RichC | March 27, 2017
What do you get when you mix 1960s space history, some classic 1972 Elton John music and a twist of Bluegrass flair? Rocket Man with banjos and country harmony! Good stuff.
RichC | March 25, 2017
Just when you think you’ve heard and read it all when it comes to sailing and telling the story … Guirec Soudée and his chicken Monique goes one step further. Crazy. The adventure of Monique & Guirec Our adventure is going global! Thank you all for your support! Notre aventure se mondialise! Merci à tous […]
RichC | March 20, 2017
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RichC | March 19, 2017
My son Taylor is geography and map kind of guy so I gave him a mag-lift spinning globe for his desk for Christmas 2016. His interests and innate sense of direction is probably why he pursued “Urban Planning and now coordinates development for Clermont County Ohio as a county planner. Anyway, I had forgotten that […]
RichC | March 17, 2017
RichC | March 16, 2017
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RichC | March 15, 2017
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RichC | March 12, 2017
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RichC | March 11, 2017
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RichC | March 2, 2017
This kind of interview and polite exchange with Jason Furman is what make Maria Bartiromo one of the best in the business … and why FoxBusiness is beating CNBC. They are now the business news powerhouse … not to mention their sister channel FoxNews had more viewers than any other network during President Trump’s speech […]
RichC | February 28, 2017
Spotted this on my Facebook feed (was posted in 2016).
RichC | February 27, 2017
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RichC | February 25, 2017
Last night while posting about the shockingly mild February 2017 and “hinting” at the front rolling in, the change came. Nothing major, but definitely not 77 degree! After the sunrise, the gray sky move from west to east brought a late morning snow shower just to remind me that it is still winter — put […]
RichC | February 15, 2017
Video training on setting up a speed limiting drogue for emergency steering on a sailboat. 33 minute training video demonstrates two popular approaches that give racers and cruisers more than one option when steering a disabled vessel with a damaged or lost rudder. Each drogue is deployed according to the manufactures recommendations with lots of […]
RichC | February 13, 2017
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RichC | February 10, 2017
Great how-to YouTube video from ChrisFix on testing your car battery with a simple voltage meter.
RichC | January 25, 2017
Memorials, funerals and burials can be emotionally draining and it is hard to know just how they impact each of us … but “to the person,” those that knew mom – grandma – Frances Ann Louise Howard (Holmstrom), were without question happy and celebrating. Fran and Christians who have placed their faith in Jesus, and […]
RichC | January 23, 2017
Great visual look at the evolution from 1969 thru 2017. The first SUV to wear the vaunted “Range Rover” badge came in 1969 with the development of 26 individual prototype vehicles. Each “Velar” prototype wore special badging ahead of the production debut. The first Range Rover to trundle across craggy landscapes arrived in 1970, claiming […]
RichC | January 20, 2017
A friend of mine has been brainstorming the components and options for a project that I’m tinkering on for both the sailboat and improving my back up power at the house. Basically the idea is to use a minimalist single board computer like the Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Pine64 or maybe just the new IoT Photon. […]
RichC | January 18, 2017
It was a Baby Shower weekend, and what a wonderful one at that. Terrrific family and friends … and a beautiful mother to be and a “Babygirl” shower a few notches above (well my opinion). My wife Brenda and two of Katelyn’s friends from medical school put on a classy baby shower and turned our […]
RichC | January 13, 2017
A few of these screwdriver hacks are not necessarily new, but could be helpful if you are ever caught shorthanded for the right tool. I’m particularly fond of using the wrench and screwdriver together (above left) as even with a full set of wrenched and sockets, there are a few oddities preventing wrenches from […]
RichC | January 7, 2017
While contemplating complexity vs simplicity in life and on sailboats, I once again stumbled on a precious morsel by Lin Pardey who has been land-based in New Zealand. Taleisin was sold to a young couple who now enjoys Lin and Larry’s “home” for over 30 years (mentioned before). Lin continues to write, appear at boatshows […]
RichC | January 5, 2017
A little snow arrived today (maybe 2-3″), so while waiting for the follow-up call on our new furnaces in the afternoon, I shot a 10 second video and encoded with Handbrake to cellphone size for web streaming. Quality is still decent, but not the HD video that the Lumix GX8 is capable of.
RichC | January 3, 2017
I’m feeling guilty about receive a Christmas present from my daughter and son-in-law after realizing the price ($$$). I mistakenly admired a bag Drew’s brother demonstrated to me when they had the baby reveal … and although I knew is was above average in price, I never took the time to do the research as […]
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 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 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 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 | November 8, 2016
The highlight of this past weekend was in getting together with the Oostra family on a sunny and beautiful Sunday afternoon where Katelyn and Drew had a “Baby Oostra” reveal party. A popular trend nowadays is for young couples to make the gender reveal “an event” … and creativity seems to be the key. A […]
RichC | October 26, 2016
The advancements in unmanned aviation continue to impress me as a new generation of pilots is flying by remote control rather than “stick and rudder,” “yoke and peddle” … but all can still fly by the “seat of their pants.” I’m still unsure what to call these computer controlled devices nowadays … quadcopters, quadrotors (what […]
RichC | October 9, 2016
Archiving another project idea for living on the hook (someday) yet still having hot water for dishes, cleaning and SHOWERS (a freshwater shower is a luxury for most sailboats).
RichC | October 8, 2016
RichC | October 1, 2016
Sailrite has years of on and off water How-To YouTube Videos
RichC | September 28, 2016
Thanks Tim for sending me the video from the Mr. Godwrench service day in Jackson, Kentucky (last week’s post). It was great to see the good times and teaching moments … both "hands-on" car maintenance and emulating what it is to have a Christian heart … and I’m sure it felt good for the givers […]
RichC | September 26, 2016
Just when you thought this years presidential campaign couldn’t get any weirder … Gov Gary Johnson steps it up a notch on MSNBC. I don’t have (or want) the full context.
RichC | September 14, 2016
Tempus fugit (Latin phrase) for "Time flies" when you’re having fun! … and we certainly had a good time this past weekend with our pregnant daughter Katelyn and husband Drew. This trip to Minneapolis was the first since Thanksgiving 2015 — shame on us — but at least we waited for great weather to visit. […]
RichC | September 1, 2016
My son-in-law Drew shared a really impressive Phatom3 movie clip on YouTube after his July 2016 vacation in Michigan. There were some incredibly beautiful views, sunsets and shoreline video … of course it didn’t hurt that the weather was perfect for Katelyn and Drew’s vacation at his parent’s “cabin” (as they call it). Although I’ve […]
RichC | August 24, 2016
Just another ingenious Indiegogo project attempting to raise capital through crowdfunding. We probably don’t need them in the states, but it would be a great option for Minneapolis bike riding … just thinking about my daughter and son-in-law!
RichC | August 16, 2016
Audi’s 2017 SQ7 diesel TDI takes a new spin on hybrid vehicles by incorporating an electric compressor in addition to the already impressive 2 compressors (turbochargers). I’m not sure at what point technology goes too far in adding complexity but improving performance, but this is one impressive TDI! (link and video illustration below) https://youtu.be/ALOV0Tcl-4k
RichC | July 24, 2016
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RichC | July 22, 2016
With a renewed interest in the upcoming iPhone7 after Apple released the new iOS10 public beta, I’m wondering what’s really the next “big” (pun intended) thing for pocketable smart devices. If it were durable and possible, I’d love having an expanding screen on my iPhone that could do double-duty as an iPad!
RichC | July 10, 2016
If liberal politicians really wanted to reduce gun violence, they would enforce existing law in the cities suffering the most … and the complicit left leaning media would be holding their feet to the fire. Instead, the ultimate objective is obvious: dismantle the 2nd amendment granting the right to bear arms to all law abiding citizens. https://youtu.be/qgr2lj7jwr4
RichC | July 6, 2016
My daughter Katelyn and husband Drew were in Iowa over the July 4th holiday weekend with his family. Since they were visiting the old farm homestead, it was a perfect time to get his new Phantom 3 quadrotor out and take a little more video. The time to visit northwestern Iowa is obviously the summer […]
RichC | July 1, 2016
This is a quick test for a new computer running Open Live Writer. I’m retiring my 9 year old Gateway notebook computer and forging ahead with a low powered and low cost Microsoft Window 10 notebook. More to come on my recent addition in a future post, but after the Gateway overheated and cooked itself […]
RichC | June 30, 2016
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RichC | June 28, 2016
I’m not sure how the whole "drone" future is going to turn out, but it is exciting to watch the improvements over a short period of time. The ease of flying, improvements in batteries and quality of video have really advanced. It will not be long before we’re "jumping" around town in a quadrotor. I […]
RichC | June 27, 2016
Whew … luckily no injuries.
RichC | June 21, 2016
My son-in-law Drew had a special treat after an evening at the Ridgeview Medical Center fundraiser in Waconia, Minnesota. It looks like my daughter Katelyn persuaded her colleague, fellow pediatrician Dr. Adam Weber, to take Drew up for an evening flight in his Bellanca Citabria (Of interest: When the original manufacturer Champion Aircraft derived the name for this […]
RichC | June 10, 2016
We recently returned from the high school graduation of my niece Sarah Gerber who has fought and lived with childhood cancer her entire life. She continues to defy the odds with an inoperable brain tumor and her story is truly encouraging for all who face similar medical challenges. Sarahs’ 18 years are ones of courage, […]
RichC | June 7, 2016
This makes me a sick to my stomach as I’m thinking about our Encore sitting in a marina as hurricane and tropical storm season move closer to peak months.
RichC | June 1, 2016
Soft shackles made from Dyneema are lighter and stronger than stainless steel, they are also kinder to your boat and your hands. Yachting Monthly demonstra Source: VIDEO: How to Make a Soft Shackle >> Scuttlebutt Sailing News
RichC | 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 […]
RichC | 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 […]
RichC | May 16, 2016
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RichC | 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 […]
RichC | 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
RichC | April 30, 2016
You would think an over 17 million viewed video on YouTube with a Pumpy Umpy reference would be something I would have watched before … nope … but now I have. So much for knowing about Amy Castle or the Cuppycake song.
RichC | April 28, 2016
Just a few steps from my old office door … who’d a thunk it?
RichC | April 14, 2016
This isn’t the first close call incident according to the news coming from the Pentagon, but a very close and dangerous pass over the USS Donald Cook in the Baltic. They halted exercises with a Polish helicopter landing on the flight deck and shared the video below. Thankfully cooler head prevailed but at some […]
RichC | April 2, 2016
We had a few wicked thunderstorms last week while in Florida and enjoyed watching this one “from a distance” in the cockpit of Encore (also a very short clip of Katelyn and Drew heading off to explore distant shores in the Zodiac – below the break). —