Posted By RichC on May 23, 2018
What a mess on everything outside. The yellow, dirty pine pollen covers everything each May … but thankfully Pine pollen doesn’t trigger allergies for me. Brenda on the other hand, either has allergies at the moment or a summer cold? (used the iPhone 7 plus portrait mode for the above photo – note selective focus and blurred background)
Posted By RichC on May 22, 2018
Just a few self-observations can be helpful between doctor visits when keeping an eye on your skin when it comes to early diagnosing basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma. 
Experts explain how to detect the warning signs of skin cancer
Skin cancer, defined by the fact that it starts on the skin, is more common in the United States than all other human cancers combined.
Initially, skin cancer is not symptomatic, meaning spots on the skin won’t necessarily itch or hurt, according to Dr. Aleksandar Sekulic, the associate director for Mayo Clinic’s Center for Individualized Medicine in Arizona.
There are many different types of skin cancer, but the three of the most common include basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma.
Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer with an estimated 2 to 4 million cases in the United States each year. According to Sekulic, basal cell carcinoma are the easiest cases of skin cancer to treat by surgical removal.
The second most common type of skin cancer is squamous cell carcinoma, which occurs in approximately 1 million people in the U.S. per year.
Posted By RichC on May 21, 2018
It is hard to believe that my YOUNGER brother Ron is retiring at 56 years old?!? Shocking, but I’m sure welcomed after a long career with the US Air Force working first in Ogden, Utah and the last 30 years at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.
We were very close brothers when growing up as kids, but grew apart as I headed off to college in one direction and he in another. We both married and politely stayed connected as family … but never had the closeness of "best friends" again. The past decade pulled us back closer again as our parents needed "their boys and family" to assist in the later years, then in settling mom and dad’s estate and now as grandfathers ourselves. It is good to feel close to him again ,.. and "want" to get together more often.
Happy Birthday brother Ron – may you have a long and wonderful retirement (sorry for the lousy photo, but this was the only one I took last weekend when we were together!)
Posted By RichC on May 20, 2018
First … Taylor and his girlfriend Megan had a great trip to Florida and enjoyed staying aboard Encore. Their weather wasn’t perfect much of the time, but the clouds and rain did prevent the sunburn that we all too often end up with when vacationing in the Sunshine State for a short time.
A couple other message exchanges had me including an “itsy bitsy spider” photo for Annalyn when ordering parts for our now 10 year old Kubota ZD 326s (using my iPhone 7 plus – not bad!) … and then “she” sent a photo back to me offering up a “rock” for grandpa (“what a cutie pie,” was Brenda’s comment – I concur).
Posted By RichC on May 19, 2018
Although the new auto company Elio Motors has struggled financially to move their production forward, Paul Elio still claims the Shreveport, Louisiana plant is 1-1/2 years from production. Those of use who have deposits and reservations and blog about it in are still hopeful, although low fuel prices, advancements in EVs and American’s love of SUVs has us questioning a new high production model 3-wheel car/motorcycle. Personally I still want one and want a new auto company, but see the move toward partnering with a cryptocurrency as a desperate way to raise capital?
A radio personality Lars Larson had a great interview with founder and CEO Paul Elio last week and it was encouraging. Let’s hope the reality is more than just a money burning dream since too much has gone into this little car to stop now.
| Lars Larson interviews Paul Elio (mp3) | 5/14/2018 |
Posted By RichC on May 18, 2018
Like most longtime savvy Internet users, I use Google more than I would like to admit. I try not to depend on them for everything, but just like with online shopping using Amazon … 
Google is simply the best at what they do: Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube and Drive/Cloud Storage. The latter has been a weak link in my opinion for those of us seeking low cost or free options … and so I’ve been reluctant to marry into only ONE Cloud Storage option (although Brenda uses a Chromebook giving her plenty of space).
This past week Google has announced a new series of cloud storage plans arriving for Google Account holders, including a new family option for divvying up a single storage plan amongst up to five members. It is called Google One and will replace existing Google Drive paid storage plans (which I do not use). The new plans break down like this:
I think the last comparison I did was back in 2015 … and now only a few smaller players are left. I haven’t made a decision yet a, but will likely continue to use the FREE 15GB storage (it will continue to be offered) since I have several Google Accounts to multiply the free storage and spread around my data (I store data in different folders anyway – see odrive comment below).
I also have other favorites for cloud storage, including OneDrive cloud storage with my paid Microsoft Live account; it includes 1TB of cloud storage. If all options were free and equal at this point, my choices between cloud storage I use everyday would be in order as follows:
Another worthwhile cloud storage HELPER tool is ODrive. It synchronizes all the different cloud storage accounts 
between different computers WITHOUT keeping copy of the file on each computer unless you want it. If you use several different cloud services … check it out.
As before, the new Google storage plans provide users with space for Google Drive, Gmail, and original quality photos and videos (including 4K) in Google Photos.
All the paid plans come with access to live chat support, a feature that was previously limited to G Suite business account holders. The changes will be seen first by paying Google Drive users in the U.S. "in the coming months", with rollout to users in other countries shortly after.
Posted By RichC on May 17, 2018
I had a discussion early this week regarding the protests over the opening of the U.S. Embassy in the capital of Israel – Jerusalem. The embassy’s move has been promised by the last few presidents, 
but finally followed through on by President Trump. For all his bloviating and questionable behavior, he does seem to prioritize and follow thru on his campaign promises, unlike most politicians.
The discussion had to do with unarmed Palestinian protestors challenging the Israeli IDF at the border and faking an injury or being disabled. The question of who is “peacefully” assembling to have their voices and numbers heard, and who is looking to inflict harm or use terrorism tactics to forward Hamas. 
Obviously there continues to be unrest and a desire to eliminate Israel and Jews from the Middle East and the goal to use every incident as a way to gain ground – the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem just the latest. On the other hand, if it wasn’t this, it would be something else, since we are no closer to peace in the Middle East from what I can tell? So … we might as well move forward with a different strategy and work with those who are willing to find a solution.
Anyway, the discussion had to do with terrorism and the ability to hide one’s identity with cultural and religious clothing … particular head covering. So before using incorrect terms for the garments, I looked them up. From the fully covered Burka to the slightly more liberal Hijab and Dupatta. Now at least I know.
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