I looked at my Mitchell Daily Republic and there was a story about all the improvements in the paper. Gosh coupons to Mitchell businesses. We don't get that far very often. Next hot deal which actually looked really good. Free access to the MDR's E-paper for subscribers to the snail mail version. Wow, a paper finally makes sense about use of digital editions and gratitude to those of us who find their paper in our mailbox most mornings.
But nope. The kind of Catch 22 that will doom newspapers which intend to build a huge revenue stream on an essentially zero-cost medium. The free papers only exist for the time you happen to be on vacation or elsewhere and you don't get your snail-mail versions for that time period.
Oh, crap. That bit of promise revision is just too much like insurance agent Marion Michael Rounds making big bold statements in bold print and then mashing those bold promis words with fine print. You can read Tupper's article for a day or two at link below:
Today I heard Science Friday on SDPB-TV with a program on Graphene. You can make your own tiny sample by rubbing a pencil on paper to make a blog, then pushing scotch tape onto it and lifting the tape. That essentially leaves a one atom thick layer of Graphene. Made into a film as thick as Saran or other plastic wrap and it would support a full-size pickup truck. I hope if the limitations of graphene can be overcome, it will become the basis for something like a real paper newspaper but all digital and yet laying on a table like a sheet of paper. Then the Mitchell paper would have a third teaser edition available for extra cost.
And for something completely different, a short story about vehicle repair. A friend who lives a few hundred miles from SD drives (when it is running) a 1995 Chevrolet G20 Van. He literally searches for gold and other twinkly minerals. Anyway, the van headlights have been working erratically recently. The first problem that showed up was that he low beams would not come on. Driving with only brights there will lead to traffic tickets in a hurry. He has a back problem from a serious work injury and can't crawl under the dash or under the engine, so he took it to one of the better vehicle repair shops.
They nailed him a healthy chunk of change for the parts and labor and said it was fixed. Friend then took off to visit his son a 100 miles or so down the interstate. He decided to return that night since his vehicle now had good lights. He drove about 50 miles and then lost both brights and dims..total blackness at 65mph except for reflectors along road illuminated by a vehicle behind him. He eased off to the shoulder and flipped the combination turnsignal, dimmer do-it-all and finally the dim lights came on. He drove a few miles and they went out, but then the brights worked until he got off interstate onto highway heading home. The lights flickered off a few more times.
He got the Van back to the shop a few days later and told them that they must have missed something. They checked everything and claimed nothing was wrong. He drove the van to get groceries and turned on the lights. He noticed no left side dim light coming on in the store reflection. About that time the lights started blinking off and on like lights connected to a hazard flasher. He got it back to the shop to show them the recent problem and that he was not dreaming.
The shop called him back later that afternoon and told them they had figured out what was wrong, "Alien beings had taken control of his Van." This morning they called and told him that actually Alien beings were not responsible after all. The new switch they had put in was defective and one headlight had a broken low-beam filament.
*** Stay tuned and beware the aliens and vehicle gremlins--- Doug Wiken
Now and then we get a taste of meat cooked on a barbecue that is not burned on the outside and raw on the inside, but I always kind of cross my fingers and hope for the best. Anyway, I sometimes watch public broadcasting barbecue with $10,000 of equipment show, but yet to use a single idea from that show. So, on to something a bit more practical that is in the barbecue neighborhood, but on the cheap.
My son ended up cooking for about 10 people and did not have a lot of time or money for the cooking. He got about 12 pounds of chicken legs and stripped the fat skin off, then in his words:
This is what I did for the chicken marinade. It was really simple. Throw
2 tablespoons salt, 2 minced garlic cloves, and 3 tablespoons vinegar
in a gallon size ziplock bag. Add 3 to 4 pounds meaty chicken pieces
that have had the skin removed . I used 99cent/pound drumsticks. Add
enough water to the bag so the chicken is
sufficiently covered. Close the bag and then shake. I let it soak for
about 24 hours.
I
used an electric turkey roaster usually used at Thanksgiving or Christmas The
space between the grates on the rack that came with the roaster was too wide, so I added two smaller roasting racks with smaller grid spacing. I added 1 cup of water to
the bottom of the roaster. Then I laid the chicken on the racks
alternating the ends and making two layers. I had somewhere between 10
and 12 pounds of chicken. I cooked the chicken at 350 for 2.5 hours. I
moved the layers of chicken around after about an hour, but I am not
sure if I needed to do that. I slathered on some barbecue sauce after 2 hours and finished cooking about 30 minutes later.
The
chicken turned out moist and tender. A couple of people at the party
said that this was the best chicken they had eaten in a long time.
His idea sounded like it might have potential for other cooking. I shopped around a bit and found a "Mr. Bar-BQ" mesh stainless steel roasting pan at Shopko on cleaarance for about $12. It fit right into our old electric turkey caserole cooker. We haven't tried it for any cooking yet, but it sure looks like an idea with potential for good meat, potatoes, and other vegetables. Below is a photo of the mesh in the roaster. Clck on image for larger version.
There is a version of this shapped like a skillet with a handle as well. But a Mr. Bar-BQ tool that doesn't seem to work quite so well is a plastic hamburger press which is supposed to make burgers with a hollow that can be filled with onion, cheese, peppers, etc. The idea has some merit, but the implementation is less than perfect. The burgers made would not come out of the press without breaking up. We fried them anyway, and the combination tasted really good. We will have to experiment with the technique a bit and see if better options for such cooking exist.
*** Stay tuned even if your idea of cooking is hot-footing it to a quick foods greasy spoon-- Doug Wiken
Getting a Driver's License in SD is a royal pain in the rear. I have had SD learners and drivers permits or drivers licenses since 1957. Might it be reasonable to expect the state to have records of that and not demand an original birth certificate (Costs $20 and ironically, a Drivers License is required for ID to get one)? Two Utility bills with home address, a social security card or valid passport.. We had to provide the same damn information the last time we got a Driver's License. Might it be reasonable to expect that such a drivers's license already with all documention is sufficient proof to get another one?
The Department of Public Safety officials here were personable and efficient. But, I do wonder how they can keep working such an idiotic system. It is hard not to got through this pain in the rear without thinking that the real function is to make it hard for poor people and minorities such as Native Americans to get a Driver's license and thus be able to vote.
Has anyone yet discovered any evidence that there has been any significant attempt to get drivers licenses fraudulently in South Dakota? My guess is that 80% or so of applicants have had SD Drivers Licenses for years and probably have lived in the same place for 30 or more years.
Another question for SD Legislators and officials. Why do we need such a ponderous identification when states like Arizona loaded with illegal aliens requires barely any identification?
The system makes it even harder for women to get a license. It is discriminatory in that regard. They need marriage licenses as well as all the other crap....and just like Birth Certificates, they need ...you guessed it...a drivers license to get a copy.
Did any thoughtful SD legislator of official bother to ask himself if this mess made sense?
*** Stay tuned, but watch out for old geezers with new Driver's Licenses--- Doug Wiken
I suspect some of this kind of post is found very boring for some people. My wife finds it amusing that "nerds" can get so interested in this kind of stuff. Anyway... below is an image of a heater warning label I have not seen here in South Dakota on electric heaters. It is from my friend John in California and for all I know may be a sensible California requirement. Click on the image for a larger version.
Above is actually info from front and back of warning tag. Click on image for a more readable size.
John included more information which one might expect from an electrical engineer. I will put that information into SD Science Junction. It is the kind of information that conveys a message of the actual importance of science and engineering knowledge in general daily life..or possibly death if knowledge is absent or unavailable.
I also received more information from the SD Fire Marshall's office which parallels the above warning, but is not quite so easy to insert here. You can download the PDF below.
Thanks to Doug Hinkle of the SD Office and thanks to John for the information of his own experience with overheated connectors and his analysis of it.
I have looked at all stores selling cords and heaters here in Winner, SD again last week and checked my own connectors and cords and have found a huge gap between the data in the marketplace and the info from fire authorities. More caution than suggested by product labeling here in South Dakota is warranted by experience here and elsewhere.
*** Stay tuned and be careful both out there and in there--- Doug Wiken
We have used those handy six-outlet extensions for years. Some with surge arresstors for computers and TVs, and some with just an overload switch.
I will soon get photos in here, but what happened is still a bit of a mystery. I noticed one light was not working. Started checking and found no power there. Checked entrance box and a 25 amp breaker had tripped. It would not reset. Tracked the circuit and found that a heavy-duty extension cord plugged into the six-outlet extension showed melted plastic on each end. The end at the outlet was white plastic charred black.
Click on image for larger version
The heater plugged in worked in another outlet as it should. Other loads were negligible. The cord plugged into the six-outlet strip had a male terminal literally welded to the brasss connector in the extension strip. We were very lucky to not have had a fire.
I don't know anything for sure, but I suspect it might make sense to pull plugs out of any extension cord or strip now and then and replug them to possibly break up oxidation or corrosion. So far my best guess is that such a bad connection started arcing which produced the heat without using enough current to trip the breaker on the extension strip. Then the hot side contracted the ground or the other side of the connector and finally tripped the 25 amp circuit breaker at the entrance box.
Anybody with other ideas or similar experience, let me know. I suspect many of these things are on carpets and behind sofas and other furniture where any kind of arcing or over-heating could start a serious fire. Mine was up on a wall with no carpet in the area.
That is enough of that. On Monday, I will contact the South Dakota Fire Marshall office and see if they have found examples of power strip failure producing fire. Many colleges and universities have info on use and abuse of these strips.
[[[ Note: I did get in touch with SD Fire Marshall Office and they called back after looking at image here. Found out it is a bad idea to plug extension cords into them. I still don't get the physics of that problem however. Also that one of the things they inspect for in SD Schools is the use and abuse of those power strips. I may get more info from the SD Fire Marshall and if I do, will post it here or provide a link to the information.. I did look at the packaging for a number of multiple outlets. Most have no reference to dangers of extension cords. Others give conflictiing information in the fine print that says in one sentence "Don't use two-wire extension cords or adapters". Then a few lines later indicates no kind of extension cords should be used. Other have no warnings of any kind. After talking to the fire marshall office, I think is is wise not to plug any single appliance into those strips which by itelf uses power close to the maximum rating.. I still don't know for sure what happened to this one, but my limited experience suggests these things deserve a bit more attention despite the package big print which usuially indicates the breaker in them makes them safe to use. More to come on this I am sure.--- Doug Wiken ]]]
This morning (March 19, 2013, I got more information from Doug Hinkle at the SD Fire Marshall Office. It is posted on one of my Notebook Pages--- Fire Code Info. Check it for more information. This may all be much ado about not much, but the charred and melted plastic and the "welded" connectors certainly caught my attention.
*** Stay tuned even if all your connections are political-- Doug Wiken
Roughcut is a public broadcasting wood working show. The host is fascinated by matching wood grain in cabinetry and other patterns in wood. Last one of these I watched Macdonald was trying to get a spiral grain pattern in a bowl he was turning out of 1/2 inch thick circles glued together. He pointed his finger to the pattern and said it was know as:
Chatoyancy can also be used to refer to a similar effect in woodworking, where certain finishes will cause the wood grain
to achieve a striking three-dimensional appearance; this can also be
called pop-the-grain, wood iridescence, moire, vibrancy, shimmer or
glow.[4]
This effect is often highly sought after, and is sometimes referred to
as "wet look", since wetting wood with water often displays the
chatoyancy, albeit only until the wood dries. Oil finishes and shellac
can bring out the effect strongly.. More at Source Wikipedia.
I kind of doubt that word will turn up very soon in crossword puzzles. I probably won't even use it here to describe the brains of South Dakota Republican legislators or even cat's eyes for that matter.. The word did not show up in an old thick dictionary we had either, but I may have spelled it wrong. Google knows how dumb we can be..
Frankly, that was a lot more important than the hype about some South Dakota jock being picked in a football draft, but also more interesting since the day before a window in our farm house was covered with moths. I swatted a bunch of them, and then remembered what we had done a few years ago with a similar "invasion". See image below.
Not particularly attractive, but this is the result of a light placed directly above and near the toilet bowl overnight.. with no other light in house. There are still a couple moths flitting around, but most of them drowned. To make this work, a few drops of dish detergent need to be added to the toilet bowl water to break the surface tension; otherwise, the moths can float on top and flutter out.
Obviously, be careful with electric light in proximity to water. In the morning, just flush the pot and the moths are gone with no mess.
*** Stay tuned even if the Mam-MOTH invasion is the least of your worries--- Doug Wien
Residents of South Dakota. Check your broadband speed with the SD Speedtest. Your test will both let you know how speedy is your ISP and also help get us better service in South Dakota.
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