I rose late and started around 8. I had a few plans, but time is running out, and I am headed to California, Mount Shasta, on Sunday. Today, I planned to shop and clean for the trip. I started on the blog and started to pack; laundry was in The Machine, and dishes were stacked in the dishwasher. I like to return to a clean and ordered house.
Without finishing the blog, I headed out in Air VW the Gray and soon picked up my Rick Steves’ Iceland travel book at Barnes and Noble. I also received a new tote bag and a discount as a club member. I had checked Powell’s website, and only the local Barnes and Noble had the book in the area. Next, I stopped at Trader Joe’s and got snacks, water, and other items (I needed TP and toothpaste for the house). I added instant coffee to my collection. Next, the EV wandered to Whole Foods, and I picked up a few more items, including some bread, smoked meats, and cheese. These items will be in my small cooler with ice on the trip. I am unsure if I want to stop for lunch anywhere on the trip. Instead, I may be at a charger, reading and eating my snacks. The newest Analog Magazine is in the driver’s door of the VW.
I ordered a sandwich made at Whole Foods. I have just one bag of items. The gal behind me was buying four dozen eggs. I guess the prices are better now. I had everything in Air VW, the Gray stacked on the board games still in the cargo hold. I got this and my sandwich with a terrible cherry carbonated drink in the house. I spilled my drink on the stove, but I did not think it was a great loss and cleaned the mess.
I got out the ingredients for a pumpkin pie and assembled the pie. It is March 14th, Pi Day, and one has to celebrate.
Pi Python for you coding nerds:
#!/usr/bin/env python
“””
Copyright 2017 by Michael Wild (alohawild)
Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the “License”);
you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
You may obtain a copy of the License at
http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
distributed under the License is distributed on an “AS IS” BASIS,
WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
limitations under the License.
============================================================================================================
This is a pi calculation process using Monte Carlo or simple random process.
Imagine a circle in a box. The edges just touch the box. Lets make it a circle of radius 1.
Thus any point on or within the cirlce are 1 unit or less from the center.
It should be possible to randomly select points in the box and determine if the point is in the circle or not.
The ratio of points in the box over the number of randomly selected should be 1/4*Pi
“””
__author__ = ‘michaelwild’
import os
import sys
#import numpy as np
import math
import random
from time import process_time
def howFar(x,y):
distance = (x ** 2) + (y ** 2)
return (distance)**(1/2.0)
def runtime(start):
return process_time() – start
piGuess = 0.0
piLoop = 10000000
inCircle = 0
begin_time = process_time()
for i in range(1, piLoop):
#x = (np.random.uniform()* 2) -1
#y = (np.random.uniform() * 2) -1
x = (random.random()* 2) -1
y = (random.random() * 2) -1
if (howFar(x,y)<1.0) :
inCircle = inCircle + 1
piGuess = 4.0* inCircle / piLoop
piError = math.pi – piGuess
print((piGuess))
finish = runtime(begin_time)
print(“Run time:”, finish)
I spotted a tiny spider in my empty sugar bowl. I carefully carried the carnival glass, an early 190os antique, outside so the spider could find its way elsewhere. Corwin, who stopped by to get his mail and was surprised I was still here (I leave on Sunday, not Friday), commented that the spider was in uranium glass and I missed out on my chance to be bitten by a radiation-exposed spider. Like in the Big Bang Theory, “He is one lab accident from a super villain” has also been used to describe me. Corwin enjoyed some pie for Pi Day.
With no spider updates for me, Deborah and I work together, moving to Zoom, to book a trip to Iceland in July. It took two tries on Delta’s website to lock in a trip to Iceland from Detroit (the first time failed with unknown errors). We have flights with seats, hotel, and three-day trips set now. We have a few days open for a week in Iceland (six nights). We wanted to lock it in as we saw hotels selling out. The sun barely sets in Iceland in July!
Thu 10-Jul-25
Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF) – 8:00 am – Golden Circle & Sky Lagoon
Fri 11-Jul-25
Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF) – 1:00 pm – Whale Watching Tour
Sun 13-Jul-25
Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF) – 8:00 am – S Coast & Glacier Lagoon
Sun 13-Jul-25
Deborah and I chatted on Zoom for a while. It was soon late in Michigan, and we ended our Zoom travel planning meeting. We will see each other in California on Tuesday.
Dinner so far has been pie, but I finished the pasta and sausage, washed the dishes, and stacked some to run in the dishwasher. I finished the laundry I could do. I cleaned the toilets. I vacuumed the carpet (I did not move the furniture). I moved more items into my travel bag and into the luggage in the guest bedroom where I am packing.
This was a free evening; if I wanted to see the Marvel movie in theaters, I needed to go today. I called Jack, but he was tired, so I left him alone at the last minute. I got popcorn and a drink and watched the movie. It was excellent: CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD (2025). I enjoyed the mix of jokes and seriousness. I laughed often and enjoyed even the couple of speeches. Recommended.
I returned home late, nearing midnight, and soon fell asleep, but it was still tough dreams. It was now forgotten; it woke me at 1ish. Sleep is still elusive. I proved hydration and managed to find sleep again and dream forgotten dreams.
Thanks for reading!
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 