Seeing the Unseen

Outside of the simulation, nothing exists in corporeal form.  Energies exist.  The subatomic level consists of the fragmentary, cast-off and epidermal layer of the unobservable, not even scratching the surface.  Beneath that exists reality, such as it is.  Zoomed out beyond the imagination, like some astronomical impressionist painting, comes together the picture of reality.

God is greater than the most macro and smaller than the most micro.  All we can observe is the small piece of existence we inhabit.  Sensors to view on those scales have never, and will never, exist.  We learn about our creator, like we've learned about the unfathomable part of our tiny segment of the universe, through indirect evidence.

How to Get to the Moon (among other things)

The Smarter Every Day channel posted some more video with Luke Talley, Saturn V Engineer and classic Alabama guy. Saturn V, aside from sending the first man to the moon, also had the best track record of any rocket, with no catastrophic failures. Aside from building some of the first transmitters from scrach, Talley also helped develop machine learning.
Very interesting video.

Coins

Flipping a coin when you can't make a decision ensures that you'll make a decision for which you have no reason.  Not that you have to have a reason, you just won't have one that explains why you didn't choose the other option.  You can make one up, but it won't be true.

Nobody Remembers Before

The internet, as we know it today, has been around for over 30 years.  The world wide web made it possible, and AOL really popularized it.  All those CDs in the mailbox guaranteed it.

Sure, the way we view it has changed.  Smartphones put it in our hands.  Video streaming became more feasible as connection speeds improved.  The resolution has improved greatly.  Pretty much anything you want to know is seconds away.

That means there are middle-aged people who can't remember a time before the internet.  That, to me, is weird.  Even weirder than AOL CD drink coasters.

Onion and Sun

Onion smells so good.  I got a big ole' red onion in my stocking for Christmas.  It's mostly diced up, now, simmering with some veggies and leftover ham.  Smells divine.

The days are getting longer, again, but you'd never notice.  A few seconds more light every day.  Before we know it, it'll be Summer again.

Heavenly Peace

The Sun has set on Christmas weekend.  It's been a cold one.  The temperatures finally got back up above freezing, today, for the first time since last Thursday.  Not much, though, because the ice in the driveway is still frozen.

It's good to have family and friends on the holidays to warm your spirits.  Enjoy them all, now.  Too many faces aren't around to celebrate with, anymore.  

For now, the belly is full.  The houses are full.  Sleep well and get some well-earned rest.

Merry Christmas!

Here's hoping you and yours have a warm and wonderful Christmas.  Hope you get what you asked for from Santa.  God Bless us, every one.  And to all a good night.

Dimwatted

Alabama makes more than enough electricity to use all we need and still sell a considerable amount to other states.  Somehow, on the coldest day of the year, power generation was curtailed to the point where purposeful rolling blackouts are needed.  This is unprecedented in my lifetime.

If it turns out this is some attempt to reduce fossil fuel usage by not starting up boilers to make the energy we need, it would be akin to ecological terrorism.  There are people who have medical equipment in their homes keeping them alive.  They paid their whole lives to ensure that power is coming into their home.  To have some limp-wristed, brainwashed imbecile in a high enough position to make that call would be incomprehensible.

Making people miserable, potentially threatening their lives, just to force your empty-headed political agenda on them is the DEFINITION of terrorism.  If this is confirmed, there will definitely be some political reckoning.  Let there be no doubt.

Insurrection?

Can you imagine the forefathers of this country shrieking and running like little blue-blood cowards to the basement of the Capitol if an 'insurrection' had attempted to overrun it?  Why didn't the Congress defend the Capitol on January 6th, 2021, if they actually thought it was under attack?  If they truly thought this, shouldn't they be tried as deserters and cowards since they screamed and ran?  Didn't they swear an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic?  Did they think taking that oath was a joke?

Well, the fact is they didn't believe there was any 'insurrection', or anything of the kind...  They were triggered.  They were angry that the average person had the courage to petition them in person for a redress of grievances, as the Constitution (the one they swore to defend) demands.

They weren't thinking, "The country is under attack from insurrectionists!"  It was more like, "How dare these peons enter our high palace of special-ness and demand to be represented!"  "Prove that elections are counted properly?  PISH POSH.  Let them eat cake!"

Cold and Dark

Welcome to the longest night of the year.  They're all pretty long, these days.  Cold, too.

Christmas promises to be cold this year.  Little lights flicker on the tree, but it still seems dark.  It's going to be cold, even inside with the heater going.

Conversations

We don't talk enough.  There's only so long we have on this earth together.  Find out why folks think what they think.  Don't just assume.  

We should definitely talk a lot more.  Not just about the weather.  Do that, too, but also find something out.  Listen, learn and talk.

Not just talking at one another, either.  Process what you hear.  Don't let it go in one ear and out the other.  Let it make sense, or at least try to understand where it comes from.

End It

Minimum requirements for quality aren't being met.  Expensive reveals itself as cheaply made, and the cheap things are essentially a waste of the few resources required to make them.  "Value" is highly subjective.

The 'right' blames labor costs and foreign competition.  The 'left' blames greedy business owners and 'capitalism'.  They're both wrong... and if you believe them, you're wrong.

Quality inevitably costs more when the money you use to buy it loses its value.  You can't even save up to buy something really nice, anymore, because when you save up what it used to cost, the price has gone up.  If you can't rely on savings, after working hard and sacrificing to accumulate them, you won't even have the collateral to borrow the money.

So why does our money lose value?  Knowing how it hurts people, why would this be allowed to happen?  If you don't know by now, you're part of the problem.

Pursuit of Something

Direction depends on where you want to go.  If you don't know where you want to go, no amount of direction will get you there.  Find somewhere to be, first.  Then, it won't be so hard to find your direction.

Free Energy? I Doubt It

What was this nonsense 'announcement', the other day, implying some huge step in fusion happened?  The DOE speech was all about Biden and giving money to the lab that allegedly did it.  Sounded like someone was seriously fishing.

Firstly, if this 'breakthrough' occurred, it would've been rumored for months, if not years, before being announced.  Why?  Because all the graduate students talk.  It takes a LONG time to prove your results came from what you purport.  This would've leaked all over the internet, by now.

It sounds like all that happened was an experiment with lasers, that has been failing every time it's been attempted longer than I've been alive, finally yielded a result that could be interpreted as a success.  No replication of the results were reported.  None of the scientists involved were even present at this announcement... just a bunch of jabbering bureaucrats.

Don't get me wrong... if some sort of parsimony-defying energy source is discovered, it will make energy far cheaper and plentiful.  They claimed more energy was produced than expended.  That's a far-fetched claim.  Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.  I'm afraid the assessment of one experiment doesn't confirm the extraordinary.  I would love to believe it, but more than politically-motivated talking heads are required.

They even admitted they haven't replicated it.  "Concerted effort and investment, a few decades of research" are required before anything can be done with this, according to one of them.  "This is one igniting capsule, one time and to realize commercial fusion energy you have to do many things; you have to be able to produce many, many fusion ignition events per minute."    

Well, until 'many, many' happens, I'm going to remain skeptical.

"Inflation"

Your money continues to lose value because you've chosen to ignore what your government does.  As long as someone says what you want to hear, you just don't care.  I wish I was sorry that the broken record keeps spinning, but it has to be restated, if it's ever going to change.

The more money they create from nothing, the less your money is worth.  The less your money is worth, the less you can buy.  It's pretty simple.

Life's short.  By ignoring the corruption, you guarantee the future will be more bleak.  Instead of living for today, leaching what you can from the world before you go, why not try to leave it better than it was?  

By doing nothing as government increased spending to levels no one in the future can pay off, we've already made the lives of those to come more difficult than ours.  Even if you taxed everyone 100%, you wouldn't have enough.  This isn't even the problem... it's just a symptom.

The problem is ignorance and apathy.  You don't know how you got here.  You also don't care.

Firstly, the government was allowed to float the value of money, ensuring the ability to crash the currency.  The great depression was soon to follow.  Government connected bankers and others grew their wealth while others suffered.

Then, they were allowed to take your more of your money the more you managed to make by implementing an income tax.  They said they wouldn't tax anyone unless they made more than a few thousand a year.  All the while, they knew they would devalue your money to the point where you'd have to make more than a few thousand to survive.

In the mid-70s, the money was completely disconnected from any tangible value.  This allowed it to be completely manipulated.  Manipulation never positively affects value, only negatively.  Paying off debt and reducing the amount of money is the only way to increase its value.

As a result, if you're young, you probably won't have things of the same value your parents.  They, and their parents, allowed the government to gamble with your future.  Instead of even investing in your future, they pocketed most of it, and threw them the crumbs.

Early Morning Fire Fright

This is what greeted me when I walked outside, this morning. The glow in the distance isn't Christmas lights.  At first, I thought the woods on my property between the house and highway were on fire.

Turns out, it was the place all the way across the highway burning.

It was very bright... and terrifying.  It looked as if my driveway was completely engulfed in flames.  Immediately, my brain started trying come up with ways to get out of there... before I realized the scale and distance to the fire.  It's actually well over a quarter mile away.  Still, it was able to illuminate my truck's back window.

As I got into my vehicle, the firefighters arrived.  They had it down pretty quickly.  By the time I got to that end of my driveway, the fire looked to be well under control, if not close to extinguished.

Light Out

Flickering Christmas lights just started to show up in greater numbers.  It's all more sleek and streamlined than when I was a kid.  There seems to be less, these days, as well.  Maybe that's just perception.

Seems like the day after Thanksgiving the world used to turn into a cross between the disco North Pole and Bethlehem.  Now, you start seeing Christmas items in stores before Thanksgiving, but not out and about.  Again, maybe just where you go and what grabs attention.

The tiny little LEDs on even tinier strands of copper are really slick and neat.  They're probably even brighter, when left on, than the older style... that is, when they're not doing some pre-programmed light show.  They don't get as hot as the old bulbs, either, so the fire risk greatly reduces.

The old style were more imposing.  The newer little LEDs seem to blend in better.  Maybe too well.

There's just something about the old incandescents.  The fat ones and the little skinny ones both inspire nostalgia.  You don't see very many of them anymore, either.  

They're out there, though.  There will probably be even more.  Decorating Santas and reindeer in a yard near you, they'll keep flickering until the New Year.

Smart Phones for Dummies

It's hilarious how some people think using a smart phone is some sort of skill.  They have no idea what makes the thing actually work... they just TOUCH it.  The user interface is designed so that nearly ANYONE can figure it out.  

These things are basically computers for people with learning disabilities.  See what you want?  Point and stab it with your index finger.

Everyone just clicks 'ACCEPT' on user agreements, too.  I tried reading them.  It's no use.  Even if you read enough to find the bad stuff, your only recourse is to not use the app.

I've got a lot of respect for people who put smartphones down, or just get a simple phone for making calls or texting.  Too many people do everything on their phone...  Things that should be done on computers with better security, or in person.  It's really a wonder there isn't more fraud.  The crooks are probably just too inundated with data.

Cool Tools and a Smart Dummy

There was an interesting little surprise hiding at the Harbor Freight, today. Tucked between the quadrotor drones and peepaw's jumbo magnifying glass is a section dedicated to watchmaking! There were whole repair kits, presses, loupes, springbar tools, small gear pullers, hammers and even a watchback removing tool. If I'd been in a different mood, I might've bought one of everything. Instead, I took a picture:

On a completely unrelated note, there was a SpaceX launch of the iSpace lunar lander, earlier. Then, around noon, the Orion spacecraft made its splashdown. Two moon missions had milestones within 24 hours. That's pretty cool.
I also like that NASA calls the dummy placed in the capsule a "Moonikin". It was even given a name, "Campos." It's named after Arturo Campos, according to NASA.

Up in Smoke

Collectives deceptively provide a false sense of security.  Everyone agreeing, the illusion that all are devoted to some absurd cause pretends to provide insulation, but is merely smoke and mirrors.  The need for individuals to sacrifice as fuel to keep the smokescreen going eventually exhausts the supply, and the collective begins to consume itself. 

Warm and Sweets

Staying in a hot shower too long dries the skin out.  Feels good while you're in it, though.  Yawns, stretches and warmth inspire early thoughts of sleep.

There's a couple of brownies in the kitchen.  And about a half gallon of milk.  

They call to me. 

Advent Flaps, Coffee and Cycles

Another flap opens on the Advent calendar.  The mouse moves one step closer.  I guess he gets the cheese at the end?

My health insurance provider aired a commercial that played on my TV advocating drinking coffee.  I never thought I'd see that.  I remember my late aunt telling me the doctors forbade her from drinking it.  

Now, it's a good thing.

That's cool.  These things are cyclical.  When I'm a senior, they'll say it's bad again.  It's like eggs.

Marking Twain

Waxing and waning motivations roller coaster their way through weeks.  Nobody's always up.  Biorhythms undulate.  

There need to be waypoints.  Some sort of ability to check on progress has to exist.  If not, and things can't be measured, there's no way to know when the slope is up or down.

Hot for Now

Warm weather imposes its will on December.  At some point, cold will make a comeback and smack the winter around.  For now, though, the last month of the year finds itself at the mercy of the heat.

Not very far north they complain about snow and cold.  Not here.  It's all good, though.

Over the Left Shoulder

Another thing's always waiting.  Done with this thing?  Make haste, because the next one impatiently glowers over your shoulder.

This might be a recurring theme, here.  What can be said, though?  If it ever gets to the point where nothing productive waits to be done, the grim reaper starts walking up behind you.  As annoying as things get, it's still better to have something to do than nothing.

Random Stream of Consciousness #5150

Remembering words quickly loses necessity if meaning can convey itself without them.  Humming a few bars brings it all back around.  Believe that.

Coffee mug temperature: cold.  Contents:  empty.  Too late in the day for me for a refill.

I should do something.  Go outside.  Go somewhere.  Meet people.  Make friends.

Or not.  The house provides a nice experience.  Nobody owes anyone anything.  Today can quietly turn into tonight without consequence.

Delicious Peace of Mind

Groceries in the kitchen somehow make things seem better.  Another repetitive thing doesn't have to be dealt with for a while.  If the tummy goes empty, it can be refilled.  Food in the belly and food in the fridge is a comforting feeling.

A.I. Gets Red-Card

I don't think I've ever watched a full soccer match.  Especially not men's.  Somehow, though, the algorithm thinks I'd be interested.  Additionally, the thing thinks I'd be interested enough to respond positively to repeated commercials for it. 

This is why I think the fear of AI is unfounded.  Sure, they listen to and watch everything.  Fortunately, at least for the time being, their interpretation of that data is hilariously flawed.