New Yardstuff, Part 1

I am thrilled with the warm November weather here.  It is unusually nice.   It has been in the low to  mid 70s for days again, dry, and sunny.  Perfect for outdoor work.  

I roto-tilled the areas in the front yard where the tree stumps and roots were grinded out  a few days ago so that I could add topsoil, level the area and replant grass.  I filled fourteen 35#  kitty litter tubs (about 5 gallons each) twice and 4 more to complete the raking.

Those were about 1/2 stump mulch and 1/2 dirt.  I used it to completely fill one 4'x4'x4' compost bin in alternating layers with shredded mowed and bagged fallen leaves, and grass and kitchen waste from the old bin.  I was worried there wasn't enough "green" stuff to feed the worms and microbes, but it seems to have been enough.

I stuck in a kitchen thermometer probe (can't find my long compost bin thermometer at the moment) and left it there for an hour.  It went up from 70F outside temperature to 114F in the bin, so it is heating up well by microbial decomposition.  I did not expect it to start to heat up so soon!  😀. In a few weeks, it may get up to  140F and that it perfect.  

Thinking that it could use more greens for long-tern heating, I cast my eye on the wild english ivy growing in the far back yard.  Well, I had the collection bag on the self-propelled battery-powered mower, so off I went at it.  

I should mention that the ivy (English and Poison) are invaders from my backyard neighbor who simply ignores the back 10' of his yard.  I fight them (the plants) constantly.  Also, a previous side neighbor planted Some Damn Invasive Vine (which I keep forgetting the name of) which has gotten into my flowerbeds and raised garden paths.

So, it occurs to me I have a self-perpetuating source of green material for the compost bins!  If I have a fast-growing weed I want to eliminate, I might as well get some benefit from it.  I emptied a few trash barrels of old dried grass and leaves, so I can refill them until I have enough to fill the 1st bin with.  If life gives you lemons...

Having the mower in the far back, I also mowed around my 2 year-old specimen trees.  I want to build 4'x4' frames around them from old pallet wood, cover the inside with packing paper from Amazon shipments and fill it with mulch.  That should stop the underbrush vines from growing up the saplings until they get large enough to shade them out on their own.  

And by that time, the pallet frames and mulch should rot away. leaving the trees to grow naturally.  As the leader of the 'A Team' TV show used to say, "I love it when a plan comes together".

The next project is to get the DR brush mower working again.  I have a backyard of wild blackberries and undergrowth to remove.  But I left old gas in it for 2 years and it won't start now.  

The good neighbor guy across the street looked at it and suggested where I could spray "starter fluid" into the gas injector system.  I'll get at that soon.  And if I can't fix it, there are local mechanics who can.

But that's a future post...

A Good Day

I am very pleased with myself today.  Last week, an entire plant stand light fixture failed.  Naturally, just as I was starting to plant seeds...

I traded out a working fluorescent tube light in that for one in a working fixture.  It lit, so it wasn't the tube lights.  So I tried plugging the fixture into a completely different outlet.  No luck there either.  Which meant the fixture itself had failed.  

So I removed it.  That wasn't easy.  It was bolted onto a higher plant shelf.  I don't build things with easy maintenance in mind.  I assume things last forever, LOL!  But I did get it removed and on my workbench. The 2 possibilities were a loose wire or the failure of the fluorescent ballast.  

I'm not an electrician.  I've nearly electrocuted myself at least twice.  Once, it wasn't my fault (there were actually 2 (seriously non-code) separate circuits in one rental home electrical outlet).  The other was, but I was lucky enough to be sitting on a wood ladder.  I understand basic electricity, but practicality trips me up.  

I have a good sense of dangerous stuff.  I have very careful with power tools and knives, etc.  But electricity is invisible.  I wired my entire basement panel walls once (passed inspection) but it still scares me.

So I had the fixture sitting on my workbench (light tubes removed).  And I couldn't figure out how to even open it!  No obvious screws to remove to get at the insides.   I bent the fixture around some to see what was holding it together and finally decided two weird looking clips were the point were it moved least.  Well, the choice was to replace the fixture or fix it and I WAS curious. 

I grabbed the weird clips with vice-grips and pulled!  It was a heart-shaped plug.  I took the one at the other end out too.  After THAT, I took ever single screw out of the fixture and the insides were free.  Hurray, but what next?

I couldn't find a loose wire.  Of COURSE NOT, that would have been too easy.  I don't get easy problems.  So it had to be a failure of the ballast.  I know nothing about ballasts expect that they are essential.  So I researched the internet for a replacement hoping they were cheap.  

Mine was...

So, where to get one?  Checked several DIY stores and didn't find it.  But checked DIY sites again about "similar".  Found one than specififically asked if my ballast could be replaced by others.  Yes, and one was available at my local DIY store.  Drove there immediately and bought it.

I read the instructions.  They were laughable imprecise "match the wires according the the ballast diagram".  DUH!  My concern was that there were 2 blue wires, 2 red wires, 2 yow wires, a black and a white.  Replacing the ballast meant splicing the same-color wires, but WHICH blue wires, etc?

Well, I could only try it and see if it worked.  And that I didn't electrocute myself in the test.  Well, I am obviously still alive...

After cutting some wires shorter, stripping the insulation off, and capping same-color wires together (worrying that I had attached old blue 1 to new blue 2 (etc), I re-assembled the fixture.  The considered how to test it on the workbench.  I didn't want to have fluorescent tubes explode or risk near-electrocution #3...

Well, I have a shop light above the workbench.  And in a case of creative madness, I wired it with a light switch before the electric outlet.  So I turned off the "light switch" and plugged the fixture into the outlet.    That might be confusing or weird, but it meant the fixture had no electricity until I flipped the "light switch".  

Standing with a door in the way, I flipped the "light switch" ON using a piece of plastic pipe.  The fixture didn't light up.  Damn!  But there is a chain-pull on the fixture, so maybe it was in the 'off position.  I turned everything off and unplugged the fixture and pulled the chain.  Then set everything up again.

It LIT!!!

Fitting the fixture back onto the plant rack was annoying, but that was just about getting bolts into holes and nuts tightened.

But I fixed the fixture.  No knowledge, some persistence, and a bit of caution...  LOL!

I spent the rest of yesterday planting seeds and placing them under the newly-lit fixture.  😄

Rehabilitating The Computer, Part 2

Oh, it's going to be one of THOSE posts; I made 3 typos tonight in the title alone.  LOL! I'm actually typing this Sat night, but it kinna late to post.  

But the RAM has been upgraded from 8 GB to 16.  It was scheduled for 4-6 PM Thursday, but the technician had some difficult repairs and then rush hour traffic problems made it unreasonable (Washington traffic is among the worst in the US and any accident just brings it to a screaming-mad halt). So we rescheduled to Sat 9-11 AM.  I wasn't exactly "thrilled", but things happen.  

He arrived early in the time-slot, so that was good.  I must say, he had 2 impressive bags of tools.  Well, it's an on-site service, so he has to have everything with him.  And I have to say that he was friendly, experienced, and helpful (even answered some unrelated  questions I had - I always try to learn a little bit during household repairs).

I left him to his work (mostly) but dropped into the room a few times just out of curiosity.   It isn't often I get to see the insides of a computer.  So I learned a few things.  The Mac-Mini has a fan, though I never heard it or noticed an airflow input).  Apparently it is a better fan than Window Companies use ("heavier and more wings".  The hard drive is the size of a Bridge playing card and is "solid state".  

I had my Mac upside down for some reason; probably some thought about how the ON button should be placed.  The circle I had on top is a combination base and Wi-Fi antenna (no harm done, though).  The RAM cards were more familiar-looking; you can see some circuitry.  

I originally bought the RAM upgrade chips months ago, but feared to attempted it.  The online instructions said you need special screwdriver bits and a "IFixIt".  I have some odd driver bits, but I didn't know what an IFixIt was.  And there were dire warnings about static electricity damage.  So I chickened out and finally called for the experts...

And a good thing I did!  It took the guy 2 hours to exchange the RAM chips.  It turns out that IFixIt is a massive case of REALLY weird driver bits that I didn't have a HOPE of having.  I couldn't have done it even WITH the right tools.  And he said the 2018 Mac-Mini (mine) was unusually difficult to work on.  

He had to almost completely disassemble it!  Replacing the RAM chips was the EASY part.  And even then, some very tiny connectors and 2 rubber insulators (and I THINK), a metal MESH heat-disippation cover gave him some trouble.  I'm far-sighted and can't see anything without reading glasses or a magnifier lens up close, so I NEVER could have done it anyway.  

After he was done, we talked for a few minutes (as I said, he was friendly).  First, he liked my (home-made) computer desk.  It's old but sturdy at 5' by 30".  By "old" I mean it even has a 12"x 1" slot cut though the top and a platform below for fanfold paper (remember that stuff?).  

Second, he said the computer was very clean inside.  Considering I smoke (and only while on the computer these days) I was amazed.  He said it looked perfect.  Good for years...

Third, he said he needed to test the computer to make sure every seemed to be working.  That was humerus.  I'm right-handed, but hold the mouse oddly, so I have the mouse buttons reversed.  From my earliest office days to the present, anytime an IT guy had to work on my computer I warned them of that.      I tell them to just reverse the buttons to "normal" (it's SO easy) They always shrug it off saying they'll adjust.  They never do!  And they always keep frustrating themselves.  They just keep pressing the wrong side button (it's muscle-memory).

But we tested out some apps and sites.  The Apple Menu confirmed it was reading 16 GB.  He wanted to test an online site, so I directed him to the Mark's Mews Blog.  He had seen Lori wandering around the room and mentioned he had 2 cats, so that seemed like a good place.  And he took a picture of the blog address to visit later.

He mentioned having to be professionally neutral among Apple/Windows/others.  So to test my files folders, (and because he asked why I preferred Apple, I directed his attention to Finder.  Its like Windows Directory, but better).  That was working fine, too.  But I pointed his attention to the organization of my files/folders.

I am very organized.  Well, there is a reason I was a Federal Agency Project Manager.  He loved how organized I was.  Some people have all their files dumped in "Documents".  I have 6 folders just for categories of pictures and all my spreadsheet and word documents are similarly separated by subject. He loved it.  And it demonstrated to him that my computer was working fine after the "operation".

He loved my keyboard.  That might not seem odd, but I wear the letters off regular keyboard in mere months.  I found one with ingrained keys (daskeyboard) months ago and there isn't the least loss of key symbols since.  He didn't love my motley assembly of adapters.  Said they were slowing things down and making the hard drive work slightly harder.  And it is true.  I have adaptors to adaptors.  I keep old equipment connected until it just doesn't work anymore.  

So he gave so free advice and brought up sites that provided more direct connections.  I mean, even the 2018 Mac Mini has ports I couldn't understand.  So he explained:  Those tiny ones are "thunderbolt ports".  My external multi-port adapters I was using were really slowing things down.  And that I had wireless connections I wasn't using.  There is an Satechi Apple-dedicated keyboard he thinks I might prefer.  There is also a Satechi base that exactly matches the Mac Mini and adds various ports.  Add he says they provide the best adaptors.  I'll be looking at them...

I know about "last mile" cable connections causing slowdowns.  And I know about UPS and FedEx using the USPS to make final divers for cost and speed cost and efficiency reasons.  I DIDN'T know that last inch of adaptors was slowing things down.  Normally, I don't do things that require much speed.  BUT!  It makes a difference when downloading updates to apps or the whole O/S.  And I HATE sitting around for an hour during some major updates.  

I need an update to Firefox.  I'll see if it "feels" like it works faster after this RAM upgrade.  But mostly, I will know if the RAM upgrade helps if I stop getting warnings to "free up some RAM".  And if the computer wakes up from "sleep mode" and doesn't make the monitor go on and off fuzzily several times "sometimes" before coming up normally.

If all this makes sense to you, GREAT.  If not, just read it as details of me learning from a tech guy and relating it to past and present experience.  I know "some stuff" but not much.  Hardware is nearly invisible.  Software is easier, only because the apps guide me through the choices.  And even the software drives me crazy.

I have the RAM upgraded.  Now it is time to tackle the tangle of email apps.  AOL recognizes my cavebear account but not marksmews or yardenman.  Apple email reads marksmews and yardenman, but not cavebear.  And I can't reply FROM marksmews or yardenman, so have to forward those emails to AOL cavebear.  

I have an AOL, gmail and an iCloud email account for cavebear.  It has gotten TOTALLY out of control!    AOL is threatening my account there because of "3rd party" reading issues, gmail (Google) wants to make itself my exclusive provider, and I don't like that Apple iCloud keeps my data "away".  I love my stuff "here on the Mac Mini (safer from data-extraction).  

So that's the work for this week...  

Been Busy

Lori, the new kitten (not everyone who reads THIS blog is cat-addicted) has taken up a lot of my time pre and post arrival.  But there have been other things going on.  

A minor but important event was returning a package of truly horrible frozen meatballs to Safeway (they tasted like ground up hot dogs mushed with Wonder Bread).  Because last year I went from the cashier straight to the Customer Service desk about a mispriced item and the lady there said they didn't accept "returns".  I pointed out I had only travelled 10" to the desk.  She GRUDGINGLY gave me a refund.  It was like I was pulling fish-hooks out of her butt.

So I went online to see Safeway's return policy.  It said they happily refunded any perishable or non-perishable item within the expiration dates.  So with that in hand (literally, I printed it out), I brought the meatballs back, prepared for an argument.

To my surprise, the Customer Service desk person didn't hesitate to give me cash back.  YAY!

Another surprise was to see that one of my upper kitchen cabinets was falling away from the wall.  Well, they are 35 years old...  But it wasn't that the whole cabinet was coming off.  The back for still firmly afixxed.  The cabinet SIDE was loose.

So, get out the glue...  But I couldn't force the side onto the back.  The darn thing was held together with staples!  I probably could have pulled all the staples out (because they wouldn't fit back into the holes and useless if they did.  Brute force seemed the best option.

Start 2 hours of work...  The staples made it hard to force the cabinet side onto the back.  But I'm nothing if not persistent, and persistence overcomes a lot of problems.

I failed in several ways, at first.  Wood glue and pushing had little effect.  But I had a ratcheting cargo bar and tried that.  It wasn't equal to the pressure of the loose staples.  I expressed a LOT of BAD WORDS... 

But I looked at it all again and reconsidered the problem.  That's what persistance is.  I realized the first thing to do was get the side in contact with the back.  So I measured the height to countertop and found things that fit under it.  

You'll love this"  My wood cutting board on end, a can of cat food, and 2 shims levered it up perfectly!  And I found that the cargo bar could be wedged in the open cabinet door at one end and the wall and another cabinet door.

That failed.

OK, the cargo bar had to be secured at both ends so I could actually rachet it without having to hold both ends in place.  

Having figured THAT out, I had to undo everything to squirt wood glue in the loose side and back.  Of COURSE the wood glue was old and the opening was dried.  So I soaked the tip in hot water and cleaned it.

THEN I squirted glue between the loose parts and clamped both ends of the ratchet bar in place.  And set the cutting board, catfood can and shims up tight.  MacGyver's got nothing on me, LOL!  Well, OK, I didn't use a paperclip...

Pushing and shoving, I ratcheted the cargo bar tight as possible.  So far as I could tell, it was a successfully re-joining.  But I also like to be sure.  Extremism in repairs is not a vice and it is not wrong to overdo one.  

So I cut wood strips 1/2" x 1/2" to fit between the shelfs.  That eliminates adjusting the shelves, but since I haven't changed them in 35 years, I probably wont ever need to.  I spread glue on those and wedged then into place with bricks.

I have weird odd tools for reasons.  You never know WHAT you will need sometimes...  

Cabinet, I'll be watching you...

Covid-19 Vaccination Shot

 I got my first Moderna vaccine shot today.   The Maryland State site never worked for me, but the Charles County one was a breeze to use.  I went to it, gave my address, it showed me the available appointments for the nearest County location, I chose the first available time (2:00 pm). 

I got a confirmation of my registration request at once and another approving my request and confirming the date and time a few days later.  I did a timed drive to the location yesterday (20 minutes and easy enough to find).  Got there 10 minutes early today with no problem.

It was funny, though.  The appointments were for 9 people at a time, every 4 minutes and I had the first time.  Cool, I would be in and out in 10 minutes.  So Imagine my dismay when I entered the building and found a waiting line of about 100 people.  I confirmed it was the correct line.  No one was moving!

But, HURRAY, promptly at 2 pm, the line started moving and I was in the vaccine room in 10 minutes.  There were 9 shot stations.  I didn't even have to fill out a form!  I got my shot 5 minutes later and was sent to a waiting room for 15 minutes to make sure I had no reaction.  

As I left, I observed that there was no line left at all.  Had I known, the secret would have been to arrive LATE!  I would have walked right into the room and saved 10 minutes of standing around.  LOL!  

But I was back home 75 minutes after leaving home, so I sure can't complain.  What a wonderfully smooth process.  They even gave me my appointment for the 2nd shot at the shot station as I left.  I'll have to see if there is a site I can visit to leave a very positive comment on my experience.

Laz

I have mentioned recently that Laz has been getting better in adapting to the house.   I may not have have mentioned HOW much better he is doing.

There is still an occasional hiss from Ayla (she is reluctant to trust him) and when you get attacked, you remember it.  And I don't blame her for remembering being attacked.  But I haven't heard a screech in a week (maybe 2) and only softer hisses.

Laz is reacting positively to being let outside.  He got over the fence once a couple/few weeks ago (I think from my compost bin) and observing him desperately trying to jump back up (down is easier than up), I don't think he will do it again soon.  And besides, I now have a board set on the likely jump point loose on edge.  If he tries to jump from that, he will have a very negative experience.  On the other hand, if he does do it, I have one fence board barely attached so that he has a way home.

I know I said I was going to build a small enclosure for him to sit outside in, but I realized what he needed was "running around space".  He is young, full of energy, and I think the outside (in limited and controlled conditions) are good for cats.  

Being outside and exploring the yard (usually with Marley and/or me outside with him) has calmed him.  At first, he did not respond to my calls to return to the house.  The outside was too strong an attraction.  But lately, he has been responding.  That is a major success.  

I am pleased to say he now routinely comes in when called.  It helps when he sees Marley coming back to the house, but he more often does it on his own.  Not always, of course, but what cat ALWAYS responds to calls immediately?

The point is that he usually does and is getting better at it.  That I give treats to all when they do helps.  Well, you can't give treats or food to one and not all.  They KNOW!  I swear, I could give treats to Laz out in the yard and Marley and Ayla would be waiting for theirs inside.  Ayla has several special places where she expects food and sometimes I think that if I even WROTE about food, she would go to one of her places expecting some.

Not to get off-topic entirely, but Ayla decides WHERE she will eat.   I sometimes have to follow her through 3 rooms until she decides where the RIGHT place to eat is.  LOL!

But back to Laz...

Laz is calmer around Ayla.  Ayla has been more willing to come out of the bedroom and Mews Room.  Laz is much more "touchable".  He used to stay just out of reach walking by, but now he comes close enough for a back stroke and sometimes attention.  He loves chin rubs and strokes when he is on the cat tree platform and he flops right over on the waterbed seeking attention a LOT more than he used to.

He talks constantly.  He has a voice like a rusty gate, but even then, not as loud and worried-sounding as a couple months ago...  He is getting better in bed.  He used to push and shove against me very hard.    That might have been desperation about contact with his "new safe Being".  Now he has learned he can stay there longer with softer contact.  Laz and Ayla have peacefully slept around me the past 2 weeks and that would have been impossible a month ago.

Thinks are looking a LOT better than just a few weeks ago.  I think Laz has made some adjustment in his mind (forgot some bad memories, learned new ones, reconsidered his position here, learned to calm down, discovered he could expend youthful energy running around the yard, learned to trust me, connected to Marley, accepting Ayla, etc).

So Laz is here.  And he won't be going anywhere.

 

Comments About That Unusually Helpful AOL Tech Person

Comments came up about how unusually helpful the AOL tech was and that she didn't want company recognition...

I had dealt with at least 6 AOL techs over the last couple months.  I'm not saying they weren't helpful to the degree required for their jobs.  But if there was something I couldn't do or understand, they lost patience quickly.  So they didn't go out of their way to help.  They were following AOL rules.  One is paying $5 per month per email account that they could verify.  Another was that I had to know the previous passwords which were on the dead Mac Mini.  They pretty much just tried to get me off the phone to get to the next customer.

I should mention that the previous ones might have had trouble because I didn't have a 2nd phone for sending a code to, or call waiting set up.  I did contact my service provider (Verizon) to set that up.  It just took a button click on My Account and then discovering there was a button on my phone labeled "call waiting'!  Well, you don't see what you aren't looking for...

When I talked to this latest one, it was obvious she was not so concerned with AOL rules.  She didn't ask if I had an paid account for each email address.  She asked if I had passwords, but when I said I didn't (and explained why) she said "then we will set of new ones".  She was patient after asking questions that I didn't fully understand.  She answered some questions she didn't have to bother answering.

An example was "what is the difference between POP and IMAP accounts"?  She explained that POP was easier for AOL but did not allow recovery of email files while IMAP took a little more work, but allowed recoveries.  When I mentioned that my working email account was POP, she said "well let's fix that first".   And she did.

She was on "remote control" over my computer by then.  She explained what she was doing at each step.  After changing my primary email account from POP to IMAP we went to the marksmews email.  She didn't ask if I had a monthly payment account, she just went about setting it up as IMAP.  To do so, she generated a master password on her end and told me to enter a password of my own afterwards to change it.  And she specifically said at all such times that she had turned off her vieing so that she couldn't see my new password. 

OK, that might have been untrue, but I was trusting her.  I think she was being honest.  Besides, I'm sure anyone at AOL could see my passwords if they wanted to.

So she had my cavebear email changed to the safer IMAP format and the marksmews email set up the same way.  She asked if I needed further assistance.  I mentioned a 3rd email accounnt.  When she asked why have 3 accounts, I explained it was one general email and one each for 2 blogs (cats and gardening) just to keep them separate.

She laughed and said she admired organized computer files.  I didn't mention that I keep so many folders of various kinds that I used to drive the computer guys nuts at work when they had to solve a problem.  They make sense to me and that is all that matters.

So she went about setting up my yardenman email (gardening) as Imap and went through the process of creating a temporary new master password at her end *sending a temporay code to my call-waiting) and then going off-viewing while I created a new one for myself.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience.  I have never in my life had a better experience with a computer company tech.  So why did she decline to let me thank AOL on her behalf? 

Well, during our hour-long chat, I mentioned that she was unusually helpful and did she really enjoy doing this?  OK, I would expect any company agent to express a positive attitude whether they actually enjoyed their job or not.

She seemed actually happy to help people get problems fixed and to be the one to fix them.  So parts of being happy at what you do are hard to disguise.  She seemed to REALLY enjoy what she was doing.

I get that.  When I visit my favorite gardening forum, the first thread I go to is the "Questions" thread.  Some guys love cars, some like sports, I was gardening as a preteen.  So it has been 60 years...  I love to answer gardening questions!  I get positive pleasure from helping other people garden well. 

So, apparently, the AOL tech rep I spoke to feels the same way about computers.  I think that she knows that she is breaking AOL rules by helping people without asking for payment programs or pushing add-on "pay-for" services.  It just gives her pleasure to help others with her expertise.

An aside...  The internet has been the greatest opportunity for people to share their individual knowledge since the invention of the mass-printed book.  Before the printing press (invented in symbol-driven China, but much more applicable to European letter systems), scholars had to write individual letters to the few others they knew about things they had discovered (expensive, slow, and uncertain of delivery).  After the printing press, scholars could write whole books available to all who could buy one (it still wasn't cheap).  But 1,000 books reached more people than a dozen short letters.

With the internet, we can reach a Billion people if they are interested and nearly for free.  So sending answers to questions (whether computer, gardening, cooking, etc) into the internet is basically "books cubed".

The AOL tech woman is one of those.

Email Accounts

This is long and has a pretty good ending, but you'll have to read to get to it!  And I'm writing this is relatively good humor, as you'll see by the end.  Consider it "a novel to read in 20 minutes".  I'm done complaining.  LOL!

I originally set up 3 email accounts on Verizon mail years ago (2008).  It was quite easy.  So I set up a primary email for myself (friends, family, shopping, my Cavebear's Lair blog).  That is me "in general".

I set up one for the cat blog (Mark's Mews).  That one gets 95% of all my emails of course.  Mostly notifications on comments.  It is easier to read them in email than actually going to the blog.  And all of those are saved that way "just in case".

I set one up for my garden posts and forums (Yardenman).

I was happy as a pig in mud.  I loved being organized in my slightly different 3 personas.  No deceit intended, but it was just easier to have family, cat blog, and garden forums separate.

And then, in 2017, Verizon sold their email accounts to AOL.  "Rest assured", they said, "you keep your email addresses forever, and will get more experienced service at no cost.  This is for YOUR benefit".  I ask, are there more chilling marketing words than that?

AOL is used to people having one email.  But they worked hard to get my 3 accounts transferred.  And they did succeed.  I ended up with a dozen different passwords and I wasn't sure which went to which email account, but they assured me they could always find it or give me a new one.  No cost.  I was a legacy from Verizon, and free service was part of the contract.

Nothing is forever...

When I foolishly downloaded Mac OS 'Catalina'  last November, everything to Hell in a Handbasket, as they say.  Catalina was a 64-bit system and none of my 32-bit apps worked.  And it was not reversable.  Apple WANTS everyone to "progress" and that meant 64 bit.  I kicked like a mule and I bit like a crocodile.  Didn't do me any good.  Catalina wasn't leaving my computer. 

So I pulled out the previous Mac Mini (that didn't have 'Catalina') and started migrating the Catalina one to it.  I had some short cables, so I had to snuggle both Macs on one desk.  Along the way, I moved one that still had an overlooked cable attached

That cable caught my wine glass and spilled it onto the Catalina Mac.  It's OK to laugh.  I'm trying to write this as a comic-tragedy...  The Catalina Mac was immediately fried.  Dead.  No power.  Drowned.  Zombied.  6' under.  You get the point....

So I had the older one I stopped using in 2017.  But I also had an external backup from a few days before.  On Mac, it is called "Time Machine".  Theoretically, you can restore your computer  down to the last email setting from it. 

But what they don't tell you is that it has to be the same computer.  To a different computer, it is just a collection of apps and docs and folders.  Guess who was on "a different computer"?

I tried everything for a couple months.  Ceiling Cat KNOWS I tried (I'll get some credit for that somehow someday, I'm sure, but not NOW).

I bought a new Mac Mini, not realizing that it was a cloud computer and had little memory.  I was able to return it.  I bought a real one.  1TB and faster stuff.  So I confidently went to use "Migration Assistant".  Apple says it will copy everything from an old computer to a new one.  Guess what doesn't work as claimed?  It copied most of the old Mac, but not the photos or email or settings. 

I'm going to guess it is partially my fault.  I customize and organize my computer files freely and in ways the designers probably didn't expect. 

When we got our first office computers (Convergent Technology, aka C3) in the early 90s , the spreadsheet was called Multiplan.  It had a way to link files together.  I linked freely.  I crashed the system.  Not to the point where our Data guys were upset, but to where the Multiplan programmers and C3 managers called me asking what I had done.  Well, it was more like "What the F ing H*ll did you do

I told them that I had explored their spreadsheet and used the features.  They had to rewrite large parts of their spreadsheet code to allow what I did.  I am very likely infamous at C3 and possibly mentioned in some software articles from the time.  

So I can get around software given a half a chance, and I find things the programmers didn't think of.  I couldn't fully migrate the old mac to the new one.  The Photos would NOT go (too many I suspect).  The settings wouldn't transfer (I had to many alterations?) maybe.  My mail wouldn't go at all!

I got the photos transferred one folder at a time using an external HD.  The new computer didn't like it the way I did it, but it has to copy files directly if you are determined enough.  On tyhe other hand, you can't MAKE it copy "settings" apparently.

So then I called AOL about the email.  Remember that part about free service forever?  Forget that. Never heard of it.  And they hate us legacy Verizon email users.  They ARE stuck with keeping our email addresses working though.  I have no idea why that and not the free service, but that is money and who really knows what the contract actually says.

They demanded I have a separate phone to receive temporary codes.  I only have the landline (yeah, I'm THAT primitive).  Call waiting would work, but I had never set that up and wasn't even sure I had it.  AND they wanted me to pay $5 monthly for a support account for each email account.  I went for one for the Cavebear email account.  If I had to live with one, that's "me".

They got that working, but refused to touch the others unless they could send a text or voice code to a separate number.

Well, after finally getting the photos moved and setting up new setting all around, I set up a "chat" with a Verizon agent.  She told me I had call waiting and how to activate it.  Stupid me, it was right there on a phone button!

But armed with call-waiting, I confidently called AOL again, expecting to have to pay $5 per month for tech support for each account.  And expecting to have trouble understanding what the agent was saying.

And THIS is why I am so thrilled.  First, imagine an Asian Indian/Irish accent (it sounded beautiful whatever it was).    Second, imagine not being asked to sign up for a year's worth of monthly payment for 3 accounts.  Third, imagine someone who cheerfully led me through all the stages of all 3 accounts (correcting a few previous mistakes by the previous AOL agents) for over an hour and got all 3 accounts working AND even helped me get the email accounts under my Inbox.

I even asked her if she enjoyed her job when it takes so long for a customer like me and she said she really does enjoy helping people with difficult problems.    She seemed sincere.  OK, I get that.  Sometimes I spend hours at a gardening site answering questions that will never benefit me in any way.

And another thing.  They always tell you a name when they start and you never remember it.  So when I told her at the end that she was the most helpful tech person I ever dealt with and wanted to commend her to AOL, she requested I didn't.  I was stunned.

After we tested sending a few emails between my accounts to be sure it was all working, I thanked her and hung up.

And I immediately emailed AOL.  I told them I didn't have her name, but I gave them the case number, and that they had better make her "Employee Of The Year" because she did what 5 other of their agents didn't! 

I do have 11,000+ emails to sort out, but that is sure better than none.  I can do that.

And I did an internet search about where my Firefox bookmarks are.  I learned I can't "import" them because they don't get the idea of importing from Firefox to Firefox.  I'll bet I can import them to Safari and THEN to Firefox.  I LOVE "workarounds", LOL!

I have duplicate pictures that won't go away using a "duplicate-remover" app.  I'll remove them manually over the next few weeks. 

BTW, I learned the difference between email settings of POP and SMTP.  Email providers love POP because it is simpler.  SMTP files are recoverable.  POP files aren't.  Take a look at your email settings and see which you have...  If they are POP, call your email provider and demand a change.

But nearly everything is re-established on my new computer.  3 months of misery.  But you know what?  Next year, I will hardly even remember it.   Times heals all wounds.  And in the grand scheme of things, the past 3 months will not matter next year. 

Happiness to all.  My computer life is finally coming back into order...

And thanks to all who read this far.

Mark

I Won

I beat the computer!  I won.  I got around all the problems.  I have all the original-size photos (though many duplicates I will have to manually delete)).  I have all my documents.  I have all my apps (I think).  I can read everything I can think to search for.  I can see the smaller pictures I use in the blogs (The Mews AND Cavebear's Lair).  I can't find anything (other than some Firefox bookmarks) missinbg on the NEW computer that were on the OLD.  I restarted the new computer to make sure they reappearred after a shutdown.



I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT! I DID IT!   I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!
 
OK, that's enough...

The built-in Migration Assistant didn't work.  The special USB cable with the installed transfer chip didn't work.  The Mac Help Forums didn't work.  Drill Doctor app didn't work.

But *I* did.  I found all the parts of my Mac that held any files or apps and JUST PLAIN COPIED them one by one to an external drive and then to the new Mac one by one.  I relentlessly, ruthlessly (I wonder where Ruth went?), doggedly (woof, woof) replaced everything with the old stuff.

So now I have everything moved from a Mac OS "Catalina-infested" 340GB 4 RAM Intel 5 processor to older Mac OS "High Sierra" but 1TB 8 RAM Intel 7 processor.  And I am going to back up the whole HD and plant my butt on the current computer until Tim Cook (CEO of Apple) comes with an army of nerds and beats the computer to death with iCloud crowbars!

I'm going to carefully pack up the OLD Mac Mini (it still has everything on it).  Then I am going to shut down the NEW Mac Mini so I can undo the spread of electrical connections and tangled cables of both Macs.

Then, and ONLY then, I will start up the new Mac Mini and see how fast it works.  I even have a brand new (no faded letter keys) keyboard waiting for this day.

OK, here I go...



(Gahan Wilson - February 18, 1930 – November 21, 2019)

Yeah, its working...

Computer Problems 2

I think I actually solved the photos import!  After trying to import photos from the OLD mac to the NEW one  and letting it process for 3 days (!), I gave up and clicked on "stop importing".  It obviously wasn't working.

So I shut down both computers and looked at the possible cable connections.  HDMI cables give the faster connections, but each has only one and the new monitor I bought only uses HDMI.  So I couldn't connect the 2 macs that way. 

And trying to import the OLD photo folder to the 4TBMy Passport external drive wasn't working.

So I had the thought of just COPYING the OLD iPhoto folder to it.  Took 10 minutes!  Then I ejected and unplugged the My Passport external drive and plugged it into the NEW mac.  And restarted the NEW mac.  (Always a good idea to restart after attached a new device)

Then I went to iPhotos and tried to import from the My Passport.  Nothing...  Gloom...  The iPhoto Library folder stayed "greyed out"  (not recognized) on My Passport.  But I went back to Finder, and opened the file there.  It opened there just fine! 

So leaving it open, I went back to the NEW mac and opened iPhoto, chose "import", and moved my mouse to My Passport.  The iPhoto folder was BLACK (recognized.  I clicked OK (import)

AND IT STARTED IMMEDIATELY COPYING THE PHOTOS!

I can see the photos flashing by on the screen.  Apparently there are 65,000 files.  After an hour, there are 30,000 remaining, but IT IS WORKING!  As the Scarecrow said in 'The Wizard Of Oz'  "Oh Joy! Rapture!

 

Smetimes It Pays To Complain

Well, I've been a loyal subscriber to my local newspaper for 30+ years.  My "local" newspaper is 'The Washington Post'.  Not the average "local" newspaper...

I got a notice of subscription increases.  Mostly because they have started sending out "special editions" on topics I don't care about.  I wasn't subscibing because it was "local", but because it is one of the top newspapers in the the US.  The "local" part was happenstance.

I got tired of paying $5 for subjects like "museums" or "the subway".  I don't actually go to Washington DC anymore, I just happen to live nearby.  So I emailed them (emails are great for keeping records) to cancel.  I would miss the editorials and comics (2 full pages and I love comics strips), but I objected the the $5 special editions (that arrived more frequently lately).

They replied with a 50% discount offer...  Well, that sure makes up for the $5 special issue nonsense!  I accepted.  I got a confirmation email today.

They didn't make it easy.  Their emails were all "no reply" addresses.  Even copying the discount offer wouldn't work.  And the emails even said "just reply to this email".  Businesses are entirely stupid internetly sometimes...

I had to do a copy to Word, "forward" the email and copy the relevant part (offering the discount), and then add text to say I was ACCEPTING their offer.  Sent it. 

They may STILL be wondering how I did that...  LOL!

Computer Fun

"Computer Fun" and I say that sarcastically.  I just spent 4 hours restoring processed and organized pictures that suddenly vanished.  Some background...

I use a Mac Mini.  It is small, but sufficient.  And I like the fact that it is solid state and doesn't need a fan.  It could use a few more ports, but I I have just barely enough and haven't needed more yet. 

I keep my files organized, especially the pictures.  IPhotos holds all the full-sized pictures by date.  When I crop, filter and resize them for blog use, they go into a new folder (like documents and applications do).  I think most people keep their pictures by subject.  I take too many to be able to find them that way.

So, in the Photos folder, I set up 6 subfolders"  Cats, Family, House, Other, Videos, and Yard.  Each of those folders gets a new subfolder each year (2018, for example).  Each year folder gets monthly folders (January 2018 is 1801).  Daily subfolders when I need one (January 20, 2018 would be 180120).  That may or may not seem seriously complicated, but I can navigate to any subject and day in about 5 seconds.

I did spend my career organizing information after all...  ;)

Now, also, Mac has an app called "Time Machine".  Connected to an external hard drive, it keeps automatic backs of all changes in files and by some program I know NOTHING about,  it connects to all past saves so that you can restore individual files, individual folders, individual programs or your entire computer.

And that has saved me more than once for individual files to the whole thing!  I LOVE TIME MACHINE!

So I went to add a Flashback Friday post on Marks Mews.  I choose them by scrolling through IPhotos It displays dates, and when I find one I want to use, I just go to that date in Photos (IPhotos is an app; Photos is a saved personal folder).

The original full-size picture was in IPhotos but the processed picture I wanted was not in my Photos subfolder.    And I discovered that half the pictures in my subfolders from 2016 and earlier were gone!  ARRRGGGHHHHH!

I should mention that while Mac computers have strong anti-hacking software built-in, I do use one called MacKeeper to look for adware, malware, useless files, etc.  And I was using it frequently the past few days.  I made the mistake of trying to download a TV show I wanted a quote from and ended up with a pop-up ads.

I didn't realize how aggressive MacKeeper could be defining "useless files".  It allows you to look at the list of files to be deleted, but file names can be difficult to interpret.  After reading a dozen and not seeing anything that worried me (most seemed to be if I needed to read something in a foreign language), I went ahead and clicked "OK".  It deleted almost a 1,000 files and gave me back   about a Gb memory, so I was rather pleased. 

Until I discovered a lot of processed pictures missing...  Now I'm not saying that MacKeeper did that, just that both things seemed to happen at the same time.  Maybe I got hacked at the same time.  But I am suspicious of coincidences!

So I went into Time Machine and tried restore individual folders from 2 days ago, iy didn't work.  So I looked at the Time Machine backups from a week before and those were blank.  I had to go back to August, and there they all were!

Not to get too technical (unless someone has a question), but I had to select specific folders for Cats, Family, House, Other, Video, and Yard one at a time and save one then then go back and do another. and double check because once it didn't restore (probably my fault, but that's why you check).

BUT!  They are all back now...  The Flashback Fridays post on Marks Mews is proof.

MacKeeper is a good app.  It does find adware, some tracking malware, and actually non-essential files.  But I will be a LOT more careful in the permissions I allow it in the future, LOL!

A Better Day

So the cement held on the pvc pipe repair.  And I pulled on it hard.  Good.  Now I just have to straighten and reinstall 2 others.

I plan to add more supports so that (hopefully) this doesn't happen again.  As best I can guess, enogh leaves fell on the chicken wire covering that the large snowflakes that fell didn't fall through it and accumulated enough weight to bend even the metal pipes in the pvc pipes.  I'll have to be careful about that in the future.

I built the structure with metal pipe inside pvc pipe because there were some complicated connections and metal pipes didn't offer those and pvc pipes did.

I still have some pipes to straighten.  But now that I've done the worst-bent one, the rest should be a BIT easier.  Not "easy" but "easier".  Part of the problem with the first one was that the temperature outside was close to the minimum 45F that the cement cures at rapidly.  The next couple days are supposed to reach the 70F mark (yay Spring) so I can do better with the other bent pipes.

So of course I wasn't sitting around just waiting for the temperature to rise.  I had planned for the brambles in the back 1/4th of the yard to be gone in Fall 2017, but the one guy I found who said he could do that THEN ended up in the hospital from a job injury (and decided to retire).  I did it myself last Fall (really brambly awkward work).  But I did it.

I had to do it.  I had 5 saplings to plant that I bought in Fall 2017 and had set in my garden "temporarily", LOL!  I went out to dig holes for them in Winter and it was like digging a hole in ice.  So I moved 4 of them Tuesday.  At least I could dig the soil.  I transplanted them carefully.  I LOVE my solid steel spade!  I sharpened the edge and it cuts through all soil and vine roots well. 

Today, I took 4 kitty litter buckets (I save them) and drilled a tiny hole in the bottom of each.  Why?  Well, when I fill them from the hose, they drip water slowly into the soil.  It soaks in rather than run off that way.  And I don't have to stand around 30 minutes soaking the area.  Plus, the buckets remind me where the saplings are so I won't mistake them for the junk saplings that spring up on their own.

More to do in the days to come of course, but that was a good start!

A Good Day

Some days you spend all day doing routine work around the house.  Some days you spend all day doing one major infrequent task.  Some days you accomplish a lot of fairly unusual stuff.

Today was the last type...

1.  My online Mac computer had looked stretched out for a couple of days.  Symbols that were supposed to be circles were ovals, the text seemed oddly spaced, some sidebars weren't showing all the information they usually do, and people in pictures looked fat.  I had tried a couple of times to correct that in my settings and window sizes, but nothing worked.

2.  My offline Windows 95 computer (that I bought a month ago for playing some old favorite games suddenly stopped working).  I had just bought cheap speakers for it and there both a typical small round plug and a USB connector on the same speaker wire.  There were no actual instructions in the box, so I made a best guess and plugged in the round plug into each of the several small round port in the back.  Nothing.  So I unplugged that and tried the USB port.  Nothing.  Then I tried both.  Nothing.  So I unplugged the speakers entirely assuming they didn't work with such an old computer.

When I restarted the computer, instead of the usual Windows 95 demand to press f1 for setup or Esc to boot, I got a message saying to insert a bootable disk.  Naturally, in my cleanup campaign last Fall, I had tossed old "useless" software like the original Win 95 and Win 98 disks...  I figured I had shorted something, messed up the installed Win 95 software, or something and would have to haul the tower to the local PC repair shop.

3.  I have never been a dedicated paper filer.  Oh, I'm ORGANIZED.  A file folder for everything.  But I tend to just drop stuff on the top of the file cabinet to file "later".  The stack was 6" high and I needed several things in it.  But sorting the stack out meant I needed space, and my dining table was clutterred.  Recipes, DIY articles, computer and security advice, gardening suggestions, medical articles, etc.  Yeah, I'm a "clipper".  So to de-clutter the table meant I had to file stuff.  Catch-22!

   ----------------------

So, today I decided to tackle those annoying problems...

1.  I tried another round of correcting the setting on the Mac, to no success.  For those who don't have a Mac (and having used both Macs and Windows, I make no judgement).  But I use a Mac online, so you can tell which I prefer.  And to those of you who use a Mac and have experienced the Finder App, you understand why.  The other joy is the way Macs can stay in sleep mode without problems.

But it occurred to me that some problems can be solved just by restarting a computer.  So I actually went a step further and SHUT IT OFF!  First time in months...  After a few minutes, I started it back up.  Problem solved!  Everything looks normal again.  I concluded it was one of those "cats on the keyboard" things.  Macs have loads of keyboard shortcuts, and the cats frequently (randomly) activate some and I have to admit some of them take time to figure out how to undo.

One problem solved...

2.  Encouraged by that, I sat down at the bewly-purchased old Windows computer.  I tried restarting it.  No luck.  I tried shutting it down.  No luck.  I tried unplugging it from the surge protector for a few minutes.  No luck.  Same message demanding a bootable disk.  Considering that a visit to the PC repair shop was sure to cost at $200, I was about to but Windows 95 from Amazon or eBay, but them I recalled the stacks of game disks on the bookshelf.  I recalled that when I switched form Windows to Mac I had copied all my Windows folders to writable CDs.  Mac apps can read most standard Windows formats like .doc, .xls, .jpegs, etc.  And I had saved those (and in fact I think there are old pic and docs and even emails that I should retrieve, having deleted some trying to solve a storage proble. 8 years ago, but that is a future project).

What I recalled having ALSO done was copy the entire old Windows C drive the last time I bought a new one (on advice from a clipped article - that's why I clip stuff).  And sorting through about 30 jewel case of disks, there it was!  A CD labelled "Original From Store Basic Win 98 Configuration" dated 4/23/99... 

I hoped the Bootable File would work.  I slipped it into the CD drive, restarted the computer, and "Lo And Behold", up came the desired request to choose setup or boot.  I chose setup, which means the computer wants you to establish the date and time, display resolution, etc, just like the first time I started it after purchase.  It opened Win 95 again, and sure enough, the few files I had added since purchase where there.

When that was done, I took out the old CD copy of the Win 98 program, slipped in the game disk (Civilization II - Best non-real-time play-at-your-own-speed strategic fighting and city-building game of all time...  And I could play it again!

Two problems solved...

3.  The paperwork filing was in no way tricky, just unbelievably tedious.  To make room om the dining table, I sorted out all the clipped articles and set them on the kitchen counters (at this point do I really need to tell you that I had to clean the kitchen first, LOL!)?  So after that, I had an empty table to sort out the bills.  It's amazing how many types of them there were.  Some are monthly or quarterly, so I knew they needed their own spots.  Some come in a bunch at once (like vet bills).  Some are nearly one-offs (stuff that isn't regular).  Those got their own stack.  Some were tossable (like the 2017 recycling pickup schedule and my 2018 Health Care Insurance Plan summary).

Iza wanted to help, so that meant rearranging a few stacks.  But I eventually got them all sorted out.  Which them meant arranging each group by date.  Finding the dates on some bills can be hard (companies that keep rearranging the layout on their bills should be penalized). 

But I started with the smallest stacks and arranged them on the floor by date (Iza was happy to help again).  I filed those.  That finally left some space on the table and I got through all the stacks, filing as I went.  What a relief.  And I found a few of the documents I was looking for.  I even had some letters and poems that had stayed on the bottom of the stack the previous time I had sorted and filed stuff.

I think I should end this post and discuss those next time...

But today had some good endings and that doesn't always happen.  So I'm pretty pleased with the day's work.  And of course that doesn't count the routine stuff.  I'm celebrating getting the odd stuff done.

Another Day In The Life, Part 2.

So it was Friday.  The mower still wasn't starting.  But the battery was turning over the drive shaft like crazy.  It should have started.  I mean, all that happened was that it was running fine, ran out of gas and I refilled it.

I'm not a gas engine mechanic.  I know the theory better than the reality.  But theory helps.  I can do some simple things.  So after trying to start it again, I went for the basics.  I removed the air filter and beat the dust out of it.  I checked the oil (fine).  I checked the throttle to make sure it was working (it was).  I looked at the manual to see the things that would prevent the engine from starting (blade engaged, brake not on, no gas, spark plug wires firmly attached, etc).  None of those.  Mower just wouldn't start. 

I tried a trick I learned from a mechanic about spraying some carburator cleaner into the carburator and then trying to start the engine.  I saw some drops of gas spitting out of the top of the carburator.  No go.

It was hot and humid and I was getting pissed.  I went inside and made lunch and drank a lot of water.

Later I went back out and asked the mower why it wasn't starting.  I pulled the spark plugs.  They were fine.  Very clean.  No deposits or oil.  The gap looked right.  Put them back in.  I decided the carburator just wasn't getting gas. 

So I took off the gas cap and looked inside.  There was a BUNCH OF DEBRIS ON THE BOTTOM!  HUH?

So I figured I had to get that stuff out.  As far as I could tell, you can't remove the gas tank with out removing the engine and I sure wasn't going to do THAT!  Far beyond my skills.  I was about to try crushing an aquarium net to "fish" around in there to collect the debris, but I remembered a weird little "grabber" gadget I had for retrieving lost screws around engines and under tool benches. 

I grabbed onto the largest piece and pulled it out carefully.  It was a piece of gasket!  I looked at the gas cap and saw it matched a stud to hold the piece.  OMG!  The gas cap gasket broke and fell into the gas tank after I filled it the day before.

I took several more pieces out.  And, to my surprise, some of them were bits of leaves!  I can't figure out how THEY got in there.  Long story short, I removed a dozen bits of junk out of the gas tank. 

So the mower started right up after that, right?  Wrong!  But I'll say one thing for Walmart batteries; they keep chugging.  I got weird sounds, hisses, and a slight thunk.  And all of a sudden, it started.  I was not expecting that. 

And you better believe I drove it all around the yard for an hour mowing the last parts of the lawn short and recharging my brave little battery!  I even got all the grass clippings piled into two 3'wide rows.

That was so I could rake them into piles and cart them to my compost bins.  You can't lay down grass seed on clippings because the emerging roots need soil contact.  I collected 3 trash barrels full of grass clippings. 

Success sometimes comes hard.  A bit of knowledge, a bit of "just trying stuff", a bit of looking for the odd problem, and a bit of luck makes a difference.

Now all I have to is rough up the bare spots with a rake and spread the grass seed all over the lawn.  I have fescue grass here.  It clumps rather than spreads, so it needs to be reseed every few years to stay looking full.  But it is a vigorous grass.  Bluegrass would look nicer, but it gets too hot here and I don't get enough sunlight for it.  I spread a sun/shade mix of tall turf fescue when I renovate.

And I read up on the procedures each time I overseed, just to make sure I don't forget good hints.  Apparently, my experience is better than many internet sites, because you wouldn't believe some of the nonsense I read this week!

And THAT is tommorow's post...

Another Day In The Life, Part 1

So, I decided to renovate the lawn.  That means cutting the grass down to 1",  aerating the lawn, collecting all the grass-clippings so that new seed can reach the ground and get some sunlight, and watering the lawn slightly 2x a day to keep the seeds moist.

I thought I had the timing perfect.  Aerate the lawn with my core aerator (pulls 3"x1/4" plugs of soil out of the ground and deposits them on the surface.  That allows air and water and fertilizer to get deep into the soil, and reduces compaction.

And since I was going to be dragging the aerator across the lawn with the riding mower, I would mow the grass short in a pattern that threw the grass clippings into just a couple of 4" wide rows.

Then I would rake the grass up and save it for the compost pile.  Then spread the grass seed.  The weather forecast was for occasional rain for the next week.  Perfect for the seeds to germinate in 80 degree temps.

Well, that was the PLAN...

The aerator has a tray on the top for putting heavy stuff on the top to make the aerator tubes sink deeply. 

I bought solid cinder blocks for it years ago.  And I added more weight this time (the ground was a bit dry).

No plan works...  As soon as I started (1 pm Wednesday), I discovered the aerator tires were flat and one was tire was off the wheel.  I had to take all the heavy stuff off and raise the end of the aerator off the ground supported by bricks.  Taking off the tire was awkward.  There was one bolt on the outside and 2 on the inside.  Only the farthest inside bolt held by a wrench allowed the outside bolt to be loosened.  With the wheel off, I had to reinflate the tire.

Of COURSE it didn't have a tube inside.  That would have been too easy.  I had to get the tire re-seated onto the metal wheel in order to get any air to stay in it.  I know from past experience that pressure on the outside of the tire can get the tire re-seated onto the wheel.  I spent an hour struggling to do that, to no avail.  Well, I worked at a tire company briefly, and I remembered they had an air-pressurized tube that went around small tires to press the tire to the wheel.  I don't have one of those.  I was dripping with sweat and worn out, so I stopped for an hour.  Drank 3 glasses of water.

When I was cooled down, I tried to think of ways to squeeze the tire onto the wheel.  I have an air pump to add a lot of air through the valve all at once.  With that attached to the valve, I tried twisting a rope around it, and I tried turning a loop of rope with a crowbar.  That didn't work.  I tried putting the tire in my bench vise and using some wood clamps across the tire in 3 directions.  That didn't work.

Damn!  I finally thought of ratcheting straps (like you use to hold a boat to a trailer.  That was awkward.  12' of strap around a 8" tire takes a lot of winding.  And the straps I had only get to 6' short (from 12').  I finally managed to hook the end of the strap at a point where the ratchet would really tighten.

It didn't work.  Well, not the 1st time or the 2nd or the 3rd or 4th.    But eventually, by pounding the sides of the tire with a rubber mallet, the seal finally caught suddenly!  YAY, HOORAY, and HALALULEAH!!!  It caught suddenly and filled...  I couldn't find anything on the tire that said what PSI to fill it, but I went for 12 as that seemed tight but with a slight "give".

So I brought it back outside and put the wheel back on the axle.  Being a sensible type, I also  checked the other tire.  It was at "0" but the bead to the wheel had not broken.  So I dragged the air pump outside and filled it to 12 psi too.

By that time it was 5 pm.  I decided to stop for the day and make dinner.

Thursday, I went all around the yard, aerating and mowing at the same time (very slowly so the aerator tubes could sink into the soil).  Just before I was done, the mower ran out of gas.  Well, I had more gas in the can, so I refilled it.  And then the mower wouldn't start again! 

OK, I guess I put a lot of stress on the riding mower hauling the aerator around with all that weight on it.  But why the mower wouldn't start was confusing.  I'm barely competent with gas engines.  I thought maybe I flooded the carburator.  I decided to stop for the day and I covered the mower with a tarp due to the possibility of rain.

And the next day is tomorrow's post...

A Difficult Errand

I have a watch that is 50 years old this month.  It was a gift in 1966 when I was 16.  It is the only wristwatch I have ever owned.  It was one of the earliest cheap digital watches.  I love it! 

It doesn't do anything but tell time.  Well, I mean it shows the day with a line over a row of letters and there is a smaller number for the date.  And if I press an awkward button, the date goes away and shows seconds.  And another push shows m/d/y (12 8 16).  But that's all.  No timer, no weather, no footstep count, no anything else. 

I have to have the battery replaced about once a year.  Any jeweler will do it for about $10.  It requires  weird tool to get the back off or I would do it myself.

So I went to me usual place to have the battery repaired.  There was no jewelar there.  There was no building.  The spot had been scraped clean.  Wow!

So I went to a new place I had found called "Bulbs & Batteries".  Their watchpin removal tool was broken.  Well, I needed to buy some groceries and I knew there was a jeweler nearby, so I did my shopping and stopped there. 

Oh boy, was I surprised!  They wouldn't replace a digital watch battery.  "You need to return it to the manufacturer", the store manager declared!  "Otherwise, the circuits will get shorted out".  I pointed out that the watch was 50 years old and the batteries had been replaced many many times with no ill effects.  He replied that "That's why the battery only lasts a year, it gets shorted - a battery should last 5 years".   It was a high-end jeweler (Jared's) and he looked down his nose at me (and my watch) as if I had walked into his cocktail party wearing dirty gardening clothes.

Well, Exxxcccccuuuuuuujse Meeee!

So I stopped at the last place to replace my battery.  It had only lasted 6 months, so I was doubtful about the freshness of their batteries, but a working watch is worth a few dollars.  They were closed.

At home, I looked up the manufacturer of the watch (Phasar).  They are long since out of business anyway.

The next day I went back to the place that was closed.  They were happy to replace the battery.  By good fortune, they had a new employee, so the main person was explaining about changing watch batteries.   I couldn't have asked for a better refutation of the Jared guy's claim...

She explained the watch back removal tool to the newbie and demonstrated how it worked.  She explained how to insert the new battery without shorting it or the circuits, she showed  a small insulating collar to prevent that.  She mentioned "these old digitals are long-lasting" (so she recognized it's age).  She even mentioned that batteries in new watches last several years, but after some years of corrosion and dust; last only a year.  So much for that snooty Jared's guy's claim...

But upon replacing the battery, the display was pale.  She said they could try cleaning it, failing that, finding a replacement circuit insert.  But I would have to leave it and they would call with an estimate.  She showed me the watches they sold, but they were all analog.  And they were all a bit too fancy and "jewelry".

I don't wear a single piece of jewelry.  I'm not a metal kind of guy.  Even my watchband is velcro...

So I left it with them went home, and looked at cheap digital watches on Amazon.  They all displayed Too Much Information at once.  And that means ALL the info is small.  I don't want to have to put on my reading glasses just to see what time it is!

So I was sad.  First, the watch means a lot to me personally.  I am a dedicated watch-wearer.  It has gone everywhere I have for 50 years.  It has been through below-zero Winter camping, it has gone into Canadian lake water when a friend tipped the canoe over, it has gotten me to countless meetings on time over my career, and it has reminded me when to stop working outside and go inside to feed the cats.  It has reminded me when to turn on the TV for Specials I wanted to see.

How much more can you ask of a watch? 

So 2 days later, when the jeweler called (VM message) and said I could pick up the watch, I was worried.  I assumed they could get the part to fix it.  But I had a pleasant surprise when I arrived.  The watch was suddenly just fine.  The display was strong.  No reason, it just was. 

Hurray.  But gosh, that sure was a lot of effort to find a place that would replace the battery!

BTW, seeing what the watch back removal tool looked like, I went to Amazon to see what one costs.  The jeweler charged $15 to replay the battery.   The battery itself costs $3.  Guess what, the watch back removal tool costs $3 at Amazon. 

I think I'll buy one. 

And I'll NEVER shop at Jared's...

Getting Busy Again.

I got at the rototiller, mower and snowblower yesterday.  None of them would start on the previous day's try.  I tackled the rototiller first, since I had an immediate need for it.  There was gas.  The spark plug was clean and dry, the air filter wasn't clogged with dust.  The wire controls at the top were moving levers down below.  No reason I could find  that it wouldn't start.  I had started it right up last year and it had been sitting around for several years with old gas in it then.

So I tried this trick about leaving the air filter off and spraying carborator cleaner insidethe exposed carborator, waited a few minutes to let it dissolve old gas, gave it another spray for fuel, and pulled the rope a few times.. It coughed, sputtered as I tried to adjust the choke, and died.

But that was better than before!  So I gave it another spray of the cleaner stuff and it stater again.  And died.  Took 2 more tries before I get the choke adjusted to keep it running and then it purred like a kitten.  Well, OK, its not a quiet machine.  I sounded like a congested bear snoring in hibernation.  But you get the idea.  I used it immediately!

Wheeled it to the big bulb bed, set the manual depth at 3" and went through the weed/grass roots easily.  The occasional baseball-sized rock made it jump around a bit, and I had to make sure it didn't till down too deep (I was going over some existing bulbs).  Took only 15 minutes, but that beats at least and hour on manual spade work. 

I raked the area and was pleased to see no bulbs dug up.  I knew where they were generally.  I planted then from the outside edge inwards, but I hadn't marked there they stopped.  Fortunately, I have found a couple of good pictures, so I can estimate where to plant the additional ones this year, but that's anouther post.

So, encouraged by getting the tiller running, I attacked the mower.  I was in trouble from the start.  There is a hollow rubber priming button you push 3x to get some gas into the system.  I pushed it in, and it wouldn't come back out.  UH-OH!

Well, I then tried all the same tricks as with the rototiller, but it wouldn't even cough and sputter.  It had to go to the repair shop. 

So I checked the snowblower.  It has electric start and it wouldn't start.  I checked the spark plug, I checked the air filter.  No problems.  Sprayed in some carburator cleaner.  No luck.

What is the first question the computer repair guy asks?  "Is it plugged in"?  Well, I checked the gas tank.  Bone, dry, clean.  Not even dried old gas.  I must have done what "they" always tell you to do with seasonal equipment; drain out and or absorb it out with a old clean towel, then run it until it stops.  No gas left; no bad gas left.

So I added a cup of gas, started right up!  I let it run for a couple of minutes out on the driveway.

2 out of 3 ain't bad!  

Tomorrow:  Two errands in one trip!

Successes and Failures, Part 2

Today some failures WITH Successes...

When I moved here 30 years ago, there were some things lacking.  One of which were towel racks and toilet paper holders in the bathrooms.  So I bought some decent wood ones and installed them myself.  Some have come loose over the years.  I put up with a lot of minor stuff that is not perfect (there are only so many hours in a day for maintenance) but the main bathroom TP holder finally got so loose it demanded attention.

Image my shock when I discovered that (30 years ago) I had simply put screws into drywall!  OK, I know I wasn't "Harry Homemaker" back then.  Dad was a very talented D-I-Yer, but never involved us boys in his projects (well, quite frankly, he couldn't teach worth a damn and had no patience for helpers who didn't already know what to do).  But I didn't remember I was THAT stupid to try to hold things to drywall with regular wood screws!  The wonder is that they held for so long.

So I put in drywall anchors (ribbed plastic cones you pound into a hole and then the screw expands them tightly).  To be extra good about it, I squeezed some glue into the holes first.  The new attachments should outlast me.

The next complete failure is going to take a professional to fix.  There is a reason professionals hate amateurs.  Amateurs do really stupid things that "make sense at the time".  Well, I had some loose bathtub tiles.  And I had this can of spray insulation that hardened to "waterproof".  Seemed like a good thing to use.

The stuff does penetrate deeply while liquid.  What I didn't realize was that the spray foam expands before hardening.  Yeah, I blew out a dozen tiles all around the faucet.  In fact, no tile repairman will touch the job.  And the bathroom restoration people consider it too small a job.  I'm between a rock and a hard place...

I might actually have to damage the tile wall worse to get anyone to fix it.  I've done some really stupid things before (raise your hands if you haven't), but that qualifies as one of the dumbest! * Right now, I have a plastic trash bag taped over the loosened tiles so that shower water doesn't get into the walls.
 -----------------
* The really dumbest was when I had a car towed to a dealership when I was 21 and being broke, I decided to walk home.  I didn't realize I lived 10 miles away.  And then I had to walk BACK to the dealership 2 days later to be shown an engine crankcase full of tar.  "Oh, you need to add oil".  Gee thanks Dad for not teaching me that stuff.  ("Do you know how to fix this? [to me at 15].  "Then don't bother me")...

The engine was completely destroyed.  I spent a year struggling with buses before I could buy a crappy used car.