But now we can put the doors on our last cabinet!
Turns out they were shipped from a warehouse in Oregon. As Jane put it, if they’d just told us, we could have gone over and picked them up.
The hinges came—and one more board we didn’t order.
by CJ | Jan 16, 2018 | Journal | 44 comments
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Maybe a cutting board from that extra one you didn’t order?
Or keep it in reserve for if a drawer front gets damaged, if it’s the same kind of wood?
Alas, I’m still without Emergence to read, but that’s because our local Sci-Fi bookstore -Pandemonium in Cambridge, MA- sold out of the copies it ordered! I like to buy from it and support a real live and independent bookseller. But the selling out of copies is good news for both CJ and for Pandy’s, so I am happy to wait a bit longer.
Well, it is reassuring to know you are not too unhinged! 😀
Heh, Pandy’s; I like the name.
I, too, would vote to save the board for just-in-case, or find a current use to go with the new cabinetry. Is there a space that needs a shelf for handy utensils, pens and notepad, phone, or the like? Cooking tools at a useful spot in reach?
No, cats, it is not a cat-sitting / lounging shelf, you wag-tailed lot! Hahaha. Because this might occur to them. — Goober has liked the top of the refrigerator. When it’s suppertime, he likes to sit on one of the kitchen’s “bar” counters, next to the sink, to await the staff’s presentation of the canned moist food. Heh. Cats know how to live in style, too; not just meager getting by. 😉
It occurred to me the other day why cats like the top of the refrigerator. The refrigerator is often in a nook with a cabinet above them. The back of a refrigerator is actually a heat pump, pumping hot air it takes from the refrigerant that cools the fridge. With a cabinet above the refrigerator to deflect that warm air, the top of the refrigerator would be a nice warm place.
You want to know the best seat in the house? It’s the one with a cat already in it.
I’ve always forbidden kitchen counters to the cats, but forbidding them to a Bengal is a negotiation: Shu gets to sit on the desk NEXT to the forbidden counters. Sei has no interest in being up on things, thank goodness.
Our board is too narrow for some things, but now you mention it, I wonder if it might be long enough to bridge the over-sink space.
I fear my old iPad2 is now too ancient by computer terms. The Kindle app balked and gave up the ghost while reading, four times. This has been my primary use for the old iPad for some time now.
And so, I looked at new Kindles. A 6 inch or a 7 inch screen are no longer very attractive to me.
So I looked at an Amazon Fire tablet. Aha! a 10 inch screen? Actually, it’s 10.1 inches? And a tenth or less the cost of a new iPad? Dude, I can read ebooks again, plus do more computer-y things? Well…yes, budget will have to allow it. Call it a very (!) early birthday present. (March 3rd, I guess I can sort of claim…. OK, no, probably can’t claim that. Nice try.)
Wifi, not sure if it includes Cellular access. No special offers because I hate ads, and the extra RAM because filling 32MB these days with books is too easy for anyone who reads. Cost? $204.
I don’t yet know how much I’ll use any of its tablet features (other apps, writing notes, maybe sketching). But I’m sure I need an e-reader.
Trying to read and having the dang tablet quit on me multiple times? Aggravating. OK, so that iPad2 is something like 7 years old now. But a new one would be around $2K to $3K for reasonable features, and I need that for other things, thanks.
So, well, I’m both frustrated at paying for a new gadget, yet also looking forward to a useful, useable gadget, plus, well, it’s books.
The cats are miffed. They thought I was settling down for a nice long session of reading, which to them equates to cuddling and snoozing, haha, with the cold weather. — By the way, we’re supposed to get a high near 40 today, low near 20 to 28, after the freeze and brief snow and longer ice, yesterday. I’m glad to be inside where it’s warm. But it’s sunny today, unlike yesterday’s dirty-cotton-grey skies.
We both had 7-8″ Amazon Fire tablets for Kindle reading (and browsing, Facebook, etc.). We replaced these with 8″ Lenovo cheapie tablets, which are much faster and work fine for the Kindle functions.
There were a number of problems with the Fire, the worst of which was that we were obliged to use the Amazon Store for apps. Although the Fire is Android(ish), many standard apps from Google won’t work, and the Amazon equivalents were often limited and not being updated. The Lenovos are almost pure Android (unlike some others, particularly Samsung), and we’ve been delighted with them so far.
I’d heard some good things about Lenovo before, and will consider them when I next need a laptop or tablet. I’m hoping to delay that as long as possible, to give me the best chance to build up savings / income. (As if, these days….) Thanks, Gabbee. 🙂
OK, so I sprang for an el cheapo tablet that runs the Kindle app just fine, and I sprang for one of those bed tables on rollers, both from Amazon and neither all that expensive, so now I can read in bed with munchies and drinkies to hand. This falls under the heading “planning ahead.”
Got another CT scan Monday. Will see the doc the 29th to see whether I will need chemotherapy this time (6-months of chemo and another 6-months to recover from it ) or whether we can let things ride another three months. I’m prepared, though.
My shoulder has been acting up again. I have pinched nerves at second cervical vertebra on the left and one of them has been unhappy lately. Talked to my PA at the VA and she said it could be the vertebra pinching again or lymphomas in my neck putting pressure on the nerve. Here, take 600 mg of gabapentin. And while we’re throwing pills at things, here’s a big wad of diclofenac to throw at your knee. So far both are working and I’ve been sleeping for long stretches, which tells me I wasn’t sleeping all that great lately. Pain relief is nice, though and I am thoroughly enjoying that.
However, let’s face it. I’m a dyed in the wool couch potato and I would rather snuggle in at the computer writing or snuggle up in bed reading than be out doing things.
Oh, and C.J., I have begun to notice a definite correlation between potato consumption and joint pain. Now, since I love potatoes, I’ve got to arrive at some kind of trade-off. Ack. It seems life is one big trade off anymore.
@WOL, is Couscous available in your part of the USA? It was brought to the Netherlands by Morokkan and Turkish immigrants maybe 40-50 years ago, and now all the Dutch supermarkets have it in the same aisle with the rice, pasta, tacos and such.
It looks like small round grains, and is made from wheat grains, similar to pasta. It’s steamed in the process of making the granules, so preparation is super quick and easy: add a little boiling water and let it sit a few minutes to swell up and warm. It’s very good at sopping up flavors and juices, just like potatoes are, and in my personal taste it is more similar to potatoes than to rice or pasta. To my taste, both rice and pasta really need some kind of sauce, but couscous, like potatoes, does fine without.
(I know that not wanting gravy on my potatoes is not very Dutch, as tradition is to make a volcano-shaped hill of the mashed potatoes-and-veg on your plate and pour a nice lake of gravy in the center, with optional river-carving before further mashing and eating; but I prefer my potatoes without).
If your tummy, like mine, really needs starches to do well, couscous might work better for you than a vegetable substitution like cauliflour or spaghetti squash.
Couscous is available here in large supermarkets and specialty shops and online. WOL can try it if she hasn’t already. 🙂 I somehow have only tried it once or twice, and haven’t bought any in a long time to try. I think I’ll get some, next trip. That sounds good. Why haven’t I added couscous as a staple food item? Heck if I know. 🙂
LOL, loved the description of mashed potatoes and gravy eating habits. I suspect that description fits a lot of American diners too! As well as that mashed potato mountain building scene in CE3K, haha.
How about barley? I needed barley for a soup ingredient some years back, discovered I really liked it, and every now and then, I fix a batch of barley with whatever else added to make a dish, often with veggies like a soup mix, but instead of a soup, as a dish similar to pasta and rice, but with earley as the base and whatever ingredients added to expand the taste options. It’s fine on its own, but it can benefit from the veggies or sauces. I’ve tried it with tomato paste and mixed veggies or mirepoix, and with a cream sauce with veggies, and so on. This is a very filling and satisfying thing in winter or as a comfort food, to me.
Er, I am not sure if folks who have gluten intolerance / allergies can deal with barley.
My sis has that kind of setup. It works fine for her – and the cats appreciate having a warm person to sleep with.
One product that subs for potatoes pretty well is, I think from Birdseye, or Green Giant…it’s a fine dice of cauliflower and sweet potato, heats in bag in 6 minutes, and serves to sop up flavor from the main dish, just as potatoes do. It probably would go well with butter and salt and pepper, too. There’s also a thing called ‘veggie tots’ that is a vegetable-cheese formed thing like tater tots, that can crisp a bit in a skillet. Also—sweet potatoes are NOT potatoes, and don’t cause joint pain. Add butter; or butter and brown sugar; and they bake up very nicely: just oil the skin, cut it in half if way thick/fat, put it on a pie plate and bake it an hour at 350. Hope that will give you some options!
Re: The “latest” on fixing CPU flaws. [edited]
“The firmware patches designed to protect Intel processors against nasty Spectre CPU exploits have a big downside: They’re forcing more frequent reboots on some systems, including PCs that released in 2017.
On January 11, Intel said that the firmware patches prompted more frequent reboots in Haswell (2013) and Broadwell (2014) systems. Late Wednesday, Intel executive vice president Navin Shenoy revealed that many other processor generations also succumb to the reboot bug: Sandy Bridge (2011), Ivy Bridge (2012), Skylake (2015), and Kaby Lake (2017). The only processors from the last five years that run without issue—yet, at least—appear to be the newest Intel 8th-gen CPUs, dubbed Coffee Lake.
Even with the reboot issue, the existing firmware updates still deliver valuable protection against potential Spectre attacks. “Intel recommends that partners maintain availability of existing microcode updates already released to end users,” the company’s security advisory says. “Intel does not recommend pulling back any updates already made available to end users.”
Consumers should install the patch, swallow any unwanted reboots, and keep an eye out for further fixes coming down the line, in other words.”
https://www.pcworld.com/article/3248975/components-processors/spectre-cpu-patches-reboots-intel.html#tk.rss_all
So, then you may ask, “How do I know which of those Intel CPU codenames I have?” Know how to bring up the BIOS Setup function right after rebooting? You should see something that matches there, (BIOS stuff is highly manufacturer/system specific.) Otherwise, you might find the same info in Settings -> About. (Understand, I don’t use Windows–it has morphed into something far more controlling and intrusive than any of the old versions I thought usable.)
On January 11, Intel said that the firmware patches prompted more frequent reboots in Haswell (2013) and Broadwell (2014) systems. Late Wednesday, Intel executive vice president Navin Shenoy revealed that many other processor generations also succumb to the reboot bug: Sandy Bridge (2011), Ivy Bridge (2012), Skylake (2015), and Kaby Lake (2017). The only processors from the last five years that run without issue—yet, at least—appear to be the newest Intel 8th-gen CPUs, dubbed Coffee Lake.
Are there, like, actual model numbers for these otherwise-meaningless names?
Yes, in fact there are, and they are needful if one needs to update the CPU microcode, but they are even more obscure for Windows users — Microsoft doesn’t want to confuse you with things “you don’t need to know”.
On my desktop “Conroe” CORE2-Duo, the Linux command, “cat /proc/cpuinfo” tells me:
…
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 15
model name : Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU 6700 @ 2.66GHz
stepping : 6
…
It’s that 6:15:6, or in hex, 6:F:6, that identifies just what kind of CPU I’m running; the answer to your question. I don’t know how one would get Windows to cough it up.
You can get some of it in the control panel, under System. I have an Intel I5-4440, but that’s all it’s telling me.
There’s a list of Intel processors and a lot key data about them on Wikipedia. In particular, the following section of it provides a cross-reference between what you’re likely to find in Windows and the conventional development codenames:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Intel_microprocessors#Intel_806xx_product_codes
The free version of Piriform’s “Speccy” utility will give you both the model number and the code name for your CPU chip (along with many other sysinfo nuggets)
Thanks! – That one says my CPU is “Haswell”. I haven’t noticed reboot problems (though occasionally the taskbar doesn’t load correctly). Possibly it’s because I’m running Win7 64-bit “home premium”.
(I liked XP…. Heck, I liked Win98 – and I have a machine that runs that. I still have my ancient DR DOS 8 machine, which mostly needs a new battery for its clock, but that’s very low priority.)
The question is whether M$ has upgraded the microcode.
Software quality – don’t get me started. As a software developer I’m amazed at some of the crap out there, but also in awe of some of the bigger developers, including Msoft. These types of problem are just plain inevitable given the overall complexity of the systems involved, both software and hardware.
Big software is *impossible* to test completely, and very, very expensive and time-consuming to achieve even a reasonable level of quality. Given that the speed of development, particularly for apps, is critical for commercial reasons (we call it “internet time”), it’s no wonder that the result is often rubbish. There are also a lot of cowboys in the game – some talented – who know little about developing quality software (they decry ‘process’ as stifling creativity) and even less about designing user interfaces for normal humans.
You may have noticed that many of the worst websites are government, NFP organisations and some large corporates including banks. The reason for this is often the contract model that these orgs feel obliged to use to get their websites going. It’s almost impossible to get quality using a specification-based rigid contract. Instead you need a flexible cooperative arrangement with a trusted competent developer – something like CJ has with her carpenter. But such contracts are terrifying to a control freak businessman, so they try to tie down everything up front. The result is lower quality, additional costs in rework and inevitable delays as they try to write new contracts.
One reason for those detailed contracts may be rules of accountability for government organisations, meant to stop corruption and quid-pro-quo dealing and to increase transparency about spending public money. I’m not in the USA so it might be different there, but over here there are rules for how goverment organisations can award contracts. From a certain value they have to allow open bidding, and though you can set up a lot of detailed requirements beforehand, the party who says they can fulfil the requirements and has the lowest bid must be awarded the contract. If they don’t get it, they’ll sue.
This means you have to put a whole lot of detailed requirements into the request for bids, as any vagueness will be interpreted as the lowest possible level by some cheap bidders which would mean you could get stuck with them, while a trusted developer who knows what you need and thus budgets for a higher level will lose the bid.
It’s a rule meant to keep government impartial in regards to the businesses who have to deal with it; to stop politicians and civil servants from awarding contracts to friends (or people who bribed them) at inflated prices; but it makes building up a mutually beneficial relationship with a trusted developer almost impossible.
Spot on, Hanneke. I think this applies in most countries and certainly in Aus, US, UK where I’ve seen it at first hand. Other organisations also have plausible excuses, like financial institutions where the high cost of testing (and big penalties for defects) makes them reluctant to make changes. But Amazon, Ebay, etc. seem to succeed, so it’s not a really valid excuse.
Another reason for bad software is the client influence. Everyone thinks they’re an expert on user interfaces (few are, including developers) and force bad solutions on the developer. With tight contracts it’s a recipe for disaster.
The other thing is that government ties every detail down in contracts so that the businesses don’t lowball the bid, then provide lower-quality products to make a profit. (It’s a real problem – I worked in building that wasn’t a locked-down-detail contract, and the building was coming apart after three years of not-that-heavy use. Doorhandles falling off, vinyl-coated paneling separating at the joins, that kind of thing.)
Thanks, Paul. That is useful to know.
“The more complicated the plumbing, the easier it is to stuff up the drain.”
Is there a Peter Principle for software?
also: “You vill take zis patch, unt you vill like it!”
Re Peter Principle, I can invent a few. “Workload will increase to the point of incompetence” (when there’s not enough time to do any thing well). “The more urgent the task the more people will have to be involved,” which dovetails with “too many cooks spoil the broth.” (And the extras keep the person who’s doing the real work busy answering questions, redoing a solution that already works well just because somebody changed their mind, etc.)
I suspect this situation results from haste and the fact that there are a *lot* of combinations of things to work with. CPU chip X, motherboard chipset Y, BIOS version Z, operating system version W, with other patches U and V, and… you get the idea. Some combinations may work ok and others not. The new software may have a fault that doesn’t show up until you see it in testing… or it may bring out some problem, in some *other* software, that never showed up before.
There’s an old aphorism, “I’m too poor to buy cheap.” I’ve heard is ascribed to the Scots and the Dutch.
In a roundabout way these days it’s a statement about the “Walmartization” of commerce, the short-termitis of Wall Street’s demand for corporate quarterly earnings, and the demise of “fine craftmanship”.
In particular, as it pertains to the computer and software industries, it goes:
Manager: Are you finished with your project?
Programmer: Almost.
M: Does it do what it must do?
P; Well, yes, but I’m not finished testing.
M: Ship it!
P: But it could still have some bugs!
M: Then fix those in version 2. We’ll sell that.
As I once wrote a buddy: Don’t only ask “Does it do what you want it to do”, ask, “What does it do that you DON’T want it to do?”
Boy, you said it. “Short-termitis” — You may not have noticed or intended the “termite” in the term-itis, but oh, is it appropriate too.
Too much these days is “planned obsolescence” or a false optimum for cost to build or sell it, so we get things that are way too cheaply made, poor quality, and they don’t last.
I want things to last. I’m still finding that point where price and lasting quality interest at _my_ (or a general consumer’s) optimum.
Things used to be made to last a lifetime or better. Many things could be passed on to a family member or friend starting up a new place to live, for instance, like kitchen utensils or furniture. If our appliances or everyday tools or objects don’t wear out, then that’s “green;” it conserves durable goods and raw materials, even if it does not give manufacturers or warehouse stores several regular sales over a lifetime.
And…computer hardware and software are complex, highly-technical things. They used to be produced in slower, longer cycles with more exacting attention to detail and correctness / workability / functionality. (Well, but yes, they also used to be less complex than now.)
It would be better for the big computer companies to take a bit longer in their development cycle to make sure the product that gets out to users and techies is not immediately in need of patches.
(There have already been two or three patches to the latest macOS release, and more may happen. This has become more common, and is now more security-related, as well as bug-fixes or feature-tinkering.)
I have not touched learning PHP in ages now. I really am going to have to make a work/study schedule and keep to it and modify it to come up with something that works for me to get things done the way I want, to update my skillset and get stuff done.
On the up side, I got a good bit done this morning on the latest font draft, still working on it, now much happier with how it’s turning out. And I haven’t yet sprung for the new big-bucks FontLab Studio upgrade to whatever they’re calling the latest-and-greatest. (I really don’t consider it a “special upgrade discount price” when it’s that high; although yes, it’s somewhat less than the full new version cost. Meh.)
Well, that’s one advantage to FOSS, Free Open Source Software–there’s nobody demanding something get shipped before it’s ready. That’s not to say mistakes aren’t made, just that this imperative isn’t driving more of them.
And our carpenter came down with the con crud. Sigh. But he’s being good and not sharing it with us.
My oncologist’s nurse called me yesterday about 4 p.m. to give me a “heads up call.” My oncologist wants to start chemo — like the day he sees me! (29th). Thanks for the warning! I’m going to spend the next week scrambling to get ready for what will be a 6-month slog. Evidently, he saw something he really did not like in my last set of blood work and/or CT scans.
You have my best wishes! (The surgeon has scheduled a post-chemo mammogram for me in March. Surgery somewhere down the road. I just have to survive the last two cycles of chemo. I swear each one is a little worse than the previous one.)
Be sure to ask the doc if the meds deplete certain minerals. They sometimes don’t say, and the patient needs to know.
I said goodbye to my cat Jaks. He crossed the Rainbow Bridge this morning. I had less than a week to find him a good home before I start chemo, I don’t know anybody who could take him, the Humane Society shelters here are way overburdened already, and after a great deal of soul searching, I decided that was the best option for both of us. Tough choice but the right one I think. It’s the first time in 21 years there hasn’t been a cat in my home. I have a feeling this is going to be a really rough year in more ways than one. Right now I’m just numb. It will hit me really hard tonight when I have to sleep alone. https://theowlunderground.wordpress.com/2018/01/20/and-then-there-were-none/
{{hug}}
Many, many hugs, WOL, and much sympathy. Put on some good music in the house and fill the emptiness some.
Also, if you have a hot water bottle, use it.
A heating pad helps too. What grief our WOL!
WOL, I am so sorry.
WOL, So sorry for your loss and the upcoming stress. One hopes you have an adequate support network in place. Please let your salads know if you need a friendly phone call or email or a shoulder to cry on.
Oh, WOL, I am so very, very sorry. Hugs.
WOL, I’m so sorry.
Yesterday, I caught myself about to say my previous cat’s name, and I don’t know why. My current two are now 11+ and 8+ a few months. Both were 6 to 8 weeks or so when I got them. So I was reminded that life for them is brief and precious.
Life for us humans is also brief and precious, but most of us live longer and don’t think of it as often.
Here’s hoping (again) all goes well for everyone here.