March 11, 2026

Yesteryear
One year ago today: March 11, 2025, 24,300.
Five years ago today: March 11, 2021, learning hinges.
Nine years ago today: March 11, 2017, I loved that Rebel.
Random years ago today: March 11, 2007, Starbucks, no women.

           Here’s a soon to be rare sight. Old Winnie on the five pound note. A committee, led by a Jamaican/Sri Lankan has moved the currency change from historical figures to depictions of wildlife. Saying the change is overdue, Nadeem himself kind of resembles an anteater. Britain became a non-country over such things. Today’s forecast says a record high. I’ll be needing some time out there. Then again, I’ve always thought that old warmonger resembled a hedgehog.

           That was Plant City on the phone, the guitar player from the band site. Same as myself, he gave up trying to connect over there. Everybody looks, nobody calls. I saw his peek at my site and recalled he had sent his contact info back when the Prez and I were rehearsing—but it was about the time the Prez glommed on to voicings, the trick of two musicians sounding like a band. So we went that route. Now things have drastically changed.
           My original mileage limit was 25 miles (the Prez was 22) but that no longer has relevance in that playing out a few times beats more trips that go nowhere. Let’s call the new guy Dave, and I found part of his old list (he’s sending me an update). He plays a lot of 60s, as in Beatles, Dave Clark, and bands with names like the Drifters. Before my time, but fun to play. If I recall, he teams up with a keyboard player, but he’s quickly spot the advantages of a duo. As ever, do not get any hopes up. This is the music business. There is always some form of deal-killer the guitar player isn’t being up-front about.

           It got pretty warm out there, so I missed the cold spell. But it may have taken out my neighbor’s two beautiful avocado trees. Did I say mango last day? Tell me to wake up. Over the years, he has lost most of what was once a small orchard on his north side. This photo shows the nicest tree, it used to be deep and dark green year-round. Like myself, it is showing signs of recovery. But those leaves are dead and crisp and about to hit the ground.
           There is news from Nashville. Radio promotion is more of a factor to the studios than the audience (if you ask me). The most I can say for sure is 90% of all new songs I’ve heard in my life were on the radio, usually in the car. But that is back when there were real radio stations. But that changed for me on the trip to Smithville, remember that?

           We went out to give a guy a lift and he commented what a nice song came on the radio. He did not know he was riding with the singer. Yes, I did recently sink money into some radio promo, but more to test the water. It is rare for me to invest in what I don’t understand.

           Today was not all energetic and I took another look at phased array radar. I know the theory, but there is something else I wanted to know. Like in navigation, the farther from the center you get, the more the edge of the wave becomes almost a straight line. The rays of the sun, for instance, seem to strike the Earth as parallel waves. Military radar uses this principle to focus beams without having to aim the radar dish itself. Alas, I could not find info, but it was fun to learn so much. Here’s the quick version.
           Phased array has become cheap because, get this, it uses many of the same parts a cell phones. Next, it is fast, up to ten times faster than conventional radar. There were once 500 of these regular radars, mostly at airports. Because phased array beams can be shared and relayed, the number has dropped to around 200. Savings are in the billions. When you see the weather map that “jerks” into the next scene, that’s conventional radar. When it flows smooth like a video, that is phased array. How cheap is it? Well, China built a big unit in the Himalayas that now monitors all the missile tests of India. China used to use spy ships in the Bay of Bengal, but recalled them all (see addendum).
           The electronics is conceptually simple though I would not attempt it. One day soon, I plan to go through my gear and find my Arduino box. It has been misplaced for years. Not today. I have just the energy to go out to the shed. Even this minor activity means the evening off, though I may not fee tired. I’ve learned, and there is another movie I’ve never seen. “Kingdom f Heaven”. Reputed to have dull characters and a meandering plot, it might be the background I need for some study sessions.
           Sad, but one of my favorite word games has gone millennial. It’s an association game that takes two minutes while logging on. But lately, it has become impossible to solve without knowing slang terms related to feminism, fat reduction, and television. Disgusting terms.

Picture of the day.
Grill growth.
Remember to use BACK ARROW to return to blog.

           A drought it is. I walked around the house to take stock. Here is the neighbor’s other avocado tree, but that brown appearance can also be caused by a freeze. I’m just smart enough not to push the envelope, but I was able to walk around with decent balance for two hours. I used the time for some light work in the shed, centering on boxes. I tended to finish box bottoms, these are the slats or bottom plates of my chosen design.

           This box, for all the planning, is still very much a self-taught affair. I’ve known for a while some decisions are in order. Hey, I said I could make management decisions, I didn’t say I liked it. No wonder good staff get paid more. There are two issues to address. First is the old bottom panels. There is no dimension the fence panels can be cut to fit without screwing around with the final piece.
           Making the pieces unequal widths will work, but the product is not as appealing. My plan is to see if cutting one panel in half will produce a symmetrical result with the final piece. I’ve noted this final piece is the most time-consuming and fussbudget part of the process. I have a nice pile of ends that didn’t fit destined for the burn barrel.

           I get to snigger at anyone who thinks this box would be easy to copy. The second management verdict involves cosmetics again, in this case the laser etcher. By now we all love logos and emblems. What could go wrong? Burn the pattern, assemble the box. Here is a nice video that demos the hitch. This is just a clip of drilling the thumbholes. The board is flipped over to ward of tear-out from the drill bit. Take a closer look at the board.

           It isn’t flat. In real life, these fence panels continue to warp, even after fastening. Part of the method is to learn which way to assemble the wood to minimize cupping. Timing is critical, the board can warp within minutes of being cut or moved. So, what makes this a management problem? The logo. The etcher is too light duty for outdoor deployment. It is best placed on a desk near the computer and treated as a delicate peripheral.

           That entails carrying the box pieces to be burned from the shed to the office, then back again. Turns out this is plenty of time for the wood to act up. The problem is, having the logo etched means the box has to be assembled so those marks are correctly oriented. Rarely does this match the optimum wood distortion. The realistic solution is to burn the logo on the box after assembly. That means bringing full size boxes and placing them under the laser. It follows the laser must then be propped and braced, as the plastic housing can easily shift from the moving weight of the heavier laser module. Right now, space and money are limited. Management.

ADDENDUM
           The Bay of Bengal is a weapons zone. This is where India tests missiles, rockets, ships, subs, and tactics. Anywhere else is too close to Pakistan. So I went on eBay to once again show how easy it is for those with even half a brain to stump the Internet. Not one match on “phased array radar”, but I did find some parts. Lots of books and models nobody asked for. A.I. indicates the starting price is around one million dollars each.

Last Laugh