One year ago today: August 18, 2014, the Turing test.
Five years ago today: August 18, 2010, so what does NASA do?
Six years ago today: August 18, 2009, not Pete again . . .
MORNING
Good morning, unless you live in China. The government there reacted quickly to the explosion of that chemical plant by shutting down 50 websites for “spreading rumors”. In China, you can spread noxious gas, but not words. And if you move to the city, try to get a penthouse apartment. As shown in this photo, that isn’t fog.
You see, the lights have no logic, hence no way of knowing when to shift over to another digit when they pass 9, or 99, or 999. Am I clever enough to program that without using an IC? I may have to use an Arduino for each digit, making this an excellent choice to demonstrate technological superiority—a new project and the chance to program separate Arduinos to act in coordination. I’m assuming I’ve got the brains to do this but I’ve been wrong on that count before.
If I get it to work, I’m considering a logarithmic time scale, so it takes the same ten seconds to count to each carry. That is, it speeds up so the count goes from 10 to 99 and from 100 to 999 in the same time it takes to count to 0 to 9. For demonstration purposes. If it works, I will send the code to Adafruit or All Circuits for credit.
A word of warning about voltage dividers. They should not be used to power anything that requires a load. So that would mean anything with coils or moving parts. The divider will overheat. I built mine only to test which cameras to attempt to bypass the battery supply. Cameras generally have skimpy power demands. In real life, I would replace the batteries with transformers—but at the moment I don’t have any transformers of the correct voltage.
NOON
The housing market has certainly dried up for the meanwhile. Nothing but relatively over-priced offerings in the middle of nowhere. Again, that area around Holiday (northwest of Tampa) is the only place selling out. But that is also the area where all the houses for sale are on one side of the proposed high-speed train corridor. Did they think I would not spot the pattern?
The trick, of course, is to be over 55 and retired, and nobody will sue you because they know they can never collect. That’s a blanket statement, so don’t base anything more than a laff on it. But you get the idea. I will deliver for $45 within $10, but only non-perishable, durable goods for which the owner assumes full responsibility. This is the basis of the small delivery wagon I am considering.
Trivia. Just because I worship the ground she walks on doesn’t mean I want to vacuum it.
AFTERNOON
See this? That is my secret ingredient. Why the flavored drinks I make always taste better than the package. A half lime, squeezed, in every jar. Real, fresh lime, and that’s in every flavor from raspberry to grape. But not the peach tea or any with banana flavor. I guess I like the compliments. Limes, in Florida, are very cheap, something like 19 cents each. Get the small ones. They taste better and last longer.
For that reason, I have sketched out a circuit that, on paper at least, uses only passive components including three transistors, to operate the device. My lack of engineering courses will undoubtedly cause me a few headaches when I try to actually build anything. But I would be very happy to come up with a display of three digits, 0 to 999. All without using any store-bought chips. Hmmm, maybe I should get my leg lasered more often.
I thought about using PWM (pulse width modulation) set at 100% to light up one LED while moving to the next, but the Arduino only has six PWM pins (seven are required. I’ll grab an extra coffee and mull this over, since the digit 8 is the only pattern that requires all seven pins. This device is already becoming a Herculean task. See, I told you I’d work that adjective into this blog someday.
And I’m still hobbling. That leads to second thoughts about my legs. I’d rather be able to walk forever than be concerned about swollen vessels. I know this is not the case, but maybe it should be. If I say it hurts or pains, I expect to be listened to. It’s not like a make this stuff up.
EVENING
By later, I’m feeling better and well enough to putter around. I’m glad I saved the punctured Honda tire and tube because I found something few people have seen before. How do I know that? Because my mechanic is a professional and would have known to look for this if it was common. This is the same flat from last month that caused the and the new inner tube to go flat in one day. Theory was the stem sheered off, but I looked closely and it there was no physical damage.
Mercifully, the screw has not gone through the sidewall, so the tire is still useable as a spare. That’s $140 for the tow, $105 for the fix, and $160 for the new tire I have not put back on the motorcycle yet. In case anybody was wondering why I felt so broke this month, there’s your answer. This is the 18th and I’m down to brass tacks. Actually, they are copper tacks, because brass won’t solder right.
There’s another cause you quickly notice in this town. Whenever the power company announces a decrease in electricity rates, your bill goes up by around $10 per month. What they do is unbundle another fee, tax, or levy that used to be included, separate it out, and claim the actual amount for power has gone down. It hasn’t, the total you pay within a few months will be higher than ever.
In case anyone is curious, what does it cost to air condition a small place in Florida. Well, I’m in a mobile unit (permanently fixed in place), which is reasonably well insulated. I have two room air conditioners, the Florida room and the bedroom. But none in the kitchen, as it can be kept rather nice by a fan from either of the other rooms, although I would like to have a separate unit in there. I do not skimp on electricity, but I turn the air off whenever I leave.
They take only a moment to cool the place when I return. I tend to cool only the room I’m working, reading, or sleeping in. But I have plenty of fans, which do not cool anything, Let me count. I have six fans, big ones, and a seventh out in the work shed. Two are oscillating, one overhead, and there are, of course, two more fans in the air conditioners, but I rarely use those in isolation.
And my electric bill for June 2015, the highest ever, was $79.
ADDENDUM
How many Americans have been on the Moon, anyway? Twelve, But close to 500 Americans have orbited the Earth. The pay for an astronaut is $129,600 per year and it is safer than living in Detroit. They say Trump can’t deport the illegals, but he didn’t say he was going to deport them. Listen closely, since he gets drowned out by all the immigrations lawyers giggling and rubbing their hands together. He said, “They’ve gotta go.”
What price are we willing to pay? Well, not $129,600 each. Trump is smart enough to make them pay for their own transportation out. Back to either Mexico or via Mexico to wherever it is they came from. They cannot stay here, breaking up American families.
What? That’s correct, the most common reason for divorce is money issues. There would be fewer divorces if American workers were not paying taxes to support non-Americans. The humanists just favor the underdogs and ignore their own self-edification, that is what humanists do. They ignore the hidden suffering for the brand of suffering that makes them look their cutest in the public eye.
Just you bear in mind when American business has to start paying American wages, then you will really discover what inflated prices are all about.
Last Laugh
Cheers!
Return Home
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