Russia has been stepping up its attack oh Ukranian infrastructure and this is the fifth week in a row where my student/friend has no power at work. He can still moonlight at his coding job working on a laptop and battery but it slows everything down. Since winter is coming, it is going to suck a log more when there is snow on the ground.
Russians are just being terrorists now, bombing civilian infrastructure. Why is no one mentoning this fact in the United Nations, and why is Ukraine strill not allowed the use of long range cruie missiles to take out Russian power and natrual gas infrastructure?
While we are posting music, I remember this song from way back as the theme song for Star Trek: Enterprise. It was a TV series about the first warp-capable USS Enterprise in the Star Trek world. I thought the song was really pretty.
Fast forward to today. While I was watching the UCLA video from Dr. Jeffrey Veale, I suddenly remembered the song and looked up the lyrics. How did I not know it was a Rod Stewart song!?
Better audio from Spotify but just a preview snippet.
After twenty plus years of blogging, I am finally paying for something. I started with Xanga, then to MySpace (who remembers Tom?). When I started posting for real, I used Blogger.com from Google but stopped when I got sick from ESRD. In 2019, I restarted blogging using this site at WordPress but never liked the ads and URL.
My home central AC system has been iffy for a few years. The compressor would trigger the breaker, then we would need to reset them (two x 25 amps) and try again. Well, this week, it completely gave up and would not even turn on. After a short debate, we decided to get a new unit since the old one basically came with the house, 38-years ago.
Here is the installation guys taking a long nap waiting for the new concrete base to dry.
The new system is silent compared to my old AC system, but the fan seems blow slower. It takes longer to cool the house, but hopefully taking much less energy doing so.
The new system costs $17,500 with a $2,000 tax rebate from the feds at the end of the year.
So it has been over five months since I last posted. I am not sure why I stopped again. Every few days I think about posting something, but I was never motivated enough to follow up. In addition, not much has changed since January so there was nothing new to report. I still have difficulty walking, even if I do not wear the boot, and there has not been any opportunity to travel. I am still retired and not looking for another work opportunity yet.
Maybe I will restart by posting at least once every week. That is a low-level commitment I feel I can meet.
While scrolling through Instagram, I came across an advertisement for a show called Mesmerica. It is basically a visual plus audio show playing in a planetarium. I did not know there was a planetarium near my house, but evidently there is one at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa.
When I check the Mesmerica website, I thought the January 18th show was the final show so I bought two tickets. I was wrong; there are still more show dates available. The general admission tickets were $34 each, while VIP tickets with priority seating were $39. I just bought the cheap ticket.
Planetarium building at Orange Coast College
Being the OCD person I am, I researched for the best seats in a planetarium auditorium. The Internet said I should get a seat near the middle or back. After lining up for the show, I noticed there were a lot of VIP ticket holders. Luckily, there were several handicapped seats in the back, and they were empty when we finally entered the planetarium. We ended up with great seats.
The show, however, was pretty weak. It was very repetitive, but the video and the audio. It felt like I was watching a screen saver for 45 minutes. There were several cool visuals, with one looking like the city bending scene in Inception, but they were rare.
Likewise, the audio was pretty boring too. The artist is James Hood, and the soundtrack sounded like generic new age music. The main musical instrument appears to be a hang, which is similar in sound to a steel drum from the Caribbeans. The first few songs were nice and relaxing, then the soundtrack became repetitive. My friend fell asleep after about 15 minutes. I stayed awake so I can make my $34 worth while.
Throughtout the show, the artist (James Hood) would make some commentary about mind and conscience. It sounded like psychobabble as he tried to make his music much more significant than it really was. That also got old really fast. Finally, there were some lens aberration issues so the planetarium screen has three large bright circies which further discracted the audience.
Overall, I would not recommend the show at current prices. It is at least double what the price should be. Even with the excitement of watching a show in a planetarium, I was thoroughly bored with the experience. I would give it a 2.5 out of 5 stars.
A useful idiot or useful fool is a pejorative description of a person, suggesting that the person thinks they are fighting for a cause without fully comprehending the consequences of their actions, and who does not realize they are being manipulated by the cause’s leaders or by other political players.
I found out recently that a ban on TikTok is supposed to go into effect this Sunday, January 19, but Joe Biden will not enforce the ban. I do not use TikTok, but fully support the ban, since I believe the app and content is 100% controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). You would have to be an imbicile to belive any app from China is free from CCP influence. I remember playing Age of Zombie or something on my iPhone, and the word “Taiwan” and the Taiwanese flag icon were banned.
As a response, I heard many TikTok users are switching to “RedNote” instead. The app is currently the most downloaded social media app on Apple’s app store. Some users are claiming the app is free from US censorship.
The developers did not even create a non-Chinese app icon. The simplified Chinese character literally says Little Red Book. I am unsure if all the new non-Chinese users are ignorant teenagers or adult useful idiots, but the Little Red Book refers to a book of Quotations from Chairman Mao. Mao Zedong is the communist founder of the People’s Republic of China, and he was responsible for 40-80 million deaths during his rule over China. Do you think this app represents free speech and non-censorship?
There have already been numerous posts online regarding users being banned within hours of posting about topics deemed “sensitive” by the CCP censors. If you mention anything about Taiwan Independence, Tiananmen Square massacre, Uyghur genocide in Xianjiang, Cultural Revolution, or even a picture of Winnie the Pooh, your account will be banned.
I am just so disappointed that Internet users are too lazy or stupid to do a tiny bit of research. With so many information sources online, there is zero excuse for anyone to download communist propaganda apps unless they are little pinks supporting the CCP regime.
I just had my weekly phone call with my Ukranian friend/student. I met him through ENGin in May of 2023, and we have been having video calls once or twice a week. We try not to discuss Russia and the war too much, but it is a difficult subject to avoid.
Photo by u0410u043bu0435u0441u044c u0423u0441u0446u0456u043du0430u045e on Pexels.com
Right now, he is okay. He still has not registered with the Ukrainian military yet, but they is a lot of pressure. The military police have been stopping men randomly on the street to check their military registration paperwork, and now they need proof of registration to continue employment. My friend switched careers to be a software engineer since the war started, but since he is working freelance, he also has a second job to make ends meet. Mamy of his friends and acquaintances have been called to fight in the war, and some are already dead.
I really hope Ukraine and Russia can come to some agreement to at least stop the fighting. If Israel and Hamas can work out a deal, maybe there is room for negotiation between Kyiv and Moscow.
This evening, we had dinner with a few friends at a Korean BBQ restaurant in Rowland Heights. On the way home, we decided to turn on self-driving to see how well it performs. From Rowland Heights, you would take the 60 East to 57 South to 91 East to 55 South and exit Chapman Avenue. Everything worked fine until the 57/91 interchange. My car decided to take 91 West towards Los Angeles. We looked at the navigation map and the planned route does tell the car to go to 91 West, exit at State College, turn left to go under the freeway, then take the on-ramp to 91 East. Strange.
I guess the fault is with the navigation computer since it planned the route that way. The self-driving algorithm just follows what the navigation computer tells it to do. I did notice that the car kept changing lanes to the right but was too late to take control. The previous time I used the self-driving feature my Model X ran two red lights and did not stop at a stop sign.
The air conditioning in my friend’s Tesla Model 3 has had a terrible smell for months. The car is only 15 months old, so I wanted to try replacing the cabin air filter to see if it will improve the situation. After buying a new set of filters for $30, we spent about an hour installing it.
The old filters were absolutely filthy. My friend said she does not usually use the A/C while she drives so we are not sure where all the dust came from. To remove the old filters, we had to pul out the panel under the glovebox, then the panel at the right of the center console. The instructions that came with the new filters were confusing so we watched a few YouTube for further instructions.
The nasty smell disappeared right after we changed out the filter. Now two more friends, one with a Model 3 and the other with a Model Y, are also experiencing this problem so I asked them to purchase new filters, and we will help them do the filter swap.
I received a jury summons for Orange County Superior Court late last year. The deadline to register online and check your status was last Friday, January 3, 2025. Since I am retired, I really have no good excuse not to serve my time on a jury. Therefore, I filled out the questionnaire indicating I could serve.
AI generated court room
Over the past weekend, however, I started to have some doubts. Even though I tested COVID free a few months ago, I still have a nasty and loud cough. That will get me many dirty looks from the other jurors and disrupt the court proceedings. Additionally, I am still wearing the CROW boot. The longest I have worn the boot was only several hours. I have no experience wearing it continuously for 8 to 9 hours. After pondering the worst-case scenario, I call the Juror Service phone line, and postponed my jury service to January 31, 2025, due to medical reasons.
I really want to sit on as jury not that I am retired, especially if involves any type of financial or engineering evidence. I did near both counsels do not like knowledgeable people since the lawyer’s job is to spin a believable story for the jury to follow.
The weather is crazy windy tonight. We are getting 30 mph winds with gusts up to 60 mph where I live. Currently there is somethihg hitting one of the walls of my house. I hope nothing was ripped free by the wind. I am glad I got the huge eucalyptus tree in my backyard trimmed last month.
This is a wind map from earth. You can see while most of Los Angeles is calm, both the San Fernando Valley and Orange County (where I am) are experiencing high winds.
The winds are also driving three brush fires.
All three fires are near or have already burnt down structures. I do not remember having so many fires this late in the season before.
I mentioned before that I know my last manager for almost 25 years. We started working together in 2000, and soon after he started hosting a party at Del Mar Race Track every year with his wife. I was invited last year since the invites went out before my retirement. We will see if I am still invited this year now that I do not work for him anymore.
Usually the invite “package” is extravagant and over-the-top. Last year was no exception.
The invite came in a rolling carry-on luggage and was packed with items related to Amalfi Coast in Italy. I kept the limoncello bottle and the luggage and gave the remaining items to my plus one (coworker).
Here is what the racetrack looks like from our reserved room.
I have been to many of these parties courtesy of my boss. It is always a fun time, and I get to see some old ex-coworkers from different companies. However, last year I was on crutches, and it was difficult to get from the parking lot to the grandstand. On the way out, I found out Del Mar provided a golf cart for disabled guests, so I suffered for nothing.
I want to apologize for going MIA for the past seven months. Truthfully, after getting news that I have another broken bone in my foot, I was depressed and anxious at the same time. I believe I am in a better mental and physical state now so I will restart posting again.
The template I used previously started posting everything to the extreme left of the page so I applied a new template. Hopefully this one will be easier to read.
Here are some photos of my burned out 240V NEMA 14-50 plug.
I am hoping that the circuit and breaker are still good, and I can just get someone to replace the plug. I will need to buy a new mobile charger from Tesla since I am uncertain if the old 0ne is still good.
I looked on Yelp! and got some quotes. One guy wanted to replace the socket with “industrial grade” parts for $325. Another guy said $135 plus parts. The third guy just said call him. The last guy thought I wanted to put in a new plug and asked me to send photos of where it should go. I have not decided who to call back yet.
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Updated: Tuesday, June 11th, 2024 @11:32 AM
I ended up replying to EV Pros since they had the greatest number of reviews. They probably are not the most inexpensive, but I wanted the repair done well. The service call was $275, and a new industrial socket was $120. The electrical panel was fine, even though the 50A circuit breakers were seven years old. He also said the connecting wire was too thin at 8-gauge, so he replaced it with 6-gauge wires. The total repair bill was $415, which is not cheap, but I feel it was reasonable.
I also ordered a new Tesla mobile charger, which was $250 new. Hopefully that will arrive soon so I can charge at home again.
When I bought my Model S, I put in a 240V/50A plug so I can charge faster. The mobile charge that came with my Tesla has been plugged in for seven years without any issues. Last week, I noticed a strange smell, like burning plastic when my Model X was charging. When I searched the internet, there were posts about a failing 12V battery emitting hydrogen sulfide gas. However, my Model X has a lithium-ion 12V battery so that should not happen. Anyway, last night we discovered that the smell came from the NEMA 14-50 plug. It looks like one of the prongs on the charger melted the socket. Strangely, the car was still charging at 40A, which is kind of scary. I stopped charging and unplugged the charger from the socket. Not sure why the 50A breaker did not pop on the electrical panel.
So, in addition to all my health issues and other problems, I have to get someone to come out and look at my charging circuit. I hope the actual wires and circuit are okay, and I just need a new plug. Likely I will need a new charge if the circuit is working as something caused the plug/socket to overheat and melt.
I have only nine contacts on Apple’s Find My Friends app. Usually everyone is at home inside a fifty mile radius. Occasionally, one or two people would be traveling, but currently a majority (5/9) are out of state.
The contacts comprise of six family members and three friends. Right now, two family members are in North Carolina while another is in Florida. I also have a friend visiting Washington state and another is in China. It is pretty amazing I can see everyone’s location in real-time.
I am still having Monday and Wednesday calls with my friend/student in Kyiv. This was coordinated through ENGin who matches Ukrainians wanting to learn English with native English speakers. Technically I am not a native English speaker but having lived most of my life in Canada and US, I can pass for a native speaker.
Anyway, since we missed the call on Monday, I was showing him my cast and x-rays, and some photos from my retirement graduation. Then he told me about a new government decree in Ukraine regarding the war. As of Saturday, May 18th, every male person has to go to the military recruitment center to get a “ticket” or number. If your number is within a certain range, then you need to go to the military training center and then war. There are now checkpoints between cities and towns, and random checks in Kyiv. My friend does not want to go to war, mainly because he cannot imagine himself killing someone else.
At this point, I was speechless. My problems seem minor in comparison to conscription and being sent off to a deadly war of attrition. It is such a terrible waste of life, and Ukraine will be fucked up for decades regardless of the outcome. Putin also has destroyed Russia since most countries, except other shitty dictatorships like China, Iran, and North Korea, will not do business with them. Just one single megalomanic and ruin the lives of millions.
With everything being so expensive, I should utilize the free supercharging for my Model X more often. I found I can access my Tessie account on my computer and here is my supercharging record for this year:
The list adds up to 378 kWh of energy. I believe I pay $0.28 per kWh for tier 1 usage at my house. That means I saved $106 on my electric bill at home. Time spent at the superchargers however was about four hours. That equates to about $25/hour. Is that worth it? I guess if I had nothing else to do. None of the supercharging sessions were critical, meaning I could have made it home and charged overnight.
The stupid wing door is fixed. Evidently, the seal on the ultrasonic sensor was not seated correctly, causing a spurious signal. After getting the car back on Wednesday, the door has been opening and closing perfectly. I still hate the door mechanics, but at least it works now.
Also, I went to charge my car tonight at the supercharging station in Laguna Woods. The site is rated at 250 kW, but I got up to 256 kW. That is a lot of energy.
Life with chronic diseases 