I rose again with a headache at about 7. I had coffee waiting this time. Some days, when I go to write the blog, it’s like a movie running in my head and easy to recall, and some days it’s not. Saturday is a misty and dreamy image for me this Sunday morning as I write this.
While I sat in my office drinking liberal fair trade coffee from the local Equal Exchange Brand warehouse, I wrote and saw my neighbors two houses over removing two tall trees. One with leaves and the other a pine. I understand folks are worried they will fall and the leaves and needles make a mess, but I have tried to remove only dying trees. Now, as I write this on Sunday morning, the sky is visible where the trees once stood, and the view is slightly disturbing. I feel like something is missing, and I keep looking. I have some of the tallest trees on my lawn in the area. Nothing I expected to happen.
I talk to Deborah a few times, and we text. I see that we are at the end of the month, and I have updated the balance for my IRA in Quicken, which combines all my IRAs and 401 (k)s. I read my emails, updated Quicken, and wrote.
I had started a Word document with the link to some open-source tools for Artificial Intelligence (AI), and I used that link to return to the documentation for these tools. Some of it is a how-to guide with code that can be run in a Jupyter Notebook (a type of live Python environment that allows you to mix text with code to create a record of the work — essentially, super-commented code that others can run and interact with). I decided to head to McMenamin’s Cornelius Pass RoadHouse for lunch, a beer, and to read this stuff in detail. I, like many others, find it easier to study at coffee shops, bars, and libraries than at home. There are just too many distractions at home.
I boarded Air VW the Gray and was soon delivered to Umbre Hall, where I sat at the bar. Lacy was my bartender, and soon, a 1983 Lager was before me, deciding it was not a bad year to name a beer after. Its flavor was terrific. I had a Greek-style salad (extra cheese and no meat), which went well with the sklean details I was reading. I was relearning what I knew about AI classification solutions. I was surprised to see the boost solutions now covered in detail (with some new types). They were newer when I started in Python AI before the pandemic; this treatment covered their use and compared them to my favorite tool, Random Forest of Trees (RF). There were detailed comparisons and exploration of various parameters, and the options for the newer items could handle more complex data challenges. All interesting.
The light from laptops eventually gives me a headache. I use a Kindle for reading to eliminate the extra light and prevent headaches. I usually have my Apple set to 50% brightness as it is. For coding, the black backgrounds in the editors help mitigate some of the eye strain issues. The bright and colorful sklean website left me thinking and needing a break.
I did order dessert after the salad. They have a lovely lemon cake with berries on the side. It also has an orchid flower that I left for Lacy. I also discovered some tree spinners (not sure what they are called) that had fallen on the EV, and she liked getting that, too. Signs of summer. Not another beer, but coffee went with the dessert, and coffee after beer keeps me awake while still enjoying the relaxing effects of a beer.
I took Air VW the Gray to Portland and Lucky Labrador off of Hawthorne Boulevard, and enjoyed Highway 26, which resembled a parking lot for thirty minutes. I finally reached the exit across the river and soon parked, happy to have secured a spot in the Lucy Labrador lot and to have a locally made pilsner beer and a bowl of peanuts. I spent the afternoon relearning Jupyter Notebook and how to install it in Microsoft Visual Studio. I found some instructions on the Internet and managed to get the tool to run a Jupyter Notebook file. The Python, which was installed in the virtual environment, did not update with sklearn‘s add-ons or any other items. I eventually learned what the Linux-based install command PIP ‘–Isolated’ option was for and used it. I was able to update the isolated Python for the environment. After that, I was able to run the example code on my Apple.
It was now hours later, and I had a game at 6 at Richard’s house. I got a sandwich, just a grilled cheese, while I ran the notebook now. I packed up, paid my bill, and headed to Richards. Laura and Richard were finishing a game of Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon. The board game was the choice for today: a new game, available with some upgrades from the publisher. It lasts about two hours and was a pleasure to learn and play. I scored last with Laura, thirty points ahead of me and Richard lapping me. It plays fast and turns are not complex, but the strategy is difficult–my favorite type of game. At the moment, it sold out, but I am not in a rush.
After the game, we chatted for a while, and then I took Air VW the Gray home and soon reached the house without issue. The Oregonian drivers did not disappoint with their erratic, slow, and multiple-lane changes, as well as their passive-aggressive driving. But as usual, no accidents as we are usually going too slow to hit each other.
I was soon sleeping, waking at 1 with a terrible nightmare that is now forgotten. Sleep was broken and I rose just after 6 as sleep would not return.
Thanks for reading!
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 