Happy Easter!
Trixie, our Westie, is now 13 weeks old and had her second visit to the vet this morning. She had a scheduled shot and examination. She is in excellent health and growing normally. Her weight increased by 50% in a month and now weighs a little over 6 lb. Her adult hair is coming in and will start losing her puppy teeth soon. The vet said that she’ll have another growth spurt by her next visit in May.
This week, my wife and I attended the annual meeting of our local water commission. We both found it to be interesting and instructive.
We learned that our community is supplied by two wells, each with a storage tank. One well has recently been put into production. The board plans to link the two wells and operate them on an alternating schedule.
Some of the older water lines are leaking, and is estimated that the leakage rate is 20%. There is a program to systematically replace the older lines. It is also necessary to plug the boreholes for three abandoned wells.
There hasn’t been a rate increase in nearly 25 years. The system has been operating at a loss over the last few years. In order to improve service, pay for the new well, increase monetary reserves, and cover other operating costs, there will be a rate increase effective this July. The rates are two-tiered.
My wife asked me to create an easier method of carrying laundry downstairs. I designed and built a hoist as a solution. The bracket was available from Amazon, as well as the pulleys. Cord, an eyebolt, a cleat and toggle bolts were bought at a hardware store. The bracket was secured to the wall with the toggle bolts (rated at 80 lbs. each). I rigged a simple block and tackle to lower and raise a laundry basket. The pictured prototype is the result.
I plan to improve the pulley system with a more suitable and complex block and tackle.
Two weeks ago, we acquired a new addition to our family. We brought home a West Highland Terrier puppy which we named Trixie. She is a little spitfire and can hold her own against our older Scotties, Tillie and Toby Two. It took a few days, but the Scotties have accepted her.
Trixie is now eleven weeks old. For such a small puppy, at 4 pounds, she can be quite vocal and loud. I can hear her upstairs at the other end of the house. She is starting to learn how to navigate stairs. Not too much problem going up, but unsure of going down. She has also adapted well to crate training. We expect it will be several weeks until she’s housetrained.
Trixie was a big hit at the nursing home. Residents, and staff alike, enjoyed her visit.
By Robert Tracinski I recently wrote about the wretched reporting on the claim that 2016 was the “hottest year on record,” using as my main example a New York Times article by Justin Gillis that gave his readers none of the relevant numbers they could use to evaluate that claim. None of them. If you…
Yes, where are the error bars?!
I have come to the bitter realization that “Social Media” is a misnomer. It should be called “Unsocial Media.” Over the past few months, I have encountered some extremely arrogant, nasty, snide, and definitely unsocial, people on Facebook, and to a lessor extent, Twitter. Comments and posts have become increasingly derogatory, and normally would never be said in person. The constant barrage of negativity has also made me guilty of posting angry comments, out of frustration, from time-to-time.
Facebook has become an echo chamber, using algorithms designed to mainly display posts reflecting your point of view. The posts are all too often re-shared to create an unfriendly atmosphere for people to calmly discuss opposing, informed opinions. It has become petty, juvenile, and a fount of logical fallacies and poor arguments. Eventually, you increasingly end up not seeing opposing, informed points of view, and then, not knowing that they even exist. Instead, your circle of Facebook Friends becomes a group of sycophants.
Therefore, I have deactivated (not deleted) my Facebook account, and deleted the apps on my devices. Facebook is not worth the anger, frustration, time, and the loss of friends and relatives. I have kept Facebook Messenger open for my true friends.
Reconsidered and set up another account focused on Scotties, Drones and Weather. No politics or users will be blocked, not unfriended. Noticed I have more features and options now.
In December 2016, I entered a contest to redo the web page for The Penn State University Model Railroad Club. Yesterday, I learned that I won first place!
The club liked many of the elements I used. They may not use my submitted web site “as is,” but they will definitely incorporate most of what I submitted, and will give me credit.
As of this evening, the pyranometer data is now online. Here is the link to The Weather Underground site. The site ID is KPAPORTM11.
Stormstown Dispatch 