My Desultory Blog

Posted By RichC on 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 the “verified” Blue Check and pay for the only social media service I use nowadays — it is also my go-to newsfeed and automotive group chat messaging hub.

Also .. since I enjoy maps and WW2 history, I thought this thread from @BrilliantMaps was a great way to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of D-Day on June 6th 2024.

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Category: History, Millitary, Social Media, Technology | No Comments »
Tags: anniversary, brilliantmaps.com, d-day, social media, subscription, tech friday, techfriday, twitter, ww2, x.com

Posted By RichC on 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 LEDs taped (as with the bookshelves) to my late father-in-law’s unused 4 foot aluminum level (DadH) that needed a storage solution (half joking). But the primary purpose was to create a work/play-station for my granddaughters in my workshop. While cleaning out the draws and tightening them up, I found a bunch of childhood memories, and to make this a ThrowBack Thursday #TBT post … here are two of the many treasures:

1. My first fish cleaning knife (who knows how many Yellow Perch heads this knife has severed?) 
2. Extra 1974 Capri steering wheel inserts – my true first car (click photo for larger)

Category: Archive, Automotive, Memories, Personal, Photos, TBT, Tools | No Comments »
Tags: bluhm, capri, family, fishing, granddaughters, grandpa, knife, license plates, workbench, workshop

Posted By RichC on June 5, 2024

While reading paper or digital versions of magazines, I’m prone to clipping tips that I might find useful. Here’s one on soaking “just the bristles” of a varnish or polyurethane paint brush in solvent without the tips of the brush getting gunked up on the bottom. I have several wood handled brushes that I tried to keep clean, or parked overnight before another coat of finish, and this “hole in the handle” tip much just work? 

Category: Tidbits, Tools, Woodworking | No Comments »
Tags: cleaning, magazines, paintbrush, tips, workshop

Posted By RichC on June 5, 2024

This content is restricted.

Category: Archive, Personal, Photos | No Comments »
Tags: annalyn, drew, ellerie, homebuilding, katelyn, landscaping, ohio, oostra, whitehouse

Posted By RichC on June 4, 2024

With the weather still moderate, I’ve been driving my 1982 Mercedes Benz 300D Turbodiesel a bit more. It really needs to be cleaned up and waxed, but I’ve been sidetracked with power washing the pool decking and cleaning up the porch furniture for summer (a lot of tending to the fast growing lawn too). Still … it was good to drive the “Old Girl” (my buddy Jeff’s nickname) and restart the squawk list (aviation term for a “formal written list of items you want them to check into and fix at the plane’s annual inspection”). 

Besides being distracted with the above, I also took apart the laundry room to cleaned behind the 2016 stackable washer and dryer and fixed a falty light. Before putting things back together, Brenda wanted me to add a new 7-hook board for hanging items and storage “box-shelf” system for  sliding boxes to fit the soon to be added cubbies. I should add a photo when it is finished? 

Category: Automotive, Diesel, Mercedes, Personal, Photos | No Comments »
Tags: 300d, dryer, laundry, mercedes benz, old girl, shelves, squawk, turbodiesel, washer

Posted By RichC on June 3, 2024

Some “before my time” 1950’s music was triggered by this animated gif from 150 or so years ago.  It’s “The Killer,” Jerry Lee Lewis (1935-2022), and his 1955 song, “Whole Lot Of Shakin’ Going On” that is today’s Music Monday song … which likely means I should mention, “Great Balls of Fire” from 1957 too (YouTube)?  

Category: History, Memories, Music, Video | No Comments »
Tags: 1950s, ani gif, gold miner, jerry lee lewis, music monday, musicmonday, youtube

Posted By RichC on June 2, 2024

This chainsaw has been on my tool wishlist for a while and when I mentioned to Brenda that it was $50 off over Memorial Day, she told me, you should get it. This small 12 inch Ridgid Chainsaw is not the “do everything” tool or even as robust as the bigger twin battery Makita, BUT it fits with my growing battery powered tool arsenal … AND when registered, it falls under Home Depot/Ridgid’s LSA warranty. 

So far the LSA has replaced a couple of early-on failed batteries and extras are available at the local Home Depot … so that is a plus. As for usefullness, I’m hoping that this battery powered saw will replace my older Poulan and my cheaper gas powered light-duty saws for 70% of my cutting needs, at least going forward (???) … and that my OLD 20″ McCulloch Pro Mac 610 will still be used for heavier cutting IF I can continue to horse it around (I’m starting to notice and feel my age). 

EDIT ADD: New WyzeCam Pan v3  capture of a “feeling my age” photo after adding the Oregon bar off the old Poulan (gave Poulan chainsaw to a friend) to the “underpowered” battery powered chainsaw (the “underpowered” reference is accurate). 

Category: Archive, Personal, Photos, Shopping, Tools | No Comments »
Tags: battery, chainsaw, homedepot, lsa, ridgid, tools, trees, trimming, yardwork

Posted By RichC on June 1, 2024

With partisan Democrats controlling “some” city and state governments … and our Federal bureaucracy hanging on by a thread … it is no surprise to see the United States looking like the totalitarian regimes we see in Communist Russia, China, North Korea, Venezuela, Cuba, etc (sidelining their political opposition).

I can only assume Progressives, and those on the political left, believe that sidelining Trump using “Lawfare” is “doing what is necessary” for them to retain power, but  I can’t believe most Americans … Democrats, Republicans or Independents … want to see those in power using Intelligence Services and Courts to squash the opposing candidates?

Over the past 15 years, we’ve seen big government partisans targeting certain groups: IRS targeting the conservative Tea Party, the Russia Hoax, manipulating what is seen on Social Media or FBI raids on ProLife family homes – but not Antifa or those rioting and committing crime in large American cities. Even with all that, we’ve never seen court case after court case in a campaign year tying up former president and opposition candidate (Trump being the leading and only Republican candidate). One can only hope … for the future of our country … that this abhorrent tactic does not pay-off for those Democrats using it in 2024. No wonder Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s wife was flying the Appeal to Heaven Flag and “Stars and Stripes” upside down.

Category: Politics | No Comments »
Tags: america, appeal to heaven, campaign, conservative, democrat, distress, flags, independent, lawfare, News, Politics, potus, progressive, republican, ronald reagan

Posted By RichC on 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 the Donald Trump jury verdict?

The jury in the criminal trial of former President Donald Trump found him guilty on all counts related to his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. The specific charges included:

– Willful retention of national defense information 

– Obstructing justice by intentionally concealing records 

– Making false statements 

Trump was convicted on 37 counts in total and now faces the possibility of years in prison. The jury deliberated for three days before reaching their verdict. 

This was the first of several trials Trump is facing related to his actions before, during and after his presidency. The charges stemmed from the FBI’s recovery of hundreds of classified documents from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in August 2022. 

And my X.com comment after the news on Thursday evening:

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Category: AI, News, Politics, Social Media, Technology | No Comments »
Tags: ai, court, donald trump, jury, newspaper, nyc, perpexity.ai, president, summary, tech friday, trial, wsj, x.com

Posted By RichC on May 31, 2024

The Nord apps have been working great for the last few years and I’ve been impressed with the improvements I’ve seen to NordPass for passwords on both the Firefox and Brave (Chromium-based) browsers.

My preferred daily web surfing browsers is Brave and my steady secondary  desktop is Firefox. If I were to judge, Firefox works a little better for me, but perhaps that is because it houses the exact same handful of tabs everyday? 

Use NordVPN and NordPass, but no longer use the free NordLocker encrypted cloud

The problem this past week is I’ve been receiving the “Your NordPass browser extension will be discontinued soon” … so I follow the linked instruction to remove the extension from Brave and update it with the linked version — and yes, I was sure to check to be sure it was a legitimate browser extension (unless the hacker is extremely sophisticated???) With the new extension installed again and working fine, the pop-up warning triggers again.

Hm .. just when everything was running like clockwork. So I’m back to ignoring and waiting for the current version to be “discontinued.” 

Note: I sent a comment regarding this issue to chrome@nordvpnmedia.com. 

Category: Apple, Computer, Software, Technology | No Comments »
Tags: brave browser, macbook air, nordpass, nordvpn, tech friday, techfriday