Should this be a Tech Friday or ThrowBack Thursday #TBT post?

| December 19, 2024

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is infiltrating almost everything we do on a smartphone, tablet or computer these days. Last week, my X.com feed sent a message that “you should try generating an image of yourself” based on whatever data it collects. I suspect it relies on my profile information, but am not sure what else it […]

The Oostra’s new house has their first Christmas tree … and a little baseball podcast for ThrowBack Thursday #TBT

| December 12, 2024

Today’s archive post will be quite the Throwback Thursday #TBT stretch … as the photos and Christmas tree subject matter are from last weekend … even though “The Longest Game” podcast forwarded by my daughter Katelyn is a baseball story from years ago (she knows I enjoy baseball). Let’s start with the baseball story from 1981 […]

Archiving (clearing out) a few older leftover photos for #TBT

| December 5, 2024

It is the time of year to clean up my blog’s photo folder — a place where I save photos that I might want to archive on the blog. Usually there’s a reason they don’t get used, but before tossing them due to a new year, it is time to do some housecleaning. First up […]

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 […]

Remembering Taylor and Michael’s connection to KFC #TBT

| November 21, 2024

While Taylor was at his conference and staying with us the other week in Florida, we started talking about good friends … and “old friends” who are still good friends. My thoughts automatically go to my college friend Jeff and Taylor’s to his grade school friend Mike.  One thing led to another and he pulled […]

My Samsung i500 SPH as a WSJTech ThrowBack Thing? #TBT

| October 31, 2024

One of my regular Friday reads is the weekly technology update by Joanna Stern and her Wall Street Journal team called Tech Things. At the end of this weekly update, there is usually a “Throwback Thing.” I mentioned to them that my “still favorite” pocketable cellphone was the Samsung i500 SPH and that I posted […]

A wide brake pedal triggered memories of learning to drive #TBT

| October 24, 2024

It has been a long time since I remembered when stopping quick required a second foot on the brake pedal, but this photo from a 1964 (Camaro I think) reminded me of that wider pedal (think the 1973 Caddy had the two-foot pedal too?) Back when yours truly was learning to drive, our family 4-door […]

We planted a couple trees 15 years ago. They have grown. #TBT

| October 17, 2024

It has been 15 years since we planted the Dawn Redwood tree in our backyard (tree to the right in above photo) and it is still growing strong. I’m starting to think we may have picked a spot a little to close to the pool, although it is still 40 feet away. A year later […]

Liking the iPhone 16 Pro Max and remembering an old favorite

| October 10, 2024

All of the smartphones I’ve owned since the 2000s have held a soft spot in my heart and the same could be said after seeing a Palm Treo photo in a “Year(s) Ago On This Day” link this week. It sort of makes for a worthwhile Throwback Thursday #TBT kind of subject … along with […]

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 […]

Some history while waiting for the iPhone 16 Pro Max #TBT

| September 19, 2024

Posted something similar last year with a better image in the Disqus comment 😊 For many Apple iPhone 16 pre-order folks, this image is an eye-opening reminder of all the versions of the iPhone that Apple as made since Steve Jobs introduced it in 2007. I was a Palm OS user back then and was […]

Capsizing Trinka triggered a traumatic memory for Katelyn #TBT

| September 5, 2024

Katelyn, my now 38 year old adult daughter, read yesterday’s wedding ring and capsized Trinka dinghy sailing memory and mentioned that I should have included her 7th grade “Time In A Bottle” artwork. She reminded me that it was a “traumatic” incident in her young life (although personally, I did feel that I had everything […]

A 1973 Cadillac Coupe Deville photo from the summer of 1980

| August 8, 2024

After noticing a ThrowBack Thursday #TBT post in the “Year(s) Ago On This Date” blog column and recently stumbling across a old automotive photo that I didn’t remember of me with the 1973 Cadillac Coupe Deville … the one that was hit by a train, well pushed off the tracks by a slow moving train. […]

Volkswagen TDI’s “Mickey Mouse Clip” for an automotive #TBT

| August 1, 2024

As is often the case, I’m often thinking about something that will work for ThrowBack Thursdays #TBT. Here are a couple of photos from 15 or so years ago, one of the “Mickey Mouse Clip” hanging with a couple old license plates that was used in the stock A4 Volkswagen TDI diesel fuel filter. I […]

Found two photos of my “rebuildable” 1977 Honda Civic #TBT

| July 18, 2024

There have been several times that I wish I had photos of the cars I’ve owned and now realize that very few actually exist or have been lost. I commented to my car friends about rebuilding the 289 cubic inch V-8 engine, derusting and repainting the 4-door family car that I learned to drive on […]

Happy Independence Day America … and a simple workbench repair for a ThrowBack Thursday memory #TBT

| July 4, 2024

Five or so years ago while working in the garage, I damaged the oak banding edge on my workbench. It continued to bug me until I tried some car body filler as a repair. It has been fantastic ever since and continues to remind me that there’s a simple, economical fix for nearly everything. To […]

Archive: Replaced Brenda’s older Apple Watch earlier this month

| June 13, 2024

It is shocking to count the years since I gave Brenda her first Apple Watch for Christmas in 2015 — NINE … shocker! I would like to be able to say that it actually lasted that long, but not all that long after she started wearing it, the battery “bloated” in the charger and failed. […]

Treasures found prepping old workbench for my granddaughters

| June 6, 2024

My Grandpa Bluhm made this workbench and gave it to me for Christmas back in 1966. His influence early-on likely influenced my interest in tinkering and woodworking (car restoration and rebuilding was probably mostly influenced by DadC).  This past weekend I cleaned it up a bit and added a homemade light strip with a roll of […]

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 […]

Groundhogs and archiving a 1983 Mustang photos for #TBT

| May 16, 2024

I don’t recall how the subject came up, but Brenda and I were talking about our first and then second house in NE Ohio … the one I have some of my fondest memories in — the kids were about our grandchildren’s age. It was located on “Ground Hog Hill” in Hudson Township when we […]

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 […]

Zillow lists “Pending Sale” on the property where I grew up

| April 27, 2024

Towards the end of last year, I added a post titled “Semi-Depressing reminiscing about my childhood home” for Throwback Thursday #TBT in December 2023. A Zillow For Sale listing had me remembering good times AND a not so good photo that did not make me smile (see link). My childhood home on Lake Erie in […]

Remembering the visual learning of Morse Code #TBT

| April 25, 2024

It has been a while since I’ve posted anything amateur radio related, so this is a blast from the ThrowBack Thursday #TBT past … and it reminded me of my teenage years and learning Morse Code visually (chart below the break).   

I have finally gone “Full Howard” (an inside family joke) #TBT

| April 18, 2024

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Removed a couple trees from the front of our house #TBT

| April 11, 2024

Brenda has been bugging me to remove a couple of pine trees (one 30 yo Blue Spruce that was nearly dead) from in front of the house (photo – house without the drooping pine). They were on the “to-do” list last year, but I’ve procrastinated until this year … and in my mind, I was […]

A Bald Eagle photo in Whitehouse, Ohio … and another 100,000 miles odometer photo from my daughter #TBT

| April 4, 2024

Katelyn’s 100K text message (above left) from her 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan reminded me of the one she sent 17 years ago (above right) … back when she was driving her 2001 Volkswagen Jetta TDI. Where have all the years and miles gone (hence #TBT)? I’m so glad we have the technology to sporadically send messages […]

Ronald Reagan was sharp with Johnny Carson [video for #TBT]

| March 28, 2024

As we approach another presidential election in November 2024 (it is still a long way off) … I find myself wishing we had Ronald Reagan on the ballot. I’ve yet to decide whether he put my political ideology into words, or if his political desires and presidency formed the positions I hold today? Whatever, this is […]

Cleaned and shuffled workshop lumber storage last weekend #TBT

| March 21, 2024

I started reorganizing the south wall of my basement workshop on Sunday afternoon, first, so that I could store a bit more lumber on my storage rack (the extra Oosta lumber!) … and second, so that I could clean up my old children’s workbench for my granddaughters to use when they come this summer.  After […]

One year plus a few weeks using MarsEdit for blogging #TBT

| February 8, 2024

This probably should be a Tech Friday post, but since a year has passed since starting to use MarsEdit 5 instead of Open Live Writer on MyDesultoryBlog, but I’m making this a ThrowBack Thursday #TBT post.  After initially tinkering with the trial in January of 2023, I purchased a license and started using in full […]

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 […]

Walking the beach in Florida and a “Big Eye” #TBT moment

| January 25, 2024

A post from over a decade ago highlighted a beach find that was rather unique for the east coast of Florida … a BIG eye … so figure for this ThrowBack Thursday #TBT it would be a way to then comment on a Portuguese Man O’ War spawn this week along Delray Beach. Although there […]

Brenda’s 2010 Acura RDX is in for an emissions issue – Gulp!

| December 28, 2023

After taking Brenda’s 2010 Acura RDX to a local service garage in September, it ran fine for a few months. Beginning in December though, it started to stumble and eventually triggered lights on the dash that included emissions and an AWD code. So we have taken it back this week to see if there is […]

Semi-depressingly reminiscing about my childhood home #TBT

| December 21, 2023

My childhood home on Lake Erie in 1967 It is the time of year when we reflect on the past year … or in my case … the WAY past years. Last month, my brother Ron mentioned that the property (just the land) that our childhood home was being listed for sale. We were both […]

Phone booths today vs phone booths yesterday #TBT

| December 14, 2023

Since I was a heavy phone booth user as a sales guy back in the day (usually drive up style)  … hence #TBT post … I couldn’t help finding humor in this social media meme. 

Taylor’s first VW and a CinciTDI Throwback Thursday #TBT

| December 7, 2023

About a month ago, I stumbled across a photo that I think was used as a header for the CinciTDI website at some point after Katelyn and I sold our VW Jetta TDIs, but I had to smile noticing the Volkswagen in the header photo was once Taylor’s GTI. Very good memories for sure (and […]

Archive: A family Throwback Thursday #TBT filler post

| November 30, 2023

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An everyday carry pocket knife gets a lot of wear and tear #TBT

| November 9, 2023

Not all that long ago, I blogged on the need to start looking for a replacement pocket knife for my all-time-favorite EDC Swiss pocket knife. I could never quite cough up the money since the “blades” on my Mini Champ were still good and it spends most of its time in my pocket anyway. BUT […]

What a life! A beautiful October morning in 2011 #TBT

| November 2, 2023

An older video popped up on on of the cloud archive sites for one reason or another last month (don’t recall), and after quickly glancing at it, decided it was worth including for a Throwback Thursday #TBT.  The short clip was Brenda driving to work in her 1998 Toyota Rav4 and was from 2011. It […]

The ablity to memorize passes to the next generation #TBT

| September 28, 2023

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It looks like it’s time to clean out the birdhouse? #TBT

| September 21, 2023

It is humorous to see just how much a bird can put in the bluebird birdhouse that the granddaughters and I made back in 2020 (hence, the Throwback Thursday #TBT photo at left from 2020). It was completely stuffed full when I took it down from the pole at their house last week.  My plan […]

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 […]

The Super Blue Moon and HOT summer days in the yard #TBT

| September 7, 2023

To make this a Throwback Thursday #TBT post, here’s a photo from Summer 2022. I used Brenda’s iPhone14 to capture the brilliant Super Blue Moon at the end of August … not bad. It was so bright that it basically lit up the flowering bushes off the rear porch.  The late summer heat (90+ degrees […]

Visual of why Jim Brown exemplifies the Cleveland Browns 😊

| August 30, 2023

Jim Brown played for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL) from 1957 through 1965. Considered to be one of the greatest running backs of all time, as well as one of the greatest players in NFL history. (Link)

Earl’s Sinclair Gas and Auto Service Station – Toledo Ohio #TBT

| August 24, 2023

While visiting with my extended family at my Uncle Sonny’s Celebration of Life earlier this month, a few of us exchanged phone numbers so we could better stay in touch. My cousin Dan forwarded a paper that highlighted my Grandfather Corbett’s Sinclair gas station and Earl’s Auto Service in South Toledo. It was interesting to […]

Time to replace my Mini Swiss Champ pocketknife #TBT

| August 3, 2023

My current knife when it was new in 2012. As a previous post mentioned, my Grandpa Bluhm (photo with my Uncle Bob) gave me my first pocketknife when I was 5 years old (yes, 5).  Believe it or not, I still have that “tiny” souvenir knife that my grandparents brought back from Florida. At one […]

Photo triggered “gas line” and “cars owned” memories #TBT

| July 27, 2023

Although I’m not positive as to the year (perhaps 1978), but this photo triggered thoughts of the 1970s and the gas station lines that happened between 1973 and 1979. The memory is fitting for Throwback Thursday #TBT, perhaps in part because I worked at a Shell station while in high school? Another interesting memory is […]

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 […]

Reminiscing about a couple of my favorite iPhones #TBT

| July 6, 2023

While finding links for a blog post last week, I stumbled across a couple photos of my iPhone5 while upgrading to my current, but aging, iPhone7plus. Although the bulky protective case on the iPhone7+ did not last long, it was interesting to remember it. I quickly switched to the thinnest case I could find and […]

The Legendary Palm Treo 700p #TBT

| June 29, 2023

While updating a few blog titles that had mis-coded characters on My Desultory Blog, my eye was drawn to an old favorite smartphone post from 2006 — the Palm Treo 700p. See 2006 CAK photo post   The photos started me thinking about this making an interesting artificial intelligence assisted ChatGPT Throwback Thursday #TBT post? The […]

Once upon a time, the Palm Pre was a great pocket phone #TBT

| June 15, 2023

Back in 2009, after years of using Palm OS products like the Palm Pilot, the Handspring Visor, Palm Treo, Palm Centro and my favorite Samsung SPH i500, I eventually ended up with a small pocketable, full-featured smartphone — the Palm Pre. Who knew that only a year later that I would be forced to give […]

Megan, Taylor and Gigi … and Tootsie to make it #TBT

| May 25, 2023

It looks as if the dog Megan found a month or so ago … and tried to find its owner (it was probably abandoned) … has now found a new home with Taylor and Megan. They have named her Gigi. Since both Megan and Taylor have grown up with dogs, perhaps it is no surprise […]

Filler Post: How fast is fast when it comes to #aviation

| April 20, 2023

When it comes to fast aircraft, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is the one most of us know about. In a social media Twitter mention last week, Massimo posted this photo and link. The SR-71 Blackbird was so fast that, if attacked by surface-to-air missiles, it simply flew higher, faster, and in a slightly different direction […]

Catching up on family photos from the previous week #TBT

| March 23, 2023

As is the norm for most of today’s families, sending text messages and photos is one way we stay connected. Last week Katelyn sent a photo of the girls snacking out of the back of her Volkswagen Tiguan and it reminded me of the times we did the same with our kids … and  also […]

The Remarkable Life of Poon Lim (by Carl Seaver)

| February 2, 2023

EXCERPT => “On November 23, 1942, the Royal Navy destroyer SS Benlomond was torpedoed by a German submarine. Poon Lim, a Chinese civilian seaman aboard the ship, found himself stranded in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Against all odds, Poon Lim survived 133 days at sea before being rescued by Brazilian fishermen.” This Carl […]

Recipe reminiscing, the lost art of handwriting and longer days

| January 5, 2023

A little bit of recipe reminiscing for Throwback Thursday #TBT this week. Over New Year’s Day, I enjoyed a “Bean Soup” recipe conversation with my daughter Katelyn. We discussed using the ham bone and pieces of ham from our Christmas dinner. I opted for a delicious Ham and Potato soup and froze a couple smaller […]

My brother emailed a photo of our grandfather from 1966 #TBT

| December 22, 2022

Tis the season, to reflect a bit …  at least for me. I posted a few old photos last week, so when my brother sent me one of Earl Daniel Corbett, our grandfather, it seemed appropriate for Throwback Thursday #TBT. He mentioned  that he came across it at a Corbett family reunion and said it […]

Archive: Old photos found from my ONU college days #TBT

| December 15, 2022

First up, is a rainy photo of the second car that I rebuilt … but this 1974 Capri was really my first car since I bought it with my own money (paid $600 at a junkyard in 1978). The car I think of as my first car would be a 1967 Ford Custom 500 (link […]

How many flat tires does a person repair in a lifetime? #TBT

| December 8, 2022

The Throwback Thursday #TBT tag was just an excuse to ask the question: “How many flat tires does a person need to have repaired in their lifetime?” I don’t know the answer, but I do know that I’ve repaired A LOT. It seems I’m forever needing to add air (change in temperatures), have a slow […]

Progress on Katelyn and Drew’s house and 1995 #TBT

| November 10, 2022

In keeping with the desultory and archiving nature of MyDesultoryBlog, here are a couple construction progress photo of Katelyn and Drew’s new house in NW Ohio. One with the first floor “sticks” going up and the other just the subflooring. Katelyn also sent me a walk-thru video from their property (narrated by my oldest granddaughter) […]

The 1986 Mazda James Garner ad was a favorite #TBT

| October 27, 2022

Favorite actors pitching products has been a staple in the advertising business for a long time … probably because it works! Shortly after this Gigi and James Garner commercial came out for Mazda 323 in 1986, we bought a “new” 1988 Mazda 626 turbo that replaced a Volkswagen Golf (MK2 Wolfsburg edition). To this day […]

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.
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