jc blog - tales of a modern-day nomadic hunter-gatherer

Follow jcomeau_ictx on Twitter This is the weblog of Intrepid Wanderer. You never know what you might find here; graphic descriptions of bodily functions, computer programming secrets, proselytizing for the antichrist, miscellaneous ranting and kvetching, valuable information on living off the land... if you don't share my rather weird interests you may want to try slashdot instead.

You can consider my Del.icio.us links an extension to my blog, as are my LifeTango goals and my other to-do items. My to-buy list is also public, but only for sharing any useful ideas that might be there; I'm not requesting charity, neither do I offer it.

You can find me easily in google searches, as jcomeau, jcomeau_ictx, or jcomeauictx. There are lots of other jcomeaus, but AFAIK I'm the only jcomeau_ictx out there so far.

If you want to comment on anything you see here, try the new Facebook comments, reachable by clicking the "[comment]" link at the end of each post. If for some reason that isn't working, go ahead and email me, jc.unternet.net. You know what to do with the first dot. Make the 'subject' line something reasonably intelligent-looking or it goes plunk! into the spambasket unread.

This RSS feed may or may not work. Haven't fiddled with it in forever. RSS Feed


2014-07-29-0056Z

power corrupts, and horsepower corrupts horsefully. that's why, when you put a run-of-the-mill ass like Mr. 6Y2166 behind the wheel of a pickup truck, he becomes a horse's ass. sure he stopped for me, but one step past and he scratched off with a vengeance. [comment]

2014-07-28-0501Z

the athlete's foot fungus that is always latent between the two smallest toes of my right foot flared up badly today. took off my sandals and socks and rubbed some saliva on it. at first the itching got worse. then put my sock and sandal back on, and started walking. maybe 15 or 20 minutes later, the itching became mild pain, like a burning sensation. an hour or so later, no more burning or itching, and now, several hours later, still nothing. amazing. I really didn't expect it to work. [comment]

2014-07-27-1355Z

so it turns out the Chico bags I always carry anyway make passable oversocks. not as good as those I made from my ripped tactical pants, but they kept about 80% of the grass stickers out of my socks yesterday as I explored the area of La Cresta ridge where I'm making my shelter, munching on blackberries and plums.

I've got so many projects going, but two high-priority plans on which I'd like to make some progress are my Freifunk network of low-resource routers, and my expanding all-purpose sail. just can't seem to make them happen. [comment]

2014-07-26-0445Z

so it turns out my Chico bags made great oversocks. I used them a couple nights ago to get out to "my" oak tree on La Cresta ridge and spent the night sleeping in my zero-G chair. didn't sleep particularly well, but it was a first try and for that I call it successful.

drank way too much last night, especially at the Forestville Club, where they have one of my favorites, Anchor Steam, on tap. so far today no alcohol, but I've got a Bitter American chilling in the fridge. [comment]

2014-07-23-2331Z

apparently, the only difference between the $84 part and the $12 part from GE is the connector. I got the $12 sensor (thermocouple), cut the end off, spliced on the old connector cut off from the dead sensor with crimp terminals, and the oven works again. I can't say for how long, but with that price difference I can replace it several times. [comment]

2014-07-22-1330Z

rain! rare summer pelting in Petaluma. there's been some misting the last few days but nothing like this. probably won't last long, but it's a welcome treat. [comment]

2014-07-22-0201Z

taking apart a GE oven for repairs, in this case model JTP 11WP3WG: open door slightly, then lift it straight up off the hinges and set aside. later, pull out those hinges by hand, being very careful the powerful springs don't smash your fingers against the frame, and locking them at about 30 degrees out with the hinged tabs there for that purpose. then you can easily slide the door back on the hinges.

once the door is out, locate the screws (as many as 6) holding the oven to the cabinets on each side. remove those, then pull the oven out to where you can get at whatever you need to get at. one of the first things you might want to disassemble at that point is the instrument panel; there are 3 screws on each side. remove the top 2 of those 3, then swing it down to expose the maintenance manual and schematic, folded up in a little pocket. from there you can more easily troubleshoot the solution. for me, the F2 code plus the info in the manual gave me what I needed; the "sensor", a "resistive thermocouple" whatever that is, measures over 100K resistance where it should be only about 1.1K. this sensor's connector is easily undone from the top of the back (accessed by sliding the oven almost completely out), and the unit itself is removed with two P2 screws inside the oven, at the top back right. [comment]

2014-07-16-1701Z

drank way too much beer yesterday. had to stop my jog about halfway in order to better control my sphincter. then as I continued walking, noting how the pressure against that little toroidal muscle waxed and waned, I remembered how the run-in with the Marin deputy stopped my intestinal elimination muscles for about 40 minutes, maybe more. so I hit myself a couple of times in the stomach as a test. it seemed to work; made it to Starbucks with no more pressure.

damn, that BM was messy. it took so much paperwork afterwards, I'll have to call it a "government job". [comment]

2014-07-16-0619Z

so went out to the farm today and brought back lotecnotectu. it wasn't fun. stopped at Uruapan and had a tasty quesadilla de carnitas with a Firestone IPA followed by Stella Artois, but got overcharged. when I got back to the house, had about 15 minutes to run to Petaluma Market before closing (assuming they close at 2000; not sure) and biked down for two more beers, a Widmer Hefeweizen and a Sapporo in that awesome-shaped can that looks like it could serve as a viable weapon in hand-to-hand combat. so now I'm pretty well toasted, in pain from the workout, and in no shape to do any programming. guess I'll try to get some sleep. [comment]

2014-07-15-2141Z

so I finally looked up Miner's Trail and Spurs Trail on Google maps. nothing interesting, both dead-end at ranches. I was thinking they might be trails into Fairfield or Vacaville, but no such luck. [comment]

2014-07-15-0845Z

fixed mikroe-uhb for my PIC32 board. if you want the patch before Paulo merges it let me know. [comment]

2014-07-10-0449Z

after-dinner wakeup drink: heat 12 oz. water in the microwave for 1.5 minutes. add about a tablespoon of butter, stir till melted and mixed. add about a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa butter, stir again. add red pepper flakes to taste. yum. [comment]

2014-07-10-0225Z

every two days, kill a feral dog and feed it to some feral cats. every other day, kill a feral cat and feed it to some feral dogs. it's the most humane, sustainable solution I can think of to get rid of these unwanted, formerly domesticated, animals which are killing off native species. [comment]

2014-07-09-2314Z

my DC-DC converter works great, powered my 19V netbook directly off the 24V nominal PV panel, actually putting out about 40V, with no problem.

worked on my bike, relearning that the left pedal has a left-hand thread. the shift cable I bought wasn't quite long enough for the rear shifter, with the high handlebars. so I kludged it for now. also, the parts I scavenged from the bike in Novato the other day might not prove all that useful. the pedals, at least, have a different size bolt. no standards, grrrr... [comment]

2014-07-08-0506Z

10 hours 20 minutes this time. better, but still pitiful. stopped in Novato to finish scavenging that bike I found on the way down. should have taken San Antonio to I street and because I didn't, had to walk the shoulder to Kastania. saw 4 deer together on that stretch, 3 does and a lucky young buck. [comment]

2014-07-08-0101Z

stopped at Maya's in Ignacio to refuel with Anchor Steam and happy hour sweet potato fries. [comment]

2014-07-07-2345Z

got lost in San Rafael again. why is it so easy for me to cross under 101 without realizing it? stick to Hetherton dammit!

approaching San Pedro on Merrydale going north, a bike doesn't get the signal. without a car to trigger it, you'd sit there all day. that's just wrong.

took Las Gallinas where the sign said No Outlet, having scoped it out on the way down. it comes out just south of Northgate Mall, where I'm chilling at BJ's with their delicious porter. [comment]

2014-07-07-2223Z

the pedestrian signal switch at the south side of the junction at Francisco and Andersen doesn't work. seems to me I blogged that a long time ago. I don't even know to whom to report it. Caltrans? City of San Rafael?

stopping in Starbucks at Irwin St. to rehydrate. [comment]

2014-07-07-2154Z

had to stop in Larkspur to fix my chain, which had broken again. [comment]

2014-07-07-1940Z

left Lafayette Park about 1140, made it across Golden Gate Bridge to Vista Point in an hour, taking Presidio from Washington all the way downhill to Lincoln, then the bike paths. Those painted arrows and signs delimiting foot and bicycle lanes on the bridge are confusing, nonsensical, and anti-intuitive. they should be eliminated. [comment]

2014-07-04-2029Z

two optimization for next time: from Corte Madera to Mill Valley, take Casa Buena instead of Meadowsweet, and from Redwood at Novato Blvd take a left and get onto the new bike connector to Ignacio. both are closer to the highway and probably both are less hilly. [comment]

2014-07-04-1901Z

posted the photos of yesterday's bike ride on Facebook, with my commentary on a number of signs I found offensive. mostly recovered from the trip, although the chafing on my butt won't heal for a few days probably; just in time for the trip home. [comment]

2014-07-03-2302Z

got the chain tool at Old Town Sports in Novato for about $15. now at Safeway near Freitas having a break. [comment]

2014-07-03-2005Z

finally made it to Novato. only a couple of hairy places, most was smooth sailing and I am probably one of the first bicyclists to ride the new route. I may post photos to Facebook later. for now, just ignore the bike detour sign at San Antonio and take the "closed" roads.

what took me so long? my chain broke before I even got out of the driveway. and the downtown bike shops didn't open till 11. a lesser man would have changed plans. I believe when shit like this happens it's to test my mettle. last time something like this happened the gods brought a wonderful lady to me. [comment]

2014-07-03-1439Z

yesterday, can't remember if I mentioned it or not, I finally got my pocketknife sharp enough to shave with. I nicked myself badly, but it actually cuts the short whiskers, something I never got it to do reliably before.

also last night, I got mikroe-uhb to write to the PIC32MX7. unfortunately, it didn't write correctly, and in fact I may have overwritten the bootloader. I'll probably find out later today, after my bicycle journey to the city. [comment]

2014-07-03-0247Z

couldn't get my USB microSD adapter to boot. damned thing didn't have an MBR. downloaded the mbr package, did sudo install-mbr /dev/sdb, rebooted, and the damned thing worked. at least it brought up the DSL splash screen, didn't test beyond that. [comment]

2014-07-03-0230Z

jerky came out good, even that which hadn't dried completely was edible. this time all I did was dump some soy sauce on it, added black pepper and red pepper flakes, kneaded, rolled, and put on rattan trays and hung from wires on a tree branch (to keep the goddamned cats from getting it).

finally sharpened my pocketknife to where I could shave with it. not completely, because I kept getting nicked, but enough to know it actually cuts whiskers. the key was not worrying about going back and forth; 80 times each side on the fine, 30 times each on the ultrafine, and 30 times back-and-forth on the strop. probably a lot more to avoid nicks.

made some MMS again today. using a postal scale with a tare setting, added 520 mg of water, then poured in the 80% sodium chlorite to where it went to 800 (for 35 parts to 65 parts water, or 28% final ratio). then did the same with citric acid in another Mason jar, this time 65g acid (all I had) and poured in water to 130g. now I activate one drop of MMS with one drop of citric acid solution. yes, I've seen the warnings; I'm not worried. those who died probably overdosed. [comment]

2014-07-02-2005Z

so Roy Martinez was found safe. even though I don't know the guy, I know something about what drove him to do what he did. people are speculating about his being mentally ill, but I say he's more sane than most. most people are totally cool with shitting in their drinking water, driving a 3-ton death machine for any distance over a tenth of a mile, and working at a job they hate for over half of their waking hours, year in and year out. old Roy took himself a well-earned break without asking permission. kudos.

in other news, some group of people, probably affiliated with the government in some form or another, are cutting down the grandfather oak up on La Cresta ridge. first they removed all the living branches, and now they've cut off all but the main trunks. sometimes I think governments are against anything that lives independently of them, whether plant or animal. [comment]

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