Sad, but still enjoying the final season of Last Man Standing


January 6, 2021

Now that the final season of Last Man Standing has started (Jan 3, 2021), Brenda and I are finally catching up on the previous season that I recorded on the DVR. We had forgotten just how much we enjoyed this sitcom. It is hard to remember the last time both of us laughed at the […]

Thankful to have a long time friend like Jeff – #TBT photo


December 31, 2020

I had lunch “out” this week with my good friend Jeff, although this routine has become very infrequent compared to previous years. Still, we had a chance to catch up, talk about politics (Ugh), the old-days backpacking in North Carolina (an old scanned photo for Throwback Thursday #TBT) … and I opened his cool gift […]

Old handsaws, rusting jack posts and a deck of cards #TBT


December 24, 2020

Since I expect to be busy with our family on Christmas Eve Day, I’ll prepare a post for Throwback Thursday #TBT with a few old handsaws from my families past and asked the rhetorical question to myself: “Why do you keep old handsaws that you never use?” Actually I don’t recall really needing to use […]

Our granddaughters are coming and new Great Room windows


December 23, 2020

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Music Monday: Holiday memories from the Carpenters


December 21, 2020

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Funny, but not funny … perhaps it is the frustration we all feel?


December 16, 2020

Are you tired of this COVID19 lockdown yet? It is hard to believe the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic AND those politicians dictating shutdowns in their mini-kingdoms have not had more pushback than they have? Way too many small businesses, and especially people working in the travel and food service industry, will not be having much of […]

Music Monday: A snippet from a 1970 CSNY Jam Session


December 14, 2020

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Happy Birthday “daddy” Drew … and very good one he is!


December 13, 2020

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Woodworking: The 100% Silicone Wood Glue Spreader Tool


December 5, 2020

About a year ago I ordered two more bottles of Titebond III wood glue online (had great success using it for a fence repair), and on a whim I added a goofy looking Titebrush glue brush. I honestly expected it to get boogered up with dried glue and that I would soon be back to […]

First Snow December 1st 2020 … and another backyard accident


December 2, 2020

December 2020 rolled in with a light white blanket of snow and colder weather to let us know that winter is probably here for a while. I can’t say that I’m looking forward to the temperature change, but I really don’t mind the hushed beauty of a “new-fallen snow” … as Clement Clarke Moore wrote […]

Thoughts on ‘battery drain’ with the Ridgid 18V USB accessory


November 29, 2020

Don’t tell anyone, but while shopping for “my” Christmas gift from Brenda (below … and yes, she sent me out to get it). So … I added a Ridgid 18V USB charging attachment for my inconvenience. Ha! After returning home, I tried it out, but for the record, I didn’t open my actual gift. So […]

Music Monday: Gerry Rafferty and working on cars memory


November 9, 2020

The music of the late Gerry Rafferty hasn’t appeared on Music Monday and I’m disappointed not to have yet included him in my heavily 70’s mix of musicians. Having to pick one song out for today’s listening is a challenge, but “Days Gone Down” (Night Owl) is a good one since it triggers a memory […]

Adding Truth For Life Devotional link to MyDesultoryBlog.com


November 8, 2020

The menu “navigational links” just under the header of My Desultory Blog are primarily there for my own short-cuts … and I haven’t changed them for years. A few aren’t really used much anymore, with improved browser bookmarks – one click bookmarks are just much more convenient. This past week I made a change. I […]

The Old Wooden Ladder: Shag carpet and “The Pig” #TBT


October 8, 2020

While doing some the pool house garage cleaning and reorganizing over the past couple of weeks, a piece of the old shag carpeting I duct taped onto the old wooden ladder I acquired in the 1980s fell off. As usual, it triggered memories. First, the good times Brenda and I had with our sailboat Brenich, […]

A semi-portable thickness planer for my woodworking shop


September 27, 2020

When bragging that my latest sewing cart project had zero cost in it, I held off until the end of the post to mention that I was spending money and would post about that on Sunday. Well here it is: I bought my first planer; it’s a semi-portable DeWalt DW735, with the “X” option (extra […]

Planning ahead for a stay-at-home visit with our granddaughter


July 22, 2020

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Carpenter bee traps, a box joint finger jig and birdhouse ideas


July 5, 2020

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Currently my favorite podcast: Streetwise by Jack Hough


June 17, 2020

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Are rechargeable wearable tech devices like the Fitbit Versa and the Apple Watch doomed to prematurely fail?


June 3, 2020

It is starting to look like early gadget failure going to become the ‘norm’ now that we’re wearing tech gadgets everyday. My Fitbit Versa watch is not even a year old and has failed. For a while it started to blink and flip through it’s screens, then surged with colorful vertical lines (photo)and a vibrate […]

Replacing the blower motor and fan in the 2010 BMW X5 35d


May 15, 2020

If all goes well, my weekend project on the 2010 BMW X5 35d will be a new blower motor, just as with the old Toyota RAV 4. This past winter has been irritatingly challenging since the squeaky motor bearings have acting up, although sporadically. As the weather warmed and the wear continued, the “only on […]

Music Monday: Pandora streaming on the Brave Browser ad-free?


April 13, 2020

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April 1 is no joke this year, yet I am counting our many blessings


April 1, 2020

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All things RMS Titanic … now you know the rest of the story


March 11, 2020

My friend Jeff gave me a couple “used” books for Christmas this year after we talked last year about our favorite authors and books over the decades. Sloan Wilson, of “Man in the Gray Flannel Suit” fame, also wrote several World War II US Coast Guard and Merchant Marine novels that both of us read […]

Winter weather, driving and fun babysitting Annalyn


February 8, 2020

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Keeping woodworking bench dogs handy but out of the way


January 23, 2020

It has taken years, but I’ve finally decided to move my woodworking bench dogs from the tool tray (see below). A bench dog is an accessory used on a woodworking workbench to allow clamping of wooden items while being worked or planed. Ever since building my work table and vices with bench dogs back in […]

The World’s Best-Selling Car makes car enthusiasts smile


January 21, 2020

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Testing Amazon Prime deliveries using Key for Garage #video


January 15, 2020

A year or so ago, I “was” planning to give the Amazon Key service a try by having shipments delivered to the condo in Florida when we are not there. So I purchase a smart lock and then realized that Amazon didn’t offer Key delivery services in Delray Beach. I sent it back as I […]

The last post of the decade: Do you remember yard Jarts?


December 31, 2019

While getting the Christmas decorations for Evergreen Farm Estates down from the poolhouse-garage loft earlier this month (Brenda and neighbor Pam have always decorated our neighborhood) …  I spotted the yard game of Jarts. (you probably need to be a baby boomer to remember them?) What were they thinking??? Just as with the “design of […]

For 2020, how about less focus on self and more on others?


December 29, 2019

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What do you do when you don’t feel like cleaning? Tinker instead.


December 28, 2019

Instead of cleaning the workshop as I was planning, I  ended up sidetracked. Nothing new about that. Since each time I pull the plywood box full of “short cuts and scraps” out from next to the miter saw, it is as if I’m dragging a 100 pound box with sandpaper on the bottom across the […]

A Fuelly.com update on my 2010 BMW X5 35d #diesel


December 27, 2019

Since I’m often asked what kind of fuel economy I’m getting on my slightly “tweaked” 2010 BMW X5 35d diesel SUV, here’s the yearly update from my log on Fuelly.com. Nothing to write home about, but then there have been far more local trips than the interstate driving a few years ago … besides, my […]

Music Monday: We don’t see family often enough as time passes in “the wink of an eye” – Jackson Browne and The Pretender


December 23, 2019

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Music Monday: James Taylor singing holiday songs


December 16, 2019

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Finally, a crosscut table saw sled jig for my woodworking shop


December 10, 2019

After posting a photo of a table saw crosscut sled a couple weeks ago, I finally decided to finish the one I had been planning. In part because I had some extra 1/2” white finished plywood (I didn’t want to use the heavier 3/4”) and in part because I needed to cut a bunch of […]

Music Monday: Ballad of the Green Berets for Veterans Day


November 11, 2019

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Are you a Luddite or are you prepared for automation and AI?


November 8, 2019

We often use the term “Luddite” whenever we refer to people resisting new technology or mechanization. Recently a Wall Street Journal article detailed a timeline of changes as much of the world is faced with yet another wave of robotic automation and artificial intelligence (AI) changing career and taking over many of the jobs we […]

Music Monday: A WSJ article and Gordon Lightfoot memories


September 2, 2019

All too often lately I’m reminded that the memories I have as a boy growing up are seen as being from “the olden days.” An article in this past month’s WSJ highlighted the beloved Gordon Lightfoot, a Canadian folk singer and songwriter who’s work spans many decades. His music was enjoyed and listened to by […]

Finally joining the smartwatch and Fitbit wearer club


June 26, 2019

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Archiving Taylor’s 30th birthday party with photos and video


June 11, 2019

We had a great 30th birthday party for Taylor and his friends on Saturday in the backyard … just as we have many times before. As a parent it is nice to know he has always enjoyed bringing friends to our house rather than going someplace else … and seemingly his friends are okay with […]

Even news savvy Americans struggle to grasp Mueller report


May 3, 2019

You are not alone in wanting the Trump-Russia collusion story and investigation to end. Americans in both parties are tired of this investigation and "thought" that after finally getting the summary from the US Attorney General William Barr (right), and the release of the full $30 million Mueller investigation report (with security redactions), that it […]

Gender roles and a repair estimate for our Honda Pilot


April 13, 2019

Even in today’s gender-neutral world, there are duties, either said or unsaid, that married couples still assign to each other. One of them in our house assigned to me is taking care of our automotive issues … especially the ones nobody really wants to do. One of this past weeks’ tasks was to take our […]

Music Monday: R.Dean Taylor – Indiana Wants Me (1970)


March 25, 2019

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Good times and memories with a great friend for #TBT


March 21, 2019

My friend Jeff Pitts has been my closest friend ever since our college years at Ohio Northern University (also the only guest blogger so far). Besides college, he was on my bachelor party trip, years and years of hiking and camping … including a great trip to the Canadian Rockies with my son Taylor, who has […]

Happy Birthday to our 2-year old Annalyn, the “Apple of MY eye”


March 5, 2019

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When all is well, life is good, even if it is not always as planned


March 2, 2019

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We had a great time babysitting Annalyn on Valentine’s Day


February 16, 2019

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Music Monday: A recycled Beatles song and something from 1969


February 11, 2019

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My mom’s Jenny Lind bed will be Annalyn’s BIG bed someday


February 1, 2019

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A light for my bandsaw and a discontinued Ridgid worklight


January 24, 2019

Today would have been my dad‘s 90th birthday. Here is something he would have enjoyed… With it being so cold this week, it was a good time to be working in the basement workshop in the evenings. Besides working on getting my Hitachi Miter Saw fitted to my workbench and dust collection for a new bookshelves […]

Music Monday: Starting with a change for 2019 – Kenny Chesney


January 7, 2019

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Our Annalyn is amazing, altho I’m not surprised #video


January 3, 2019

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Happy New Year – Make the most of each day this 2019


January 1, 2019

This year our our 2018 Christmas letter included a quote by the Dalai Lama and it reminds me that our time on earth is finite. Once a grain of sand has passed through the hour glass, it is gone … so make each day count this 2019. There are only two days in the year […]

Security LED floodlights from the hardware store discount bin


December 11, 2018

Who doesn’t fall for the “treasures” found in the hardware store discount bins? I’m always looking for a “good buy” when I’m walking through the hardware store … and such was the case in seeing this outdoor LED floodlight. The twin incandescent floodlights that were on the back of the pool house garage for security […]

Music Monday: Gordon Lightfoot singing Carefree Highway


December 10, 2018

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As grandparents, what would we do without smartphones?


November 30, 2018

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Tech Friday: The Amazon Echo will soon have Whisper Mode


October 5, 2018

The Amazon Echo has been a fun gadget to use and have in our home since Katelyn and Drew gave it to us for Christmas. After having our granddaughter Annalyn with us for a few days last week, I realized we don’t always have the volume set appropriately especially when she is sleeping. Hm … […]

More compliments for Ridgid Gen5X lithium powered tools


October 3, 2018

If you use your battery powered drills as much as I do and are suffering with something a bit older than a couple of years, it is time to check out the new lithium powered tools. I can’t tell you how pleased I am with both my slightly older Craftsman Drill and Impact driver and […]

Music Monday: “Rumours” was the best album of 1977


July 9, 2018

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Music Monday: Jet Airliner recorded by the Steve Miller Band


June 25, 2018

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Congratulations to Taylor’s friend Alicia and Laureano


April 18, 2018

I have teased my “good humored” son far too long about his “girlfriend” from Wayzata Minnesota a few years ago (click here for old photo). So with that “old joke” aside, I think it is about time to officially include his friend Megan on the blog and mention we are excited to see them spending a […]

Happy Easter! Victory over death and sin through Jesus Christ.


April 1, 2018

Happy Easter brothers and sisters in Christ!         He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed. This past week I’ve been listening to Alistair Begg speak on Life After Death recorded from Parkside Church and shared on the Truth For Life podcast. Ever since Katelyn and Drew gave me the Amazon Echo Dot for Christmas I […]

Music Monday: From the Beatles to the Sheatles


March 12, 2018

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Happy Birthday Annalyn – my granddaughter is ONE already!


March 4, 2018

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Tech Friday: A 2nd Amazon Echo – the Dot now streams music


March 2, 2018

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My latest boatshoe repair may be A Bridge Too Far


February 7, 2018

This ain’t my first rodeo (was looking for an excuse to use the idiom) as it pertains to stretching the life of my favorite pair of Sperry Topsiders. The idiom this ain’t my first rodeo is generally traced back to the movie Mommie Dearest, in which the character Joan Crawford says, “This ain’t my first […]

An old wooden ladder and memories good and bad


January 14, 2018

As my son Taylor said, “ladders will be our family’s downfall.” So true … The old wooden ladder I inherited from the late Harry McKee when we bought our first sailboat Brenich in the early 1980s is still in active service. It is no longer chained to the old boat cradle we kept in Huron, […]

Backpacking filtration hack for emergency water too


January 10, 2018

Bits and pieces are still arriving from my Christmas shopping. Sometimes I forget that not every company/individual doing business online is shipping with the efficiency we become accustom to with Amazon and other big online retail sites. In any case, one of the gifts I assembled was an emergency kit that included survival items we […]

Music Monday: A new Bible & the impressive Amazon Echo Dot


January 8, 2018

Our Amazon Echo Dot Christmas gift is the gift that keeps on giving now that I’m learning new “skills.” There isn’t anything earth-shattering it is currently doing, but the “easy” interface to Amazon’s cloud server for content and function may be limitless … at least looking into the future. It is an impressive device; perhaps […]

Tech Friday: Played with AMP plug-ins for blog but gave up


January 5, 2018

In order to improve efficiency on WordPress sites (my customer installs) I often experiment with updates on my personal MyDesultoryBlog first since very little on this site really matters for paying customers. So over the Christmas and New Years holidays I fiddled with a few highly recommended updates to the LAMP server and WordPress installs. […]

Do we show enough appreciation for a well decorated home?


December 24, 2017

My wife Brenda shows a lot of attention to decorating with memories and detail to our house each December (and my mother did too). I wish I would be more thankful, but am usually a bit Grinchy when ask to do just a few things that seem to much such a waste of time … […]

Stopping to take a house photo on my way up the driveway


December 23, 2017

Just a beautiful sky (photos doesn’t do it justice) as the new LED Christmas spots and candle lights pop on as I head up the driveway. Good for the blog archive. After a cold start, having sunny but cool weather right before Christmas is welcomed … but should be thinking about getting the blower put […]

Last minute gift idea AND picking the right hose clamp #humor


December 20, 2017

Just in case there are a few men looking for last minute jewelry gifts to give to their sweetheart for Christmas, here’s a ring idea that will pretty much guarantee that you’ll never need to worry again – you’ll either be alone … or dead! And since I know there is sure to be a […]

Tech Friday: Testing Apple Live Photo to downsized looping GIF


December 15, 2017

We’ve had a colder than usual early December here in Cincinnati … and has much of the country. The freezing temperatures will likely show up in higher heating bills but I’m hoping the new LED Christmas lighting will offset that cost? We’ll see. I’ve been wanting to test the Live Photo editing feature on the […]

A snowy winter day, a warm fire and distractions


December 10, 2017

The first cold snowy winter day was the perfect time to fire up the woodstove in the poolhouse garage … unfortunately the distraction of a warm fire lead to other distractions and  keeping me from the day’s list of projects. Instead of finishing the Corbett Christmas letter, updating the mailing list, decorating and working on […]

Archive: Thanksgiving 2017 with the Corbett Family


November 26, 2017

Better late than never in posting a few photos from our Thanksgiving day dinner and family time over this extended weekend. My brother Ron and his family were all able to get together at our house this year with our two new additions: Annalyn (Katelyn and Drew) and Teagan (Keira and Ben). Thankfully all of […]

Music Monday: Back to the pre-Parrothead Jimmy Buffett days


October 9, 2017

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Excellent weather, great fun and good food


June 11, 2017

Not too many photos, but Taylor‘s friends all seemed to have a great time celebrating his birthday this weekend in the backyard. The Knockerballs were a hit … and Taylor even showed his love for his mom  Ha! (video below).

Guest post: Monitoring Remote Locations #DIY – by Jeff Pitts


June 6, 2017

One of the fun areas of IT that has been growing in recent years is the “maker community” of products for do-it-yourselfers. These devices range from the Raspberry Pi, Pi Zero, Photon, Arduino, etc. The movement is bringing electronics to those of us that have that tinkerer mindset, but it also extends the opportunity to […]

Added the magnetic Nato Smart Mount to the BMW X5 35d


February 14, 2017

A couple gifts I gave this past Christmas were magnetic Nato Smart Mounts for holding smartphones or even tablets in a car. After buying a first one for our Honda Odyssey minivan as a promo and liking it, I added several more to the next order as gifts. The final one I kept for my […]

Thinking of my dad on his birthday and a pregnancy flashback


January 24, 2017

Having just returned from my mother-in-law’s funeral in western New York has me thinking of my late mother and now on January 24th … particularly my father. Today would have been his 88th birthday if he were still alive … although I’m not so sure many of us want all that many more years as […]

Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee

  1. lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
  2. digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.
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