...I think I caught a nasty cold from the trip home, and I find it hard to stay awake today (Sunday). ... There is more AV work to be done in the next two months toward graduation than all of last fall.

From Nicole Cory...

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-06T14:01:55-07:00

One thing that the Swedes have mastered that Americans forgot how to do is to have a good time without spending too much money and without a whole lot of effort. ... Sweden in general seems to me to have a much more laid back mood, and all the people I've met have been very friendly. ... The teachers respect them and trust them, and it is more like a working atmosphere than a strict school (which we all know to be our school system...*cough-RIM-cough*).

Friday Evening

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-04T14:44:17-07:00

After a long week of work, I usually spend time with family doing something goofy, shopping, or sports-like and I felt that pull today. Lennart generously let me use his office to work on the internet and I video-chatted for quite awhile with Rose, Sean, Meg & David Coons, and some classes. ...I also checked British Airways about the luggage, and we have two more bags with the status of "we think we found it, but it will take some time to confirm this" so cross your fingers.

Friday Morning

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-04T01:35:49-07:00

I woke up around 8:30am this morning wanting to stay under the warm covers. ... Right now, I am trying to add a networking switch to Lennart's DSL, but it is being stubborn. If I can get it to work, I would like to add my Airport Express for temporary wireless.

Sleepy Thursday

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-03T16:11:36-07:00

I think I have about 16 minutes left of video battery (I have no charger, and British Airways still has not given me back my luggage and claims that over 15,000 lost bags were shipped to Milan, Italy to be sorted). ...After fika, Tommy, Dave and I went to visit our paired students among different places in Östersund, where they went to work for the day; not school, but actual jobs in different places. ...For Dave's video session with his Advanced Auto Shop combined with my Networking Management class, we sure had a crowd on our end of the camera.

Busy...Busy...Busy -- No time to Write!

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-03T00:47:32-07:00

It was about an hour ride to get to this area, most of of it on a dirt-sand-slush road with ice -- sort of the back of 173 in Lake Arrowhead! ...Later in the evening, the adults returned to school to watch a presentation on a state of the art Rack, Re-aligninment system, and Paint Room in the new Body Shop area of the VTC school. Although the presentation was in Svenska, I learned enough to ask intelligent questions about the system and how it was being implemented in the school.

Late Tuesday Afternoon

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-01T18:00:14-07:00

After lunch, I tried getting on the internet at the school, but there were some restrictions, so most of my work will be done when I have the opportunity at Lennart's house in the evenings. ... From fellow teachers to students, I found everyone to be engaging and thoroughly interesting on every level of discussion: politics, tv, technology, muscle cars (it helped that i have owned quite a few muscle cars through the years), electricity, and more. ...Even today, after 3 years, they still talk to him about his "short pants" and that he might have something wrong with legs, since they are too hot for long pants.

Time for Fika (Sat through Mon's activities)

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-04-01T01:13:33-07:00

Around 11pm local time, we finally all hit the sack, or I should say, we hit the bunks -- I had to ask Dave to sleep on the top bunk since I weigh a bit more than him. ...After about 90 minutes, we quickly walked back to the hotel to check out, walked on over to get our train tickets, hopped on within minutes, and we were off to our SAS (Scandinavian Airlines) flight. ...But wearing a Chicago Cubs T-Shirt (it was opening day in the US), a big jacket, equipment everywhere, and being short and plump with 2+ day old clothes... it was not quite feeling comfortable with myself.

Onward to Heathrow, London

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-03-29T15:36:02-07:00

Rose, Allie and I left around 10am this morning to meet Justin at CSUF (Fullerton) for breakfast at Denny's. ... Then we drove through some busy traffic to LAX and found ourselves in line. Dave Meigide and the other travelers found us to check in baggage and we are waiting for a few hours to board.

How the hands reacts in a Karate Chop

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-03-11T17:42:04-07:00

Watch more DIY videos on 5min.com

Bill Walton & Will Ferrell in a Game of Horse

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-02-27T19:32:36-08:00

Bud Light Commercial

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-02-12T18:36:56-08:00

Thanks to Big John for the link. This commercial is self-explanatory. ...

Camera Stabilizer for about a $1

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-02-11T21:51:08-08:00

Thank you from JD for posting this on our Forum:
$1 Image Stabilizer For Any Camera - Lose The Tripod - The most amazing videos are a click away

Dream Theater's new MTV video - Forsaken

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-01-25T08:19:28-08:00

There is a detailed background of this video at this link.

News from VMWare via TUAW.com

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-01-23T16:02:23-08:00

Revision3 Studio (sent via Michael Gorman)

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-01-24T12:20:11-08:00

Former RHS AV Students' Work

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-01-10T19:37:25-08:00

A stop animation video from Sage Roddy and Geoff Levy.

Star Wars Home Brewed

drurbz@gmail.com — 2008-01-05T11:04:45-08:00

Tuesday Follow-up

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-30T10:13:34-07:00

When we finally got over our adrenaline, the smell inside the house was of serious smoke and we tried to air out the house. ...They graciously took care of us and asked us how things were on a daily level, so we thank them wholeheartedly. ...Back in 2003, when I was furiously keeping the blogs by my father-in-law's house, I found a lot of information for people's homes and such.

Sunday... Going Home

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-28T11:00:23-07:00

he mandatory evacuation order for the communities of Twin Peaks, Rim Forest, Blue Jay, Agua Fria, Deer Lodge Park, Sky Forest, Cedar Glen and the majority of Lake Arrowhead will be reduced to voluntary evacuation effective 12:00 p.m. on October 28, 2007. ... The areas that suffered extensive fire damage will remain under a mandatory evacuation area with road closures at the following locations: • Brentwood Drive @ Sonoma Drive • San Benito Drive @ Pinehurst Drive • Brentwood Drive @ Pinehurst Drive • Brentwood Drive @ Oakmont Drive • Brentwood Drive @ Grass Valley Drive Other areas under a mandatory evacuation remain in effect until further notice (Running Springs, Arrow Bear and Green Valley Lake). Residents returning to their homes should be aware of the following: All of the affected areas suffered power outages for some period of time during the fire.

Saturday...

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-27T21:01:01-07:00

All roadways leading into the San Bernardino Mountains are still closed to up-bound, non-emergency traffic; including Highway 18 west of Big Bear Dam, Hwy 330, Hwy 138 at Hwy 173 and Hwy 18 at Waterman Ave. ...9:38am: Despite not smelling like smoke, there is considerable particulate matter in the air near LAE visible at night by the simple beam of a flashlight - not small stuff either but big flakes swirling around. ...9:05am: Air to Air (over Grass): They're getting some crews together to get in there, what I want you to do is cool down that drainage area, we have a tanker coming, but he (Div C) wants it OUT. 2 helicopters to Arrowhead for drops.

Thursday Evening

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-25T20:27:21-07:00

It's been pretty quiet on the Twin Peaks side of things but today after 3:00 PM they had some flare ups in the Miller Canyon area. ...Firefighters battling the Slide Fire near Running Springs made slow but steady progress today and now have the 11,675-acre blaze 15 percent contained, authorities said. ..."Firefighters continue to make good progress on line construction in the Miller Canyon drainage as well as mop up in the northern and eastern flanks of the fire," said fire officials.

Thursday's Activities

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-25T19:04:00-07:00

Sean went to the evacuation center last night since he had to see if he would be called in to work early this morning, but won't work until 4:30pm - midnight. ...I also find it stupid how the precedent that Chuck Henry set in 2003, where he almost lost his life in SkyForest is now being mimicked by other reporters. ... Furthermore, how is it ok to make a big deal out of people not evacuating as instructed, and yet keep the same people on TV for interviews?

Wednesday Morning & Afternoon

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-24T13:34:02-07:00

• 11:54am: Phone interview with USFS PIO John Miller - Person was arrested in VOE last night for arson, he was observed in the act and was followed by chopper to a house and arrested by SO. ...• 11:38am: "I just got word from my daughter in law, an evacuee from Blue Jay, that all the houses on Sandalwood, Teakwood and Ironwood are okay at this time. ...• 11:43am: From FireUpdate.com-- In response to a request from state and federal officials, NASA today dispatched an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment to help firefighters battling the Southern California wildfires.

Tuesday Night

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-23T17:31:48-07:00

Grass Valley Fire: This fire has burned 1,000 acres northwest of Lake Arrowhead. 113 structures have been lost, and more than 1500 homes remain threatened. There are mandatory evaucations for all areas north of Hwy 189 (includes North Bay Dr. and Grass Valley Rd.), North of Lake Arrowhead Dam on Hwy 173, and all of Twin Peaks. ...According to a utility employee in the Running Springs area, the fire has damaged homes on the following roads: Deep Creek Drive, Secret Drive, Encina Way, Chicago Drive, Old City Creek Road (from near Highway 330 and up), Knoll View Drive (1 or 2 homes lost), Nob Hill Court (1 home lost), Frebalba Road (homes lost on both sides by the Catholic Church), Circle View Drive, Valley View Drive, Camp Helendade (some structures), and Easy Drive.

Tuesday Morning & Afternoon

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-23T13:51:27-07:00

10:54am: ROTW Google - I spoke with someone who got up into town only briefly, sounds like a good deal of the houses are still standing in Green Valley Lake (a miracle). it sounds like town is however lost. ...10:01am: A little good news from ROTW Google Group: "Good News for Fairway and Grandview in Lake Arrowhead/Twin Peaks" - My son-in-law drove through up Hwy 189 through Grandview and then down Fairway with a Fire Captain around 9AM and verified that although there is very strong smell of smoke, there were no houses lost or of immediate threat. ...11:12am {via email} "A family member just called me telling me that the fire went BEHIND grandview and is heading down dart canyon, missed us completly, the RANGER RD fire went in the same direction of grandview, so the ball park, pine rose, kingdom hall is all fine, its gonna hit all those ranches and probably burn into miller canyon and lake gregory area."

From Mr. Smith for Rim Drama

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-22T20:20:22-07:00

"The Diary of Anne Frank" dress rehearsal is cancelled for Tuesday, and that I will be updating my website (www.rimdrama.com) as I get more info on the fate of the play?" --Mr. Joel Smith

Updates from Monday Evening

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-22T19:38:39-07:00

AA15 to ground (Grass incident, I believe) - "... midslope there at the road; if it slopes over, I think you're going to have something there. ... If it holds there, you've got a good chance; if it slopes over that ridge, you've got a whole bowl there that goes for miles; if we can get some helitankers up here tomorrow... either way we'll be back up tomorrow."; {missed - talked about Tunnel 2, I believe}. "Get the helitankers up first thing to pick up that right flank all the way up; the Slide is pretty smokey and a mess, we'll take one more lap around and then we're heading for ***; we'll try to be up by 7am, but that may be optomistic ."

Short Updates during Tanker Runs

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-22T18:40:36-07:00

Slide Fire: Fire is 1/2 mile from the camp and now they're leaving; we have bodies staged in that general; approx 400 yards from the bottom of Deep Creek; then it will have to come up Deep Creek; we're not thinking immediate threat yet. ...Highways 18, 330, and 138 are closed to residents; residents down the hill are not allowed to their homes; they're keeping everybody off the hill due to fire activity, no ETA for reopening. ...One of the negatives was from a high-level official from the fire teams who was severely worried that the fire will going up and through Twin Peaks onto Crestline.

Links and Resources for the Fire

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-26T10:03:34-07:00

Again, many of you know a lot of these places to get information; however, I am posting them for those who do not. ...ROTW Incident Scanner for both Fires-- http://old.rimoftheworld.net/incidents/3623 ...FIREupdate's Unofficial list of Inland Empire Burn Reports-- http://www.fireupdate.com/2007/2007IEburn.htm

Evacuated

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-22T16:47:24-07:00

I made reservations while stuck in traffic on the 18, knew where the map was to get there, and how much. ...UPDATE @ 4:42pm: Jason Jackson called me and said that NBC4 is showing Helicopter drops over Twin Peaks now. ...There have been some unconfirmed reports of looting and the Sheriff's Department helicopter is being used to investigate reports of looters and suspicious persons.

Listening to the live scanner online

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-22T10:48:51-07:00

Due to the Old Fire experience, let me tell you this time around has brought WAY more anxiety, even though we are better prepared. ...This fire may be worse, or already is, than the Old Fire, since it is burning from inside the mountain. ...It is very difficult to keep listening to the scanners and watching TV with more homes going up in flames.

Grass Valley Fire in Lake Arrowhead

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-10-22T08:29:25-07:00

Our school district is not giving us much information or direction to make decision on getting a motel or space away from the mountain. If we did get a couple of days at a timeshare or Motel6, we could not check in until the afternoon anyways. ...I am posting updates from any websites or media I can find on it as fast as I can.

Website Makeover

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-06-29T06:58:42-07:00

I did find a few bugs in the application and also some serious annoyances that kills time within the web design workflow. ... I wanted to consolidate many files, learn the new upgrade to RW, and to use more plug-in pages (such as Accordian, which is used in the Classroom and Galleries pages). ...I have also started adding more information for my side business, Pantrax Video & Web Services AND Rose's world of Realty.

Web Site Showcase!

drurbz@gmail.com — 2006-05-16T16:19:00-07:00

The Rim High School website is on a showcase site at Blue Ball Design under Classic Colors. I purchase their themes and modified it for the school's and this website. UrbzOnline is also noted on the Showcase if you scroll down to the Blueball Simple section.

Thank you's...

drurbz@gmail.com — 2007-01-18T16:14:00-08:00

A personal "thank you" for the wonderful wishes and prayers for my father and family. Also, big hugs for all of the birthday wishes. Many of you made it a wonderful week.