Birds on a Cable | Blog

I’m fairly new at the plant game (just over 4 years now). At that time, I met my partner… and then suddenly I was able to keep plants alive for the first time in my life. Coincidence? Maybe. But he also taught me a few lessons that helped me turn my black thumb into a green one. These days I have about 30 plants in my house. Luckily it doesn’t look like a jungle (yet).

Do you ever have fitness-related nightmares? Do the cool gym rats in the hellish world of your mind made fun of you for fitting neatly through doorways, or for having a skull with a shorter circumference than your arms? Well, have I got a solution for you! It’s called the nSuns 5/3/1 Linear Progression, a program I stumbled across on Reddit about a month ago. So far it’s been a great template for me and offers a lot of benefits over something I would put together on my own. Here’s the deal:

It’s early, I know. It’s only August. But my in-laws live out-of-state, and my sister wants to celebrate a milestone birthday over Thanksgiving with our extended family. In combination, these two facts mean I will be spending both holidays away from home. And so, it’s time to start looking at flights, and preparing for tech help questions.

Since you can look up my favorite bird on our website, I’ll take this opportunity to talk about my favorite member of the animal kingdom: the Snow Leopard. I became aware of this extremely rare big cat on a visit to Brookfield Zoo when I was a wee lad. I always thought big cats were cool but had never even heard of a Snow Leopard. Walking up to the enclosure at first, I didn’t spot them among the rocky terrain. Then out of nowhere, two of the cats burst from their hiding places sprinting directly towards the glass then launched themselves a good 15 feet into the air and off the top of the viewing glass to land easily in the rocks at the back of the enclosure. It appeared to me these things had just defied the laws of physics, and I was stunned. Here are some fun facts about these amazing creatures.

Hello everybody, it’s me again, your local heat expert. If you remember last year, I wrote about the effects heat can have on your laptop. If you need a refresher, I’ll wait ….

Now that you’re caught up I want to provide another Public Service Announcement. This summer, it’s time to talk about how heat affects our furry friends. If you haven’t noticed by now, I’m the proud owner of a pup named Wesley (yes I know I’ve mentioned him in every blog I’ve written, but who’s counting 😊). It’s ridiculously hot outside, and extreme heat can be dangerous for dogs. I’d like to share some info and tips to help navigate these conditions so little Bethesda, Lucy, Riley, Wesley, etc. won’t get cooked like the last scene in Total Recall. (Nope, not going to link it, google at your own discretion.)

Windows very recently announced their plan to completely do away with password logins for Windows 10 computers, deciding to go the way of cell phone and other mobile gadgets by pushing users to rely on biometrics or PIN numbers. It seems as though the “desktop” has finally caught up with the mobile, albeit with one BIG difference: Microsoft won’t even allow the option of a password.

It’s likely that if you follow tech news, you’ve heard the term “Zero Day.” It’s a vulnerability or flaw in software which isn’t known to the software’s maker or public at large. Basically, it’s the bumper of the Ford Pinto before the first one exploded. Because of how quickly software is produced and updated, most software has bugs. Often those bugs can be used by skilled attackers to create exploitable vulnerabilities which can then be leveraged to encrypt your files, send out spam, or get access to private information.

Happy July 3RD! It’s not too late to join in on Plastic Free July. Maybe you’ve read my other posts, “Slowly Approaching Zero Waste, Part I + II“… and if you have, this is another great way to keep yourself accountable (and to learn new methods on how to adopt a plastic-free lifestyle).

I know that it may seem a bit daunting. For me, even with my lifestyle changes in approaching zero waste, I already feel like I’m setup to fail. But that shouldn’t stop me from challenging myself to be even more mindful about what I’m buying and how I can continue to change things up, since we are literally surrounded by plastic. It’s like sugar – it’s everywhere and really hard to avoid. I signed up for this campaign online, it gave me some options that allowed me to breathe a little:

The Plastic Free July campaign website also has resources and ideas on how to conquer the challenge, as well as a quiz (once you sign up) to understand your current use of plastics.

Going completely plastic-free doesn’t have to be done perfectly. To have 100,000 people do this imperfectly is better than 100 people doing it perfectly. Consider the changes you can make to better the place we live!

I recently returned from a trip to Iceland and have some *HOT TIPS* for people who are Iceland-curious. This will largely be (well, wholly be) non-technical:

1. During the summer months –
   – You will be constantly reminded that you are a tourist by the large crowds of other tourists all doing the same thing as you. It’s worth the trip anyway.
   – Nighttime lasts about four hours and the sky never really gets dark. A sleep mask is helpful.
   – Some caves and attractions are only accessible during the winter months.
2. Seljalandsfoss is a must-see if driving the southern half of the country. We stopped there on a lark and it was easily my favorite part of the trip.
3. Any dish with either lamb or fish in it is almost guaranteed to be delicious. (Beef becomes less appealing by the day.)
4. Puffin isn’t worth eating unless you really like beef jerky that is made from cute birds.
5. Shower gel is the ultimate grooming tool. It is shampoo, conditioner, and body wash all in one!
6. The small boat whale-watching experience probably isn’t worth the ticket price.
7. If staying in an Airbnb in Kalfafell, don’t be off-put if it looks like a tool shed from the outside. I can assure you that it is fully-furnished.
8. Accept that you will be disappointed with the lack of roundabouts once you are back in the States.
9. Outside of Reykjavik, grocery stores close early, open late, and are few in number. Plan ahead when buying provisions.

It’s time for me to get a new mobile device. This is not because there’s a crack running diagonally across the glass of my iPhone, and it’s not because I recently wrapped up payments on this broken thing. It’s not because my iPhone, recognizing the threat of replacement, has begun self-induced reboots and random app freezing. It is certainly a combination of these things, but they run alongside a simple and deep desire to have something new. This thing is 3yrs old. By golly it’s time.