what did you do today? (2008-2015) (closed)

[ls99]

Went to the mall for a classic car show, inside. The local car club does it to raise money via raffles for local charities. Probably not much if anything in it for the mall, except exposure and foot traffic. You just don't see that in the big city malls.

My fave is the Riviera.

 

[aja8888]

Went to the mall for a classic car show, inside. The local car club does it to raise money via raffles for local charities. Probably not much if anything in it for the mall, except exposure and foot traffic. You just don't see that in the big city malls.

I like the two tone Mercury with fender skirts. That's old school! I believe that's a 1956 Montery. My dad used to sell Mercury's back then for a while.

 

[steelyman]

I went to DePauw University in Greencastle, IN last night to see Nellie McKay and The Turtle Island Quartet (a fantastic jazz string quartet based in San Francisco). The show was great, the venue and acoustics were too, and she was excellent and witty throughout.

I've posted videos of her before, mostly in http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/2012-mayan-prediction-part-2-a-64148.html

She said a lot of funny things, most of which I don't recall verbatim, but one I do was, "This next song is a bad dream I had, set to music. I should like to dedicate it to my arch-nemesis, Harry Connick, Jr."

Here's a few more videos, one a pop standard from the 1930's (typically listed as written by the wrong guy, because the guy who really wrote it sold the rights to him for $100). Next, a recent performance with Turtle Island. And finally, two for the dog and cat lovers who bark and meow around this forum. I wanted to post a different one, but decided not to because she drops an F bomb (she can get a little, hmm, "salty" sometimes). But it's a good tune, kind of Tin Pan Alley, and you can see it by going to YouTube and searching for "clonie ted".

Nellie McKay - The Very Thought Of You (Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson 1-11-10).avi - YouTube

Turtle Island Quartet and Nellie McKay performing at APAP 2013 - YouTube

Nellie McKay: "The Dog Song" - YouTube

Nellie McKay is going to Pounce - YouTube

 

[robnplunder]

For the first time since I retired, I finally got the energy and inclination to start on cleaning my basement. Got so many goodwill bags ready. Got so much more to do down there. What did get on my nerves though was that it seemed every fifteen minutes my husband would come to me looking all confused wanting to know did I give this to the goodwill, did I throw that away, where did you put it. It seemed to me like he was just looking around trying to find stuff he hadn't seen in years. So frustrating. Give me a break.

Reminds me not to do this to my DW when I retire.

 

[traineeinvestor]

Completed the 100 km Hong Kong Trailwalker organised by Oxfam: http://www.oxfamtrailwalker.org.hk/opencms.war/opencms/_info_/homepage.jsp?__locale=en

I should recover the use of my lower limbs one day.

 

[HappyOutsourced]

Cleaned bathrooms, ate out, went to funeral, went to couple stores on way home. Since it was a rainy, cold day - walked the cat on the covered porch, watched Bonanza, got on the internet, watched one of those courtroom shows, watched American Greed, bed.
Hope to be more productive today.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Nothing of significance.

 

[HappyOutsourced]

Had some keratosis "frozen off" at the dermatologist's today. He didn't seem the slightest bit concerned about it so I guess that's good. I had a touch of squamous cell carcinoma ~25 years ago (nothing further since) so now I sprint to the doc's if I see anything even slightly like it.

Walt, did you have to pay out of pocket to have keratosis frozen off?

 

[Ronstar]

Brewed 10 gallons of a rye/wheat beer. Stockpile is now up to 30 gallons. I'll brew 10 gallons of stout in a couple of weeks and shut down my outdoor brewing operation until spring. Hopefully 40 gallons will last until mid April

 

[M Paquette]

Lazy morning yakking on the radio (ham radio operator...). A big ole contest is starting right now, though. I may go watch a movie...

<GRIPE>Every conversation is "CALLSIGN MYCALLSIGN (contact number) (signal report numbers) QSL?" The other party says the same thing, and then onto the next contact. The goal is to contact as many people as possible while recording each contact in a log, usually on a computer. Everybody sends in the logs, which are all cross checked for accuracy, and match contacts are scored. Winner gets bragging rights.

It's like a speed bowling competition, only with the other scores hidden, and no beer or pizza. It feels too much like work for me, so I only do maybe one a year. </GRIPE>

 

[RitaR551]

Visiting my sister and we made freezer meals. Parmesan Garlic Chicken, Sloppy Joes, Finger Lickin Good Ribs, Bacon and Ranch Chicken, Melt In Your Mputh Potroasr, and Montery Jack Chicken.
All told we ended up with 62 meals. We divided them three ways giving one set of each to my sis inlaw who just had knee replacement surgery.
Phew! Feels good to sit down for awhile!

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Still nothing significant, is that not what being FIREd is all about. What a great day!!!!!!

 

[Gumby]

Added 19 more bags to my growing pile of leaf bags waiting at the curb for pickup. I'm up to 58 bags total, and I'm sure I have another 10 to go.

 

[Major Tom]

Lazy morning yakking on the radio (ham radio operator...). A big ole contest is starting right now, though. I may go watch a movie...

<GRIPE>Every conversation is "CALLSIGN MYCALLSIGN (contact number) (signal report numbers) QSL?" The other party says the same thing, and then onto the next contact. The goal is to contact as many people as possible while recording each contact in a log, usually on a computer. Everybody sends in the logs, which are all cross checked for accuracy, and match contacts are scored. Winner gets bragging rights.

It's like a speed bowling competition, only with the other scores hidden, and no beer or pizza. It feels too much like work for me, so I only do maybe one a year. </GRIPE>

Contests wear me out, and I don't have the competitive instinct for them anyway. The only ones I do occasionally have a go at are the CW ones because with phone, the repetitive nature of the contacts very quickly reaches a level of absurdity that drives me nuts. Even then, I only do them in order to put a few new countries in the log and not with any serious intent to win. Having said that, I did come first in my section in the ARRL 10-Meter contest a couple of years ago, but it was only because just a few other stations in my section submitted QRP CW logs

Building gear is fun though, and casually checking into my daily net. That's about it for me, ham radio-wise.
EDIT - and updating my bog. I do enjoy sharing my construction exploits online.

(Apologies for the use of any jargon in this post. It feels a bit odd talking about amateur radio to a general audience.)

 

[HappyOutsourced]

Wife says: What are you doing today?
Husband says: Nothing.
Wife says: You did that yesterday.
Husband says: I'm not finished yet.

 

[bruce1]

Contests wear me out, and I don't have the competitive instinct for them anyway. The only ones I do occasionally have a go at are the CW ones because with phone, the repetitive nature of the contacts very quickly reaches a level of absurdity that drives me nuts. Even then, I only do them in order to put a few new countries in the log and not with any serious intent to win. Having said that, I did come first in my section in the ARRL 10-Meter contest a couple of years ago, but it was only because just a few other stations in my section submitted QRP CW logs

Building gear is fun though, and casually checking into my daily net. That's about it for me, ham radio-wise.
EDIT - and updating my bog. I do enjoy sharing my construction exploits online.



(Apologies for the use of any jargon in this post. It feels a bit odd talking about amateur radio to a general audience.)

This reminds me of when I w@rked for Department of Communications in Canada and administered amateur radio exams. I am suprised suprised how many hams are on this board. Maybe I will string an antenna next spring.

 

[ls99]

Another get ready for winter day, put the cap on the pickup truck bed.

 

[Al in Ohio]

Raked leaves. Added 5 more buckets to the fall total of 13. Just about 10-12 more buckets to go.

 

[martyp]

It was a nice sunny fall day today. Perfect of a motorcycle ride in the hills.

 

[JakeBrake]

Walt, did you have to pay out of pocket to have keratosis frozen off?

I'm not Walt, but I've had my share of dealing with dermatologists. Around here the dermatogists don't accept any insurance for office visits. They freeze suspicious spots routinely. You have to pay when services are rendered. They don't accept credit cards. It's not that bad. The charge for a full body exam and freezing 5 spots was $155 last month. I'm on traditional Medicare PPO. The doctor WILL file with Medicare and I will be reimbursed by Medicare eventually. The doctor will charge exactly what Medicare will pay. The closest dermatologists who accept Medicare assignment are much farther than I care to drive.

I'm scheduled for a biopsy and possible sugery on a suspicious spot in a couple of weeks. I assume Medicare will prepay when the hospital and surgeons became involved.

 

[Walt34]

Walt, did you have to pay out of pocket to have keratosis frozen off?

$10 copay, insurance covers the rest. I'll get a statement from BCBS later showing what the total bill was. At the moment I don't know. The policy covers a lot of preventative stuff like that to head off larger costs later.

 

[W2R]

The first week in October my laptop fried, so I bought a new one. The old one has been sitting here staring at me ever since.

So, today I satisfied myself that indeed it was so throughly fried that there is no sense in keeping it, and determined that it was time to put the poor device out of its misery, so to speak. I took it apart (fun!), and removed the hard drive for future destruction.

My new $450 Toshiba is fine for my purposes, I am OK with Window 8, and I do not need any lost files so all is well.

 

[pb4uski]

Spent the day winterizing my camp. Shut down the feed from the spring, drained the tanks, water lines. Added RV antifreexe to traps and water pump. Filled a couple of 55 gal plastic drums with water.

Put away stuff that could be blown aroubd by strong winds. Topped off the woodshed with firewood. Winter visits are more like dry camping.

Why fill two 55 gal drums with water? Won't it freeze? I do all the other stuff winterizing my Mom's place.

 

[ls99]

Why fill two 55 gal drums with water? Won't it freeze? I do all the other stuff winterizing my Mom's place.

My regular water storage tank is outside above ground, a 250 gallon tank. We already had several sub freezing temps overnight. When the tank is full it can ride out the overnight freezing temps with just a tarp covering it. Water is magic stuff, has enormous heat capacity.

Inside the building they will hold untill daytime temps drop into the low 30 ies and nightimes in in the low 20 ies a nd teens. That would be late December usually. By that time they will be used up for flushing toilet and washing hands etc.. Most folks seem unaware the toilets flushes use the most water next to showers in daily life. Hmmm. Maybe I should dig a hole for outhouse and do away with the toilet flushing business.

It is a camp, not a residence. I hang out there several days and ovenights a few days a week on and off. Once it gets really cold and the drums are emptied, I just walk to the creek 20 feet from the building and use a 5 gallon bucket to get water as needed, or hike up to the spring and get cleaner water, again as needed.

I do use the camp year around, adapting to the weather conditions as needed.

By the way my camp does not have a basement, If it did I'd likely be able to store water there, as sub surface areas generally stay just above freezing in my locale. Though would have to drain any piping before departure.

 

[pb4uski]

Ah, I see. Thanks. Satisfied my curiosity.