Archive: Leftover personal family 4th of July weekend photos
Posted By RichC on July 10, 2021
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Tech Friday: Switched to “Google Drive for Desktop” on my iMac
Posted By RichC on July 9, 2021
For the last few years, I’ve been using Google’s Backup and Sync software on my iMac to back up mostly archival data to my free Google Drive space that was part of my legacy Miami University EDU teaching account. I haven’t taught in Oxford, Ohio for decades, but did spend a few dollars for Taylor’s education a few years back. I keep 330GB or so of data backed up on the Google Educational account, but noticed the app is glitchy. It can bog down 
the computer at inopportune times and even when limiting upload speeds, it churns and churns.
So this past week I switched to Google Drive for Desktop app in hope that it is better? Last year I downgraded my Microsoft OneDrive subscription to 100GB from 1TB which is my primary working drive due to everything being a paid for subscription model these days. It is challenging to say under the cap, but it also forces me to do harddrive housekeeping once in a while. BTW, OneDrive has been flawless and works as good if not better than Dropbox, Apple’s iCloud, Box or my ODrive with Amazon AWS.
Since I still have a couple other personal Google accounts with limited storage (17GB) that are primarily for Gmail these days, I still keep a few Google Docs, Sheets, etc on those storage spaces too along with even less on Dropbox and Box. (stay tuned as might be giving ProtonDrive BETA a try)
Still glad we bought a Bosch Dishwasher 11 years ago #TBT
Posted By RichC on July 8, 2021
After seeing the latest Wirecutter recommendation the other day, I was glad to know we were ahead of the curve back when we replaced our old dishwasher with a Bosch model in 2010.
Books: “Beyond”by Stephen Walker about Yuri Gagarin
Posted By RichC on July 7, 2021
One of the segments from the Wall Street Journal that I especially enjoy are the book reviews … or the “bookshelf.” I’m always intrigued by the history selections and the review on Stephen Walker’s book “Beyond” was no exception. It so happened that it is also a WSJ+ “free book club read” for the month of June 2021, so I’ve added it to my Glose reader and will look forward to it once I’m finished with last month’s book “All Against All.” Once again, I’ve have a virtual pile of books in my eReader apps to finish up … although this one on the first man in space is especially interesting.
“Beyond’ Review: Cold War Cosmonaut”
Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, held symbolic value for the Soviet Union, which claimed to offer a better system than the U.S.
Readers of Stephen Walker’s fine new account of how Yuri Gagarin, a 27-year-old Soviet air-force major (he was promoted
from lieutenant while circling the Earth), became the first man in space will discover quite a bit about Gagarin the man, but a great deal more about the program that put him into orbit 60 years ago, on April 12, 1961.
Vasco da Gama, Gagarin was not. For all his skill, toughness, unflappability and courage, he was no explorer. In a way, he was merely the most important of all the fauna that the Soviets shot into space. The first astronauts had relatively little control over their capsules; the first cosmonauts had far less.
Gagarin’s value was primarily symbolic. He was not only the embodiment of humanity’s scientific progress, but a living demonstration that the Soviets offered a better, faster path to the future than the U.S. His mission was to return alive, uninjured—and sane. To that end, during his training Gagarin, like other aspiring cosmonauts, was subjected to almost every brutality—physical and psychological—that his doctors could think up.
Like their American counterparts, the first Soviet spacemen had to be advertisements for the system in which they were raised, but more so.
Abhimanyu Mishra, the youngest Chess grandmaster in history
Posted By RichC on July 6, 2021
It was probably the intimidating photo of 9 year old Abhimanyu Mishra that caught my attention, but as someone who once enjoyed the “recreational game” of Chess as a boy, it is also impressive to see what this young New Jersey boy has accomplished. At the GM Mix in Hungary last week, 
a 12-year old Abhi “went head to head with Indian Grandmaster Leon Mendonca” (who was also 12, but a bit older) to become the youngest prodigy to become the world’s youngest ever grandmaster (12 years and 145 days).
To become a Grandmaster, a player has to reach a specific Elo rating – given to calculate their skills – and win three GM norm tournaments, in which high-level competitors take part.
Mishra, who goes by Abhi, was in a race against time to claim the historic victory after many tournaments were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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Abhi’s hard work involves 12-hour days spent practising his craft on the board and using Chessable, an online training tool.
Music Monday: Don McLean performing “Crossroads” live
Posted By RichC on July 5, 2021
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Independence Day 2021: Stand for the “Red, White and Blue”
Posted By RichC on July 4, 2021
Well … no surprise, but divisiveness (or just a “put the spotlight on me”) continues in our free-to-protest country. At one time, standing for our flag, appreciating living free from government oppression in America and singing … or at least respecting … our National Anthem was nearly universal, but in the past decade, not so much.
So as most of us celebrate our independence on July 4th, and the sacrifices of so many for our freedom, there are forces within our “porous” borders (and plenty of adversaries on the outside) who prefer to tear down our country and want to “change America.”
Thankfully, if you still stand for the flag, sing the National Anthem and love the USA, you’re not alone. 
I’m positive that the vast majority are still thankful we had visionary founders in 1776 and revolutionists who were willing to fight for freedom … and are willing to do the same today. There is still much to be optimistic about even though unity, common ground or even recognition of all the achievements and advancements in America aren’t things leftists, socialists or race-focused America haters acknowledge. So today, if you love your country, ignore them and celebrate the Fourth of July the way every American who appreciates liberty should!
Hm, this Might be a good time to pre-order Mark Levin’s new book, “American Marxism,” coming out on July 13, 2021?
Renewables and EV charging at home vs charging station issue
Posted By RichC on July 3, 2021
As we transition to renewable energy and electric vehicles, the discussion I had with a German tourist on our cruise to Alaska continues
to replay in my head. I am an advocate of free-market capitalism and smaller, less intrusive government … but have been known to stumble a bit and have supported government using incentives … and it is far better than penalties. In the case of Germany (more central control and bureaucrats regulating) and their need to import most of their energy in the form of oil and gas, has caused them to more rapidly embrace renewables and solar panels to supply renewable forms of power to the electrical grid. I personally have always thought this was a smart approach as it incentivized homeowners to be clean energy power providers – electricity generators – as well as consumers.
To make it even more worthwhile, low cost financing was made available and tiered pricing for both buying and selling to the grid help the conservation 
minded citizen end up without and electric bill for much of the year (especially in sunny, moderate climate areas). The homeowner who financed their solar roof for 20+ years could sell power to the grid at daytime rates when electricity was in the highest demand and purchase it at night when rates are lower. It worked well as more affordable, longer lasting solar panels improved on their efficiency … that is until the higher demand for nighttime EV charging increases nighttime power demand (actually I’m fast forwarding and surmising what might change as the United States move towards renewables and charging more and more EVs at night).
An article in Forbes written by Brad Templeton highlighted a few of the pros and cons; it is actually a very interesting article and helped me understand why “charging stations as a business” is not as attractive as running traditional gasoline and diesel fuel stations as a private business.
Can Electric Car Charging Be A Business?
Gas stations are a business. They sell gasoline to drivers and make a profit, just like any commodity vendor. But charging for electric cars is very different. Even though it was estimated in 2020 that there are 26,000 EV charging stations with over 86,000 plugs, and a much larger number of home charging points, they are generally not a business … with a few exceptions.
EV buyers tend to be homeowners. That means they install some sort of charging at home. There they buy electricity at the consumer price, but usually arrange for “time of day” pricing where the electricity is cheap at night, and that’s when they charge. That costs from 8 to 16 cents/kwh, or roughly 2 to 4 cents per mile of driving. The power company sells electricity but is not even aware they are in the EV charging business.
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The great solar flip
Today, the cheapest power is at night. The most expensive power is from 3pm to 9pm. As more and more solar power is put on the grid, however, this will change. 3pm to 9pm will continue to be expensive, but there will eventually be a surplus of solar power from 8am to 3pm. Indeed, those imagining future grids wonder what to do with all that extra solar power, since it has to be stored to be useful, since the demand to use it is not present.
When this happens, the power prices will flip, and the 8am-3pm period may become the cheap power while night becomes more expensive, since it can’t come from solar and must come from storage, nuclear, hydro, wind or fossil.
The best place to put that extra power is into cars. Unlike almost all other loads on the power grid, cars can be very flexible about when they take the power.
Tech Friday: Apple to launch an OLED iPad in 2022 (likely ‘Air’)
Posted By RichC on July 2, 2021
According to TheElec.net (and previously rumored on 9to5mac.com), Apple will be launching a 10.86-inch OLED iPad … likely 
to be branded the iPadAir in 2022. The panel will be a Samsung display and likely be followed by the larger 11-inch and 12.9-inch OLED iPad Pro models the following year (2023).
Since I’m committed to the iPad for travel nowadays, and am fond of the 10.86-inch “lower cost” model iPad and previously owned an iPadAir, this will be a model well worth considering.
An OLED display have the following advantages over an LCD display: Improved image quality – better contrast, higher brightness, fuller viewing angle, a wider color range and much faster refresh rates. Lower power consumption. Simpler design that enables ultra-thin, flexible, foldable and transparent displays
What are we looking for from retirement investments?
Posted By RichC on July 1, 2021
While reading one of my favorite investment strategist, Brett Owens wrote a REIT and CEF-focused Contrarian Outlook newsletter and occasional webinars that I enjoy. He commented tongue-in-cheek … that “we dividend investors really only need three things:”
Hm, how hard can that be? 
Brett partnered with Tom Jacobs a few years ago to write a great book exploring “How to Retire On Dividends.” Great ideas are not without some risk, so read about CEFs and their “higher fees” and use of leverage with caution.
Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee
- lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
- digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.