Happy Thanksgiving! Do you remember learning Punctuation?

| November 28, 2024

First off, Happy Thanksgiving 2024. I hope you can be as thankful as the pilgrims were at that first Thanksgiving in 1621. “Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labors; they four […]

Interesting and handy tips from a social media #video

| November 27, 2024

Here’s a quick video for a holiday shortened week, but picked up a few good ideas as this video flashed by on the social media site X.com.  

Tech Friday: Distrust Artificial Intellegence #AI as we do social media … or for that matter the mainstream media #MSM

| November 22, 2024

This past week, while digging up answers for tax planning for a Barron’s Advisor group that I participate in, I searched for the standard 2024 deduction changes based on age, etc. At the top of my Brave Browser search (their Leo AI engine), which I’ve found helpful several times, pop the summary below:  This recent search […]

Magnetic North has moved substantially in my lifetime

| November 19, 2024

According to Brian Roemmele on X.com: Magnetic North is now drifting faster than 30 miles per year. It has already moved back past geological north, a place it has not been for 1000s of years. … and Elon Musk added: We live on a thin crust of solid rock, beneath which is vast ball of […]

Tech Friday: Politics has triggered some people to leave X.com

| November 15, 2024

It has been a challenging week and a half for a few of my more liberal Democrat friends on the social media platform X.com (previously Twitter). I’m unsure if it is anger, disbelief or a way to strike back now that President-Elect Donald Trump won the election. Trump has been rapidly nominating his cabinet (mostly […]

Tech Friday: Tinkering with Apple Intelligence summary feature

| November 8, 2024

Apple is finally rolling out the much ballyhooed Apple Intelligence on Apple devices … including my new iPhone 16 Pro Max. Their have been a few laughs from me when it comes to the AI “summary” feature generating a questionable summary (an automotive enthusiast John Rowe’s X.com comments – he does NOT recommend Sunbeam).  On […]

The 2024 Presidential Election is around the corner

| October 19, 2024

It is difficult to escape the political ads, commentary and “web of lies” that continue to be spun by candidates and political action committees. I know that I’m not alone in wanting it to “just be over.”  I’ve told friends and family that they should just ignore everything that is posted on the Internet and […]

Filler: If you are having a bad day, dream about a trip to Alaska

| October 18, 2024

Photo is from the internet — not mine. ☹️

What did you plink with the Wrist-Rocket slingshot? #TBT

| September 26, 2024

Once again, a social media “what is it” post (on X.com) intrigued me enough to comment on the glass insulators that were used on phone lines for years … especially along the railroad tracks when I was a kid.  The antique photo triggered a Throwback Thursday #TBT memory of hanging out in an area behind […]

Feel good snippet from X.com — The plus side of Social Media

| September 9, 2024

Tech Friday: Big Tech’s data access knows no bounds … and neither do some politicians and government agencies

| September 6, 2024

Europe and their big government overreaches in restricting personal liberty by American standards, but that same heavy handedness often does more that the U.S. to protect an individual’s privacy from Big Tech and their sweeping data collection machines.  Ever since social media and cloud-oriented companies desired to take ownership of their users data, it has […]

Leftover August 2024 images to clear out MyCubby folder

| August 31, 2024

The folder labelled “MyCubby” on my Microsoft OneDrive is a place I collect images, links, photos, etc that might be worth looking at again … or perhaps used on the blog. Each month I try to start fresh with a relatively empty space … so to prepare for September 2024, I’ll archive a couple items […]

The tropical weather in the Pacific is being watched by Hawaii

| August 28, 2024

Normally this is the time of the year to watch the tropical weather in the Atlantic Ocean “because” in impacts the Caribbean islands and most of the eastern seaboard and Gulf of Mexico states. BUT … this year so far the storms impacting Hawaii are in the news. Category 1 Hurricane Hone passed mostly south […]

What does a “1913 tire ad” have to do with a political X.com post?

| August 9, 2024

While looking on Wikipedia for  for the history of old the adage “A picture is worth a thousand words,” I came across an interesting 1913 newspaper clipping from the town just south of my adopted hometown of Sidney, Ohio — that of Piqua, Ohio.  It is always interesting to stumble across tidbits from the past […]

What would you do if you caught this while fishing?

| August 4, 2024

If you spend any time on social networks, it is likely that you’ll occasionally see things that are shocking. Here’s a fisherman “posing” with a Deep Sea Wolf Eel that would be shocking … and while I’m at it, a frightening Mediterranean Sea sailing story about increasingly aggressive Orcas (Killer Whales).   Killer whales sink […]

Tech Friday: Finally upgraded to a ‘paid’ X.com subscription

| June 7, 2024

I’ve been using Twitter, which is now X.com after Elon Musk purchase $TWTR and renamed it, since the early days of the 240 character social network. Shockingly, it has now been over 17 years since I joined in February of 2007 … and I decided it was finally time to eliminate the ads and gain […]

Using Perplexity.AI and the news of the day: Trump Convicted

| May 31, 2024

It is Tech Friday, but because I’ve already prepared and posted, I still wanted to highlight the newsworthy headline story regarding the politically motivated trial against former president and the likely Republican candidate for president, Donald J. Trump. So opted to test the relatively “new to me” AI client (Perplexity.AI) by asking: Can you summarize […]

A different kind of Memorial Day remembrance

| May 27, 2024

Each year Memorial Day holiday often brings out the best in Americans. Those I know, at least give “thought” to the service men and women who fought and died to protect and preserve our country, our freedom and way of life. It is of course, will never be enough appreciation from those of us who […]

Transplanted buttercups and DadH’s workshop in 2013 #TBT

| May 23, 2024

Upstairs in the Western NY Farmhouse Barn’s workshop in 2013 In keeping with the occasional ThrowBack Thursday #TBT, the above was a pano photo of DadH’s workshop after he passed away. I mentioned to Brenda that I wondered how he was able to climb the stairs of the barn and work on such a large […]

Archive: The Northern Lights were to beautiful not to include

| May 11, 2024

On Friday May 10, 2024, I started noticing the beautiful northern lights (aurora borealis) photos showing up on my X.com social media feed. They were so impressive that I told Brenda that we would need to go outside in the evening. While glancing at my skywatching info, I also notice that the International Space Station […]

Being a great parent really isn’t that difficult #video

| May 9, 2024

Being a great parent isn’t always expensive … it just takes a little time and attention to your children. Here’s someone spotted on social media being a great mom … and a pretty cute little girl enjoying the ride! 

Music Monday: Weird Al Yankovic and “The Saga Begins”

| May 6, 2024

If you’ve followed Music Monday entries in the past, you might have noticed a post or two have been generated by Fox Business segment breaks. On Friday, Stu Varney’s producers slipped in “The Saga Begins” a parody song by Weird Al Yankovic from 1999. I thought to myself, the short 15 second audio-only segment does […]

Work on the Kubota diesel mower is not going well

| May 5, 2024

With the lawn growing like crazy, this is definitely not the time for a mower to need service. The local Kubota dealer is backed up 2 weeks for service and I’m struggling to diagnose the exact problem. So far I’ve only taken things apart, broken a “fuel return pipe” and ordered parts.  Nothing like breaking […]

The Doppelgänger look-a-likes always impress me #TBT

| May 2, 2024

Every once in a while there is a doppelgänger photo, person, sculpture or something that reminds me of someone else (software isn’t always accurate). 😉  Also a few years back, there was a person who reminded me of my brother Ron, so I posted about it. Back October 2011 at my nephew’s wedding, there was […]

Great tip for those wanting to draw things better

| April 23, 2024

As a “non-artist,” I’ve always admired (or had someone on the CPP payroll) who have had the ability and training to create art. Here’s a social media video tip for those of us who would just like to draw a car. 😊 

There are probably too many posts just for the sake of posting?

| March 23, 2024

This should probably should have been a Tech Friday blog update post (or not at all?), but was something I noticed after cleaning up about 13 older posts with “issues.” Also I am hoping to test a “featured image” add-on to see if it work with social media alerts.  Since 2005, I’ve been posting daily and […]

Should TikTok be banned, divested or remain Chinese owned?

| March 20, 2024

I’m of the opinion that there are three basic issues we Americans need to address when discussing what should be done with TikTok — be it a ban, divested ownership or continue under Chinese ownership and control.  The Chinese Communist Party (government) uses the social media platform to collect data on U.S. citizens/user and feeds […]

Besides costly higher education and health care … buying and owning a home is now unaffordable for many in America

| March 17, 2024

Going to college after high school has always seemed expensive, but by working, borrowing and getting help from parents … it was do-able, and by today’s standards, seemed affordable. I can’t help but smile noticing that when I finally paid off my student loan that I could start saving to put my kids through college. […]

A blog filler, but humanitarian innovation worth mentioning

| February 23, 2024

Love to read a positive story or tidbit on social media … and this one about Kenton Lee and “The Shoe That Grows” caught my eye. In 2007, our founder Kenton Lee traveled to Nairobi, Kenya after graduating college. He lived and worked at a small orphanage with some incredible kids. One day, he was […]

Sunday Filler John 3:16 share while busy with our family

| February 18, 2024

Tech Friday: Are we getting closer to a foldable Apple iPhone?

| February 9, 2024

As an Apple advocate and device user from the 1980s and someone who as been begging for a foldable iPhone flip phone (or even slider) since using and retiring a foldable Samsung SPH i500  PalmOS device years ago, “I can’t wait”… as I mentioned to tech influencer Evan Kirsten.  We seem to be getting closer, […]

Music Monday: Kids, Families, Bands and Social Media Fun

| February 5, 2024

Call today’s Music Monday post from X.com a lazy one … but I still like it (what a great dad)! Doesn't look like a lot of money here, not a lot of 'stuff'. There's one thing present that's far more valuable, can you see? pic.twitter.com/wOU6U9ak0F — Dane (@UltraDane) February 4, 2024

A classic Firebird reminded me of my 1974 Mercury Capri #TBT

| February 1, 2024

Contemplating classic cars after seeing a good looking late 1960’s Pontiac Firebird 400 while filling up at Costco. I posted a comment on X.com and it gave me a ThrowBack Thursday #TBT excuse to repost a couple old black and while of photos of my first junkyard rebuildable … my 1974 Capri (it was pea […]

Music Monday: Gin Blossoms – “Follow You Down”

| January 29, 2024

Often the bumper music on business television shows catches my ear and triggers a Music Monday idea. That was the case with the 1996 song “Follow You Down” by Gin Blossoms on The Big Money Show with hosts Jackie DeAngelis, Taylor Riggs and a personal favorite personality, Brian Brenberg. Here’s a YouTube Official Video of […]

Social media Triple Tail Thursday aviation tweets

| January 14, 2024

Aviation has been a hobby of mine for a long time, even though I no longer fly airplanes or spend time homebuilding an airplane or being active in my local EAA Chapter (Hm, I’m missing our chapter meeting today). I do still enjoy the social connection with aviation friends on Twitter/X.com … one that posts […]

Beware of dogs … when disposing of Christmas trees #humor

| January 7, 2024

Just a bit of Christmas and New Year’s Day holiday cleaning up humor found on X.com.

My favorite Babylon Bee Parody Video For 2023

| December 31, 2023

After commenting back in 2022 on a favorite Babylon Bee parody video (added from YouTube below the break), this 2023 year year end New Year’s Eve favorite is another California oriented music video. Both parody clips highlight memorable songs as well as destructive policies from progressive Democrats governing a once idyllic state. It does seems […]

The sound of the Red-Tail Hawk vs Bald Eagle

| December 12, 2023

As someone who enjoys birds and birdwatching, I found this Red-Tail Hawk (left) vs Bald Eagle (right) X.com video worth sharing. Did you know? The iconic sound of the bald eagle you always hear in movies and TV shows is the one of a red-tailed hawk. Why? This is the red-tailed hawk's vocalization vs a […]

Does a USB drive get heavier as you store more files on it?

| December 2, 2023

Loved this @Rainmaker1973 X.com post about digital storage and in particular USB flash drives (also enjoyed the photo): Nope. Paradoxically (and theoretically), the more you save on a flash drive, the lighter it gets. USB drives use Flash memory, which means the the ones and zeros of the data are stored on transistors. When you […]

The Tesla Cybertruck deliveries begin today

| November 30, 2023

An automotive filler for this afternoon: Pretty impressive. #automotive #Cybertruck $TSLA https://t.co/0agJNMn2Or — Rich Corbett (@RichC) November 30, 2023

Tech Friday: Be careful with Bing’s AI image creator

| November 24, 2023

A week or so ago, I went looking for an image of a Killer Whale (Orca) … and wanted one that had the happy look of a smiling Shamu, etc. It didn’t need to be a “real photo” so thought it would be a simple task for one of the artificial intelligence assistance. Microsoft’s Bing […]

X.com API test: Still would like an iPhone flipphone

| November 17, 2023

Really just testing a new X.com (Twitter) setup after the MyDesultoryBlog account stopped updating several months ago. An API change has made it more difficult for automated accounts to send out tweets. Adding a photo to keep Apple aware that I still would really like an iPhone Flip! 😉 

Percentage of a country’s population that speaks fluent English

| November 16, 2023

Of course this was found on social media: X.com … so take it with a grain of salt 😊 (also tinkering with columns for WordPress)

Remember our Veterans this weekend and HB to the USMC

| November 11, 2023

Yesterday was the 248th birthday for the USMC (my X or tweet below). They have an amazing history and those who serve or served (once a Marine always a Marine) have a good reason to be proud. Their bravery and sacrifice was cemented for me earlier this year after listening to the audiobook by Eugene […]

Tech Friday 2: Testing X.com API after new updates

| November 3, 2023

Simple test for my automated MyDesultoryBlog’s X.com account after an API update. This WordPress plug-in using a newly updated service should start to work again. This post will probably be deleted although since I like the Elon Musk ani-gif, I might just keep it. Will this feature work again? 

Sunday Thoughts

| October 22, 2023

A how to hang a picture on a nail with a fork #video tip

| September 25, 2023

How to hang a picture on a nail with a fork social media household tip (short video below).

Tech Friday: Really just testing a WP theme and Bing AI Chat

| September 22, 2023

It is time to start cleaning up my older WordPress blog install and preparing for an eventual update … once again. I’m beginning to realize that part of the problem is that I hang onto old themes that are no longer updated and I continue to tweak them myself. As the components that run WordPress […]

Physics teacher demonstrates Bernoulli’s principle #science

| September 20, 2023

What do you remember from Physics class? How about Bernoulli’s principle (something mentioned before). Physics teacher shows Bernoulli's principle pic.twitter.com/AUKpechMKA — Mind Blowing (@blowingfactz) September 17, 2023

Automotive, but with a beachy Throwback Thursday twist #TBT

| September 14, 2023

A week or so ago, a tweet (or is it X?) appeared on an automotive publication’s social media account … and it caught my eye (see below). It triggered a memory of a well loved plastic 1957 Ford Ranchero that my brother and I had in our large collection of toy cars and trucks; some […]

Where are Americans Born?

| September 5, 2023

There was an interesting tidbit shared on X.com (formerly Twitter) that highlighted in graphical color where a states population was born. It highlights movements from different areas of the country to other areas, populations who were not transient … as well as what state people born outside the US made home. 

Just filling space with a Cicada and a Couple Smiles

| August 23, 2023

Just filling up some space and using these photos as excuses to post a cicada “live photo” (saved as anigif) AND a cute “smiling dogs” photo from the social network “X” … formerly known as Twitter. I’m enjoying the nice warm weather as long as it lasts — August is disappearing fast.

Tech Friday: Update to WordPress, theme and plug-in failures

| August 11, 2023

As My Desultory Blog approaches 8000 posts, it has become increasingly clear that tags and categories are becoming worthless. Besides having too many, they are all too full and do little for me to find anything (or anyone else). The search feature has always been a problem and makes it difficult for even me to […]

Would you feel comfortable flying on this plane?

| August 2, 2023

Not my photo, but I’m not sure how comfortable the average passenger flying this “budget” airline (???) are when seeing the tape on the wing? Also while sitting on the back porch a little Praying Mantis came to visit (video below).

Tech Friday: Elon Musk announces Twitter’s bird is now X

| July 28, 2023

Things continue to change over at Twitter, at least as the old is removed and the new is implemented. I’m not sure the switch from the Twitter “bird” to the symbol “X” is all that big of a deal, but it does at least keep people in the tech world talking. Who knows if Elon […]

This is a Twitter API Test post

| July 25, 2023

The API is not accepting updates to MyDesultoryBlog Twitter account. Reset new “keys and tokens” to see if it updates? This will be deleted as it is only a test.

A collection of graphs and charts used on Twitter last week

| July 22, 2023

The week was abnormally filled with charts and graphs while chiming in to news stories and posts on Twitter this past week, but I’ll start with an animated GIF graphic and link to a story regarding offshore wind farm leases opening up in the Gulf of Mexico. As for the graphs and charts, here’s one […]

Discussing AM radio with a journalist friend and a very funny John Pinette video snippet #TBT

| July 20, 2023

An automotive journalist friend of mine regularly promotes his radio appearances on Chicago’s talk radio, which often leads to discussions regarding radio in general. Often the thoughts are to broadcast radio, both AM and FM, verses streaming via an Internet signal (or perhaps satellite)? One thing lead to another and I reflect on my amateur […]

Filler: Be careful what you “thumbs-up” via text message!

| July 19, 2023

Especially in Canada—> LINK

A shared “feel good about the next generation” story

| July 16, 2023

Perhaps I’m just being sensitive in having a couple granddaughters I want to protect, but started to read a human interest story last week that started me off irritated. Thankfully by the end, it gave a ray of hope for the next generation. Dear teenage boy at the skate park… You’re probably about 15 years-old, […]

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