obiter dictum

Sun, 28 Sep 2025 22:35:01 -0400

Some drone photos of my corn maze. Hope the kids enjoy it!

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 22:31:50 -0400

History is in some aspects an alteration of contrasting themes: the moods and forms of one age are repudiated by the next, which tires of tradition and lusts for novelty; classicism begets romanticism, which begets realism, which begets impressionism; a period of war calls for a decade of peace, and peace prolonged invites aggressive war.” Will Durant, The Reformation, Chap. XXX.

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 11:22:09 -0400

Finally some spring weather!

Sun, 13 Apr 2025 16:59:47 -0400

Fiber Internet worked for about two days after the poles went down. Vehicles driving on it or moisture finally killed it. Ordered Starlink the next day. Working great! Thankful for an alternative, even just temporarily.

Sun, 13 Apr 2025 16:54:05 -0400

Ice storm. Been without power for 16 days. Lost 12+ power poles just on our sq mile. Linemen say the damage was as bad as a Cat 5. During the rain the branches falling in the forest sounded like gun shots firing every 30 seconds. Thankful for the generator my inlaws bought us a couple years ago!

Wed, 05 Feb 2025 13:52:35 -0400

Favorite coffee: Ethiopian. Preferably Sidamo but it’s all good. ☕️

Thu, 12 Dec 2024 12:12:57 -0400

An Essay on Man’s Lust for Power, with the Author’s Comment in 1807 A short letter by John Adams. Always hope for the best in people, but plan for the worst.

Thu, 05 Dec 2024 23:56:31 -0400

I’ve been working with DocAssemble recently, an open source document assembly application. It automates templates using Markdown and Python, with interviews written in YAML. The YAML syntax has a learning curve. It’s a very polished project with comprehensive documentation.

Sun, 01 Dec 2024 15:19:09 -0400

Suddenly it’s winter. Over a foot in 48 hours. Just enough for our first cross country outing. 🎿

Mon, 18 Nov 2024 23:48:33 -0400

🎮👾 I’ve decided that Civilization IV, with the expansions, is my favorite from the series. The game concepts, which started taking shape in Civ II, were perfected. Very balanced, challenging, and well paced. Outstanding soundtrack. And the Leonard Nimoy narration just can’t be topped.

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 20:15:41 -0400

🍿🎥 Finally watched Napoleon. Special effects and costumes were good. Music was decent. Script and directing were poor. Plot was confusing and disjointed. The cast tried but they needed a younger Napoleon for at least the first half. Can’t recommend.

Sun, 10 Nov 2024 22:48:53 -0400

Been away for a year. Decided to run for judge last spring, and spent the past summer focused on campaigning. Mostly posted to FB on my campaign page. Wish I could import those posts here. Unfortunately, lost a very close election by 1% in the general. Wonderful and challenging experience.

Wed, 07 Jun 2023 17:50:41 -0400

Half marathon offered this year at Alpenfest, hope it’s not too hot! Come visit beautiful Gaylord, Michigan July 15th.

Sun, 19 Feb 2023 13:18:09 -0400

Nice run yesterday, not too cold. Mid 20’s, some wind gusts. I’m just happy I stayed on my feet. ❄️

Fri, 17 Feb 2023 18:18:46 -0400

Much needed upgrade to my old gaming computer. Installing Windows 10 from USB is really fast. Always make me appreciate not having to swap 12 different 3.5” floppy disks.

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 09:39:19 -0400

I signed up for my second marathon: the Bay Shore Marathon in Traverse City. May 27th. Training program starts today 🏃🏻 Will use 80/20 again, worked well for my first.

Thu, 17 Nov 2022 11:10:26 -0400

Looking for a good traction solution for winter running - mostly snow and ice covered dirt/paved roads. Any suggestions?

Sat, 18 Jun 2022 12:09:41 -0400

Finished my first full marathon this morning in Charlevoix. Time was 4:19, goal was just to finish so I’m good with that! 🏃🏻 Great temps, beautiful route.

Thu, 16 Jun 2022 17:09:55 -0400

Went to see Top Gun: Maverick yesterday. Not for me. One line from the movie sums it up: “Don’t think, just do.” Emblematic of our times maybe but doesn’t work for me in a military movie.

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 18:33:37 -0400

Goodbye Google Talk - oh, how you could have been so much more…

Wed, 08 Jun 2022 08:11:42 -0400

I really appreciate iState Menus - great application.

Mon, 02 May 2022 09:16:44 -0400

2019: cholesterol 208 (200 is high), LDL 126 (130 is high). Typical American diet 🥩🥛🍪🍳(w/ lots of salads🥗, oatmeal 🥣), normal BMI, run 3-6 miles/day.

2022: cholesterol 183 (12% drop), LDL 93.4 (26% drop). One change: dropped meat, eggs, dairy; ate plant-based 🌱 + fish 🐟.

Wed, 23 Mar 2022 10:04:12 -0400

E-mail autoresponders. 😤

Sun, 20 Feb 2022 21:57:39 -0400

Today I won a standard game of Civ 6 on deity difficulty. Only took me 5 ½ years!

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 10:21:13 -0400

A day to get work done. Time for some slow flow Echoes. 🎶