To have both ears working, my balance and to be young again

| June 30, 2021

I enjoy the ocean but haven’t really had my equilibrium and balance back since my 2-year bout with Meniere’s Disease 20 years ago. That’s a bit depressing since I still have the desire to switch out our surfboard for a longboard (or SUP). That dream aside … my wife will tell you that I wasn’t […]

Preparation yardwork for upcoming concrete driveway project

| June 29, 2021

Beautiful Panarama iPhone7 Evening Sky photo – 6/28/2021 In preparation for the driveway demolition crew to arrive (neighborhood driveway work needs to be done before road repaving), I spent the weekend working to get access around the garage ready for the workers. I’m not exactly sure where our driveway fits into the schedule, since several […]

Music Monday: Supertramp – Breakfast in America LIVE (1979)

| June 28, 2021

Last week a friend of mine include an album cover photo and said “strike this pose.” I laughed to myself wondering just how many people seeing it would know and remember “Breakfast in America“ and the Engilsh rock band Supertramp? Interestingly, even though I clearly remembered the band and the album, I did not realized […]

Do you pop the end tabs in before unrolling aluminum foil?

| June 27, 2021

Who doesn’t occasionally need a little advice from the helpful tips, tricks and tidbits floating around the Internet? Here’s one that should be familiar to most of us, but surprisingly catches us off guard once in a while when a roll of aluminum foil pops out of the box and ends up unrolled and dinged […]

Replaced a failed sump pump check valve after heavy rains

| June 26, 2021

Last weekend we had thunderstorms and tornado warning that dumped buckets of rain in our area. Thankfully no damage or serious flooding, but I did check on the sump and backyard pumps … I even added my spare pump to the pit in order to keep the water that builds up in the retention area […]

Tech Friday: Driving, tracking, privacy, gasoline/diesel taxes, or a VMT tax to support our roads and bridges infrastructure

| June 25, 2021

Currently, we attempt to pay for infrastructure by taxing drivers at the pump when they fill their cars and trucks with gasoline and diesel fuel … but vehicles are becoming more efficient while the cost of infrastructure and maintenance continues to goes up. In other words, there isn’t enough money being collected. The politicians answer […]

Admiring an artist’s self-portrait and a #TBT EV test drive

| June 24, 2021

Brenda and I have always admired art and after 39 years of marriage have collected quite a bit of it. From antiques, carvings and sculptures to paintings that likely have only meaning to us. When I saw the self-portrait above, I was immediately drawn to it. Hm, an artist painting himself, painting himself? I like […]

The mixed messages on inflation and what does it mean?

| June 23, 2021

Although I’m likely tainted in having lived through a period where inflation was real and uncontrolled, I do worry that people living today either ignore or downplay the negative impact inflation, stagflation or worse … hyperinflation … can make on our country. For those who know me, I’ve likely been the “boy who calls wolf” […]

A leftover weekend photo and video turned animated gif

| June 22, 2021

Spent a lot more time this past weekend picking up branches, pumping out the pool and even set up a pump in the backyard to prevent flooding the pool. Thankfully no tornadoes on the ground, but the lightning, wind and rain was wild. Below is a video snippet … turned animated gif out the back […]

Another Music Monday TV theme song from an in-my-opinion effective Applebee’s commercial with “Cheers” intro

| June 21, 2021

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Birdhouses and raccoons and a great Drew and Katelyn photo

| June 20, 2021

Received nice photo from Katelyn and Drew last week and since I included one of Taylor and Megan last week, this is one that needed to be archived on my blog. Most most personal photos nowadays are of our granddaughters as Brenda and I have long ago moved past the stage of photos our ourselves […]

Tool tip: The Alligator Forceps purchase pays off immediately!

| June 19, 2021

Having just posted on the tool tip from Adam Savage yesterday, the Alligator Forceps paid immediate dividends. It was the exact tool I needed to replace the degraded gasoline tubing of my aging TroyBilt 4-cycle string trimmer. For context, photo from 2007 below …

Tech Friday: Security and less than consistent VPN connections

| June 18, 2021

Generally, I don’t use a VPN connection at home, but since I’ve been having slow connections on my laptop and iPad with VPN connections (both TunnelBear and ProtonVPN), thought I was test at home. ProtonVPN has been working pretty well and doesn’t restrict as much as the “warm and fuzzy” Tunnel Bear, but I’ve not […]

Small item Alligator Forceps tool tip thanks to Adam Savage

| June 17, 2021

After repairing our iRobot pool sweeper last week and figuring out how to hold a “behind the riveted new screen” tiny nut in place (after I dropped it!) … I happened to see Adam Savage’s model building recommended tool (mention him an his testedcom before) and “just had to have it.” In the photos above, […]

The odds are at least 50-50 … right? #learning #statistics

| June 16, 2021

So why do I always end up trying to open the wrong end of a trash bag? With human intelligence and adaptive learning being what it is, one would think knowing which end of the trash bag to open when pulling one out of the box or roll would favor me getting it correct? I’m […]

Moving ahead a little bit with the mini split AC installation

| June 15, 2021

This past weekend I moved forward in getting the mini split AC unit installed in my home office. I started the planned chair rail  and cork wall (insulation, sound deadening and a place to pin maps, etc). I’m not sure about the can of worms I’ve opened, but I spent half the day on Saturday […]

Music Monday: B.T.O. – Roll On Down The Highway

| June 14, 2021

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Books: Brave By Faith by Alistair Begg

| June 13, 2021

The current pile of books to read is too high for my nighttime side table;  I think I need to move a few to my office … or better yet, finish reading them! Since Alistair Begg is a favorite teaching pastor of ours (Parkside Church was our home church when we lived in NE Ohio), […]

WW2 Aviation History: Why are F4U-1 Corsairs so taped up?

| June 12, 2021

Well talking to Taylor at his birthday dinner, I mentioned someone posted a photo of a WW2 Vought F4U Corsair and asked about the “stripes” … or duct tape … on the cowl in front of the pilot. The answer from a HistoryNet.com researcher below is a great aviation tidbit for those with a curious […]

Annalyn’s imagination and critter ‘picture week’ at our house

| June 11, 2021

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We celebrated Taylor’s 32nd Birthday in Cincinnati for dinner

| June 10, 2021

We had a great time celebrating Taylor’s 32nd birthday last night after work at Pepp and Dolores restaurant in Cincinnati thanks to Megan. Brenda and I enjoyed arriving a little early and sitting at the bar talking with the bartender while sipping some Italian wine. We ended up discussing menu since she wasn’t overly busy. […]

Who knows when we are closing in on a stock market top?

| June 9, 2021

When it comes to investing, I’m primarily a “value investor” who relies on fundamentals, but as for “trading,” which I have tinkered with for 30 years now, I’m an advocate self imposed rules and focusing on channel trading. Of course there are zillions of gurus boasting how they have perfected buy and sell signals, I […]

Weekend chores, a bonfire and iRobot pool cleaner fixes

| June 8, 2021

It was a “work around the yard” weekend for me and besides power washing the patios on Saturday, I cut down honeysuckles in preparation for the new concrete driveway project later this summer (if it is still scheduled and affordable )? Along with sawing trees and hauling limbs, I started the old dried out honeysuckle […]

Music Monday: a commercial for Applebees, John Sebastian, Television themes songs and Welcome Back Kotter (1975-1979)

| June 7, 2021

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Mexican lunches, salsa, discussions, reading and a good friend

| June 6, 2021

For years now … no, it is now decades … my buddy Jeff and I have gone out for lunch ever other week and almost exclusively to a Mexican restaurant … primarily for the chips and salsa (and relaxed conversation). Before that, we lived in different cities (he in Florida and then Alabama … and […]

Celebrating wedding anniversary number 39 without fanfare

| June 5, 2021

Brenda and I are still a year away from a milestone wedding anniversary, but we aren’t taking our 39th for granted – Happy Anniversary Brenda! This past year has been challenging … but an improving year on all counts.  Everyone has been dealing with the COVID19 pandemic, but thankfully for us, we are coming out […]

Tech Friday: Pondering the new Mac Mini vs iMac setup again

| June 4, 2021

The Joanna Sterns review in the WSJ about the new Apple iMac highlighted a few plus and minus points last month … and started me thinking about a desktop computer replacement. It is difficult to imagine spending $2000 again to replace my aging late 2012 iMac 27” model, especially since I run a dual monitor […]

Jimmy Buffett in Delray Beach & automotive pandemic insanity

| June 3, 2021

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Prepping for summer and admiring a porch view from a friend

| June 2, 2021

Although I’ve enjoyed summertime on the beach ever since I was a little boy (we live on a beach), there is something relaxing about seeing the photo above that a friend sent me from his families rented beach house in North Carolina … it look very relaxing. The older I get, the more I enjoy […]

Weekend chores update: Robins, office cleaning and AC prep

| June 1, 2021

The robin eggs in the back porch (earlier in May above) wreath Brenda made from her grandmother’s grapevines years ago, have hatched Below was day one (left) and day two (right) … as Brenda commented … “you should wait until they’re a bit cuter.” The weather was “so-so” this past Memorial Day weekend, but since […]

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