October 23, 2019 Night

|

Good evening! Clear and 48 degrees in Delmar, NY. There is a west breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. Nice evening but I’m tired 😴 achy and sore. 😫 I think it might be a cold or maybe it’s a sinus infection. Almost a bit flu like. I think part of it is I’m sleep deprived and all the time I’ve spent sleeping in my truck bed. Maybe I’m just seriously sleep deprived, I’ve had similar sickness before.

On that note, I did get my flu shot 💉 tonight on the way to the Guilderland Planning Board Meeting. It was quick in an out but another driver kind of blocked me in but using a lot of due care I was able to get out. 🅿 Lots of small swings and checking the mirrors. ⬛ I was worried about bumping another car but I knew if it was too tight I’d just have to wait. But I got out. Flu shot was quick and easy, didn’t sting a bit or make my arm 🙋 num like some years. I’m not blaming my achiness or sinuses on the flu shot as it was there before and I really wanted to get it done tonight. I’ve heard stories about people actually getting the flu and it’s no joke 🃏 – two weeks bedridden feeling like your going to die.

I had no food at home, I ended up cracking open a rusty can of chicken noodles soup with canned potatoes added 🍛and then I wanted something to dip in it so I ended up using corn bread 🍞 muffin mix in the waffle maker as I didn’t have time to bake even corn bread cupcake in the conventional oven. Worked out fine.

The planning board was everything I expected it to be. 🏫 They are moving forward on the DEIS and the plan. We’re continuing to work on our response. It is what is to be expected. Pines, probably pitch pine smelled wonderful in front of the Guilderland Town Hall.

Tonight will be clear 🌃, with a low of 39 degrees at 5am. Two degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around October 18th. West wind around 5 mph becoming south after midnight. In 2018, we had partly cloudy skies. It got down to 37 degrees. The record low of 16 occurred back in 1969.

Tonight will have a Waning Crescent Moon 🌘 with 12% illuminated. The moon will rise at 2:38 am. The New Moon is on Saturday night. The Beaver Moon 🌝 is on Monday, November 11th. The sun will rise at 7:17 am with the first light at 6:49 am, which is one minute and 13 seconds later than yesterday. 🌄 Tonight will have 13 hours and 17 minutes of darkness, an increase of 2 minutes and 43 seconds over last night.

I’m glad I’m back home 🏡 and can leave Big Red Parked for a few days. He needs a break. 🚘 As much as I like being out in the country 🐮 commuting a so stressful and such a time waste. I’d rather walk 🚶 or take a bus 🚍 where I need to go as bus time let’s me think 💭 and use my phone.

Tomorrow will be sunny 🌞, with a high of 65 degrees at 3pm. Eight degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around October 4th. South wind 6 to 10 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, which became partly cloudy by afternoon. The high last year was 49 degrees. The record high of 75 was set in 2017. There was a dusting of snow in 1962.❄

In four weeks on November 20 the sun will be setting at 4:29 pm (Standard Time),🌄 which is one hour, 32 minutes and 22 seconds earlier then tonight. In 2018 on that day, we had snow, mostly cloudy and temperatures between 39 and 33 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 46 and 31 degrees. The record high of 72 degrees was set back in 1991.

Looking ahead, Day After Election Day 🛀 is in 2 weeks, Average Night Below Freezing 🌌 is in 3 weeks, Average High is 40 🌨 is in 6 weeks, Festivus 🍖 is in 2 months, Christmas 🎅 is in 9 weeks, New Years Day 2019 🎉 is in 10 weeks , National Bird Day 🐦 is in 12 weeks, National Cheese Lovers Day 🧀 is in 3 months, 37th Birthday 🎉 is in 14 weeks and Inauguration Day 2021 👴🏻 is in 65 weeks.

Mount Storm

Long commutes in cars suck

|

I like spending time out in the country but a daily commute out to Rural America would really be a drag I have to say. Having driven out to my parents house after work for a week house sitting, I really miss the ease of just being able to catch the bus to and from work, not having to worry about the traffic or the weather. When I’m home and can take the bus, I can be tired, I can be distracted or drunk but I don’t have to worry about getting to my destination safely.

Eventually when I own my own land, automobile commuting will be an inevitable part of the trip. Maybe I can car pool part of the time or use a bus to access the center city. Maybe I won’t live near such a big city where traffic is such a problem or choose a more sothernly climate were icy roads aren’t such a problem. Or maybe I’ll find work in the small town I choose to live in and I won’t have to drive far away to the city. Or develop a business that lets me work from home. There are many options.

I just don’t want to spend my days, every day stuck in traffic going back and forth to work with long drives out to the country. But it seems like I have options.

Don’t Get Killed by Your Cheap LED Camping Lantern! – surfncircuits

|

Don’t Get Killed by Your Cheap LED Camping Lantern! – surfncircuits

Prior to 1969, things like this were common in America, before we had fancy safety standards from UL. Most old AM clock radios from 1950s had their frames grounded to neutral, which was safe at least 50% percent of the time to touch, as long as you didn't insert the non-polarized plug in backwards or have the neutral and hot reversed, and then touch something metal in the radio.  Kids back in the day were educated not to touch metal things when an radio or television was plugged into the wall. And children who didn't learn that lesson, generally aren't around to complain about it.

Neutrals can sometimes "float" with a voltage that is different from the ground too if there is any resistance between the neutral and the grounding rod. That's why it's not recommended for children to stick forks into the wider slot of the outlet, even if it's likely all they'll get a tingle if the house is wired correctly. And that's why metal frames and other components are grounded over a separate wire connected to the same grounding rod as nuetral, since 1969, to avoid any floating voltage on the neutral and the possibility that neutral and hot are reversed on the polarized plug.

And capacitive droppers like in this flashlight are dangerous as hell, and produce shitty power factors into the power grid, making the power plant burn more coal to produce the same amount of energy. Capacitive droppers don't limit voltage, they limit amperage, so your charging a low-voltage circuit by essentially chopping off the high-voltage part of the sine wave -- and sending the waste power back to the grid with the voltage and amperage sine waves out of sync. Because your not limiting voltage, it can easily break down the resistance of human skin, and pass enough current to stop a human hearth.