Author: Derek
Monday Links – All Light Items
I’m not really in the mood to go into the news today. So, just some lighter items I’ve found in the last week or so.
First, we have an article on the seventh anniversary of the grandma who accidentally invited a boy – now man – to Thanksgiving dinner. And he kept coming every year. It’s one of those heartwarming stories that I’m glad to see continue. It hits a lot of the more optimistic themes, such as altruism, chosen family, and putting aside differences to make human connections.
Next is an article on a new cat café coming to Tampa. It’s going to be relatively close to where my mom lives. Which bodes for interesting options when The Wife and I visit. Particularly since it’s no longer necessary to trek all the way up there to get my 5.11 fix.
From FEE, we have a listicle on “Six Books That Will Rewire Your Brain.” I’ve read most of them, but even those should probably go back into the “to-read” stack.
TFB has a review of the B&T TP9. This is one of those guns I want if I get “stupid amount of money.” Of course, like the author, if I actually could get one, I’d pay the tax stamp, SBR the thing, and turn it into a semi-auto clone of their MP9. Maybe pair it with my L9A1 if I did some kind of competition.
As for something else that I kind of want comes a company offering bullet shaped dice. Including revolver cylinder tray. I’d be more tempted, but my fun money is currently going to upgrading my Civ game for the iPad.
Friday Quote – Frank Arrigazzi
It is when we stop thinking about what we don’t have or what we lack, and become grateful for who we are, that we can gain access to true unlimited inspiration.
Weekend at Ward Manor
- The Wife and I walked up to the neighborhood’s “Vendor Fair”. Honestly, it was kind of pathetic, but I’m chalking that up to it being the first year. Hopefully, there will be more stands next year. From there, we went up to the local market. That was much more fruitful, as we needed to pick up some gifts for the holidays. We also joined the local civic association – something we’ve been discussing for a few months.
- We did an initial pull of the holiday decorations. The Wife has a lot of holiday decorations, and we just brought home the first load. The Ward Wagon will require more trips due to its smaller cargo size. I also helped pull out one of her trees. She wanted to put it up to get Freya used to it. Hopefully, that will keep the destruction down.
- During our shopping, The Wife and I discussed pulling weeds on Sunday morning while it was still cool out. We came home to find the neighbor girls pulling our weeds. Apparently, they offered to pull the weeds for some spending cash. Well, okay, it was something that we didn’t really want to do anyway. They did a real good job too. The Wife asked if they could come over every couple of weeks and take care of the weeds. I do love rewarding entrepreneurship. Particularly when it relieves me of having to do hated chores.
- We did manage to hang a couple of paintings we bought a few months back. I found a print of Monet’s Impression, Sunrise and The Wife found another print we liked. The hard part is that we hung them on the wall facing the stairwell, which meant reaching out from the second floor.
- I ordered a new iPad. My current one is getting long in the tooth. I mean, long enough it wasn’t even worth trading in. So, now I get to wait a bit for it to be delivered. Still, it should be powerful enough to last me the next four or five years. Particularly since I don’t do a lot of heavy lifting with the iPad.
- If you are going to do a gender reveal party with some fireworks, it is considered polite to let the rest of the neighborhood know. Particularly those that sound like shotgun blasts.
Monday Links
One of the big stories from last week was NASA launching their big new rocket for a trip around the moon. I, unfortunately, did not see it launch, but Rocket Engineer Brother and his family were kind enough to send over a video.
Heading over from space to the tech sector, the apparent Ponzi scheme that was FTX came crashing down. This is an item in the crypto arena that bears watching, because it may be the catalyst that drives regulation of the crypto arena that will kill its promise. One bit of advice for those of you who have any crypto currency? Don’t leave it on an exchange. Put it in a cold storage wallet.
Amazon has joined the ranks of massive layoffs in the tech sector – particularly in the Alexa and Luna teams. This is of some concern because Ward Manor’s smart systems are in the Alexa ecosystem. And with the Matter standard not quite ready for prime-time means interoperability with another digital assistant will be tricky.
Oregon’s recently passed anti-RKBA Measure 114 is facing heavy attacks on its many issues. Ammoland reports that many sheriffs are refusing to enforce the magazine limit. Other sources are reporting that many small departments are refusing to even handle the new purchase permit due to cost and the fact that the state doesn’t even have the permits available – even though they’re supposed to go into effect next month. Let the shitshow commence!
It was a couple-three weeks ago I shared an article about a 3D printed home in Tallahassee. Now, we have an article about a company doing it in Tampa. Since it’s running about $600K for the list price, I’m not as hopeful on the cost savings. Particularly since a townhome in the same area is going for $400K.
Now on to light items:
War Is Boring has an article on how warfare is responsible for the necktie.
The Wife and I have tickets to the Quintessential Quintuplets Movie coming out next month. I really enjoyed the series, and I’m hoping The Wife enjoys the movie.
Friday Quote – Milton B. Medary Jr
It must sing of music, sculpture, color, architecture, landscape design, and the arts of the workers in brass and iron, ceramics and marble and stone – each a part of a chorus, each adding beauty to the others.
This was an inscription in the museum for Bok Tower in Lake Wales, FL. If you have the chance to visit, you should.
Losing Two Greats
On Veterans Day came word of the passing of the comedian Gallagher and Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy.
Gallagher’s infamous Sledge-o-matic entertained me as a kid, and then I grew to appreciate his humor as I matured.
Kevin Conroy will always be the definitive voice of Batman. His work on the Animated Series, Batman Beyond, and the Justice League series cemented his voice in my mind.
I leave you with these videos.
There’s A Baby In The Clowder
Since we lost Titus a couple of months ago, the house felt a bit empty. We discussed adding another cat to the group. What sex? What kind? The Wife wanted another hairless, but those are few and far between. Plus, in the aftermath of Ian, there was a heightened scrutiny on all listings. Just as tragedies bring out the greatness in humanity, it also brings out the worst.
Finally, we made an appointment at a local shelter. We looked at several, but ended up with a tiny kitty. A tiny Siamese kitty.
There was much discussion on a name. The Wife prefers old-fashioned names. I prefer non-people names. She started with Alice. I countered with Mab. She offered Hazel. I offered Inara. Finally we settled on a name.
I present to you the newest member of the Ward Clowder – Freya.
