LegendofMoose

 I’ve been doing a lot of Database work for different RDMBS backends, and keep finding little differences between the different vendors.  I figured I would blog about some of the tips.

Todays tip, difference when inserting a row into a table that combines new values with values from a previous row,
DB2: INSERT INTO TABLE1(ID,VALUE1,VALUE2) SELECT 1 as ID, VALUE1,VALUE2 FROM TABLE1 WHERE ID=2

HSQLDB: INSERT INTO TABLE1(ID,VALUE1,VALUE2) SELECT 1, VALUE1,VALUE2 FROM TABLE1 WHERE ID=2

Note that in DB2 I had to name the value “1 as ID”, while on HSQLDB naming the value causes the value not to be inserted.

So it seems Luke didn’t like the location of his pen when I was at work, so he relocated it:

James is still doing well. Here are some more Pics:

On the same day as baby James being born, I adopted a 9-12 month old lab/dutch shepherd/hound (correction: after further investigation, it seems more likely that Luke is a Treeing Tennessee Brindle.) puppy. Luke is extremely timid after spending the last 8 months in shelters either here or in tenn where he’s from. Some pics of the guy.

Emily and Jeff had their son James Eugene Caille on May 5th. Weighing just 2 pounds and 11 ozs, he is a small guy. Both mom,son and dad are dong well. Here are some pics

Just got back from a great 8 day cruise around the Caribbean on the Carnival Liberty. We went to San Juan, Puerto Rico; St.Thomas, USVI;Antigua and Tortola, BVI. I traveled with about 80 folks from singlescruise.com and have to say it was one of the best vacations I’ve had in a long time. I went down to Ft Lauderdale a few days early to beat the winter storm that Boston was hit with on the Friday before the cruise, and magically the winter cold I was suffering from was cured after 3 hours of sitting on the beach. About 15 or 20 of the people going on the cruise meet up the night before for dinner and drinks. Saturday we headed over to the cruise ship terminal and waited in line for about an hour to work our way threw customs, ticketing and then another line on-board ship to set up our payment plan for our ship card. Grabbed a quick lunch on the lido deck as I waited for my cabin to be ready, and by the time I got to my cabin, my luggage was outside my door. This made it easy to unpack, and get completely settled by 2:00. The next 3 days consisted of meeting people in the group, sitting on a lounge chair on deck, sitting on a lounge chair on my balcony, eating, eating, and playing video poker. The days on shore consisted of sitting on lounge chairs on various beaches and the last 2 days consisted of more of the same.

Highlights:

• Wondering around old San Juan Fort with new friends and walking by places I went 2 years ago.
• Towel animals every night in my cabin.
• Fantastic duck dinner and chocolate melting cake.
• Late night comedy show.
• Almost getting in a fight the first day on deck because we “stole” some hot head’s lounge chairs on the lido deck. Lucky I was with a NY state trooper that took care of the situation.(Even luckier that he only told me afterwards he was expecting me to handle the guy since I was closer, meanwhile I was expecting he would since he’s a cop.)
• Hearing and telling stories from a whole group of new friends.
• Banging my leg on a rock and having it swell up like a grapefruit. Even better was having a group of friends that had my back, and took care of me.
• Jet Skiing around Antigua beach.
• Dinner at Harry’s Supper Club with friends.
• My own private concert on my balcony.
• Not reading email for a week.
• Having people to have breakfast, lunch and dinner with.
• Gossiping on the Lido deck as we sailed away from San Juan.
• Not making the bed for a week.
• Not picking up my room for a week.
• Singing David Allan Coe late nite on the Lido deck.

I can’t put down everything since its really a blur of sun, beaches and fun. Suffice it to say, I will be taking another cruise, and would definitely travel with singlescruise.com again.

The radio has probably been sitting in the living room since 1957 when it was bought by Bill’s father. I only know the year because underneath the radio was its original manual with the purchase date printed on it. Bill always said that this was his father’s favorite radio, so it has always stayed in the living room next to his recliner. Well l turned on the power and didn’t hear anything, so I assumed it was dead. I left the power on as I continued to clean, and after a minute or 2, the tubes must have warmed up, and sound started pouring out. A lot of you know I usually only listen to XM radio these days, since I can’t stand the ads on FM, but I have to admire FM for the simple fact that I can turn on a radio built 50 years ago, and it still works. Do any of us expect our MP3 players, or satellite radios to actually work in 50 years or that there will be a company providing service for them. I was really amazed how good the sound was that was coming out of this antique. Now I don’t think I’ll be dropping my XM any time soon, but it might have to share some time with the Zenith. (I can always test how well the XM’s FM modulator works indoors.)

This post is a collection of thoughts that I’ve had over the course of the last couple of months/weeks/years about a very good friend of mine, Bill Chandler. From my earliest memories, Bill was always part of my families life. Suffice it to say he was my my grandfather, my mentor, my friend, and my confidant.

• My earliest memories of Bill are probably around the time that my parents had to bring my sister to the emergency room for something, I think a broken jaw. I can remember sitting with Bill on his living room floor putting together a puzzle with ducks in it. For the last 25 years, I’ve had this memory, but it was one of those memories that you couldn’t really ground in reality, ie you knew it happend, but it blended into the ether of your childhood. It wasn’t till recent events that I found proof or maybe solace in the memory. My father and I were going threw the drawers in Bill’s dinning room that I remembered from my childhood, and low and behold, in the same exact drawer, we found the puzzels. It was as if life had stood still for 25 years, and I was 5 years old again, looking at this simple puzzle of mallard ducks. Its crazy that a puzzle could bring back such memories, but it did.

• Some of you might know that I really enjoy playing golf. I can attribute this love of the game to my father, Bill, and my grandfather Jim. My earliest memories of hearing the term golf is of sitting on my father’s boat in Falmouth. [GP:FALMOUTHBAY] We were in the boat, in the narrow river/harbour next to the Swanson’s cottage, and Uncle Stein was bringing people to play mini-golf. I don’t remember if I actually knew what mini-golf was, but I choose to stay with my dad and fish, something that I’ve done may times since then. I can remember playing golf once down at a really fancy country club in Houston with friends of the family, but all I really remember is how close the houses were to the greens. The next memory of golf was at my parents house some time after we moved back from Houston. Bill was at our house for a sunday dinner, like he did many many times over the years, and we were watching the open, or some other tournoment on TV. For some reason I decided I wanted to play golf. We had a set of clubs in the attic from my grandfather, some Sam Snead blades, and I can remember going into the back yard with them and hitting a ball around. I’m not sure exactly when, but not long after, Bill, my dad, and I went over to Ponkapoag to play a round of golf. It was my first of many rounds. Over the years, Bill brought me golfing many times. He introduced me to courses in MA, and NH, and taught me one of the most important rules of life. After hitting a really good shot, he would say with conviction. “Matt, thats the one that will keep you coming back for another round.” For all the hundreds of rounds of golf and other things I’ve played in my life, I’ve always looked for the one good shot that keeps me coming back again. There are lots of other golf stories, but I think they deserve their own post.
• Being on the golf course brings up another life lesson, always have some crackers and peanut butter. No matter if your flying from Boston to Vancouver, or just walking around the golf course, you can always do with a snack of crackers and peanut butter.
• The year after I graduated from Umass, I went on an Alaskan Cruise with my parents, my aunt ,her fiance, and Bill. It will always be one of the most memorable vacations I’ve taken. Bill and I were roommates on the trip, and he taught me some important lessons:
  Always know the ship’s purser. He controls the important things on the ship, and if you have a problem, don’t be afraid to go to him for help. Your cabin steward, and the waiters and waitresses at your table are just as important as the captain of the ship. They can make your stay as enjoyable or as misareable as they like.
• One of the most important thing I learned from Bill was how the best method to melt ice cubes. The best way to melt an ice cube is with some good Scotch.
• Finally, the most important leason I learned from Bill was that no matter how long you lived in Norwood, if you weren’t born there, you would always be a carpetbagger. Lucky for me, I was born at Norwood Hospital.

Mashed Potatoes, oh how I admire thee… Ok, that might be a little much, but as I stated in a previous post, mashed potatoes are somehow a core part of my life. Some might think its weird that a food dish represents a core part of my life, but let me explain. My earliest memories of family meals all seem to revolve around my Grand Mother’s house in Spencer, Ma. If I think back about family and childhood, it all centers around my grandmother’s house on Craig Road. For me, dinner started with ginger ale, always stored in bottles sitting on the ledge of the basement stairs. Next came cucumber and tomatoes, served on a slim silver severing dish, sprinkled with salt. I was never one for tomatoes, but cucumbers will always bring me back to Craig road. Dinner could be anything from American Chop Suey, baked ham, roast chicken or turkey, or the simplicity of pork and beans. No matter what, there were a few things that one could count on at Gram’s table:

Ok, ok, so my posts seem to dwell on food, but that is just because meals with my family have always been such a big part of my life. In a future post I’ll recant some of the meal that I remember most in my life. :-), till then, eat more mashed potatoes and Grace!

With this title, some of you will think I’m talking about the band, and other will think I’m talking about the food. The later will have the upper hand. Today at work we had a nice southern brisket, with black eyed peas, and that is what I’m talking about. For the folks at work, they will appreciate the fact that the food at cafeteria has improved greatly in the last couple of months. The new chef seems to have a new fervor and pride in the the cuisine that he serves. Today for lunch we dined on brisket, black eyed peas, corn bread and mashed potatoes. For those in my family, you know that mashed potatoes are such a part of my life, I don’t think there is a cuisine that can even come close to matching its importance, but I digress. (I will follow up on this topic in the future.) Black eyed peas represent to me the time I spent in the south. Its ironic that just a few days ago I celebrated Chinese New Years, since it seems that a lot of the traditions that have been passed on to me dealing with new years follow a parallel to Chinese tradition. One of the ones that I was reminded of by my friend Ed was that for 2 days following new years, you shouldn’t throw trash outside your house. If you do, you will be throwing away your good luck for a year. When I was talking to Ed about similar traditions that my family practices, Black Eyed Peas came up as one of the dishes that were required on a New Years platter. Just so that I am complete, and to ensure that I don’t deprive anyone from the luck of a good New Year, let me list the ingredients to a successful New Year cuisine:

For anyone that has eaten at the Roy house on New Years day, you know that Rich can present a course of dishes that incorporate all these fine traditions. And just so that I don’t neglect those that thought I was talking about the band, this goes out to Jordi: The Black Eyed Peas