Taco tunes, chia soup, family phone cuts

Even though I went through a hellish installation process in doing it, I really like the Pioneer radio I have in the SSR.  The touch screen interface, integrated GPS, Iphone support and Bluetooth connectivity are all things I really like.  There is one problem, I hardly drive the SSR, once or twice a week is typical. 90% of my driving time is spent behind the wheel of my 99 Tacoma which has the functional, but boring factory stereo system.

I found a cheap, used Pioneer 310BT on Ebay.  The 310 isn’t as fancy as the 930BT that is in the SSR.  It has a smaller screen and not as many subfeatures but the core is there, integrated GPS, touchscreen, Iphone support and Bluetooth.

Once I saw the used unit I did a mad scramble to verify the radio will work in my truck.  I was amazed how difficult it was to confirm this.  So tough that I never 100% confirmed it, despite my polished web searching skills.  The 310 BT is no longer in production and evidently not many people put these radios in a 13 year old truck.

However the Tacoma has a double din opening, the 310BT is a double din radio, and I found a wiring harness that is used to connect an aftermarket stereo to the factory harness.  So I pulled the trigger.

I again took to the web for some preliminary info regarding removing the radio in a 99 Tacoma and again I found this info very sparse and hard to find.  I guess when I dig into the project I will have the video camera in hand to fill the media void.  When I did finally find some documentation on the radio removal, it didn’t seem too severe, much less involved than what I went through with the SSR.

If I successfully get the radio installed I’ll be able to eliminate several pieces of tech I have scattered around the cab of the truck like the GPS stuck to the windshield, the hands free Bluetooth device on my visor and the awkward mount I have for my Sirius Xact radio.

My chia seeds showed up last night.  When I opened the bag and looked inside it looked like something I would put out in the bird feeders.  Chia seeds are tiny, and mostly black.

I had talked to my buddy at work ahead of time, looking for advice on how to use them.  I followed his outline.  In a cereal bowl I mixed two tablespoons of the seeds, 8 ounces of unsweetened almond milk, and some frozen blueberries.

After giving the mixture an initial stir I let it sit for around 20 minutes, allowing the seeds to absorb the liquid, stirring it a couple times along the way.  The final consistency was sort of like runny rice pudding.  I could have thickened it up by using more seeds or less almond milk I guess.  It was my first time so I didn’t expect it to be perfect.

I dipped in my spoon and took my first taste of chia.  Damn, it was good, it was really good.  The almond milk and blueberries combined nicely.  After I finished the bowl I felt full and no need to grab some sort of supplemental desert.

There are tons of ways you can utilize chia seeds.  My buddy likes to add hemp seeds and frozen black cherries to his mixture too.  You can tailor it to suit your tastes.

What a great discovery and addition to my diet, get your chia seeds now.  Great taste along with fiber, protein, calcium and omega 3’s.

With my mom’s tight financial situation, anything that I can do to help her out is always a good idea.  My latest target was her monthly bill from Century Link.  Mom pays for DSL internet and old fashioned home phone service.  Together they add up to a decent sized monthly bill.

Well I came up with the idea of replacing mom’s home phone with the Magic Jack Plus, which would utilize her internet connection for phone service which would at least cut that monthly bill in half.  You basically pay for the hardware (I would buy it of course) and then it is between $20-$30 a YEAR.  Yes, that is it.  That price includes completely free and unlimited local and long distance calling in the US.  Mom doesn’t even have any free long distance included on her current home line, she has to pay by the minute.

The Magic Jack Plus differs from the Magic Jack in that it does not require a computer to operate.  That feature comes at a price as it is about double the price of the basic adapter.  Everything I have read about the Plus has been good.  It does what it is supposed to, provide low cost, full feature phone service for a fraction of conventional dial up plans.  You even have the option to transfer your existing phone number over to your Magic Jack, another thing mom probably would like.

To be honest, if I get one for mom and it works as well as I expect it to, I will be targeting the phone at the house as well.  Years ago I switched over to Vonage, which is far less than regular phone service ($16-1$17) a month, but an expensive pig when compared to the Magic Jack.  Plus the Vonage plan is only for 500 minutes of monthly calling, not unlimited so it would be a win/win.

Jeremy uses a similar device in conjunction with Google Voice and encouraged me to do the same.  The biggest negative for me was that for whatever reason, Google Voice has absolutely no numbers in my 239 area code thus making a number transfer impossible.

When I emailed mom about it I could tell she was somewhat cautious, although I think the opportunity to shave more off her monthly expense nut will convince her to let me give it a try.

This weekend I don’t have any big events like a Pull Up Jam on the schedule.  I would kind of like to go out and see Loopers.  I have heard from multiple sources it is quite good.  Unfortunately I haven’t found anyone with a similar interest in seeing it so I might go at it solo.  At least it will be a cheap date.

Of course I have at least a half dozen potential home related maintenance projects always ready to go and on deck if find the motivation level is there.