Another good article from US-CERT.

This article does a nice job explaining what rootkits and botnets are. The article was published before and is republished to continue keeping people informed.

It is a scary number of infected and compromised computers being used on the internet today.

Check out the article here: US-CERT Cyber Security Tip ST06-001 -- Understanding Hidden Threats: Rootkits and Botnets

Where to start on what has been going on... Let's start with what's in my head up front and center.

Christina had her wheelchair fitting yesterday. It went well, but it was and is emotionally draining. Let's start with the good stuff. The chair is pink with black padding. The side prompts will hold Christina from her side to side shifting. The chest prompt is neoprene with an elastic band attached which should give the comfort of the neoprene and still have the strength to hold Christina correctly. The lap belt goes over her hips not her waist which should hold the princess in place better as she tries to squirm around. The ankle straps seem more comfortable, but we'll know for sure looking for bruising.

The princess was well behaved throughout; although, she was not a fan and you could tell after a couple hours in the hospital she was ready to go.

We went to the Big Rig Truck Show. Christina enjoyed some of the odd stuff we did. We walked under/in one of the big plows and had fun waling over the foot bridge. Christina wanted to check out the Truck Light Parade that night. As she was watching the trucks go by I was watching her track the lights. Good job Christina. And when they blew their horns Christina giggled on the loud ones.

Christina helped with my first attempt at zucchini bread. After we were done mixing everything and I was greasing the pans Christina asked for a taste. I didn't want to tell her no, but I didn't think it would taste good. So I told her I wasn't sure what it would taste like and she could try it if she wanted. She wanted.
This is taste number four.

So after I install some new software I do the usual reboot. I get an error message during POST that a Windows file is corrupt. Ugh. I try a reboot again just to see and it makes it past that point and starts loading. Only to get a blue screen and a restart loop. The message suggests using the repair console. I give it a go with no luck. Next try is to use the repair. First round did not work. Second round did work with errors. So I decided to try my backup. After I reinstalled Windows, software, and updates I ran a backup and it was stored on the network drive. The recovery was easy enough to start with the small detail that it could not login to the network drive so it could not copy the backed up files. Next step, get the files onto a external drive with USB. 30+GB later I am ready to try again. Success. The biggest 'problem' so far is my iTunes podcasts not being up-to-date.

Email I transferred to a flash drive so that just finished copying back. Should be good to go. The new software I installed of course is no longer installed. So I think I will back up my iTunes library and try again.

Crossing fingers.

Once again I was working on pictures. So much fun and work at the same time. Three hours today disappeared quickly. I am working on a page to limit the number of pictures to make it easier to go through. I have not found software I am happy with yet for adding tags. And once I find something that works and follows some sort of standard I have to get all 30,000+ tagged while staying current.

For those who tell me I'm obsessed with the pictures, you're right. If only you knew the time I put in that you don't see. A minimum of one hour per week is what it takes to pull pics off the camera, rename them, sort them, save them, back them up locally, back them up off-site. Another half hour, usually the next day, to recreate a list of current pics, re-size them, recreate a complete list, verify they are shown on the site. Another hour to follow a similar process of the videos. Then I take a half hour or so to look through pics to find some to upload for the slideshow.

Someday, Christina will tell me I'm crazy for doing it. And someday after that she will tell me it is great. And... I do realize that these somedays have years between them.

New news on Christina's wheelchair. The appointment is scheduled for her fitting. The chair will be fitted just for her. We have been told to plan on an all day affair. Oof.

Cheers.

So as the weather cools down(ha) it is 73°, a dew point of 72°, and a real feel of 83°. And that is cooler, hmm. Everything is relative. Winter where are you.

Christina and I had fun this past weekend. We went to a family reunion and got to see relatives I have not seen in ages and got to meet many more. It was a good time. Christina tolerated the heat better than some.

Our outside play has been limited with the heat. I have noticed even the neighbor kids have not been out much. Christina still keeps me running in the house.

Another round of Phenol blocks and Botox is coming up and my mind is already tossing every thought possible over it. Ugh. I have been reading a book about advocating for your child and it is informative enough to get me thinking about how lucky we have been with doctors, therapists, and insurance. There is very little positive in what I have read so far.

The slideshow of pictures should be updated tonight. Enjoy!!!