Robbie Hummel Out for Season: Are my Boilers Done?

Purdue vs. Minnesota Highlight

While I love to think that E'Twaun, Jajaun and Keaton are enough to keep the Boilers as one of the most feared teams in the country, the loss of Hummel takes away one of our most consistent players and our best pure shooter.

I hope the team can step up without him, but right now I'm worried that history may be repeating itself. See 2008-2009 season and Robbie's back injury...

Mac Newbie Tips: Screen Captures

It hasn't been too long since I exclusively started using mac at home and work so I'm still catching on to some of the great little things Apple has thrown in here.

This morning's enlightenment was around capturing screen shots, both full and partial, on my mac. I was reading a blogpost about apps to replace the Snapper add-on I used to use and the author dropped a subtle hint about shift+command+control+4.

With a little search engine power, I found a useful page from apple, http://www.apple.com/pro/tips/secretcapture.html.

The basics:
Command+Shift+3 = Screenshot Saved To Desktop
Command+Shift+4 = CrossHairs For Snapping To Desktop
Shift+Command+Shift+3 ( or 4) = .... To Clipboard For Pasting to Photoshop/eMails etc...

Anecdotes on India's Healthcare

Both of my children got sick while we were in India this trip so I got a chance to see the healthcare system in India at work. I made the trip to the doctor twice with my daughter.

Encounter 1.
My daughter got a fever on the night train and had stopped eating. The previous day she had a couple instances of diarrhea. I told the doc that i had been alternating doses of motrin and tylenol every 4 hours and that it was keeping the fever under control.

After a brief exam with a stethoscope, I was told to only give the tylenol and to start her on an anti-biotic for her stomach. Total: 80 Rs. Medicine included.

We were extremely concerned that an anti-biotic without any tests might not be the best option, but we took the advice on tylenol only.

Encounter 2.
Next day, daughter is still not eating and still showing some symptoms of fever. This time I had done a throat exam myself and knew there were swollen tonsils with some white cold sores in the back of her mouth. The doc was able to identify the throat problem easily but I wonder if it would have been identified if not for my own inspections.

Medicines were prescribed to help start eating again and help fight the infection. Total: 150 Rs. Medicine not included.

Takeaways.

• Cost of care is very cheap.
• Quality of care is suspect(anti-biotic prescription w/out any exams).
• Waiting times were normal.
• Payment was at time of care in cash.
• Equipment was lacking

For me, the care i receive in the USA is hands down superior to what we received while in India. However, the cost to receive care in the Indian system is dramatically lower to the USA system.

Back From India

I've spent the past 2+ weeks in India for a family wedding. My wife's birthplace is in Kerala, India and her sister chose to be married there so we packed the whole family up and travelled halfway across the globe.

While most of our trip was dedicated to visiting the family, we did find a little time to escape to munnar, walk the beach in nager coil, and a do a little shopping at Seemarti.

So here's some of the things i've learned after 2 trips to india:

1. Get a Driver
   For 1350 Rs./Night, we got a driver and an SUV with 80km included. 10Rs. per additional kilometer and our total expense under $40/day. This is an absolute steal and the additional comfort of a dedicated driver is worth every penny. I'd plan for one of these to pick
   
2. Use the AC Night Train
   The roads are terrible. It takes 2-4 times as long to go anywhere by road in India as it does in the USA. If you are planning to go from state to state or any trip over 200km, i advise the night train or a plane. To get tickets on the AC night train, you have to book at least a week in advance, so set your itinerary and book your ride.
   
3. Take Packaged Drinks
   If you don't want to get sick, don't drink their drinks. The packaged waters there(Aquafina, Himalaya, and Kingfisher) all checked out with me. The other waters, tap water, milk, juices, sodas, and anything with ice have all given my stomach trouble at one time or another.
   Horizon Organic Milk, Apple Juice, Orange Juice, and Gatorade will all be in my bags next trip. Each piece of checked-in luggage gets 50 lbs, weigh your bags and fill in the additional weight with fluids.

Some other things i've learned about travelling to kerala with an infant and a toddler:

1. Pack N Plays fit inside a suitcase. We took one for each kid and without them we'd had to have had both kids in our beds or on the floors. Given the general cleanliness being much lower than i'm accustomed to, the floor is not an option.
2. February is too Hot. Go in november, december, or january.
3. Combat the barrage of spicy foods with a steady dose of snacks from home. My favorites are trail mix, beef and cheese, granola bars, and cheese crackers.
4. Try the Fried Fish, http://bit.ly/clBGyU, it can be spicy but it's worth it.

I may write some more on some of my favorite spots, where i might go next, and any of my other thousands of opinions after travelling in india again.