Personal Archive
Steve helped me install a window air conditioner yesterday. Actually Steve installed the air conditioner and I only helped a little bit. Just in time, as it turns out, since it’s in the nineties this week, after a week of cooler weather. My bedroom is upstairs, and gets very hot.
Air conditioners designed [...]
Urgent care that isn’t
0 Comments Published by Eric June 11th, 2008 in Customer satisfaction, HealthI needed some relatively minor medical care, and wanted to get it done today rather than wait for an appointment to see a doctor. It wasn’t serious enough to require a trip to the emergency room, so I drove to an urgent care clinic in Cupertino. It’s not that close to where I live, but [...]
Years ago, Steve Martin described the great new drug he was taking, “placebos”. Starting June 1, you’ll be able to buy them too, under the Obecalp brand name, though medical experts don’t think it will work. [h/t Monday Evening]
Dealing with suboptimal urban wildlife
0 Comments Published by Eric May 22nd, 2008 in Gadgets, Health, The Suboptimal WayThe birds nesting in the trees near my bedroom window wake me up earlier than I’d like in the morning, and at night they keep me awake, singing past 2 AM. I’ve taken to sleeping with earplugs, but then my alarm clock doesn’t wake me up. It occurred to me that there might be watches [...]
The suboptimal way to fly from Denver to San Jose
1 Comment Published by Eric April 7th, 2008 in The Suboptimal Way, TravelI was on Frontier Airlines flight 169 from Denver to San Jose this morning. It was scheduled to be a nonstop departing Denver at 8:25 AM MDT and arriving in San Jose at 10:06 AM PDT. We departed a few minutes late, but the real reason we didn’t arrive in San Jose until 12:06 PM [...]
I’ve suspected it for a while, but today I finally saw proof that my roommates’ dog Ralphie is a space alien or robot or something. The first indication was that when he plays with his stuffed animal squeaky toys, he is careful not to tug on them hard enough to damage them. But the incontrovertible [...]
Suboptimal Christmas: how to not get a Lectron electronic kit
1 Comment Published by Eric March 3rd, 2008 in Electrical Engineering, Family, The Suboptimal WayIn the 1970s I got to visit my grandparents every summer. They had a big house, and sometimes I liked to play in the large basement. My grandfather’s wood shop was down there, though I didn’t spend much time in it when he wasn’t there working on something. There was a lot [...]
The suboptimal way to pay for lunch
0 Comments Published by Eric February 18th, 2008 in Customer satisfaction, Employment, The Suboptimal WayI work at a fairly large company, and the cafeterias will let employee put money on their badges to be used for later purchases. I don’t usually do that, but I suppose it’s convenient for people that don’t want to carry cash, since the cafeteria doesn’t accept debit cards. (I think accepting debit [...]
DMV: the suboptimal way to spend the morning
0 Comments Published by Eric December 13th, 2007 in Car, The Suboptimal WayOn Tuesday I filled a form for a vehicle registration issue, went to the California DMV, got a number (B-something), and waited an hour. It turned out that I didn’t have everything I needed, so I had to go back this morning.
I get a number, this time G038, and waited. After about half an hour [...]
Jacque helps me set up an HP 16500C logic analyzer
1 Comment Published by Eric October 30th, 2007 in Hardware, PetsAs usual,Jacque ignored me most of the day, but as soon as the logic analyzer arrived he rushed over to help me set it up.
(click for gallery with more photos)
