Posts

Showing posts from June, 2020

Trollbot See, Trollbot Do

Image
What are the chances these accounts are all bots? I mean, they're the same comments word for word. 

No Longer a Virgin

Image
For the first time ever I voted by mail. This was just for the primaries, but still, it's a first for me, a guy who usually goes and stands in line for hours.

TrumpNation

Image
Unless you've been lost in the jungle for the past few years you're aware that #TrumpNation (those who belong to President Donald J. Trump's cult of personality) aren't generally the sharpest tools in the shed.  In fact, they have a history of being ignorant, racist, belligerent and impolite. Most recently they've been anti-social distancing, anti-community and anti-health and welfare of the test of us. They've said it's okay for the elderly and the infirm to die with Covid-19, that Coronavirus is a hoax, that it's just the flu and they deem wearing a mask in public to somehow be an attack on their civil liberties. Protip: it's not. This guy, wearing a MAGAmoron hat, is aboard an airplane, in a confined space, surrounded by others and, while he's wearing a mask, he's wearing it in a manner that does no good.  This is #TrumoNation. An old white guy without a shred of decency and who believes his own needs are paramount to our colle

Castlewood Canyon State Park

Image
Went on a walk today at Castlewood Canyon State Park with a neighbor and her friends. All-in-all there were two guys and two girls (me being one of the guys) and two dogs. We hiked about 7-8 miles. It was hard to know the exact distance as the park's maps were primitive and we did head down a particular path that was abandoned about half way around.  As you can see by the images below, we had crystal clear blue skies and the temperature was pushing 90°F.  Last night I'd discovered a grape sized blister between my toes and I popped it so it would have a chance to dry out over night but I'm fairly certain I came home with more.  This first image is the valley that was dam'd up to create a lake back in the late 19th / early 20th centuries. After the dam broke the lake drained. These next two images are simple rock formations for those of you who are interested in this sort of thing. The aforementioned dam. Or, at least, the remnants of t

Requesting Access

Image
Yesterday I received this weird request. Someone I don't know, whom I've had no interactions with (to the best of my knowledge) has requested access to a headshot I had taken a few years ago.  I'm assuming at this point that this is some sort of scam, but still, this is a first for me.

Faith No More

Image
Google has killed a great many services over the years . From well loved products like the aforementioned Google Reader and Google+, to less used but equally enjoyed services like Google Wave.  Next on the chopping block is Google Music, a product similar to Spotify and any other music streaming service. And, once again, those of us who put out faith in Google's service will have to face the reality that trusting Google or putting effort into any Google product or service is pointless.  Yes, I write this on Google's Blogger service and every single day I wonder if I should migrate over to anybody a dozen other blogging platforms. But, as I have a GSuite account, I have to believe Google will keep Blogger around as it's a fantastic service with countless ways to make it yours - even if you don't know how to.  Re: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2020/06/youtube-music-library-transfers-your-purchased-music-is-not-welcome-here/

Surprise Visit

Image
I happened to be sitting here on the couch working on the computer when I notice out the window a silver minivan that was stopped just outside, the driver appearing to be looking at the windows and doors of the house. Was s/he looking to see if someone was home? We're they looking for a way to break in or were they looking at the house mistakenly, perhaps believing it was for sale or rent, or something else entirely. A few seconds later the minivan moved on and I didn't think anything of the experience. It was odd, but being in a condo you sometimes get used to delivery drivers looking for building numbers or realtors who are looking for the unit for sale.  Then I heard a car door shut outside and I walked over to the window for a closer look. I was expecting to see someone who pulled into the parking lot but instead I see the same silver minivan parked in front of my garage. The driver stepped out of the vehicle and it's my landlord, Ed Copolla. He steps to the garage, pun

Trying Something New

Image
So, from what I have been able to figure out is I cannot load images to Blogger from Photos using the Blogger app but I can load from Drive ( so, it's definitely probably a Photos issues). Here's tonight's sunset: And this is just about an hour later: And this is closer to what it looked like:

Uploading on Mobile

Image
So, apparently I can upload a photo to the Android Blogger app via my Google Drive but not from the Photos app. So, is this an issue with the Photos app or the Blogger app?  So frustrating.

Testing the Blogger Desktop App New Intrerface

Image
Moron King of the USA So, apparently the new interface is allowing me to upload images. This particular gem is a photo of the King of Morons. You can tell by his stupid face, tepid eyes, open mouth and the marker of all the morons, the red MAGA hat. It's just like wearing a Swastika armband. 

Testing the Blogger Image Upload

Image
This is a test to see if I could upload from desktop. This is with the current Blogger interface. There is a new one that Google is rolling us all to that seems to be offering some issues. We'll try that one next.

Testing the Blogger App

Image
So, apparently, if I take a photo from within the Blogger app the image works, but uploading from my device to the app produced nothing.  Let me explain the scene you're seeing. The video game is a machine my roommate bought for his kid, had in his room and recently moved out to the living room so he could entertain his lady-friend and her child. The Merry Christmas sign was up there when I moved in and has been up there ever since. The water bottle and keys belong to me. 

Stripes of History

Image
So, apparently, I cannot upload images to this blog from the official Google Blogger app, but I can from the mobile Blogger interface. Seriously, Google? Anywho ... both of these images are taken of the same rock with my Android phone and edited with Snapseed to boost the colors a bit.

Not So Perfect 10

Image
Updated Android to 10 this morning and it looks like Blogger lost the ability to upload photos/images to posts.  That's inconvenient. So, I went to the Play Store and found the contact information for this particular app, sent them a quick email and immediately received the response over to the right.  Apparently, Google is no longer monitoring the Blogger app contact email.  On a side note, I also came to discover that I could no longer upload to Flickr either. So, I have to assume it's something with Android 10 and one of the APIs being used by other apps to upload images. Twitter and MeWe don't seem to have any issues whatsoever. 

Change is Hard

Image
So, NASCAR decided the Confederate Battle Flag was no longer welcome at their events. This is a long time coming and a big win for equal rights in the United States.  But, it looks like one NASCAR driver wasn't happy with their decision: Then the same driver declared he would retire from the races if NASCAR went forward with their decision. And NASCAR's response was perfect as Ray Ciccarelli is (as of this writng) 0 and 31. That's zero wins and 31 losses. [Note: no one is sure if this was NASCAR's real response or if it was a witty photochop. Regardless, it's funny.] And then this amazing retort: And it looks like Ray couldn't handle the heat because he quickly left Twitter.

It's Been a Long Time

Image
I've had these shoes for years. Technically they're running shoes, but let's be honest: there was very little running going on.  Lately they've been walking shoes for when I didn't need anything that could handle dirt or wet and they have been to the gym countless times.  They are Addidas-something-or-another and after having multiple Addidas shoes I can honestly say, they're comfortable and last a while. Much longer than Sketchers. 

What Not to Do

Image
BB Gun At Night Watched last night as my roommate and his son went out at 10:30 and shot at the Stop sign with a BB gun. It wouldn't be too bad if we were rural, but we're not. Directly behind the Stop sign is a four lane road.  Then, they decided to break out the bow and arrows ...  This is what it looks like when it's light enough. As you can see, there's a Stop sign and a (four lane) road:

Layers

Image
I was out on the bicycle earlier today and stopped to rest in a rock garden. A few if the rocks had great striations on them so I grabbed a couple of quick pics with my Android and edited to boost some color with Snapseed. 

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Image
Grabbed the photo below with my Android and edited it quickly with Snapseed. I liked the black and white treatment of this image the best. Below is the original image: