I just learned WordPress released an updated version of their Apple iOS iPod and iPad app. Customers write the update corrects several serious and frustrating issues that plagued earlier releases. So I’ve reinstalled the app and we’ll see how it goes. Third time’s the charm?
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It's a beautiful day at Hinckley Lake though the partial ice covering says its waters are very cold. This Sunny January 2, 2011 was a good day to be out but not a good day to remain out.
Visiting my mother at her home over Christmas holiday, someone began remarking about the many birds that were visiting her feeder… including one large pigeon. The more they described the bird, the more I had to see it. From the window I saw a very sizable bird that was not a pigeon at all but a Cooper’s Hawk! The visit wasn’t for a meal of seeds but likely for a snack of sparrow. The hawk, perched on a tree limb, hadn’t caught anything; it soon hopped down to the ground just below our window, then took flight, disappearing amongst the trees.
Today I received a phone call at the office and, pacing while talking, I gazed blankly out the window then snapped into focus. To my surprise a hawk was perched upon a brick wall but 10 feet away! At first I thought it was another Cooper’s Hawk but began to think that this one may have been a Sharp-shinned Hawk; they can be tricky to tell apart and I’ve only begun to recognize them. Today’s bird, however, was eating. Holding some unfortunate, tiny kill to the wall with its talons, the hawk stripped bits of flesh off and gobbled them down.
I find the raptors to be among the most beautiful birds both in their appearance and their flight. They also happen to be among the fiercest predators around. It’s hard for me sometimes to reconcile the two aspects: beauty and slaughter. It is, however, their nature and they must eat to survive.
Unfortunately, though my camera was in the room, I was on the phone. By the time the call had ended and I looked out the window again, the hawk had finished its meal and taken flight.
I had vegetarian chili for lunch.
Snow covers the tables and chairs of a bistro in Hudson, Ohio.
Most times we really enjoy our electric heat pump. It does a good job of heating and cooling our little old condominium, requires little maintenance, and seems to cost less than heating with gas. But (you knew that was coming) there are times when it just can’t cut it. When the outside air temperature falls much below 19 degrees (F), the heat pump and its auxiliary “electric furnace” can barely keep up. When the temperatures fall closer to zero, we lose ground and the house grows colder. Electric space heaters help but can’t (shouldn’t) be left unattended. The fireplace works but requires regular attention and can’t be left unwatched and can actually result in net heat loss due to the need for leaving the damper open. She Who Must Be Obeyed froze in the house last year and decided something must be done — we would purchase a word stove insert and make a permanent conversion of the fireplace.
Based upon the measurements of our condo’s manufactured fireplace, the folks at Country Stove Patio & Spa immediately recommended two models and we quickly decided upon the “Lopi Republic” by Travis Industries. We paid our deposit, scheduled an installation date, and went home.
The Lopi Republic Stove Arrives
November 24 rolled around quickly and our installers had a break in the cold, wet weather. Good thing, too, as they had to climb to the top of the roof, remove the chimney cap, and run a new liner down the chimney. Fortunately there were no obstructions and the liner dropped straight down and into the fireplace. A new cap was installed and the outdoor work was complete.
Stove insert aligned with fireplace opening in preparation for installation.
Muscling the little stove into place wasn’t easy. Fortunately the installers were both strong and experienced and had the 380-pound, cast iron wonder in the house and on the hearth with no damage to house or stove. The damper was removed from the flue, the stove eased into the fireplace, and the stainless steel liner attached to the stove.
Installer checks position of stove insert.
Facing trim and support legs were attached and the job was done. The narrative makes the job sound quick and simple though entire process took several hours of nonstop work by two skilled installers. The end result is, I think, an improvement — I actually prefer the look of the little black stove over the former fireplace. She agrees.
The finished installation of wood stove insert.
On December 3 I spent a day off firing up the stove for the first time. It’s a recommended process meant to provide a final curing of the stove’s finish. The manufacturer warns that, while non-toxic, the fumes produced can be irritating and open windows, even leaving the premises are recommended. Bring the stove slowly to high heat, keep it there for a couple of hours, and that should be the end of the unpleasantness. It was smelly in the house that day but neither I nor cat Tasha felt inclined to leave. In fact, Tasha quickly realized the benefit of a wood-fired stove: soothing heat without the risk of popping sparks flying into the room!
The first fire, a very hot one, attracts Tasha the cat with its quiet heat.
Today and tonight promise to be the coldest of the season and the temperature here never rose above the mid-teen degrees (F) today. We’ll be using the wood stove tonight to warm us as we lounge in the living room and will be able to head off to bed leaving the fire to safely burn out on its own.
Thing is, it burns wood at an alarming rate compared with the tiny fires we built for mood. We need to store lots of firewood!
Cloudy or not, here it comes! A total lunar eclipse will take place during the night of December 20 – 21 and will be visible in its entirety from North America… provided the local skies cooperate. The sight, at mid-eclipse, can be eerily spectacular when the evening’s formerly brilliant Moon is reduced to a red- or copper-colored orb floating in a dark sky. Most people see only a very few lunar eclipses in their lifetimes — it can be worth a little sleep loss to get out of bed and take a look.
A total lunar eclipse takes place when the entire Moon passes through the deepest part Earth’s shadow; the Sun must be on the opposite side of Earth for that to happen which also means total lunar eclipses can only take place when the Moon is in its Full phase.
The partial eclipse portion of the 2010 event will begin at 1:33 AM, Dec. 21 — when the (left) edge of the Moon first touches the Earth’s deep shadow or “umbra.” The total eclipse begins when the Moon is fully covered by shadow — 2:41 AM– and mid-eclipse is reached at 3:17 AM, when Luna is as far into shadow as it will travel this time. When the left edge (limb) of the Moon begins emerge from the Earth’s cone-shaped umbra, the Moon will begin to brighten and that starts at 3:53 AM. Finally, at 5:01 AM the right limb of our Moon emerges from the last bit of darkness and the disk will appear full once again.
Technically the Moon will be within Earth’s much thinner outer shadow (penumbra) well before and after the eclipse takes place. The dimming caused by the penumbra is so slight, however, that only the best observers and sophisticated instruments detect it.
A total lunar eclipse is a beautiful natural event, exciting and awe-inspiring to see. Lunar eclipses are completely safe to view and no special equipment is needed to enjoy the sight. Binoculars and telescopes are optional. Enjoy the wonders of our night skies!
It’s not that we didn’t like our AT&T U-verse TV service; we just didn’t feel we were getting out money’s worth out of it. With U-verse and DirecTV before it, we paid a handsome sum monthly for programming packages that contained very little of interest to us. To gain access to a single channel we might wish to view we would be expected to purchase an entire programming package of stuff we did not want. So what if you can get 250 channels if, after scanning them all, “there’s nothing on!” Finally, last month, we asked AT&T to stop our TV service –though not that very nice high-speed Internet– and sought our entertainment elsewhere.
The Tivo Premiere XL is an excellent video entertainment control center and does not require a cable TV connection in order to be useful or even to work (as opposed to what the dope at Best Buy told us).
To help with the transition and enable “time-shifting” and alternative access we purchased a Tivo Premier XL digital video recording system. With a reasonable annual fee we have access to an on-screen programming guide from which we can select “live” programming or schedule recording. We can also download and record video content from the Web and video-on-demand paid programs from sources we choose. The slim, self-contained unit has HDMI and Internet connectivity and is easy to operate via remote control.
So far, so good! We get outstanding high-definition programming through local TV network affiliates (no charge), a few interesting and entertaining downloads from Web sources (free), a couple of video-on-demand cable programs through Amazon.com (cheap and a la carte, no subscription fee). A pay-per-view movie also proved to be a bargain and beautiful to view and listen to… Eat, Pray, Love via Amazon’s movie service; we’ll do more of that.
The biggest challenge so far has been getting optimal over-the-air reception via an attic-mounted antenna. (The condo people don’t like outdoor antennae.) Some signals are shaky at times but we see our favorite network shows in full HD and for free.
We don’t really miss paying $60 per month for the three or four programs we liked most. We didn’t miss the conclusion of Top Chef: Just Desserts (by the episode via Amazon) or the ongoing installments of The Little Couple. I do, however, sorely miss Storm Chasers… but the DVD of Season 4 is about to be released!
A crown of stacked snowflakes decorates the heads of Queen Anne's Lace plants standing, dried, in a field bordering a Burger King parking lot.
I was sorely disappointed with Lulu.com this year. I’d created my 2011 calendar using that company expecting the same very good results I enjoyed last time. What I received was, in several places, second-rate printing at best. So today I used Zazzle.com to create a new edition of the 2011 calendar. Their online creation process was easy though didn’t seem to offer some customizations to which I am accustomed. Still, I’ve heard good things and will hope for the best. So I’ll be placing an order for close relatives and dearly hoping Zazzle provides me with excellent product! All told, next year’s calendars are costing me a fortune!
UPDATE: The calendars finally arrived at my PO Box over the weekend and I picked them up today (Dec. 6). They look very good though slightly shorter than the Lulu 2010 product. Zazzle’s image quality is very good (way better than what Lulu did to the 2011 calendar) though perhaps a bit flat. Then again, I’m used to computer screen and photographic print renditions. At least I now have something decent to send and sell.
PhotonStopper 