Hmm, I hope the problem is just a battery?

| September 30, 2009

While traveling  a couple hundred miles from home today the battery in my 2006 Honda Pilot just died. No warning, no instrument panel lights, no discolored “eye” (still green) and NO juice. Fortunately I live in “middle America” where people are still friendly and motorist even stop to help each other out. Although I had […]

Updated the Palm Pre webOS to 1.2 and all is well

| September 29, 2009

I waited until I arrived home today before risking the update to webOS 1.2 on my Palm Pre. It’s not that I’m overly paranoid, but I’m no longer comfortable taking that chance, having to swap phones last week — thank you Sprint. The download took about 5 minutes though the broadband connection and installation another […]

The old luggage tag hint applies to GPS units too

| September 29, 2009

Here’s a safety tip that came from a “Dear Heloise” clipping set to me by none other than my mom;  no matter how old I am she never stops being a mom.  Actually I don’t think she was really thinking about me, but most likely my son and daughter …  so I’ll forward them the […]

Biodiesel powered EcoJet screams … literally

| September 28, 2009

You just gotta love a biodiesel powered car like Jay Leno’s “more money than brains ” (his words) EcoJet (previous post).  I’ll be anxious to get the full performance reports (with economy figures) and look forward to solutions to keep the EcoJet quiet — here’s a thought?

No 2009 Volkswagen TDIs, but 2010s are on there way

| September 28, 2009

It has been frustrating for wannabe Volkswagen TDI buyers planning to purchase a new 2009 diesel late this summer or fall. Most have discovered that there are none to be had and that MSRP and sometimes above is required to get on a dealer list for a 2010 first off the boat (happening this week!) […]

Ohio State over Illinois 30-0, but Palm Centro loses to the rain

| September 27, 2009

The second part of the this post’s subject line makes very little sense unless you’ve been paying attention to the weather in much of Ohio in recent days. We’ve had so much dampness and rain that we might as well be living in Seattle … evidence by my daughter’s cellphone at the OSU/Illinois game on […]

A moist dewy morning yields a few photographs

| September 26, 2009

After a few days of autumn rain, the yard was heavy with moisture and air was think with a hazy fog this Saturday morning. I headed out to pick up the paper and decided to take the camera along. Fifteen minutes later I had a few photos (click any photo for larger images). Since we […]

Tech Friday: Vidly.com & “Mmm, mmm, mmm” indoctrination

| September 25, 2009

Since I’m becoming more and more anti-YouTube (partially my own doing), I’ve been tinkering with a couple other online video sharing sites. Vidly.com (or the shortened Vid.ly) is easy to use and has both a simple Twitter interface for phones, and an easy uploader tool while using the computer. Editing and organizing (tags, notes, etc) […]

Worth a chuckle from Wired Magazine

| September 24, 2009

Wired Magazine‘s Streeter Seidell offered a bit of tech humor with the 10 Best Things We’ll say to Our Grandkids, with an illustration by Nishant Choksi (well I probably won’t say it … but perhaps my kids will). 😕 1. Back in my day, we only needed 140 characters. 2. There used to be so […]

Ghost Wars by Steve Coll available at books.google.com

| September 23, 2009

Although I’m not one to read books (especially 728 pages) on a web browser, I did notice that Ghost Wars by Steve Coll is available as a scanned and imaged book on Google. So far I’m finding the history lesson intriguing and fitting with one of my favorite movies, Charlie Wilson’s War. If you’re interested […]

Is Glenn Beck the modern face of a founding father?

| September 22, 2009

No offense Glenn, but I’m more comfortable remembering our nations’ wigged fathers! (see Time magazine cover photo & articles) Americans with moderate to conservative political views have flocked to right leaning talk radio and FoxNews television this past year (cable news ratings), as the United States congress and President Obama seek to follow through on […]

Protecting the underside of a VW TDI with an alumium skidplate

| September 21, 2009

Volkwagen TDI friend Eric R. and I filmed a new CinciTDI “How-To” video on Sunday afternoon and as installed his new Dieselgeek Panzer skidplate and ‘Full Metal Jacket‘ side skirts (great kit Jim). The installation was easy and although we were puzzled by a couple of the tabs on the side skirts — but it […]

Washing machine verses a Palm Pre wired headset

| September 20, 2009

What happens when you leave a wired Palm Pre headset in the pocket of you pants as they head for the washing machine? Yikes!

Smaller Cincinnati Homearoma for 2009, but enjoyable

| September 19, 2009

We stopped over at the Cincinnati area Homearoma this year in Mason, Ohio even though it was smaller … five homes between $550K to 850K as I recall, compared to the 18 homes mostly over a million or so dollars in  previous years. Brenda and I still had a good time and enjoyed check on […]

Smartphone Experts Palm Pre skins leave much to be desired

| September 18, 2009

I’ve used the cellphone screen protection from Smartphone Experts on the displays of my Palm Treo and Centro PDA phones for years and have always been please with how they have performed. The same company makes full face coverings the Palm Pre, but the Smartphone Experts product I ordered (and had replaced at no charge) […]

BMW displays new biodiesel compatible vehicles at Frankfurt

| September 17, 2009

The 2009 X5 35d and 2009 335d The Frankfurt Automotive show is  one of the biggest in the world and is a good place for diesel vehicle makers to show their new ideas. BMW is no exception, having debuted a couple new and very impressive twin-turbo diesel in the U.S. this year — my comments. […]

Cruising World magazine celebrates 35th anniversary issue

| September 17, 2009

Since my mind in on planning our trip to Annapolis and sailing, it seem fitting to tie today’s post to Tuesday’s when I mentioned my favorite periodical Cruising World. My collection of that magazine is similar to may who have a collection of back issues of National Geographic magazine. Anyway, it’s a good time to […]

Diesel 170mpg VW L1 takes the stage in Frankfurt

| September 16, 2009

At the Frankfurt Motor Show, Volkswagen debuted its ultra-efficient L1 Concept, which follows in the footstep of the One-Liter Concept from 2002. The L1 derives its name from the fact it takes around one liter of diesel fuel to propel the car 100 kilometers (62 miles). According to press reports, the car is said to […]

Sugarsync disappointment – deleting files not permitted

| September 16, 2009

After attempting to delete photos from the Sugarsync gallery on my own and finding I could not recover several of my paid for and lost gigabytes, I contacted tech support — and have lodged a complaint to no avail. I’m eliminating my use of the backup software and switching to Dropbox.— Tech Support response below: […]

Preparing for 40th Annual Annapolis Sailboat Show

| September 15, 2009

I realize that the post title could be a bit misleading as I’m not “preparing as a presenter” at the 40th Annual Annapolis Sailboat Show, but “visiting” the show. Traditionally my wife and I would take a yearly trip to Annapolis toward end sailing season and enjoy the ambiance of the old city. We’ve detoured […]

Palm Pre stumps me with a Messaging app problem

| September 14, 2009

I have found that the Palm Pre works well for email and both MMS and SMS messaging on Sprint, but I’ve run into a glitch where my incoming messages will not show up in the messaging app unless I search for them, see screen capture (usually the conversations  list unless I delete them). So here’s […]

Aviation History: The Origin of Squawk

| September 13, 2009

I learned a new historical aviation tidbit on the origination of the word “squawk” this weekend in a recent EAA magazine article. During World War II, we, the allies, used an electronic device called IFF (Identify Friend or Foe) which would transmit a secret code if hit by a radar signal. This code would tell […]

Shuttle Discovery lands at Edwards Air Force Based

| September 12, 2009

I enjoyed listening and watching  Space Shuttle Discovery land at Edwards Air Force Base last night (9/11) and see Mission STS-128 conclude. A perfect landing and successful 14 days in space as the NASA Shuttle program is one step closer to retirement. click for larger images (NASA TV)

Healthcare, 9/11 and confusing politics

| September 11, 2009

Our country has seen some tough times — times that have united and times that divided our nation and its people. In recalling old history lessons, its seems there’s usually an event or a trigger which brings about one or the other. Today, on the eighth anniversary of 9/11 … our nation is once again […]

Popular Mechanics article weighs in on diesel

| September 10, 2009

The conclusion many might make from a recent Popular Mechanic article is that  diesel vehicles might be a good solution when fuel prices are high, but they don’t want to spend more for them when fuel prices are low. According to JD Power’s Omotoso, hybrids are projected to become 9.5 percent of the passenger-car market […]

Diesel inventories dry up with Cash For Clunkers program

| September 9, 2009

Inventories for diesel vehicles in the U.S. are near ‘zero’ — it’s a frustrating time for a guy who has been waiting for his next  Volkswagen TDI … or BMW diesel. Thankfully I can wait and am not in absolute need of a new car, but having to pay MSRP and above, “IF” one can […]

Roz Savage made landfall this past weekend

| September 8, 2009

This update slipped through the cracks this busy weekend, but Roz Savage made landfall in Tarawa an island in the Pacific Ocean completing her second leg of rowing  from California to Australia. The arrival at this tiny island marked 104 at sea since leaving Hawaii (see previous post). From Roz Savage’s blog: I stepped ashore, […]

Red Stewart Airshow & EAA Chapter 284 Tail Dragger Fly In

| September 7, 2009

The weekend was busy as usual with the annual Red Stewart Airshow and my Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter’s (EAA284) Tail Dragger Fly In and Pancake breakfast. Set up was smooth on Saturday afternoon and most of us enjoy relaxing for the evening on the field as the temperature cooled and the airshow started. I can […]

Balloon photo shoot above my house

| September 5, 2009

An interesting balloon photo shoot was happening for about 30 minutes above my house as the still air of the evening settled in. I spent a few hours in the yard into the evening and watched the full moon rising in the woods. The weather and evenings have been nice.

Tech Friday: FreeConference.com

| September 4, 2009

I used an excellent free conference call product from FreeConference.com yesterday. The registration took about 3 minutes and a conference call can be scheduled in about 5 minutes. I set up my first call and had very good results while conferencing with three others … that is, right up until the end —  see comment […]

Voice of America Freedom Rally in West Chester, Ohio Sept 5th

| September 4, 2009

Labor Day weekend promises to be a busy one in and around Cincinnati with events from political tea parties to the annual spectacular Riverfest  fireworks. I’ll be prepping for the Fly In, Airshow and Pancake breakfast at Red Stewart Airfield in Waynesville Ohio (great small airshow about 6PM Saturday) while the Cincinnati Tea Party will […]

World War II POW and B-17 Pilot Howard Claflin

| September 3, 2009

While talking with a long time client and friend Bruce Claflin about  the business climate, our conversation turned from that sour subject to our  families.  We both have close ties to living World War II USAF veterans and  have sons heading in a similar direction — AF ROTC. His son being older and finishing up […]

Canton Ohio judge finds creative use for duct tape

| September 2, 2009

Stephen F. Belden (ex-teacher … just kidding), a Canton Ohio Municipal Court judge, silenced argumentative defendant Harry Brown with duct tape in his courtroom last week. After listening to the audio of the exchange between the judge and Mr. Brown, it sounded as if Belden’s patience ran short after listening to the defendant expressed displeasure […]

It is disappointing to see nice vehicles as Clunkers

| September 1, 2009

While have some service done on my Honda Pilot today, I went around the back of the dealership to see the rows and rows of ‘Clunkers.’  No doubt the government money  —  MY tax dollars  — being used for this program has encouraged some new vehicle shopping, but it has also retired some nice looking […]

Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee

  1. lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
  2. digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.
My Desultory Blog