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In May I spent a lot of time working on our "Geezer Gathering" in
Aspen/Snowmass CO next month. Jodie and I were going to be passing
through the area filming this summer so I contacted a couple of old
friends from the mid-70's to see if we could get together. Now it's
turned into a full scale three-day party! I just hope I can keep up the
pace! In the old days I could party for month's at a time. I stayed up
for 3-weeks in a row once in 1976! Today, if I stay out after mid-night
I have to rest for 3-days! Check out Facebook for some great photos. It
will be great to see some old friends again. Come to think of it, my
40th Cody High School Reunion should be taking place in Detroit next
year. How did I get so "old", so fast?
PS - is anybody out there planning the 40th Cody Reunion? I just got
some emails from classmates asking about it. We need to start getting it
together soon!
I've also been trying to get together our summer filming project. We
were having a hard time getting an RV sponsor to provide us with an RV
for the shoot, but Roadtrek just came through last week with a beautiful rig that gets 22 MPG!! I thought we were going to have to film
the adventure with our Sebring Convertible! More about that great news
next month! Now that we have an RV I have time to start planning what we
will film for the video. We'll start shooting the project on June 21th,
heading north up through the beautiful Rocky Mountains from New Mexico
to Jasper Albert Canada. First I have to find out where the Rocky
Mountains officially begin. I know it's in northern New Mexico but I
can't find the exact location online. There should be a sign or marker
or rock or something! I called the NM tourist bureau and they said
"huh"? I hope I find it soon! Let me know if "you" can figure out where
the hell it is!
Things are pretty quiet around the Voyager Resort this time of year.
Most of the snowbirds have headed north for the summer. We did get
to enjoy several more parties and dinners in the neighborhood with the
folks who are still here. Jodie is a social butterfly and everyone knows
her so we get invited to a lot of get-together's. Trevor Jones came in
from Phoenix for lunch. Our band in Maui Hawaii worked with him back in
the early 80's. He's got a great act and really gets the audience going.
In a few weeks he'll be leaving Phoenix to perform on Catalina Island in
CA this summer. If you ever get the chance to see him play you are sure
to have a good time!
 Jodie's Corner: While John was at home I went to Phoenix with my
friend Sheryl who was taking an anesthesiology class for her dental
hygiene profession. She needed a patient who she could practice Novocain
injections on. In the 4 1/2 days I spent with her she injected me over
20 times!! What was I thinking!! I HATE shots and I HATE the dentist
even worse!! But we had lots of fun when we weren't in classes being
tortured. We ate well and I was able to take a nice LONG walk everyday,
plus I had lots of time to work on making jewelry while Sheryl was
studying.
 I tried to start using a PC based editing system for my new HD project
but just couldn't "get it." I'm used to working with a Macrosystem
stand-alone editing machine and using a story board to work on. It's
easy to use for us who are "computer-challenged". I finally gave up on
the PC and will be using the Macrosystem 4000-S
http://macrosystem.us/ this summer to edit. If anyone needs a
hardly-been-used-brand-new-soup-ed-up-HP laptop computer with the new
Pinnacle Studio Version 12 installed for editing please email me. Now we
need that money for the shoot this summer! It's hard to teach old dogs
new tricks! Here are the specs:
NEW - HP HDX X18T-1100 CTO Premium Notebook PC
Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit), MS Works, HP
MediaSmart, HP QuickPlay, HP Games by Wild Tangent
Powerful Intel Core 2 Duo T9600 (2.80GHz) Processor with Intel Centrino
Mobile Technology, 1066MHz front side bus, 6MB Level-2 cache
4GB DDR3, 1600MHz PC3-8500, 204-pin Small Outline Dual In-Line memory
module - Maximum System Memory 8GB
Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT with 1GB of dedicated video memory
Extreme 18.4" (diagonal) Ultra BrightView Infinity 16:9 Full
High-Definition (1920x1080p) Display with ultrawide flush-glass screen
640GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Internal Hard Drive (320GB x 2) with HP
ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection and eSATA expansion port
Internal Blu-ray SuperMulti drive - Reads/Writes to Blu-ray HD media,
DVD+/-R/RW DL media, and CDR/RW media
Home theater quality Altec Lansing stereo 2.1 speakers, with triple
bass reflex internal subwoofer
Digital 7.1 surround sound via SPDIF output or through the HDCP
compatible HDMI 1.3 port
Full Size HP Color Matching Keyboard, Synaptics Touch Pad, and HP Media
Center notebook PC full function remote control
HP Pavilion low-light webcam, digital microphones, Fingerprint Reader
with HP Imprint Finish and 5-in-1 integrated Digital Media Reader
Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N (Wi-If Link 5100AGN) Mini-card with Centrino
mobile technology, compatible with 802.11a/b/g/n WLAN devices
Integrated 10/100/1000 Gig Ethernet LAN with RJ-45 connector
ExpressCard/54 Slot, IEEE 1394 Firewire, HDMI, 4 USB (4th shared with
eSATA port),1 Expansion Port 3 connector
8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery, 120 watt AC adapter with 100-240VAC 50-60Hz
input
Energy Star EPEAT Silver qualified, Wgt.8.82 lbs, 17.17" width, 11.26"
Depth by 1.72 Height - with Dual Lamps
HP Total Care 3-year extended service plan with 24/7 toll-free
technical support, Accidental Damage Protection for damage caused by
spills, drops, electrical surges and accidents, hardware parts and
labor, and HP Pick Up and Return with free express shipping (2 days each
way)
Extra 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery, HP Wireless Keyboard and Mouse Kit,
Original OS and bonus software restore DVD
Norton Internet Security 2009 - 3 Year Subscription, Suite includes:
AntiVirus; Personal Firewall; Antispyware; Identity Safe & Antiphishing
Pinnacle Studio Ultimate Edition 12 professional video editing software
Diskeeper 2009 Professional automated disk defrag utility
HP high-quality 20" Roller Case for Notebook PCs
I don't even know what the above means! (except for the roller case)!
Make me an offer I can't refuse! (I paid just over $3000 for it)
One technology I have "complete control" over is TV! I've been having a
great time watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs and my hometown Detroit Red
Wings. As of this writing there are only two games left and the Wings
are up by one. GO WINGS! STANLEY, STANLEY,STANLEY!
See ya on the road,
John & Jodie
©2009 John Holod Productions
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