360 view, Ready Player, Testing the limit

Saturday morning I was up and out the door to get my track run in.  It went ok with the normal “I hate this” feeling the first three laps, followed by “stop whining and run” for the next 8 laps, and finally “I can do anything for two laps” at the end.  The bad thing about only running once a week is it doesn’t ever seem to get any easier.

Saturday was a go day, meaning I had a long list and the motivation to do it.  I wasted little time before heading out to start weeding the yard which then rolled into weed whacking while Cindy got on the tractor to mow.  It felt like my weed whacking muscles were out of shape.  Towards the end of it I had to stop and try to stretch my middle back a few times.

We then took Elsa along to run errands.  I had been waiting almost a month for the big Pinch-a-Penny spring sale to finally buy a new pool vacuum.  My Hayward Navigator was falling apart, literally.  I was a bit disappointed to see that they had sold out of the model I was going to buy but I still got the promo pricing, I just have to wait until Tuesday to pick it up.  We also hit Home Depot where I had a list of several items needed for several different needs.

The biggest thing I wanted to get done was get my security cameras back online in the coop.  Seven of the eight cameras were taken out by palm rats chewing the wires.  I have had replacement cables for weeks but I wanted to make sure that we got rid of the rodents first.  I don’t think they are totally gone but I think the ultrasonic device inside the coop has made them relocate mostly, I have not seen/heard any of them at night when putting the chickens to bed in weeks.

So I first had to pull all of the old wires out which were stapled to the wood in the run.  I used a lot of staples.  I had Cindy help me with installing the new cables.  I decided to use wood screws mostly to hang/support the new cables which would be easier to replace if need be.  I only used the staple gun to attach the cables to the roof near the entrance into the coop.  I decided to use the existing hole that the rats chewed on but I left my big 3D printed nut and bolt in place, mostly covering the wires.  I later added a wire loom around them as well as encasing the hole in expanding foam to further deter future chewing.

During the process we also relocated one of the two cameras that were pointing towards the back to the west side of the coop where we had nothing.  The coop now has a 360 degree ring of vision around it.  Even a ninja would have a hard time sneaking in there without detection.

Saturday night Cindy and I went to see Ready Player One, a movie based on a popular book.  If you grew up playing video games as I did there is pretty much no way you can’t love this movie.  Even Cindy, who is not nearly the gamer I am really liked the film as well.  It was great, a solid A flick in my book, if you are a nerd like me.

We enjoyed dinner at the theater before the movie.  You can really tell the exodus of snowbirds has begun.  It was dramatically less full than the last time we went to the movies a month or so ago.  Cindy was a little grossed out by the lack of cleanliness of the reclining leather chairs.  The arm rests had various sorts of organic matter left on them.  She went out and said something.  One of the managers came in and wiped them down and was genuinely apologetic, saying his staff was going to be getting reprimanded for it.  I imagine it is rather hard to get typical theater employees making minimum wage to be very conscientious about their job duties.

Sunday morning we “slept in” till 7:30 which felt well needed.  After tending to the chickens and paying my bills we suited up for a potentially problematic ride.  I suggested to Cindy that we try riding the big Segway I2 all the way to Dunkin Donuts and back.  The 20 mile ride is far further than we have ever pushed the big Segway and the batteries in there are 11 and 12 years old.  Expecting them to give that sort of range is unlikely, but Cindy was down for the challenge.  We figured worst case it dies and I haul ass home on my Monster to pick her up with the truck.

So the ride out had a lot of headwind.  As we monitored the battery indicator on the I2 we were concerned it was going down faster than we hoped.  By the time we got to Dunkin Donuts it was showing half full which would be cutting it close at best.  I brought the charging cord for the Segway.  We wheeled it inside and parked it near an outlet where I plugged it in, hoping a 30 minute charge session would ensure we make it all the way home.  We pushed back east with 5 bars of battery instead of 4 but that extra bar disappeared a mile or two into the return journey.

When we left I was honestly assuming the I2 would run out of power before we got back.  The unit surprised me and made the trip back with 2 bars showing on the battery meter.  It wasn’t the sort of ride you would want to normally do on the I2.  It’s slower speed made the trip feel really long.  Plus the I2 is most fun when you are going on varied terrain, not endless straightaways.  Of course the journey is on video.

Sunday afternoon an old co-worker and friend of Cindy’s stopped by for a visit.  It was nice for them to catch up.  I mostly kept myself busy doing my stuff, namely 3D printing, video editing and some WoW.  We had a hellacious storm blow through last night, dumping a ton of rain in a very short period of time, temporarily flooding out some areas.  It’s a preview of wet season will contain.