Benedict Bosco

Ned Harr wrote:
I think a Transit is an interesting choice for a build-out, given the lack of 4WD options (if I'm remembering right) and Ford's notorious mechanical and electrical issues (at least in my experience & observation--I drive a Transit Connect for my work van) though I do consistently like the ergonomics on Fords if you exclude the area under the hood. I'm sure some people get lucky with Fords. Curious how you've fared with the Transit and what are your thoughts about the other van options.

The new Ford Transits do have a factory 4WD option, which is a selling point for them. They also have a more modern cabin. Lots of electronics and stuff to break, though. The Chevy/GMC vans are more robust and more easily serviced. You can get 4WD on those too, but it's an aftermarket mod and it ain't cheap!

They make hand cranked corn shellers that make fast work of a pile of cobs, but otherwise yeah, just grab the cob and twist like you're wringing out a cloth. Apparently the crank ones are still being made and can be purchased online for around 50 bucks...not sure of the quality of those, but that seems to be the general price point. You might find an antique one for cheaper that's probably better made if you look around.

A few of things I've learned:
- it's a good idea to exercise all shutoff valves (open and close them), both the whole house and at individual fixtures, on a regular basis, probably at least once a year. If they don't move, they tend to corrode internally and stick, and may not work when you need them. I had a valve handle I was trying to close break off because it was too badly stuck - thankfully it wasn't something I needed off urgently, but would have been bad otherwise.
- have shutoff valves at each fixture. This isn't necessarily an emergency thing, but if you're trying to fix or replace a faucet or appliance and you can't shut off the water there and have to shut off the main, it's a bigger production that has to be done now, instead of being able to take your time with the fix. Exterior faucets especially should have their own independent shutoffs.
- if you shut off the main for any reason, you probably want to go through the house and remove aerators and run the faucets until they run smooth (i.e. once the air is out, run a bit longer). The pressure drop/rebuild tends to knock sediment loose in the pipes, which clogs up the aerators and makes them flow poorly.

Judith Browning wrote:
The 10 square feet per tree is really a 3 foot circle of bare dirt around my tree to try to deter peach tree borer larvae...squared off to 3 foot by 3 foot is 9 square feet but for my math I thought calling it 10 square feet would be close enough and I'm not up to figuring out square feet of a circle.

You're welcome! Bonus formula for you - the area of the circle is pi times the radius squared 3.14*(1.5^2) - so it's roughly 7sf

Here's the math...


  4 lbs              16 oz/lb                 64 oz
-----------   *  -----------------     =    ------------  
 1 acre         43,560 sf/ac          43,560sf

=>

  64               x
---------  =  ----------
43560          10

=>

64 / 43560 * 10 = 0.015 oz per 10sf

that's not much...fraction of a tsp, probably.

I haven't used an e-ink display except on a Kindle that I haven't turned on in a great many years, but I'm interested to see what others have seen or tried.

The smaller form-factors (i.e. tablets and the like) are going to suffer from a dramatic drop in serviceability and longevity compared to larger, more modular desktop-type options. Depending on what your exact needs are, you could potentially build up a laptop-esque device running a small board (Raspberry Pi or the like) that you could use for fieldwork, and have the monitor be something you could plug into a desktop PC when at home for larger or more computationally intensive projects - one display for multiple computers.

You can also disable Autoplay in the browser (this is Brave, which I highly recommend; it's Chromium based so Chrome, Edge, and the rest should have the same option). You can get to site-specific settings from the left side of the URL bar > Site Settings. The global setting is in Settings > Privacy and Security > Site and Shields Settings under "Additional Permissions"

I've found myself aggressively using the "Do not play this artist" button on Spotify, for the same reason. If the recommendations start playing something AI, it just runs down that rabbit hole until you've blocked enough "Artists" to find real people again.

Good pasture and hay are the best. You can get alfalfa pellets that make a good supplemental feed/treat that isn’t quite so rich as grain.

Elena Sparks wrote:I am gonna send you a PM with info on milking abilities and fleece of the Icelandics so it doesn't get lost.

Can I get a copy of this too, please?