There is a lot of old junk in my blog, and I have never fully mastered WordPress even though I write my own custom theme and a lot of custom code to make it run. But I never adopted many modern plugins, nor until just this past week did I enable object caching or set up a content delivery network – or even advanced javascript and style sheet compression. But recently, I’ve been trying to learn about those technologies, both because the advertisers want it for maximum revenue, and I’ve been having increasing issues with aggressive search bots trolling the blog, looking for information to vacuum up for AI models. And truth is I’d rather let the professionals do more programming – use established, often more secure and quicker code then I’ve written over the years.
The End of Unlimited Free AI
This is not particularly unexpected but it seems like Artificial Intelligence free-for-all on Google Gemini is coming to an end, with much stricter limits on free use like ChatGPT and other services already have.
Today, Google will be hosting one of its most important Google I/O events in years, showing off all sorts of Gemini enhancements and integrations, as well as the new Google Books which puts Gemini front and center. In the run-up to this event, the company has started rolling out an updated look for Gemini, and with it, new usage limits.
Until today, Gemini seemed to be unlimited, at least on the Flash model, but now it looks like Google has succumbed, with the rest of the AI players, to more aggressively monetize their product and prove to investors that the massive spending was worth it and they can make a profit.
The usage limits page has two counters. The first is called current usage, which refreshes every five hours. The second counter is the weekly limit, presumably if you use all this up, then it doesn’t matter if the current usage resets, you’ll be locked out until it resets.
For those who don’t want to wait, there is an option present to you to buy Google AI Plus, which will double your AI quota. For those who don’t want to pay, Google Gemini will just have to become one of many AI apps you switch between when you hit your usage cap.
I am not surprised or all that upset about it all, because I knew that relying on free remote servers to do any kind of useful work into the future was far from guaranteed. I have never liked relying on others or services outside of my control. Indeed, the idea of Centralized AI always seemed like a bad idea to me – not only due to the risk of free limits being cut or exceeded, but because it empowers censorship, manipulation, and abuse by powerful actors in both the private and government sectors.
So it’s unofficially summer 🏖️
“Maybe the sun’s light will be dim
And it won’t matter anyhow
If morning’s echo says we’ve sinned
Well, it was what I wanted now
And if we’re victims of the night
I won’t be blinded by the light. “
Heading up to 85 degrees today, ☀️ with lots of sun after a pretty darn dreary Memorial Day Weekend which I stayed in home both because of the weather and waiting for the truck cap that should be delivered next week if all goes well, which it will. I was reviewing the bill of sale for the truck cap, all is good, I just need to get a bank check next week for pay for the balance of the truck cap, as that’s the way the dealer says he needs to be paid.
I find it hard to believe that Memorial Day has already come and gone and before you know it will be Independence Day 250 for America 🇺🇸 and then Labor Day Weekend. Time goes by so quickly these days. ⌛ I know a lot of it is just waiting for the truck cap and getting things together so I can travel again and spend nights in the wilderness. Today is the Assembly End of Session Party, 🪇 this year with the parking difficulties and alcohol being served, I’ll just ride my bike. Too nice of a day to be driving today. Those days of having to drive to work eventually will come too soon, and I want to delay them as long as possible, enjoy the SuperDuty on the weekends and freedom to take the bike or bus as long as I still live in suburbs. 🚵♂️
While overgrown, full of ticks and poison ivy the Greenville Detached Parcel off Spring Valley Road 🌳 🌲 with all those old-growth, impressive trees was definately worth checking out, as was driving around the back roads of Greenville looking at the Catskills just made me nostalgic of the days that once were. 🐮 The rural homesteads and grazing operations, the views of the Catskills. Not many burn barrels left with their pungent toxic smell, all replaced with roadside garbage bins and subscription services that haul every plastic wrapper hundreds of miles away that are supposedly better for environment then burning all that plastic crap. 🛢️ And more houses in the farm fields. But yes, seeing the big trees were pretty neat, but I did take a shower 🚿 when I got home to wash off any residual urisol from my legs and feet (despite wearing long pants), and knocking off at least 3 ticks in the shower. It’s hard to know exactly where I picked up the ticks from where, I did spend quite a bit of time also wandering around the Pitch Pines and Scrub Oaks of Blodgett Hill and was kind of in the brush there, 🐜 but hopefully the hot shower and soap last night got rid most of them.
It was a good Memorial Day Dinner with the folks 🍗 🥬 but the signs are increasingly obvious the hours are late, especially for mom. She tries hard to make good food, but you know the smell of old people can overwhelms it, she sticks her fingers in it a lot, and it’s just not made up with the consistency it once was. I hear about the UTIs and other health issues. Still I wish I knew the questions to ask and talks to have before it’s too late. ⌛ How to patch up a relationship 💑 sometimes strained over the years, as we’ve grown different and have different priorities in life. And what a mess their homestead is. 🐐 This is probably one of the last I’ll be able to get away and travel, my best chance to get out to Michigan, but who knows maybe there will be a chance in 2027 to do Missouri and Arkansas and seeing the Ozarks though there are no guarantees in this world. 🥾 Maybe Dad will hold on longer then Mom but I have questions how long that will be it. 🚜 If the weather is good, I might go with Dad to the Gas Up in two weeks. Maybe reading the book, My Parents Are Dead, Now What? has me thinking that way, but I am well aware of my age, my parents declining health, and how many of my colleagues of my age have lost their parents.
The door in my apartment is continuing to fall apart, 🚪 and I anticipated having to email my landlord to replace during mid-winter, but I guess if it still holds together for the summer, it’s fine for now. More rot fell off it and it wasn’t closing right, but with a little more duck tape it’s back working again. 🦆 Got enough groceries for the next few days, though I anticipating stopping at Hannaford on the bike ride home on Wednesday or Thursday. Maybe Thursday, as Wednesday I’d rather go out to Five Rivers after work but depends how low my supplies get in the mean-time. 🛒 Worse comes to worse, I can go to Hannaford on the ride home Wednesday, have a quick dinner and ride out to Five Rivers until dusk. I wonder if they’ll have anything pretty at the wildflower 🌼 gardens when I go there? Plus then I can ride past Meads cows 🐄!
A million white flowers in a field in the sky, ☀️ I got thinking about Independence Day Weekend, which is rapidly approaching as America turns 250. In the mean time is Juneteenth Weekend, both of which I want to tack additional days on the weekends for travel. 🧨 🎇 I am thinking of the Potholers and Piseco-Powley for Juneteenth but then I was thinking more about it and it’s been years since I’ve been up to Moose River Plains, 🏕️ in part because I had this fear that I would break down my lifted truck on those rough roads, maybe because my Ford Ranger blew out a brake line out there many years ago. But now I have the new SuperDuty, and with the mountain bike, I could find a nice campsite, set up for several nights, smoke a lot of dope and drink a lot of beer, 🐝 and ride my mountain bike. One thing I hated about Moose River was all those miles of roads and having to drive everywhere and crashing into a tree drunk as skunk, 🦨 but a mountain bike 🚵♀️ kind of changes that game. I also want to get out Schoharie, hike Bromley Mountain Fire Tower, and ride some of the Catskill Scenic Trail, and probably at this point swim at Mine Kill Pool 🏊♂️ or maybe float in the Schoharie on a rubber tube by Towpath Mountain Campground. And obviously camp at Betty Brook or Duck Pond. 🏕️
Well, I’ve been trying to get into the office earlier 🚿 so I can build up comp time and keep better caught up with work, so I guess it’s time to shower, pack my lunch and head into the office on this beautiful day. 🌅 I was happy to see blog revenue is increasing since I moved over to CDN, continue to debug broken pages and slow-loading content, and add content. The ad algorithms did not appreciate the blog renovations under the cover, but it is already improving preformance and reliability, and it’s only going to get better over time as a clean and improve things. I think it was worth the temporary hit in revenue and inconvenience, though honestly, the blog doesn’t make that much money, last month was the best in a while – $180, and maybe this month is $120. 💵 Not making me rich but covering the costs of me winning about how I want to watch that plastic crap shrivel up in the fire and smoke more dope. I am still enjoying that high-test joint I bought last October, so that shows how much I actually smoke, compared to how much I like thinking about those high times. 😮💨 On that note, all my heroes burn their own trash, smell a little like cow shit, kind of like Greenville back in the day before the burn ban, and it’s time to go to work so I can have such things in my off-grid cabin eventually. 🐮 🪔
A Warm Winter 2026-27 ☃️
The most recent weather outlooks are calling for a strengthening El Nino and a mild winter during 2026-27. This could be great for winter camping, not too much snow or excessive cold. With my new SuperDuty, the truck cap, and diesel heater I plan to get in the autumn, this could mean many adventures in the wilderness to make up for a winter I mostly stayed at home this past year.
Memorial Day and Veterans Day
Memorial Day holds a sacred place in the landscape of American national holidays. It serves as a solemn bridge between the history of military sacrifice and the modern traditions of family gatherings. While the late-May holiday often marks the unofficial start of summer, its core purpose remains deeply rooted in remembrance. Understanding the true meaning of Memorial Day requires examining its profound historical intent, exploring how families preserve memory through tradition, and distinguishing its specific purpose from Veterans Day.
The origins of Memorial Day date back to the aftermath of the American Civil War, a conflict that claimed more lives than any other in U.S. history. Originally known as Decoration Day, the holiday was established in 1868 by General John A. Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans. He designated May 30 as a time to decorate the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers. Over the decades, as the nation endured subsequent world wars and global conflicts, the holiday evolved. In 1971, federal legislation officially renamed it Memorial Day and moved it to the last Monday in May, cementing its status as a national day of mourning and reflection for all American military personnel who died in service.
Family traditions play a vital role in keeping the solemnity of Memorial Day alive across generations. For many, the day begins with community service and acts of reverence, such as visiting local cemeteries to place flags or wreaths on veterans’ graves. This active participation in remembrance ensures that younger generations comprehend the cost of their freedoms. At 3:00 p.m. local time, families across the nation observe the National Moment of Remembrance, a shared minute of silence that unites the country in collective grief and gratitude.
In tandem with these solemn rituals, Memorial Day has also become a time for family reunions, parades, and backyard barbecues. While some view these festive aspects as a distraction from the holiday’s true meaning, they can also be interpreted as the ultimate celebration of the peace and freedom bought by fallen service members. Gathering with loved ones to enjoy life, liberty, and community is a direct reflection of the very values that American soldiers died to protect.
Despite its prominence, Memorial Day is frequently confused with Veterans Day, yet the two occasions possess distinctly different purposes. The fundamental distinction lies in who is being honored. Memorial Day is a day of mourning dedicated exclusively to those who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. In contrast, Veterans Day, celebrated annually on November 11, honors all living military veterans who served honorably during war or peacetime. While Veterans Day is an occasion for celebration, gratitude, and thanking living service members for their dedication, Memorial Day carries a much heavier, elegiac tone focused on ultimate sacrifice and loss.
In conclusion, Memorial Day is a multifaceted observance that demands both deep reverence and a celebration of life. By blending public ceremonies with private family traditions, the names and sacrifices of fallen heroes remain part of the national consciousness. Distinguishing the somber remembrance of Memorial Day from the grateful celebration of Veterans Day allows for honoring the deceased with the specific dignity they deserve, ensuring that the cost of freedom is acknowledged by all generations.
