Sunday 15 October 2017

Thanksgiving, Tech Updates and Treehouses

The word of the week is obstinate.
 
Oct 9 – Thanksgiving

A lovely, low-key day for everyone this year.

My lady and I joined my sister and parents at their place in the early afternoon today, and we were glad to have a Monday off to spend with family.

While my sister and mom got things ready to eat, my lady and I helped with other needed tasks around the apartment, as neither my dad or mom are very mobile at the moment: he injured himself at work a few weeks ago and is off on WCB( thank-you Canada! )while my mom's muscles have become weaker with age, causing her difficulties most days. It was a delicious meal thanks to my sister, who prepared many of the veggies, and my mom who made the stuffing and bought the deliciously moist turkey breast, most of which we didn't finish and saved for Christmas - yum again in a few months!


Spending time with my family is vitally important to me; they're the major reason why I decided to move to Victoria nearly ten years ago. Neither my sister nor I have to travel to see our parents, as many families do when it comes to holidays; we're all right here within a short drive of each other.

Which means I'm quite thankful, in many ways, to live where and when I do.


Oct 10 – Climate and Fossil Fuels

Let's hope this is the start of a trend.

Victoria has joined a growing list ofcities suing the fossil fuel industry to recover costs associated with manmade climate change. Much like the health industry sued Big Tobacco for related costs, this looks positive for helping combat the problems that fossil fuel interests helped to create, and knew about for years yet kept quiet while simultaneously funding climate change denial groups to the tune of $5 million USD / year for the last two decades.

One of the difficulties is the fossilized mindset of so many people when it comes to acknowledging that climate change is happening, and humanity is the cause. Whether it's a lack of scientific understanding, trust in scientists, or other factors, there are psychological factors at play that make it extremely hard for some people to accept the evidence being presented, and indeed fight against it vehemently instead, flying in the face of logic, reason and the global scientific community.

Below is a great TED Talk about how this mindset comes about, and what can be done about it when you're faced with someone who's in denial about climate change:



Oct 11 – Amazing News!

One of my favourite shows is coming back to the airwaves!

Well, it'll be available online, but that's just semantics: Amazing Stories creator Steven Spielberg has struck a deal with Apple to create the new series to be aired on Apple's fledgling online media distribution network.


I loved Amazing Stories, the show, as well as the original magazine, and it's encouraging to see that a well-written ahead-of-its-time show like AS is going to get a new lease on life in the modern age, rescued from the obscurity of VHS tapes.


Oct 12 – Dang it, Glowforge...

An email from GlowForge arrived unexpectedly today!

In it was a thorough update on where the production is at, as well as the expected shipping dates - AT LAST! Based on when my order was placed, here's when it's most likely going to leave the Seattle factory:

I've no idea why I have two listings, but hey: it's progress!

So, the above is a bit of a bummer, as from the info in the last update, I was expecting to see the GlowForge ship by October 31st 2017. That meant the vacation I've booked for the third week of November 2017 would have let my lady and I head over the border to pick up the unit... but that's scotched now, sadly.

Meh. At least there's a high-likelihood SHIPPING date now, and for that I'm grateful, as I can now better plan getting my business started when my unit's here at last. Uncertainty means unknown priority, and now I can adjust my weekly time budget accordingly.

It means more work ahead, but that's to be expected.


Oct 13 – Comics!

One of the things I miss most about not reading the newspaper are the comics.

The daily comics were a brief pleasure, but I really lived for the Sunday Comics, when everything came to life in full colour, especially back when colour print was a luxury - hence only seeing them once a week.

I've managed to somewhat scratch that itch for the last few years, after finding a link to The Toronto Star, which is the paper I used to read for many years in Ontario. Most online comics sites push ads heavily unless you go Premium, which is why I've been reluctant to use them, but the Star is free - though its selection is somewhat limited.

Here's one of my fave comics, starring Lucky Eddy, rather appropriate given today's date:



Oct 14 – Star Wars Rebels

On to the next good show...

My downtime is limited these days, but I've been focusing it when I do have an hour or two to devote to relaxation: why not spend it wisely, instead of mindlessly?

As such, I've been watching shows and movies I've been unable to see the last few years, either because they were on TV( I don't have cable )or hard to find online( I don't do much of that anyway )and I certainly can't budget buying too much on DVD, let alone Blu-Ray, even if I try to find them used.

All the same, I've managed to source a few on my list lately, and one of them is Star Wars: Rebels, of which I caught the first couple of episodes when it debuted almost exactly 3 years ago in 2014. The story is solid, the animate excellent and I've really enjoyed following the characters along in their adventures.



Oct 15 – Treehouse Office?

Oh, what a great place to work...

Microsoft recently unveiled the first of three 'treehouse office spaces' that are designed to help their employees stat creative and happy - not hard to do, when you've got a workspace like this:


I've always loved treehouses, but never had one as a kid as none of the trees on our properties would hold one - dang. I played in a few here and there growing up, but they were always an elusive beast, and remain so in my mind to this day.

One day, with a place of my own, a treehouse-reading-writing space sounds perfect:


That's all I've got for this week; I'm moving around of a day with only some discomfort and no pain in my core muscles or legs, which is fantastic! More on that next week - busy schedule ahead for the fall!