My Site ^

Recipes, technology, personal stuff and a crap load of archives.

Category: Observations

Trying Something New

Posted on by Don

Who among us has seen the Pixar film Wall-e?

The short version is that humans have become lazy creatures that do nothing but stare at communications devices 24/7 until they can no longer move on their own, requiring machines to run their lives. This movie came out in 2008 and I believe it paints a very dreary picture of where we are going as a society. Look around and see how many people are on their phones right now. Next time you are out, especially if it is with someone, keep track of how much time they spend on their phone vs. how much time they spend with you.

There was a time that this was me. Sure, I’m just as guilty as this as the next guy. More and more, however, this behavior has become very annoying to me and I really can’t appreciate spending time with someone that would rather spend their time worrying about what’s happening on a device, as opposed to carrying on a conversation with me. I know I am not alone here.

The phone is a tool for communications. To check your banking. To make purchases. To catch up on news. At least that is what this device will be for me going forward. To be specific, I have removed Facebook, Twitter and Swarm from my phone and don’t expect I will be putting them back at any time. The first reason is so I can spend more time focusing on stuff that I enjoy (writing, podcasting, creating content) and less time worry about the ego stroking crap. Now it’s time to go into list mode for some more specific details.

Facebook

Facebook is probably the worst. The two biggest reasons that I am no longer using it, really, is because I only see posts from the same 4 people over and over again. If I mute them for 30 days, they get replaced by another, until the mute expires. That, and at least in my Facebook, everyone hates everyone that hates the president. I get it, but it’s very tiring and provides zero value to me. I’m also not going to be sharing anything to Facebook except for images from Instagram. Posts, videos and all of that will be going here. If you want to keep up, subscribe via email using the box below or on the side, or using RSS.

Twitter

Unlike Facebook, my Twitter is the exact opposite. Everyone on Twitter hates the President, it’s like it’s the thing to do. I’ve tried unfollowing people that were really bad, but I still see the hate because of Twitter’s crazy timeline that is not in order and makes me see everytime someone likes a post. I prefer to get my news from verified sources and just watching people scream into the ether is very tiring.

Swarm

“The Check-in is the invite” is how we used it within my circle, but never once was I joined by anyone after I checked in, and rarely did I ever join someone that checked in. Those are my closest friends in that app and I can always call or text.

I’m sticking with Instagram because who doesn’t like looking at nice photos of beer, MINIs, food and bicycles? I’m going to continue to poke in on Facebook and Twitter, but only from a computer, not via any app on my phone. And I might revisit Swarm at some point, but for now, it’s gone.

I am also sticking with Strava and Untappd. To me, those are more for tracking (miles riden and beers consumed) and less about interacting. The provide a very great deal of value to me, so for that they stay.

Too Busy Being Awesome

Posted on by Don

A question posed to me this week by one of the White Roof Radio boys had me thinking, and researching. And, well, I’ll just come out and say it.

Holy Crap

I have been posting words to the internet, in some fashion of a blog or another, since about 2001. I can’t verify that however, so I have to dig through the archives. did you guys know that dbmini.us went ‘live’ on or about 9/24/_2002? That is the date of the first post. It might have been at blogger, but it’s there, so it counts.

WRR went live on August 1st, 2005. The show started a few months before that, on June 30th, 2005, which means I have been podcasting for 12.5 years. Let’s go back to the title question for a bit and have a proper, very long time in coming, rant.

Podcasting, at it’s core, is very incestuous. I’m on a few of the groups on Facebook and have listened to a few of the podcasts about podcasting, and they are nothing more than circle jerks of people telling each other lies about how big their shows are, and how many millions of downloads they have gotten. Each one of them, of course, is also an expert in podcasting, blogging and social media, as you would expect.

I guess my ego isn’t big enough.

Easy there kids. My ego is plenty big, trust me. And, as you probably know, I do have a bit of diva in me. I’m not trying to kid anyone. I just don’t think my ego is that big. I have a hard time showing off my work (not to you guys, but to strangers) and flaunting to a group of people that I can only imagine do not give a shit. These are the people that are popular. The yellers, the screamers, the ‘look-at-me’-ers. They are the ones with the shows that have triple digit downloads getting nominated for awards and crap like that.

That’s just not me.

Another thing that those people are really good at is burning cycles. Checking stats like it’s the end of times, constantly fussing with their website, trying to figure out why they aren’t getting any traffic from Facebook, and checking stats. A few of them can actually keep this up for more than a month before they burn out and stop making their show. Which is usually ok since their shows aren’t that great anyway. Oh, c’mon now, you know I’m right.

The thing that I learned, a very long time ago, is that all of that is crap. The trick is to focus those cycles on things that matter. The thing that matters is making a show. Fine tuning the show to something that is awesome, made with awesome people and listened to by people who have become fans because it’s awesome.

Why are we not more popular? To the contrary my dear Watson, I would argue that we are very popular. I would guess that there are very few MINI Cooper owners in the United States and Canada that have not heard about WRR. Do you know how many MINI Coopers there are in the United States and Canada?

Why are not getting awards and recoginition for being podcasting pioneers and producing a show for almost 13 years? That’s easy, it’s because we are too busy being awesome.

Recipe: Sweet Potato Stuff Chiles

Posted on by Don

This one I stole from a local restaurant. Of course, I am pretty sure mine is better. The combination of the sweet potato and spicy, smoked chile was amazing.

* 1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into large pieces
* 2 pastilla peppers. Anaheims if you want them to be less spicy.
* 1 tbls olive oil
* 1 tbls butter
* 2 tsp cumin
* 2 tsp chili powder
* 2 tsp cinnamon
* 2 tsp salt
* 2 tsp pepper
* 2 dashes tabasco
* Grated cheese

Roast the peppers on the BBQ for 5 minutes per side, or until fully charred all around. Once roasted, let steam in a paper bag for 10 minutes. Peel, split and seed, removing the stems.

Microwave the potato until soft enough to mash, about 8 minutes. You can also boil or steam, whichever works best for you. Mash with olive oil until a smooth consistency is reached, add spices and butter, mix to combine.

Add about 1/2 cup of potato to each pepper, or however much it takes to fill. Top with about 1/4 grated cheese and wrap. Cook in a 350 degree over for 7 minutes or until cheese is melted.

I did not sauce this in anyway, but some crema would have been nice. In a pinch, some sour cream thinned with a little bit of lemon or lime juice would have worked nicely as well. If fresh avocado is an option, it’s a very nice addition to the plate.

Perfect alone. Serve with a salad or a side of beans to fill up the plate. Add a cold beverage (beer, white wine) and you have an amazing meal!

Recipe: Macaroni & Tomato

Posted on by Don

One of the favorite lunches Mom used to make when we were kids. It’s a perfect storm of noodles, butter, tomato and pepper. Always warms the soul and is cheap and easy to make!

Ingredients

  • 1lb macaroni (elbow or shells work best)
  • 1 28oz can whole tomatoes, chopped
    • I use scissors in the can for this, but do what you like
  • 1 15oz can of pinto or black beans
  • 1/2 stick of butter. Yes, butter. Don’t use margarine you animal.
  • Fresh cracked pepper. A lot.

Preparation

  • Boil your noodles. Drain
  • In the same pain (because we are lazy), add your tomatoes with the juice
  • Add the beans
  • Bring to a boil to let the juice evaporate a bit. Give it about 5 minutes.
  • Stir in the butter.
  • Remove from heat, serve with pepper on top

You can add cheese or garlic if you want. Or any spices. You’ll notice I didn’t include salt in the recipe because I know you salt your pasta water and with the butter you just don’t need it. But, if you think you do, go ahead and add some.

Because I’m a Nerd

Posted on by Don

It’s been 10 years* since I’ve had a Windows powered computer. While it took me a solid 2 weeks of kicking, screaming and clawing my way into OSX, it is a journey I am glad I completed and have been cruising along happily ever since.

But, I’m a nerd. Just because I don’t have Windows on a dedicated PC doesn’t mean I still don’t want it. I mean, professionally, I need it to keep up with the rest of world. Also, I have yet to have held down a job where I was able to use a Mac, full time. They have all been Windows shops. So, ideally, I should have a windows PC.

I’m also poor. This means that owning a Windows PC should be a snap, right? Cruise down to Walmart and pick up whatever rattletrap, malware infested computer they have for less than $400. Done and done. Except I can’t justify wasting $400 in such a hideous manner.

So, a few weeks ago, Woot had a Shuttle Barebones PC on sales. Instead of Barebones, however, it was a complete I3. Low on RAM (which I took care of), still came with 2x160GB drives, a DVD drive and Windows 7. And it’s refurbished. Totally ok by me, I’ve bought reverb gear before.

Open the box and pull everything out. First thing I notice is the case for this computer appears to have been used for a jack stand at some point in it’s former life. Not that big of a deal for me, except the chassis is so out of whack the CPU fan buzzes like a herd of bees stuck inside of a backhoe bucket. It’s quite an unpleasant noise.

Get everything connected and the new RAM installed and fire it up. Windows boots as expected until I’m prompted to provide a Windows Key. Sure, not a problem, should be right here on the side of the case. Or in the box. Or in this other box that they keyboard came in. Ok, maybe the RMA form might have it on a sticker.

Nope.

Fantastic.

How about Windows 10? Let’s give that a shot. Seems to complete without issue until I go to login. It’s connected with a WiFi adapter that works perfectly well under Windows 7 before I started the install. No dice with Windows 10. I had to pull my 50′ ethernet cable out of storage to connect it to my network. As soon as I did that, I was able to login. Sure would have been nice to have an error message or something.

The only reason I bought this was to offload some of the load from my Mac MINI. I figured I could make that my Media/Backup server easy enough and let it run in my entertainment center. Oh, and it was cheap. Less than $180 (shipped) cheap. Plus, having access to Windows again for reference and other things would be nice.

I suppose that’s what I get. I’m going to see if any of the boys at work will buy it from me. Or, maybe I’ll put linux on it?  Otherwise it’s going on eBay/Craigslist and I’ll go back to saving my pennies for another Mac Mini instead.

*10 years sounds really dramatic. It’s actually been about 8 1/2. But, drama wins here.