jfmurphy

There's 2 dropdown screens now- pull diagonally from the upper right corner for those. I also hate this update.

New York State started by putting them only in school zones due to a quirk in the law. Seems like a reasonable way to get people used to them in a case where everyone expects sudden slowdowns and stops.

Yeah, when one Libertarian's pet project is domesticating bears by taming them with donuts (and mostly failing at it), the rest of them get distracted by being angry at the bear tamer.

Samsung phones have a known bug about this. Rebooting usually fixes it. (temporary mute/silence gets stuck)

Making waves - Marketplace What if we could harness the power of ocean waves to generate renewable energy? Plus, mega factory farms and small business hiring.

Today's NPR Marketplace has a horrible pun/innuedo. Kai (the host) closes a segment on farm pollution with:
"Kenny Torella at Vox! He covers livestock there. He writes about it too!"
www.marketplace.org/shows/market...

I don't trust PureBites freeze drying to kill anything, because I've seen fully rehydrated chunks of those treats in hairball barf and they are pink raw chicken sitting in the cat's stomach for long enough to matter.

Cat treat question- anyone have a non-raw replacement for PureBites freeze dried chicken treats? (Raw meat can spread H5N1.) Joan is currently eating a churu tube a day as a replacement and still unhappy. The other cats are fine with Temptations and similar junk food cat treats.

Yeah, sliding back down a hill hasn't happened to me since 2003 because I buy better cars and tires now. But the spinning wheels-throw it in 1st-gun it-slide backwards sequence took me right back. Physics in action!

It was weird, very slippery snow- I couldn't get my car up the hill to my house from a stop at the bottom. I ended up sliding/reversing back down and came at the street from another direction with more room. That got me enough momentum to get up the hill.

Chilli Garden in Medford closed! I need to know why!!! HOW

Probably these local guys, who will take out a window frame and use a crane if necessary.
www.deathwishpiano.com

YouTube video by NPR Music Billie Eilish: Tiny Desk Concert

Loved the very mellow Billie Eilish: Tiny Desk concert: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOAI...
I know it's genes and childhood nutrition that produced the UK Dollybird generation, but how did it get to Billie looking like David Bowie and Phineas like Tom Waits? (Baby versions but look at the cheekbones!)

I love it when people complain to me directly about having too many cats in their timeline, as if I'm the bluesky cat czar and I have a giant cat content mixing board where I can adjust their personal cat levels.

Me, 2015: Carnegie was a complete shit who, with Rockefeller, invested in reforming public education into a means of conditioning children for factory labor.

Me, 2024: Eh, at least they believed in public education.

YouTube video by EddieAlda Kraftwerk - Autobahn (Single version 1974)

58. I get that this is, like, everybody's favorite song, but the first time I heard it, on vinyl, waking up on the couch after crashing overnight at the l0pht, it was redolent of the possibility of technology and the future and adult life.

Hozier is an Irish singer-songwriter resurrecting the tall, gaunt, mournful, and weird category that Tom Waits was in.

Joan, a black cat, on a suitcase on a stack of crates.

Joan decided that eating the suitcase treat was ok.

Joan, a black cat on an ottoman ignoring chicken treats.

Joan didn't eat the treats and wants to discuss the situation.

Stevie, a black cat on a twin bed between pillows.

Stevie ate the treats and has no idea what you're looking at her about.

Cat drama: high-value cat treat is Freeze-Dried Chicken Breast in small chunks.
Joan's on top of a suitcase on a stack of crates w/ 1 in front of her, staring w/ tail lashing. Stevie's lying belly-up on the guest bed with 3 under her paw and slow-blinking at me.
I have no idea what is going on.

I've got a 30-year-old Ryobi corded drill that's still mostly functional and safe, so it could be great. (Can't chuck down on anything smaller than 1/4" or drill in reverse anymore, but as long as I respect those limits it's fine.) 2/2

I've been dithering about which power tool battery system brand to commit to for a while and putting off projects. I just picked Ryobi ONE+ 18V, because Home Depot has a >50% off sale on Ryobi batteries and cordless tools right now. At that price, it can be one-project junk. 1/2

Looks like Mike Duncan is on bsky, too:
bsky.app/profile/mike...

F

Revolutions Season 12 premieres Sunday, October 20 – a nonfictional account of The Martian Revolution of 2247. Mike Duncan is taking everything he's learned from 12 seasons of historical revolutions - the repeat...

The new season of Mike Duncan's Revolutions podcast just launched. It's sci-fi about the Martian Revolution of 2247, in his non-fiction history podcast style and voice.
It's fantastic. This is gonna win a Hugo award.
pca.st/revolutions

Bonus Quote of the Day “No one in the United States is like ‘Oh my gosh, I will die if I don’t have health care.'"-- Virginia U.S. Senate candidate Hung Cao (R), in an interview.

Reskeet if you are in the United States and are, in fact, like "oh my gosh, I will die if I don't have health care" politicalwire.com/2024/10/17/b...

I'm so sorry for your loss.

Green Line train that derailed was traveling 36 mph in a 10 mph zone, NTSB says The Green Line train that came off the tracks and injured 7 people earlier this month was traveling more than three times the speed limit before the derailment, the NTSB said.

It's too bad automatic speed control for trains isn't a mature technology that has existed for decades

Check the manufacturer website for a list of compatible cuffs- it's not a standardized interface.

www.validatebp.org
lets you search for validated blood pressure devices and filter for extra large cuffs. I use a Welch-Allyn one and have to replace the $40 cuff every 2 years-ish when it wears out. (now Hillrom-Welch-Allyn)