News and Views

Yesterday I produced more electricity than I consumed for the first time since spring. At the end of the day I was about 1.5 kWh in the black, having produced 35.5 and consumed 34. I would have broken even several times over the past couple of weeks (as the need for air conditioning has plummeted) […]

[Read more →]

Our new VOIP (internet based phone service) by Ooma is now live, and we no longer have Century Link (né Qwest). Calls to our home phone number will arrive through Ooma. I have it connected to our in-house phone lines so all the phones work the same as before — it is basically transparent. Nothing […]

[Read more →]

Not me this time. Derek tore the labrum in his left shoulder playing soccer a few months ago. He had laparoscopic surgery this morning to repair it. Everything went well and he is at our house spaced out on pain pills this evening. The labrum helps hold the arm bone (humerus) in the socket. When […]

[Read more →]

I’ve just subscribed to a VOIP telephone service, Ooma. That’s “Voice Over IP”, which means it uses my internet connection to make phone calls. The main advantage is cost. The monthly fee amounts to about $4, which includes unlimited calls anywhere in the US and Canada. International calls are cheap too — Taiwan landlines cost […]

[Read more →]

Gisele and I are off for California tomorrow, spending a couple of days in the LA area before heading up to San Francisco for a few more days. Derek and Apollo are staying home.

[Read more →]

I’m leaving this morning for Florida for a couple of days. Unfortunately not to a nice sandy beach or the exotic Everglades — Gainesville is just about in the middle of the north end of the peninsula. I’m spending two days at the University of Florida at a meeting about databasing plant specimens. I’ve written […]

[Read more →]

We’re in camp for the second night, but I have to say that so far this is not the wilderness experience I was expecting. Yesterday we did eat lunch on the trail, but in the evening we came to a small community that welcomed backpackers, so we ate dinner at a deli, and camped in […]

[Read more →]

No, not Beirut, Lebanon New Hampshire. I spent the night in a hotel, and in about a half hour the shuttle will come pick me up and take me to 20 miles or so to where Dale is, just over the border in Vermont. Here’s the little ten-passenger plane I came in from Boston.

[Read more →]

Early tomorrow morning I catch a flight to Lebonon, New Hampshire (via Boston), where I will get a ride to meet Dale on the trail. I plan to hike with him for just a week. I’m sure I will be struggling to keep up! The weather forecast shows clearing on Friday and little chance of […]

[Read more →]

Mom asked about Apollo, so here’s a brief update. He continues to improve from his pancreatitis, and almost seems like his old self. He is eager to take walks, but tires easily. His appetite is back with a vengeance, though he has to eat an extremely low-fat diet for the rest of his life. We […]

[Read more →]