It Works! It Woooorks!

The new shopping cart has passed it's operational trials. It was much easier than I thought it would be to cart my groceries through the store, and back and forth over the terrain. Only hassle is repacking, inside the store. Unpacking inside the apartment is so much simpler. The apartment has yet again validated itself. At least in MVFR weather and better, I can now shop.

I Have Assembled The Ultimate Vehicle!

My grocery cart! Now, can carry my groceries back and forth from the store, without burning fuel. And, carry trash bags out, laundry, etc. MWAHAHAHAHA!

Infallible, And Incapable Of Human Error

In my reduced circumstances, I have to take orders from the Volcano Gods, who operate an infallible scheduling program I shall call Clack!. If you've been exposed to any navigational or logistics problems at all, you should know about the old Traveling Salesman routing algorithm. Using one person, hit all the stops using the shortest distance, or time. The Euhler Seven Bridges of Konigsberg problem is an example of this. Try to take a route that covers all seven bridges, and not retrace your steps. Euhler proved it could not be done. The computer repair business is a mature one. Squeezing more revenue out of customers is difficult. So, what do the bosses do? Up the call quotas per tech (they get paid per call). There seem to be a near-infinite number of burnt-out geeks available, if one geek should not be able to make the quota. As long as they can get away with it, they will. Until Murphy's Law strikes. So, the Volcano Gods order Clack!, in Tagalog, to generate the schedules. Clack! then generates the routes, which seem to be optimized to maximize distance traveled. It pays no attention to geography, topology, call volume, or logic. It is infallible, and incapable of human error, and is also immune to the phrases "overbooking" and "minimum time needed onsite". So, it generates *negative numbers* for onsite time, if there are sufficient calls in an eight hour period. If you can strip a laptop down to bare chassis, then rebuild it in *minus* 27 minutes, you have a future with us. Depending on the meaning of the word "future". That future could be shorter than you might think, if you follow Clack!'s schedule, and drive 90.56 MPH through Wash U's quadrangle. Just using Google Maps, I beat Clack! by 30% on mileage alone today. That helped make up partially for the two systems that had half the securing hardware missing, and one unit that simply should have been shipped back to depot anyway. Or the customer who was *shocked* that his outfit used laptop disk encryption, and I did not have his company's proprietary unlock codes. And held on to me for half an hour before he accepted defeat (after calling his internal IT department to complain). In four hours, the Volcano Gods will speak, again. I am truly sorry for what I did in my previous lifetime :( The company saves 30-50% on programmer and support costs by locating at Clark. Until it goes off, again.

End Of April

Yesterday, after the thunderstorms, I rolled my trash cans back to the Doghouse for the last time. Had a talk with my best neighbor, eulogizing the Doghouse. It was a sad feeling. The Doghouse is 64 years old, and not really salvageable as even a starter house. It will likely be demolished, and a modern structure put up in it's place. If it gets replaced. The basement flooded again during the storms, the siding is starting to come off, and birds and squirrels are starting to reside in the attic, now that it is no longer continuously occupied. My nieghbor will be able to see the sunrise a bit earlier with it out of the way... Got a nice postcard from my retired teacher cousin at my new address. Perfect Palmer Cursive handwriting. You won't see that very often. She's very glad to be out of education. It's a deathtrap, even for the most gifted and dedicated teachers, she says. She pities the kids, trapped in their medium security warehouses, when they emerge into young adulthood. From what I've seen on my service calls to educational institutions, she's right. One of the most cynical, hard-bitten generations is being conditioned to believe in nothing, especially themselves, contrary to the "entitled" narrative. The kids are run like cattle through (censored), treated like prisoners, and are no fools in distinguishing between what adults promise for the future, and what is actually happening. And you thought Gen X was a happy bunch. I've moved back over here, because I've had my fill of being dumped on by those happy abused children, who are now, of course, becoming the abusers. And, X is the largest group of control freak parents ever unleashed on the school system. No wonder the kids look like they have been stuck in Basic Training their entire lives. When they get loose, about 2024 or so, 1968 will look like High Tea at the Savoy Hotel. Then, X will have something to worry about other than me. It will be...heartwarming...to watch them get screwed by the kids. :)

Cleaning Up

Today, I made another check of the Doghouse, and, sure enough, there were things missed. Tomorrow is trash day, so quite a bit got rolled to the curb. Tonight's game session was one of the most silly I've played in years. I think Ron's (our GM) head is going to explode, as we try causing the universes to implode with our collective uber-stupid stunts. So stupid, they work. Why explore the wizard's dilapidated tower when you can simply NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! End of rational thinking. We took 75% casualties, but it worked. The cow lived. This game setting emphasizes low-level gaming at it's silliest. If anyone ever discovers a Wal-Mart, it's all over with.

Observations 27 APR 2014- The Cycle Resets

Obviously, a lot has happened since my last blog post. The Winter of DeathCold and DeathSnow forced me into taking action on something I should have done long ago: I can no longer afford to maintain a house. Something about $300 monthly heating bills, siding being ripped off by storms, and adjustment to a 40% reduction in income. I now live in a basement apartment, five minutes walk from two grocery stores, a post office, and a MetroLink station. The move nearly killed me. If only I had done this when my Mom died. I had been planning something similar, but Mom died much earlier than I thought. Foolishly, I moved back into the house, and poured cash into it to make it more saleable (I thought) and habitable. All of that money was wasted, in the end. It just bought me four years of increasing expenses. Once again, I have had to jettison the past. And I do mean jettison- so much physical material had to be gifted, donated, recycled, or trashed. The operational plan was simple- only bring what was needed to live in the apartment. No attempt, this time, to stuff the house into the apartment, or the old life into the new one. It's a more profound concept than deciding what junk is to be saved. It worked. But at a cost. For my health, the backbreaking haul nearly finished me. But, once established in the bunker, my allergies diminished. I was eating food cooked by myself. I was walking more. I brought the bike, and am now using it to ride the nearby bike trails and parks. Additionally, you can stuff a lot from the store into the bike's saddlebags. The bunker is *quiet*. Peaceful. In the doghouse, every neighborhood event was noticeable, and I was aware of the slightest changes in the weather. In the bunker, I have to check the computer for the weather. The heating and cooling of the bunker is far more stable, and there are no doggie destroyed carpets to make me sneeze. There are neighbor noises, but I'm in a corner location, and sheltered. Ironically, I may be in the best place to ride out a heavy storm. There is no sign of water damage, and I've checked thoroughly. My sleeping has improved. Greatly. I've had to give up my radio and TV gear, for the most part. There is a nearby electrical substation that plays merry hell with HF, so I may be down to a handheld, soon. UHF is now my most reliable band. Less than two miles from most of the STL area's major TV transmitters, the TV sets suffer from overload. Worse, Channel 9, PBS, has to be caught by using a reflected signal off another building! GRRRRR! On the other hand, my internet connection is far superior, and I am now watching much streamed material. I'm catching up on decades worth of material. Also, I am using Skype and other methods of remote social media to connect with others, now. From a social and societal standpoint, I may be part of a trend. From degreed professional, to working poor. I'm starting my elderhood a little early. That is something the Millenial generation is facing: There may not be an American Dream anymore. (Actually, it's been dying since 1973, when real wages began falling in the US). The political board is as mad as ever. They are arguing about gun control as the rest of us are just trying to survive, and getting even more "triage fatigue" (what to sacrifice next). Monday morning steadily approaches. Time for bed.

Well, That Was Fun

As soon as the OAT (Outside Air Temperature) hit 20 F, I shovelled off the front and back steps, and got the accumulation off of the car. My purchase of the last snow shovel in the metro area on Saturday paid off. Tuesday afternoon. Cue the Moody Blues. It was simply too dangerous to work outside for an old dog like me, so I waited it out. Good call. I'm blown, after only about half an hour. If I had done this when it was - 10 F, I might well be a frozen outline in the driveway. Car warm-up will commence at 1530, peak heating for the day.

A Day Of Turkeys

As noted earlier, I decommissioned my Windows XP machine, and migrated to a Windows 7 laptop that was far more capable of handling the new software. The laptop dated to June of last year, and had been quite reliable. It had HDMI out, 8 GB of memory, and a 17 inch screen, quite the looker. Reliable. Until I had migrated the bulk of my data. I suspect that the laptop, which had been used for mobile purposes, had suffered some kind of shock. Video on these models is native to the motherboard, and not replaceable. I had been planning a backup, as soon as I had pruned my massive music files down to size. Just like never missing a chance to go to the bathroom in aviation, one should always back up when time is available. My fault, aggravated by the processor hog process of importing music into I Tunes. Two days. An unbelievable outrage was the necessity of purchasing *gasp* Real Player, to convert the old files on Real's format to conventional ones. Blackmail of the lowest order. These converted files *were* backed up. By the time that was done, I had been pushed into a stupid zone of fatigue, and neglected the backup. Today, first the video failed on the primary monitor, then the laptop's primary monitor refused to return natively. Before I knew it, the boot sectors had gone due to multiple reboots to regain video. The 1080P HDTV used as a monitor may not have been the best choice. The good news is the backup drive is intact, and all the data, except for the current mail folders, and documents, and logs for the radio, and... you get the picture. The bad news is that the laptop drive is corrupt, and all the conventional means of data recovery have failed, including some pretty clever data recovery tools. The cheapest data recovery services are half the cost of a new desktop machine. Fortunately, most of the mail is online, and can be recovered. Same for the music. My financial data and software had been archived to backup, and not restored to the laptop (whew!). It's the radio logs, documents in progress, and things-you-don't-miss-until-gone that are going to hurt. With luck, the drive can be formatted, and the laptop sold with a bare OS. Friday, new PC's will be available. And, ironically, the old E-Machine laptop that I had used to carry around to games was still fully operational. So, that's what I'm using now. It seem to be handling the load. But, it is still a laptop. Meanwhile, it gets to gloat. An old lesson is that one should never use a laptop to do a desktop's job. The new tablets and phones seem to be catching up with the laptops in functionality, so they may get squeezed even further into niche uses, like field tech work (which mine was used for as well). For my eyes sake, today I got myself a new 27 inch dedicated monitor. Wunderbar! I can now see details on the radio monitor's waterfall that were invisible before. And the monitor can stay on, as well as the new keyboard and mouse, so much better than the laptop's. Note: the new keyboard is so much sharper in key response, that my laptop fingers are causing typo's. Don't be surprised if more of them crop up, as I adjust to typing more normally. I can already feel a reduction in eyestrain. Of equal note is that I have been cleaning up more of my debris. Carpet is now visible in the living room. The HDTV that I had been using for a monitor will be going in there. The E-Machine laptop was going to be the media interface for the entertainment center. Now, it's the primary. I fear retribution, if it's relegated to a lesser role again...

Passing of a veteran

If you did not feel the Earth shift on it's axis today, something of great note occurred. My last XP computer, the desktop E-Machine, has been decommissioned. No data has been lost, the drive is still readable, but the old hero controlling my radio array simply could not keep up anymore. Naturally cleaning up was an extraordinary experience. Desktop was actually seen, and cleaned. Wire management and routing was done. Anything that was a possible RFI problem was moved away. My monitor now is in a position that will not cause the need for a chiropractor. The annoying AOC monitor has been identified for EBay. No more will I need to crane my neck to read the waterfall display off of it. A better keyboard was procured, one not filled with years of fast food. I can now sit, eat, and write at my desk, a magnificent accomplishment. Base electrical load was lowered, as years of forgotten power supplies for peripherals were discovered, and removed. A replacement, powered, USB hub has replaced years of collected gender benders. Tomorrow, the real work of sifting all that data begins. Being able to sit, read, and type straight is a great relief. The primary monitor in use only requires one cable, and power. The Acer's own display now serves as the JT-65 and email monitor, a great expanse of real estate, as it is a 17". Many, many minor things can be moved to it. Dual monitors. What a concept. I'd been using them at work for years. Never thought of using them at home. This may lead to a house fit for visitors, at some point. Terrifying.

Observations 9 NOV 2013

This has been an unusual year. Earlier this fall I noted early migrations for birds, but the traditional fall turnover was late. We may rush straight into winter this year. It rained, of course, for Halloween. I should be posting more often. These slight events, noticed, make up a large part of life. Sadly, I've not been riding enough in the wunderbar weather we've had this fall. Staring at spreadsheets all day makes me want to nap, not ride. Bad dog. I have turned on my radios, again. I bought the new version of HRD, installed it on the primary machine, and immediately improved performance. The old e-machine simply isn't cutting it anymore, except for simple browsing. In the last few weeks, I've done some refreshing tech work, getting ready to use the radio for new modes. I have implemented JT-65 and JT-9, at last. Originally, I was dismissive, but now I have come to appreciate the weak signal capacities of these protocols. Although, waiting 47 seconds to send 13 characters is a pain. But the DX results are amazing. I'm now getting Western Australia on my little antenna, on 40 meters! And, the Philippines on 80 meters! Results on 10 meters are nearly as impressive. I can now work DX nearly worldwide on 25 watts. The FCC recently turned down a petition to open 10 meters fully to Techs. That will change, as the ol' boys go SK. Getting all of 12 meters will follow, probably by 2020. One might also see CB/11 meters opened up to hams, as well. Same goes for the Family Radio Service (FRS) on UHF, as the FCC pillages more spectrum for cell phones/data, and has to give up hostages to do so. FRS is more likely to go away, as is 222 MHz. Streaming video is not a big threat to 30 MHz and below, at least not yet. I don't think SSTV is going to catch on anytime soon on IPads... The political board has continued to degenerate. The October meltdown only made the Second Civil War more obvious. Went to a party at my cousin's, deep in Gasconade County. A relaxed, good time, with food, a bonfire, and stars. But no cell phone signal. 74 miles there, in 2 hrs. Scenic hardly describe the drive. Nice time. Back later.

Being A Failed Creative Is Much Less Expensive, Nowadays

My social world is widening, nowadays, and with it, an awareness that I could get back into writing slush-pile work by PDF publishing. My gaming group is now playing a sci-fi campaign, after a very long run of medieval fantasy. As the unofficial space/aviation lead geek, I've been tasked with making starship, vehicle, and construction designs. It's worked out better than expected. I've been learning a great deal about Roman history, for example, because one adventure required getting a road built. So, some low-quality, generic game aids could be written, and sold for $0.99 each. If it flops, no great loss. No longer do you have to spend your inheritance to get one bad game published (two kids in New Jersey did just that, with Gareth Micheal Skarka running the project). The bar can be raised for John Wick (remember that enfant terrible?) at an incredibly low cost, essentially just time spent. You'll love how I intend to do illustrations, artwork being what it is...

Not Getting Back In The Airplane...

One of the things that is most painful in life, is realizing new limitations. Tripped out as I am over my bicycle, I must reluctantly admit that I have no business getting back into a cockpit. I'm too old. The baseball statisticians, called sabermetricians, track player stats, and note when a player is past his prime. Albert Pujols is beginning his descent. I used to be a pretty good stick-and-rudder guy, but my reflexes and eyesight just won't cut it anymore. Additionally, with all the new restrictions, I can't go buzzing around VFR anymore without interrupting someones fundraiser. It is very hard to pull over at the next convenience store, to hit the latrine, in a small piston single. Arthur C. Clarke famously said that he would wait for the passenger space service to start, and I wholeheartedly agree with him. :)