tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62395131197340105192024-03-12T19:54:46.042-07:00Pacific UnderlandDaze of wine and roses.Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-9127329578977174332020-09-10T13:21:00.001-07:002020-09-10T13:21:18.230-07:00'junk' art <p> 'time to ride' was the name of the first one. i guess this is time to ride 2. the first one sold! I am a professional artist now! jk but seriously you never know with art. i already have ideas on how to make more of these, different iterations each one better than the last. get in on the ground floor and buy this one up! it's a wheel. it's a clock. it's a wheel clock! it works!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T1Uk40Ac0ok/X1qKssg1_bI/AAAAAAAAA1c/72vHWsJUkHETNJaod4KYGWekwQEi2sq1wCNcBGAsYHQ/s960/119082729_1198727003835435_5195083718484367104_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T1Uk40Ac0ok/X1qKssg1_bI/AAAAAAAAA1c/72vHWsJUkHETNJaod4KYGWekwQEi2sq1wCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/119082729_1198727003835435_5195083718484367104_o.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MFd-bqUWpCw/X1qKqTuemHI/AAAAAAAAA1Y/CBazAr_rx5gQnz9llkuIwODxuL_N72HagCNcBGAsYHQ/s960/118924735_1198727010502101_7958107303131047591_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MFd-bqUWpCw/X1qKqTuemHI/AAAAAAAAA1Y/CBazAr_rx5gQnz9llkuIwODxuL_N72HagCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/118924735_1198727010502101_7958107303131047591_o.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G8au6KrYMtg/X1qKoN1wjUI/AAAAAAAAA1U/CzSFvLNeU18gIrZ6sBthbbd-OccW0GjrQCNcBGAsYHQ/s960/118942423_1198726977168771_3806131875725708516_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G8au6KrYMtg/X1qKoN1wjUI/AAAAAAAAA1U/CzSFvLNeU18gIrZ6sBthbbd-OccW0GjrQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/118942423_1198726977168771_3806131875725708516_o.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lqr04iQb2mI/X1qKmyKvMEI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/Xs6zPDr0URM1oClEDLWTw4YQX5v_OGRjACNcBGAsYHQ/s960/junkart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lqr04iQb2mI/X1qKmyKvMEI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/Xs6zPDr0URM1oClEDLWTw4YQX5v_OGRjACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/junkart.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-90926753348734686392020-08-11T22:39:00.005-07:002023-08-18T13:54:10.050-07:00The night Kamala Harris got picked to be VP part 3<p> </p>
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<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">THE LAST PART.
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Is it over?
Conspiracy theories abound.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I retreat to my
apartment for a while. I'm in shock. I don't know who to call or text
or whether I should call anyone at all. My neighbor downstairs has
like 5 people over almost every day. Are they gonna give them all the
SWAT treatment? It seems like I'm the only one that got the special
treatment and I wonder if I'm being told the truth.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I mean.. supposedly
this all started because my neighbor had a nosebleed?
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The police told me I
could leave if I wanted, so after about another half hour I take a
stroll, thinking I will get a beer at the corner store or something.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">All is quiet on the
western front when I go outside..</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I slowly walk around
the neighborhood, I am still too wound up after being cuffed and
having heavy artillery pointed at my head to go straight to the
store.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I see an old friend
from work they pull up and say hi. I told them I missed them. They
asked what I was up to and I said I was just out for a walk. I
thought about telling them about being SWATTED* but it was too soon,
so we made small talk and we said our goodbyes.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">AT THAT EXACT MOMENT
my other friend from work texts me 5 times..</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I had called and
told no one of my ordeal,, WTF was happening?
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I ignored the text
and kept walking. I could get back to my other friend later (had he
somehow heard about what had happened?)</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I felt like GOD or
the universe or GODDESS was telling me to leave my apartment and this
small town.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">But then I asked
GODDESS, if you want me to leave town why send a SWAT team?? Why not
just send me the three months of back unemployment checks I was owed?
Then I can AFFORD to leave town!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">It had been a rough
summer, I felt like I was fired for bogus reasons. It made me
question everything. If I can get fired from a job I gave years of my
life to for bogus reasons, what other things could happen? Could I be
arrested for bogus reasons? Could I be SWATTED* (or killed, or both?)
for bogus reasons? Why not? It wouldn't be the first time it happened
and so why not me.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The summer of 2020
was a bit of an existential crisis, much like 2016 in some ways but
for different reasons. Being SWATTED* actually didn't even come as
that much of a surprise to me. I basically took it in stride. The
police officers and I handled the situation as best we could. I know
the police basically have an impossible job and I told them so. I
don't envy them, and I told them so.
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">After my usual
walkabout, I stop at the corner store and get two 22 ounce beers. NO
BAG (they aren't required anymore and I don't want some police
officer thinking I'm brown-bagging a piece.)</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">As I approach my
crib, a 22 ounce beer in each hand I see two more police squad cars
the one rolls by me says supervisor on the side (so glad I had
refused the brown bag!) I give him the head nod and acknowledge his
presence as he rolls past.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The other squad car
is parked on my dead end street. He gets up and out of the seat and I
nod at him as well, one of my neighbors' regular visitors is also
pulling up in a big truck and not only that but my on-site landlady
is up by my door.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">It's not quite like
all hell is breaking loose, but it's way more activity than what we
normally see in my small town little apartment complex.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">As I approach my
place the second policeman got in his car and drove off. My on-site
manager is speaking to another tenant. I am cluthching my IPA bottles
as I approach.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“So do we all have
to move out now?” I joke. I can see she is posting a flyer on
everyone's door. I am waiting for some weird news like one of my
neighbors has killed themselves and we all have to evacuate.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“It's just a
routine fire alarm inspection.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">mmm.hmmm. A routine
fire alarm inspection that you happen to be posting on everyone's
door on the exact same day the SWAT team was here and they just left
a half hour ago?</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Did they ever
figure out what happened earlier?” I asked. “Did someone's water
heater explode or something?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“No they never
figured it out, that's why they came back they said it doesn't make
any sense.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I check my door and
yes, there is a notice they now want to do an inspection about the
fire alarms.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My apartments are
under new management and the new management hasn't done any of the
regular inspections or walk throughs or fire alarm checks or anything
the previous managers have done.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">It's a little bit of
a co-inky-dink that they chose TODAY, of all days, to do it.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My manager says</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“So I guess I
missed all the fun earlier.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Yes, I think I
had the most fun.” (AFAIK, I was the only one handcuffed and
questioned.)</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Well, at least
you will have one quiet night tonight.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Okay.?” I was
skeptical. I guess what she was saying is that my neighbor got
arrested and would not be home tonight to disturb me?</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I hadn't realized. I
felt like there was a lot of missing information in what the police,
my landlady, and the universe in general was providing me.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I finally had to
talk to someone about it, so I phoned a friend and spilled my guts.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Just after that, THE
CENSUS TAKER showed up at the apartment downstairs!!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Then they went to my
neighbor's who might have gotten arrested!!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Consipiracy theories
abound, police coordinating with federal census takers coordinating
with fire alarm inspectors etc....</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">As I am typing this
up, I'm afraid to close my blinds and turn off the lights. I figure
if the cops are watching me I will let them check me out tonight. It
is quiet as a crypt outside. The usual comings and goings of a few
neighbors, but no police. Not a peep from the neighbor next door.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The end?</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">*The term SWATTED is
used loosely in this story, it may or may not refer to having someone
call a SWAT team on you on purpose with false accusations.</p>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-29436373791559492582020-08-11T22:33:00.003-07:002023-08-18T13:53:59.741-07:00The night Kamala Harris was chosen for VP part 2<p> </p>
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<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The SWAT team (I
think it was a big green vehicle) drove straight down my cul-de-sac
and parked outside my peripheral view.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">The phone rang
again.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Hello?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Hi this is
officer so and so again.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Oh, hello”
listen by this time, I am not a dead man I do have some kind of sixth
sense, my heart is RACING! I figure that my neighbor has made some
kind of accusation against me and I am about to spend the night in
jail.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Hey do you mind
coming outside and talking to us for a while about what happened
earlier, we have a couple of more questions.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“OK.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I was FREAKED OUT, I had kind of expected them to maybe come back and ask to look around my apartment, but this was on another level.</p><p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Can you just come
out and slowly walk down your stairs?” Are you alone?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Ya, I'm alone. I
will come out.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I set down my cell
phone and headed out my front door, leaving it ajar and unlocked behind me in case they wanted to search the place.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“PUT YOUR HANDS
ABOVE YOUR HEAD”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I comply.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“PUT YOUR HANDS ON
YOUR HEAD AND WALK BACKWARD THIS WAY”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I do my best to
comply.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I am dressed in
shorts and a lime green t-shirt with a a rainbow tie-dye bandanna
around my neck! I wish I had a picture of it! (If you are one of my
neighbors and you you have video please send!!)</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">They back me up to
the SWAT van and cuff me, read me my rights, and question me!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">This is the first
time in my life I have ever been handcuffed!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">To their credit, the
man closest to the van had his assault rifle pointed towards the
ground, not directly at me.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">There was probably
every other cop in the city that DID have their guns pointed at me.
They were all over the place. Kevlar vests, temporary bulletproof
mobile shields they were hiding behind, the works.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">They even flew a
drone outside my bedroom window to see inside.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">They asked
permission to search my place. I said they could. I wanted them to
set their minds at ease. There are times when I might have said no.
This wasn't one of those times.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Do you own a
gun?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“No, I don't like
guns and I don't own one.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I told them they
would probably think I was up to something because my apartment was
really messy and I was in the middle of all those home improvement
projects. I told them I had been making noise like drilling and
sawing, but nothing really loud like firing a gun or anything.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">They seemed to
loosen up after a while, I told them about the disturbances my
neighbor had been up to and they kept questioning me about what the
noise sounded like and where it came from.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I missed my golden
opportunity to say. “It sounded like Joe Biden just picked Kamala
Harris to be Vice-President! BOOM GOES THE DYNAMITE!”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">It probably wouldn't
have gone over too well at the time, but they might have seen the
humor in it later.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I picture them
laughing their asses off afterward, having to fill out the paperwork
and describe my rainbow bandanna!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Funny thing, I had
actually been thinking about getting arrested and handcuffed
recently, maybe at one of the BLM protests, but I never went. (full
disclosure I am Irish, Basque, German, and part Mexican but I appear
very white.) After being SWATTED* today though, I am cool for a
while. Maybe I can cross getting arrested off my bucket list next
year.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">If I WAS arrested, I
would have a rainbow bandanna mugshot that I could treasure forever,
and post to this blog. I am wearing it now. I think I will never take
it off maybe it saved my life! Tie-dye forever Rainbow Ray?</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">To be continued?</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">*The term SWATTED is
used loosely in this story, it may or may not refer to having someone
call a SWAT team on you on purpose with false accusations.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-17279134685440948942020-08-11T21:47:00.007-07:002023-08-18T13:53:41.945-07:00Tuesday August 11, the night Kamala Harris was chosen to run as vice-president.<p> It started off
quiet, another day in the COVID-19 pandemic chillin' at home my back
was sore from doing home improvement.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I took my cruiser
bicycle for a ride to the local middle school and tried to shoot some
buckets but my back wasn't havin' it.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I had been trying to
remake my apartment and add a workbench to fix bikes so I could make
ends meet because I had been laid off from my nine to five.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My neighbor lady had
been trippin from me makin' noise so I was trying to limit my
activities to the back bedroom/shop.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My baby mama and son
came by to get some stuff he had left from a previous visit. They
surprised me with a very sweet birthday present.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My neighbor lady
yelled some profanity at them for knocking on MY door.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">So when a couple of
units rolled up to my apartments a half an hour later I thought
nothing of it. They were probably just here to do a welfare check.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My neighbor is not
'crazy' I do believe that we all fall short of greatness and we all
do OUR best. You think that your friend or relative WON'T do the
right thing but no, they mentally and physically (they are all
connected) CAN'T do the right thing. Don't judge people for that.
They are doing THEIR best.
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I retreated to my
back bedroom to wait everything out. I had a feeling if ever the
police had to drag my neighbor out of their apartment, she might not
cooperate. She didn't like people in her apartment part of the reason
was because she didn't want to catch COVID. She had expressed her
fears about it before.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I checked my Twitter
feed and Kamala Harris had been chosen to run as Vice-President!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">That's when I heard
a loud BOOM!</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">I assumed they were
breaking my neighbor's door down with a battering ram or something,
but I didn't hear anything else after. It was louder than a gunshot,
with more bass.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">It was quiet for a
while, so I eventually wandered back to my living room/front
room/kitchen (my apartment is small!) and got on my computer to check
my email and facebook updates for any possible marketplace or
craigslist deals.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">That's when I
received a call from a local number that of course I didn't answer
because it's 2020 and who answers their phone? But I do check my
voicemail if somebody leaves one so I did that.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">And the caller
called a second time as I was checking the voicemail and it was the
Local PD.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Then they called a
third time, OK!, if someone leaves me a voicemail I will answer my
phone (most people don't) It was Officer so and so I said Hi, yes I
am home yes that's my name I am doing well today.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Did you hear a
loud sound a half an hour ago?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Yes I did I was
in my bedroom and I heard it.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“What did it sound
like?”<br /><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“I don't really
know but it was loud like maybe louder than a gunshot with more
bass.” (I grew up in Northeast Portland and I had been questioned
about noises by cops before. They tend to be interested in loud
noises that could be gunshots and where they originate from.)
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“I figured it was
something to do with whatever you guys were doing next door.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“No it was
unrelated. We were responding to a call from your neighbor she had a
nosebleed...</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"> (Yeah right!? Why
send two police cruisers to a nosebleed? Don't you just send
ambulance?)
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">… when we heard
the sound. Do you know what direction it came from?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Uhhh. Not really.
Like I said I figured it was coming from the apartment next door
maybe it was you guys.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Okay, well thanks
for talking to us, if we have any other questions we will call you
back, can you stay close to your phone and pick up if we do?”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Yeah, sure. No
problem”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Thank you.”</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">That was that for a
while. I went back to my usual spot on my computer, in front of my
picture window.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">My blinds were half
closed. I like to peep the cul-de-sac for traffic but not to be too
snoopy.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">Then the SWAT team
rolled up.</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">To be continued</p><style type="text/css">
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</style>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-28289155186569655222020-05-27T08:57:00.001-07:002020-05-27T08:57:32.893-07:00Vlog updatescheck out my youtube channel there are a couple of updates. here is one about re-covering an old bike seat with real leather.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMAXSnj472w">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMAXSnj472w</a>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-69323740940802864482019-08-30T18:03:00.001-07:002019-08-30T18:03:07.429-07:00new vlog bike ride corvallis to the sea trail <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a26GealGfmw&t=72s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a26GealGfmw&t=72s</a>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-91884075832948406122018-08-02T16:38:00.002-07:002018-08-02T16:38:42.264-07:00Running the man CorvallisThis little stickman has been popping out at me when I stare at the Corvallis map for a while, so I finally did the strava art of him. I think it turned out pretty well. It is a running man, so I think to be fully worthy it should be done running (I did it on a bike)<br />
<br />
It would be a legit marathon + length run. Who wants to do it with me? We can order up some 'Running the man' Corvallis t-shirts<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.strava.com/activities/1745612824">https://www.strava.com/activities/1745612824</a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NB2ROWzEdp0/W2OV2mCBQfI/AAAAAAAAAuo/KRJpDrU_0KEsfCFCwSBMTXLX3_4Mfn-mQCLcBGAs/s1600/runmancrop.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="507" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NB2ROWzEdp0/W2OV2mCBQfI/AAAAAAAAAuo/KRJpDrU_0KEsfCFCwSBMTXLX3_4Mfn-mQCLcBGAs/s320/runmancrop.png" width="319" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-85950532383992220312018-07-16T10:45:00.002-07:002021-06-13T12:36:18.942-07:00C2C writeup (Corvallis to Coast)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fhSd_kjKj-8/W0zZjktApCI/AAAAAAAAAuM/N61QIhCJFxYM37Rc7pbF38ogQBEVTF7jQCLcBGAs/s1600/youarehere.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1136" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fhSd_kjKj-8/W0zZjktApCI/AAAAAAAAAuM/N61QIhCJFxYM37Rc7pbF38ogQBEVTF7jQCLcBGAs/s320/youarehere.PNG" width="180" /></a></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">So
I tried to ride from Corvallis to the coast ala <a href="http://c2ctrail.org/" target="_blank">c2c trail </a>yesterday</span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">the
eastern half of the trail from big elk campground to corvallis has
been completed but the western, and possibly most important and
difficult part to complete, hasn't been finalized.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">The possible routes are there on the <a href="http://c2ctrail.org/" target="_blank">c2ctrail.org </a>website if you click 'candidate bicycle routes' in the sidebar. For some reason I can't link the 'sub-pages' directly so you will have to click-thru. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I
thought I could scout out the routes and maybe offer some thoughts on
the best route to organizers, or just help other riders find a route
to ride before the c2c is completed.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">It
could be a while until it's done, and many people like me probably
don't want to wait. Also, the online instructions I could find didn't
jibe with what I was seeing on google maps.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">At first glance, route 1 looks the most direct and practical. The other routes seem to me to be 'just give up and ride on a road' options.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">So
I basically just looked at google maps and tried to find a ridable
route and printed out some pages because I knew I would be out of
cell signal range. I also packed a compass, not really thinking it
would save me, but just to check my direction in case I got turned
around.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I
headed off at 7:30 am at a leisurely pace. I knew it would be a hard
ride and just wanted to take it easy at first.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
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<br />
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span face=""arial" , sans-serif">I
rode Mary's peak in october on some of this route, and I made it to
the gate at old peak road the first time I explored the c2c trail, so
this would be the third time I'd ridden some of the c2c.</span></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
You basically ride old peak road for a while. When you get past the second gate, you go left up to woods creek trailhead. This is where you can hike mary's peak from the north side or you can continue on the c2c by turning right onto woods creek road.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The signage is pretty good, and I was glad because there are quite a few intersections one may otherwise be tempted to turn off on.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I had fat semi-slick tires on, and to this point the road was pretty decent. I made it to the turnoff to mary's peak road. There was one point the road got a little overgrown, but again the signage was good and I continued, even hitting a nice singletrack descent that seemed to drop me back onto another logging road. (it's possible this was on woods creek but pretty sure it was mary's peak) </div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It felt a little like I had gone off the 'cycling' route and onto the 'hiking' route when I hit the singletrack. Sometimes the routes are combined and sometimes they split off. In any case, the singletrack was quite smooth (mostly) and I made it through so I guess I was on the right track. </div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The signage for what is allowed on the trail is a bit confusing. There is a crossed out cyclist on some signs but then it has dates october thru may on it.. So is cycling prohibited during that time and allowed the rest of the year? I assumed so. I wasn't turning around at this point and there was no one around to tell me to.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
At some point I think around Mary's peak and nf-3015 (I'm using all road names from google maps) I saw an abandoned building that seemed cool, maybe an old forest service building? </div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I got onto a proper road and saw some farms and the chapel of the valley. Saw one farmer out in his field. Other than about 8 cars at woods creek trailhead, I hadn't seen hardly anyone at this point. One hiker at the very beginning of old peak road and hwy 34 that was not packing anything, so I assumed they were just out for a walk, and I'd seen maybe two cars go by towards woods creek trailhead. I saw ZERO other cyclists.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I got to Harlan/mary's peak road/harlan burnt woods road intersection there were three portapotties and a sign saying burnt woods was 8 miles away.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This would probably be my only chance to bail on the ride. I had a friend I was supposed to meet in Newport for a ride home, and they could easily pick me up there. </div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I kept going and saw a stream (no obvious easy access, but it was hot and I was tempted to jump in) and found big elk campground. Some campers were blasting country music. This was the end of the official c2c trail. If I kept going I was on my own. I knew I could ride 8-10 miles back to burnt woods, but I figured if I rode 8-10 miles towards the coast I would be almost there.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So I checked my maps and went back to Harlan and hilltop rd. Going back to burnt woods just didn't sound satisfying. I should have tried to fill my water bottles at big elk campground, but I had brought a full camelbak bladder and two 20+ ounce water bottles, and they seemed like they were full enough, so at this point I wasn't worried.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The first turn to 'hilltop road' on google maps is actually 'grant creek' according to actual real world signage, (my printout made no mention of grants creek) but soon after the turn onto grant creek it splits, and the REAL? turnoff to hilltop is unmistakable. It goes like straight uphill. I think it also has a NF 31 sign.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It seems to me the choices in routes to the coast (speaking of the routes the C2C were considering to complete the western portion) are as follows. Go the flattest way around the big hills (probably that's what they did when they built highways 34 and 20) or go OVER the big hills, which is more direct but more difficult.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Most of this first section of hilltop is paved, so you can creep up it, but it was steep. I saw ZERO cars on hilltop for a long time. The road was very skinny so you still have to be mindful, that one car that comes down you might not be ready for, and they might not be expecting to see you.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The fears I had of getting lost earlier were unfounded so far. Hilltop road was a genuine road, I wasn't tempted by any of the turnoffs. I saw no houses. One gate said private property. It was very green and forested, I imagine this would be a great cycling route to the coast, and maybe they could make some hiking trails that would leave, and rejoin the road when necessary.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even though it is a monster hill, to me the lack of cars made it worth it.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But when you finally get over the hill you eventually hit some really bad, gravelly, dusty road and clear-cut.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I was hoping to get to some paved road and downhill after all the ascending, and I was rewarded with quite a bit of downhill, but the bad road took it's toll on me.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This was worse gravel than I'd ever ridden on. You couldn't ride on the side of the road because all the gravel was piled deep on the sides, so you had to ride in the wheel ruts, and I was leery of that because I saw a few pickup trucks blasting through, kicking up dust and they weren't expecting to see any cyclists. They did slow down a bit for me and a couple waved back when I gave a wave, so they were friendly enough.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I put my rear-view mirror back on, and a bandanna to cover my mouth when there was too much dust. Really I only saw about 4-5 cars, and I think they were on 1000 line road.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On my printout it looked like I was supposed to take 'Sunnyridge road' but when I got to the intersection I didn't see any signs. I think at this point I was just going by my phone map. I couldn't hardly get any data to load and my strava map was practically blank, but I zoomed out a bit and the map came up enough to show me a clear route to the beach, even though I couldn't read any road names.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It's good to know that even when my phone had 'no signal' that I could still somewhat use strava for navigation. It was tracking me fairly well. <a href="https://www.strava.com/activities/1705480738" target="_blank">Here is my strava link to the ride</a></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The instructions from the c2ctrail.org website on 'route 1' tell you to turn right at 'T' on 1000 line road, but my google maps call this section 'sunnyridge road'</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It seems like there was some signage here but there definitely wasn't a legit street sign. I didn't realize I had turned onto 1000 line/sunnyridge until I got home and figured it out. Like I said I was just going by strava at this point.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The gravel was beating the crap out of me and I was running out of water. When a car came by I would pull over and check my phone for a signal. I wanted to text my friend so they wouldn't worry about me and tell them which route I was on in case I needed to be rescued.</div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
At one point on Hilltop I turned a corner and actually saw a hill in the distance that looked like it had a cell tower on it. I checked my phone and it looked like I had 1 bar of 4g coverage. (NO LTE, just 4g) but I tried to send a text to my ride and it failed. Funnily enough, I had a new FaceBook notification, a friend suggestion! Effing Facebook follows you everywhere!</div>
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I couldn't get any momentum riding through the crappy gravel, a couple times the road turned to pavement for a tiny bit, but then right back to crap. Very disappointing. I kept hoping to hit a bunch of downhill and/or pavement but it never happened.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
At this point I was running out of water and I hit the clear-cuts so my sun exposure increased a ton. I figured I could make it, but wasn't really sure how many miles were left so I decided to hitch a ride if possible. My spare battery was keeping my phone topped off, or my phone would have died a long time ago and I would have been SOL.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I should have chosen knobby tires, my slicks were terrible for this gravel road, but I hadn't anticipated THIS BAD of gravel road. The tires had done fine on the sections of old peak that were gravel, but this was, again, worse gravel than I'd ever ridden before.</div>
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<br /></div>
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At this point I had ridden pavement, gravel, singletrack, and the really bad gravel. For one brief section I even rode what I would describe as shale. It was very sharp rock. I felt fortunate to have made it as far as I did without flatting.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My 20 dollar craigslist cycling shoes (diadora chilis) did well but the tread started coming off one of them and I stopped to cut it off with my swiss army knife. That's when a car came by and I stuck out my thumb. A nice local fellow gave me a ride to the intersection of Elk Horn and North Beaver Creek road where I could pick up a cell signal. I forgot to turn off my strava so I probably corrupted the data a little, but glad to know what route I took..</div>
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So anyway, moral of the story is the online directions could be a lot better, I will try and write up a simple version of mine later.</div>
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As tough as this ride was, i think it would be a good c2c route, maybe parts of the gravel road could be improved a bit.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I didn't quite get my glorious jump into the ocean at the end moment, so I may have to revisit this ride. I will probably do it with front suspension fork and knobby tires and a bit more water.</div>
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<br /></div>
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It might be best to do this on weekends when there isn't any logging operations going on. Also, there are hunting seasons to think about, and I guess cougar hunting season is year round. I would suggest wearing super-bright colors. I used flashing lights and honked my clown-horn and rang my bike bell a bit, to tell hunters I was not a cougar, and to scare cougars away if there were any. I saw no cougars and no hunters this trip (i may have seen one hunter in a pickup on old peak road on a previous trip. funny because it was on old peak past the gate, he must have taken a logging road)</div>
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<br /></div>
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I would definitely not recommend this ride for everyone, even though I went less than 50 miles, it was rough road with a lot of elevation change. Pack a lunch (or three) and lots of water and have a backup plan, maybe even a sleeping bag, or go there with someone that's ridden it before.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Sunscreen and bug repellant are probably a good idea too.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Now that I've done it once, I feel like I can make it all the way to Ona Beach next time. If I do I will post about it here. Let me know if you try it! Or if you have a blog where you write about your other adventurous rides.<br />
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edit: pic added to show sunnyridge and/or 1000 line road<br />
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Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-9419559323656101422018-05-17T17:14:00.000-07:002017-12-08T16:31:44.851-08:00Why Pacific Underland?Some people could be familiar with the term Pacific Wonderland, which is even on some of our license plates here in Oregon.<br />
<br />
Some people may think or have heard the Pacific Northwest is a natural wonderland filled with natural beauty and liberal thinking people, with killer green bud and dank microbrew. We have clean air, great schools, and a booming economy.<br />
<br />
Some of that might be true, but it's not a wonderland when;<br />
<br />
You have high rates of depression and suicide<br />
<br />
high rates of drug addiction and homelessness<br />
<br />
have some of the most unaffordable housing in the country.<br />
<br />
I love the Pacific Northwest, I'm glad I was raised in Portland, but we have a lot of room for improvement. Some of the challenges we face are systemic and countrywide, they may need to be addressed on a national level. We might not be able to fix them all by ourselves.<br />
<br />
So that's why this blog is called Pacific Underland. Plus it just sounds cool.Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-48697934857225439912018-04-26T21:06:00.000-07:002018-04-26T21:06:50.077-07:00maybe the coolest ride ever?so 20 years ago I rode the Seattle to Portland bike ride 200 miles in one day.<br />
<br />
would be kind of fun to try and do it again.<br />
<br />
but I'm not really feeling the road riding. or doing something that i've already done.<br />
<br />
off-road, different rides are intriguing me. I don't want to look at cars or be hit by one on a recreational ride.<br />
<br />
like. Ride the corvallis to coast. dip your toe in the water. Then ride back in one day.<br />
<br />
Ride the Mckenzie Pass from Belknap Springs to Sisters. Have a Sandwich. Ride back.<br />
<br />
This one trip got put up on drunk cyclist a couple years ago and it sticks in my head. Bend to Oakridge?<br />
<br />
I grew up in Portland, but maybe did some of my most epic rides in Bend. Century Drive I ran out of water and drank from the creek, never got sick. I didn't ride as much as some but I rode around a bit. Tumalo Falls seems to ring a bell.<br />
<br />
But I'd never really heard of Oakridge.<br />
<br />
but it's just a ride that's really intriguing because it's almost like trying to do something no-ones ever done. It's just seeing a couple of points on a map and trying to connect the dots.<br />
<br />
It's like maybe taking riding to some weird art form.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://drunkcyclist.com/2011/09/22/paul-just-did-something-badass/">http://drunkcyclist.com/2011/09/22/paul-just-did-something-badass/</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-29119784443198938522018-04-22T20:14:00.000-07:002018-04-22T20:14:50.838-07:00Time to ride clock / kinetic artprobably harder to make than it looks. You have to take out the wheel hub and make a flat wheel somehow. Used cut and bent spokes to mount to the chain to shape the numbers, then used fishing line to hang and mount the numbers to the wheel and tie some spokes together.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_512402339"><br /></a>
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YPp2DSKW6A">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YPp2DSKW6A</a>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-90473639002054499652018-04-22T20:00:00.002-07:002018-04-22T20:00:17.646-07:00Vlog update Game of Thrones phone throne / charger tablet standMaybe I'll do a write-up of this later. for now, enjoy the vid. Spent way too much time and money on this but i love the way it turned out and it was a gift for someone special so not worried about the time/ money so much. just glad it turned out and they like it.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_512402336"><br /></a>
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUluFB52UCQ&t=12s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUluFB52UCQ&t=12s</a>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-15510897741643636732018-03-12T06:33:00.001-07:002018-03-12T06:33:24.707-07:00The Trump (or Hillary) trigger explained. Cortex vs amygdalaI'm pretty sure most human interactions and arguments can be explained
by neuroscience. We are all animals, primates but with a larger
pre-frontal lobe or cortex.. problem is, when we are triggered we stop
using this rational part of our brain and use the amygdala instead,
which is the 'fight or flight' primal portion of the brain. Not sure if
we can use both at the same time. This explains every fight you've ever
had when the other person just won't listen, and also the 'tru<span class="text_exposed_show">mp
trigger' or 'hillary trigger' where we can't have a civil political
discourse, only attack each other.. When we feel like we are being
attacked we go tribal. The main difference I see is that Trump likes to
trigger us by what he says and does, whereas the liberal side actually
have already triggered the right by simply being WHO WE ARE. Just being
Mexican, black, gay, transgender, woman in the workplace, immigrant, etc... threatens their way of life and
they feel attacked. </span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span>
<span class="text_exposed_show">The problem with allowing Trump to trigger us is
that to counter him we need an intelligent response, (organize and
methodically destroy him) reacting to him in a primal way (calling him
names etc..) actually feeds into his narrative and,,, imo, is not a
winning strategy for the left. I think there was a study where they
hooked people up to read their brainwaves and questioned them and
actually proved some of this but (actually came from a parenting class i
took) but I'm not finding a good link for it. You can just google amygdala and cortex and find some interesting stuff. The class was called collaborative problem solving and they mentioned a book called 'the explosive child' (they said it wasn't very well named, because you could use the parenting techniques for any child) The teacher also mentioned that in a state of arousal (triggered?) the IQ can drop around 30 points. </span><br />
<span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span>
<span class="text_exposed_show">Trump is actually making us stupider. Who'd have thunk it?</span>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-67580656590684926092017-11-18T10:06:00.000-08:002017-11-18T10:06:08.446-08:00We have to be smarter than yeastCapitalism has taken us about as far as it can<br />
<br />
We can either abandon it, or ride it off a cliff<br />
<br />
Money doesn't care, it takes on a life of it's own<br />
<br />
Destroying and eating everything in it's path<br />
<br />
To make beer, you add yeast to the malt sugars<br />
<br />
and it eats until it dies, choking on it's own exhaust<br />
<br />
We have to be smarter than yeastRaymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-26530103261833839522017-10-30T13:07:00.001-07:002017-10-30T14:26:58.610-07:00Mary's peak vlogtrying my hand at vlogging, go for a ride with me! Hope to improve my camera and editing skills. First try I used youtube editor but I think they're shutting down. Mary's peak movie edited with imovie on a mac. enjoy<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDd3tJgdvu8&t=15s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDd3tJgdvu8&t=15s</a><br />
<br />
Categories: cycling hiking biking bicycling Corvallis vlogging blogging blog vlog<br />
<br />
Strava link:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.strava.com/activities/1251153640">https://www.strava.com/activities/1251153640</a>Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-87391892737743762102017-10-30T13:04:00.001-07:002017-10-30T14:33:54.615-07:00Forehead License Plates<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OL4IIpk6iZA/WfeFsSdZDlI/AAAAAAAAAp0/QBJYNv2pkUg7kAbqzOwQK1Fqx_E87KLjACLcBGAs/s1600/foreheadplate.png.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OL4IIpk6iZA/WfeFsSdZDlI/AAAAAAAAAp0/QBJYNv2pkUg7kAbqzOwQK1Fqx_E87KLjACLcBGAs/s320/foreheadplate.png.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/10/25/559980080/honolulus-distracted-walking-law-takes-effect-targeting-phone-users">http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/10/25/559980080/honolulus-distracted-walking-law-takes-effect-targeting-phone-users</a><br />
<br />
'distracted walking?' Ya, some people are probably so dumb they're a liability just walking down the street, but we should probably just feel sorry for them, not punish them.<br />
<br />
I think it's funny that you can get the same ticket for running a stop sign on a bike as you can on a car.<br />
<br />
The argument is that you could cause an accident I guess?<br />
<br />
So some people argue that bikes should require insurance and license plates for this reason, and also to pay for all those great perks like bike lanes.<br />
<br />
But a pedestrian could cause an accident too. So should they also be licensed and insured? And made to pay for sidewalks? No that would be dumb. People should be encouraged to walk and bike and discouraged from driving.<br />
<br />
Bike lanes are crap anyways, they're mostly gutter. If you have a choice between blocking a bike lane and a car lane, people ALWAYS choose to block the bike lane. They fill them with leaves, park in them, stick their recycling and trash bins in them.<br />
<br />
Even when the bike lane is clear, the amount of room left for the bike, after leaving the lawful 3-6 feet passing distance between you and the motorist, is negligible. Then, if you need to turn, you have to go play in traffic. Most bike 'infrastructure' isn't any kind of structure at all, just paint on the road and wishful thinking.<br />
<br />
I think if people got out and actually rode their bikes once in a while, they would realize that. But when you're driving everywhere, you only see bikes as a tax-dodging nuisance. NO, cars are clearly the nuisance. The cyclist isn't belching pollution into the air at every turn.<br />
<br />
I could rant about this all day. One analogy is that you see a forest where elephants have trampled everything and shit everywhere, polluting the water and felling every tree (cars) Then you see a butterfly land on the piece of elephant dung and take a crap on top of the piece of elephant dung.. and you say "Damn why doesn't that butterfly pay more taxes!?" The cyclist is the butterfly. That's the kind of proportion we're talking about pollution-wise, environmental impact-wise, and damage to our streets that cars do in proportion to bikes.Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-86917235225908524052017-10-25T16:46:00.000-07:002017-10-25T16:59:12.920-07:00new simple logotrying to make something simple enough to maybe do a DIY t-shirt. I know I could just order them but I feel like DIY is cooler. One color, make my own silk screen or do colored shirts and spray with bleach?<br />
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<br />Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-45767714405014198342017-10-17T10:47:00.001-07:002017-10-17T10:47:23.773-07:00How many different kinds of rain are there? In the Pacific Northwest we get all kinds of rain. It's not like when I lived in North Texas and I would get the clockwork afternoon thundershower, then it would just clear up. Like the other day started with a light mist, then it turned into a drizzle, followed by showers. Sometimes you can walk around in rain and not even get wet, maybe that's why many Pac Northwesters don't carry umbrellas. But when you get soaked in minutes, I call that a 'wet rain'.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I heard once that the Eskimo had fifty different words for snow, and I figured if they have that many different kinds of snow then we should be able to come up with that many different types of rain.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
For this purpose I will accept not just singular words, but types of rain or expressions used to say it's raining. Alphabetized and numbered for posterity. Thank you to my facebook friends for helping.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
1. Autumn Rain</div>
<div>
2. Cold Rain</div>
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3. Cold November Rain (Gun's 'N Roses)</div>
<div>
4. Deluge</div>
<div>
5. Downpour</div>
<div>
6. Drizzle</div>
<div>
7. Dumping</div>
<div>
8. Fall Rain</div>
<div>
9. Flash Flooding</div>
<div>
10. Flooding</div>
<div>
11. Freezing Rain</div>
<div>
12. Getting Biblical (ala Noah's Ark)</div>
<div>
13. Gullywasher</div>
<div>
14. Hailstorm</div>
<div>
15. Hosing</div>
<div>
16. Light Spray</div>
<div>
17. Liquid Sunshine</div>
<div>
18. Mist</div>
<div>
19. Monsoon</div>
<div>
20. Muggy Fog</div>
<div>
21. Pissing</div>
<div>
22. Pouring Rain</div>
<div>
23. Pouring Buckets</div>
<div>
24. Precipitating</div>
<div>
25. Rain</div>
<div>
26. Raindrops</div>
<div>
27. Rainfall</div>
<div>
28. Rainstorm</div>
<div>
29. Raining Buckets</div>
<div>
30. Raining Cats and Dogs</div>
<div>
31. Raining Sideways</div>
<div>
32. Rainbow Weather</div>
<div>
33. Really Coming Down</div>
<div>
34. Showers</div>
<div>
35. Sleet</div>
<div>
36. Soaker</div>
<div>
37. Spill or Spilling Rain</div>
<div>
38. Spitting Rain</div>
<div>
39. Splash</div>
<div>
40. Spring Rain </div>
<div>
41. Sprinkling</div>
<div>
42. Storm</div>
<div>
43. Sudden Dew</div>
<div>
44. Summer Rain</div>
<div>
45. Swash</div>
<div>
46. Taking a Bath</div>
<div>
47. Tears from Heaven</div>
<div>
48. Thunderstorm</div>
<div>
49. Thundershowers</div>
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50. Torrential Downpour</div>
<div>
51. Trickle</div>
<div>
52. Trinkle</div>
<div>
53. Tsunami</div>
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54. Warm Rain</div>
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55. Wet Rain</div>
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56. Winter Rain</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Honorable Mentions:</div>
<div>
1. It's Raining Men (song by Paul Schafer)</div>
<div>
2. Rains of Castamere (Game of Thrones)</div>
<div>
3. Purple Rain (Prince)</div>
<div>
4. Red Rain (Peter Gabriel)</div>
<div>
5. Black Rain (nuclear fallout? I hope to never see that)</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
I think that's pretty worthy for pretty much not using google, dictionary or anything else! </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Eskimo words for snow article;</div>
<div>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_50942962"><br /></a></div>
<div>
<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/there-really-are-50-eskimo-words-for-snow/2013/01/14/e0e3f4e0-59a0-11e2-beee-6e38f5215402_story.html?utm_term=.3c1df22517db">https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/there-really-are-50-eskimo-words-for-snow/2013/01/14/e0e3f4e0-59a0-11e2-beee-6e38f5215402_story.html?utm_term=.3c1df22517db</a></div>
Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-86050505926533919782017-09-12T19:52:00.001-07:002017-09-13T11:53:20.814-07:00Installing Windows 7 on a Linux Mint machine that used to have Windows 7I have two desktop computers that I got from Free Geek Portland that were running Linux Mint.<br />
<br />
One is a Dell Optiplex 790 and the other is a Lenovo Thinkcentre<br />
<br />
They both have product keys for Windows 7 Pro OA (whatever that is)<br />
<br />
My goal was to get one of them running windows again to set up as a gaming computer capable of playing overwatch.<br />
<br />
<b>Warning: before trying any of this, I recommend backing up all your files. Installing an operating system could potentially wipe out any files or operating systems you're currently running on your computer.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>To duplicate how I did my installation, you will need internet access, a windows computer to make your bootable usb stick with, and at least one usb flash drive (usb stick, whatever)</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>These instructions will wipe any data you have on your USB, so back that data up somewhere before trying this. </b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>You WILL need a product key to complete installation. This is not instructions on how to pirate a copy of Windows.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>If you have an installation CD or USB flash drive from when you originally purchased your computer, or if you have a friend that has a Windows 7 installation disc for the type of Windows you need (Home Edition, Pro, etc.) Congratulations, you can just try installing with that.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
If you tried booting up that way already and it didn't work, you probably need to adjust your BIOS settings to boot to USB or CD drive first. <b>Try googling BIOS and the type of computer you have for specifics. </b>It generally entails booting up your computer (watch the screen closely for instructions) and hitting F2, F12 or sometimes 'enter' to enter and then change the BIOS settings.<b><br /></b><br />
<br />
I didn't have a disc to start with so I was going to have to make my own.<br />
<br />
First I tried just going to a windows site and installing the OS BUT a lot of the ways to install Windows require you start with a machine that has Windows so I ran into some dead ends.<br />
<br />
then I found this link; <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows7" target="_blank"> https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows7</a><br />
<br />
which seemed like the ticket but when I entered my product key I got this error message;<br />
<br />
<b>the product key you entered appears to be for software pre-installed by the device manufacturer. Please contact the device manufacturer for software recovery options.</b><br />
<br />
But I didn't want to do that because I didn't purchase the machine new, I imagine the warranty is expired, and didn't think it would do any good. <br />
<br />
It offered a button for FAQs but wasn't helpful. Apparently there's a difference between a copy of Windows you would purchase from the store (that would have a product key) and would work on any computer, and a product key from a copy of windows that came pre-installed.<br />
<br />
so I did some googling and found this link, which basically lets you download a copy of windows without the product key. YOU WILL STILL NEED TO ENTER IT LATER. Also, installing this way on the Dell Optiplex 790 worked, but for some reason the internet didn't. I had to go on another machine and download drivers for it, put them on my usb stick, and install that way.<br />
<br />
I only recommend this if you, like me, are too stubborn to contact the manufacturer like Windows recommends, you have some knowledge of computing, and you are willing to take the chance of disabling your computer.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_1531926250"><br /></a>
<a href="https://www.heidoc.net/joomla/technology-science/microsoft/14-windows-7-direct-download-links" target="_blank">https://www.heidoc.net/joomla/technology-science/microsoft/14-windows-7-direct-download-links</a><br />
<br />
I used the 'windows and Office ISO Downloader' from Heidoc.net<br />
<br />
Once I got that going, I was given a choice of what type of windows I wanted to download ( you can't go older than windows 7 or office 2007)<br />
<br />
I didn't see Windows Pro OA like on my product key sticker so I chose Windows Pro SP1 (service pack 1)<br />
<br />
The next mistake I made was I didn't realize there was a difference between just putting the iso on a usb stick and booting up, and creating a bootable usb stick.<br />
<br />
When I tried booting to the usb I got this error;<br />
<br />
Error: No configuration file found No DEFAULT or UI configuration directive found! boot:<br />
<br />
I had skipped the step of taking the iso file I had downloaded and creating a bootable usb stick.<br />
<br />
I needed the windows7 usb/dvd tool, which I found here;<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_1531926271"><br /></a>
<a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool" target="_blank">https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool</a><br />
<br />
When you go to that page, it directs you here;<br />
<br />
<a href="http://wudt.codeplex.com/" target="_blank">http://wudt.codeplex.com/</a><br />
<br />
(editing my post and having some trouble with this link. If you can't get it to work you may need to find another way to create your USB flash drive. It did work for me this way and I installed windows 7 on two different computers so...)<br />
(evidently codeplex is shutting down soon per the homepage on this link, which tells you to read Brian Harry's blog)<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_1531926300"><br /></a>
<a href="https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/bharry/2017/03/31/shutting-down-codeplex/">https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/bharry/2017/03/31/shutting-down-codeplex/</a><br />
<br />
At this point you should be able to load your usb/dvd tool and create your bootable usb flash drive stick from the iso file you got before.<br />
<br />
Now you have to ask the question: do I care about the operating system I already have? Do I just want a totally new install with just windows or do I want to dual boot linux?<br />
<br />
If you don't care about what's on your machine, you can proceed with installation.<br />
<br />
Your BIOS will have to be set to boot to your USB or CD before it looks at your hard drive, otherwise it will just boot to the operating system you already have.<br />
<br />
Maybe I will talk about BIOS and partitioning (I'm expert at neither) in another post, because this is getting lengthy. I'm going to assume you've backed up all your files and you're not trying to do a dual-boot.<br />
<br />
You should boot into windows installation now. If it comes to the part where it shows you the partitions on your hard drive and it tells you windows can't install on either of them, hit delete. This will delete the partition in question (I had two, one appeared somewhat larger and fuller than the other, which I assume was the one with my linux and files on it) and allow you to install windows.<br />
<br />
<b>Sometime around now you'll need to enter a product key </b><br />
<br />
On my dell optiplex 790, the internet didn't work right away and I had to find a driver for the network adapter or whatever. I googled dell optiplex 790 drivers from my other computer and it took me here;<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_1531926281"><br /></a>
<a href="http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/4/product-support/product/optiplex-790/drivers" target="_blank"><b>http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/4/product-support/product/optiplex-790/drivers</b></a><br />
<br />
Cool! It's always nice to download straight from the manufacturer instead of a random website.<br />
<br />
I clicked 'find it myself' (it generally assumes you're downloading drivers for the computer you're currently online with, that was not the case with me) scrolled down, and found 7 drivers under the category 'network'<br />
<br />
I put all 7 on a usb stick and went to install them on the Optiplex. The first one worked. Not sure exactly which one, but I was going to install them all if need be.<br />
<br />
Funny I thought when I installed windows on the Dell Optiplex that I deleted the Linux, but it automatically created a dual-boot function through the GNU grub menu and I now have a dual boot screen that comes up when I boot up. A happy accident.<br />
<br />
I had so much fun I then went and installed windows on the Lenovo Thinkcentre. This time I decided to try and partition the hard drive myself first.<br />
<br />
See, Linux has a handy hard drive partitioner called gparted, but you can't partition a hard drive you're currently running on, so I would now need a USB flash drive with a Linux Mint iso much like the flash drive I just made with the windows iso. Here's the link I found;<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_1531926286"><br /></a>
<a href="https://mintguide.org/tools/317-make-a-bootable-flash-drive-from-an-iso-image-on-linux-mint.html" target="_blank">https://mintguide.org/tools/317-make-a-bootable-flash-drive-from-an-iso-image-on-linux-mint.html</a><br />
<br />
This will give you great instructions for creating your linux flash drive from a windows, linux, or mac machine. This is a cool thing to have because you can use it to install linux on
almost any computer (you still can't put 64 on a computer that requires
32), partition a drive, or try to revive a dead computer<br />
<br />
I was using my linux machine so I scrolled down and followed the instructions to install unetbootin from terminal commands;<br />
<br />
Ctl Alt T to open your terminal and type these lines one at a time (hitting enter after each line and waiting for the computer to do it's thing)<br />
<br />
<pre class="language-markup"><code class="undefined">sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gezakovacs/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install unetbootin extlinux</code></pre>
<pre class="language-markup"><code class="undefined"> </code></pre>
Then I just went to my linux mint menu and searched unetbootin and there it was, clicked on it and was ready to make my linux flash drive. It should be formatted FAT32 if it is not already formatted, first go to your USB formatter from your linux mint menu and format your usb stick (or if you have a shortcut for your usb stick on the desktop, right click it and select 'format') that part was super easy.<br />
<br />
once running unetbootin, you should get a choice of what flavor linux you want to download and off you go. I chose linux mint 17.1<br />
<br />
Now I rebooted to my new linux flash drive, but instead of installing, I hit quit. (Also it gave me a menu on different ways to boot, It was set to default so I just let it use default)<br />
<br />
This will take you into a live boot which basically looks like you just installed Linux Mint (you can do this with Ubuntu and others too)<br />
<br />
Now I was ready to run gparted and partition my drive.<br />
<br />
Ctl Alt T to open your terminal and enter<br />
<br />
<b>sudo apt-get install gparted </b><br />
<br />
Went to my menu and did a search (I'm not always sure where things end up when I download or install them) and found gparted and clicked on it.<br />
<br />
gparted started up and showed me my partitions. I clicked on the largest one and tried to resize it from the left side and got some error message, so I click dragged from the right side and reduced it to about 2/3 of what it was.<br />
<br />
My goal was to create a new partition and format it NTFS (the file system windows uses) to do a dual install and retain my current linux os and files. An iso file is about 3gb so I wanted my partition to be around 10gb to have some wiggle room. I figured I could maybe go back and increase the size later if needed.<br />
<br />
I got some warning that I might lose data and I should have backed up everything at this point.<br />
<br />
This part was easy, but it did take awhile to do.<br />
<br />
Once my partitions were created, I rebooted with the windows flash drive and went to install it.<br />
<br />
This time, when I got to the screen with the partitions, I had one that was formatted NTFS and ready for windows to install on. Everything seemed to be working great but....<br />
<br />
Once windows was installed it will now only boot to windows. Not sure if I can boot to the linux partition. Maybe I forgot to install GNU grub or something, maybe there is a different better way to dual boot with the Lenovo (I had read online that sometimes when doing Windows updates it can screw up your GNU grub menu, and a guy at work told me he has a dual boot system with multiple hard drives on his computer to prevent this.)<br />
<br />
Anyways, after all that extra trouble partitioning the drive the dual boot didn't work and I may have lost access to the files on that partition of my hard drive (help?) still, I learned a LOT these past few days and I have my Linux flash drive in case i want to go back and install it on the Lenovo. I think I will try and do like my friend at work and build a dual hard-drive machine, and dual boot from BIOS.<br />
<br />
I hope after all I went through this blog helps out some random person out there that has had similar problems that I had. <br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Edit follow up</b>: I was able to boot into windows 7 and download something called easy bcd from neosmart technologies (free for non-commercial use, just scroll down the page)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://neosmart.net/EasyBCD/" target="_blank">http://neosmart.net/EasyBCD/</a><br />
<br />
I added a boot option and used the Grub2 setting and now I can boot into my linux partition and I regained access to all of my files. You should be able to tell which partition is which by the size (which you allocated with gparted previously if you followed all my instructions)<br />
<br />
The one thing on my Lenovo Thinkcentre that's not working on windows is the built-in speaker, but I'm not worried about that. I kind of like not having it working. I could probably find a driver for it but I'm going to leave it for now.<br />
<br />
<br />Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-34733885077235011302017-09-10T17:36:00.001-07:002017-09-10T17:36:24.539-07:00<a href="https://youtu.be/PnNRmKN0dEE">https://youtu.be/PnNRmKN0dEE</a><br />
<br />
For your consideration; a very nerdy vlog wherein I give you too much information about my new bicycle. You're welcome.<br />
<br />
Tags/Categories: 99823 99824 99825 99850 99827 99830 Cycling DIY Maker Recumbent BighaRaymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-49965154083970511992017-06-26T18:43:00.001-07:002017-06-26T18:43:26.724-07:00DIY philosophyI see a lot of DIY projects online and there's not doubt there a lot of really creative people out there, but I want to share my criteria for a really awesome DIY project.<br />
<br />
In my opinion, the main reason to do it yourself is to save money and/or time. If it takes a lot of time and money, it defeats the whole purpose. You could have just paid someone else to do it for you.<br />
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Many DIY projects I see start off with purchasing a bunch of materials and tools, again, in my opinion, defeating the purpose.<br />
<br />
I would say a truly great DIY project meets these criteria;<br />
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It is <b>cheaper</b> than paying someone to do it for you.<br />
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It <b>does not require a lot of materials or tool</b>s. Ideally it can be completed with stuff you already have laying around the house, saving money and time spent running to the store.<br />
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It comes off as good OR BETTER than if you would have paid someone else to do it.<br />
<br />
Maybe I'll start a category for judging my own and other DIY projects based on this criteria.<br />
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Categories/tags: DIY philoshopy 99829 99843<br />
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<br />Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-45500961861549324312017-06-25T16:28:00.001-07:002017-06-25T16:28:13.072-07:00DIY planter boxes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
had a bunch of wood i wasn't using for anything so I thought I'm make some planter boxes. Used minwax to treat the wood. Old rope to hold them up. Notice how the rope goes under the boxes for good support, the soil and water will be heavy and I didn't want the bottom dropping out. This took a couple hours all told, a bit of hand sawing, drilling, nailing, etc... will try and post better pics when I actually get something planted.</div>
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Categories/Tags: 99829 99830 DIY GardeningRaymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-30887354888667663902017-06-25T16:02:00.001-07:002017-06-25T16:09:14.924-07:00DIY upcycled messenger bagUsed darning needles and nylon thread to upcycle an old leather jacket into an awesome messenger bag.<br />
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The leather jacket was pretty useless because it had a huge hole/tear in one elbow and one pocket had a bad zipper. Still, most of it was in good shape so I decided to tear it all down and sew it into a bag.</div>
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I got the seat belt from a pick-n-pull scrap yard, probably spent about 10 dollars on that. The darning needles and nylon thread cost maybe 5 bucks.</div>
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I cut an old pillowcase up to make pockets, sewing them into the inside of the bag so you can access those without unzipping the whole bag, which is cool to quickly stow your iphone or whatever. </div>
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This took a ton of work maybe like 8 hours total, it was basically done without any kind of template, just eyeballing and guess work, I was very happy with how it turned out. I put a flap on top to cover the zipper and make the bag water resistant. The flap even snaps down.<br />
<br />
Also I sewed rings into the bag for the strap to hook onto so the strap could be swapped out for whatever strap you want. Could hold a few textbooks pretty easily, a decent size for a kind of all purpose bag.<br />
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Categories/Tags: DIY cycling Maker 99824 99825 99827 99829 99830 </div>
Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-46646971585925191052017-06-09T19:53:00.000-07:002017-06-10T11:53:43.777-07:00Autonomous cars, self driving 'smart' cars' (implementation)edit: update: this video backs up my belief that self-driving cars and people shouldn't mix.. this warehouse has self-driving bots to move stuff around and they even do it in a 'human exclusion zone' bots and humans aren't going to really mix well.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/goog_187702534"><br /></a>
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gy5tYVR-28">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gy5tYVR-28</a><br />
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First of all, can we stop with the autonomous vehicles and the self-driving car? It's too hard to say, too many syllables etc...<br />
<br />
If a phone with a computer is a smartphone then a car with a computer is a 'smart' car. Henceforth in this blog I will refer to these cars as such.<br />
<br />
This is how I believe smart cars should be phased into our lives, and I will explain why.<br />
<br />
Most people are not really ready for smart cars, and the streets and traffic systems we have are not really ready for them either.<br />
<br />
The biggest problem is mixing the smart cars into regular traffic with human drivers. Smart cars cannot make eye contact or otherwise communicate with other drivers, other drivers can't always tell a smart car when they see one. A car being driven by a computer should be easily recognized as such.<br />
<br />
So, mixing them into regular traffic. This might sound odd, but LET'S NOT DO IT. Bear with me a moment and I'll explain.<br />
<br />
The smart cars could be phased in with limited trials in limited zones during limited times.<b> During these times and in these zones, regular human driven cars would be prohibited.</b> Smart cars would be limited to low speeds in pedestrian zones to familiarize people with the technology and insure safety. THE SMART CARS WOULD GIVE FREE RIDES TO PEOPLE IN THESE ZONES/ DURING THESE TIMES. This would further ingratiate people to the smart car.<br />
<br />
After trial periods and safety/familiarity is established, the zones and times could be expanded. Also the speed limits could be increased.<br />
<br />
The final implementation would be to allow the smart cars onto freeways<b> IN LANES SIMILAR TO CARPOOL LANES SEPARATE FROM OTHER HUMAN DRIVERS. The ROAD WOULD BE A SMART ROAD</b>, able to communicate with vehicles on it and ensure they are operating under computer control and operating safely. If a human driver had a compatible car, they could push a button and use these lanes... similar to toll lanes. These lanes would work wonderfully because all the cars would be going the same speed, they could be coordinated by computer to maximize speed and space, eliminating gridlock and stop and go driving that currently plagues our freeways.<br />
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Eventually, as people see the benefits of the technology and purchase new vehicles, the smart lanes/ smart freeways could be expanded. I believe in 10-20 years it may not be possible to use an interstate freeway without such a vehicle, much like airbags and seat belts are mandatory today.<br />
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But I'm getting ahead of myself. Portland's mayor recently said he wanted to implement self-driving cars, so I thought it was time to put these ideas out there. I have driven in Portland as a cabbie for 10 years so this comes from a place of some knowledge.<br />
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Currently Portland has a policy that prohibits vehicles in Old Town on Friday and Saturday nights so pedestrians can safely club hop without worrying about getting run over.. this would be a perfect time and place to test these self driving cars. Google, Tesla, Apple, or Uber could test their vehicles if they are willing to limit their speed and give free rides in that limited zone. <br />
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Again, as the technology is proven safe and people become more used to the idea of the autonomous car, the zones and speeds could be increased/expanded.<br />
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Another great place to test these vehicles would be in gated communities and or senior living areas, Charbonneau in Wilsonville comes to mind. It's an area that allows golf carts to use the roads.. the autonomous cars, operating at low speeds, could easily mix into this kind of community and win over some of the people that are most dubious of this technology.<br />
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At first, these trials would be limited to certain times of day on certain days, until people accept the technology. When they do, and I believe they will when it's proven that computer driven cars are safer than human driven ones, the times and zones can be expanded.<br />
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I do NOT believe that people in general or our roads are ready for self driven smart cars to mix into regular traffic and use our freeways.<br />
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IF we want to put these cars on the freeway we should construct a 'smartcarpool' lane, physically separated by dividers, that allows these cars to use the freeway without mixing with other cars. A commuter could approach the smartcarpool lane (let's say in Portland), touch a button that would relinquish control of their vehicle, and regain control of the vehicle when they arrived in the suburb they are driving to (Vancouver, Hillsboro, Gresham, etc...)<br />
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Tags/Categories: 99824 99825 99826 99836 99840 Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6239513119734010519.post-79116610759043927502017-05-18T20:54:00.002-07:002017-05-18T20:54:10.379-07:00The best beer I ever had<div class="western" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Portland,
Oregon</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 100%;">The
year was 1992. I was attending MLC in NW Portland and one day me and
a buddy took a tour of the Blitz Weinhard brewery on West Burnside.
It was like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory for the adolescent
male. The shining steel vats that held the malts dazzled our eyes. We
savored the pungent aroma of the hops as it assailed our nostrils.
All the secrets that went into the crafting of the delicious nectar
we loved were revealed! And then! Then, a creaking sound like some
mischievous yet benevolent banshee called out to us. We turned to see
two large oaken doors swing wide to reveal an inner sanctum. Into the
shadows we stared. Could it be? Yes it could! The friendly staff
beckoned us into the tasting room! The dark stain of the polished fir
bar adorned with brass rails hid the spoils of the room like a
pirate's chest overflowing with gold, but the treasure it offered was
golden hops tailored to a tasty perfection! We had our pick of brews
to sample. Henry's classic? Henry's Dark? What'll it be? Asked the
bartender. We answered in the manliest voices we could muster.......
Blitz, please.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We
may have entered the brewery that day as boys, but when the exit
doors opened onto West Burnside Street to reveal a rare glimpse of
pacific northwest sunshine, we did not squint. We did not shy away
from the light. We proudly strolled out those doors with our heads
held high. We emerged as men!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Categories/Tags: 99823 99826 99835 99843 99851 </span></span></div>
Raymond Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02318377660164780250noreply@blogger.com0