Matias Mini Quiet Pro Keyboard

My keyboard arrived the day before Christmas.  It is pretty much the size I expected it to be, a little larger than both my old [broken] HHKB2 Pro and my KB Pure mechanical keyboards, but certainly smaller than a full-size keyboard.  My biggest issue with the size is that if I want to properly position my hands for typing I need to shift over or lose space for my mouse.   This is not an indictment against the keyboard, it's a problem with my own space.

So far I love this keyboard.  It is as quiet as advertised... very quiet for a mechanical keyboard!  Sounds just like the recording on the Matias website.  I've owned Cherry, Topre and Alps keyswitch keyboards and I can safely say that the Topre and Alps are by far preferred (by me) over the Cherry mechanics.  They just feel more natural and the stroke seems smoother.

This particular keyboard DOES have a shorter stroke than the TactilePro and the HHKB2.  I notice it but it isn't terrible or anything like that.  The feedback / pressure is firm but not tiring.  The keys themselves are well arranged and nicely shaped to prevent slippage.  The fact that it is not a compact keyboard means that there are a few more unique keys (that do not require the FN button, and have a typical placement as in a 103-104 key arrangement).  I have used the compact keyboards for years now and it is taking me some time to get used to the location of the ESC, and ~ keys.  I also like having actual arrow keys and the PG UP and PG DN keys... they are more useful than I realized.  But over time I'll get it down.

One thing I miss from my KB Pure is the backlighting... but again it shouldn't be necessary if I allow my hands to remember key positions ... I just have to be sure to start at the F-J keys.

The keyboard construction is SOLID.  It has a heavy feel to it and the shiny black case is strong and probably DOES attract fingerprints... but I work out of a dark closet so it really doesn't weigh heavily on my mind.

It is a wired USB keyboard.  That might bother some people but I believe Matias has other keyboards that are wireless, I like having them wired, it is fine for me.

There isn't much more to say.  If you have tried a TactilePro at an Apple store, or have owned one of the previous incarnations of Matias keyboards I think you will be pleased.  While there is a slight difference in stroke length for the "quiet" aspect of the keyboard, it isn't a painful reduction in stroke, and the fact that the keyboard is virtually silent (compared to other mechanical keyboards).  If you are a bottom-out typer (as I really am myself) the shorter stroke WILL be noticeable, so take that into consideration.  Also, and this really may be all in my head because I don't have any tools to measure it but, they keys seem a little firmer than my TactilePro 2.0.   Again, that is probably just a perception, perhaps because of the shorter stroke?  But it feels like you need to apply an ever so slightly firmer strike.

Well anyway, there you have it.  I am please with my purchase.  They Alps-like switches are smoother and feel more natural to me (whatever that means) and the bonus is this board is quiet.  The laser etched keys won't wear.  Also, if it is still made with the same quality as my (still working) TactilePro 2.0, it will last for many years.

Kittens and Bunnies

Our kitten, a little female about the same age, maybe a week or so older than the bunny, has been trying to get to know the bunny.  Today they had a supervised meeting... kitten was fascinated but the bunny was a little upset that the kitten was sitting in her favorite spots and several times chased the kitten away.

Kitten, however, had other plans and kept coming back.  After awhile Bun Bun got tired of chasing Nilla away and finally drank some water, nibbled some hay and lay down for a nap.  Nilla lay down right outside of her cage and went to sleep as well.  Kind if a silly scene.

As I said I am not sure of Nilla's intentions but she seems to think that maybe the bunny is another dog or cat or something...  someone more her size.  I'll have to keep a close eye on those two... Bun Bun thinks she is tough and can tackle anyone and so far Nilla has simply run away from her...  but Nilla's little kitten claws are sharp should she choose to stand her ground.  So far tho' it has been mostly peaceful... nose to nose sniffing and such, just a little territorial behavior by Bun.  Can't blame her... kitten has the run of the house but Bun only has a small room or two.

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On a completely different topic, my Matias Mini Pro Quiet keyboard should arrive tomorrow.  And even more different, Arizona stifled the Seahawks IN Seattle!  Quite a game.  Seahawk fans mention the questionable interception at the end of the game that sealed it for the Cardinals, but to that point the Cardinals had been consistently squelching every drive by the Seahawks...

...anyway, tomorrow!

Saw the official trailer for Godzilla and...

...I am officially, insanely pumped for this movie!  Even the description is great:  An epic rebirth to Toho's iconic Godzilla, this spectacular adventure, from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures, pits the world's most famous monster against malevolent creatures who, bolstered by humanity's scientific arrogance, threaten our very existence.

YEA BABY!

Quick, General Update

Christmas is coming... my least favorite holiday.  It should be a wonderful time but it has become so commercialized that it is almost ... disgusting.  On the other hand it's in my own hands as to how I approach it... so I need to correct that as well.

About a month ago something terrible happened that really affected me...  most people who know us know that we live in a bit of a "zoo" with multiple pets of varying ancestry (dogs, cats, birds, reptiles and arachnids).  We spend more time with animals than other humans, really...  but anyway...  my daughter and her friends like to train our dogs in the grass patch across the street.  One day they were over there and they got away from them and attacked a rabbit.  Turned out this rabbit didn't really run away because it was an escaped / released domesticated rabbit.

The girls got the dogs but it was too late and the bunny was paralyzed from the waist down.  We took the bunny in, gave him a warm spot, water, food pretty sure he would die very soon.  He didn't.  In fact it was almost like he did not know he was crippled.  So we began to call bunny rescues for advice and after no one responded for 2 days we called the vet... the rabbit vet was on vacation and wouldn't be back for a week.

In that time we learned a little about bunnies from "George" as we called him.  Despite his problems, what happened to him he was so sweet.  My wife took decent care of him while he was here (regular wipe downs / cleanings, etc.) and the time came to go to the vets.  Brought him in and the doctor did an exam, x-rays, etc. and concluded that the paralysis was permanent and George would never recover at all.  I made the decision to have him put down and stayed with him for the entire time (which took a long time, btw... I had an hour to spend holding, talking, feeding him treats as he slowly fell asleep then passed).  I was a wreck that night because of the loss of such a sweet creature who was still young and could have lived a long life.

Over a few weeks it gnawed at me and I began researching rabbit which, until George, I never really gave much thought to...  I finally settled on a breeder in Mesa and brought home Bun Bun, my baby lionhead rabbit.

Rabbits are far more complex and amusing than I ever thought they could be.  I'll probably blog about her from time to time but for now I just wanted to share our new addition to the family.

Godzilla 2014

GODZILLA 2014!  YEEAAAHHHH!

Where is Romney now?

Not where I wish he was.

Our country, while never perhaps loved around the world, was at least grudgingly respected.  By the time our current president leaves office there will be a LOT of work to be done both at home and abroad for the reputation of our gov't to be restored to some marginally acceptable level.

Healthcare is being botched.

International safety is being botched.

International relations are being botched.

Budgeting has been botched.

The current office has been found to have lied or misrepresented data on multiple occasions (I know this is true for any regime to some extent).

Yet STILL there is love for the democratic party and their fearless leader.  I don't get it.  Then again I don't get why people reject the free gift of eternal life either when there really are more reasons to believe than not.  But back to politics...

We REALLY need a Mitt Romney now.  A person with business savvy, experience with large corporations, someone who really understands them (and let's face it, Mitt had to based on the role his company played) because a) we need corporate / industry support if there is to be health care reform (among other reforms) and b) our gov't IS a large corporation.  We need someone who will be fiscally conservative or fiscally moderate at best, someone who will be more careful of regulations and policies, someone who will be less likely to over commit our military and far less likely to allow things to be run loosely.

Certainly Mitt would not be a perfect president, has there EVER been such a person?  I am not trying to say that a Republican president will automatically solve all our issues but certainly conservatives stand a better chance at solving many of our current issues (if they truly are conservative and truly understand the issues at hand).

Finally, we should not loose track that we live in a republic that is dependent on our capitalist way of life.  Without allowing capitalism to flourish (that means being in bed with large and small for-profit entities to the extent that we should at the very least listen to what they have to say and understand that they live in that world and while they might be self-serving, some of their concerns are legitimate) WE won't flourish.  I feel like I am about to start ranting and raving about supply and demand, taxation and other issues related to businesses versus gov't spending so I will stop here.

Sorry for my rare political rant.  And yes I know I am simply raising questions and not providing answers.

Why are arachnids, and tarantulas in particular, so fascinating?

Honestly I am not sure why I am so drawn to them.  I like to think I am able to find something to like about every aspect of God's creation, but for some reason I really find spiders and their kin most fascinating.

The reasons are many and varied.  For example, motion... tarantulas (spiders and other arachnids - but I will tend to focus on tarantulas here) have ONLY flexor muscle attachments in their limbs.  That means that using muscular contraction spiders can only bend their legs inward (they have multiple types at the attachment points to move legs forward / backward in range).  So how do tarantulas extend their legs?  Blood pressure.  They literally use a hydraulic system; they force blood / fluids into the legs under pressure which extends them.  Pretty cool!  Another example is how they feed.  Tarantulas cannot ingest solids.  They literally have filters around their mouth and in their hard esophagus that prevent particulates from entering their stomach and intestines.  So how do spiders eat?  Well, they basically masticate (chew) their prey while regurgitating digestive fluids onto it.  They create a nutrient-filled, gooey mash which they then suck on with their little vacuum-like mouth.  How do they suck it up?  They don't have cheeks or tongues like we do.  They have a special "device" that is part of their stomach called a "sucking (or pumping) stomach".  It works both ways, it can eject fluids from the spider or suck them into the spider.  They have internal cheeks.  Pretty smart.

Speaking of smart, tarantulas have relatively large brains but what I think is most interesting is the shape of their brains.  Tarantula brains are torus shaped... a donut.  The size is necessary to be able to accept sensory input from all the sensory organs all over the spider as well as control the legs and in some spiders with good vision, to be able to judge depth and distances and identify potential prey.

Finally (for now) something that always amazes is me is the fact that the esophagus and sucking stomach run right through the hole in the brain and are part of the exoskeleton.  This means when a spider molts, the esophagus and stomach are pulled out of the body and left with the rest of the exoskeleton.  You can see them clearly in larger tarantula molts.

A couple other, minor factoids...  one of the primary waste elements in spider poo is the same chemical that provides the reflective part of dog and cat eyes (when they shine at night if you point a flashlight at them).  Also, not ALL spiders are venemous... there are actually at least two know species that do not have venom.  Most do have venom, but in general, spider venom is designed to disable their prey and has little effect (can you say no worse than a bee sting?) on humans and other mammals, assuming they actually do inject you during a bite (venom is precious, they don't want to waste it).

Hope you enjoyed my little spider rant.  :)