1. I read a cat joke today that I wanted to post on the cat blog, but I was worried too many people wouldn't understand and I avoid insulting people. One never knows sometimes. But I'll take a chance here (because this is MY blog):
Schrödinger's cat walks into a bar, and doesn't.
OK, I'm a bit odd sometimes. Science humor isn't always the easiest to follow. I suppose English majors find puns in Dante's Inferno and Music majors in Mozart.
2. Just had an interesting idea of a way for cats to open doors, but it might be patentable, so I can't tell you about it.
3. The President's State Of The Union speech is on now, but I'm not listening to it. I like President Obama, but I don't pay any attention to speeches. It's what politicians DO that counts, not what they say. And if he says anything really interesting, it will be on the TV tomorrow ALL day.
4. I need some new science/nature/history DVDs. I'm beginning to memorize the narrative on all the ones I have.
5. I spent an hour today trying to make the various remotes all work the various TV devices. Moderate success, but will post in detail some other day.
6. You know those thin magnetic ads (designed to be stuck on the refrigerator) that come on phone books and some few other sources? Did you know that if you stick them on your car they don't blow off? I'm going to use them to make removable "bumper" stickers by glue-sticking messages on a group of them. LOL!
7. I bought new calenders several weeks ago. One was a Wizard Of Oz calendar. It is about 2' high by 14" wide. The actual monthly calendar part is only 5"by 7". That's a calendar? I need my reading glasses to see the dates!
8. I have learned with the new smart HDTV that I am far behind the tech curve. I am debating whether to TRY to catch up or just let it go. I don't even have a smart phone... How old do I have to be before it's aceptable to not even try anymore?
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Why I hate Microsoft
I play Civilization 2 on the old PC. Its not connected to anything but it does run. After playing a game scenario twice, I discovered that I couldn't overwrite the previous games of the same dates and was slipping into the previous game versions on the same months (the game progresses by months). I was playing the exact same game as previously. The third trip around the game. I caught on.
That kind of thing pisses my off royally. And I really wasn't calm about it.
So I just spent 4 HOURS digging into the PC and deleting most of its functions until it finally stopped fighting me. You wouldn't believe what it was doing. I found where it saved all the previous games. But that wasn't enough. Microsoft insists on protecting you from losing old games.
It kept COPIES of all the previous games! Every *&#$*@g time I tried to replay the designed scenario (designed to be replayed you understand), good old Microsoft insisted on reloading the original version of the first game I played by month of the scenario. It took me a few tries to figure THAT out. Sort of a "Wait, I didn't do THAT this time". But the computer did. Everytime I hit a month file, it loaded the old one. I was going crazy trying to change my strategy and it wouldn't let me.
I had to dig into the actual files and drag them to the death realm. And I'm angry because I spent 5 hours playing a WWII game scenario only to have Microsoft overlay OLD games of the same WWII months over the new one AND I had to spend 4 hours killing the old files it hid very carefully.
I'm going to repeat this so that it is clear. Microsoft not only kept, say,"March 1942" so that it loaded that old file when I started again in Feb 1941 and gradually played to March 1942. It kept a COPY of the old file (really copy.filename) so just finding and deleting the original version on the scenario wasn't ENOUGH to clear the game for a new start.
They are either evil or abominably stupid, I don't know which and I don't care... And this is on a computer I deliberately disconnected from the internet for safety's sake.
There are times when I can barely express my "despicification" of Microsoft's controls.
That kind of thing pisses my off royally. And I really wasn't calm about it.
So I just spent 4 HOURS digging into the PC and deleting most of its functions until it finally stopped fighting me. You wouldn't believe what it was doing. I found where it saved all the previous games. But that wasn't enough. Microsoft insists on protecting you from losing old games.
It kept COPIES of all the previous games! Every *&#$*@g time I tried to replay the designed scenario (designed to be replayed you understand), good old Microsoft insisted on reloading the original version of the first game I played by month of the scenario. It took me a few tries to figure THAT out. Sort of a "Wait, I didn't do THAT this time". But the computer did. Everytime I hit a month file, it loaded the old one. I was going crazy trying to change my strategy and it wouldn't let me.
I had to dig into the actual files and drag them to the death realm. And I'm angry because I spent 5 hours playing a WWII game scenario only to have Microsoft overlay OLD games of the same WWII months over the new one AND I had to spend 4 hours killing the old files it hid very carefully.
I'm going to repeat this so that it is clear. Microsoft not only kept, say,"March 1942" so that it loaded that old file when I started again in Feb 1941 and gradually played to March 1942. It kept a COPY of the old file (really copy.filename) so just finding and deleting the original version on the scenario wasn't ENOUGH to clear the game for a new start.
They are either evil or abominably stupid, I don't know which and I don't care... And this is on a computer I deliberately disconnected from the internet for safety's sake.
There are times when I can barely express my "despicification" of Microsoft's controls.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Snow
Well, we are getting our 1st meaningful snowfall in the Washington DC area since 2011 (or maybe 2010 - winters get confusing because they cross over the New Year). Anyway, after that seriously bad winter a few years ago when we had several snow storms over a foot deep, I bought a snowblower. I haven't had an excuse to use it since, so last Spring I moved it into the storage shed in the back yard.
I was caught by surprise by this snow. I had stayed up all night Sunday so I only got up after dark Monday evening. I live alone, I'm retired, and I've never done well with a 24 hour day. So eventually it shifts around the dial so much that every couple of weeks I just stay up all night and all day to get back on schedule.
So I only found out about the snow forecast at 9 pm yesterday. I sure didn't feel like going out to the storage shed in the cold and dark and getting the snowblower running to bring it to the garage. And snow forecasts are often wildly wrong around here. We are in a transition zone between Caribbean Highs and Canadian Lows. A 6" snow forecast is just as likely to be 1" or 12" but seldom what is forecast. Washington DC and all the local schools were shut down in December for what resulted in 2" of snow and then a 1/4" of freezing rain (but the roads stayed clear). I saw a Weather Channel report once that said Washington DC was one of the trickiest places to forecast snowfall. Its a combination of Jet Stream variability, the Appalachian Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore to the north is snow country, Richmond to the south is rain country, and we are right in the middle!
I decided to wait til this afternoon to see how much snow we were really getting. If I needed the snowblower, at least it would be daylight! By 3 pm, we had about 3" of snow, and (unusual for this area) it was dry and powdery. If it gets worse (not likely as it is supposed to stop about now), I can still drag out the snowblower. But for 4" of dry powdery snow (we DO usually get heavy wet snow), I'm not going to bother. Two neighbors who I know keep their snowblowers in their garages simply shoveled their driveways just before dark.
I think I will just use a shovel tomorrow. But I also think that as soon as the weather improves a bit over the weekend, I will make sure the snowblower is working and move it into the garage for the rest of the winter...
I was caught by surprise by this snow. I had stayed up all night Sunday so I only got up after dark Monday evening. I live alone, I'm retired, and I've never done well with a 24 hour day. So eventually it shifts around the dial so much that every couple of weeks I just stay up all night and all day to get back on schedule.
So I only found out about the snow forecast at 9 pm yesterday. I sure didn't feel like going out to the storage shed in the cold and dark and getting the snowblower running to bring it to the garage. And snow forecasts are often wildly wrong around here. We are in a transition zone between Caribbean Highs and Canadian Lows. A 6" snow forecast is just as likely to be 1" or 12" but seldom what is forecast. Washington DC and all the local schools were shut down in December for what resulted in 2" of snow and then a 1/4" of freezing rain (but the roads stayed clear). I saw a Weather Channel report once that said Washington DC was one of the trickiest places to forecast snowfall. Its a combination of Jet Stream variability, the Appalachian Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore to the north is snow country, Richmond to the south is rain country, and we are right in the middle!
I decided to wait til this afternoon to see how much snow we were really getting. If I needed the snowblower, at least it would be daylight! By 3 pm, we had about 3" of snow, and (unusual for this area) it was dry and powdery. If it gets worse (not likely as it is supposed to stop about now), I can still drag out the snowblower. But for 4" of dry powdery snow (we DO usually get heavy wet snow), I'm not going to bother. Two neighbors who I know keep their snowblowers in their garages simply shoveled their driveways just before dark.
I think I will just use a shovel tomorrow. But I also think that as soon as the weather improves a bit over the weekend, I will make sure the snowblower is working and move it into the garage for the rest of the winter...
Monday, January 20, 2014
Favorite Movies
Everyone has some favorite movies. But I mean the ones you can just watch over and over again. I suspect they are not ones with a surprise ending. Who would watch a surprise ending more then once?
My first is "The Incredibles". Yeah, I know, its animated. But it's non-stop action. And I love the idea that superheros get married and have superhero children. As someone who bought Fantastic Four #1 (and stupidly had no idea it would be worth a lot someday), I like the idea of some real life in comic book heroes. I love all the characters in "The Incredibles", but a real enjoyment of Dash.
The 2nd is 'Independence Day". There is no way I cannot cheer for the human race surviving. Yet we also did in "World of The Worlds" and I find that movie generally boring. So there is something else about "Independence Day'. The characters.
The 3rd is more recent. "Battleship". I read the description of it and went "ho hum" (aliens vs a battleship, right). But I was bored one evening and watched it. Blew my socks off! I've watched it 4 more times in the past month and have thoroughly enjoyed it each time. Twice tonight!
The aliens made some sense. I loved the idea of a hand with only 4 opposable "thumbs" (all thumbs, LOL). They seemed pretty good with machinery. I also liked the chin bristles. No apparent purpose and no consequence to the movie but it probably has some meaning on their world. Maybe they were ancient quills that pevented them being eaten. A little evolution thought in there. I liked the idea that they came from a dark world (or were nocturnal). And I liked that those differences weren't explained. It wasn't related to the outcome of the movie, but it was a nice touch.
There are also some interesting differences with the aliens. They move in sudden jumps with their weapons ships on the sea (just imagine their railroad system). And they were bipeds but had some problems with light. I'm thinking intelligent cave frogs here.
I also liked the way the aliens disregarded perceived non-threats. Anything not aimed directly at them was simply ignored. I could surmise they were once (and recently) a prey species.
But they are all great nonstop action movies of a type *I* can watch repeatedly
My first is "The Incredibles". Yeah, I know, its animated. But it's non-stop action. And I love the idea that superheros get married and have superhero children. As someone who bought Fantastic Four #1 (and stupidly had no idea it would be worth a lot someday), I like the idea of some real life in comic book heroes. I love all the characters in "The Incredibles", but a real enjoyment of Dash.
The 2nd is 'Independence Day". There is no way I cannot cheer for the human race surviving. Yet we also did in "World of The Worlds" and I find that movie generally boring. So there is something else about "Independence Day'. The characters.
The 3rd is more recent. "Battleship". I read the description of it and went "ho hum" (aliens vs a battleship, right). But I was bored one evening and watched it. Blew my socks off! I've watched it 4 more times in the past month and have thoroughly enjoyed it each time. Twice tonight!
The aliens made some sense. I loved the idea of a hand with only 4 opposable "thumbs" (all thumbs, LOL). They seemed pretty good with machinery. I also liked the chin bristles. No apparent purpose and no consequence to the movie but it probably has some meaning on their world. Maybe they were ancient quills that pevented them being eaten. A little evolution thought in there. I liked the idea that they came from a dark world (or were nocturnal). And I liked that those differences weren't explained. It wasn't related to the outcome of the movie, but it was a nice touch.
There are also some interesting differences with the aliens. They move in sudden jumps with their weapons ships on the sea (just imagine their railroad system). And they were bipeds but had some problems with light. I'm thinking intelligent cave frogs here.
I also liked the way the aliens disregarded perceived non-threats. Anything not aimed directly at them was simply ignored. I could surmise they were once (and recently) a prey species.
But they are all great nonstop action movies of a type *I* can watch repeatedly
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
The New TV
I'll admit it, I made a serious mistake buying a Sharp 80" LCD/LED TV. I don't want to insult anyone who likes LCD TVs or large ones. I'll just say the appearance and color didn't satisfy MY eyes in MY TV room. People have different things they value in TV viewing. But I'm not used to making decisions I regret.
So it was some humility I went back to the store and asked what it would cost to get a different TV. Their answer was that they would take back the TV at no cost other than a new deliver fee BUT it had to be an exchange.
That sure seemed fair! It was a slight dilemma that I wanted a Panasonic Viera 65" plasma (like the old one but slightly larger). Panasonic (I was told in two places) was getting out of the plasma business. Maintenence might get tricky. But they DID have the 2nd highest rated (and highest rated Plasma set) by Consumer Reports). Sort of. Not the exact model, but a newer one (5500 series old and 8500 series newer). And it was a 60" vs a 64" 8500. Well how different can the be?
I looked at it for a long time. Actually, I looked at some "4K" sets too. The picture was astonishing. But I don't like being the first user of a technology. That got me a Beta Max once and I learned a lesson there.
So today, they delivered a Samung" 60" plasma in exchange for the Sharp 80" LCD/LED set.
In came the new.
Out went the (sort of) old.
I was thrilled the instant the Samung plasma was turned on. I had to adjust the colors a bit, but it was PERFECT real fast. And it was the right size for the room too.
Here's the 80". That is REALLY too big! I couldn't even see the whole screen from my chair. Bigger is not always better.
And here is the 60".
Never mind the scarcity of stuff around the TV., I pulled stuff away for installation safety. I will move the stereo cabinet with the multimedia controls and the great DCM speakers to the left and right to connect it to the TV for better sound, but not tonight. One thing one day at a time. Do one useful thing every day and you're never unhappy.
Tonight, I'm just enjoying the outrageously "OMG" great picture...
Not accepting my initial poor decision was the best choice in the past year. Sometimes, you just have to admit mistakes and pay what it costs to correct them. In this case. it was an extra $200 delivery fee. And it could have been worse. I was prepared for "worse".
I think I will write a nice "thank you" email to HHGREGG.
So it was some humility I went back to the store and asked what it would cost to get a different TV. Their answer was that they would take back the TV at no cost other than a new deliver fee BUT it had to be an exchange.
That sure seemed fair! It was a slight dilemma that I wanted a Panasonic Viera 65" plasma (like the old one but slightly larger). Panasonic (I was told in two places) was getting out of the plasma business. Maintenence might get tricky. But they DID have the 2nd highest rated (and highest rated Plasma set) by Consumer Reports). Sort of. Not the exact model, but a newer one (5500 series old and 8500 series newer). And it was a 60" vs a 64" 8500. Well how different can the be?
I looked at it for a long time. Actually, I looked at some "4K" sets too. The picture was astonishing. But I don't like being the first user of a technology. That got me a Beta Max once and I learned a lesson there.
So today, they delivered a Samung" 60" plasma in exchange for the Sharp 80" LCD/LED set.
In came the new.
Here's the 80". That is REALLY too big! I couldn't even see the whole screen from my chair. Bigger is not always better.
Tonight, I'm just enjoying the outrageously "OMG" great picture...
Not accepting my initial poor decision was the best choice in the past year. Sometimes, you just have to admit mistakes and pay what it costs to correct them. In this case. it was an extra $200 delivery fee. And it could have been worse. I was prepared for "worse".
I think I will write a nice "thank you" email to HHGREGG.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Twitter Vs Blogging
TWITTER: "Got haircut. Then went fud shping. Traffic! Rainy today. Took mins to put all fud away. Fed cats. Ltr, store calld about new TV dlvry tomrw! Cnt waIT.
BLOG: Well I got up early today (early for ME anyway) and went off on errands. First on the list was a haircut. I wait too long sometimes. The side hair was over my ears and the "back of the neck" hair was as long as my sideburns. I was fortunate to catch the barber at the perfect time. The only customer was getting out of the chair as I walked in. No wait, and I HATE waiting.
I don't much like talking to barbers while they work because they usually have weird political or social ideas (like "The trucking industry is about to go on strike and we are only 3 days from starvation!"). But this one was a woman, so she asked about holidays, family, and pets. I can deal with that. She likes cats so I described mine and she described hers. We had a wonderful short professional relationship just as we were done discussing our cats.
The food shopping errand WAS fairly routine. I go to a major grocery chain for most most stuff and then stop at a specialty market (Nick's of Clinton" for meats, deli, and some produce I know they always sell cheaper. And I am loyal to them because they special order cases of an inexpensive wine for me that I really like ("Twisted Zin - made specifically from old Zinfandel grape vines - the large bottle [1.5 l] is only $10). Find one somewhere and try it.
They also had filet mignon at only $9/lb, and they trim it carefully and cut it to any thickness you like. I like 1.5". It freezes well and I have one about once a week, so a whole filet lasts 2 months. I also bought a pork butt. It's a good cut to smoke or to roast at 250F all day to use in pork stews.
They also sell bags of large deheaded and deveined frozen shrimp at $8/lb and I love shrimp! I make a GREAT cocktail sauce. I haven't learned to make a great tartar sauce yet, but I am slowly getting better at it. And they sell a very good basic cooked ham sliced at the deli counter for only $3/lb. It's better than anything I can find elsewhere for less than $6/lb.
At home, I unloaded the car. Meat and milk bags first to get them refrigerated as fast as possible. And into the refrigerator fast to keep the cats away from the meat. Well, Marley and Iza actually. Iza will explore interesting smells, but Marley is becoming more aggressive in searching for food.
In that regard, I give Marley all the food he will eat. But as good the food as I give (and we are talking the quality cubed and minced Wellness canned) he seems to want more. Not more in quantity; I think he misses live mice. So he wants to steal food as a hunting response. Winter is really keeping his outdoor time and mousie-catching time down.
And by the way, those "experts" who say that kittens who aren't taught to hunt early never lear are full of "hooey". Skeeter, Ayla, Iza and Marley were raised as indoor cats with no opportunity to hunt and each one of them gained the skills almost at once. I can't claim that for LC (as good a mosuser as she became) because maybe she learned from Skeeter. But the others really learned on their own and instinctively.
The food times today were unusually "according to expectations". Ayla refused to eat until I put her bowl up on the top shoe rack AND closed the door so she could eat in peace. Iza and Marley traded bowls in the kitchen several times ( gave then each a slightly different canned food and they couldn't decide whose was best.
I went to the HHGREGG store about the 80" Sharp LCD/LED HDTV and bought Friday to see what it would cost to return it. It looked great in the store (perhaps because they are careful to show pictures that make all the TVs look their best). But when I watched it for a day, I was very unhappy.
Still pictures had blurs, talking people's lips had wavy lines around them, the colors washed out at the least angle of viewing, and there was little sense of depth to the picture. I went to Best Buy first to see the Panasonic Plasmas sets they had (HHGREGG didn't carry Panasonic Plasma except one sowroom model that had been there over a year).
I was devastated to learn that Panasonic is leaving the Plasma TV business. They say they just can't make money from them. I also saw something called 4K imaging. It IS impressive. Instead of 1080 by 840 (just guessing) it has like 3600x1800 pixels (guessing), but the resoluton difference is great. The picture is super-real. But I'm not a first adaptor of new technologies. I'll bet that in 5 years there is something else better than this particular version of 4k. I remember Beta-Max that was better quality but failed to VCR.
Anyway HHGREGG wouldn't just take back the 80" Sharp LCD. I could only exchange it for another HDTV or store credit they said. Well, I can't imagine buying anything from them for $3300... I looked at the top rated Consumer Reports models and thought the best picture I saw was on a Samsung PN64F8500 (which they didn't have) but they had a PN60F8500 rating 2nd and I doubt a 60" is very different from a 64" in the same 8500 series.
So it will be delivered here tomorrow. I know I am going to like the plasma better than the LCD/LED!
***********************************
OK, now how did that BLOG post compare to the Twitter post at the start?
BLOG beats TWITTER every time.
BLOG: Well I got up early today (early for ME anyway) and went off on errands. First on the list was a haircut. I wait too long sometimes. The side hair was over my ears and the "back of the neck" hair was as long as my sideburns. I was fortunate to catch the barber at the perfect time. The only customer was getting out of the chair as I walked in. No wait, and I HATE waiting.
I don't much like talking to barbers while they work because they usually have weird political or social ideas (like "The trucking industry is about to go on strike and we are only 3 days from starvation!"). But this one was a woman, so she asked about holidays, family, and pets. I can deal with that. She likes cats so I described mine and she described hers. We had a wonderful short professional relationship just as we were done discussing our cats.
The food shopping errand WAS fairly routine. I go to a major grocery chain for most most stuff and then stop at a specialty market (Nick's of Clinton" for meats, deli, and some produce I know they always sell cheaper. And I am loyal to them because they special order cases of an inexpensive wine for me that I really like ("Twisted Zin - made specifically from old Zinfandel grape vines - the large bottle [1.5 l] is only $10). Find one somewhere and try it.
They also had filet mignon at only $9/lb, and they trim it carefully and cut it to any thickness you like. I like 1.5". It freezes well and I have one about once a week, so a whole filet lasts 2 months. I also bought a pork butt. It's a good cut to smoke or to roast at 250F all day to use in pork stews.
They also sell bags of large deheaded and deveined frozen shrimp at $8/lb and I love shrimp! I make a GREAT cocktail sauce. I haven't learned to make a great tartar sauce yet, but I am slowly getting better at it. And they sell a very good basic cooked ham sliced at the deli counter for only $3/lb. It's better than anything I can find elsewhere for less than $6/lb.
At home, I unloaded the car. Meat and milk bags first to get them refrigerated as fast as possible. And into the refrigerator fast to keep the cats away from the meat. Well, Marley and Iza actually. Iza will explore interesting smells, but Marley is becoming more aggressive in searching for food.
In that regard, I give Marley all the food he will eat. But as good the food as I give (and we are talking the quality cubed and minced Wellness canned) he seems to want more. Not more in quantity; I think he misses live mice. So he wants to steal food as a hunting response. Winter is really keeping his outdoor time and mousie-catching time down.
And by the way, those "experts" who say that kittens who aren't taught to hunt early never lear are full of "hooey". Skeeter, Ayla, Iza and Marley were raised as indoor cats with no opportunity to hunt and each one of them gained the skills almost at once. I can't claim that for LC (as good a mosuser as she became) because maybe she learned from Skeeter. But the others really learned on their own and instinctively.
The food times today were unusually "according to expectations". Ayla refused to eat until I put her bowl up on the top shoe rack AND closed the door so she could eat in peace. Iza and Marley traded bowls in the kitchen several times ( gave then each a slightly different canned food and they couldn't decide whose was best.
I went to the HHGREGG store about the 80" Sharp LCD/LED HDTV and bought Friday to see what it would cost to return it. It looked great in the store (perhaps because they are careful to show pictures that make all the TVs look their best). But when I watched it for a day, I was very unhappy.
Still pictures had blurs, talking people's lips had wavy lines around them, the colors washed out at the least angle of viewing, and there was little sense of depth to the picture. I went to Best Buy first to see the Panasonic Plasmas sets they had (HHGREGG didn't carry Panasonic Plasma except one sowroom model that had been there over a year).
I was devastated to learn that Panasonic is leaving the Plasma TV business. They say they just can't make money from them. I also saw something called 4K imaging. It IS impressive. Instead of 1080 by 840 (just guessing) it has like 3600x1800 pixels (guessing), but the resoluton difference is great. The picture is super-real. But I'm not a first adaptor of new technologies. I'll bet that in 5 years there is something else better than this particular version of 4k. I remember Beta-Max that was better quality but failed to VCR.
Anyway HHGREGG wouldn't just take back the 80" Sharp LCD. I could only exchange it for another HDTV or store credit they said. Well, I can't imagine buying anything from them for $3300... I looked at the top rated Consumer Reports models and thought the best picture I saw was on a Samsung PN64F8500 (which they didn't have) but they had a PN60F8500 rating 2nd and I doubt a 60" is very different from a 64" in the same 8500 series.
So it will be delivered here tomorrow. I know I am going to like the plasma better than the LCD/LED!
***********************************
OK, now how did that BLOG post compare to the Twitter post at the start?
BLOG beats TWITTER every time.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
New HDTV
Well, the new 80" Sharp HDTV was delivered and set up today. After watching both cable TV and a DVD for several hours, I realize that I've made a MISTAKE.
First, while I know that 80" is 30" bigger (diagonally) than the previous 50" set, I did not realize HOW much bigger that would be in the room. The TVs were all gradually bigger in the showroom, so there wasn't THAT much difference from one to the next. Surrounded by other slightly smaller TVs, it just didn't look so huge. Sitting on a TV table in the room (and being only about 8' from the back of my easy chair), I actually can't see the entire screen at once, which is really rather disturbing.
Second, I shouldn't have chosen an LCD TV. My Panasonic Viera Plasma set had black screen technology (as did my older CRT Zenith before that). Even after fiddling with the color adjustments for a half hour, I just couldn't get the colors looking rich enough without them looking oversaturated. I don't know enough about it to explain why, but putting colors over a black background instead of a white background seems to make a difference. I'll hazard a guess and say that somehow you detect the background color between the color pixels on plasma. But everything just looks a bit "thin" on LCD.
Third, there is noticable "motion blur" on the new set. As I walked the 100' from the Plasma sets and back to the LCD sets several times, I couldn't tell the difference. But I sure could tell at home. I knew from reading Consumer Reports magazine that "motion blur" was an issue with LCD sets, I just couldn't see it well enough in the store. Maybe they are clever about choosing what cable broadcast to show on all the sets. Whatever, its a problem.
Fourth, the viewing angle DOES make a difference with LCD TVs. I walk around the house a lot and at 45 degrees, the LCD really DOES look washed out.
Fifth, the sound quality is thin. I could get an enhancement system, or attach my stereo system (I assume), but the old set had better sound with fewer speakers built-in. And that's a brand problem, not a Plasma/LCD issue.
I also made another mistake. I started my TV selection with highly-rated choices from Consumer Reports magazine. Then when I looked at the store's website, I sidetracked myself by paying attention to the store's own '"customer ratings" because the sets I wanted weren't available. I should know better than to do that! But I now see that the list of 4 TVs (2 Plasma and 2 LCD) I walked into the store with had none of the highest rated ones from Consumer Reports. I had become seduced by size... Serious Mistake. Well, I did have a reason. One of the most common complaints people made were "wishing they had gotten a larger TV". That really got on my mind in the store. That might make sense if you are watching the TV from 15' away, but (as I now realize) not in my 10'x10' TV room.
So I made a poor choice. And I'm going to have to pay to exchange the TV. Probably another $200 return/delivery fee. The delivery guys left the box and packing material saying I need to keep it for 12 days in case of a return in order to avoid restocking fees (which I have read can be up to 20%). But which makes more sense? Pay a couple hundred dollars to correct a mistake, or be happier with a different TV for years to come?
I'll get a smaller one (50-60") for the right size for my room, Plasma (for trust in picture quality), and Panasonic (because of familiarity and the lowest repair rate among plasma TVs). I liked their 50" model, I think a slightly larger one would fit nicely and please me for years to come.
It will be a bit embarrassing to go into the HHGREGG store to arrange for a return. Especially since they don't carry the models I want to select from (they don't carry Panasonic). But I have to do it. Monday morning, I think. Sundays get busy around stores here.
But the Panasonic Viera TC-P60ST60 looks likes the right one for me.
First, while I know that 80" is 30" bigger (diagonally) than the previous 50" set, I did not realize HOW much bigger that would be in the room. The TVs were all gradually bigger in the showroom, so there wasn't THAT much difference from one to the next. Surrounded by other slightly smaller TVs, it just didn't look so huge. Sitting on a TV table in the room (and being only about 8' from the back of my easy chair), I actually can't see the entire screen at once, which is really rather disturbing.
Second, I shouldn't have chosen an LCD TV. My Panasonic Viera Plasma set had black screen technology (as did my older CRT Zenith before that). Even after fiddling with the color adjustments for a half hour, I just couldn't get the colors looking rich enough without them looking oversaturated. I don't know enough about it to explain why, but putting colors over a black background instead of a white background seems to make a difference. I'll hazard a guess and say that somehow you detect the background color between the color pixels on plasma. But everything just looks a bit "thin" on LCD.
Third, there is noticable "motion blur" on the new set. As I walked the 100' from the Plasma sets and back to the LCD sets several times, I couldn't tell the difference. But I sure could tell at home. I knew from reading Consumer Reports magazine that "motion blur" was an issue with LCD sets, I just couldn't see it well enough in the store. Maybe they are clever about choosing what cable broadcast to show on all the sets. Whatever, its a problem.
Fourth, the viewing angle DOES make a difference with LCD TVs. I walk around the house a lot and at 45 degrees, the LCD really DOES look washed out.
Fifth, the sound quality is thin. I could get an enhancement system, or attach my stereo system (I assume), but the old set had better sound with fewer speakers built-in. And that's a brand problem, not a Plasma/LCD issue.
I also made another mistake. I started my TV selection with highly-rated choices from Consumer Reports magazine. Then when I looked at the store's website, I sidetracked myself by paying attention to the store's own '"customer ratings" because the sets I wanted weren't available. I should know better than to do that! But I now see that the list of 4 TVs (2 Plasma and 2 LCD) I walked into the store with had none of the highest rated ones from Consumer Reports. I had become seduced by size... Serious Mistake. Well, I did have a reason. One of the most common complaints people made were "wishing they had gotten a larger TV". That really got on my mind in the store. That might make sense if you are watching the TV from 15' away, but (as I now realize) not in my 10'x10' TV room.
So I made a poor choice. And I'm going to have to pay to exchange the TV. Probably another $200 return/delivery fee. The delivery guys left the box and packing material saying I need to keep it for 12 days in case of a return in order to avoid restocking fees (which I have read can be up to 20%). But which makes more sense? Pay a couple hundred dollars to correct a mistake, or be happier with a different TV for years to come?
I'll get a smaller one (50-60") for the right size for my room, Plasma (for trust in picture quality), and Panasonic (because of familiarity and the lowest repair rate among plasma TVs). I liked their 50" model, I think a slightly larger one would fit nicely and please me for years to come.
It will be a bit embarrassing to go into the HHGREGG store to arrange for a return. Especially since they don't carry the models I want to select from (they don't carry Panasonic). But I have to do it. Monday morning, I think. Sundays get busy around stores here.
But the Panasonic Viera TC-P60ST60 looks likes the right one for me.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Minor But Annoying Problems
I am fortunate to not have any major health or financial problems. But minor ones add up and can be really annoying.
The tire pressure light is on in the car even though I made sure they were properly inflated and checked to make sure they are staying inflated. That means a couple hours sitting around the dealership.
A tooth has gone bad and I had going to the dentist. Its not the dental work that bothers me. It's the bite block. I have a small jaw AND I can't hold it open voluntarily. As soon as that bite block goes in, I start swallowing. Just try to swallow with your jaw wedged open!
It's January, so all the cats have to go to the vet. There goes $800... And I'll have to isolate each one to get identifiable stool samples. It's amazing how long they can go without pooping when they are enclosed alone in a room!
I had an older Mac Desktop cleaned because of fan noise a few months ago. Last week, I learned that my router is wireless-capable, so I decided to set up the desktop and move my Mac Mini to the TV room so I could visit cat blogs while watching TV. After 5 minutes the "repaired" desktop was buzzing loudly again!
But the intolerable annoyance is that my HDTV died! It had been turning itself off randomly for several days. Sometimes it came back on by itself, sometimes I had to turn it on manually. But tonight it just stopped completely.
Anyway, the Panasonic support (phone and website) is a joke! I called the number on the manual and was informed the service department was closed. Hours are 9 am to 9 pm Eastern Time. The time was 8:50 ET. WHAT? They were supposed to be open. So I went to their website find a local authorized service center. They wanted the model number and my zipcode to find service centers within 100 miles. My model number was not on the list. I manually entered the model number (checked it on both the TV and the manual). I got a message saying "no such model number". Hey, its only 6 years old! But then the message was to choose the closest model number on the list. OK. But when I entered my zipcode, it deleted the selected "close" model number! AARGGHH...
After several tries, I found a model number on the list that stayed listed when I entered my zipcode, and got a list of "servicers". One is right here in town. Good thing, too, because the next nearest is 30 miles away! Naturally, the local "servicer" has no answering service, so I will call tomorrow.
The TV is 6 years old (I was shocked when I found the receipt and discovered that - my guess was 2-3 years). If these HDTVs are anything like computers (and I suspect they are), I might just be better off buying a new one.
I LIVE with the TV. I'm home all day and it's too damn quiet. So when I get up, I turn on the TV before I even make my morning mug of green tea. I always look for science or nature shows first, then switch to MSNBC for political talk (sometimes I put on science/nature DVDs and I have a 5' shelf of them). But I have to hear some voices! Fortunately, tomorrow is Friday and I can listen to rational talk from 10 am to 2 pm, and then science discussion from 2 pm to 4 pm on PBS radio. That's almost as good since I mostly listen to the TV most of the time. In fact, if I could simply listen to cable TV channels through radios throughout the house, that would be fine with me. There used to be radios that received the sound from TV stations. Are there any that do that with cable TV?
I'm looking at Consumer Reports reviews of HDTVs, talking myself into buying a new bigger HDTV, aren't I?
Then I'll tackle the other issues. Like, if I am going to have a tooth pulled (which is likely), I will damn well have a working TV to watch through the several days of pain. And if I have to ignore the cats scratching and meowing at the room doors while waiting for them to poop, I will have a TV to watch cuz its too darn cold to sit outside to ignore their pleas to be let out.
UPDATE! Bought a new HDTV. 80" Sharp LCD/LED. Sharp and LCD isn't my favorite brand or type, but I really couldn't see the difference from the better plasmas and the plasmas don't come that large. If I'm buying a new one, it ought to at least knock my socks off. The only step up from 80" has to be a whole wall (probably 5 years from now).
I may go back for the sound enhancement. They showed me the sound on a regular HDTV playing a tiger roaring (from The Life of Pi). It was good. Then they showed me the same scene with the sound enhancement speakers. I JUMPED BACK and I bet every cat tail within a mile was POOFED!!! It was astonishing. But I want to see if hooking my stereo to the new TV is nearly as good. I bet it is close.
BTW, there is something called "4K" now that is way better than HDTV, I wanted to reach in and touch the person in the screen. It was "that real". But maybe next time. For what I watch, I don't need that. And it was "super-tech", which I also am not. But when this HDTV wears out, there may be even better stuff. I can wait.
Should have delivery Saturday afternoon. I can't wait.
The tire pressure light is on in the car even though I made sure they were properly inflated and checked to make sure they are staying inflated. That means a couple hours sitting around the dealership.
A tooth has gone bad and I had going to the dentist. Its not the dental work that bothers me. It's the bite block. I have a small jaw AND I can't hold it open voluntarily. As soon as that bite block goes in, I start swallowing. Just try to swallow with your jaw wedged open!
It's January, so all the cats have to go to the vet. There goes $800... And I'll have to isolate each one to get identifiable stool samples. It's amazing how long they can go without pooping when they are enclosed alone in a room!
I had an older Mac Desktop cleaned because of fan noise a few months ago. Last week, I learned that my router is wireless-capable, so I decided to set up the desktop and move my Mac Mini to the TV room so I could visit cat blogs while watching TV. After 5 minutes the "repaired" desktop was buzzing loudly again!
But the intolerable annoyance is that my HDTV died! It had been turning itself off randomly for several days. Sometimes it came back on by itself, sometimes I had to turn it on manually. But tonight it just stopped completely.
Anyway, the Panasonic support (phone and website) is a joke! I called the number on the manual and was informed the service department was closed. Hours are 9 am to 9 pm Eastern Time. The time was 8:50 ET. WHAT? They were supposed to be open. So I went to their website find a local authorized service center. They wanted the model number and my zipcode to find service centers within 100 miles. My model number was not on the list. I manually entered the model number (checked it on both the TV and the manual). I got a message saying "no such model number". Hey, its only 6 years old! But then the message was to choose the closest model number on the list. OK. But when I entered my zipcode, it deleted the selected "close" model number! AARGGHH...
After several tries, I found a model number on the list that stayed listed when I entered my zipcode, and got a list of "servicers". One is right here in town. Good thing, too, because the next nearest is 30 miles away! Naturally, the local "servicer" has no answering service, so I will call tomorrow.
The TV is 6 years old (I was shocked when I found the receipt and discovered that - my guess was 2-3 years). If these HDTVs are anything like computers (and I suspect they are), I might just be better off buying a new one.
I LIVE with the TV. I'm home all day and it's too damn quiet. So when I get up, I turn on the TV before I even make my morning mug of green tea. I always look for science or nature shows first, then switch to MSNBC for political talk (sometimes I put on science/nature DVDs and I have a 5' shelf of them). But I have to hear some voices! Fortunately, tomorrow is Friday and I can listen to rational talk from 10 am to 2 pm, and then science discussion from 2 pm to 4 pm on PBS radio. That's almost as good since I mostly listen to the TV most of the time. In fact, if I could simply listen to cable TV channels through radios throughout the house, that would be fine with me. There used to be radios that received the sound from TV stations. Are there any that do that with cable TV?
I'm looking at Consumer Reports reviews of HDTVs, talking myself into buying a new bigger HDTV, aren't I?
Then I'll tackle the other issues. Like, if I am going to have a tooth pulled (which is likely), I will damn well have a working TV to watch through the several days of pain. And if I have to ignore the cats scratching and meowing at the room doors while waiting for them to poop, I will have a TV to watch cuz its too darn cold to sit outside to ignore their pleas to be let out.
UPDATE! Bought a new HDTV. 80" Sharp LCD/LED. Sharp and LCD isn't my favorite brand or type, but I really couldn't see the difference from the better plasmas and the plasmas don't come that large. If I'm buying a new one, it ought to at least knock my socks off. The only step up from 80" has to be a whole wall (probably 5 years from now).
I may go back for the sound enhancement. They showed me the sound on a regular HDTV playing a tiger roaring (from The Life of Pi). It was good. Then they showed me the same scene with the sound enhancement speakers. I JUMPED BACK and I bet every cat tail within a mile was POOFED!!! It was astonishing. But I want to see if hooking my stereo to the new TV is nearly as good. I bet it is close.
BTW, there is something called "4K" now that is way better than HDTV, I wanted to reach in and touch the person in the screen. It was "that real". But maybe next time. For what I watch, I don't need that. And it was "super-tech", which I also am not. But when this HDTV wears out, there may be even better stuff. I can wait.
Should have delivery Saturday afternoon. I can't wait.
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Snow Memories
I was posting about the Mews reacting to a 4" snowfal, and it brought back memories of snows of year past. Maryland had unusually cold and snowy weather in the late 60s.
I was a Boy Scout in the 60's. And every winter there was a camping expedition of multiple Boy Scout Troops, called "Operation Icicle" because it was held on the last weekend on January each year. In 1965, it was the hardest ever. There was 2 feet of snow on the ground and the actual temperature (F degree) got into negative territory. Looking back, I can see it was a struggle for the Dads to make sure none of us froze to death. At the time, it was the hardest few days of my young life. But we sure learned a LOT about the importance of keeping dry.
It wasn't like you could get your boots filled with snow, run into the house and Mom would take them off and give you hot cocoa... You got cold THERE and you had to work through it. Get into the tent and get into dry clothes. Take the cold clothes to the fire that you had to attend constantly (at least we didn't have to chop down trees to do it (though we DID have to cut the trees into fire-sized logs).
And we had to cook all our meals outside; on fires hot enough to keep a dozen people warm. That's no way to cook. But it was almost all seared meat. I bet we kids were burning up 4,000 calories a day. It was amazing.
We also had a horrible snowstorm in late January 1966. Mom was pregnant and ready to give birth. The snowstorm last 5 days! The snow was 2 feet deep, but the winds had whipped banks of snow covering the first floor windows. You couldn't see out. But the baby decided it was time to see the outside world. There was no way out through the street in front, but the "main road" behind us was plowed slightly. 200' away from the garage. Dad tossed me the warmest coat and handed me one of the 2 snow shovels. "We're digging to the main road: he said, "and we aren't stopping until we're there".
I understood why. It took 3 hours of rather desperate digging, but we had enough of a path for Dad to drive Mom off to the nearest hospital. I collapsed inside; Dad was still working on adrenalin. I took care of the younger kids. There were 7 babies born in Harford county that day. The other 6 mothers were flown to hospitals by helicopter.
And then, in March 1966, we got another major snowstorm of near 2'. This one was loose wind-driven snow and it filled in every spot as levelly as could be. Dad and I shoveled our driveway. I was exhausted. Then he handed back a snowshovel and said "the Johnstons (elderly couple 3 houses away) needed their driveway cleared and don't ask to be paid, it's a Boy Scout Good Deed thing".
So I went and looked. They had a sunken driveway with cinder block walls from the street to the garage. 5 feet deep at the street, 2 feet deep at the top. It took all day. And I could barely move near the top end. Throwing the snow to the top of the driveway wall wasn't enough, because it simply got too high to toss the driveway snow on. I had to shovel it off the top of the wall too just to make room for more driveway snow.
I think I came close to a heart attack at 16 . My heart was pounding like I couldn't believe. But I couldn't go home and say "I gave up". So I finished it. Mrs. Johnston gave me a cup of cocoa. I wish it had been something stronger, but I was only 16 AND a Boy Scout.
But their driveway was clear of snow. And I gad done my Good Deed for the day. I slept deeply that night. And hoping no more Good Deeds came my way for several days.
I survived all those snowy events (obviously)... But I don't mind saying that, to this day, I cringe when there is a lot of snow in the forecast. I learned to hate the stuff. But old habits die hard. When I moved to my house 27 years ago, and elderly lady moved next door. The first heavy snowfall, I shoveled my driveway and then I looked at hers and I just had to go shovel hers too. Once a Boy Scout, always a Boy Scout; I got a quart of homemade chicken soup in return. It was the worst chicken soup I ever ate in my life.
But I sure thanked her for it...
I was a Boy Scout in the 60's. And every winter there was a camping expedition of multiple Boy Scout Troops, called "Operation Icicle" because it was held on the last weekend on January each year. In 1965, it was the hardest ever. There was 2 feet of snow on the ground and the actual temperature (F degree) got into negative territory. Looking back, I can see it was a struggle for the Dads to make sure none of us froze to death. At the time, it was the hardest few days of my young life. But we sure learned a LOT about the importance of keeping dry.
It wasn't like you could get your boots filled with snow, run into the house and Mom would take them off and give you hot cocoa... You got cold THERE and you had to work through it. Get into the tent and get into dry clothes. Take the cold clothes to the fire that you had to attend constantly (at least we didn't have to chop down trees to do it (though we DID have to cut the trees into fire-sized logs).
And we had to cook all our meals outside; on fires hot enough to keep a dozen people warm. That's no way to cook. But it was almost all seared meat. I bet we kids were burning up 4,000 calories a day. It was amazing.
We also had a horrible snowstorm in late January 1966. Mom was pregnant and ready to give birth. The snowstorm last 5 days! The snow was 2 feet deep, but the winds had whipped banks of snow covering the first floor windows. You couldn't see out. But the baby decided it was time to see the outside world. There was no way out through the street in front, but the "main road" behind us was plowed slightly. 200' away from the garage. Dad tossed me the warmest coat and handed me one of the 2 snow shovels. "We're digging to the main road: he said, "and we aren't stopping until we're there".
I understood why. It took 3 hours of rather desperate digging, but we had enough of a path for Dad to drive Mom off to the nearest hospital. I collapsed inside; Dad was still working on adrenalin. I took care of the younger kids. There were 7 babies born in Harford county that day. The other 6 mothers were flown to hospitals by helicopter.
And then, in March 1966, we got another major snowstorm of near 2'. This one was loose wind-driven snow and it filled in every spot as levelly as could be. Dad and I shoveled our driveway. I was exhausted. Then he handed back a snowshovel and said "the Johnstons (elderly couple 3 houses away) needed their driveway cleared and don't ask to be paid, it's a Boy Scout Good Deed thing".
So I went and looked. They had a sunken driveway with cinder block walls from the street to the garage. 5 feet deep at the street, 2 feet deep at the top. It took all day. And I could barely move near the top end. Throwing the snow to the top of the driveway wall wasn't enough, because it simply got too high to toss the driveway snow on. I had to shovel it off the top of the wall too just to make room for more driveway snow.
I think I came close to a heart attack at 16 . My heart was pounding like I couldn't believe. But I couldn't go home and say "I gave up". So I finished it. Mrs. Johnston gave me a cup of cocoa. I wish it had been something stronger, but I was only 16 AND a Boy Scout.
But their driveway was clear of snow. And I gad done my Good Deed for the day. I slept deeply that night. And hoping no more Good Deeds came my way for several days.
I survived all those snowy events (obviously)... But I don't mind saying that, to this day, I cringe when there is a lot of snow in the forecast. I learned to hate the stuff. But old habits die hard. When I moved to my house 27 years ago, and elderly lady moved next door. The first heavy snowfall, I shoveled my driveway and then I looked at hers and I just had to go shovel hers too. Once a Boy Scout, always a Boy Scout; I got a quart of homemade chicken soup in return. It was the worst chicken soup I ever ate in my life.
But I sure thanked her for it...
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Trying To Quit Smoking
Well, as the joke goes, "quitting smoking is easy, I've done it 100
times"! It isn't of course. I have quit for months on occasion only to
fall back into it. The saddest time was in the 1980s while on a
camping trip to Canada with my former friend.
On our last day of camping, he was down to his last 2 cigarettes and
said he was quitting and did I want to share 1 of the last 2. I know
now it was astonishingly stupid, but I felt immune immune. It tasted
GREAT!
You know, I've actually wondered since then if my "friend" did that deliberately. At the time, such a thought would never have occurred to me. But these days, I consider the possibility. He DID frequently mention how envious he was that I had quit when he couldn't...
When we got back to the Park convenience shop, he immediately bought a carton of cigarettes. I stole several and smoked them stealthily. We drove back to NY City where he lived at the time (and yes, I had done all the driving in my car). But I had to drive back to MD from NY and I suddenly couldn't face the long boring New Jersey Turnpike without smoking. And there I was smoking again.
I've stopped a few times since then for a few weeks at a time. But then I face a long drive, a stressful event, or a long night at the computer and I give in again. I wish the damn things were illegal. It's just too hard to stop smoking when they are available 24/7 on every street corner.
I'm convinced I'm habituated to the "process" of smoking and not the nicotine. I think that because sometimes I don't light a cigarette for several days at a time and it doesn't bother me. And because I've been "vaping" an e-cigarette for 2 days which provides nicotine but is not in any way psychologically satisfactory.
The e-cigarette is completely unsatisfactory. It's a ceramic rod that is way too heavy, unwieldy, and (in spite of best efforts of designers) just doesn't work like a real cigarette. I admire that it provides nicotine (in gradually reducible amounts), the appearence of smoke (its water vapor), and none of the carcinigens of actual cigarette smoke.
But they just don't quite work yet. They need to be as light as a regular cigarette, have a paperlike feel to the "filter" end, and provide a better fake smoke.
And don't wish me good luck for stopping. Between the 5th and 6th paragraphs, I drove to the nearest convenience store and bought a new carton of real cigarettes... ARGH!!! I just CAN'T be on the computer and not smoke... I need a better fake cigarette.
You know, I've actually wondered since then if my "friend" did that deliberately. At the time, such a thought would never have occurred to me. But these days, I consider the possibility. He DID frequently mention how envious he was that I had quit when he couldn't...
When we got back to the Park convenience shop, he immediately bought a carton of cigarettes. I stole several and smoked them stealthily. We drove back to NY City where he lived at the time (and yes, I had done all the driving in my car). But I had to drive back to MD from NY and I suddenly couldn't face the long boring New Jersey Turnpike without smoking. And there I was smoking again.
I've stopped a few times since then for a few weeks at a time. But then I face a long drive, a stressful event, or a long night at the computer and I give in again. I wish the damn things were illegal. It's just too hard to stop smoking when they are available 24/7 on every street corner.
I'm convinced I'm habituated to the "process" of smoking and not the nicotine. I think that because sometimes I don't light a cigarette for several days at a time and it doesn't bother me. And because I've been "vaping" an e-cigarette for 2 days which provides nicotine but is not in any way psychologically satisfactory.
The e-cigarette is completely unsatisfactory. It's a ceramic rod that is way too heavy, unwieldy, and (in spite of best efforts of designers) just doesn't work like a real cigarette. I admire that it provides nicotine (in gradually reducible amounts), the appearence of smoke (its water vapor), and none of the carcinigens of actual cigarette smoke.
But they just don't quite work yet. They need to be as light as a regular cigarette, have a paperlike feel to the "filter" end, and provide a better fake smoke.
And don't wish me good luck for stopping. Between the 5th and 6th paragraphs, I drove to the nearest convenience store and bought a new carton of real cigarettes... ARGH!!! I just CAN'T be on the computer and not smoke... I need a better fake cigarette.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Happy New Year
Well, I've always thought the new year should begin on the Winter Solstice because the days start lengthening again. Or perhaps the Vernal Equinox because the weather starts getting better. But sometimes I bow to convention.
Happy New Year!
May 2014 be a better year, because quite frankly, sometimes 2013 sucked...
Happy New Year!
May 2014 be a better year, because quite frankly, sometimes 2013 sucked...
Monday, December 30, 2013
Deleting Old Emails and a Rant
Do you ever go through your emails like once a year and delete a lot of them? And feel sad about some?
I did that last night. A lot were routine emails of blog comments. I keep the most meaningful ones. But some were from a friend I had to give up on in early 2011. In a practical sense, some people just change over a few years and you are not really friends anymore. But this was someone I had known since college days 40 years ago.
The break came when he wanted me to drive him to a place with A-rated plywood for his new toy train setup in the basement and carry the plywood into his basement. I have always been helpful to him and done the hard work (he says he has a "bad back" which I have reasons to doubt) watching him do things he enjoys.
But when I sat down and thought about it, I realized that he was asking me to drive my trailer 30 miles to his house, 60 miles to the wood place, 60 miles back to his house, and then 30 miles back to my house. I checked the wood at the place he liked and found it was the same as could be ordered from the local Home Depot. "A" grade is "A" grade. But he would have none of that. He likes the wood store 90 miles away from him.
I mentioned that in an email (I had to mention details in email because he just evades conversational disputes of any sort).
He responded that I was "mean and hurtful and don't contact me anymore". OK, he does this every few years. I usually reply in a way to jolly him out of his unhappiness. He HATES having his plans questioned even when all the work is being done by others.
And my initial reaction was to get him "happified" again. But you know what? This time I didn't. I unloaded the personal shotgun on him. I told him how insensitive he was, how demanding, and how unreasonable he had become over the years and had become worse. I told him that when he needed help around the house and yard, he had me. But when I needed help around the house and yard, I still only had me. He eventually replied "How do we re-engage"? Re-engage? That was "goodbye jerk" and I made that clear. And that's the last I heard from him.
But as I was going through the old emails, I found a few from him still there. I deleted them. A part of my life over. But it also felt sad doing it. The last one I deleted was where he criticized me in return. I paid great attention on to those 6 things a last tine. One was even accurate (I am not really good talking on the telephone). But that was about all he could say.
He complained that I never took him fishing in my boat the last few years. Well he was inept and useless in a boat. You know those cartoons where a person has one foot on the pier and another in the boat and the boat slowly moves away from the pier? He actually did that. And I had to to do all the work unloading and reloading the boat on the trailer every single time. He couldn't.
He tipped over our canoe once leaning way too far over the edge in uplake Canada. When I saw what he was doing I yelled and grabbed for the other side, but 225 pounds beats 160 pounds every time.
After I got the canoe righted and mostly bailed out, I got him back in on one side while I held the other. I then spent an hour going down to feel around for our gear and retrieving what I could. He couldn't because he "couldn't swim well". The water was shallow enough for him (at 6' 4") to stand in). He wouldn't. He didn't have to swim, because *I* could.
And along that line, we had to canoe back 10 miles on the open lake on the last day of our vacation to the camping station when a storm came up. He had no idea what to do. I did. I was in the back of the canoe (of course) and drove the canoe quartering the waves to the lee side of the lake. We hit shore and waited for the storm to pass.
He complained that I wasn't a very "neat" person. OK, My floors weren't fit of to eat from. He used to clean his baseboards once a week and his floors daily. Well, yeah, I'm not like that. I'm pretty sure you can't eat off my floors safely.
He was also angry that my family doesn't have big funeral ceremonies. Never mind that that was none of his business, we just don't do that. The family habit is cremation and no ceremony. You were alive, you are dead, nice to have known you, good life and all of that. My own expectations are the same. Distribute my ashes around the yard, raise a glass of wine in my memory, and history goes on. Glad I was part of it.
And finally, he repeated again that I was "mean". By that, he meant I was honest. I told him what I thought for 40 years, I explained what I meant, and I gave reasons. That was too straightforward and he never liked it, I guess, and I suppose it wore him out over all the years. He considered honesty to be "mean" in that what I said sometimes didn't make him feel good about himself.
He was a constantly annoying person. He never kept a job in one office for more than a few years because he utterly aggravated every co-worker and supervisor he encountered. But he always had a great technical resume, so he could move on. Every place he worked at was "corrupt" and "incompetent". For all I know, he was right, but he never gave much actual evidence of that. I suspect mostly that he was a real "pill" to work with.
So last night, I deleted the last of his emails and went to bed. I slept well. Sometimes, you just have to cut connections.
I did that last night. A lot were routine emails of blog comments. I keep the most meaningful ones. But some were from a friend I had to give up on in early 2011. In a practical sense, some people just change over a few years and you are not really friends anymore. But this was someone I had known since college days 40 years ago.
The break came when he wanted me to drive him to a place with A-rated plywood for his new toy train setup in the basement and carry the plywood into his basement. I have always been helpful to him and done the hard work (he says he has a "bad back" which I have reasons to doubt) watching him do things he enjoys.
But when I sat down and thought about it, I realized that he was asking me to drive my trailer 30 miles to his house, 60 miles to the wood place, 60 miles back to his house, and then 30 miles back to my house. I checked the wood at the place he liked and found it was the same as could be ordered from the local Home Depot. "A" grade is "A" grade. But he would have none of that. He likes the wood store 90 miles away from him.
I mentioned that in an email (I had to mention details in email because he just evades conversational disputes of any sort).
He responded that I was "mean and hurtful and don't contact me anymore". OK, he does this every few years. I usually reply in a way to jolly him out of his unhappiness. He HATES having his plans questioned even when all the work is being done by others.
And my initial reaction was to get him "happified" again. But you know what? This time I didn't. I unloaded the personal shotgun on him. I told him how insensitive he was, how demanding, and how unreasonable he had become over the years and had become worse. I told him that when he needed help around the house and yard, he had me. But when I needed help around the house and yard, I still only had me. He eventually replied "How do we re-engage"? Re-engage? That was "goodbye jerk" and I made that clear. And that's the last I heard from him.
But as I was going through the old emails, I found a few from him still there. I deleted them. A part of my life over. But it also felt sad doing it. The last one I deleted was where he criticized me in return. I paid great attention on to those 6 things a last tine. One was even accurate (I am not really good talking on the telephone). But that was about all he could say.
He complained that I never took him fishing in my boat the last few years. Well he was inept and useless in a boat. You know those cartoons where a person has one foot on the pier and another in the boat and the boat slowly moves away from the pier? He actually did that. And I had to to do all the work unloading and reloading the boat on the trailer every single time. He couldn't.
He tipped over our canoe once leaning way too far over the edge in uplake Canada. When I saw what he was doing I yelled and grabbed for the other side, but 225 pounds beats 160 pounds every time.
After I got the canoe righted and mostly bailed out, I got him back in on one side while I held the other. I then spent an hour going down to feel around for our gear and retrieving what I could. He couldn't because he "couldn't swim well". The water was shallow enough for him (at 6' 4") to stand in). He wouldn't. He didn't have to swim, because *I* could.
And along that line, we had to canoe back 10 miles on the open lake on the last day of our vacation to the camping station when a storm came up. He had no idea what to do. I did. I was in the back of the canoe (of course) and drove the canoe quartering the waves to the lee side of the lake. We hit shore and waited for the storm to pass.
He complained that I wasn't a very "neat" person. OK, My floors weren't fit of to eat from. He used to clean his baseboards once a week and his floors daily. Well, yeah, I'm not like that. I'm pretty sure you can't eat off my floors safely.
He was also angry that my family doesn't have big funeral ceremonies. Never mind that that was none of his business, we just don't do that. The family habit is cremation and no ceremony. You were alive, you are dead, nice to have known you, good life and all of that. My own expectations are the same. Distribute my ashes around the yard, raise a glass of wine in my memory, and history goes on. Glad I was part of it.
And finally, he repeated again that I was "mean". By that, he meant I was honest. I told him what I thought for 40 years, I explained what I meant, and I gave reasons. That was too straightforward and he never liked it, I guess, and I suppose it wore him out over all the years. He considered honesty to be "mean" in that what I said sometimes didn't make him feel good about himself.
He was a constantly annoying person. He never kept a job in one office for more than a few years because he utterly aggravated every co-worker and supervisor he encountered. But he always had a great technical resume, so he could move on. Every place he worked at was "corrupt" and "incompetent". For all I know, he was right, but he never gave much actual evidence of that. I suspect mostly that he was a real "pill" to work with.
So last night, I deleted the last of his emails and went to bed. I slept well. Sometimes, you just have to cut connections.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Its Hard Getting Old And Fussy
A niece is getting married 2 hours away in February. I can't get myself to attend. The drive would be horrible to me, I hate long ceremonies, I don't like loud music, and I hate dancing. And the whole thing is being done at night. So I can't even enjoy any champagne if I want to drive home afterwards, and I hate driving in the dark. I even hate ceremonies. When I was younger, I even hated ceremonies involving ME! I didn't even attend my own college graduation. They say "enjoy myself" and just spend the night in a motel.
Right, stay in a motel overnight and bring home cockroaches and bedbugs...
I love the niece dearly, but I won't drive 2 hours to a long boring ceremony and the threat of insect infestations. I hope I'm not the only one who feels that way. But if I am, it wouldn't change my opinion in the least.
I attended a few weddings when I was younger. In the worst, they played 60 minutes of "personally meaningful music" before they got on to the actual ceremony, which took ANOTHER 60 minutes of pledges. I was ready to run gagging and screaming from the room. I won't do that again, ever.
My tolerance for long drawn-out ceremonies is even less these days. Some of us are just NOT into ceremonies...
Right, stay in a motel overnight and bring home cockroaches and bedbugs...
I love the niece dearly, but I won't drive 2 hours to a long boring ceremony and the threat of insect infestations. I hope I'm not the only one who feels that way. But if I am, it wouldn't change my opinion in the least.
I attended a few weddings when I was younger. In the worst, they played 60 minutes of "personally meaningful music" before they got on to the actual ceremony, which took ANOTHER 60 minutes of pledges. I was ready to run gagging and screaming from the room. I won't do that again, ever.
My tolerance for long drawn-out ceremonies is even less these days. Some of us are just NOT into ceremonies...
Monday, December 23, 2013
Short Movie Review
I watched 'Thor' the other night. Waste of night hours, but I had to for the love of old time Marvel Comics reasons. I seriously regret it. Nice special effects, but anyone can do that these days. Mostly, Thor needed a LOT more "humbling" than he received, to have the redemption he was granted. Another example of how a few "comic books" did a better job than a whole movie.
And Loki was just pathetic from start to end. What were they THINKING? Have the producers never read the mythology? Jeez, even Odin was a bit lame. and that's pretty hard to do with the Asgardian Allfather. Don't even get me started on the weak Destroyer.
The whole thing was a bunch of rubbish. I had to eventually watch it to know for certain, but it really was a waste of time. You sure can't know ahead of time what is going to disappoint, but I sure wish a future self had dropped in to say "no don't"!
And Loki was just pathetic from start to end. What were they THINKING? Have the producers never read the mythology? Jeez, even Odin was a bit lame. and that's pretty hard to do with the Asgardian Allfather. Don't even get me started on the weak Destroyer.
The whole thing was a bunch of rubbish. I had to eventually watch it to know for certain, but it really was a waste of time. You sure can't know ahead of time what is going to disappoint, but I sure wish a future self had dropped in to say "no don't"!
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Winter Solstice
Darn, I missed it! Well, I did notice it a couple of times during the day, but only when I was busy doing something else. I suppose that doesn't matter. It's not like I need to do anything that day, I just like it. But I didn't get around to posting...
It means the days will be getting longer. And even though it means it will be getting colder for 3 months, it means that gardening season starts again in a couple weeks. Not the planting, but the seed ordering. And even then, it will only be 4 weeks before I can plant the first seeds in flats under lights in the basement! After that, it's not too long to transplanting the sprouts to individual cells and then outside.
I plan to plant a lot more flowers this year. I spent 10 years focussing on perennials for the convenience of not replanting every year, but quite frankly, most of them aren't worth having. So many perennials bloom for a week or two and then they're done for the year. Some bloom most of the season (coneflowers, black-eyed susans, reblooming daylilies) and I'm keeping those. Some make quite an impact with just a few plants (oriental lilies, stokes aster). Some are for the foliage anyway (hostas).
So I've been growing more annuals the past few years. The season-long blooming of 30 square feet of bright zinnias is worth the hour it takes to plant them outside.
Two such patches of different color zinnias, one of marigolds, and one of vivid salvia will go a long way and cost less than one hosta.
But back to Winter Solstice. I like the more natural holidays, the ones that occur for uncomplicated real reasons. New Years Day, Summer Solstice, Thankgiving, Winter Solstice... Near Year's Day is as artificial as can be (because calendars are completely artificial), but I like it because that's the first day of the current calendar, and you might as well celebrate a new year starting. Summer Solstice is OK as a natural event, but somehow the longest day of the year doesn't have the same meaning as the shortest day. At Summer Solstice, I'm not noticing the change in day-length all that much.
Thanksgiving is close to the best holiday. Coming from a long line of farmers and having a strong sense of agriculture through history, I appreciate the importance and relief of a good Fall harvest. Especially those crops that don't keep well (it's eat it or lose it)! Even with year-round fresh food in these modern times, a Winter grocery store tomato is NOT the same as an August tomato from the back yard.
But I personal like Winter Solstice for the historical agricultural reasons above. Maybe (as an ancestor) the Fall Harvest was not what you hoped it would be, but the Winter Solstice is the promise and hope of a better year ahead. Promise and hope can keep you going in April when you are down to your last moldy or shriveled potatoes, carrots, and apples. And lucky to have those.
(site said the image was "free")
I suppose I should mention Ground Hog Day. It's not an accident that it is halfway between the 1st day of Winter and the 1st day of Spring. In olden days, it meant "we've made it halfway, we can get through the other half". And there is even a reason for that celebration. From what I've read (disclaimer clause), Winter weather warms up earlier in Europe, sometimes starting in early February. For pre-calendar farmers there, the emergence of hibernating burrowing mammals (hedgehogs, marmots) was a good sign that it was the time to plant the earliest Spring crops. However, if shadows were seen (meaning clear bright days, meaning still-cold weather) it was best to wait a couple of weeks. When those Europeans arrived in NE North America (where the climate stayed colder longer being on the eastern side of a continent), they had to adjust the timing. And they had to adjust the animal.
So instead of small hedgehogs who HAD to emerge earlier because they had smaller fat reserves (and who don't exist in NA), they went by the larger groundhogs (2 foot tall marmots like land-based beavers without a tail, for my European friends) who could afford to check outside conditions and retreat for more hibernation if required.
So, I'll add Groundhog Day to my list of "natural" holidays even though I don't think it was a very good guide for planting (sunny days occur rather randomly in NA Winters). A good measure of Groundhog Day sense in NA is that nobody sends Groundhog Day cards to friends. LOL!
And lastly? I like these holidays because there isn't much theology involved in them. Natural and calendar events just "are" and you don't have to worry about them. I DO like that... :)
It means the days will be getting longer. And even though it means it will be getting colder for 3 months, it means that gardening season starts again in a couple weeks. Not the planting, but the seed ordering. And even then, it will only be 4 weeks before I can plant the first seeds in flats under lights in the basement! After that, it's not too long to transplanting the sprouts to individual cells and then outside.
I plan to plant a lot more flowers this year. I spent 10 years focussing on perennials for the convenience of not replanting every year, but quite frankly, most of them aren't worth having. So many perennials bloom for a week or two and then they're done for the year. Some bloom most of the season (coneflowers, black-eyed susans, reblooming daylilies) and I'm keeping those. Some make quite an impact with just a few plants (oriental lilies, stokes aster). Some are for the foliage anyway (hostas).
So I've been growing more annuals the past few years. The season-long blooming of 30 square feet of bright zinnias is worth the hour it takes to plant them outside.
But back to Winter Solstice. I like the more natural holidays, the ones that occur for uncomplicated real reasons. New Years Day, Summer Solstice, Thankgiving, Winter Solstice... Near Year's Day is as artificial as can be (because calendars are completely artificial), but I like it because that's the first day of the current calendar, and you might as well celebrate a new year starting. Summer Solstice is OK as a natural event, but somehow the longest day of the year doesn't have the same meaning as the shortest day. At Summer Solstice, I'm not noticing the change in day-length all that much.
Thanksgiving is close to the best holiday. Coming from a long line of farmers and having a strong sense of agriculture through history, I appreciate the importance and relief of a good Fall harvest. Especially those crops that don't keep well (it's eat it or lose it)! Even with year-round fresh food in these modern times, a Winter grocery store tomato is NOT the same as an August tomato from the back yard.
But I personal like Winter Solstice for the historical agricultural reasons above. Maybe (as an ancestor) the Fall Harvest was not what you hoped it would be, but the Winter Solstice is the promise and hope of a better year ahead. Promise and hope can keep you going in April when you are down to your last moldy or shriveled potatoes, carrots, and apples. And lucky to have those.
I suppose I should mention Ground Hog Day. It's not an accident that it is halfway between the 1st day of Winter and the 1st day of Spring. In olden days, it meant "we've made it halfway, we can get through the other half". And there is even a reason for that celebration. From what I've read (disclaimer clause), Winter weather warms up earlier in Europe, sometimes starting in early February. For pre-calendar farmers there, the emergence of hibernating burrowing mammals (hedgehogs, marmots) was a good sign that it was the time to plant the earliest Spring crops. However, if shadows were seen (meaning clear bright days, meaning still-cold weather) it was best to wait a couple of weeks. When those Europeans arrived in NE North America (where the climate stayed colder longer being on the eastern side of a continent), they had to adjust the timing. And they had to adjust the animal.
So instead of small hedgehogs who HAD to emerge earlier because they had smaller fat reserves (and who don't exist in NA), they went by the larger groundhogs (2 foot tall marmots like land-based beavers without a tail, for my European friends) who could afford to check outside conditions and retreat for more hibernation if required.
So, I'll add Groundhog Day to my list of "natural" holidays even though I don't think it was a very good guide for planting (sunny days occur rather randomly in NA Winters). A good measure of Groundhog Day sense in NA is that nobody sends Groundhog Day cards to friends. LOL!
And lastly? I like these holidays because there isn't much theology involved in them. Natural and calendar events just "are" and you don't have to worry about them. I DO like that... :)
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Christmas and After...
The cards all addressed and mailed to cats, family, and friends, the presents sent, no more trips to the post office. Time now to turn to those kitties and friends for whom I have only email addresses these days (and new ones I have received cards from)...
But basically, I can relax and listen to the radio Christmas songs for a week. Thats about as many days as I can take. I really do like Christmas Carols on the stereo, but repetitiveness wears me out fast.
I miss the days of my youth when "Christmas Season" was just "the couple weeks before the day".
I am saving all the cards I/we have received so far to open them on the Winter Solstice Day at 12:11 pm EST. I personally LIKE the moment of the first lengthening of days. That what all the winter holidays center around, after all. It's probably the oldest human holiday. And it is a natural one. One day is the shortest day of the year, the next is the first longer one. I like that. Every day past then leads me to the Spring planting season, and that is a highlight of my year.
I am already searching through the garden catalogs for the replacements of old seeds, the idea of some new ones, and the thrill of seeing the new plants grow and thrive.
I look forward to the first flower seeds I can plant outside in February (snow peas) and the first flowers I can plant inside at the same time (who grow germinate and grow slowly). Thing speed up after that. But it's the best time of year. Harvest is great, but the starting is better. All that hope, you know?
But basically, I can relax and listen to the radio Christmas songs for a week. Thats about as many days as I can take. I really do like Christmas Carols on the stereo, but repetitiveness wears me out fast.
I miss the days of my youth when "Christmas Season" was just "the couple weeks before the day".
I am saving all the cards I/we have received so far to open them on the Winter Solstice Day at 12:11 pm EST. I personally LIKE the moment of the first lengthening of days. That what all the winter holidays center around, after all. It's probably the oldest human holiday. And it is a natural one. One day is the shortest day of the year, the next is the first longer one. I like that. Every day past then leads me to the Spring planting season, and that is a highlight of my year.
I am already searching through the garden catalogs for the replacements of old seeds, the idea of some new ones, and the thrill of seeing the new plants grow and thrive.
I look forward to the first flower seeds I can plant outside in February (snow peas) and the first flowers I can plant inside at the same time (who grow germinate and grow slowly). Thing speed up after that. But it's the best time of year. Harvest is great, but the starting is better. All that hope, you know?
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Chris Christie, NJ Gov
You know how some simple images ruin Presidential political aspirations? Like Mike Dukakis riding in a tank, Jimmie Carter beating at a rabbit swimming toward his canoe, or John Kerry windsurfing?
Governor Chis Cristie may have just had that politically fatal moment regarding shutting down some traffic lanes at the George Washington Memorial Bridge to annoy the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee New Jersey. Gov Christie surely and obviously ordered his political appointees to the Port Authority to do it.
They resigned, and the reason is not hard to guess. The final act of any political appointee is to fall on his sword. After being assured a nice job elsewhere in the politisphere...
It SEEMS that it was a petty repayment for Republican Gov Christie not getting a gubertorial endorsement from the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee NJ. I can imagine the telephone conversation:
Gov Christie: Endorse me for Republican Governor!
Mayor Sokolich: I'm a Democrat you idiot, I cant do that.
Gov Christie: You'll pay, and yer little dog Toto, too, heh, heh, heh...
You get the general idea. A Republican Governor demanded that a Democratic Mayor endorse him and then got pissed off when he declined for the very logical political reasons. So he reacted in the most petty ways. How could anyone trust someone like Gov Christie to be president in charge of the IRS and NSA after acting in such a small sorry way? Do you remember Nixon and his use of "The Enemies List"?
Where do these people come from? If a Democratic Governor had demanded that some Republican Mayor endorse him (with equivalent threats), all Hell would have broken loose on Fox news. Tea Party Republicans would have been screaming for "impeachment", calling the Gov a "tyrant", and suggesting "2nd amendment solutions" (aka assassination).
Governor Chis Cristie may have just had that politically fatal moment regarding shutting down some traffic lanes at the George Washington Memorial Bridge to annoy the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee New Jersey. Gov Christie surely and obviously ordered his political appointees to the Port Authority to do it.
They resigned, and the reason is not hard to guess. The final act of any political appointee is to fall on his sword. After being assured a nice job elsewhere in the politisphere...
It SEEMS that it was a petty repayment for Republican Gov Christie not getting a gubertorial endorsement from the Democratic Mayor of Fort Lee NJ. I can imagine the telephone conversation:
Gov Christie: Endorse me for Republican Governor!
Mayor Sokolich: I'm a Democrat you idiot, I cant do that.
Gov Christie: You'll pay, and yer little dog Toto, too, heh, heh, heh...
You get the general idea. A Republican Governor demanded that a Democratic Mayor endorse him and then got pissed off when he declined for the very logical political reasons. So he reacted in the most petty ways. How could anyone trust someone like Gov Christie to be president in charge of the IRS and NSA after acting in such a small sorry way? Do you remember Nixon and his use of "The Enemies List"?
Where do these people come from? If a Democratic Governor had demanded that some Republican Mayor endorse him (with equivalent threats), all Hell would have broken loose on Fox news. Tea Party Republicans would have been screaming for "impeachment", calling the Gov a "tyrant", and suggesting "2nd amendment solutions" (aka assassination).
Saturday, December 14, 2013
Random Thoughts
1. Marley threw up today after chasing tossed kibbles around during my dinnertime and thats been a LONG time. And Iza didn't which is routine..
2. The "low tire pressure light" came on in the car, and I had just filled them. And I checked again. They are all at 32 psi.
3. Pogo.com Risk suggests you should click on the originator's icon to see the special conditions of the game. But if you do, the game is all filled up. So you really have to enter each game blind.
4. Republicans are essentially merchantile or anarchists. No other explanation for refusing to regulate the worst practices of SOME industries and the idea that people should go into bars, get drunk, and carry guns.
5. BTW, being merchantile AND anarchistic is "libertarian". And most Republicans hate libertarians. They are horrified by the idea that "Someone, Somewhere, is Having Fun".
6. Democrats can be idiots too. Throwing money at problems doesn't always work.
7. What happened to the idea that Congress should "govern"? Good ideas get ignored for entirely political reasons.
8. I had to build a high fence around my yard to keep huge viscious dogs out. Why didn't "THEY" have to build high fences to keep their viscous dogs "IN"? Were you ever attacked by a wandering cat?
9. People say cats reduce bird populations. There are more birds living on my property now than when I moved in 27 years ago because I assist them. And I let the cats out daily. They catch about 1 a month. Guess how many birds a hawk needs to catch every day...
10. Playing games against a computer is essentially worthless. If a program can't improve its odds of winning to at least 50-50, the programmer should be fired.
11. My car battery dies in the garage about every few weeks. Pisses me off. On the other hand, it never dies at Walmart or Safeway. Why is it always when it is in the garage?
12. When you download a new program, why does it fail so often and the provider doesn't feel embarassed, and just say "sorry site down"? So why do all the Republicans attack the ObamaCare Website? Should Government do better than the best internet sites.
13. Why can't I cook stir-fry as "cooked yet crisp" as a cheap Chinese restaurant can? I sure try.
14. When I play Pogo cribbage against the computer, it always stays even with me until the last turn, then gets a wonderful hand. Can't they program it to play more evenly than that? It starts to feel pointless except for the enjoyment of playing at all.
15. Comet ISON ticked me off. It was SUPPOSED TO BE the spectacular comet of the decade, and then and went and fell apart traveling around the sun too close. I mean WHO was in charge of that? Should they get fired? (j/k)
16. How many deer need to be killed before I can grow hostas in the front yard? I can buy dead wild ducks at the meat store. Why isn't venison offerred routinely. We certainly seem to have enough deer around.
Just some thoughts...
2. The "low tire pressure light" came on in the car, and I had just filled them. And I checked again. They are all at 32 psi.
3. Pogo.com Risk suggests you should click on the originator's icon to see the special conditions of the game. But if you do, the game is all filled up. So you really have to enter each game blind.
4. Republicans are essentially merchantile or anarchists. No other explanation for refusing to regulate the worst practices of SOME industries and the idea that people should go into bars, get drunk, and carry guns.
5. BTW, being merchantile AND anarchistic is "libertarian". And most Republicans hate libertarians. They are horrified by the idea that "Someone, Somewhere, is Having Fun".
6. Democrats can be idiots too. Throwing money at problems doesn't always work.
7. What happened to the idea that Congress should "govern"? Good ideas get ignored for entirely political reasons.
8. I had to build a high fence around my yard to keep huge viscious dogs out. Why didn't "THEY" have to build high fences to keep their viscous dogs "IN"? Were you ever attacked by a wandering cat?
9. People say cats reduce bird populations. There are more birds living on my property now than when I moved in 27 years ago because I assist them. And I let the cats out daily. They catch about 1 a month. Guess how many birds a hawk needs to catch every day...
10. Playing games against a computer is essentially worthless. If a program can't improve its odds of winning to at least 50-50, the programmer should be fired.
11. My car battery dies in the garage about every few weeks. Pisses me off. On the other hand, it never dies at Walmart or Safeway. Why is it always when it is in the garage?
12. When you download a new program, why does it fail so often and the provider doesn't feel embarassed, and just say "sorry site down"? So why do all the Republicans attack the ObamaCare Website? Should Government do better than the best internet sites.
13. Why can't I cook stir-fry as "cooked yet crisp" as a cheap Chinese restaurant can? I sure try.
14. When I play Pogo cribbage against the computer, it always stays even with me until the last turn, then gets a wonderful hand. Can't they program it to play more evenly than that? It starts to feel pointless except for the enjoyment of playing at all.
15. Comet ISON ticked me off. It was SUPPOSED TO BE the spectacular comet of the decade, and then and went and fell apart traveling around the sun too close. I mean WHO was in charge of that? Should they get fired? (j/k)
16. How many deer need to be killed before I can grow hostas in the front yard? I can buy dead wild ducks at the meat store. Why isn't venison offerred routinely. We certainly seem to have enough deer around.
Just some thoughts...
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
The Risk Game Report
Joined 3 games of Pogo.com Risk today. Started with crap in each (the games were already started and I had little to work with). But I felt rather coldly lethal today (Skeeter anniversary) AND fortune smiled on me. I lost one game that was dragged out to a hard end and then one the other two from way behind against higher-rated players.
I can assure you, THAT does not happen often. So I think I will stop playing and rest on my laurels. Not that laurels are all THAT soft to rest on. But what I mean is that when you only play once a week, nobody remembers who you are. Because they go after recent winners... A low profile is sometimes a good thing.
I think it would be wise to go play cribbage or backgammon for a few days.
But there is also something else. I've learned something by watching the cats hunt mice. You sit quietly and don't disturb the environment. And when the opportunity arises, you pounce...
I can assure you, THAT does not happen often. So I think I will stop playing and rest on my laurels. Not that laurels are all THAT soft to rest on. But what I mean is that when you only play once a week, nobody remembers who you are. Because they go after recent winners... A low profile is sometimes a good thing.
I think it would be wise to go play cribbage or backgammon for a few days.
But there is also something else. I've learned something by watching the cats hunt mice. You sit quietly and don't disturb the environment. And when the opportunity arises, you pounce...
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Missing Skeeter
Today is the 5th anniversary of Skeeter's death. Losing him still hurts. But all things fade with time, and I almost didn't remember today was "The Day" until this afternoon. I was actually looking at regular daily pictures of the current cats to decide which to use for today's Mark's Mews cat blog post when I glanced at the date on the computer and changed my planned post.
As the years have passed, I have posted less personal and detailed memories of his passing. It is good to remember those gone, with love, but more important to attend to the living.
That is not to say that I can read the early posts of the cat blog without a catch in my throat about those happy years with him (and most of our years together were before I started the blog), and I still can't read the posts and comments about his death without tears.
But there was a surprise. I finished the brief post recognizing the day, and hit "publish". The time on the post was 3:45 pm EST. That was the very moment of his death 5 years ago. It was a complete coincidence...
I am not one who pays much attention to coincidences. I find them more "interesting" than "meaningful". But it sure was a surprise when I noticed the blogpost time!
Some of it may not be very odd. I often post in mid-afternoon, and after 2500 posts, I'm sure there have been others posted at the same time. But I would be surprised if there were 2 other posts at the exact same time of day about such a singular event unintentionally. I think (without checking) that I did deliberately post at that exact time on this date previously. This was not one of those times.
As the years have passed, I have posted less personal and detailed memories of his passing. It is good to remember those gone, with love, but more important to attend to the living.
That is not to say that I can read the early posts of the cat blog without a catch in my throat about those happy years with him (and most of our years together were before I started the blog), and I still can't read the posts and comments about his death without tears.
But there was a surprise. I finished the brief post recognizing the day, and hit "publish". The time on the post was 3:45 pm EST. That was the very moment of his death 5 years ago. It was a complete coincidence...
I am not one who pays much attention to coincidences. I find them more "interesting" than "meaningful". But it sure was a surprise when I noticed the blogpost time!
Some of it may not be very odd. I often post in mid-afternoon, and after 2500 posts, I'm sure there have been others posted at the same time. But I would be surprised if there were 2 other posts at the exact same time of day about such a singular event unintentionally. I think (without checking) that I did deliberately post at that exact time on this date previously. This was not one of those times.
Monday, December 9, 2013
A VERY Unusual Day
It was a dark and winter-stormy morning. In spite of that, I pulled on my "viscious-winter coat", and went into the garage, where the sled awaited. Then, I pulled off the "viscious-winter-coat", tossed it in the front seat, and luxuriated in the medium-green Elven(ish) cloak cleverly colored to blend in with medium-green grass, medium-green rocks, and medium-green rivers.
Leaving the animals of the house to fend for themselves, off I went on an ADVENTURE. And none like I had ever done before. THIS adventure was to meet with a tribe of CATWOMEN, partake of their strange rituals, talking ceremonies, and eat unaccustomed foods. I myself chose a strange meal of burned bread, tomato, and crisped bacon. It was so thick, I could barely open me mouth widely enow to bite on it. But it WAS raucously fare vittle!
The first part of the adventure was getting to the ship. Amazingly, there was snow, sleet, and freezing rain. It was a hard slog, mateys! Snow beat hard on the mainsails and the nearly came to brittle freezing... Lost a few good men there on the upper sails I did.
Fortunately, there was some underground traveling through tunnels. Dark they were and we met some strange travellers along the way. Eventually, we surfaced through the dark. The longest staircase I ever saw in me life appeared before me. To my relief, the STAIRCASE itself moved me upwards (the crew stayed behind and ya will hear no more of them as they was all eaten by dinosaurs or somethin else happened ta them, but don't worry about them). The staircase called "The Bethesda Escalator" took hours. Verily, a "stairway to heaven". Or so I thought. It landed me in "a parking garage"...
In discussion with some natives, I found an entranceway ta the HUGE building above the cavernous passageway, and entered cautiously. The room was FILLED with obsequious servents. I inquired of one where there might be the designated "lobby" wherein I might meet the fabled Catwomen, but all the poor wretch could do was point around the very room I be standing on...
So I explored around a bit and noticed a room with the name Daily Grill. That WAS the place we would be to eating in later, so I inquired about the foodstuffs offered therein. Fine stuff; serious meats variously cooked for the men-types, and daintier foods fer the wenches (er Catwomen).
I happened ta mention I was there fer a meetin with the Catwomen, and the servent there said my name out loud. I was shocked! Apperently, the Sisterhood of the Catwomen was already gathered inside! And I had arrived EARLY to scout out the place first. A sad day when a scouter arrives last...
I immediately made my acquiantance to them all and I tell you, it was such a fine greeting from all. I knew them all by reputation, of course, and they me. It was a grand round of hugs all. I haven't been hugged like that much if a decade! It did me good. I immediately cast off the "viscious winter coat" and sat meself down at the table, happier than a lost kitten finding his littermates.
OK, enough of that, LOL!
I found the ladies and was glad it wasn't difficult. I had had visions of walking around the hotel carrying the Flat Mews overhead hoping that someone somewhere would recognize what they were.
We had a wonderful lunch, sparkling conversation, discussions about cat-blogging, some sharing of personal thoughts about "the universe and everything", memories of "cats-who-came-before", and (as the King of Siam said in Anna And The King of Siam), "etc, etc, etc.
I was astonished at the Flat Cats in attendance. I had made a quick version of The Mews (best picture I could find that I printed on cardstock glued to cardboard) the night before (thinking it was pretty good), but you wouldn't believe THEM! Three times as big, and not a bad cut edge in the bunch. I gotta work on that, and I learned a lot just by seeing the Good ones (ALL the others). But they all admired the poorly done Mews annyway. Talk about "kind"...
We had a GREAT waitress! Maybe it was a "tiny" bit because it was a really slow day (bad weather and the local Pro football team having a home game), but she really liked us! We found out at the end of the meal that she had supported feral cats at her previous house and really liked that we were all "cat-people". She even used all our cameras to take group pictures!
Memo to self, check Bethesda Hyatt Regency Daily Grill site and see if there is an "I love This Server" option...
And we gave her a 33% tip...
Now, I have to say that I am really inexperienced at meeting new people in groups after so many years living by myself. There were Gifts. I didn't bring any... Dang, and I "considered" at least bringing fresh Nip leafs for the kitties and Truffles for the ladies. I decided "it was just lunch". And Ayla even told me to bring some things. I SHOULD have listened to her...
Well, you live and learn.
But all good things must come to an end. We had to part eventually, after a great lunch and great conversation. I had a WONDERFUL time, more than well-worth the trip in the bad weather. I got on the MetroRail, had an easy trip from Bethesda to Branch Avenue (about 10 miles straight under Washington DC), had a few fun minutes scraping frozen rain off the car windows, and driving home.
There WAS a slight scare. My "low tire inflation" light came on 7 miles from home. Thankfully, I had no problems, but I sure with bring the air pump into the garage later today to make sure all the tires are inflated properly. Could be a problem though. I had the car at the dealership for regular maintenence last Thursday, and I thought tire pressure was one of the things they checked. Not that I don't know how the check it myself, but since I thought THEY just had, I didn't bother before going out on (what was to ME) a major trip.
Now for some pictures (and you thought there wouldn't be any LOL after all these words)...
I take a picture...
Teri takes a picture with my camera...
Group picture by the Wonderful Waitress...
All the Flat Cats (see The Mews tiny in the front?).
Cat swag...
Me swag...
I haven't had a BETTER day in years. Glad I braved the weather...
Leaving the animals of the house to fend for themselves, off I went on an ADVENTURE. And none like I had ever done before. THIS adventure was to meet with a tribe of CATWOMEN, partake of their strange rituals, talking ceremonies, and eat unaccustomed foods. I myself chose a strange meal of burned bread, tomato, and crisped bacon. It was so thick, I could barely open me mouth widely enow to bite on it. But it WAS raucously fare vittle!
The first part of the adventure was getting to the ship. Amazingly, there was snow, sleet, and freezing rain. It was a hard slog, mateys! Snow beat hard on the mainsails and the nearly came to brittle freezing... Lost a few good men there on the upper sails I did.
Fortunately, there was some underground traveling through tunnels. Dark they were and we met some strange travellers along the way. Eventually, we surfaced through the dark. The longest staircase I ever saw in me life appeared before me. To my relief, the STAIRCASE itself moved me upwards (the crew stayed behind and ya will hear no more of them as they was all eaten by dinosaurs or somethin else happened ta them, but don't worry about them). The staircase called "The Bethesda Escalator" took hours. Verily, a "stairway to heaven". Or so I thought. It landed me in "a parking garage"...
In discussion with some natives, I found an entranceway ta the HUGE building above the cavernous passageway, and entered cautiously. The room was FILLED with obsequious servents. I inquired of one where there might be the designated "lobby" wherein I might meet the fabled Catwomen, but all the poor wretch could do was point around the very room I be standing on...
So I explored around a bit and noticed a room with the name Daily Grill. That WAS the place we would be to eating in later, so I inquired about the foodstuffs offered therein. Fine stuff; serious meats variously cooked for the men-types, and daintier foods fer the wenches (er Catwomen).
I happened ta mention I was there fer a meetin with the Catwomen, and the servent there said my name out loud. I was shocked! Apperently, the Sisterhood of the Catwomen was already gathered inside! And I had arrived EARLY to scout out the place first. A sad day when a scouter arrives last...
I immediately made my acquiantance to them all and I tell you, it was such a fine greeting from all. I knew them all by reputation, of course, and they me. It was a grand round of hugs all. I haven't been hugged like that much if a decade! It did me good. I immediately cast off the "viscious winter coat" and sat meself down at the table, happier than a lost kitten finding his littermates.
OK, enough of that, LOL!
I found the ladies and was glad it wasn't difficult. I had had visions of walking around the hotel carrying the Flat Mews overhead hoping that someone somewhere would recognize what they were.
We had a wonderful lunch, sparkling conversation, discussions about cat-blogging, some sharing of personal thoughts about "the universe and everything", memories of "cats-who-came-before", and (as the King of Siam said in Anna And The King of Siam), "etc, etc, etc.
I was astonished at the Flat Cats in attendance. I had made a quick version of The Mews (best picture I could find that I printed on cardstock glued to cardboard) the night before (thinking it was pretty good), but you wouldn't believe THEM! Three times as big, and not a bad cut edge in the bunch. I gotta work on that, and I learned a lot just by seeing the Good ones (ALL the others). But they all admired the poorly done Mews annyway. Talk about "kind"...
We had a GREAT waitress! Maybe it was a "tiny" bit because it was a really slow day (bad weather and the local Pro football team having a home game), but she really liked us! We found out at the end of the meal that she had supported feral cats at her previous house and really liked that we were all "cat-people". She even used all our cameras to take group pictures!
Memo to self, check Bethesda Hyatt Regency Daily Grill site and see if there is an "I love This Server" option...
And we gave her a 33% tip...
Now, I have to say that I am really inexperienced at meeting new people in groups after so many years living by myself. There were Gifts. I didn't bring any... Dang, and I "considered" at least bringing fresh Nip leafs for the kitties and Truffles for the ladies. I decided "it was just lunch". And Ayla even told me to bring some things. I SHOULD have listened to her...
Well, you live and learn.
But all good things must come to an end. We had to part eventually, after a great lunch and great conversation. I had a WONDERFUL time, more than well-worth the trip in the bad weather. I got on the MetroRail, had an easy trip from Bethesda to Branch Avenue (about 10 miles straight under Washington DC), had a few fun minutes scraping frozen rain off the car windows, and driving home.
There WAS a slight scare. My "low tire inflation" light came on 7 miles from home. Thankfully, I had no problems, but I sure with bring the air pump into the garage later today to make sure all the tires are inflated properly. Could be a problem though. I had the car at the dealership for regular maintenence last Thursday, and I thought tire pressure was one of the things they checked. Not that I don't know how the check it myself, but since I thought THEY just had, I didn't bother before going out on (what was to ME) a major trip.
Now for some pictures (and you thought there wouldn't be any LOL after all these words)...
I take a picture...
Sunday, December 8, 2013
Political Season
Just a note to say that, as the 2014 political season develops, I will be getting more political here on this blog. I hope you all will put up with it (and especially not blame the cats at THEIR blog).
I am an unabashed Progressive (former Progressive Republican until purged in the "Reagan Revolution". Relatively non-ideological "what works, works", mostly looking for what helps construct a financially-healthy middle-class (with upward mobility to all, but reasonable rewards for abilty and effort), and some balance on top incomes for the basic benefit of society.
In other words, I regret that TODAY'S Republicans are trying to eliminate the middle class, destroy fair voting, and suborn the functionality of general governance.
I don't say that lightly. I majored in Political Science and specialized in Political Behavioralism (essentially Political Psychology; why voters vote as they do and why politicians act as they do).
So, part of me hopes certain politicians with certain stated goals will win; part of me realizes that those stated goals will not entirely determine the election results; and part of me sees the deeper crass strategies, lies, and dirty tricks that have nothing to do with truth and reality.
I'll be discussing all of those as the 2014 election develops.
Today's observation? The establishment House Republicans have refused to act on any legislation for the last few months and won't until late February 2014...
Due to highly partisan re-districting (changing the borders of House districts to assure a majority for one party Gerrymandering), the House of Representatives will stay Republican for several election cycles (The Senate is not subject to "Gerrymandering" because State borders are not changeable as in-State House Districts are). So the "safe" Republicans House Districts mean that the winner of the party primary is nearly always the winner of the general election in November. And THAT means that the only danger to a Republican House Member is from a more conservative challenger in the party primary election.
The incumbent Representatives don't want that kind of primary challenge, of course. So they are playing a waiting game right now. The deadlines for primary challenges will end in January/February in most places. So if the incumbents actively do NOTHING for several months now to avoid a more conservative primary challenge, they are home free in November for another 2 years.
So... When the House Republicans do nothing NOW, they aren't upsetting the more conservative base and encouraging a primary challenge.
Look for establishment Republicans to become more active and (slightly) less partisan starting in March when they are free of Tea Party party Primary challenges...
Now aren't you glad you majored in something less weird? Like engineering or 14th century French poetry? In politics, what they SAY never matters. Its WHY they say it. Words within wheels around goals, surrounded by campaign funding!
I'll try to explain most of what goes on as the election cycle progresses.
I am an unabashed Progressive (former Progressive Republican until purged in the "Reagan Revolution". Relatively non-ideological "what works, works", mostly looking for what helps construct a financially-healthy middle-class (with upward mobility to all, but reasonable rewards for abilty and effort), and some balance on top incomes for the basic benefit of society.
In other words, I regret that TODAY'S Republicans are trying to eliminate the middle class, destroy fair voting, and suborn the functionality of general governance.
I don't say that lightly. I majored in Political Science and specialized in Political Behavioralism (essentially Political Psychology; why voters vote as they do and why politicians act as they do).
So, part of me hopes certain politicians with certain stated goals will win; part of me realizes that those stated goals will not entirely determine the election results; and part of me sees the deeper crass strategies, lies, and dirty tricks that have nothing to do with truth and reality.
I'll be discussing all of those as the 2014 election develops.
Today's observation? The establishment House Republicans have refused to act on any legislation for the last few months and won't until late February 2014...
Due to highly partisan re-districting (changing the borders of House districts to assure a majority for one party Gerrymandering), the House of Representatives will stay Republican for several election cycles (The Senate is not subject to "Gerrymandering" because State borders are not changeable as in-State House Districts are). So the "safe" Republicans House Districts mean that the winner of the party primary is nearly always the winner of the general election in November. And THAT means that the only danger to a Republican House Member is from a more conservative challenger in the party primary election.
The incumbent Representatives don't want that kind of primary challenge, of course. So they are playing a waiting game right now. The deadlines for primary challenges will end in January/February in most places. So if the incumbents actively do NOTHING for several months now to avoid a more conservative primary challenge, they are home free in November for another 2 years.
So... When the House Republicans do nothing NOW, they aren't upsetting the more conservative base and encouraging a primary challenge.
Look for establishment Republicans to become more active and (slightly) less partisan starting in March when they are free of Tea Party party Primary challenges...
Now aren't you glad you majored in something less weird? Like engineering or 14th century French poetry? In politics, what they SAY never matters. Its WHY they say it. Words within wheels around goals, surrounded by campaign funding!
I'll try to explain most of what goes on as the election cycle progresses.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Car Troubles Resolved, Sort Of...
Well, as I expected, the dealership found no problems with the battery OR the charging system. They also said their tests showed no "parasitic battery draw". I guess that means they found no short-circuit using up the battery. I thought it HAD to be one or the other, but those folks always know SOME way to explain problems away non-professionals won't think of.
I don't drive enough! They swear! They say I do only local errands and that I'm just NOT driving it often enough. I sure hadn't expected THAT as a cause, but they MAY be right. Its a 2005 car and I've only driven it 23,300 miles. And fewer than 2,000 miles/year the last few years.
Basically, (they say) I am draining the battery through starting it several times in short errands and not driving it long enough to recharge the battery. They suggested several ways to prevent similar future problems (several of them idiotic from my point of view).
1. I could just drive the car to nowhere and back twice a week for at least 15 minutes.
2. I could leave the car idling in the driveway 15 minutes twice a week.
3. I could drive longer routes to my errands.
Do those also seem idiotic to you?
4. They suggest I slap on a battery charger in "trickle mode". That means recharging the battery after the usual short multi-stop errand trips and giving the battery a slow auto-shut-off charging. But that means that twice a week, I need to find the hood opening lever in the car, prop the hood up, attach the charger to the battery, and then undo all that each time I want to use the car. For the life of the car (which, quite frankly, I expect to last 20 years at the rate I use it).
Doesn't THAT seem a bit idiotic to you also?
What I NEED is a plug-in car. Oh wait, that's called a hybrid. And I expect that is what I really need. An electric usage for the usual very local errand-shopping where I can just plug it in each time after use; and a gas engine for the longer 2 hour trips to family events and or towing the boat on 1 hour fishing trips.
Lifestyle choices do cause some specific demands. But (and mine are admittedly not the routine car-usage demands), one has to adapt equipment to them. I love my Toyota Highlander, but it WILL be 10 years old next year. And I've read that the Highlander Hybrid will be redesigned and improved next year. It may be time to replace it then. I can deal with a weekly routine of keeping the battery charged up properly for a year I guess. Not happily, but I'll consider it something like getting routine haircuts, brushing teeth, cleaning house, etc, until then.
But I'm still ticked off about the entire situation...
AND: To 'Sometimes Cats Herd You', thanks for the url to the neat gadget that cuts off battery drain. It COULD have solved me problem if there was a short (apparently, not the problem). I'm going to get it anyway "just in case" that solves the problem. I'm also looking for some battery charger I can just plug into the cigarette lighter to make trickle charging easier as a backup.
I don't drive enough! They swear! They say I do only local errands and that I'm just NOT driving it often enough. I sure hadn't expected THAT as a cause, but they MAY be right. Its a 2005 car and I've only driven it 23,300 miles. And fewer than 2,000 miles/year the last few years.
Basically, (they say) I am draining the battery through starting it several times in short errands and not driving it long enough to recharge the battery. They suggested several ways to prevent similar future problems (several of them idiotic from my point of view).
1. I could just drive the car to nowhere and back twice a week for at least 15 minutes.
2. I could leave the car idling in the driveway 15 minutes twice a week.
3. I could drive longer routes to my errands.
Do those also seem idiotic to you?
4. They suggest I slap on a battery charger in "trickle mode". That means recharging the battery after the usual short multi-stop errand trips and giving the battery a slow auto-shut-off charging. But that means that twice a week, I need to find the hood opening lever in the car, prop the hood up, attach the charger to the battery, and then undo all that each time I want to use the car. For the life of the car (which, quite frankly, I expect to last 20 years at the rate I use it).
Doesn't THAT seem a bit idiotic to you also?
What I NEED is a plug-in car. Oh wait, that's called a hybrid. And I expect that is what I really need. An electric usage for the usual very local errand-shopping where I can just plug it in each time after use; and a gas engine for the longer 2 hour trips to family events and or towing the boat on 1 hour fishing trips.
Lifestyle choices do cause some specific demands. But (and mine are admittedly not the routine car-usage demands), one has to adapt equipment to them. I love my Toyota Highlander, but it WILL be 10 years old next year. And I've read that the Highlander Hybrid will be redesigned and improved next year. It may be time to replace it then. I can deal with a weekly routine of keeping the battery charged up properly for a year I guess. Not happily, but I'll consider it something like getting routine haircuts, brushing teeth, cleaning house, etc, until then.
But I'm still ticked off about the entire situation...
AND: To 'Sometimes Cats Herd You', thanks for the url to the neat gadget that cuts off battery drain. It COULD have solved me problem if there was a short (apparently, not the problem). I'm going to get it anyway "just in case" that solves the problem. I'm also looking for some battery charger I can just plug into the cigarette lighter to make trickle charging easier as a backup.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Car Troubles
I'm getting tired of the battery problems! For the past 2 years, the battery will simply and suddenly go dead. OK, twice I left the back hatch up overnight, and once the regular door wasn't firmly closed. Last year it happened several other times for no reason and I had the battery replaced even though the dealer said it was OK and I had no problems until this August.
Then it happened several times again for no reason and they checked it again finding no problem. I started keeping a boat battery in the car. Now it has happened again 3 times in 2 weeks. But it's always when its been sitting in the garage for 2-5 days! A battery shouldn't discharge sitting in a garage for that short a time.
I usually need to go somewhere immediately, so I've previously jump-started it from the boat battery. Yesterday I put my good battery-charger on it. The charger as a display that shows the percent recharged. It started at 13% and got up to 70% in a few hours. And it stayed there for the next several hours!
I turned it off overnight and started charging it again this morning. It was down to 50% already! And it stayed there. There HAS to be something wrong with the battery. OR something wrong with the charging system. Yet it seems to charge up when I drive it, because I never have a problem starting the car after a shopping trip. I drove the car to the dealer today for a battery check and a charging system diagnosis. I'll bet both check out OK.
I FEAR there is an intermittent short causing the battery to discharge. Those are miserably difficult to find! I KNOW I'm not leaving a door ajar, because for months, I've been standing there until the interior lights go out, showing that everything is shut tight.
Well, I should find out something tomorrow when the dealer calls.
Then it happened several times again for no reason and they checked it again finding no problem. I started keeping a boat battery in the car. Now it has happened again 3 times in 2 weeks. But it's always when its been sitting in the garage for 2-5 days! A battery shouldn't discharge sitting in a garage for that short a time.
I usually need to go somewhere immediately, so I've previously jump-started it from the boat battery. Yesterday I put my good battery-charger on it. The charger as a display that shows the percent recharged. It started at 13% and got up to 70% in a few hours. And it stayed there for the next several hours!
I turned it off overnight and started charging it again this morning. It was down to 50% already! And it stayed there. There HAS to be something wrong with the battery. OR something wrong with the charging system. Yet it seems to charge up when I drive it, because I never have a problem starting the car after a shopping trip. I drove the car to the dealer today for a battery check and a charging system diagnosis. I'll bet both check out OK.
I FEAR there is an intermittent short causing the battery to discharge. Those are miserably difficult to find! I KNOW I'm not leaving a door ajar, because for months, I've been standing there until the interior lights go out, showing that everything is shut tight.
Well, I should find out something tomorrow when the dealer calls.
Monday, December 2, 2013
Movie Thoughts
I sometimes talk about awkward subjects (more often in the past then lately). Things that might upset some people. So recent readers may be a bit surprised at this.
I don't watch many movies and the ones I do are usually old. Not OLD old like 'Wizard Of Oz' but not "new" like the newest movies on HBO. I watched 'Red Dawn' (1984, I think) tonight. Well, sometimes the nature and science CDs start to feel repetitive, you know?
The movie is about WWIII when some collection of Soviet-based countries decide to attack the US in the "near future" *hey it was 1984 at the time of the movie*. It had a decent explanation, not about the reasons, but about the methods. Some Coloradans decide to fight back.
So some older teenagers/young adults were away from home hunting in the countryside when the attack hit. With typical hollywood bravado and skill, they fought back. They got better at it with experience.
No deaths were glorified (much), some of it was difficult, some was sad. A person had to kill his brother after a betrayal; a young mortally-wounded woman saved her last grenade to take an enemy soldier with her; a sacrifice was made for honor... One of the best things about 'Red Dawn' was that it ended ambiguously; no resolution to the war is provided.
What struck me was the practical lethality. And this is what causing me to write about this tonight. And let me state upfront that I was never a soldier and never had to face that choice of killing another human being. But if there is something abhorrent about killing someone who is trying to kill you for no really good reason, I don't know it.
The deaths were mostly long-distance rifles and machine-guns and anonymous. Bombs set off at distances, grenades dropped into tanks, simple ambushes.
I do not like death. I stopped hunting deer when I killed a lactating doe with an arrow, realizing that there must be a fawn somewhere that would die of starvation slowly. I cried about that. I cry when I read of a cat who dies, even though all such deaths are inevitable. I weep for the innocent...
But I just can't feel the same for those who attack other people. One of the lines in the movie was something like Enemy: "Why are you killing us"; and the response from the US partisan was "Because this land is mine". I understand THAT!
Killing in that situation wouldn't cause a single tear from MY eyes... I wouldn't know the enemy's family (or beloved cats). My conclusion after watching the movie was "I could do that easily".
Having said that, I am taking some time to decide whether or not to post this. 8:56 pm Post or not, hmmm... Could be a lot of objections; could be angry responses from veterans who say I don't know what killing a person is like; could be angry replies from anti-hunting people. I'll think on it a few hours...
OK post it. I'll be interested in the responses, if any.
I don't watch many movies and the ones I do are usually old. Not OLD old like 'Wizard Of Oz' but not "new" like the newest movies on HBO. I watched 'Red Dawn' (1984, I think) tonight. Well, sometimes the nature and science CDs start to feel repetitive, you know?
The movie is about WWIII when some collection of Soviet-based countries decide to attack the US in the "near future" *hey it was 1984 at the time of the movie*. It had a decent explanation, not about the reasons, but about the methods. Some Coloradans decide to fight back.
So some older teenagers/young adults were away from home hunting in the countryside when the attack hit. With typical hollywood bravado and skill, they fought back. They got better at it with experience.
No deaths were glorified (much), some of it was difficult, some was sad. A person had to kill his brother after a betrayal; a young mortally-wounded woman saved her last grenade to take an enemy soldier with her; a sacrifice was made for honor... One of the best things about 'Red Dawn' was that it ended ambiguously; no resolution to the war is provided.
What struck me was the practical lethality. And this is what causing me to write about this tonight. And let me state upfront that I was never a soldier and never had to face that choice of killing another human being. But if there is something abhorrent about killing someone who is trying to kill you for no really good reason, I don't know it.
The deaths were mostly long-distance rifles and machine-guns and anonymous. Bombs set off at distances, grenades dropped into tanks, simple ambushes.
I do not like death. I stopped hunting deer when I killed a lactating doe with an arrow, realizing that there must be a fawn somewhere that would die of starvation slowly. I cried about that. I cry when I read of a cat who dies, even though all such deaths are inevitable. I weep for the innocent...
But I just can't feel the same for those who attack other people. One of the lines in the movie was something like Enemy: "Why are you killing us"; and the response from the US partisan was "Because this land is mine". I understand THAT!
Killing in that situation wouldn't cause a single tear from MY eyes... I wouldn't know the enemy's family (or beloved cats). My conclusion after watching the movie was "I could do that easily".
Having said that, I am taking some time to decide whether or not to post this. 8:56 pm Post or not, hmmm... Could be a lot of objections; could be angry responses from veterans who say I don't know what killing a person is like; could be angry replies from anti-hunting people. I'll think on it a few hours...
OK post it. I'll be interested in the responses, if any.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
An Unusually Productive Day
I have to admit, most days are spent preparing lunch and eating it while reading the newspaper, doing general daily things (blogging and helping the cats visit their friends' blogs, cleaning litter boxes, letting the cats in and out, playing with them, watching science/nature/politic news... I do a few errands once per week (groceries, hardware, and odds&ends). At this time of year, there is nothing to be done in the garden. I often sleep late ( a pleasure earned by retirement - I got up at 5 AM and returned home at 6 PM for 35 years, so I plan to sleep late for 35 years to catch up) .
So today was a good day. I was up an hour early, ate lunch faster than usual and took a look at the basement. Oh boy, there's a year's worth of work. But I got a good start on it...
First, I collected all the plastic 6-packs I grow plants from seeds in, filled up the laundry tub, added some bleach, and set them all in to soak old dirt loose for 4 hours. All the damaged ones went into a bag for disposal or recycling.
Second, took the two 35 pound tubs of new kitty litter and divided them among 7 smaller 12 pound plastic containers from a previous brand (easier to pour from).
Third, my car battery dies randomly every few months (dealer says the battery is good and I must be leaving a door slightly unlatched to keep the internal lights on. *I* say I have learned to watch the car EVERY TIME until the internal lights go out AND I check every door every time) - but I can't PROVE that). So I keep a marine battery in the back of the car. I used it yesterday, so I recharged it.
Fourth, had some caladium bulbs in planters and they needed to be removed from soil and dried out in cool (but above 50 degree temps). I have more of them in lager planters I brought into the basement, but they need to dry out more. Washed soil off the saved ones and set them to dry.
Fifth, shook the soil out of the soaked plastic planting cells in the laundry tub, rinsed them carefully, and stacked them up in rotation to dry over a heavy towel on the top of the washing machine. Next laundry day is 10 days, so they will be thoroughly dried to be stack together tightly for storage until January (when the whole planting season starts again - cant wait).
Sixth, collected all used dry potting soil into a big trash barrel for use with established houseplants and transplanted vegetables.
Studied the whole-house humidifier again. It seems too dry in the bedroom at night. I don't get static shocks like I once did (there was a time when I could get the fluorescent lamp on my headboard to glow when I touched it and stroking cat fur caused sparks). But I'm on my 2nd humidifier. The first was a sponge drum that rotated through a water tray and worked great. But it (grungily) fell apart after 3 years. But it worked great, (45% humidity) The current one drips water down a honeycomb panel and isn't worth a bowl of water on a heating vent for 3 years. The highest relative humidity I can get with this one is 25%. I need to get a drum-type again. But the opening to the airflow it wants is leess than the current one, so I need to srew some sheet metal over the existing opening and then cut it to size. It would be nice if there were standard sizes for those things.
Seventh, pumped up bicycle tires, wheelbarrow tires, mower tires, and handtruck tires. I have an air compressor, but the darn thing is too big to move around conventiently. I only use that on the car tires and I've never used it as intended. with impact wrenches and spay painting. Sad.
Eighth, swept most of the basement floor. I hate the noise of the shop-vac. Plus it tends to sucky-stick flat on the cement floor. I tried to epoxy some 1/8" wood spacers under the wide nozzle corners once but it didn't work. Must try a new way.
Ninth, took off the sprayer on the watering tripod I made a few years ago. The round spray doesn't allow as mush water as a different kind I have (more horizontal) that works better for my flowerbeds. Measured the size hold-down clamps I needed. Have a good list of stuff I need from Home Depot.
I decided that was enough for one day...
So today was a good day. I was up an hour early, ate lunch faster than usual and took a look at the basement. Oh boy, there's a year's worth of work. But I got a good start on it...
First, I collected all the plastic 6-packs I grow plants from seeds in, filled up the laundry tub, added some bleach, and set them all in to soak old dirt loose for 4 hours. All the damaged ones went into a bag for disposal or recycling.
Second, took the two 35 pound tubs of new kitty litter and divided them among 7 smaller 12 pound plastic containers from a previous brand (easier to pour from).
Third, my car battery dies randomly every few months (dealer says the battery is good and I must be leaving a door slightly unlatched to keep the internal lights on. *I* say I have learned to watch the car EVERY TIME until the internal lights go out AND I check every door every time) - but I can't PROVE that). So I keep a marine battery in the back of the car. I used it yesterday, so I recharged it.
Fourth, had some caladium bulbs in planters and they needed to be removed from soil and dried out in cool (but above 50 degree temps). I have more of them in lager planters I brought into the basement, but they need to dry out more. Washed soil off the saved ones and set them to dry.
Fifth, shook the soil out of the soaked plastic planting cells in the laundry tub, rinsed them carefully, and stacked them up in rotation to dry over a heavy towel on the top of the washing machine. Next laundry day is 10 days, so they will be thoroughly dried to be stack together tightly for storage until January (when the whole planting season starts again - cant wait).
Sixth, collected all used dry potting soil into a big trash barrel for use with established houseplants and transplanted vegetables.
Studied the whole-house humidifier again. It seems too dry in the bedroom at night. I don't get static shocks like I once did (there was a time when I could get the fluorescent lamp on my headboard to glow when I touched it and stroking cat fur caused sparks). But I'm on my 2nd humidifier. The first was a sponge drum that rotated through a water tray and worked great. But it (grungily) fell apart after 3 years. But it worked great, (45% humidity) The current one drips water down a honeycomb panel and isn't worth a bowl of water on a heating vent for 3 years. The highest relative humidity I can get with this one is 25%. I need to get a drum-type again. But the opening to the airflow it wants is leess than the current one, so I need to srew some sheet metal over the existing opening and then cut it to size. It would be nice if there were standard sizes for those things.
Seventh, pumped up bicycle tires, wheelbarrow tires, mower tires, and handtruck tires. I have an air compressor, but the darn thing is too big to move around conventiently. I only use that on the car tires and I've never used it as intended. with impact wrenches and spay painting. Sad.
Eighth, swept most of the basement floor. I hate the noise of the shop-vac. Plus it tends to sucky-stick flat on the cement floor. I tried to epoxy some 1/8" wood spacers under the wide nozzle corners once but it didn't work. Must try a new way.
Ninth, took off the sprayer on the watering tripod I made a few years ago. The round spray doesn't allow as mush water as a different kind I have (more horizontal) that works better for my flowerbeds. Measured the size hold-down clamps I needed. Have a good list of stuff I need from Home Depot.
I decided that was enough for one day...
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Remembering John F Kennedy
I spent all of Friday watching specials on TV. And I was still too worked up to write yesterday. On this 50th anniversary of his assassination, maybe I'm ready... I'll try...
I was 13 when JFK was killed in Dallas. Home life was good, private life was good (as good as it could be for a 13 yer old boy trying to "figure out things").
But, as they say, everyone of a certain age remembers that day. I do too, generally.
But what struck me as I watched the various TV shows detailing the events, I do not remember them as accurately as I thought. Over 50 years, some recollections are just plain wrong and some are "iffy" at best.
The major details are accurate, the ones we all know from history. Date, time, place, shooter, etc. But my specific personal recollections are in doubt. Things that I thought were factual, aren't (and I'm not talking about conspiracy theories here.
I have the clearest recollection of looking at the school "public address" (PA) box at the top of the cinder block wall above the teacher suddenly announcing that the President had been shot and killed in Dallas Texas. The PA box was light wood colored, square with rounded corners, black cloth behind a open wooden grid. It was angled slightly downward. We were told that those of us who walked or rode our bikes to school should immediately return home. Those who took busses should line up at our usual spots and wait for the buses to arrive.
I rode a bike to school, so I went straight home.
And yet, my memory has the time and location wrong in some way. In November 1963, I lived in Maryland. When my memory looks out the classroom windows when I hear the announcement, I am seeing the previous year-before Virginia school I attended then (we moved around every few years). I can't have been in Virginia in November 1963.
And the time is wrong. My memory says we got the announcement just after lunch, about 12:30. That was Eastern Time. That isn't possible. JFK died at 1 PM Central Time, 2 PM Eastern Time. It took a while to get the news spread, and the school administrators could not have reacted immediately (needing to arrange buses, plan students leaving, etc). It had to be at least 3 PM before the announcement came over the PA system.
That's a shock to my memory. Wrong place, wrong time.
The other memory problem is that I recall being at my grandparants house watching the funerial ceremonies for several days. The memories are VERY clear. My gramma was crying, my grampa was watching intently (but not crying), my dad was not very interested (at least not watching the small TV).
But wait, how did I get from Maryland to New England? I'm not sure I was really there. Would my parents have taken me out of school to go watch the funeral services in New England? That was a very serious trip in 1963! But the personal memories are SO strong. Maybe we did go to New England for family grieving. But how can I know?
Gramma and Grampa are long gone, Mom is dead, Dad can't remember where he lived last year. I'm the eldest child; my younger siblings can't know (at 11 and 7). Its not like there are any records I can check now. My parents never kept a journal of events. The only thing I have are old photographs and no photos I have show anything about that time at home or on travel.
I have clear memories of there being nothing on TV for several days except JFK's death and funeral march. That has to come from somewhere, but whether from Maryland or New England, I cannot tell.
It bothers me greatly that I can't determine the accuracy of my memories of the events then. Some MUST be false, some MAY be false, some are accurate. But there comes a time when you can't know which are which.
And I don't mean to say that my memory is failing exactly. Its more that the ongoing historical shows over the years have caused some "adjustments" to my memories. I do understand how that works. But it is sad to see the proof of that the past few days. It is a shock to me.
And one of the TV shows about JFK's death was about personal recollections of "Where You Were". I have to wonder about the accuracy of THEIR recollections. Some of them were my age or younger.
I DO know that, even at age 13, I knew something horrible had happened and that history had changed (I was big into history at a young age and also reading alternate universe fiction). JFK's death probably had some major part of why I studied "Government and Politics" in college.
Its odd to think that, had Oswald missed his target, I might have majored in history and had an entirely different career. But I was considering mechanical engineering too. Maybe I'd be designing a Tesla car today...
Maybe JFK is why I love alternate history stories. Just think of a world where he wasn't killed and a story starts "The visit to Dallas was a great success, won him Texas, and led to the second Kennedy term..."
But I'm wandering. JFK's assassination was a major event in my young life that has had serious repercussions through the years, and I have found I misremember parts of those personal recollections. It's disturbing, possible inevitable, and maybe important or not.
Are YOUR memories of the event (should you be of that age) as accurate as you think they are?
I was 13 when JFK was killed in Dallas. Home life was good, private life was good (as good as it could be for a 13 yer old boy trying to "figure out things").
But, as they say, everyone of a certain age remembers that day. I do too, generally.
But what struck me as I watched the various TV shows detailing the events, I do not remember them as accurately as I thought. Over 50 years, some recollections are just plain wrong and some are "iffy" at best.
The major details are accurate, the ones we all know from history. Date, time, place, shooter, etc. But my specific personal recollections are in doubt. Things that I thought were factual, aren't (and I'm not talking about conspiracy theories here.
I have the clearest recollection of looking at the school "public address" (PA) box at the top of the cinder block wall above the teacher suddenly announcing that the President had been shot and killed in Dallas Texas. The PA box was light wood colored, square with rounded corners, black cloth behind a open wooden grid. It was angled slightly downward. We were told that those of us who walked or rode our bikes to school should immediately return home. Those who took busses should line up at our usual spots and wait for the buses to arrive.
I rode a bike to school, so I went straight home.
And yet, my memory has the time and location wrong in some way. In November 1963, I lived in Maryland. When my memory looks out the classroom windows when I hear the announcement, I am seeing the previous year-before Virginia school I attended then (we moved around every few years). I can't have been in Virginia in November 1963.
And the time is wrong. My memory says we got the announcement just after lunch, about 12:30. That was Eastern Time. That isn't possible. JFK died at 1 PM Central Time, 2 PM Eastern Time. It took a while to get the news spread, and the school administrators could not have reacted immediately (needing to arrange buses, plan students leaving, etc). It had to be at least 3 PM before the announcement came over the PA system.
That's a shock to my memory. Wrong place, wrong time.
The other memory problem is that I recall being at my grandparants house watching the funerial ceremonies for several days. The memories are VERY clear. My gramma was crying, my grampa was watching intently (but not crying), my dad was not very interested (at least not watching the small TV).
But wait, how did I get from Maryland to New England? I'm not sure I was really there. Would my parents have taken me out of school to go watch the funeral services in New England? That was a very serious trip in 1963! But the personal memories are SO strong. Maybe we did go to New England for family grieving. But how can I know?
Gramma and Grampa are long gone, Mom is dead, Dad can't remember where he lived last year. I'm the eldest child; my younger siblings can't know (at 11 and 7). Its not like there are any records I can check now. My parents never kept a journal of events. The only thing I have are old photographs and no photos I have show anything about that time at home or on travel.
I have clear memories of there being nothing on TV for several days except JFK's death and funeral march. That has to come from somewhere, but whether from Maryland or New England, I cannot tell.
It bothers me greatly that I can't determine the accuracy of my memories of the events then. Some MUST be false, some MAY be false, some are accurate. But there comes a time when you can't know which are which.
And I don't mean to say that my memory is failing exactly. Its more that the ongoing historical shows over the years have caused some "adjustments" to my memories. I do understand how that works. But it is sad to see the proof of that the past few days. It is a shock to me.
And one of the TV shows about JFK's death was about personal recollections of "Where You Were". I have to wonder about the accuracy of THEIR recollections. Some of them were my age or younger.
I DO know that, even at age 13, I knew something horrible had happened and that history had changed (I was big into history at a young age and also reading alternate universe fiction). JFK's death probably had some major part of why I studied "Government and Politics" in college.
Its odd to think that, had Oswald missed his target, I might have majored in history and had an entirely different career. But I was considering mechanical engineering too. Maybe I'd be designing a Tesla car today...
Maybe JFK is why I love alternate history stories. Just think of a world where he wasn't killed and a story starts "The visit to Dallas was a great success, won him Texas, and led to the second Kennedy term..."
But I'm wandering. JFK's assassination was a major event in my young life that has had serious repercussions through the years, and I have found I misremember parts of those personal recollections. It's disturbing, possible inevitable, and maybe important or not.
Are YOUR memories of the event (should you be of that age) as accurate as you think they are?
Monday, November 18, 2013
Suddenness
Wow, the "10% chance of rain tonight suddenly became pounding on the window!
And I MEAN "suddenly". And "pounding". From nothing it went from not raining to nearly beating the windows in! Weird!
And I MEAN "suddenly". And "pounding". From nothing it went from not raining to nearly beating the windows in! Weird!
Monday, November 11, 2013
Computer Room Rearrangement
After falling over in the chair slipping off the plywood base onto the carpet, I decided to rearrange things.
First rule, make the newer Mac computer table and the older PC be in swivel-range of the computer chair! without getting the chair wheels on the carpet.
1. Move the 4-drawer file cabinet out of the way.
2. Move the stored folding chairs out of the way to another room.
3. Move the old PC table into the way.
I'm glad I have a hand-truck. That allowed we to move the heavy file cabinet awy from the current spot. Keep in mind that I was moving stuff around IN the room, so space was tight.
I moved the 4 drawer file cabinet out of the way. Then I vacuumed that spot. Hint: Rub/Twist your shoes over the spots where the carpet is crushed down and it raises the pile back up rather well.
Vaccuumed that spot again with the vaccuum-brusher on. Can hardly see the impressions of the file cabinet. Connected a multi-plug outlet to the unused battery back-up plug fr the Mac. Stuffed the wire into the the edge of the carpet to keep from tripping on it. C0nnected that to another surge supressor to add protection AND reach the new PC table.
I know have the Mac and the old PC set up on tables so that all I need to do is swivel in he chair on the same base. The least likely thing was that my 4'x4' plywood base would work for both the Mac and PC computer tables but it has.
The old big file cabinet and the chairs used to be opposite my Mac. The chairs are now in the cat room (they like to walk on the tops of the chairs) . The big file cabinet is now next to the door. The little file cabinet is now next to the PC for the boom box to sit on (and the spacing of the little 2 drawer file cabinet next to the wall with the card table with the PC means that both computers are exactly opposite.
I think I'm pretty safe from the chair tipping over when it hits the carpet now. I should have done this before. It wasn't the chair's fault that it tipped. It was that the small wheels were hitting carpet becausr my Mac and PC tables were not aligned.
"Its a poor mechanic who blames his tools". I was wrong to blame the chair. But when you make mistakes, you just figure out the problem and fix them. So I've fixed it.
The "fix" was to get the computers connected in chair support base and that I could just swivel 180 from Mac to PC..
Pictures...
Note the new unclawed chair! It "only" took an hour to assemble. The second arm took half the time because the hole in the arm didn't match up to the hole in the back. I had to loosen almost all the screws in the bottom to give "just enough" slack to get it finished. Instructions on everything is awful...
And now that I moved the tall file cabinet to the doorway, I need to decorate it it in some way. Suggestions? I'm thinking "flatcats", but I'm not locked into that. A fancy towel might be good, or a poster. Or other...
First rule, make the newer Mac computer table and the older PC be in swivel-range of the computer chair! without getting the chair wheels on the carpet.
1. Move the 4-drawer file cabinet out of the way.
2. Move the stored folding chairs out of the way to another room.
3. Move the old PC table into the way.
I'm glad I have a hand-truck. That allowed we to move the heavy file cabinet awy from the current spot. Keep in mind that I was moving stuff around IN the room, so space was tight.
I moved the 4 drawer file cabinet out of the way. Then I vacuumed that spot. Hint: Rub/Twist your shoes over the spots where the carpet is crushed down and it raises the pile back up rather well.
Vaccuumed that spot again with the vaccuum-brusher on. Can hardly see the impressions of the file cabinet. Connected a multi-plug outlet to the unused battery back-up plug fr the Mac. Stuffed the wire into the the edge of the carpet to keep from tripping on it. C0nnected that to another surge supressor to add protection AND reach the new PC table.
I know have the Mac and the old PC set up on tables so that all I need to do is swivel in he chair on the same base. The least likely thing was that my 4'x4' plywood base would work for both the Mac and PC computer tables but it has.
The old big file cabinet and the chairs used to be opposite my Mac. The chairs are now in the cat room (they like to walk on the tops of the chairs) . The big file cabinet is now next to the door. The little file cabinet is now next to the PC for the boom box to sit on (and the spacing of the little 2 drawer file cabinet next to the wall with the card table with the PC means that both computers are exactly opposite.
I think I'm pretty safe from the chair tipping over when it hits the carpet now. I should have done this before. It wasn't the chair's fault that it tipped. It was that the small wheels were hitting carpet becausr my Mac and PC tables were not aligned.
"Its a poor mechanic who blames his tools". I was wrong to blame the chair. But when you make mistakes, you just figure out the problem and fix them. So I've fixed it.
The "fix" was to get the computers connected in chair support base and that I could just swivel 180 from Mac to PC..
Pictures...
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