Tech Friday: What’s the fuss about AI center power demands?
Posted By RichC on April 19, 2024
I have finally gone “Full Howard” (an inside family joke) #TBT
Posted By RichC on April 18, 2024
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Woodworking project: Finished my Table Saw Jointer Jig
Posted By RichC on April 17, 2024
If you aren’t into woodworking, a Table Saw Jointer Jig will mean nothing … but Katelyn and Drew have a pile of lumber from their lot in the garage, and some of it needs a new home.😉
So I need to start hauling some of it back and prepping it for woodworking projects (I already put a little on my lumber shelf) … but I need a way to start with straight edge. For the lack of a jointer (tool used to produce a flat surface along a board’s length), I’ve made a jig to do the same on my Delta Table Saw and since I wanted one that could do a longer length, I started with an 8 foot piece of 1/2” plywood.
How far in advance should you book air travel? #tidbit
Posted By RichC on April 16, 2024
Last week when reading and posting about Berkshire Hathaway investments and Warren Buffett from Kiplinger, I also snipped a “Best Time to Book a Flight” sidebar.
Music Monday: From 2004, “I Go Back” by Kenny Chesney
Posted By RichC on April 15, 2024
It seems like it has been a while since Music Monday has highlighted Kenny Chesney? 
Maybe it hasn’t been that long, but then again, it has been a year … and I haven’t been streaming the No Shoes Radio channel on SiriusXM for a while lately.
That aside, I did listen for a while while working out in the yard a week or so ago and screen capture the sone “I Go Back” that had me fondly daydreaming … hm, perhaps Jimmy Buffett’s “Havana Daydreamin’” will be making an appearance soon?
| Kenny Chesney – “I Go Back” | 2004 |
Shocked to see my John Deere 330 battery last 12 years!
Posted By RichC on April 14, 2024
Photo from working in yard in Spring 2017
Our old John Deere 330 16HP diesel tractor, that we use for all kinds of yard chores, required another battery this spring. It seemed like just yesterday that I replaced it, but then I realized it was replaced back in 2012! Amazing longevity for a Walmart Ever Start branded battery … so I’ll go with one more again (although this time one of their no-maintenance versions — the only one available). Hm?
The financial markets have been precarious this past week as tensions between Israel and Iran ratched up
Posted By RichC on April 13, 2024
Iran has threatened to retaliate for an attack in Damascus, Syria, that Tehran said was an Israeli airstrike on a diplomatic building. The strike killed several top Iranian military officials, including a senior member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ elite Quds Force. 
According to the WSJ on Friday, “the U.S. rushed warships into position to protect Israel and American forces in the region, hoping to head off a direct attack from Iran on Israel that could come as soon as Friday or Saturday.”
After a solid first quarter for investors, the markets jitters are probably normal considering the geopolitical events … but added to that were inflation numbers rising again putting a damper on the thought the Federal Reserve cut rates in June. 
Now June cuts look off the table and cuts by the end of the year look questionable — unless you believe the Fed will act political because it is an election year?
While reading the last three issues of Kiplinger’s, I found the Berkshire Hathaway trading interesting and wanted to archive the chart … who doesn’t pay attention to Warren Buffett?
For something a little less worrisome … I do enjoy tuning into FoxBusiness and Varney & Co over my lunch break. I rarely miss the trivia question while making my salad and will highlight the Jimmy Buffett and Alan Jackson end-of-segment music selection that I forwarded to Taylor and Megan yesterday. 😊
Tech Friday: Some AI voice testing with NPR Editor Uri Berliner’s “Here’s How We Lost America’s Trust” article
Posted By RichC on April 12, 2024
Who isn’t … or more appropriately wasn’t … fond of listening to the interesting and smooth-toned audio that was part of National Public Radio (NPR) in the previous century. I spent an exorbitant amount of time in my car back then and listened to static-riddled politically conservative radio talk shows on AM radio and liberally slanted … but somewhat fair … NPR reporting and stories on the HQ-audio FM dial. 
Besides the better quality listening found on FM radio, I always felt it helped listening both perspectives when it came to the political news.
Unfortunately over the years, the news segments being reported by NPR took a similar extreme slant, but from the political left. I accepted the slant from the political right on AM Talk Radio, but like many, was turned off by the woke slant of NPR. I questioned and harassed Congress why taxpayer funds were continuing to support this progressive “one point of view” radio?
So I read with interest a piece in “The Free Press” by 25 year senior business editor Uri Berliner titled “Here’s How We Lost America’s Trust.”
ElevenLabs AI “Antonio” reading 10 minutes of
Uri Berliner’s “Here’s How We Lost America’s Trust”
As for the Tech Friday component, I wanted to retest the improving and impressive text to AI voice from ElevenLabs. Unfortunately the beta version that I’m using has size limitations, so I’ll share only the first portion of Uri’s article read by “Antoni” AI — still pretty impressive (see what Musk and Dimon are predicting). So start the article by listening and finish reading at yellow link above or the PDF version below.
EDIT add: Testing Amazon’s Polly AI for the balance of the article. Give it a try even though the voice is different.
Amazon’s “Polly” AI reading final 16 minutes of
Uri Berliner’s “Here’s How We Lost America’s Trust”
Removed a couple trees from the front of our house #TBT
Posted By RichC on 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 planning to take care of them this summer .. cough, cough.
We had a wind storm and it took out tons of branches and limb which we took care of last weekend, but the neighbor lost a White Pine. So while Precision Forestry was in the neighbor, I opted to have them quote and remove these trees. Although this isn’t the first time I’ve used an outside company to remove a tree … it is usually something I have done myself since I worked cutting trees and firewood as a part-time job in high school. It feels wrong to have hired someone?
To make this a Throwback Thursday #TBT post, here’s a photo from
12 years ago and a 👉 much better one from 2019 👈
Semi happy with Wyze Cam Plus but now $2 more/month
Posted By RichC on April 10, 2024
We have been using the economical Wyze Cams to monitor things around home for a few years now, along with leftover Canary Cams … and our old school original wired security system. I do like the way these inexpensive cameras have held up and are improving, but the speed and notification tweaking of their Wyze Cam Plus service could use some 
improving.
That said, this month I noticed a $2/month price increase from my “promo” rate and had inquired about a special they were running on March 1st. I checked in with customer service back then about opting for the one-year promo, but was told my current $7.99/mo plan was almost the same deal and billed per month — so I didn’t switch. One month later, my current “deal” expired and so now I’m left paying $9.99/mo. After complaining, there wasn’t any recourse but to wait and hope a better deal appears (not the way to keep a loyal paying customer happy).
Since I’m not all about complaining … cough, cough … I’ll include a few different videos. One of a bee being picked up on the cam and the other a time-lapse test (see tomorrow’s post) and finally getting out the 1982 Mercedes 300D Turbodiesel for the first time this spring.
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.