ET News

2008-06-05T07:58:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Las Vegas exhibiting at the NFPA World Safety Conference and Exposition.

2008-05-28T20:17:00.000-07:00

1866 Baseball game at Elysian Fields in Hoboken, NY

A 1744 rhyme entitled "Base-ball."

This week I'm in Cincinnati, which may be home to the oldest professional baseball team, founded in 1863.

Some say the Atlanta Braves are the oldest baseball team, founded as the Boston Red Stocking in 1871. 1871 is when Major League Baseball began.

A 1744 publication in England by John Newbery called A Little Pretty Pocket-Book includes a woodcut of stoolball and a rhyme entitled "Base-ball."

This is the first known instance of the word baseball in print. The book was very popular in England, and was later published in Colonial America in 1762. In 1748, the family of Frederick, Prince of Wales partook in the playing of a baseball-like game. A 1791 bylaw in Pittsfield, Massachusetts bans the playing of baseball within 80 yards of the town meeting house.
Source: Wikipedia

In 1845, the Knickerbocker Club of New York City began using Elysian Fields in Hoboken to play baseball due to the lack of suitable grounds on Manhattan. In 1846, the Knickerbockers played the New York Nine on these grounds in the first organized game between two clubs. A plaque, and baseball diamond street pavings at 11th and Washington Streets commemorate the event. By the 1850s, several Manhattan-based members of the National Association of Base Ball Players were using the grounds as their home field.
Source: Wikipedia

2008-05-21T05:01:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Tucson and Phoenix where it's 111 degrees! Pastey-faced, moldy, rusty Oregonians, like yours truly, wouldn't do well here, I reckon. I'd probably burst into flames if I had to stay much longer than a week.

2008-05-14T21:19:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Chicago and St. Louis. Two more locations with MLB teams.
Dear Bud, when does Portland get theirs?

2008-05-06T05:02:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Great Falls, MT. Whilst visiting in 2006, I visited the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center and snapped some photos.

2008-05-01T22:27:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Dallas and Denver. It's snowing in Denver in May! I'm starting to think that maybe Al Gore is either an idiot or a genius. Care to purchase a carbon credit?
We tried to move to Denver about 10 years ago but it didn't work out. As my lovely-wife-Cynthia says, "It wasn't meant to be."

2008-04-22T23:54:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Anaheim and Fremont. Anaheim is the happiest place on earth, because they have a baseball team. Fremont is soon to be the home of the A's. I'm jealous because California has 5 baseball teams and Oregon has zero. Maybe Bud should consider expansion and promote the Beavers to MLB.

2008-04-17T04:49:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in San Antonio with my-lovely-wife-Cynthia attending the annual AFAA Codes Conference. The river walk is interesting though the river itself is disturbing to me because it reminds me of shit river in Subic Bay Phillipines.

2008-04-09T17:35:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Conshohocken, PA at the Montgomery County Fire Academy. Less than a week after my mom passed away, on Monday evening this week, right before midnight, #2 grand daughter, Adrianne, was born. The circle of life right before my very eyes.

2008-04-09T17:32:00.000-07:00

Last week I was in Sacramento at the California State Fire Marshal's office. Sadly, my mom passed away while I was away. It has been a tough time for our family and I appreciate all of your heartfelt and kind words.

2008-03-26T16:53:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Houston where the weather is nice. Locals probably think it's rather cold but a high of 73 degrees without rain in March is hot for an Oregonian.

2008-03-19T11:53:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Eugene at the Oregon Building Officials Association Spring Institute presenting NFPA 72-2002. The good news is I can drive to work for a change. The bad news is I have to drive down, present a seminar, and then drive back home for a Portland event on Wednesday morning. It makes for a long day.

2008-03-13T17:45:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Lexington, KY at the Fire Department Training Center, which includes a very interesting museum.

The weather started off cold with a foot of snow but by the time I left it was perfect! A clear and warm 64 degrees.

2008-03-04T22:00:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 330 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2008-03-04T21:51:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Bremerton. The last time I was here it was July 1976 when we decommissioned and towed the USS Halibut to Bremerton and turned her over to the mothball fleet. The weather is great! It's sunny and warm. Hot really, compared to Minneapolis a couple of weeks ago.

2008-02-26T20:27:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 329 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2008-02-26T20:18:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in warm and sunny Las Vegas to teach a class for Educode.

This beats the frigid weather in Minnepolis last week!

2008-02-19T20:30:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 328 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2008-02-19T20:10:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Minneapolis where the weather is frigid (high 0, low -10).

Does Al Gore know about this?

2008-01-15T15:44:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 323 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2008-01-15T15:43:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 322 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2008-01-15T15:40:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in San Diego attending the NFPA 72-2010 SIG-IDS meeting. It ain't Hawai'i, but the weather here is a lot better than home where it's sleet and ice.

2007-12-30T18:48:00.001-08:00

ET News Issue No. 321 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-12-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

This week my-lovely-wife-Cynthia and I are in Hawaii taking a break from the cold and wet conditions in Oregon.

The photo is of the Ala Wai Harbor in Honolulu.

Hau'oli Makahiki Hou!

2007-12-24T11:16:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 320 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-12-24T11:09:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Happyrock, otherwise known as Gladstone, OR.

Here is a photo of the Pow Wow tree located nearby, which is estimated to be more than 230 years old. Read more here

2007-12-19T22:38:00.001-08:00

ET News Issue No. 319 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-12-19T22:23:00.000-08:00

This week I visited my parents in Astoria, OR, which just survived another storm with winds as high as 147 mph. The storm continued for 2 days. My folks survived the storm but lost power for a week. They reported that FEMA and the Coast Guard responded very quickly to provide much needed help to those less fortunate whom lost their homes. Mom was most upset with loosing access to the internet for a week!

I took this photo with my cell phone as I was returning home. It's hwy 30 along the Columbia river about 27 miles east of Astoria and is supposed to show the result of a massive mud slide. I saw several homes and a restaurant sitting in mud up to the bottom of their windows.

2007-12-10T22:41:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Las Vegas. The weather is great - much better than the soggy and cold conditions in the Pacific NW. My saint of a wife, otherwise known as my-lovely-wife-Cynthia, is home preparing for a wonderful Christmas Eve party for family and friends. As our kids have kids, they're preparing their own family Christmas traditions.

It's a secret but I plan to take my-lovely-wife-Cynthia to Hawaii for 2 weeks, right after Christmas. She deserves a vacation and what better way to recover from winter doledrums.

2007-12-10T22:34:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 318 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-12-06T04:51:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Albuquerque where it's 55 degrees with a clear blue sky. Away from the rainy and windy conditions in the Pacific NW. I-5 was actually shut down between Portland and Seattle because of flooding in Chehalis.

2007-12-02T17:15:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 317 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-11-26T16:17:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Kent, WA, just south of Seattle. The Kent Fire Department has graciously allowed me to use their classroom in Station 73.

Shorts, Aloho shirt, and flip-flops are my de rigueur clothing choice, however, 34 degrees and rain has me rethinking my choice.

2007-11-25T14:44:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 316 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-11-22T23:36:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving from the Bakers. 48 hours to put it together ... 10 minutes to consume it.

2007-11-20T21:33:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 315 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-11-14T16:37:00.000-08:00

I added another book to the library; NBFU 72-1949.

2007-11-14T16:35:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 314 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-11-14T15:36:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in Asheville, NC providing training for the National Park Service at the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Driving the Blue Ridge Parkway is a real treat especially during this time of the year. The leaves are turning and the colors are gorgeous.

2007-11-09T18:24:00.000-08:00

Of course I enjoy returning home each Friday (or Saturday) but it's especially nice to land in PDX. Mountains to the right of me, mountains to the left of me, ...

I never tire of seeing Mt. Hood on my left as we approach PDX. I'm a true Oregonian - born in Portland. The more I travel the more I appreciate coming home.

2007-11-05T16:17:00.000-08:00

This week I'm in downtown Los Angeles teaching classes at the LA City Fire Department. I love LA, as long as I don't have to drive.

I'm especially excited about Joe Torre signing with the Dodgers. 101 days until Pitchers and Catchers report to spring training. Woo hoo!

2007-11-04T14:00:00.000-08:00

ET News Issue No. 313 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-11-02T03:53:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Rolling Meadows, IL. The weather has been perfect, which is highly unusual for Chicago-land. Now that I've said it out loud the weather will probably deteriorate and I'll get stuck at the airport for a week.

Set your clocks back this weekend, replace your smoke alarm batteries, and most importantly - test your smoke alarms. Have your kids help while you talk about your escape plan when the alarm sounds.

2007-10-28T13:30:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 312 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-10-22T19:57:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Maryland. Mmmmm scallops and crab cakes! I arrived at BWI around 5 p.m. and found it to be 80 degrees! Al Gore must live around here somewhere.

This is a great part of the country with so much history, good food, and more than one Major League Baseball team. I'm jealous.

2007-10-21T13:54:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 311 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-10-16T16:47:00.000-07:00

This week I'm teaching Fire Alarm System Testing and Inspection plus Advanced Fire Alarm (NICET III & IV) on the shore of Lake Spendard in Anchorage. Gorgeous weather, as you can see. There's some ice in the lake and in another month it will be frozen over. All of the float planes will be removed until Al Gore returns next spring :)

2007-10-14T16:03:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 310 is available. You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here.

2007-10-14T15:58:00.000-07:00

I added another old book to the library: NBFU 72-1941

2007-10-12T18:42:00.000-07:00

... and the Nobel prize for pandering goes to ... drum roll ...

Al "wanna-buy-a-carbon-credit?" Gore! woo hoo!

Step right up, tell the public what they want to hear* and win a prize**!

* Truth not required.
** e.g. President of the USA, Nobel prize, etc.

2007-10-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

Disneyland; day 3. Dive the Boat!

2007-10-10T07:13:00.000-07:00

Disneyland; day 2

2007-10-09T07:37:00.000-07:00

Disneyland; day 1

2007-10-09T07:35:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 309 is now available. Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-10-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

This week I'm in Disneyland with Cecily, Cynthia, Cyndi, and Betty. Party hardy dudes!

2007-10-02T18:31:00.000-07:00

This week's classes are in Portland, so my commute is via car versus plane. woo hoo! In fact, once playoff baseball resumes, my granddaughter and I can continue to enjoy america's favorite sport.

How funny is it when we can watch Bud "All-I-need-is-a-pitcher" Black lose to the Rockies. HA! HA! HA! HA! Trevor Hoffman, you're a great, a fantastic closer, however, a team needs more, much more, than pitching, to win a game! It needs heart. Bud Black has no heart - he's a pitching coach, nothing more.

My predication; Boston in 4 games over Philadelphia.

In 2008; The Dodgers in 4 games over the Yankees.

2007-09-30T12:35:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 308 is now available. Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-09-29T11:31:00.000-07:00

I just finished scanning, optimizing, cropping, combining, and OCRing more old code books. You can view them here:

NBFU 13-1955
NBFU 72-1958
NBFU 90A-1960

2007-09-24T16:57:00.000-07:00

This week, I'm in Boston, which has so much to offer; the Red Sox, duck boats, Boston Common, Faneuil Hall, Sam Adams Beer, Union Oyster House, Fenway Park, and so much rich history and heritage. Unfortunately, I'm working 30 miles west of Boston in Marlborough.

I was in Boston earlier this year with my-lovely-wife-Cynthia when we were able to take the time to enjoy what Boston has to offer, though we didn't make it to Union Oyster House. Maybe next time.

2007-09-24T16:52:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 307 is now available. Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-09-18T15:53:00.000-07:00

This week's classes were held at the "Denny Miller Training Center" in Englewood, CO, which is nothing special, except to say that it's next door to a baseball field; Woo Hoo!

As you can probably see, the weather is perfect as usual here, but I'm not bitter! We tried to move to Denver several years ago because of the perfect weather, but the plan failed. Some would say "It wasn't meant to be".

Instead of trying once again to move away from the inclement Oregon weather, my-lovely-wife-Cynthia and I spend as much time in Hawaii as we can, which has even better weather than Denver.

2007-09-16T18:05:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 306 is now available. Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-09-13T21:49:00.000-07:00

Here's a peek into the Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Fire Academy, where this week's seminars were held. An excellent facility located in Conshohocken, PA, which is about 15 miles west of Philadelphia.

Granted, there's a *lot* off traffic in this part of the country, but If you stay off of the freeways, the drive is nice along Highway 23; rolling hills, lots of trees, gorgeous homes, and green spaces. All in all, a pleasant place.

I just can't figure out the meaning of the unusual town names, such as Gladwyne, Bala CynWyd, Bryn Mawr, Berwyn, Pencoyd, Manayunk, etc.

2007-09-09T11:43:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 305 is now available. Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-09-08T13:21:00.000-07:00

I just finished scanning, optimizing, cropping, combining, and OCRing the 1920 edition of NFPA 72. In 1920 document numbers weren't used but rather its title:

Regulations

of the

National Board of Fire Underwriters

for the installation and use of

Signaling Systems

Used for the Transmission of Signals Affecting the Fire Hazard

as recommended by the

National Fire Protection Association

Edition of 1920

2007-09-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

Code weenies may find this interesting. Charlie Trout answers a question regarding the voltage-drop requirements of NFPA 70 on the NECA-NEIS Code Question of the Day web site.

2007-09-02T18:10:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 304 is now available.

Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-09-01T12:51:00.001-07:00

Oregon RIAA Victim Fights Back; Sues RIAA for Electronic Trespass, Violations of Computer Fraud & Abuse, Invasion of Privacy, RICO, Fraud ...
http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com/2005/10/oregon-riaa-victim-fights-back-sues.html

2007-09-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

Streets Of Portland Flooded With Counterfeit Toothbrushes
The Onion August 30, 2007
http://www.theonion.com/content/news_briefs/streets_of_portland_flooded

2007-08-26T17:43:00.000-07:00

ET News Issue No. 303 is now available.

Sign up to receive the weekly ET Newsletter. It's free!

2007-08-26T08:45:00.001-07:00

Changes to the International Building Code 2006 edition Affecting Fire Alarm Systems.

2007-08-22T06:14:00.000-07:00

Here's a peek inside the San Francisco Fire Department Training Center on Treasure Island. They graciously allowed us to use one of the classrooms for our seminars this week.

2007-08-20T16:51:00.000-07:00

I'm staying in Berzerkeley for the classes on Treasure Island this week. Here's a view from my room of the Berkeley Marina...

Alaska Airlines made my blacklist this weekend, which has only included one airline (AA) since 1996. It's too bad because I liked flying Alaska. I'm frankly surprised with their sharp decline in customer service.

2007-08-18T11:35:00.000-07:00

I set this blog up about 5 years ago but never seemed to have time to do anything with it. Now I'm considering using it in lieu of the "news" and "journal" pages on the ET News website.

2002-04-29T20:20:00.000-07:00

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