When my daughter was in the hospital, I played a lot of Gardenscapes. I was completely miserable, I couldn’t sleep, and that damned game made the time go by. There is a silly activity narrative to Gardenscapes, but the addictive part is the best match-3 game I’ve ever played. It’s a massive time sink. And—I’m … Read more
I didn’t mean to take a month and change off, but I did. Life has been unusually relentless. Some of that has been beyond my control, and other of that has been exacerbated by my mediocre resource management. From the better spot I’m in now, I’ve carefully considered what I’ve done to contribute to my … Read more
McDonald’s has a new burger called the Big Arch, which is essentially a Big Mac on steroids. You can get the full description here, and I borrowed this (also linked) image from there too. It’s pitched as a limited-time-only premium burger. I’d guess it’s $8-9 as an a la carte item. It packs 1,020 calories. … Read more
We’ve had the same Amazon Echo for well over ten years, because I was part of the group to which it was available before widespread release. It’s always worked flawlessly, though a few years ago I had to secure the top control cover with a little super glue. But it won’t do the new, AI-driven … Read more
I listen to the music of my adolescence and young adulthood frequently. As that meant (and means) a whole lot of hair metal and new wave, I heard (and hear) a lot of lyrics about sex and love. Some of it, particularly the sexual content, is pretty cringey now. (Was then too, surely, but now … Read more
Shortly after Aaron got his first wristwatch—so, maybe age 7—he brought it to me asking about the scratches in the acrylic crystal. I said, more or less: “if your fingernail doesn’t stop in them when you drag it gently across them, then you can put a really small dab of toothpaste on the end of … Read more
Some years ago I started taking a solo trip between Christmas and New Year’s to catch up with friends I’d be unlikely to see again without a specific effort, and after I’d done it a few times I named it the Precious Hearts Tour. It’s such a warm experience to spend time in person, and … Read more
Molly is our 13-year-old cocker spaniel/boxer mix, and Lea and I picked her up from her big adventure shortly before noon today. She spent two nights in Brentwood, Tennessee at BluePearl Veterinary Hospital getting targeted radiation for the sinus cancer to which her longish bacterial infection was secondary. She was tuckered and wobbly when we … Read more
The 2025 Precious Hearts Tour is underway. Watch for a post early next week. I love visiting my seldom-seen friends. It’s the purpose for the trip, and a high attainable nowhere else. But I cherish the time by myself in the car too. It’s valuable reset time, and though I won’t use the R-word, it … Read more
I was waiting for an online meeting to start a minute ago and a colleague asked how things were going. I said “oh, this time of year I just hook my chain on at the beginning of the day, go where it takes me, and unhook it at the end.” He nodded, laughed, and said … Read more