Tulsa Snow

Well, we had quite a snowstorm over the past couple of days. About 8" here in midtown with most of it falling between noon and eight o'clock last night. We did have about a quarter of an inch of freezing rain overnight Thursday but were spared any significant damage here in Tulsa. We are at 14.1" of total snow accumulation for the season with 8.6" being average. Also, we typically get most of our snow in March so it could get interesting. Fortunately I got new tires on SapaTatanka(Black Buffalo) the day before the storm hit. I had four Kumho Road Venture ATs mounted, 315/75R16 for $850, and they have performed great in the snow.

Extreme Home Makeover - Tulsa

As luck would have it, I was made aware last night that Extreme Home Makeover was possibly going to be in my neighborhood this morning. Although there were no stirrings in the neighborhood as I made my way to work, I was notified mid-morning that the rumor was true and a family around the corner had been chosen for a home makeover. Story below and pics following.

The Story

Map with location relative to the HicklHaus. Guard dogs indicate checkpoints for access to street the house is on...




A shot from the front of my garage showing the miserable conditions they are working in...

Another Hobby of Mine

I'm sure you guys have figured out by now that computers, and tech gadgets in general, are a hobby of mine and I enjoy working on them as much as motorcycles. To me, there is very little difference between putting in a jet kit and assembling a computer from scratch. That being said, I recently "gained possession" of an older laptop that had been hardware locked. Now this is different than the typical Username/Password protection when logging into a computer, different than a BIOS lock at the post screen, this is actually an EEPROM chip on the motherboard that must be "activated" with a password to even get the computer to begin the boot process. This is typically done with computers belonging to institutions/corporations and loaned to employees which I assume this one had at one time. Once I discovered it was hardware locked, I decided to see if I could "crack" it. A quick search on the internet determined it was hopeless without calling the manufacturer, proving ownership and receiving a "master unlock code". As that was not possible, I dug in further and found there was a "paperclip" method for shorting out the EEPROM chip and not to bore you with the details, it was successful! EUREKA! Method did require complete disassembly of the laptop which was fairly interesting as there were dozens of tiny screws of various sizes and lengths to keep track of and I had to short the chip out while powering up the computer. Interesting.

The Fix

So Much I Don't Understand

There are times when I like to think I am a fairly well-rounded individual and know a little bit about most everything but then I run across something like the below and realize there is an entire world of crap out there I know nothing about and have never given a second though to.

NFL Playoffs

If there is another passion I have in life that rivals my love for motorcycles, it would have to be football. I still remember the excitement of getting my first Dallas Cowboys jersey in 1973 and have been a fan of the game, at any level, ever since. I have watched more football in my life than any other sport and feel I have an extreme understanding of the game which makes it that much more enjoyable to watch. I have really enjoyed watching Brett Favre make a comeback this season and would love to see him get another Superbowl ring before retiring. Needless to say, I am really looking forward to an awesome afternoon of football and finding out who will be playing for the Ring! My predictions, Baltimore 20 - Jets 10; Vikings 35 - Saints 28. That would leave us with 2 wily veterans in the Superbowl which would be something to see!

For Your Enjoyment

I was down in Lake Jackson visitng my parents over Christmas and took a picture of the last official "Hickl Family Portrait" which Mom has prominently displayed in her entry foyer. It had to have been taken somewhere between 1983 and 1985 and I thought you guys would get a kick out of it. Notice that Greg is sporting a real mullet and I the infamous "permullet". Nice!

A New Year and Things to Come...

First off, a HUGE "thank you" to Douglas for putting together the "2009 Hooliecrew Year in Review" video. It's so very nice to have a quick 10 minute clip to bring back all the memories and to whet the appetite for all the rides to come. I know how much work went into putting the video together and it makes it that much more special to me. I must have watched it a dozen times already and my ass-crack gets bigger every time! If only we had something similar for every year we have been riding together.

On another note, I suppose it is official, the Hooliecrew will be visiting the great state of Tennessee the 2nd full week of May and I for one can't wait! It will be nice to trailer up and to have access to some fun toys to play with so everyone better brush up on their xBox360 MotoGP 2009 as I am going to give you all an ass-whoopin'! Plenty of good roads and all the time in the world to explore them. Now if I could only find a vehicle that got more than 10mpg, I'd be all set.

Work is going well, meaning we have plenty of it, and for that I am grateful. We are picking smaller remodel projets across all client groups which is messier and less profitable work, but it is enough to keep everyone busy and to stave off any lay-offs for the immediate future. The 10th of January was my 10 year anniversary at Scott&Goble and it is so hard to believe it has been that long... until I look in the mirror that is! LOL. 011000 - 011010 (SGA's Digital Man)

Finally, Cindy bought be a ContourHD sportcam for Christmas and the weather cleared up enough for me to get it mounted and take some video today at lunch. See link to video below and let me know what you think. I have it mounted to the right radiator guard and the angle looks about right. Kind of neat to see the suspension working and will be cool to see how much the forks compress in some of the downhill hairpins. The video was still uploading to YouTube at the time I posted this blog so quality will not be maximized for a few hours as Google does its magic. I am also posting the 2009 Hoolicrew video for any visitors to the blog to enjoy. Look forward to seeing you guys and would love to get some e-mail banter started about the trip. Where to stay, what to see, etc.

Happy New Year Hoolies!

Friends just left and wanted to wish all of you a Happy New Year! Looking forward to spending more time with you guys this year, especially our trip to Tennessee. Hope you enjoyed your night and spent it with those important to you. UFC 108 Saturday night, woohoo!

Chuck