This, That, and Electronics - It Might Be an Interesting Day

I'm looking for my second set of Aftershox Waterproof Conductive Headphones. These are what I wear in the swimming pool (and occasionally when I'm housecleaning). They are headphones that don't sit in the ear, but instead loop over it so that I can listen easily, but still have my earwax in my ears to keep the water away from them while swimming. They make several different models, one of which is specifically for swimming and other immersion sports. I love them. I listen to audio books on them while I'm swimming and it makes the time and my laps go faster - or at least it seems like that. 

Aftershokz has the best bone conduction headsets 
in the industry. Chickie wears hers all day at 
the shop. It enables her to keep in touch with her phone, 
if necessary, and also listen to audio books while 
she's packing and labeling product. I could be a 
total PITA and insist that she leave them in the 
back room, but they don't seem to be negatively 
impacting her work, so I let it ride. 

On Wednesday, it was a little cranky getting turned on, but sometimes I'm not hitting the button exactly right, so I didn't worry about it. But, yesterday, it wouldn't turn on at all. So ... I have a second set here at my desk area. I just have to find them. Then I'll load my current book onto them and start listening to find out where I left off. It's really boring to swim without my books, so finding my second set is a priority item. I do know that REI carries the waterproof version, so if I can't find mine, I can pop over there and pick a set up. It's frustrating, but not the end of the world. 

I love my "Ogre Juice" and can really tell the difference 
when I don't have my four per week. I make them on 
Fridays, so I'm off to the grocery store to buy green veggies 
for my weekly ration. 

There's also grocery shopping and "Ogre Juice" making on my agenda today. I don't need a lot at the store, but I do need a few things. My major shop is always on Wednesdays. I received a package at the shop yesterday with two new batteries for my little drone. I've been charging them, and they're ready to be used. If it's not windy, and I have a bit of time, I'll try to use the little guy again, and maybe this time the software and my phone will communicate better. It's a fun little thing, and I'd really like to use it the way I had intended it to be used. I'm still into the whole package for under $50, so it's an experiment that's well worth trying. 

My drone is orange where this one is black, but 
except for that, they are identical. I purchased 
an additional two batteries for it, though. A battery 
is only good for about 10 minutes in the air, and that's 
really not a lot of time. If we don't have a breeze 
today (and I have time), I might try again to get it 
coupled with my phone. Apparently it works easier 
with Apple phones, but I don't have one of those. I love 
my Android phone. 

And, of course, I have some computer stuff that needs to be done. So, despite the fact that I haven't got a set agenda today, it seems as if I'll have a busy and rather full day despite it all. LOL - no rest for the wicked, I guess - as the old saying goes. I guess I'm quite wicket because I don't seem to get a lot of rest all around. Have an excellent Friday and I'll be back tomorrow to wrap up the week. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

Audio and Video - Audio for Streaming and Video of Our Tree Saga

Today I'm sending DH to the shop with two different types/sets of headphones/earbuds. Chickie will talk him through getting them recognized by his phone and tablet. He's discovered the joys of streaming on Peacock, and wants headphones so that he can hear "Longmire" with greater ease after I've gone to sleep. I'm a headphone/earbud junkie - I have a lot of different sets - many for swimming, others not. I chose two for him - my spare set of underwater AfterShokz, and a set of HUB ear buds that are magnificent, but I prefer my OlyDance bone inductions instead when I'm not using my AfterShokz. 

I love my AfterShokz OpenSwim bone induction 
headphones. The best I've ever used in the pool and on 
the treadmill. I have two sets, because when one didn't 
work properly, I immediately ordered a second set on 
overnight shipping. Meanwhile their customer service 
department sent me instructions for resetting the device, 
which I did when DH was looking for headsets. I think 
he'll like them as much as Chickie, ChickieMama and I 
do (I've managed to convert everyone over to using 
AfterShokz - although they aren't using the underwater 
model). 

I use my AfterShokz for the pool. I load up my audiobook of the period onto them using a convoluted, semi-legal method, and then I'm set for 11-13 hours of swimming before I need to download and upload the next volume in the series. This particular series I'm in has more than 20 volumes, so I'm set for the year - LOL. 

My HUB ear buds are excellent - great sound 
reproduction, enormous battery power, very 
compact design - basically it hit all of my 
buttons. But ... this fancy case? It's really hard 
to open and close. I always have to fight 
with it. So I'm giving these to DH also - he can 
see what he prefers - buds or bone induction. 

I got the HUB earbuds on Indigogo - I buy a lot of things via them. It was a good price, and they are a quality product, but I really don't like their case. It's all inclusive and a sharp design, but it's also a PITA to open to get to the buds themselves. The buds give excellent sound, but I decided they weren't worth the trouble I had to go through to open and close the damned case. So, I'm giving them to DH instead. He can figure out which style of earpiece he wants to use. He might use both of them. That's fine. They're his now. 

When DH came into the upper back yard, this is what 
confronted him. A huge branch had broken from our 
neighbor's Silver Maple tree and fallen directly into our 
upper yard. 

Silver Maple trees can grow 50-80 feet tall. 
His tree is massive. I can't estimate the 
height, but it's BIG. 

I haven't told you about our tree saga. As many of you know or may remember, I have a LOT of trees on my lot. But the tallest tree in the neighborhood belongs to my next door neighbor, Chris. His Silver Maple is huge and extremely tall. Silver Maple trees can grow to a height of 50-80 feet, and his is definitely in that upper category. On Tuesday shortly after noon, I got a message from DH: "Have time go out and see if it was our tree of Chris's that just made big boom. Thank goodness it didn't take out power." He sent a photo of a HUGE branch that had fallen off the maple into our upper yard, barely missing our crabapple tree and the fence between our yards. 

I'm just going to give some photos of the 
tree. Here, you have our crabapple, a tree we 
dearly love, and the branch barely missed it. 
DH did say that it had smashed a younger 
crabapple that he had been growing nearby, though. 

Chris and DH worked for an hour or so to brace the 
fallen branch so that it would be stable until it
 could be removed. That evening, DH was 
mumbling BS to me about being able to remove 
it himself, if he could get it braced correctly, but 
I told him - "Not our tree, not our problem. Let 
Chris handle this one - it's his responsibility." 

The guys braced the tree so that it wouldn't move until the arborist Chris was going to call could come, look at it, and then take the fallen limb apart. I spoke to Chris the next morning and the arborist came at the same time, so he, I and the Rainbow Tree guy spent almost a half hour looking at the damage and figuring out the best way to approach the cleanup. Chris' insurance won't pay for it of course, because it didn't cause any property or home damage, but he'll pony up and pay for the removal, which is only right. It is his tree. He'll drop a couple of the fence panels to allow easier access, and the tree guys will start removal on Monday. It's a bummer that we both have to work that day, but it's probably for the best - DH won't be able to hover - LOL. 

Amazingly enough, the fencing was 
completely untouched. That's a six-foot 
fence, and that branch extends WAY above 
that. It's unsafe for DH to do any cutting, so 
the professionals will take care of it on 
Monday, and Chris will pay for it. His tree, 
his responsibility. (I might sneak him a 
hundred or two - he has three kids in private 
school, so this is a financial blow, I'm sure). 

One last overview. You can see the bracing at the 
end of the branch, helping to keep the whole thing 
stable until next week. It should be OK unless we 
get tornado-level winds. Chris said he's going to 
drop a couple of the fence panels to allow easier 
access to our yard, and the tree dudes will start on 
Monday, hopefully finishing within the day. 

So that was our excitement this week. It's always something - if not an appliance breaking, then a windstorm, or a tree. Life is always unpredictable and it would do us good to remember that - LOL. As for me ... I had a lot of fun writing on the dark side for the current story, and have been thanked for putting down the warnings of trigger possibilities. I enjoy writing gritty. Maybe I'll have another opportunity in future to explore the dark side once again. In the meantime, however, it's Friday, it's my ONLY day off this week, and I have a slate of things I need to do today that's as long as my arm. So I'm out of here. Have an excellent Friday and Slava Ukraini. I'll be back tomorrow. 

Cold, Argh and Kindness - I'm All Over the Place Today

Yesterday morning was cold, and today is even colder. Oh well, that's what good clothing and good outerwear is for. Today, at least, I do have my boots, and I don't think there's a wicked wind blowing as there was on Monday. I suspect our wind chill temperature isn't much different than the ambient, which leave me at 4 Fahrenheit, instead of sub 10. It's almost a summer on the patio temperature - LOL. Yeah ... not really. 

It's a heat wave. Of course, that's totally tongue in cheek, 
since it's only 7 F (-13.8 C) outside. I'll be bundled up 
for my wait for the door to be opened. At least today I 
have my boots, so I'll be a bit warmer than Monday. 

I'm off to the pool in a half hour, and it's also my "day off" and trash and laundry day. I'll take the bins out to the curb when I leave for the pool, and I already have my first load of laundry in the washer. I'm hoping to get a serious jump on my day, but I have to be very time conscious today. I have a zoom call scheduled for 11:00 am with the founder of WildFit - Eric Edmeades, and I don't want to miss this call. We rarely get the opportunity to chat with him personally, usually we're listening and exchanging thoughts with one of the senior coaches or the head nutritionist. It's always a treat to get to chat with Eric. 

I enjoy listening to Eric speak, and I've really enjoyed 
the few other times I've been able to interact with him 
in a live session. It's always a treat. So I'm looking 
forward to this too. He did a three-hour live 
presentation a week or so ago, but I simply didn't 
have the three hours available. I still haven't been 
able to see the recording, but I did sign up for 
the class he was offering. He's one instructor I try 
to take when I can because he's an excellent teacher. 

He's publishing a book next year that will deal with holistic health for humans. It deals with food, exercise, and mental clarity and I'm looking forward to it. He's also teaching a Master Class which I've signed up for. Hopefully the times/dates won't conflict with my work life. The last time I only got to listen to half of the live sessions because they were on a work day in mid-day. 

I love my Xtrainerz bone induction headphones and I'm 
using them not only in the pool, but almost every day 
on and off. I get wonderful sound and I can still listen 
and react to what's going on around me. I just have an 
issue with the controls. I wish the OFF button was 
placed somewhere other than between the "forward" 
and "backward" buttons. I'll be writing the company 
to suggest that because this is highly annoying. 

I was within a half-hour of finishing my current audio book when I attempted to turn off my headphones. I accidentally pressed the "next track" button and it brought me to the beginning of the book again. I know, from having gone through this with Customer Service last week, this is irreversible. I sighed. It's a 14 hour book and I really didn't want to listen to the entire thing again. I recharged the headphones and before I went to sleep, I started it playing. It's now almost seven hours along, so I'll be re-listening to an hour while I'm swimming, I'll let it play until 9:00 am, at which time I'll actually be within two hours of the end. That's easy to listen to as I do my chores today. 

Taking a closer look at the headphone, maybe you can 
see what I mean. There are three buttons on the 
underside - Back, Off and Forward (l-r). The 
on/off button is smaller than the other two 
and positioned between them. When I'm in a rush 
or my hands are cold and it's harder for me to 
have fine touch, it's easy to hit the wrong 
button. In a playlist it isn't a problem. For an 
audio book, it brings me tack to the beginning 
of the book. That's a BIG problem. 

The controls are the only thing I don't like about my AfterShokz Xtrainerz. With the exception of pushing the incorrect button (which would only knock me back one song on a playlist - but a book is considered a single audio item), I love the headphones. It's the first time I can be in the water and hear clearly, no matter what, no matter the stroke or the agitation of the water. I just have to be more careful when I'm turning it on and off. 

It's always a good thing to practice kindness. 
There are so many things that can hurt in 
this world. Let's try to now make that worse. 

So, time to plug in some photos and start my day. I have things to write and things to do and things to listen to. I have groceries to buy (I think only my local grocery store today), and I need to continue cleaning up after my card preparation. Hopefully I'll have a prompt for this week's story and can spend some time writing fiction. I'm off to the pool, have an excellent Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Please be kind and a bit forgiving of others today. Everyone seems to be on edge these days, and it's a hard season of the year for many people. 

It's Cold Outside and Spring is a Long Way Distant

It's cold outside, but it'll get much colder before we see those 50's and 60's once again. I'm getting used to putting on my parka when I go outside again, and the backyard has been stripped of the grill, the umbrella and the chairs. We don't have room to store the table, so we'll have to cover that with black plastic for the season. We can't find our roll of black plastic, so we'll probably have to buy another one - not a tragedy, but a short delay. 

We have a roll of black plastic sheeting somewhere, but 
DH couldn't find it the other day, and I took a look on 
Friday, but couldn't locate it either (I didn't check 
the shed, but he said that he had). We might have to 
buy another roll to protect our patio table against 
the winter storms. 

DH and I spent a lovely and relaxed Sunday together, watching football and eating Chipotle for dinner. We enjoy Chipotle because we get two meals out of it, and because he can have all of his fixings, but I can basically have a base of lettuce with meat - perfect for me. I also worked on Stage 2 of my card inserts yesterday and got that wrapped up. I'll be continuing to work on Stage 3 before I unlock the shop this morning. I won't get quite as much done as I might want, but every little bit is a step forward. 

I picked up a new 3M Glue when 
I was at the office supply a few weeks 
ago. This is my favorite one - it has 
a good fine tip which I can control 
easily. It also dries quickly. My previous 
tube was just about used up, so it 
was time for a new one. It's been 
getting heavy use over the past 2 weeks. 

I received a stamp I had ordered in Saturday's mail. Perfect timing, since I need the items within it for the final panel of this year's cards. So far when I've needed something, I've always found it in my hands shortly before I required it. Good timing all around, since I'm running a bit late with this year's Solstice cards. 

I had mentioned Elizabeth Peters to 
Chickie when I started listening to the 
series again. She also loves the books, 
so started listening to her copies too.
They are such fun. We're both 
addicted to them, and the audio 
versions are very well done. 

I also loaded the next book in Elizabeth Peter's "Amelia Peabody" series onto my AfterShokz headphones yesterday afternoon. It's always a bit of a convoluted process. I wrote myself a set of step-by-step directions and that seems to work much better. It certainly is NOT intuitive since I'm going through a third-party program to translate the ebook into MP3 format, then from that third-party program into the headset. It's well worth it, though. I love the headset, it works beautifully in and out of the pool, and I'm able to listen to books while I swim, which is a happy thing for me. 

I have to actually refer to a step-by-step list 
to get my ebooks transferred to MP3 format, 
and then loaded onto my headphones. It's 
convoluted, but it can be done, and I'm 
enjoying listening to my Amelia Peabody 
series when I have time to turn on the 
headphones. I listen often, not just in the 
swimming pool. 

So have a wonderful Monday. I'll be quite busy, as you can tell. I'll be getting in touch with a few of you directly about holiday cards, since I haven't heard from you, and I'll do a final Call Out later this week or early next. In the meanwhile, have an absolutely wonderful Monday and I'll be back tomorrow.