Reading a pretty cool and short (text)book (yawn), called "A gentle introduction to the art of object-oriented programming in Java. (yes, a truly exciting two volume set) Uses as an example, the programming of a robot. Reading this book, and also reading the recent news posted by my former colleague Charles Rader, about the first fatal accident with Tesla's autonomous self-driving car, makes me … [Read more...]
Homeless people
July 1, 2016 By
Humans of MPLS - Homeless interview A sad situation, and a catch-22: need a job to get away from being homeless, but being homeless prevents them from getting a job. Homeless people should be a number one priority for our help (both via our government, and our selves). ==================================================== “How did you end up homeless?” “I struggle with addiction and depression, … [Read more...]
Recruiters – faux pas
June 30, 2016 By
Had a very awkward realization just now. One of the two recruiters I spoke with on the phone yesterday, sent me a LinkedIn invite a few minutes ago. The person I was saying "no mam", "yes mam" to, is male. In my defense, their name is Abhinav, and seemed to have a high pitch accent. In no way is this post making fun of them - I'm quite embarrassed by this. … [Read more...]
Model Railroading and “Collecting”
June 29, 2016 By
So. Most all Model Railroader hobbyists are also "collectors". They (read: "we") either collect engines (locomotives), passenger cars, freight cars, or even things called "structure kits" (various types of buildings you put together). We usually do our collecting via eBay, or at the local model railroading flea markets, etc. Sometimes, we even collect "track". (to run our MRR collection on...🙄 … [Read more...]
Maps – Houston, and Appleton
June 29, 2016 By
I love maps. I really do. I can stare at them for hours. I absolutely love looking at them. But, sometimes, even when I look at these things for hours, some stuff doesn't "sink in". Like, I know, the Twin Cites is way, way north of Detroit (where I grew up). Way, way, north, meaning, if you drew a horizontal line from Detroit, moving West, Minneapolis would be way, way north of that line. I … [Read more...]
New TV series
June 29, 2016 By
Well, it seems I've been in a writing mood today. So, this last one is going to be quite short. If you like science fiction with your tv shows, then try out "Humans." Awesome premise, causing some very profound thinking about our future with "robots". If you have already seen this series or start watching it, I would enjoy reading your thoughts on it. I want to say more, but can't find the … [Read more...]
Recruiters calling…Houston and Appleton
June 29, 2016 By
Had a recruiter contact me (today) about a six month contract job in Houston, and a second recruiter (yesterday) for a contract to hire position in Appleton, WI. This second one I'm not so sure about, since it seems to be from one of those recruiter job mill firms that send out hundreds of emails (not bothering to see if you are qualified or not), with them hoping to get a bite on their line … [Read more...]
Waking up in the middle of the night
June 28, 2016 By
Highly unusual for me to wake up at 3:30 am...tried to fall back to sleep, nope. Now (around 4:15-4:30), my lovely backyard birds decided to start their head-banging music (aka, chirping). 😱🙉😉🤓🙄 … [Read more...]
Cheating at sports
June 28, 2016 By
NPR article about professional cyclists cheating I can understand putting a motor in your bike, if you're just a person who likes biking and is getting a bit old in the tooth (to help you go up on some of those steeper hills). But, if biking is your "profession", and you then make a conscious decision to cheat (by using a motor), in order to win? Now that, boggles my mind. I don't think I could … [Read more...]
Britain vs United Kingdom vs England
June 27, 2016 By
I never really understood the different nomenclatures - this visualization really helps. However, I wish it also included Canada and Australia. ===== "This may be the most useful Venn Diagram I've ever seen" Original post … [Read more...]
CNN Video – Clinton and Warren?
June 27, 2016 By
CNN - Elizabeth Warren This would be an awesome ticket - two HIGHLY intelligent people, both of whom are leaders, both of whom are articulate as well as coherent when speaking in public and/or during interviews. We need intelligent people, visionary people, true leaders (such as these two) who can articulate their vision, their plan, and their thoughts, as well as the ability to know when to … [Read more...]
Wise words when deciding whether to post or not on social media
June 26, 2016 By
Here are some wise words from a fellow blogger when posting on social media: "I type out roughly 10 Facebook statuses a day... Normally about 2 make the cut. I always ask myself: Is it encouraging? Is it helpful? Is it loving? Is it going to fix something? Is it hilarious? It has to hit 4/5 to make the cut. If it doesn't - it's a no go. We need to think before we post. It's real people … [Read more...]
Video of a person singing in a public place
June 25, 2016 By
Awesome song. Awesome singer. Awesome woman. Awesome person. Took a lot of courage and guts to sing in such a public place, but she was simply amazing. Video of woman singing … [Read more...]
Lailah and growing up
June 25, 2016 By
Tired. Very tired. Had an opportunity to be with the girl today. Notice I didn't say "the little girl"? There are times when it's readily apparent she's growing up. So fast. Spent the entire day with her, from around 11am to about 8pm. Tired. Too tired to type up one of my stories. But, if I don't do it now, I'll forget everything by the morning. Supposed to go to the Eagan Art Fair - … [Read more...]
A Lailah memory on Facebook
June 24, 2016 By
Wow, from a year ago, even then she had an amazing personality (with making me laugh). I had so much fun all of last year having her babysit me on a weekly basis. This year, the visits are not as frequent (every 3-4 weeks), and, boy, do I truly miss her! I am so glad I was able to spend as much time as I did with her - just an amazing and loving experience. And, now, she's growing up so fast. Too … [Read more...]
There are people who care, in this world
June 24, 2016 By
What an amazing story. The story continues on the go-fund-me link. Originally the goal was just a simple $250 (to buy him a lawn mower so he can make money cutting grass), and they have now raised more than $90k. I'm glad to see there are so many good hearted people. Thanks, Carol DeBeaussaert for sharing. "Please visit the page of Matt White to see (BSW: updates to) the story of Chauncy's … [Read more...]
Toys from the 1960s
June 24, 2016 By
I had all three of these robots ("Zeroids") when I was a kid. My mom pitched them once I got past the "playing with toys" age. I now see them selling anywhere from $100 to $500 on eBay, of course depending on condition. In my mind, mine were in "excellent" condition - just sayin'. Lol 🤖🚀😉🤓 … [Read more...]
Bosch – tv series
June 24, 2016 By
Last week or so, been watching "Bosch", a murder mystery series based on Michael Connelly's novels. I recommend it, if you like this genre. It's on Amazon (Season's one and two, so far). Be prepared to binge watch - it's that kind of show where you can't just stop after one epiosde. … [Read more...]
More thoughts about music
June 22, 2016 By
Listening to Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. What a piece of music. Then: Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the common man". Years ago (in the '80s), a jazz group called "KittyHawk" did an upbeat electronic version of this piece, on an album called "Fanfare". Silly thing is iTunes has this album but this particular piece is missing from it. If you want to listen to it, look for it on their "Collection" … [Read more...]
Vandalism and national parks
June 22, 2016 By
NPR story about vandalism and national parks I really don't understand people who need to deface or vandalize property (full disclosure: ~ten yrs ago, Rose's oldest son vandalized a golf course using a golf cart upon turning 18). This story is about a young person in their early twenties who decided to paint/draw, etc. on things (rock faces) at our national parks, then bragged about what they … [Read more...]
