One year ago today: March 27, 2014, reads like a Craigslist rant.
Five years ago today: March 27, 2010, water mystery explained.
Ten years ago today: March 27, 2005, HOW TO
CHEAT AT MINESWEEPER.
Note some of the above links have secondary links. This was still experimental last year, so don't expect them all the time.
MORNING
There it is, the new Toyota Tacoma, with JZ standing behind the full length box. It is pretty fancy, but not as fancy as that beauty of a red scooter parked front. What? Well, hey, this is my blog and I can say things like that. Seriously, the truck seems hardly used, still having that new feel about everything, though it is a used vehicle. That Naples trip is not that far off now.
You know why seven? Because winners deserve a selection, that’s why And because that’s all the women in the room. For me, I don’t brag unless I get every single woman in the room over to our table. Of course, since I never show pictures, I could be just making that all up. That’s what my critics would say.
Speaking of critics and other idiots, who remembers the Yelp review I wrote on the bakery? Concerning that dork who gave them six months, it is now what, year four? Anyway, in reviews I tend to not openly criticize strangers. That’s not compatible with being taken seriously. That rule doesn’t apply to anyone I know by name. They ain’t strangers. Anyway, I’m informed somebody went in there and tore a strip of the buffoon, telling him to get educated before running off at the mouth. If I find the quip, I’ll share. For I also need to know the level of schooling before I give any critic any credence.
I stopped at the West Marine on S. Dixie to find they do not have a copy of the Sight Reduction Tables either. Man, this country is going to be in a real fix if the satellites get whacked. I formally begin the “Old Guy’s Non-Military Celestial Navigator’s Association”. When the hammer falls, our fee is $1,000.000 per day, tax free. And a host of other conditions. The price doubles for any party that complains. If they don’t like it, ha! Go find somebody else. And good f’ing luck.
NOON
“If you have to learn it from a self-help book, you may be beyond help.” --Wes Smith. I wonder where he learned that?
Here’s some advertising you won’t get in most other countries where they do not worship doctors. The sign is active, if you look closely it is saying if you hit the emergency room, the waiting time is 4 minutes. Really? It takes twenty times that long just to fill out the forms. Hence, it probably means 4 minutes if you have a credit card. Welcome to America, where the streets are paved with gold.
There is a storm brewing, I hit 40mph crosswinds on the drive home, which makes for a sprightly motorcycle ride. Since they are saying up to 60mph, I’ll be home with my e-bass and hot cocoa. Speaking of food, JZ finds out that he is not totally lactose intolerant. He can now drink coffee with evaporated milk. See, being around me, who guzzles coffee, builds up your resistance. If only I could cash in on such nonsense. Where is that Joel Olmstead when you really need his expertise?
The trip to Miami this morning confirms I am the only slowpoke in the entire crowd who has never been to Washington. I was at the airport a couple times, to find out that doesn’t count, apparently. I did look out both sides of the plane back then and saw nothing that looked like the White House. So unless they’ve perfected the cloak of invisibility, the airport is probably over the horizon by a long shot. Get it? A long shot?
NIGHT
Right off, let me say this is not ketchup. It is a soda. This flavor is pomegranate and according to the label, a few other ingredients. Not bad for healthy but it isn’t diet. No corn syrup, instead, real cane sugar. It’s a clear liquid. It only looks opaque to my camera lens. I stayed the evening indoors listening to the storm and doing a massive file cleanup. The majority of my archives were on the old IDE drives and I finally switched to SATA.
I even have a category of files that won’t play on iPads. Strange that Apple would allow something like that out of the factory, but the iPad will not play wmv movies. I tend to forget the iPad is not a mini-laptop, but purely and entertainment device. It does not even have a USB port, not that I would install anything on an Apple. But Alaine cannot view the videos from the church.
As I was saying, I just back up the single directory and slap a date on it. Thus, my oldest files are backed up byas many times as I’ve done this operation, which is around 20 or so. Once a year or whenever I change computers. The reason for the upgrade was I have several perfectly good IDE drives that sometimes will not register on new Win equipment. I even borrowed special gear from Fred, a device which makes any IDE drive appear as a new USB connection and I cannot see my files.
It calmed down around midnight, which found me still wide awake after nearly 48 hours. But I didn’t head over to the club. I have to get out of this dumpy spit-on-the-sidewalk town. Where people stare when they see you writing in a book and are amazed to see speed-typing. I mean, there’s a few good types but it’s like my ex-wife’s boyfriends. If any of them got any money, they got it from their parents. This town was okay when the old shops formed the downtown core, but that’s changed. I’ve met a few skilled people over the years here, but I can’t say I’ve ever met a single intellectual from the town of Hollywood—and I’ve lived here longer than any other place in my life.
The reality is, however, that since 2011, I’ve really just used this area as a base of operations. I could have moved to Texas that year. But as I recovered financially, there was Denver, Naples, Savannah, St. Augustine, Demopolis, Cape Canaveral, San Antonio, Memphis, Key Largo, Winter Haven, Ft. Meyer’s Beach, Bakersfield, Muskogee, Yakima, and who knows how many minor destinations. Even the Grand Canyon. So to say I live here is not as accurate as saying this is my staging area. Even if I move, it will likely be just fifty miles north.
ADDENDUM
My recent sleeplessness was not wasted, I undertook an intense study of why so many integrated circuit “chips” are sinks rather than sources. Uh-oh, that’s jargon. Relax, I won’t leave you hanging. Most chips work on five volts, but at a very low amperage. Still, that amperage is touchy, if you try to pass too much through the chip, you damage the innards.
For once in electronics, the word “source” is descriptive. It means to supply the voltage. “Sink” is the opposite, that is, to supply the ground. Either one will work effectively well as an on/off switch. It is similar to a light switch that works whether you place it on the white wire or the black wire.
But with chips, there are many components that use more volts or amps than a chip can supply. In shop talk, the chip can’t “source” that much voltage. The rule of thumb is, "If it moves, it can't be powered by a chip." But most chips can “sink” enough to run a light or a small motor. Having told you that, I would still be careful to match things up. Or you get that funny burnt silicon smell.
The trick is to understand how a “sink” will turn on a light. I’ll let you look that up yourself, but it acts like a voltage that is pushing back the current from the light. Sinking removes this push and lets the current through to ground when the switch is activated. Neat? Trust me, it works. I had problems with the concept until I hooked up a chip or two and tested it for real.
Trivia. Sleepless. Do you know the legend behind the movie, “Sleepless in Seattle”? The Indian chief by that name believed that after a person died, they would be roused whenever their name was spoken. Thus, he could not have been that pleased to have a major city named after him. But don’t worry chief, you’ll still be dead long after Seattle is gone and forgotten.
Last Laugh
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