Forgot to archive my 2020 Father’s Day conversation #TBT
Posted By RichC on June 25, 2020
This content is restricted.
US Debt clock, Unfunded Liabilities and Debt to GDP ratio
Posted By RichC on June 24, 2020
By now we all have heard and know about the TRILLIONS we have borrowed and continue to borrow as a nation in deep debt, but few are willing to make any changes to the status quo before this house of cards comes tumbling down. What we don’t really thing about quite as much are the "unfunded liabilities." They make the debt and deficit issue look manageable.
The big unfunded liabilities are federal liabilities are for those of us looking forward to Social Security ($21T unfunded) and Medicare ($32T unfunded). One doubts these will ever be correctly funded, but will come to a head when cuts are forced on recipients or changes to what younger people are taxed or the age they can receive. Everyone knows that "means testing" is going to be a given as some point.
The argument continues to be made that so as long as the US has a growing GDP, we can continue to print and borrow … but even a closer look at those numbers is telling (below). This irresponsible "living" can’t continue … let alone adding any of the proposals by Democrats campaigning for the November 2020 election (Green New Deal, Free college, etc).
A new Weber grill, some assembly and Father’s Day grill brush
Posted By RichC on June 23, 2020
We replaced our rusting “hand-me-down” rebuilt grill from 2016 (thanks Jeff) this year with a new natural gas Weber Spirit S-315 stainless steel grill set up. So far it is a great grill and perfectly sized for our family. For those looking at it, be sure you know that there is some assembly involved if ordering online (photo below).
The new grill came in just in time for the family a couple weekends ago and Taylor and Megan’s visit last weekend. Brenda and I have already used the Weber few time on our own for our expensive but exceptionally tasty Omaha Steaks. The new grill is much hotter that the old cheap burners in the Charbroil (had to replace them every two years).
I did add the Weber-branded cover and specially sized grease dripping pans with this but haven’t really ever had a good brush for the grates. Not to worry … Brenda gave me a new fancy grill brush for Father’s Day. Thanks dear!
To Do List: On my list of projects is to rework the ugly grill area off of the back kitchen porch. I go back and forth with how big a deal to make it. From a simple clean up and new pad area … to a tie in with an updated patio and stainless steel hood (which is why it continues to remain on the list).
Music Monday: An hour with Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
Posted By RichC on June 22, 2020
This content is restricted.
Happy Father’s Day 2020 to a great dad and son-in-law, Drew
Posted By RichC on June 21, 2020
This content is restricted.
A long winded reader answer with a bit of my Internet history
Posted By RichC on June 20, 2020
A couple weeks ago I shared an old automotive link from MyDesultoryBlog.com on Twitter and one of my automotive buddies sent me a private message asking about the name of my blog (now nearly 7000 posts). The conversation had me contemplate the early decisions and thoughts .. or lack of thought .. 
when all of this web-stuff was just getting started.
For me the “archiving” (therefore myarchive.us) process started because I needed to save files for my printing customers after preparing typesetting and art all in one place. We could save the desktop publishing files safely so jobs could be re-plated and reprinted. We started using ,“small by today’s standards,” external hard drives, 5-1/4” and 3-1/2” floppy disks and eventually Zip Drives, SyQuest carts and the Apple SuperDrive. Like VHS tapes, I have boxes of them without a computer capable of reading the disks, let alone format of the files. Things were changing rapidly back in the late 1980s and early 90s. 
As the Internet came to life, saving compress files online became possible. Using commercial services was cost prohibited and even leased server space was costly .. but in the mid-to-late 1990s competition started to drive the cost down and it looked like there might be a way to even market
this “archiving” service and make my CPPNET.com client files available online … and digital PDF versions for their customers.
Over time our Consolidated Printing and Publishing Co started to do a little more than just archive the “printed” products on line, but could actually build and host our client’s website. We really should have been much more aggressive, but my conservative business nature of “profitability” clouded the risk-taking side of growing the business even if taking losses. Who knew the Amazon nonprofitable “bookstore” online model would be so successful? (on the other hand, A LOT of upstart DOT.com companies failed doing that?)
Back to the domain names: Obviously in the early days of the InterNET, the brilliance of using the Consolidated Printing and Publishing initials … CPP … 
with NET from Internet became our lame domain name – CPPNET.com. One would have thought that I would have been much brighter considering I was registering bushels of domains for people in the early days (and still do it). Thankfully the squatting practice paid off well on several of the domains I registered, held and sold. A few required legal assistance since we were bridging new ground with trademarks, etc. I still think the advice to price a domain at about what the legal cost for a company to fight was sound … thanks again to intellectual property and trademarking attorney Conrad Pitts.
Less descriptive domains were more difficult to challenges so the rush was on to grab the ones that looked popular ‘in the day’ … i- and e- this and my- that in front of a descriptive word were fairly popular. In 2003, the rise of a social network site call MySpace.com elevated the stature of My- whatever … hence setting up our servers which housed “my” customers “archive” files. It is still used for files today, although not the way it was in years past. When I started my blog on that server in 2005, it started as just another “subdomain” space on myarchive.us …first blog.myarchive.us and then richc.myarchive.us. (See web.archive.org Wayback Machine image above)
As the next decades began, it was looking like I was posting daily and that this blog thing might continue. Subdomains are fine, but this now needed its own name. I realized unlike most “topical” blogs of the day, my personal blog wasn’t exactly on only one topic … it was “desultory” … and so the MyDesultoryBlog.com name stuck. I registered it in 2011 and moved the WordPress CMS site own smaller server … while keeping most of the linked data scattered across several archived servers (a big headache … to solve someday).
Obviously, this was FAR more explanation that any reasonable person desires to know!
TechFriday: Blog housekeeping and a WordPress 5.4.2 update
Posted By RichC on June 19, 2020
Way too often those who maintain their own web servers and computers grit their teeth and cringe when it is time to update and upgrade. A month or so 
ago I replaced one of my servers (the one this blog is on) and suffered through the anxiety of getting everything working again. I generally follow the principle “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” but once everything is up-to-date, am a proponent of trying to keep it that way until something won’t update or work correctly.
This week before getting too busy, I opted to “apt-get” Linux Ubuntu 18. 04.4 with a few packages and security updates … then back up data and update WordPress to version 5.4.2. All is well … I think.
Archive: Last weekend chores, yardwork photos and memories
Posted By RichC on June 18, 2020
Last weekend was great weather for working in the yard … something both Brenda and I do enjoy when it doesn’t become a rush to finish chore. I’ve been steadily working on the area under the “now” larger pines that we planted to help shade the west side of our back porch. Unfortunately one of the trees (a yellow pine) was full of bugs and dying. I’m note sure if they only have a 25 year lifespan or are just getting diseased? We have 4 of them in that we planted 20-25 years ago and ALL are in pretty bad shape.
This one was next to the house and posed a threat if the winds were ever strong enough to blow it down – just replaced shingle caps after some 50-70 mph gusts left over from Tropical Storm Cristobal. Anyway, this “heavy” Yellow Pine was one that Taylor brought home when he was in kindergarten in a cup. We planted it and babied it along never expecting it to grow into a telephone pole sized tree! It was bitter sweeet to have to cut it down and also provide me a challenge considering I had to top it first before bringing the trunk down (photo above). Once topped and cut up with my smaller chainsaw, I tuned up my 40-year old, HEAVY and fast cutting McCulloch (professional square-cut large kerf blade) chainsaw to make quicker work of the larger trunk.
Currently my favorite podcast: Streetwise by Jack Hough
Posted By RichC on June 17, 2020
This content is restricted.
Amazon delivery issues, but their chat-bot seems efficient
Posted By RichC on June 16, 2020
Like a lot of people during COVID19, we have gravitated even more to Amazon and online ordering for our “stuff.” We have not ordered groceries online yet, but are definitely doing more online shopping than ever before.
I mentioned having issues with Amazon a few times before (1, 2, 3) during stay-at-home orders and find myself selecting Amazon even when the price is a few bucks higher … THINKING they are more dependable. Who knows if they can monitor their vendors and seller now that they are so large? Once upon a time, deliveries with PRIME shipping was impressive and pretty consistent. Unfortunately just when depending on something, as I was with a fuel pump, they let me down.
This time it was a couple kitchen items from the grocery list. I noticed were out of kitchen trash bags and down to the last few dishwasher detergent pucks. So while placing my grill order, added a few other items to the cart on 6/4. Two days seemed reasonable and the price wasn’t really all that much higher than our local grocery store.
Unfortunately the order did not arrive and still has not … as of the 15th (11 days is not 2 days). We’re now out of garbage bags, so Brenda bought them at the grocery store which was cheaper than online anyway. I’ll then pull up the Amazon app and clicked the cancel button – nope, can’t do that (see above email). Now the frustrating “on hold or call-you-back phone call” or maybe 5-10 minute chat with a rep?
But before that, Amazon wants to try and automate with a chat-bot … so let’s see how it works (below)? Still no refund but it looks like it “may” now process my request – something tells me the order is lost again? (I’ll bet Alexa will be doing this before too long?)
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.