Great to have your kids appreciate #home

| May 31, 2016

Honoring those who gave everything for our country

| May 30, 2016

Memorial Day traditionally marks the beginning of warm weather, longer days and for some, in this sluggish Obama economy, maybe even a summer vacation? “Enjoying summer” is privilege we Americans have because so many before us gave their lives for the protection, prosperity and freedom we all enjoy. Looking at our short history, we’ve fought way too many wars and lost far too […]

Finally finished spring 2016 patio/pool deck cleaning

| May 29, 2016

The spring cleaning chore in getting the pool desking and patio furniture cleaned after a winter and heavy pine pollen season never gets any easier. I’ve almost got it down to a full, long day and I’m convinced the heavy teak adirondack chairs are getting heavier? The weather was for the most part perfect for […]

BMW X5 35d update: Shedding some weight plus a new item

| May 28, 2016

It is amazing just how many exhaust parts find their way onto modern cars. They do a good job of making diesel exhaust clean, but the expensive and complex process is going to kill the internal combustion engine, in my opinion. I’m amazed at just how much "junk" I had to remove (above) in repairing […]

TechFriday archive: Using your tablet or iPad on the boat

| May 27, 2016

Top ways to use your tablet or iPad on board your boat — Matthew Sheahan 12/15/2015 How are sailors using their iPad or tablet on board? Matthew Sheahan talks to cruising sailors, racers and industry professionals Photo: Tor Johnson As iPads and other tablets become a part of the arsenal of electronics on board, their […]

A memorable Lakota East High School party 9 years ago #TBT

| May 26, 2016

Looking back on this #ThrowbackThursday, we must have been nuts! Brenda and I never really hesitated to have parties at the house until text messaging, social networking, the ubiquitous cellphone and DRIVING became a way for invitees to broadcast what they were doing and where they were at. Although the end of school Memorial Day […]

Airline litigation lawyer Jerry Skinner explains the case – #MH17

| May 25, 2016

My brother-in-law Jerry Skinner has been busy working on the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 case in order to bring closure for the families of victims. It is hard to imagine that shooting down of a commercial airliner was anything but a mistake, but who should be held accountable for Buk missiles capable of this kind […]

The Raspberry Pi 3 overheated and stopped working

| May 25, 2016

The Raspberry Pi 3 acting as the American Pi Apache server may have over heated last week. I detected a slow and steady rise in processor temperatures near the time it flickered the monitor on and off three times before it gave up the ghost (solid red light only); it was over 70 degrees Celsius […]

Ducklings in the pool again this year

| May 24, 2016

  As with previous years, the ducks have adopted the pool as a safe place to learn to swim. One would think a pond would be better, but danger lurks beneath the surface for ducklings (snapping turtles). Unfortunately once the mom leads them into the pool, they can’t get out … so I fished them […]

A preview of Tropical Things to come?

| May 23, 2016

Some of us are paying attention to the beginning of Hurricane Season … as are the folks who live in Florida. It is suppose to be a bit more active this year, I’m just hoping the weather experts are wrong. The official start of the 2016 hurricane season is June 1, but the atmosphere is […]

Long shot, but are you looking for a nice home in Sidney Ohio?

| May 23, 2016

My Sidney Ohio ties are close to ending as my brother and I are getting Mom and Dad’s house ready to sell. We’re planning an estate sale on June 4-5th to clear out the final household furnishing. It should list for sale it shortly after that. Just in case any of my friends or acquaintances […]

Music: Going Home from 1975 by Barry McGuire

| May 22, 2016

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The 1958 Packard Hawk is still in the family and in my garage

| May 21, 2016

  With a little help from the tow company’s flatbed delivery guy, my Dad’s 1958 Packard Hawk has been safely moved from Sidney, Ohio to my garage. Although I was able to get it started a few weeks ago, something is wrong with the transmission (stuck in gear) and it also has a known master […]

Archive: Flag flying protocol for cruising on boats

| May 20, 2016

Read and email from an ActiveCaptain.com the other day and wanted to archive it as information/discussion when talking about "flag flying" protocol.   >>> The Flag Advisor – 1 >>> Nearly every cruising boat on the water flies one or more flags. But get into a discussion about flag etiquette and rules, and no one […]

The power of framing in presenting the news

| May 19, 2016

When consuming the news and information, whether on the Television or any other news media, it is important to pay attention to the biases of who is “painting the picture.” Off the top of my head, I’m thinking about how Facebook priorities their newsfeed.

Using gunpowder is a creative way to burn art onto wood

| May 18, 2016

Posting this for my good friend Mark who checks my blog once in a while and enjoys working with gunpowder (reloading) … but he also is a creative woodworker. He may not give this a try, but I’m sure he’ll like it … or at least I do. (LINK)

Crosspost: An American Pi video streaming update

| May 17, 2016

It’s shocking actually at the video and uploading of my wirelessly wifi connected Raspberry Pi 2 has been flawless in streaming a video feed to uStream for nearly a month … MORE on American Pi

How to get out of a common-cold, runny nose induced funk

| May 17, 2016

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Thoughts of war, a nuclear exchange and our human condition

| May 16, 2016

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Two more florescent to LED replacements – shoplight this time

| May 15, 2016

  After having success in replacing a couple less expensive warm white 2 foot florescent light tubes with LED tubes the other day, I opted to order a couple 4 foot LED tubes to replace my failing "cheap" shoplights over my garage workbench (eBay $22 w/shipping). I often leave this light on 24 hours a […]

Happy 30th Birthday to my wonderful daughter Katelyn

| May 14, 2016

I love glancing at old photos especially when looking for something to add to a birthday wish — here’s a photo from about 10 years ago when Katelyn was in med school and living in an apartment with her roommates in Kent, Ohio. As you can tell by the "tiny toys" on the address sign, […]

Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Ed “Too Tall” Freeman

| May 13, 2016

Sharing a post as it was written back in August of 2008 then edited with shaming political commentary many times after. It is still as poignant as ever. For me it is worth sharing again not only to remember Captain Ed  Freeman, but as a reminder to Americans of those who served our country heroically […]

Still tinkering with the BMW X5 35d after limp mode ordeal

| May 12, 2016

Replaced the defective Throttle Actuator on the BMW X5 35d last night … unfortunately it did not solve the Limp Mode problem. Now to look further into the disconnected sensors after the ECU came back from Andrew Rodriguez and FixMyVW.com.    old | new

Busy week, a little catch-up and weather

| May 12, 2016

Short on blog posting time after a bit of travel this past week, so just a spring weather photo while driving Ohio highways. Thankfully we have avoided most of the damaging storms hitting the midwest. Heavy rains, dark skies and a bit of lightening has been the norm … I really need to get the […]

What are we having for dinner?

| May 11, 2016

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes … [photos to iMovie video]

| May 10, 2016

With the passage of another birthday came a bunch of appreciated well wishes from long time friends. While I was including a couple old photos with my comment back to a couple high school and college buddies, I realized how much we had changed. I also spotted a few other photos of myself (with my […]

Found it! The Vane for the Cape Horn Self-Steering gear

| May 9, 2016

  It is hard to believe I found the vane parts after almost fabricating my own or contemplating ordering a new $160 (plus shipping, I think?) part for the Cape Horn self-steering gear. While going through my bins of spares and the chart table, the clean-up process had me pulling out an outdated chartbook when […]

Happy Mothers Day to my mother-in-law

| May 8, 2016

Unfortunately I’m not able to be with my mother-in-law or my wife today, but here’s wishing her a wonderful Mother’s Day (Happy Mother’s Day to Brenda too!)

Temporary LED galley light after removing old fixtures

| May 7, 2016

During our last trip to down to our sailboat Encore, Brenda and I removed the final three tarnished boat lights that were in the galley and over the chart table. The previous lights that we already replace turned out looking good and working out after she gave them the faux verdigris look with paint (a […]

A coastal Hawaii hike for the bucket-list

| May 6, 2016

The Kalalau Trail hike along the Na Pali Coast on the northern most Hawaiian island of Kauai is a hike to add to the bucket list. Having seen the beauty “mostly” from the air for the short couple of days we were there, I see this  as a  must return island. Just reading about the […]

Book: Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates

| May 5, 2016

A good friend of mine loaned me his copy of Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger yesterday and as someone who enjoys learning about history, I can’t wait to read this book. At a time when four Muslim nations routinely captured American merchant ships along the North African Barbary coast […]

Tiny iPhone details you may not have noticed

| May 3, 2016

Noticed a short video on TechInsider website demonstrated a few of the Apple design details that make an iPhone an iPhone. Some I knew and paid attention to, other I hardly noticed.  Good stuff. http://richc.us/tiny-iTips

Volkswagen and Mercedes Benz diesels can last a long time

| May 2, 2016

From the Christian perspective, I have mixed thoughts on using the "Think eternal" line for a 1963 classic Volkswagen Beetle cover on Hagerty Classic car magazine. It is of course a Peope’s Car with a l-o-n-g and beloved history by VW enthusiasts, but the word "eternal" when it comes to "earthly material things" can be […]

A lot of great blog posts on War History Online

| May 1, 2016

I recall thinking a bit more about the barbarism of the Empire of Japan during (and prior) to World War II when I read the book Flyboys by James Bradley a few years back. When it came out in 2003, I remembered thinking about just how tainted public secondary and higher had become in regards […]

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