Early pub. I like it. I’ve been carpooling with a bloke who lives nearby. The older I get, the more I realize we’re all very similar when we let our guards down and look for the best in people. We let someone go at work this week. It’s never easy, but this one was the right time for the right reasons. I’m still recovering from a vacation. I know that may sound strange, but it’s a thing. Between time zone differences, piled up work, inspiration overload, and general life evaluation - it’s been a rough couple of weeks. I’ll say this though - I am a blessed/fortunate man who has had more opportunity than most, and I don’t want to waste another minute. I love you all. I don’t drink, but I feel drunk. My guard is down. My heart is full. I’d hug you if you were in front of me. Maybe you need one. I usually do. But if hugs aren’t your thing, a high five, a smile, or just a knowing glance. I’m here. You’re here. We can just be. So here’s to you Hubski... I raise my metaphorical glass to you. And to you. And to this place. And to mk... wherever he is this week...thanks for opening early.
I’m celebrating my 15 year wedding anniversary today. Tomorrow I take my bride to Paris for 5 days. I’ve never been. Should be great!
I've been given DAS BOOT for the next 12 weeks. I'm completely non-weight-bearing until December, but the boot lets me shower with my leg completely uncovered, AND move my ankle every night as an exercise! I'm in high spirits today, the feeling of water on my leg AND of my ankle moving is incredible. Of course, I've only got maybe 15 degrees of motion in my ankle, but stretching and strength exercises will improve that. I'll probably be reporting my progress to Pubski, since I'm pretty well chuffed about it :) I also came back to work this week! I'm less enthused about that, but it's still good news. Truth be told, I was getting bored of sitting at home all day. I'd rather be hiking again, but it's nice to have something productive to do.
Holy hell that's a lot of hardware! Best of luck to your recovery One piece of advice-I would take the photo down and repost it without the top left corner. Hubski is a friendly place but the internet certainly isn't. Any type of personal information can and will be abused.
Damn, I missed it! Was it your credit card information?
I'm finishing up the painting for my mom. It's not my cup of tea, but she's excited about it. I'm looking forward to painting something from my head next. If this weren't for my mom, I'd get a bit crazy with lighting and try to give this some atmosphere, but I don't think she'd like it as much. I learned two lessons from this one: 1) the quality of your white paint matters a lot, and 2) don't use ceiling paint instead of primer as a base. We now have 5 chickens. These are the latest additions. I made that frame to hold a grapevine. Now it's a perch. Chickens are so endearingly stupid. When they aren't resting, they seem to oscillate between curiosity and freaking out. Misty (the white one) is kind of like a dog. She likes people and likes to be held. Coco (the brown one) is a freak. Joy is just along for the ride. Our two big chickens are starting to tolerate them, but they aren't allowed to sleep on the high perch in the coop yet. When I was in Norway, mike gave me this puzzle: I've been solving it every day. It's pretty awesome. My daughter and I are headed to Maine this weekend for a daddy/daughter trip. It's our first, and it was her suggestion. We are staying at a rustic cabin on the water. I'm really looking forward to it. I just finished Visions of a Flying Machine by Peter Jakab. katakowsj bought it for me. It's a solid book that deconstructs the Wright's engineering process. It's totally an engineer's book, and the Wrights were totally engineers. They built the first self-powered airplane because they methodically isolated and addressed every issue that had to be overcome to make it happen. It's as simple as that. Everyone before them was building something with wings and hoping that it worked out. Next is David Palmer's Emergence, on wasoxygen's recommendation. I've been making some tweaks around Hubski. Let me know if you find a bug. Things are going well enough elsewhere. I haven't had to travel as much for Forever Labs in the last few months, and business is good. I appreciate the return to a slightly less frenetic pace of life. Not all of me could keep up. It's interesting watching Trump fall apart, and I hope our country comes out of this without irreparable damage. I expect that we are falling into a global recession; hopefully we keep our heads.
Hey mike, I don't see that puzzle in the KickStarter collection, and the DragonFjord inventory is low. Do you have to know somebody? Do you know somebody?
I thought it would be a good puzzle to try and figure out from the photo how the months and dates are arranged underneath, but the two which are visible suggest that they are simply in order, with months on the first two rows and numbers 1-31 below. Given that there is a solution for each month and date combination, it seems very unlikely that there would be a unique solution for each combination. Have you tried finding an alternate solution for a date?
I wish I was so optimistic. Having checked in on hubski several times last week, impeachment and removal felt imminent. Then over the weekend I was at dinner with some folks that reminded me that there are WHOLE SWATHS of the country that think this is a distraction and that "grab them by the pussy" wasn't even worth conversation. I can't figure out what's happening. I haven't been doing it every day - but it was fun to work through all of the family's birthdays and then a couple of days last week. It is really awesome. I want to buy more as gifts. <cough cough> mike <cough>It's interesting watching Trump fall apart
I've been solving it every day. It's pretty awesome.
Life is hard when the world is so big and you're just a little bird! Glad they're settling in well and that they're mostly friendly too.Chickens are so endearingly stupid. When they aren't resting, they seem to oscillate between curiosity and freaking out.
Hey Pubski. Lots to think about this week, not a lotta time. Climate So I had this awesome trip to Milan last week. I spent a good day preparing my speech, and while I was nervous in the week leading up to it, the presentation itself went phenomenal. I used to have real stage fright as a teenager. Yet here I am, being flown into a national conference and nailing my presentation. I'd never been to Milan. It has its nice spots, but I was very aware of how commercialized it is with all the hip brands dominating the city center. I spotted three fashion models posing with a posse of makeup/photo/whatever people in less than an hour of walking around town. There were also more homeless than I'm used to seeing - but then again, I also recently learned that we Dutch have one of the highest number of homeless per capita. What does it matter if they're visible or not. Flying in for a day did make me feel kinda conflicted. If this trip wasn't so last-minute, I probably would have planned to do the trip by nighttrain, which is doable. But as it was now I had to miss the Climate Strike because I was flying, and I would be lying if that didn't make me feel uneasy. Then again, I was there to promote electric mobility, so if the ends justify the means, then those are pretty decent ends. Yesterday was also the day of a farmer's strike. My sister's soon-to-be-husband is taking over the farm of his father. The tide's been turning against farmers recently - they account for 40% of our nitrogen pollution, and Europe has told us to drastically cut nitrogen levels to preserve nature. Which I'm personally totally behind, but it's very complex matter (does closing farms here open up farms somewhere else?) and it's a very poignant and visible case of the consequences of sustainability policy. There will be much more difficult decisions to make if we really want to get somewhere. It won't be pretty. Family Went to see my sister yesterday. We aren't that close, not for any particular reason other than distance. She ended up wanting to talk about our parents. They're not in a great place, which I am fully aware of, but she pointed a bunch of things out about the dynamic between us and between them that I hadn't noticed. They were not compliments to say the least. At some point the image children have of their parents bumps into reality, their imperfections put in a stark and unforgiving light. I have yet to figure out what to do with the new information, but I can't shake it off that's for sure.
That is always a tough realization, and even more so if your parents didn't really handle the transition of their kids growing up into adults. I don't know your exact circumstances, but I'm sorry it is what it is. I'm sure that, when the time comes, you'll know in your heart what to do even if it's hard.At some point the image children have of their parents bumps into reality, their imperfections put in a stark and unforgiving light.
Milan has been a fashion center since the House of Sforza. Seeing models there should be about as unusual as seeing bullshit reality shooters on Melrose. It's just what it is. You're at an age where your relationship is evolving from ward to guardian. You aren't going to figure out anything quickly. The trick is to be comfortable dwelling with it, even after you figure it out.
My climate impact is on my mind, as well. The same week Greta led the climate protests I had my street repaved with asphalt, and bought an electric heater for my rec room to make it more comfortable. The irony was thick. Like walking through molasses.
Took my partner out for a date night - started with a drink at the pub where we first met, then to a local Japanese restaurant where I had a scrumptious pork curry and she got this awesome karaage bowl. Then to another restaurant for an injection donut where they give you this big fuck off syringe with a filling of your choice and you get to pump your donut up. Was choice. Then Saturday I'm seeing off a friend moving to Canada, and Saturday evening is a wedding, Sunday morning is a catch up with an old colleague and house mate from years gone by. Gonna be all socialised out by then. Trying to have a nap before the rugby starts tonight. I'm watching France vs USA as a curtain raiser before NZ (hopefully) lay waste to Canada. I really like how Hubski has personalities behind the usernames. You get used to how a certain person types responses etc, Reddit is so awash with people it's almost just noise at times. I'm glad I came across you lot. Edit : https://imgur.com/a/QDWythN The donut in question
MAN! I was so gutted for the USA - they held on so damn well, the scoreline at the end did no justice to the American effort throughout the match. Conditioning for them seems to be getting better and better to. Also how hilariously good is Mike Te'o? The man looks like he gave up playing premier footy, has love handles and a bit of a belly but played like a man possessed. Unreal.
Mikey Te'o is astounding. I honestly believe that if he'd been healthy for the MLR Championship game this year, the San Diego Legion would have taken home the trophy, rather than my beloved Seawolves. He's that rare 7s player that can move to XV as well. He's going to be a key part of the Eagles for many years, I expect.
Used to be (at the very least in NZ) that 7s systems were breeding grounds for potential XVs players. Our Sevens squad used to churn out eventual All Blacks and the process worked very well. Then 7s became much more specialized I think, and now it's a rarity like Te'o who can fill both sports. It asks a hell of a lot more of you these days! Plus the other teams are improving so quickly and finding their own athletes to build teams around.
Absolutely. She just started a new job where she doesn't have to work nights or weekends anymore, so I wanted to take her out and treat her for A) a job well done getting the role, and B) to welcome her into the fold of the regular working person! Where a social life can be had. It was a really nice night. She said while having dinner "I think I just feel really happy. Today was a great day, I'm not tired or drowsy, I'm learning new things and I'm on a date with my boy". Then we demoed the food cause it was too good to try talking around.
The process to become a doctor in the US is terrifying. You start off with four years of an undergraduate degree. God help you if you get anything below a 3.5 gpa, no chances of becoming a doctor now. If you're applying to med school straight out of college say goodbye to any type of social life. You had better be volunteering and spending countless hours working in a medical clinic of some kind. Medical school entry is so competitive nowadays that you are almost guaranteed rejection without clinical hours. Study your ass off for the MCAT, pray you get something high. Spend your senior year applying to med schools. Still get rejected, because fuck you someone else wrote a more compelling personal statement. Should you get into med school, that's another four years of intense studying. The last two years are spent being disregarded by doctors just trying to do medicine. Finish med school and congratulations, you're now a doctor! For the next 3-7 years you'll be treated like shit, work shit hours, and get paid for shit. Apparently the 80-hour work week rule is considered more of a guideline in many hospitals. God help you if at the end of all this you decide to do a fellowship. Now of course the paycheck at the end of all this is quite substantial. I sure hope you haven't gone into any debt through your 8 years of schooling and 3-7 years of residency.... Oh and by the time you've graduated the shortage of physicians has increased even further. You'll most likely be needed to continue to work an insane amount of hours. So I've looked at all of this and yet still decided fairly resolutely that this is what I would like to do. Due to the fact that I'm only about 2/3 of the way through an undergrad with zero science pre-requisites. I'll most likely have to do a post-bacc as well. Thankfully I can skip a large amount of the clinical hours and voluntary work. The earliest I can see myself making it to med school is at 30, which puts me finishing residency at 37 should I chose a shorter specialty. How is all of this sane? How is this sustainable? I keep asking myself is it all really worth it? I know it is and I'm going to continue towards this path but that's one hell of a lot of pain to commit to.
I was with my wife throughout most of this process. I wasn't there in undergrad, but we were married when she applied to med school and I was there when she applied to residencies and matched at Duke. It's a long journey and a TON of work. When the rest of the world is celebrating, you're working. But it was worth it. What's scary is the idea of going through it all, amassing all of that debt, losing all of that time and then the govt interjecting and sayin that physicians are paid too much and capping earnings or some such nonsense. I could see that happening. Good luck on the journey. Let me know if you ever need a sounding board. But you are right, it will be worth it.
Thank you. I’m lucky in the way that I currently have the ability to get through most of the process more or less debt free. It takes a lot of pressure off the entire endeavor. Without that worry, it’s far easier to accept the possibility of significantly lower raises should something like that happen. I currently practice medicine under a socialized system and I wouldn’t mind to continue. It’s fantastic not having to worry about how much my treatments will cost to patients
Get a grip. What happens is that the government decides that the private sector can best determine what market rates ought to be so they deregulate insurance such that the industry can consolidate into four or five players who collude to ensure that the rates offered for basic care are commensurate with the lowest possible qualified attendant doing the work such that general practitioners and non-specialists can't be reimbursed for the costs of their basic supplies. Why, exactly, is there a "physicians shortage?" What's scary is the idea of going through it all, amassing all of that debt, losing all of that time and then the govt interjecting and sayin that physicians are paid too much and capping earnings or some such nonsense.
That's about three hours on a rose engine and a straight line engine. I have a friend who sells watches with similar. His first dial took him 100 hours. nowadays they take about 40. The third one would probably be pretty great. It's not what i want to do with my life, though. Fundamentally, guilloche is ornamental metalwork. Fundamentally, jewellery and watchmaking are ornamental metalwork. The tricky thing is, because the sunk time is an important part of the cost, and because individual innovation has largely vanished, there's an entire - I mean, okay. It's like this. If you were a jeweler in 1915, you knew a lot of different ways to make things. If you were a watchmaker in 1915, you knew a lot of different ways to make things. If you were a machinist in 1915, you knew a lot of different ways to make things. And a lot of those things were the same. But as technology advanced, and as commerce grew more global, and as specialization became the survival strategy in a mechanized world, the machinist forgot the stuff he learned from jewellery. The jeweler forgot the stuff he learned from watchmaking. And the watchmaker clutches his ancient tools to his chest and spits in the eye of anyone suggesting there are advantages to modern progress. And there's no one who can synthesize a decent new piece of jewellery. Here's a pair of Pierre Sterle brooches from the '50s, probably for Boucheron: Here's a lizard from Zales. Now - the Sterle brooches probably cost ten times as much. But there's... life to them. And it comes from knowing a few different ways to do things, and not being wedded to tradition, and being able to step out of your lane. There's undoubtedly a mountain of forgotten works from eras past. We tend to remember the highlights. But I'm recognizing that the opportunity comes from synthesis, from being able to put together all the ways things used to be done in order to make something new, rather than fucking rehashing the Olde Worlde like fuckin' everyone else. And I'm still sniping 40-year-old Bergeon tools off eBay because shit hasn't changed other than the metallurgy getting crappier. But it's within my grasp. I can trick a Fanuc Robodrill into making that dial through GCode and M19 spindle alignment. It's been done.
I'm officially employed on a permanent, full time basis. Unfortunately I'm not super excited about the job, but it's a job and it pays pretty well. Gonna see how it goes and if I don't like it, stay for a bit over a year then go get my Master's and if I like it, stay longer to save up, maybe long enough to get into the pension (thanks government work). I've already been working here in various roles for almost a year, but the starting pay was non-negotiable and because I'm starting after October 1st, I'm not eligible for the annual raise in the springtime, so I already feel like they're kind of tossing me aside which definitely isn't a good way to start. For that reason, I might keep looking for jobs even though I really only need one more year of experience before I can apply to the master's programs I want to. Trying to start this job with an open mind but it's going poorly.
Masters of Public Health. Mostly looking at American top 10 programs, but looking a little in Europe too. I have a few friends who came to the US for undergrad and it's worked well for them. I need to look into how well a European program would translate back here as I will probably stay in the US long term, but I wouldn't be opposed to moving to Europe permanently should the right opportunity arise.
A friend of mine did MPH. Ended up being in charge of school nutrition for like Los Angeles. He did it for a good long while (I feel like five-ten years) and then did law as night school because he hit a ceiling as far as what he could do policy-wise. Definitely keep your eyes open and look for people doing the stuff you wish you could do - then ask them how they got there. There's an awful lot more who-knows-who in public policy work than you might think.
Birthday: It's my 51st birthday. Woo. Rugby: Last night, at 12:30 AM, I went to a French wine bar that opened up for an invite-only watching of the France v USA rugby world cup match in Japan. The USA was a world-class contender team ... for about 65 minutes. Then just fell apart. It was anyone's game up until then, and the USA just didn't have it in them to play at that level for all 80 minutes. Going to bed at 3:AM last night, and getting up at 6:AM this morning didn't work out so well for me. So I'm doing the least I can, from a local coffee shop, before I head home and get a nap... ... to prepare for tonight's birthday dinner with the family. It's gonna be low-key and chill, but I'll need a nap if I even want to be human for them! :-) Tennis Elbow: I also had my first physical therapy appointment for my "tennis elbow" yesterday, and I am enchanted with my therapist. She's very cool, and excited to help me get to my larger goals, as well as address the immediate problem. Makes me feel excited about continuing my health journey. Dog Health: My dog is getting better, slowly. But she has now figured out ALL of my tricks for getting her to take 5 pills a day. So every single one is fight. With a 70lb black lab/shepherd/husky, who is smart as shit, and 14 years old, so she's an old woman and isn't taking any shit from anyone anymore. Wrestling my beautiful dog, pinning her down, forcing her mouth open, and jamming pills down the back of her throat is the most heart-wrenching thing. Getting woke: Planning travel with the rugby team to away games and a trip to Ireland and Scotland in 2020 ... and having thoughts about the climate footprint of my travel plans. Yeah, 80% of the damage to the climate is done by about 100 companies, which are run by about a dozen people. If any one of them made the slightest change at all, it would completely overshadow my total environmental footprint if I lived 1,000 years. BUT... don't I have the responsibility to myself - to my fellow human beings? - to be responsible for my own impacts, however small in comparison to the big polluters? It's not the size that counts... except, in this case, it actually is. But that doesn't absolve me of ANY culpability or responsibility. But... is thinking this way, and having these thoughts, enough for one small person? I already drive an electric car and converted my home to electric heating, in a principally hydroelectric-powered state. What is enough? Who calculates it? What about my nieces - and KB's daughter - who will grow up into a world where "once in a thousand-year" storms, weather, and environmental changes happen multiple times in a single year? Oh. Did I mention I'm 51? And thinking about my place in the world? Yeah. That, too.
Agreed. But holding France to 12 points, and being within 3 points of them for 60+ minutes is a win, for a Tier 2 team playing a Tier 1. And the US never flagged. They left it all on the field. They earned respect from the Tier 1 teams, and that's a win for us in RWC 2019.
The annoying thing is I'm already hearing people just put it to one side with the excuse "It's France - they'll get rolled by a minnow one week then beat NZ in a final the next". On the one hand, that's true but it's coming from people who didn't watch the game. I want the States to do well, particularly after seeing Canada quite literally move backwards in their ability and structure over the years. It's a real shame. If the USA can improve hopefully Canada will follow suit.
Twas! Just my Mom, Dad, sister, wife, dog, and my sister's two cats. We sat around the house, talking, laughing, playing dice, and drinking champagne. My family are my most favorite people in the world. I know that is rare, and I cherish it every single day.
I am having a semi-sickday today, semi because I'm not sick and also I've been to school today. But I do feel kind of rubbish. I had an 8.15 lab, which went well, me and my lab partner got to show our work and get it approved so that's nice. Then I went home, slept for 2 hours and now I should be getting work done. I don't have a ton of it, if I did I wouldn't have given myself the luxury of just laying in bed. But today I did, and it's pretty nice.
I didn't get to participate in the last few pubskis because of the haze of narcotics I was wrapped in, but I'm happy that uni life is going well for you! The disjointed schedule you're describing is emblematic of college to me. Glad you're taking it easy, your work will still be there tomorrow :)
I’m in Maine at a small rustic cabin. It’s almost 3am, but I just woke from a dream I have to write down: I was living in some sort of dorm, and on the tv the programming was interrupted by a news broadcast that was playing an important taped speech by Queen Elizabeth. It was weird, because at first it was the wrong tape of some actor, then it was the right tape but her face was distorted. The newscaster apologized for technical difficulties, and then the tape ran fine. Elizabeth was saying that she was stepping down, and it wasn’t clear why, but I could tell it was something scandalous. I then realized that I was near the British Embassy, so I ran out the door, out of the dormitory, and made my way across town to the alley behind the embassy. I then started grabbing little marble-sized drones out of the air as they started coming into the alley. I collected several of them, and couldn’t hold any more, so I started heading home. It then struck me that each of those drones had a camera and gps, and I had just gotten myself into some serious shit. I ran into a new housing construction site, tossed the drones at the dirt, and ran away. I took a long route back to the dorm, making sure I wasn’t followed. When I got back, I ran up to my suite. I made an excuse when my roommates asked me where I went, and went to my room. When I went in, I stopped when I realized someone was in my bed. A woman then said “hello”, and I woke up, my heart racing.
I started my physics PhD studies for good, though we had a bunch of orientations/meetings in September. Theoretical/mathematical programme, specialization in condensed matter. It's pretty intense from the very beginning, but everyone's nice, and people seem to be going out of their way to help us accommodate. Got my first research assignment, wandered the institute, managed to hit it off with some of the other freshmen and feel woefully underprepared for my Introduction to Quantum Computing 1 class. Other courses are Modern Physics 1, Quantum Mechanics, and Physics of Condensed Phase, all of which seem less daunting. There's also a mathematical methods workshop we're starting next week, which looks pretty exciting. Because I'm in a research-centred institute, there are no undergrads around, so we're completing our teaching quotas 'on loan'. I already had my first two sessions as a Physics 1 and Calc 1 TA at the local Polytechnic. Almost all of my students went through the extended maths exam after high school, which simplifies things for me, but I find the pace of Calc 1 to be absolutely ludicrous regardless of their prep. According to the syllabus, students are expected to be able to tackle simple 2nd-order ODE by the end of this semester, which, OK, it's doable, but I don't think it's good for them in the long run. That's like cramming a pile of Schaum's Outlines and about as likely to stick. The Calc 1 lecturer seemed somewhat annoyed when I brought it up during staff meeting, so it's probably best to just make it least confusing to students. Definitely not a fan, though. My stipend is nothing to brag about, but it's also almost twice what I had during masters, which means no more moonlighting. I'm pretty stoked about that. I also had to resign from chemistry. Not what I wanted, but the option of completing studies 'part-time' has suddenly become reserved for single parents ("mothers, preferably") and invalids. It's good to know they'd rather lose a good student than use those vaguely-worded-on-purpose rules to make my life a tad easier. Though that's also the same place that figured using me instead of setting up an automated dripper is more cost-efficient, so it's not like I'm all that surprised. Shame, but I now know reasonably enough to study chemistry on my own from this point onwards. It was never about getting a degree anyway.
Had the most amazing weekend with about 8 of my friends at my parent's country house. I'm really lucky they have this place we can use sometimes :) I did miss the climate march in favor of driving up north for the chalet. Feeling a little guilty about that, Montreal had a great turnout at about half a million people, including Greta. My favorite article about the event: https://www.thebeaverton.com/2019/09/trudeau-comes-to-montreal-climate-strike-to-protest-self/ In the final prep before my move to Eindhoven, Netherlands next Monday. I've been (not super successfully) trying to edit my backlog of Africa roadtrip videos so I can finally delete the footage and make space on my computer. I'm going to really need it. It's funny how my YouTube travel thing never really picked up. But i've met some really cool people through it, and the skills are what enabled me to jump into this fun new project. No regrets! EDIT - Got one africa video done!
Hawks are beautiful. The other day I got a text from a friend. The two books I made and gave to their family as a present have been claimed by their eldest child for use in their first (of hopefully many) D&D campaigns. It's the perfect use for them. Speaking of, I haven't done any sewing or bookmaking or drawing in a while. I keep on doing other things even though I want to do those things too. I'm thinking maybe I should set aside a certain block of a certain day each week and just dedicate that time to crafts.
Birds of prey in general are beautiful! I'm partial to Kestrels :) Do you think you'd be happier if you dedicated time towards crafting? I imagine it's probably a lot of fun, just hard to prioritize. I used to really enjoy calligraphy, but it's been a long time since I've done any...Maybe we should have a weekly crafting thread? Could be fun to see what everyone's making, and I'm always down for more community engagement on Hubski. If you need a project, I'd happily commission something from you - I've been needing a new journal :)
I didn't truly understand Pelicans until I moved to Los Angeles. You see those fuckers swooping inches above the surf, occasionally dipping a feather in because they have no fucks to give, flying in tight formation like the goddamn Blue Angels, and you know that pterodactyls didn't go extinct they just evolved feathers. 
The more I learn about Albatross' the cooler they become. Oh they'll head out to sea now, when will they be back? "Maybe a year or two". Wut. Like, gliding? "Yep. Could be several years if they're young. Oh and they usually mate for life." Aw. Me learning about the Royal Albatross at their lovely conservation area in Taiaroa Head. They even have a live stream! 
That picture looks more like a camera glitch than something that actually existed, I love it. Pelicans are impressive - we have a few where I'm from, but the lakes around here aren't exactly bountiful... Ah. You've made me miss the ocean, congratulations!
That is a wonderful picture of an absolutely gorgeous bird! Fun fact, while they're all closely related, American Kestrels are closer related to regular falcons than true kestrels (I literally just learned this on Wikipedia, so thanks for the mini journey). I've seen tons of various raptors in the wild, from hawks to eagles to owls to vultures. I've never been fortunate enough to see a falcon though, let alone a kestrel. I'll take that as a sign that I just need to explore outdoors more. I really do enjoy making stuff and I think focusing some more time on crafting would do me good. I just have a problem right now where I have so many interests and not a lot of time. That said, a regular or semi-regular craft thread on Hubski sounds like a great idea. It'd be a great way to exchange information and ideas, and of course, motivate people to finish projects. Let me PM you about that journal . . .
Just finished presentations on GIS articles. One of which was on this dude: Sugita, S., Honda, R., Morota, T., Kameda, S. Tatsumi, E., Yamada, M. Honda, C., Yokota, Y., Kouyama, T., Sakatani, N., et al., Y., 2019. The geomorphology, color, and thermal properties of Ryugu: Implications for parent-body processes, Science, 364: 1-11 Super neat article where I could tie in remote sensing to astronomy for my course. Thought it'd be of interest to both GIS and astronomy peeps here. About to do the thing where I ask a girl out on a date that I'm 99.999999999999% sure the feeling is mutual (and I don't get blind sided like the two times in 2018, so yay for learning from mistakes). I feel odd knowing she's in my cohort, but.... what's the point in caring in such a thing anymore? I swear there are a quite a few silly nothings that I used to tell myself would get in the way of what I believed to be a 'proper relationship'. The reality was that ideal was a shifting goal post based on what was convenient for me to avoid gunning for what may have been something great in many cases. Another case here is that she's not of my faith (which is kinda a nag point from parents - we Jews being so few as it is). But hey, what ever. Its not like I'm committing to something serious right away... right..... right guys?? Anywho, only tough spot is the next two weekends I'm heading out of town on Thursdays - the 'best date day' ('go on a quiet day, then schedule for weekend if things go well' tactic.) - on top of missing the weekend. Patience is key I guess. That or just ask her out next Wednesday? Or the next next--- decisions, decisions. That's all. And for anyone who hasn't heard in a while or is new here: This album by flac is fantastic. Finding myself humming to it out of nowhere 2.5 years later.
I am feeling fine now but I haven't made the slides yet so it's probably an oblivious sort of confidence :) I have done a fair bit of public speaking, so at least that part isn't going to be too bad. Mostly I need to get used to the presentation-with-slides format since I'm mostly familiar with the classroom-lecture format instead.
Also, are there any avid gardeners here? I'm sure the answer is yes but next question is, any advice for a beginner? https://imgur.com/a/H6JFNtH This is what I'm moving into come December, landlord is very easy about what I plant and what I stir up to make it pretty. It looks dreary but come summertime it'll be very bright and pleasant. But I have no idea what to do, I am expecting to fail with things - I've only grown spuds before. First photo there are five plots I can use running along the fence to the left, and the second photo has a corner plot but I may install a compost box for that whole area to make things easier. Along the back fence is a strip of dirt between the path and the fence that I could definitely use. Any basic tips for someone entering the fun and exciting world of trying not to kill plants? Am hoping to plant some spuds, some herbs, and whatever else feels like surviving a southern NZ weather system. Apparently capsicums handle it fine! Which would be awesome.
Step 1 is to figure out how much sun you are going to get. The house, fence and trees may block a lot may block almost none. Step 2 is to order a truck worth of compost 3-4 yards aught to do. Btw don’t order the stuff that the uses organic matter from the city waste bins, that stuff sucks has glass and plastic in it and drys out if you look at it for too long. Step 3 order a couple yards of mulch ideally with manure mixed in for cover. Step 4 figure out irrigation. Drip irrigation doesn’t work well unless the plants are mature use spray systems and a timer. Step 5 figure out what you want to plant and how to manage pests, but the supplies ahead of time. You won’t have time to contain the problem otherwise
Awesome thanks heaps! I checked the sun calculator for our city, in the spring/summer, the backyard gets sun until the evening, but the winter/autumn the sun rises into the valley and drifts on a low angle so it'll get considerably less direct light. The fences would hide quite a bit I think, until midday. I actually once lived in this house (2012) and I know the garden worked when I was there, I just didn't know anything about it so didn't get involved - so there's some positive evidence that it can operate at the very least. Am looking into mulch, our landlord also offered to get that arranged as well, will converse with her to see what works out. Appreciate the advice! I'm wanting to fix the boundaries of each plot, it's old wood at the moment and I'm thinking about raising the edges up a bit more. I'll have to figure that out before I do anything else so will crack on before we move in.
rased beds are in my experience are a bit of a Nussance in the summer. They trend to dry out faster and require more constant watering. Also the edges 6” near the wood become unusable. Mulch is great you need I think around 2” to be effective. There are myths about it sucking up nitrogen- fake news, based loosely on fact. That being said if you Mix a nitrogen source in it will break down into useful stuff faster. In case you don’t already notice the internet is a wasteland of information on gardening and all the content is a mirage , but there are a few oasis of information. https://www.gardenmyths.com/ Is fantastic The university extension information is interesting but hard to consume at a small scale. The rusted gardener YouTube is ok. There are a few other sites I found that’ we updated mid 2000s, but there is just an ocean of crap out there. If you find any gems let me know.
It will be a bit ironic if Biden isn't the nominee. Trump has really become unhinged, even for Trump. Why is he so afraid of Biden? I've been enjoying swapping Obama and Romney in these headlines: "Obama says China should investigate the Romney's amid impeachment furor"