Today I was a bit slow and got going online for Nike about 7AM. The day I spent mostly apply software changes by hand. It is always a strange feeling to be coding again, even when it is just to follow directions in a PDF. I am now an architect for computer systems and should not be coding, but it is still satisfying to return to your roots and code something.
Today was coding and getting some basics corrected here and there at work. It seemed like a clean-up day as I try to listen to Zoom meetings, code, and help get some clean-up on some processes done. So a more regular day.
Susie was up before noon today, so I took her out to lunch. Masked, we joined a few people at BJ Brewhouse. We had tried it before, and they seem to take safety very seriously there. I had the soba noodles with chicken, slightly spicy, and simple, but almonds and broccoli florets and shredded carrot take it to a higher level. Susie ordered a whole rack of ribs and put the second half in a box to bring home.
So later today, we set up Corwin’s forge on the deck. It is a small brick forge that costs only about a hundred bucks and made in Michigan, my home state. I have been looking for a low-end buy-in to blacksmithing for Corwin as he wants to be a bladesmith. Finally, found one: Sarqit Outdoor Living School. Sarqit makes a propane heated forge for blade work. It is made of some fire bricks and a propane torch.
We set it up on the deck, and after the first torch failed to work, we got another one. We got it running on small bottles of propane, and Corwin spent hours banging on metal. Over the years, we have acquired some items such as a test supply of steel, metal worker gloves, railroad anvil (old railroad railing cut in about a foot section bolted to a wooden log), and a few other smaller items. Today Corwin brought them all together and started heating the metal and using the railroad anvil.
(Corwin’s new forge, simple but working).
While I heard the hammering, I defrosted some pork chops. Simple again for dinner, just fry pork chops in the pan with butter and Herbes de Provence. Pan then lifted and put in 350F oven to finish. I made couscous again, we have a case, with almonds, raisins, dried cranberries, and a hint of cinnamon and cardamon. Corn from frozen steamed added a veggie to our dinner. Susie thought it was good.
So Corwin was hammering and doing what he has always wanted to do today, Susie got to have ribs and a short trip, and I was coding at work. Not a bad day.
Today I also received my technology from Adafruit in New York City. I have a new HalloWing M4 Express. This has a little screen and is shaped like a skull but runs on an M4 in Python (“Excellent,” I would say in my best Mr. Burns voice). I have a convex glass lens to put on the screen to make the eye look 3-D. It comes with software to project an eye looking around-creepy. It is for Halloween. I hope we will be able to do the trick and treat things then! I also picked up a Grand Central M4 with headers for more proto-typing work–My goto for robots.
The stock market gave back much of the explosive growth of Monday, volatility continues. I am just holding on to what I have.
I find it so sad to report that the expected increase in the deaths has happened with just under a thousand Americans losing their battle with Covid-19 today. This rate is the highest number in three weeks–the experts predicted that the death rate will follow the increase in infections by three to four weeks. We are there now. Reports are that they are running out of ICU beds in Florida. Here in Oregon, the infection rate has doubled in the last month. I am keeping mostly locked down with just a few trips for lunch to keep our sanity!
I went with the song that came to me when trying to find something to fit the increasing death and infection rates and the lack of ICU beds: Are Ye Able.
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 