One year ago today: September 29, 2013, whatever
happened to Decentral?
Five years ago today: September 29, 2009, immigrate to Mars?
Ten years ago today: September 29, 2004, 1952? Are you sure?
Have you ever heard of Dal Tadka? I thought he was the president of Nigeria. It is a world famous recipe that most of my crowd has never heard of. It’s a dish of spicy lentils, and in my quest for foods without American additives, I tried this. Thinking it was thick soup. It is actually a main vegetarian dish. Like all eastern food, taste it before you add any salt. Over time living in a hot climate, I never did gain a palate for really fiery spices, so this one is pleasantly mild. Try it and tell them I sent you. There is another kind with tomatoes that I’m not crazy about.
Why Nova? Because it would seem they changed the robot meetup from last Thursday to first Tuesday. And it is a good thing I checked the bulletin board for no apparent reason. They did not contact the membership in any other way. That’s the new way to do things—get on a system that sooner or later locks out anybody who doesn’t want it, so they either comply or do without. That’s your real definition of “social media”.
So I may not have missed the September meeting after all. While most other invitations are crappy profile attempts (like I would join a group of random strangers who want to “talk about what is important to them”), there are some laughable spots. Like a group that gets together to write solid computer code, then you find out SOLID is an acronym. Or how to build an “engaging” blog on Wordpress. (Thank you, this blog is infinitely more engaging than 99% of Wordpress and you can check that for yourself.)
I confirmed my attendance, but then, I didn’t even know the last meeting was even cancelled. I posted a snarky comment about how some people change things at the last moment and presume everybody got the memo. And they did so by using a phone that was smarter than they are. And reminded them how often existing services have been canceled under the banner of “innovation” and of how well that process has worked for everyone in the past.
Apps encourage the disorganized to change things at the last moment just because they can. That’s this morning’s clever anecdote, served up with Dal Tadka. Did you know he played soccer in college?
NOON
I’m out real electric service until Wednesday. This means the evening off, maybe I’ll give Trent a call. Remember the playboy bunnies last time around? We'll meet up there, of course. I went on to look at other Meet-up offerings, it is a pity they don’t break the groups down by age and sex. It seems someone is raiding the neighborhood electric panels for the $8 fuses. They replace it with cheaper models so nothing gets noticed right away. And when I say somebody, there is no need to break down that group by age and sex. Just walk across Dixie and see for yourself.
I found another great property for renovation, but it is in the wrong part of town. Or I mean, just on the northern edge right now, but that frontier has been moving northward around ten blocks per year as people flee
EVENING
So, I did some studies on navigational tools and discovered the reason behind GPS. It had it’s origins in the 1910s, when the only way for airplanes to fly across [open] water was a “small armada” of ships placed along the routes with beacons. Another motive was, as I now know, celestial navigation takes time and you don’t have that in fast airplanes and faster spacecraft. Stand by while I learn what there is on the topic and I’ll report back here.
Obviously, the light weight frame. It at this time sits up too high because of the shock absorber coil below the seat post. When that is replaced, the seat will be lower and the front forks will jut forward at 38°.
The battery pack (lithium) is just below the handlebars. This is for the prototype only. The real McCoy is that rear hub, you can see the Tesla motor. Right now, it has seven gears, but at the predicted speeds, three will be plenty (Low, Medium, High). The yellow disk is only on one side of the double tire’d rim. That is not a fat rear tire, it is two regular tires in tandem. If one pops, the bike is fully controllable to a stop on one tire.
If you could see the opposite side of the yellow disk, formerly a stop sign, you’d see a fine and intricate set of home-made spokes and say, “That has robot club written all over it.” The rear fork assembly is custom-made, the front forks are from a Yamaha scooter. The frame is entirely aluminum but the overall weight of the bicycle is, for now, “very heavy”. Most people, including myself, would not be able to pick it up easily. This unit is serious transportation.
As a prototype, this bike in unique, but if it works, chances are the club will step in with better funding. The plan for advertising is to take two of the bikes on a tour up the trail via central Florida. They allow and encourage electric bikes. That rule was made long before they ever saw electric bikes like this. The major problem is the range of the batteries. The bike is designed to run several hundred miles per day, if there is enough power available.
The other event of note was Trent and I meeting up at the ROK-BRGR again, this time to mull over the emergent concept of him playing bass. I've often said I could teach the technique and me on guitar would finally prove that I can do what I've been saying a rhythm guitarist should. The plan, decided over a few drinks of "Purple Haze", a brewed beer with raspberries, is to pick a set of sample tunes we already know. The selection has been faithfully preserved on the computer files here. Watch for some movement in that direction shortly. Like tomorrow, maybe.
