My Week That Was - March 23

Breakfast at Bloom on Monroe Street
Madison.   3/21/2019  dwm photo

My week started with two of the nicest days we've enjoyed in some time.  It was sunny and relatively warm.  Especially compared to the cold we had experienced.

Just a couple days earlier it was warm and wet as rain melted a month's worth of snow in days.  It caused flooding in low-level areas and forced some folks out of their homes.

It wasn't as bad as other places in the Midwest, but if it was your house - it was bad news.

Monday was the day of my first pizza party.  I offered to bring the food for a floor meeting with residents and they took me up on it.  Six extra large pies, four large orders of bread sticks, and 3 2-liter bottles of soda from the Sun Prairie Pizza Pit did the trick.

It was the first of eight gatherings and well received.  I have tweaks and revisions to make before the next one - but it was a success.

Tuesday I got to use one of the coolest "apps" I've ever found.

It is called "Otter Voice Notes."

Once on your phone it works as a recorder which also transcribes in real-time!  I started using my phone to record interviews with people I'm writing about six months ago.  But it took a long time to type it out the interview.

After the interview, I copied and pasted the transcription onto a document, it ran more than 20 pages!

What an awesome time-saver and use of artificial intelligence technology.  It would have been handy back when I was a reporter in pre-internet days.

I'm sure this is old news for the techies, but if you haven't tried it - it works.  After downloading transcription, I found some auto-correct type errors, but listening to the conversation a second time helped me fill in the gaps in less than 30 minutes.  I give it two thumbs up.

Wednesday was the last at work so I could be home Thursday and Friday.

It was a busy day with two visits, worked on Tuesday's transcription, made a dozen phone calls, and joined in the regular sing-a-long.  It was a good day and prepared me for the long weekend.

Thursday started nicely - after my workout we drove into Madison for a bite at the Bloom Bakery and Cafe on Monroe Street.   It was excellent - the photo upper right shows my cinnamon roll and hot cocoa.  Yum.  You can read the Bloom blog April 2.

The bulk of Thursday and Friday - roughly 12 hours each day - was devoted to the First Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.  16 games each day.  Lots of buzzer-beaters and upsets which make it fun to watch.  Of course, seeing the Wisconsin Badgers lose in their first game wasn't fun.

I'm not sure how they will do Sunday, but I'll be cheering for the Anteaters of University of California - Irvine.  Zot! Zot!  (That's their cheer - representing an anteater nabbing an ant.)

I hope your bracket isn't busted!