the iMentor

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This weB-LOG is about the musing of a technical consultant. It is the iMentor's thoughts on technology and the human condition.

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Author: Rick Thues

Family Name

February 3, 2025 Uncategorized 6 Comments
Episode #836 February 8, 2025 My father was born Carroll Jewett. Perhaps the name came from an ancestor, George Carroll Jewett.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlqDf6jOwCk   Carroll did not like his name. It sounded like a girl’s name to him. One day, at age 10, he walked into the living room and told his parents, “I’m Bobby!” “OK Bobby,” said his mother and that was that. Some years later Bobby’s mother remarried to Hans Thues. Bobby took on the new last name and began to introduce himself as Robert Thues. Since he had no birth certificate or any other records bearing the...
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4am

January 28, 2025 Uncategorized No Comments
Episode #835 February 1, 2025 4 a.m. often evokes introspection, solitude, and the liminal space between night and day.     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUFxMSvCkAI "At 4 a.m. the city belongs to insomniacs. The sleepless, the restless, the people who pace, who dream while awake. It’s the hour when dreams mix with wakefulness and life seems to straddle two worlds.” — Insomnia by Marina Benjamin "I count seconds. Time is endless at four o’clock in the morning, as endless as the sky. What will we do now, where will we go?" — Room by Emma Donoghue "It was four in the morning, and...
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Journeyman Helper

January 21, 2025 Uncategorized 4 Comments
Episode #834 January 25, 2025 At the very least a journeyman’s helper must have an interest in the trade.     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOuxVDgV6CY The helper’s job is not glamorous and can be downright boring. His/her focus is to observe. When given a request, the helper complies quickly and to the best of their ability. The more the helper learns the better they can anticipate the needs of the journeyman. The journeyman’s job is to teach, appreciate and love the helper. If the helper knew everything he would be the journeyman. Patience is a teacher’s primary tool. Articulating his/her needs is the...
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Bingo

January 14, 2025 Uncategorized 4 Comments
Episode #833 January 18, 2025 I was one of six winners at community Bingo.     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9rkMMOqCE4 As I stacked the six Bingo cards in front of me and tested my dauber I introduced myself to Chris, who was sitting across from me. “Hi, I’m Ricki.” “I am Chris. I came to win.” “I came to lose,” I said. “But I have dead reckoning and dumb luck on my side.” The game of Bingo is mindless, boring and ultimately an excuse to socialize. I did have to pay attention to the letter-number callouts which were dulled by the din of...
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Engineers

January 7, 2025 Uncategorized No Comments
Episode #832 January 11, 2025 I have known many skilled mechanics. My neighbor is such a man.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra7Bax6rGoQ Tyler can rebuild an engine, weld a repair, craft a sculpture, manipulate hydraulics and move earth. A mechanic is an engineer. The best engineers are applied physicists. An applied physicist is one who sees the world in clear relational reality. He executes his actions with precision. He sees reality for what it is. There is no task that Tyler cannot accomplish given time for observation, analysis, planning and execution. An engineer is the paradigm practitioner of the scientific method. The Scientific...
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Brakes

January 1, 2025 Uncategorized 1 Comment
Episode #831 January 4, 2025 Several years ago my 1999 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck brakes began to fade. The truck just did not have the braking power it used to.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjGLuqyR1eU My general mechanic did all the usual tests: Pedal test. The pedal acted normally but required more effort than usual to brake. Brake fluid level. The fluid was full and clear, though every couple of years I had to add a little fluid. This may indicate a very slow leak. There was no evidence, however, of leaks in the reservoir, master cylinder, brake lines or calipers. Bleed the...
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