RichC | December 31, 2016
The last several years MyDesultoryBlog has highlighted "banished words" from the list Lake Superior State University (LSSU), who puts together a list at the beginning of a new year (and probably still will in early January)? This year we’ll end we’ll end 2016 with a couple memorable photos. The first being serious, and second … […]
RichC | December 30, 2016
There are much better places to save articles than a publicly available blog like Evernote, GetPocket, Google apps as well as locally archived HTML, Docs and PDFs, but I still occasionally enjoy having them on MyDesultoryBlog. So as with a few other archived articles on reefing (1 & 2), I’m saving this Cruising World Seamanship 101: […]
RichC | December 29, 2016
One month ago I inquired as to the "tongue creep" on a pair of Clarks Desert Boots that were a gift. Occasionally I will give a company feedback if there is something positive or negative so they know they are pleasing a customer or disappointing one. I sent a image as requested to the consumer […]
RichC | December 28, 2016
With the intent to capture the end of the year 2016 tax credit and take advantage of a slow work week, I scheduled the replacement of our 21 year old Bryant HVAC equipment. The installers from Logan-Inc worked one full day to replace our two furnaces with higher efficiency Trane models (XR95 + S9V2) and […]
RichC | December 27, 2016
After a bit of a delay in maintaining daily blog posts, Brenda, Taylor and I returned from our family Christmas with Katelyn and Drew in Wayzata, MN on Monday night. It was a whirlwind trip and thankfully without incident. First thing first … our growing granddaughter is definitely noticeable as a “babybump” (an overused word). […]
RichC | December 26, 2016
Adding a couple catch-up photos to the mix after driving the BMW X5 35d (26.1 mpg) up for a busy Christmas weekend with Katelyn, Drew and Taylor in Wayzata, Minnesota. We took Drew’s Acura RX out for a nice Christmas Eve dinner and am starting to realize Brenda and I are definitely looking older (and […]
RichC | December 24, 2016
The Apollo 8 Christmas Eve Broadcast Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the Moon, entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1968. That evening, the astronauts; Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell, and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders did a live television broadcast from lunar orbit, in which they showed pictures […]
RichC | December 23, 2016
We still have a week of trading before closing the books on 2016, but those last few DJIA psychological points to 20,000 have proven evasive. Thursday’s 23 point decline, after the steady climb since the election, has a few gurus thinking the Trump Rally may be ahead of itself? Some are looking at current corporate […]
RichC | December 22, 2016
Speed kills … and being rushed can make people do stupid things, that would be me in this case. I was in a hurry to get a HVAC replacement estimate after scavengering parts off of one furnace to keep the other running — both need to be replaced. While researching gas furnaces and air conditioner […]
RichC | December 21, 2016
Now that Volkswagen TDI owners have to accept the performance debilitating modification or return in their diesel cars in for compensation as the settlement enters the "compensation phase." Some have been stripping parts off their cars prior to turning them in. Joe Mayer, in Cincinnati has take that a step further … and stripped "the […]
RichC | December 20, 2016
The vehicles affected include the Volkswagen Touareg, Audi Q7, and Porsche Cayenne Diesel. Reuters reports that U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said owners of the vehicles affected will receive “substantial compensation” for getting their cars fixed. German auto part supplier Robert Bosch, which allegedly colluded with VW to cheat emissions, will also settle with U.S. […]
RichC | December 20, 2016
A chill is in the air, but likely that has more to do with our 21 year old 80,000 BTU furnace acting up. We have three furnaces so I’m hoping it is the "pressure switch" once again; it does seem to be the weak links on modern high-efficiency furnaces (or could be all furnaces for […]
RichC | December 19, 2016
Admittedly I’m proud of my kids and enjoy seeing them living their lives … especially when a few of my interests rise to the top. In Taylor‘s case, he has expand on our mutual interest in backpacking and photography on his trip to Hawaii last month. Memory Road: In 7th grade I had an […]
RichC | December 18, 2016
Testing the new 25mm Four Third Panasonic Lumix prime lens on before "wrapping it up for my Christmas gift from Brenda." I needed to know if it works … cough, cough. (click here for Large Image — be warned) Also updated the GX8 body to Firmware 2.2, so we are up to date on […]
RichC | December 17, 2016
The cold weather is upon us (it is in the single digits today) and with a little snow on the ground in Cincinnati, it is beginning to look and feel a lot like Christmas. We are in the "prepare mode" and in the middle our checking the list twice festive shopping and wrapping routine, but […]
RichC | December 16, 2016
Got to love Facebook for connecting people who love the same things … in this instance, a naval architect and sailing guru Robert Perry has posted a couple of his favorite photos of one of his early designs — the Baba 30 (our first sailboat, Brenich). It was a beautiful boat and enjoyable to […]
RichC | December 15, 2016
Forgiving debt and bankruptcy options aren’t new, but those of us who strive to “play by the rules” often feel like suckers when it comes to bureaucrats playing fast and free with tax dollars … or with OPM. While it is understandable that our society wants to be compassionate and lend a helping hand to […]
RichC | December 14, 2016
I finally finished up a long overdue project for Taylor … a headboard for his bed. He had giving me a couple magazine images as to what he wanted, but I just haven’t found the time or put together the materials I needed to build it (let alone been ambitious enough to start the project). […]
RichC | December 13, 2016
Morning … Afternoon…
RichC | December 13, 2016
Katelyn and Drew are back home in Minnesota after a great time in Europe. Drew’s lung cancer presentation went well in Vienna and they enjoyed the extra couple of days traveling by train and transit back to Paris before flying home. We are looking forward to a few more photos but they sent enough photos […]
RichC | December 13, 2016
Once again the England Patriots lead by the 39 year old Tom Brady pull off another win, this time against the top defense of the Baltimore Ravens. Even with injuries, Brady is able to find new targets and amassed 400 yards to win on a Monday Night Football game. The Ravens didn’t give up as […]
RichC | December 12, 2016
One of the pleasures of winter and colder weather for me is hanging out and monkeying around in my garage shop with a fire in the woodstove. It has worked out perfectly for those weekends that I know it is going to be "just me" at home …or when I need a man cave (really […]
RichC | December 11, 2016
A friend is thinking about writing a “subject oriented blog” (unlike MyDesultoryBlog) and asked me if I thought it was important to have an “about the author page.” I said yes, people will want to know if you are knowledgeable on the subject matter or if you at least have the researching and objective ability worthy of reading. […]
RichC | December 11, 2016
Wrapping up a weekend trip with a few photos tinkering aboard Encore. Some needed cleaning and a few improvements were the items on the agenda. First up, I semi-fitted the new generator cage for the Honda EU2000i. I welded the aluminum up in the summer/fall and hope that once bolted in place it will keep […]
RichC | December 10, 2016
In continuing the quest to be able to bring along our fully inflated Zodiac dinghy when gunkholing aboard Encore, I am still pondering an inexpensive davit option. The dilemma has been trying to keep the Capehorn Steering gear (hopefully functional) while still "safely" toting along a dinghy. The foredeck space is limited since the baby […]
RichC | December 9, 2016
The top image is a daylight test image while trying a new camera and lens combination (Panasonic Lumix GX8 and 14-140mm lens) and is a very large original image … so if you click it, it will prove to be a larger image download (be warned). The image below as been reduced in size but […]
RichC | December 9, 2016
I helped fund the Raspberry Pi based computer Kickstarter project known as the RaspberryShake networkingworking a large number of inexpensive earthquake monitoring station around the world (www.raspberryshake.org/quick-start-guide). The idea of connecting hundreds if not thousands of independent volunteer monitoring stations isn’t new, but it is a growing force in data collection. Hopefully I’ll be able […]
RichC | December 8, 2016
Godspeed, John Glenn. Astronauts were heroes to kids like me in the 60s. I remember it well when he visited our flooded Ohio home on Lake Erie in 1973. He was on a PR stop and making a run for the U.S. Senate … yet took time to talk and inspire impressionable 14 year old me […]
RichC | December 8, 2016
The new matching dryer arrived, but missing the stack kit. We should have bought both the washer and dryer at the same time from Home Depot when they were really on sale, but I wasn’t ready for both. The cheapness came back to bite me as the sale wasn’t quite as good as last […]
RichC | December 8, 2016
Tis the season to be starting to think about a “Jolly Christmas” as Katelyn and Drew sent back a couple photos from Vienna, Austria this week … and from the looks of it, they are enjoying themselves. I sure hope little “Baby Oostra” likes long flights? It just so happened that Dr. Drew was invited […]
RichC | December 7, 2016
U.S. stocks charged to fresh highs, with major indexes logging their biggest one-day rally since the election. See WSJ story.
RichC | December 7, 2016
It has been a few years since our family visited the historic sites at Pearl Harbor … it was very sobering. Why do human beings continue killing each other — it is as senseless today as it was 75 years ago. I would like to think that we are wiser and could agree to inhabit […]
RichC | December 6, 2016
I headed down to Florida to check in on Encore this past weekend and enjoyed the sunshine but not necessarily the long drive for a short stay. Primarily the in-water project had to do with getting the dodger and bimini back on the boat and getting the deck cleaned up after the harsh summer and […]
RichC | December 5, 2016
The exuberance is everyway if you listen to the talking heads on cable business news shows as all but "one" component of Pres-Elect Donald Trump’s platform is good for business, jobs and the economy. Unfortunately it is the component that the media and Twittersphere is currently focused on … a 35% tariff on U.S. companies […]
RichC | December 5, 2016
Sorry, but when it comes to Coast Guard boardings, you don’t have any rights. I’m surprised how many boaters don’t know this. The US Coast Guard can board your boat any time they want, and look anywhere they want, without probable cause or a warrant. They can do this on the open sea, or while […]
RichC | December 4, 2016
One of the television shows I enjoyed growing up watching was Kung Fu with David Carradine. The program regularly flashed back from Carradine’s character Kwain Chang Caine in the old west to China where he grew up learning the Chinese martial arts from the monks at the Shaolin Monastery. When I saw this photo from […]
RichC | December 3, 2016
The Wendy’s keychain tag promotion has been a favorite of mine for several years now as I’ll usually buy several and hand them out to friends and family. The fast food company is running the donation campaign again in 2017, so I’ll likely continue to be drawn to eating the occasional meal there in 2017 — the […]
RichC | December 2, 2016
I’ve heard of getting a straw stuck up your nose … but this is ridiculous.
RichC | December 1, 2016
The Clarks my son gave me this past year after I admired his, are quality constructed shoes/boots and no doubt will last a long time and seem to hold up to heavy use. I am however disappointed into "tongue creep" which seems to be getting worse each wearing. I’m not sure if it was stitched […]