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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Key to the Kingdom

December 13, 2023 Uncategorized 4 Comments
Episode #776 December 16, 2023   I was given a key to Disneyland. It no longer gets me in for free. It doesn’t even give me a discount on tickets. It does make me part of history.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcZUPDMXzJ8 In the fall of 1982 the owners of Walter and Cline architectural mill bought a race horse. They were known gamblers. Bill and John used to lead the craps game in the alley after hours. Their luck at craps convinced them that they could make a fortune gambling on their race horse. “The best way to make a small fortune on...
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Demise of the Dial

December 8, 2023 Uncategorized 3 Comments
Episode #775 December 9, 2023 I grew up with dials. Rotary phones, volume knobs, speedometers, analog clocks and wiz wheels were everywhere. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMinaeFzSNw   A wheel for a dial was a natural evolution of sun dials, fibonacci moon phases and yoga Surya Namaskar (sun salutations). A sundial is a kind of analog dial with the only moving part being the spinning of the earth. The earth spinning is the wheel engine of a sundial.   A fibonacci moon phase chart is a circle of the 28 moon phases. It includes paisley fibonacci shapes to calculate the rising, setting and the...
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Anagram

November 28, 2023 Uncategorized 5 Comments
Episode #774 December 2, 2023 I have a tradition, started by a friend on my 50th birthday.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-eWMYe-ss8 Carey sent me 50 postcards. They arrived in my mailbox, one or two a day finishing a couple days before my birthday. They were interesting art postcards which he collects from museum gift shops and antique stores. On each card was a single letter. Together the 50 cards spelled out a message. It was up to me to decode the anagram. Spaces between the words were not included.  As the cards arrived I tried making words of them. Most of the...
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Christmas trees

November 22, 2023 Uncategorized 5 Comments
Episode #773 November 25, 2023 Paula and I have had a living Christmas tree for the last 6 years. They are always fresh and fit nicely in our little house.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDnw7yrI1hY Each year we decorate our little tree with a few of our favorite ornaments. Some are mementos from our life. Others are gifts from friends. Many are made by Paula’s sister, her tradition. The small tree allows us to enjoy each decoration. It only requires one string of lights. The best part of having a living Christmas tree is enjoying it for years afterward. Six years ago, our...
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Barter

November 15, 2023 Uncategorized 1 Comment
Episode #772 November 18, 2023 For eons humans have used barter to trade what they have for what they want or need. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYBNoFcvcWI Cave men hunted by hand, banding together as a team (bartering their cooperation with each other). The team traded hides with the leather-smith for clothing. Some of the clothing was traded to the spear-maker to make hunting more efficient. Meat was also shared with women who gathered vegetables. The campfire was the grocery store. What was left over after eating was bartered with craftsmen to improve everyone’s life. Early services rendered were compensated with certificates of bartered...
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Devotion

November 10, 2023 Uncategorized 1 Comment
Episode #771 November 11, 2023 Elara's life was a tapestry woven with threads of devotion, each strand representing a different aspect.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LboNYB_oKTY Her life was not always the story that her tapestry told. Elara was careless about littering and wasting resources. One day, while driving through downtown, the filthy streets and smoggy skies depressed her. She vowed to embrace nature and venerate the environment. She devoted herself to tree-planting drives, reducing her carbon footprint and recycling diligently. The nearby forest was her canvas. She painted masterpieces of preserved beauty with her conservation. Her forest walks taught Elara the plein-air...
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