This month, we had my favorite uncle Pierre and aunt Kimberly come and spend a few days with us before we fly the coop. They live in Phoenix Arizona, a mere two -hour flight from our little airport.
While here, we managed to attend a SpaceX Dragon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base nearby, where 10 Iridium satellites were put in orbit. A first for both of us, it was awesome. If you are a science or space buff, you too would be impressed with the fact that once again, the first stage of the rocket was safely landed for reuse 7 minutes after takeoff, on a barge in the Pacific. Below is a 1 minute video of the takeoff and the release of the 10 satellites.
https://www.cnbc.com/video/2019/01/11/watch-spacex-launch-and-land-its-first-mission-of-2019.html
https://www.cnbc.com/video/2019/01/11/watch-spacex-launch-and-land-its-first-mission-of-2019.html
We also got to host a luncheon for Janice's mom's friends
Say it isn't so!
After being drugged and made to drink the Kool Aid...
...I was taken to the Apple indoctrinat ... eh...'re-education' camp.
I won't say that I was forced, but let's just say some kicking and screaming was involved. Not to beat it into the ground, but it is a well-known fact among close friends and family that I have never been a fan of smartphones. Don’t get me wrong, I recognize and appreciate their staggering capabilities but – for me - are not worth the initial cost and ongoing maintenance. Unlike, say…an airplane.
Recently, Janice decided that for her, it was. So, off the
Apple store we went to get her a simple iPhone XS. Of course, having come from a flip phone like
I have, this required an hour a day in classes for over a week to get a grip on all of its workings. Realistically, I know there will be times I will avail myself to some of its conveniences. It is capable of solving endless problems, just not any I actually have or cannot use a reasonable substitute. After all, I do have a flip phone to call, a camera to take pictures and a GPS in every car to guide me.
OK, except for Siri. If she had been around when I was single, I would have married her in a heartbeat because that chick knows everything! Janice is quite capable of doing almost anything she wants on various devices, and only occasionally asks for a helping hand. Reason enough for me to have joined her in all her classes to keep her company 'just in case'.
OK, except for Siri. If she had been around when I was single, I would have married her in a heartbeat because that chick knows everything! Janice is quite capable of doing almost anything she wants on various devices, and only occasionally asks for a helping hand. Reason enough for me to have joined her in all her classes to keep her company 'just in case'.
My issue with smartphones starts with my not wanting to carry stuff in my hands. I wear no jewelry (watches, rings, necklaces or bracelets) and can barely stand the lumps that my flip phone and wallet make in my pockets. A larger smartphone would be a nonstarter. Then, there is the issue of watching many of their users and not wanting to become like them. Many people seem to become part automatons around their devices. Having a smartphone yourself, you might not have noticed that other users are virtually glued to their screens. They walk around everywhere with them in their hand as though it was a cross between a portable oxygen machine and a security blanket. They text, talk or use them while they drive, walk across the street, in stores, restaurants, waiting for the bus, in the doctor's office, while they socialize, absolutely everywhere. Children have them at the park while they swing. Young lovers ignore each other and stare at their own screens.
We have had visitors in the past who keep their phones on the table next to them while we ate, excusing themselves to 'check' on pointless incoming messages. The message was clear: we were second in importance to their attention, their damn phone was first. Surely I am exaggerating, right? Perhaps, but look around you and see how many inches away you are from your phone? And, how many times you checked it while reading this.
I rest my case.
Our Lighthouse
Founded in 1890, the Point San Luis Light Station has served as the beacon over San Luis Bay for 128 years and is the only surviving Prairie Victorian model lighthouse that remains in existence on the West Coast of the United States. The coast Guard still maintains the light at the station, which blinks every night and is visible up to 17 miles away. Interestingly, Port San Luis was the largest oil exporting port in the world by the 1920's before the Saudis got into the act.
Located 20 minutes away from us, it is one of those treasures that until this month, we never seemed to have the time to visit. Life got in the way and besides, there are things to go see halfway around the world. Silly us, I guess.
Located 20 minutes away from us, it is one of those treasures that until this month, we never seemed to have the time to visit. Life got in the way and besides, there are things to go see halfway around the world. Silly us, I guess.
New projects
Us? New projects? Duh!
OK, so our season here is ending, and while we have had company for some periods and I was deployed for two weeks, we still made time for a few projects. In between visits and deployments, I tore out carpeting in our master bedroom, office and sunken living room and laid nearly 400 sq feet of Travertine stone flooring, a little over two 3-foot-high pallets full.
Meanwhile, we fell in love with a desk we saw online called a 'river desk'. In my spare time, we found some Walnut live edge wood locally, and built the one of a kind piece of furniture.
Then you draw a pattern in the shape of the gap in the middle.
Finally, you cut a piece of blue colored glass with a 50,000 PSI water jet to the live edge pattern for the 'river'.
As seen in the pic, the idea is that the center of the desk has two 'live edge' pieces of Walnut.
Then you draw a pattern in the shape of the gap in the middle.
Finally, you cut a piece of blue colored glass with a 50,000 PSI water jet to the live edge pattern for the 'river'.
Ta-Da!
The ones we have seen online run in the $3,500 to $5,500 range but this one cost us about $500 in materials. And a little work.... It has been some time since I have been able to devote myself to building exotic hardwood furniture but I really miss it.
Finally, we had a little something that we have had in storage in my workshop for over 20 years. We bought it in Sedona Arizona on a family trip with the kids, knowing that we would do 'something' with it but not knowing exactly what. After many reinventions, the decision was to display it how it wanted to be all along: a Saguaro Cactus tree skeleton.
The 'drip' pan below it is a 3-foot wide (1M), heavy cast solid Bronze 'Urhli' bowl from India. Typically, it served as a ceremonial feeding vessel for a large group, allowing those around it to reach in and scoop a portion of its contents onto their plate. It currently serves as the world’s most expensive drip pan.
The 'drip' pan below it is a 3-foot wide (1M), heavy cast solid Bronze 'Urhli' bowl from India. Typically, it served as a ceremonial feeding vessel for a large group, allowing those around it to reach in and scoop a portion of its contents onto their plate. It currently serves as the world’s most expensive drip pan.
I wish I could say that this was the only project we have had tucked away for decades awaiting completion, but alas, it is not. Take our 3000-gallon Chardonnay wine cask that we will eventually turn into a sauna for instance...
Life in Arroyo Grande
On a lighter note, I often like to share pictures or videos of where we live because the areas are so cool and it is hard to explain to friends who have not been. I have found a new one of this area that I wanted to share. Virtually everything you see in the video below is within 10 minutes of our house, so we are there often.
OK, so I have made a few pointed remarks in the past about living in California but here are some tongue in cheek aspects attributed to us by others.
You're from California if...
1. You make over $300,000 and still can't afford a house.
2. You take a bus and are shocked at two people are carrying on a conversation in English.
3. Your child's 3rd-grade teacher has purple hair, a nose ring, and is named Flower.
4. You can't remember . . . is pot illegal?
5. You've been to a baby shower that has two mothers and a sperm donor.
6. A really great parking space can totally move you to tears.
7. Gas costs $1.50 per gallon more than anywhere else in the U.S.
8. Your car insurance costs as much as your house payment.
9. You can't remember . . . is pot illegal?
10. It's barely sprinkling rain and there's a report on every news station: "STORM WATCH."
11. You pass an elementary school playground and the children are all busy with their cell phones.
12. HEY!!!! Is pot illegal????
13. Both you AND your dog have therapists, psychics, personal trainers and cosmetic surgeons.
14. The Terminator was your governor.
15. If you drive illegally, they take your driver's license. If you’re here illegally, they want to give you one.
Just living the dream
