the iMentor

Hints & rants

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

Ice Cream

December 13, 2021 Uncategorized 2 Comments
Episode #672 December 18, 2021 There are foods people love that stand above all others. They are delicious, addictive and irresistible.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySb1f9zWJkQ Ice cream has been a favorite of mine my entire life. i began my working career at a Foster’s Old Fashion Freeze. The silky cold of soft serve ice cream made the heat of my summer job melt away. Whenever i refilled the dispenser i made it my job to taste test that the frozen ice milk was the right consistency, temperature and flavor. My next job was at Baskin Robbins. While there are always 31 flavors...
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Butterfly Effect

December 7, 2021 Uncategorized 2 Comments
Episode #671 December 11, 2021 Every time i interact with someone or something in this life i catch a butterfly.   “When a butterfly flutters its wings in one part of the world, it can eventually cause a hurricane in another.” —Edward Norton Lorenz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=va3iR7qNXw8 Every action is the beginning of a causal chain reaction. “For the want of a nail the shoe was lost, For the want of a shoe the horse was lost, For the want of a horse the rider was lost, For the want of a rider the battle was lost, For the want of a...
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Beatles Venn

December 2, 2021 Uncategorized No Comments
Episode #670 December 4, 2021 "And let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be Whisper words of wisdom, let it be" -- The Beatles, "Let It Be"   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LMSOfs10mA The solution for sadness is “Take a sad song and make it better.” To combat stress realize that “Nothing is real.” If i am hurt “I get by with a little help from my friends.” When you are angry “Picture yourself in a boat on a river.” As you make a sad song better when nothing is real “Don’t carry the world upon your shoulder.” In a...
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The Decision

November 17, 2021 Uncategorized 3 Comments
Episode #669 November 27, 2021 I realize that some of my recent skydiving stories have not been the best advertisement for making a parachute jump. But these stories have a lesson. This one is about making the right decision. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfLqy83UHk8 The decision The twin turbine Otter roars down the runway. Wheels up and we are flying. Lake Elsinore fades away into a blue green pool as the Ortega mountains rush down. The airplane stabs through cumulous clouds and breaks out into a pure blue sky. 1500 feet. My wife Paula opens the door. Fresh air washes over us. I look...
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My Wife My Life

November 17, 2021 Uncategorized 9 Comments
Episode #668 November 20, 2021 “A towel, [The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy says], is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.” — Douglas Adams https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaEVAweUkGA Forest tubs It was a sunny summer day in the forest. Peppermint Creek was a rushing playful sparkle. It cut through trees, fern and boulders. The water was so clear that schools of river trout could be seen. Jays and warblers harmonized to the syncopating creek. Paula and I were dressed in shorts and sun shirts. We wore tennis shoes with no socks. The sun baked through the filter of...
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Why?

November 10, 2021 Uncategorized 7 Comments
Episode #667 November 13, 2021 A computer consultant can seldom answer the question “Why?”     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVub1QCUCGc Troubleshooting is an art which can uncover a problem, but may not reveal a cause. i have always used the troubleshooting method of split half analysis to determine WHAT the problem might be.  Split half is the process of eliminating everything except the problem. “The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.” — Michelangelo Buonarroti A problem exists inside its environment. Removing the filters...
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