I think that is a fair and balanced trade-off. My typically lazy self gets the exercise it needs (since I don’t toil in the fields like some Dark Ages’ peasant all day) and I get the enjoyment of playing (so far) more than 100 hours of Skyrim.

January: Quit Job. Travel to Philippines and Singapore.

February: Retired. New Job.

March: Quit New Job. Friend passes.

April: Retired.

May: Still Retired.

June: Still Retired. U2 Concert in Seattle.

July: New job. Cannot build new house. Niece born.

August: Lolapalooza in Chicago.

September: Denali Road Lottery

October: Los Angeles. Bridge School Benefit Concert. San Diego. Las Vegas.

November: 4 consecutive Fridays off from work.

December: So far, so good.

The entrance to the home will, again, come directly from street level. Given the distance of the house from the neighbors (coupled with the neighbors having no windows facing our property) and the stand of trees blocking other neighbors, we will have the master bedroom slightly below street level (it’s the object on the right) and surrounded by some of the trees. This solves several of our engineering problems that increased the cost on the previous design.

A representation of the stand of trees is visible in this model shot. The master bedroom is in the center of the photograph while the garage is at top. We have quite the sloped lot and the overhangs of the main living floor (living room, kitchen, bar, master bedroom) should be a nice architectural detail. Don’t worry about the lower gray box in this model. That will be full of windows in the actual home. At this stage of the design it’s not necessary to model all the elements.

More of the overhang can be seen with this view. It’s not exactly a perfect model as the lower level will actually be taller and wider (less overhang of the main living level on the right side of the model). But all in all these views give us an excellent idea of how the house will look; contrasting exterior materials (concrete masonry units, stained wood, slate) on all three levels plus the overhangs and, as you can see in the first photograph, a rooftop garden above the main living level.

This really stings us and it stings our architect. He worked many months on this design and believed, given his long history of designing homes, his estimate to be spot on. He informs us he has never been wrong in an estimate; that while some prospective builders will always come in over his estimate, bids do come in that are in line with his estimate.

So, with that, our wonderfully designed house will never be built. Costs are simply too high. As we’ve already paid our architect it came to our surprise that he is now designing another home for us and not charging us one more additional cent. We meet with him later this week to see his latest design.

Last night we went up to the property and enjoyed the sunset with the dog. It got me thinking about our house plans which, while not stalled, have not exactly turned out the way we hoped.

Let me recap.

After interviewing several local architects we agreed that only one, Bruce Williams, would fit the bill for us. Working together we came up with a general idea of how we would like to use our space. Once confronted with an initial cost estimate that was significantly over our budget, we slashed several of the rooms from the concept and Bruce went to work designing the structure. A couple weeks later, after I obtained a topographical survey of the property, Bruce had the initial idea. It was wonderful.

Problems with the lot were evident but only once we realized from the survey just how much of a slope there was. From the ridiculously named road to the bottom of the lot abutting undevelopable green space and the Chugach State Park, there is a 50 foot drop. The drop is incredibly pronounced from the road itself to the mandatory 20 foot set back, approximately 12 feet in height. Yikes! We didn’t need a front yard, our yard would be on the roof. The backyard would be the slope itself, melding into the green space and the park itself. Wild flowers grow abundantly; it would be beautiful. Further design occurred and it is even better (click on photos for larger images).

Yes, there is a bridge. It’s wonderful. Without a bridge we would need fill and retaining walls to support the garage and driveway. Such things would destroy the “feel” of the house; instead of floating above the landscape it would be tied down. Plus, retaining walls are expensive. I know it’s counter-intuitive but raising the home off the ground, using concrete piers and an engineered bridge is less expensive than fill and compacted soil behind a wall. It’s not a large house, certainly the smallest in the entire Potter Creek neighborhood, but it’s not as tiny as our current 42 year-old house.

These are not the completed renderings; missing windows on the main living space, the lower level bedroom and the very lowest level that will be a large storage unit with double doors opening onto the down slope. Bruce is now working on the construction plans but we are once again hopelessly over budget. Save for a miracle in the financial markets, we will not break ground this summer. It will have to wait at least another year. Until then, we will satisfy ourselves with beautiful sunsets.

It all changed three years ago when, during a visit to my hometown, my mother suddenly became gravely ill and died. Nothing is the same after losing a parent. Losing your mother is the worst feeling, I believed, one could feel. I was wrong. Less than one year later my father collapsed and doctors discovered an inoperable brain tumor. He died several weeks later, peacefully, in his home. Losing both parents is the worst feeling one can have.

Through-out these past years our good friend Shana suffered through cancer. Very strong-willed and young, with a wonderful husband and beautiful little daughter, we all knew that if anyone had the courage and strength to prevail over cancer it would be Shana. As my mother died Shana, despite sick from treatment herself, send her wishes to me and my family. As my father lay in his hospital bed, a still in treatment Shana wrote to me, “Continued prayers.  Lots of hugs.” As soon as my dad made it home for hospice care, Shana wrote “Prayers continue for your dad.  Love you guys.” Always a positive person, once my dad died she comforted all of us with her positive attitude, and her kind words and outlook lifted our spirits.

In 2009 Anna and twelve other of Shana’s friends raced the Gold Nugget Triathlon, an all-women’s race, to support Shana’s battle with cancer. These awesome friends named themselves CAKES as an acronym for Cancer Ass-Kicking Exercising Superstars. The Anchorage Daily News included a few paragraphs about CAKES in the article about the triathlon. They raced again in 2010 for our friend, Shana, and had an even better time kicking some cancer ass.

I’ve heard that time waits for no one. After more than three years struggling with cancer, Shana passed several days ago. Anna and several of our friends leave tomorrow for Michigan for the services. My heart goes out to her husband and her little daughter. Despite my grief and loss these past years nothing compares to losing a wife and mother at such a young age. We miss you Shana.

By exponentially raising your rates you have priced-out long time customers. I liked your service. It did everything you promised for me. Now you’ve completely revamped your model of providing unlimited cloud backup space. Comparing my original price plan ($103.95 for two years) to the new plan ($545.79 for two years) it makes it really easy (too easy in fact) to leave Mozy and to tell others to either dump or not purchase your product.

This decision on your part was incredibly short-sighted, a public relations disaster, and a boon to your competitors.

That is the long and the short of it.

3.5 hours later landed in Singapore. Hot. Muggy. Eerily clean and calm terminal. Very nice smiling customs agent. Her computer crashed. She apologized. I told her not worry. Waited. Nice to see Interpol not yet caught me and it was off to the taxi stand. Arrived at 7 Thomson Lane. Took some time given that it is a recently re-named road. Did not know we’re not supposed to tip taxi drivers in Singapore. He looked surprised. He still took the extra cash.

Amanda failed to tell us there are nearly 70 apartments in her building. Also failed to tell John that Anna and I were arriving. Thank God for Filipina housekeepers. Always super nice. We made it inside the Stubblefield residence. Up to nearly the top floor.

Marble floor. Marble bathroom tiles. Marble counter-tops. Lots of marble. A bit much, I think. Abbott Laboratories pays a lot in rent for this apartment. Almost a shame to merely call this place an apartment. These views. North and South off the balconies and large windows. Cities never look as good as they do from several hundred feet off the ground. As always the Civil Defense Authorities reminds you that readiness is your only protection. What use a bomb shelter in your apartment this far off the ground will do you is unknown to me. Sure is a heavy door and makes a great space to store your extra over-size American gear.

John and Halie show up. Wow. She’s grown a lot. They’ve been out in the heat and the sun of the afternoon sun at a nearby park. John appears to be in Heaven. No “real” job. Just his daughter to care for. That’s a job any dad would jump at the chance to take.

Amanda arrives. Immediately takes charge as always. Dannette comes home. Recently started her new school. Canucks be damned. Dannette is back at an American school. As it is Singapore we immediately begin discussing where our next several meals will occur.

Wee Nam Kee Chicken Rice we love thee.

Tiger lager you quench my thirst.

Bread Talk is an awesome store. Floss (rousong) is an interesting food item. I bought a jar. I brought it home to the USA. Anna still refuses to eat it.

Night slips over the tropical city. Cascades of sodium vapor light flow up from the P.I.E. into the sleeping home.

“Moving People, Enhancing Lives” is a truthful slogan. SMRT works better than any other transit system in the world. It brings us to the garish consumerism that is ION Orchard. We walk down Orchard Road past Taka. The humidity raises. The Golden Mile Food Centre beckons. Sup Talang at Haji Kadir. It is a food experience. Off to Arab Street and its never-ending row of fabric and silk shops.

Time for Asr. Hundreds if not thousands of motorcycles and scooters outside Masjid Sultan. Prayers are heard.

Back to the apartment. Soon we are off to dinner at Balestier Market on Balestier Road which tells all passers-by it is a “24 Hrs Food Paradise”.

Followed by Night Safari at the Zoo. The Fishing Cats are particularly odd. I do not find the Roof Rats interesting. I do not like the bubonic plague. No children were eaten either by spotted hyenas or hippos during our walk through the tropical forest. Although some parents may have threatened their ill-behaved children with such ignominious fates.

Next day. Final day. John forgets to tell us where, exactly, the HSBC Treetop Walk began. Perhaps because he did not care to find out before we (he, Dannette, Anna and I) set forth. Several kilometers into our hike through the tropical forest we discovered it. We were mindful to obey all the signs. We did not feed any of the monkeys. After 6 kilometers we were done with our hike.

After cleaning up at the apartment it was back on the tourist band wagon. We followed the signs as we later boarded the MRT and (1) paid the correct fare (2) did not smoke (3) did not vandalize, and (4) did not assault the bus captain. The Singapore Flyer is amazing. 541 feet above Marina Bay we capture spectacular vistas of the city-state.

Dinner at Clarke Quay. We minded the gap as we took the MRT back to Novena.

We flew away from Singapore a few hours later. I tipped the taxi driver again. It just seemed the fair thing to do.

A fantastic trip. A wondrous visit with the Stubblefields.

As a result for a number of years I’ve used external hard drives (I own two) to do backups of my computer files. I also use a Time Capsule as my wireless router and wireless backup. I decided that three external backups were not enough in case of a fire or some other manner of catastrophe so in 2009 I began using Mozy to do online backup to the cloud as they provided unlimited storage. I signed up for several years and while it took nearly 3 weeks to do the initial backup (120GB takes time to upload at the glacially slow speeds GCI provides its consumer customers) I’ve been very happy with Mozy ever since. That is until I received the following email on 1 February 2011:

Dear Mozy Customer,

Thanks for being a valued Mozy subscriber. For the first time since 2006, we’re adjusting the price of our MozyHome service and wanted to give you a heads up. As part of this change, we’re replacing our MozyHome Unlimited backup plan and introducing the following tiered storage plans:

50 GB for $5.99 per month (includes backup for 1 computer)
125 GB for $9.99 per month (includes backup for up to 3 computers)

You may add additional computers (up to 5 in total) or 20 GB increments of storage to either of the plans, each for a monthly cost of $2.00.

While this policy takes effect for new MozyHome customers starting today, your MozyHome Unlimited subscription is still valid for the duration of your current 2 year term. In order to ensure uninterrupted service, you’ll need to select a new renewal plan.

As the leader in online backup, we’re committed to continually providing the highest levels of service and protection that you’ve come to expect from us as well as delivering those innovations you’ve been asking for. For more information on the factors that led to this change, please read my note or visit our FAQ.

Be safe,
Harel Kodesh
President

It took me about 10 days to get around and checking out this new pricing structure. Well, Mr. Kodesh, I did the math and your new pricing structure  will cost more than 5x what my first years of service cost. Going from $103.95 to $545.79 for two years of service. I currently have 244GB of data backed up through my Mozy account. I’ve added nearly 15GB in the last 6 months so my renewal plan cost is based upon paying for 285GB of storage. With current storage costs a large company such as EMC (which owns Mozy) pays between $10 and $15 per terabyte. I do realize Mozy’s cost structure had many additional costs but the physical storage costs are really the majority portion. Apparently Mozy is more than willing to lose 10% of their customer base by raising their fees. A 10% that is both very vocal and long-term as most of those that will be shut-out of using Mozy due to the price increase are those who have been adding to their backups for years.

Certainly Mozy was losing money on some of the power users like me; that is the nature of flat-rate services. But unlimited backups make it easy for consumers to, as Ron Popeil said, “set it and forget it.” Now Mozy has to deal with the vocal backlash and the loss of long-time customers. I will leave sometime late summer before my pre-paid plan expires in the autumn and, given the amount of storage I require, probably go with Crashplan as they provide, for a hefty (but reasonable) fee, a USB drive to their customers to send in with the initial backup (which will save me weeks of upload time) and, more importantly, unlimited backup space.