We received a refund check from our insurance company. I had it with me Sunday when we went downtown with the intent to deposit it, but instead it was forgotten. When I got home I realized I no longer had it and it must have fallen from a pocket.
Monday I called the insurance company to cancel the check and issue us a new one.
Tuesday we received an envelope with the check and this note in it:
"Found this on the street. (Pacific Ave)
In Front of Borders.
Figured you could use it."
There was no identifying return information. Thank you anonymous
nice person!
Today, in addition to being warm, is oddly quiet downtown. There is very little traffic, there are few people walking around, and I didn't even hear any street musicians as I walked around running errands. Was Halloween night that taxing on everyone?
But I kept going, all the way to Takashimaya. It took about 50 minutes to get there and I listened to Ira Glass Interview Joss Whedon on the way. A quick buzz through Kinokuniya (didn't buy anything!) and then downstairs to grab some fake bacon at Cold Storage, and then home.
I am absolutely a destination-focused walker. Treadmills do not do it for me at all. Singapore is big on treadmills (in air conditioned glass rooms).
I hesitated for just a moment at the Orchard MRT station, and ended up walking past it and all the way home!
I was super-sweaty and exhausted when I got home, but I feel great! I can tell, however, that my legs will be really achy tomorrow.
Now, the hard part is figuring out how to keep it up during the week. I may start by getting off at the Orchard or Newton MRT stations on the way home rather than at Novina. Of course, that would require leaving work at a reasonable hour...which I should be doing anyway. Maybe a swim in the morning before work and a walk from Newton in the evening.
Yesterday was sent getting ready for the first big rain of the season. Boards that were still scattered about from the fence building were put away. Loose items secured for the wind. I took down the chimney from the wood-burning stove we no longer have. It's always leaked so it's good to have it down. Last year in a hurry we taped a plastic bag over it but that is long gone. The screws for the supports came out without unscrewing them so I think we got to it just in time.
For future weather I dug a hole to put in a pole for the satellite dish so it stops going out of alignment every six months. Then I found out that there aren't any 2-inch diameter, 8-feet long fence poles around on a Sunday so that will have to wait.
Unfortunately I didn't get to putting a layer of plastic under the house and after this rain it'll probably too wet under there to do that easily. Next year for sure!
This summer Henry was over and wanted to play the Atari 2600. I went to go turn it on and found there was no way for the video signal to get where it needed to go. I removed the VCR from the stack of equipment awhile ago since we don't have any more tapes and that was the only RF input I had. Then I realized that with the ending of analog broadcast pretty soon nothing will be able to handle the RF signal. I looked for standalone RF converters and found that, while they do exist, it's cheaper just to get a VCR, but I don't want a VCR just to run the Atari. I found a kit from The Longhorn Engineer. The kit is easy to assemble (even though I had been out of practice soldering). The instructions on the site are complete but I was having trouble making it work with my model so I put it aside for awhile. When I went back to it the instructions were updated and they worked perfectly! Now I have composite and s-video a
nd pseudo-stereo outputs!
Later in the summer Vinna wanted to play Asteroids and it wouldn't turn on. I thought it might be the kill-switch that triggers when the back panel is open but that tested fine. The power coming out of the power supply was non-existent though. I looked up replacement power supplies and found the service manual. From that I learned about the fuses. One of the six fuses was bad so I replaced it and it powered up. Since I was working on it I replaced the lock on the back panel so I wouldn't have to tape it in place anymore. I'll try harder not to lose this set of keys.
Now I just have to replace the RAM chips in the Battlezone machine.
The kitchen light transformer I got in exchange had the same problems as the first one, plenty of power on the AC side, but nothing on the DC side. So the next day I took the new transformer back to Riverside Lighting to ask them to test it since I didn't think I would pick up two bad ones in a row. I was actually thinking now that the first one was functional as well.
I walked in and the guy recognized me and told me that 10 minutes after I left he tested it and it tested fine. I asked him why it didn't test fine for me and he told me that when he asked the lamp guy about it he was told that it needed a minimum of a 25W load to operate. Also the lamp guy posited that the problem was the socket since he had replaced a number of sockets on lamps like mine. I was told I would have to bring the lamp in since four different sockets have been used on that lamp.
Yesterday I brought the lamp in and I was shown to the back room of the electrical room (almost a back room in its own right) when a tall man name Larry looked at it. He said it could be the socket the the look on his face didn't indicate confidence in that. He said he would work on it that day.
Today I went to the post office and decided to stop by and see how progress was. I walked right back to the back room of the back room and Larry was packing something in a box. I said I had come to check on the progress on my lamp. "Is this your lamp" he asked while tilting the box so I could see inside? I affirmed that it was and I asked him what the problem was. He explained that the installer had over-tightened the screw that holds the coaxial power cable in place which ended up causing a short. I'm guessing that me having to replace the original transformer caused enough movement in the wire to highlight the problem. Larry re-tightened the screw properly and applied some glue stuff to the damaged section so it wouldn't short anymore, and here I am with a repaired lamp on my desk at work.
In July the transformer in the drop-light above the kitchen sink died after 4 years. I was told tat was about the life span for those for the 60 watt transformer for 12-volt lighting and Riverside sold me a 75 watt replacement. They said this one should last longer since I was just using a 60 watt bulb in it and wasn't pushing the full 75 watts.
Six weeks later the replacement was dead. After it was installed and working I dumped the receipt. I went to Riverside expecting to have to buy a new one and they just traded me for a new one without any hassle. Hopefully this one isn't another dud.
I watched the beginning of the 1956 version of War & Peace but gave up on it because it was far too silly.
Saw part 1 of Black in America 2 on CNN. Now I wish I had seen the first one.
The Hangover - Pretty funny and well done trace-your-steps movie. All of the characters play well together. Nice setup for a sequel too.
Delirious - It's kind of quirky and entertaining but Michael Pitt comes off as too wooden for me. Good thing he's mostly paired with Steve Buscemi!
State and Main - This is a funny big-name ensemble. It feels like it was or could be a stage play. The dialog is clever and everything is fast paced.
I Am Legend - I think this tells the story better than The Omega Man and from what I've read it's closer to the original novel (which I now want to read). The practicalities are seen. The loneliness is felt. The feelings of the others are made known too. Good stuff and I look forward to the prequel.
Keeping Mum - An English comedy that isn't about celebrating the quirks of a small town. Sometimes it seems like that's all you get from the English indie comedies. Anyway, it's enjoyable and you should watch it.
Wedding Daze - This isn't very memorable; I had to go look up what it's about. It has some funny parts but most of it I just didn't care about the characters.
Elegy - An affair between an older man and a younger woman? I thought this would be awkward or cliche. Instead it has some compelling relationship stories and I really felt for the characters.
Righteous Kill - It's always fun to watch De Niro and Pacino. The story isn't that great but you almost don't notice!
Seven Pounds - Sometimes the story seems a little disjointed but it all pulls together and it ends up being a good story of the personal. It ended better than I expected.
Passengers - Kind of another version of The Sixth Sense, but not nearly as good. I just wanted them to get on with it so the movie could end. I don't think I would think of The Sixth Sense this way if I had seen Passengers first.
Public Enemies - This is good but it felt like there was more cut out to get it to a good theater running length. I guess we'll find out if there's director's cut. The film looks weird at times. It was obviously filmed with digital cameras that at times made things feel too smooth when filming in dark. It was both distracting at times and made things stand out at others. I'm sure that's just a glimpse of what's to come.
Swing Vote - It's both a commentary on the political system and the stereotypical non-voter. Kevin Costner plays close to the type he played in Tin Cup. I say check it out!
The Dukes of Hazard - This might be hard to believe but I think the plot of the average episode was better than the movie. Highlights: They showed off Jessica Simpson's legs nicely in the beginning, and Burt Reynolds as Boss Hogg.
The Midnight Meat Train - I can say I've never been that crazy about Clive Barker movies. This is the first one I actually got into. The story was interesting. The gore was over the top so if that turns you off avoid this movie. Or just cover your eyes since you can see it coming.
Funny People - The trailer doesn't spoil the movie for you and the story told ends up being good. I wasn't expecting comedy, but a movie about comedians with some funny parts. With that in mind there was a lot more humor than I was expecting. Also I think it's the first thing I've liked Eric Bana in.
Religulous - Bill Maher's documentary to show how much religious is a big mistake. The best part for me is when he was talking to the Jesus at the Holy Land Experience. He talks to a variety of people but it's mostly a rehash of ideas I've heard about why religion is bad.
Slumdog Millionaire - When I was watching this I was reminded of four movies it borrowed from but right now I can't remember what they are. Anyway, good movie and I like how it was told with the flashbacks. I don't think this would be my pick for best movie last year but I don't think I saw any movies last year that were better.
Julie & Julia - I liked this but I, like many others, wished the movie focused more on Julia than Julie. Good job to the movie makers for making Julie more likable. I went and read some of the Julie & Julia blog entries and she comes across as much more self-centered there.
The Wrestler - This movie was better than I expected and I thought the ending was great (but I seem to like abrupt endings)! I had heard it was like a retelling of Passion of the Christ and I can see what they meant. The stories line up pretty closely.
Death at a Funeral - Funny! But if you haven't seen this you can wait for the inexplicable remake next year. Remaking a recent English-language film directed by an American director doens't happen that often but it's happening here. Actually you should just see this one since you never know how the remake will turn out.
Sicko - Seeing this movie while the current health care debate is raging really drives home all the more that we need this change. I think this probably plays better now than when it originally played in theaters. The usual Michael Moore gimmicks are not as present here and when they are they are short lived; the material stand up on its own.
Michael Clayton - Well played by everyone and an ending I could really enjoy. This movie made me miss John Grisham movies though. What happened to them?
Gabriel - A rebellious teenage bible student watched the Matrix too many times and this is what came out. Why did the end have to go on so long?
Sex Drive - This movie takes awhile to hit its stride. It's shortly before they get to the Amish. Seth Green cements that as one of the Amish, but what doesn't Seth Green make better? It never gets great but it's fairly fun.
Beowulf - I was wondering if I would haev any uncanny valley problems with this movie and I'm happy to report that I didn't. This movie once again demonstrates that animated doesn't make it a kids movie. The story is told well and I'm glad I saw it. I think it was perhaps the right way to film it.
Houseboat - Crazy living situation. Italian beauty. Drama behind the scenes according to imdb. It all makes for an entertaining movie. Good for a lazy afternoon or evening when it happens to be on.
District 9 - Really well done. I liked most everything being from the point of view of security, news, or documentary cameras. A main character that doesn't think clearly and pays the price. I look forward to the sequel.
Video 3000 - A 5 minute foreign short about a universal remote. Kind of like Click but very short.
Porno - An odd Polish short film.
No Bikini - A great short story about a girl's summer switch to another gender.
Uncle Nino - A well done story of the outsider coming in to show the family what's important in life.
9 - My favorite movie of the year so far. I liked everything about it! No sequel for this one please. I don't know how it compares to the short by the same name, but I'm guessing since I've seen this one the other probably won't stand up. It might be the reverse for those who have seen the short.
I'm at work and struggling with a cold. I'm having difficulty concenterating in meetings, especially those that start at 8:00 AM. The result:
I recently saw that a friend got a second yogurt maker. I hadn't heard of such a device and I envisioned something like a bread maker where you put in all the ingredients and some time later you have yogurt. After some research I found that yogurt making is a simple process. Heat milk to 185 degrees F, cool it to 110 degrees F, add cultures from starter or live culture yogurt, and keep it between 105 and 112 degrees F for at least 7 hours. The yogurt maker handles that last part, which is the part I'd need to replicate.
My first thought was to check the oven. It goes down as low as 80 degrees F (great for letting dough rise). The oven doesn't have every 5 degree interval on it, instead having every common temperature. Unfortunately getting yogurt cultures to do their thing didn't make the cut. The oven jumps from 80 to 100 to 125.
The next idea was to use the induction cooktop. The cooktop can go way below normal settings you would get on a gas cooktop unless it is the really old kind that has the always-on pilot light.
In all of these cases you need the milk and cultures in the container with a lid on. I used a remote bbq thermometer in the pot to measure the temperature. First up was a quart of water in the tall sauce pan on the lowest setting. The remote thermometer showed it climbing well over 115 in no time.
Next I decided to try half a gallon in a large sauce pan. The climbing temperatures were slower but they also passed 115 without too much time passed.
I then decided I needed more surface area to dissipate heat so the big skillet was up next. Luckily I could just dump this water from one vessel to the next for each test. On this one the temperature dropped the most before the heat was once again applied so maybe it would work. Unfortunately this one had the fastest climbing temperature. Yes there was more area to eliminate heat, but there was also a lot more area to absorb heat!
I thought I was out of luck when I remembered the cast-iron wok. It has a small area base and a wide open top, perfect! I put two sheets of foil on top for my lid and after heating in a slow climb the temperature held steady at 114 degrees F. Figuring there must be a way to make it work I reconfigured the foil into a a very crude cone with an opening in the top. After some more tweaking I got it to stay steady at 107 degrees F for 45 minutes!
So, can I make yogurt? Probably. I think that it would have an iron flavor to it by the time the batch was done though. Also there's a significant setup time needed for that foil cone to see if it is just right. It's probably better off to get a yogurt maker.
Other things to try:
- We have a portable induction cooktop that might be able to go lower, but probably not.
- Using a mason jar in a water bath. An uncovered pot might be able to keep the temperature low enough.
