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House – Interior Painting
While the outside of the house has pretty decent paint, the inside was a bit, uh, hideous. Nothing too awful, but it clearly hadn’t been painted in a long time. The bedrooms had some odd paint colors on some walls, and one was obviously a child’s room with some odd trim. Add to that the…
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The Kitchen
Before moving into our new house, we are having a lot of work done. While the “bones” of the house are in good condition, it is clear that some of the extremities were in need of some massive overhaul. The Kitchen Appliances are one of the worst offenders. As a former professional chef, I am…
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Innumeracy and the cult of anti-vax
The last post was about an innate understanding of scale and scope, and how this lead to a general understanding of magnitudes. A real world example, and one that is top of the news lately is the whole “anti-vaccine” movement. This is the increasing tendency to choose to not vaccinate your children due to the…
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House Hunting Journal – Mortgage Companies Suck
I wrote this a couple weeks ago, before we closed so I wouldn’t jinx the process. The process of mortgage underwriting is completely f*cked up at this point. This post is some of the zaniness I had to endure. The last house I bought, in Chandler Arizona was a breeze. We bought it in 2012…
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5 months of the Specialized 2015 Crave Expert
With 5 months of riding, it is time for an update of the 2015 Specialized Crave Expert. A few hundred miles in, with about an even mix of road and off road riding, there are a few things to update. I still hate the tires. I haven’t replaced them yet, but it will happen soon.…
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Numeracy, the common sense of numbers
When I was in school, calculators were new enough, that they really weren't something that the average student had. They were expensive, and quite limited. Hence, we learnt how to do arithmetic with pencil and paper. In those days, the lesson plans were written to be approachable in a reasonable time frame to students to…
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Blacklist – TV Show
Netflix has sabotaged my time again. This time with the drama “Blacklist)”, a show about a US Naval Officer who dropped off the grid, going rogue and criminal, and then becoming a high value informer for the government. Spoiler alert: if you haven’t watched, and are interested, you might want to stop here and move…
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Riding the Train
I have long enjoyed riding the train. There is something soothing about the sound of the wheels on the track. The stops, people getting on and off. What is their purpose for traveling? Why did they choose the train? My first experience with Caltrain was when I was fairly young, probably 8 or 9. I…
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My fascination with History
Like most Americans, I took the usual high school level history classes. At the time, they seemed dull and worthless. Memorizing dates and events, and the bland US history they cram down your pie hole, it is no wonder why I was nonplussed. Then my 3rd year of university, I took a real US History…
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Vietnam in HD – History Channel series
I love Netflix streaming. There is a constant stream of recommended shows that are hit and miss. One, “Aliens on the Moon, the Truth” was a miss. However, “Vietnam in HD” was outstanding. It is a series, 6 episodes (40 minutes each, so originally broadcast, they were hour episodes) of commentary and footage from home…