@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

W6KME

@W6KME@mastodon.radio

Ham Radio and emcomms, musician, tinkerer. CVARC, VCARC, VCARS, Instructor, ARRL VE and ARES/ACS. Ventura County BORED Net and µField Day Administrator. Dedicated to helping hams (including me!) get on the air as often as possible.

Also @w6kme, @w6kme, @w6kme, @w6kme

http://theborednet.net
https://www.patreon.com/W6KME

#hamradio #amateurradio #discworld

I'm searchable via tootfinder. #fedi22

GNU STP. De chelonian mobile.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

W6KME, to random
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

Yes, they are now admitting it WAS a ransomware attack on the ARRL, and yes, that IS the sort of thing you're more exposed to when you don't have an IT director, and yes, that IS the responsibility of the CEO.

If a store is robbed, it's the fault of the robbers, not the store manager-this is not about blaming the victim. But if the store manager decides to stop locking the door at night, he's also going to be fired for it.

I hope the remaining ARRL members out there are paying attention.

ai6yr, to cycling
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Working again! Cannondale SM400. New tires and tubes, and rim tape. Must be from between 1987 and 1990 or so? Will also need to lubricate the shifters. Actually my son's bike, which he was riding in college (only a few years ago). When his tires were not exploding, LOL. Apparently no one thought to change out the rim tape at his college bike repair shop. 🤨

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Even though that brand is sold by that other store, he should have taken it to Michael. Rim tape is like chain lube. Just because most people don't use it does not mean it's some obscure secret knowledge.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr 😂 I'd still drive to NP to let Michael service my bikes...

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Eh, crap, re-implementing stricter personal COVID-19 measures after just relaxing them, an (entire) family I know with COVID or recovering, after catching it from an older relative who was hospitalized--they later figured out, COVID-19. (ie Once again, moving back to "all indoor interaction in public N95" -- pondering where I'll go with outdoor in crowds.).

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Our friendly local section manager got Covid at Hamvention. I wonder how many did.

bud_t, to random
@bud_t@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Why do sales people continue to knock on our door even though we have a "No Soliciting" sign? I just had a guy try to sell us pest control, and when I gestured to the sign and said "we would appreciate it if you didn't solicit us " he just smiled.

Do people not know what the work means? Unlikely. I understand the pressure to make a sale, but if we have that sign we're not buying anything from you.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@bud_t I did some of that many, many years ago. We were told to ignore such signs. We were told people put those signs up because they know if you actually talked to them, they would buy. I lasted a couple of days. I later learned that you make a lot more sales by NOT lying.

I've had a couple of pest control guys being so aggressive the last few months that merely telling them to leave did not work. One I physically assisted off the property. Another took a 911 call.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@bud_t I admit I have a low tolerance for door-to-door salesmen. I will always give everyone an opportunity to take a polite "no thank you" for an answer, then a firmer "really, no", then demand that they leave.

Honest legal salesmen will accept the first or second "no" every time.

The one I called 911 on kept trying to get his foot on my doorjamb.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Hmm, when did California lose it and start using plastic bags again at grocery stores? The pandemic? For awhile there I thought everyone was using (at the very least) beefier recycled plastic bags instead of throwaway plastic, but apparently someone lobbied someone so people are just buying more disposable plastic bags (at 10 cents a shot) in my neighborhood. 😢

(Nope... I do not go to the grocery store much, LOL).

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Bizarrely, the LDPE bags are possibly the only plastic product that is 100% recyclable back into more LDPE bags. Which was meaningless, since essentially nobody recycled them, even those people that diligently put all those not-actually-recyclable plastic water bottles in the recycle bin.

That brief window where we had no plastic bags finally got me 100% off the habit. I don't use bags at all in the store; I take everything in the cart to my car and bag it there.

ai6yr, to drones
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

There's no way THIS won't get abused.

ABC7: Hawthorne will dispatch drones to emergencies to provide info to 1st responders

https://abc7.com/post/city-hawthorne-start-drones-respond-911-police-fire/14863264/ #drones #surveillance #policing

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Not worried at all about that. Cops would never abuse anything like that.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Hmm...

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr I never found the lutefisk booth today. Disappointed.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

😂 Saw this on Craigslist (on the other hand, you could use it to charge whatever electronics you have that is sitting on your new "glass table top")

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Hard to believe it's still unclaimed after two months.

ai6yr, to H5N1
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

UNMC: "There’s no question H5N1 bird flu has ‘pandemic potential.’ How likely is that worst-case scenario?" https://www.unmc.edu/healthsecurity/transmission/2024/05/07/theres-no-question-h5n1-bird-flu-has-pandemic-potential-how-likely-is-that-worst-case-scenario/

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Anybody in the food industry who says they are surprised by current events is a bald-faced liar.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Oooh, cool, @w6kme says there are ham radio operators on Conway Reef this week.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@gtw @ai6yr It IS a Fiji call, but a separate DX entity. This is only the third time it's been activated. I figure, get it in the log before the sea swallows it for good!

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

This would be a great deal for someone with need to build a garden bed, but the timeframes this person have in their post ("must be gone tomorrow", ie today) are RIDICULOUS (unless you live next door). Have you ever moved that much weight before?

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Jeez, you haven't been looking at Nextdoor again, have you?😂

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr The "gone by tomorrow or YOU lose (!?), and I'm not telling you where it is today" threw me off the path.

ai6yr, to cycling
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Ran some errands by bicycle today... surprised how easy it actually is to get to the store here without running into ANY traffic, if you know the back route. A lot more people could bicycle to the store, if there were a culture change (living in car-driven SoCal).

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr @meganL Fun Fact: our local Target has re-aimed their security cameras so they can't see the bike rack. It was too much hassle being asked to look at the tapes every time bikes were stolen (which was a nearly daily event when my son worked there, even though the racks are adjacent to the front doors.)

ai6yr, to gardening
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Another volunteer oak tree coming up in my backyard! Already have one (now about 15 feet tall), letting this one grow as well to provide some shade. We've had massive fatality of the 200 year old oaks in our neighborhood, and although they do reduce areas you can garden in, the shade and habitat is useful and appreciated.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr If you look at many of the surviving oaks, especially the giants, you'll see large fallen limbs or signs of such. Like many tall trees they have to move water a great height essentially by suction, and if there is too little water, cavitation occurs. They typically don't recover from this, and everything uphill of that spot dies. Limb drops are common during drought years and may even hep the tree by shrinking it during hard times. Sometimes, however, the tree collapses catastrophically.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Weather prep task for the day: did more work filling a thermal gap between my kitchen and the outside (note to self: you should have trusted that little voice that said "maybe you should insulate that before the contractors come, because they might not be so careful to insulate that spot").

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr To everyone who keeps a first aid kit in their car...those adhesives go bad a lot faster.

ai6yr, to advice
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Beekeeper's advice for the day: It's springtime, which is swarming season. If you do not want to have to deal with bees in your walls, make sure to either seal up or put mesh over any exterior hole in your house (especially your eaves and siding), particularly holes that are about penny to thumbtack sized.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr If a bee can get in, so can an ember. Seal that sh*t up!

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Apparently a plague of golf carts in Carmi, Illinois. (enough to merit a public safety message, LOL)

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr What memories...back in the 80s I worked at a lumber yard in Palm Springs where the wind would BLOW. Letters on our sign board got pushed around like that all the time. It only had one row that was still tight enough to hold them in place.

bud_t, to random
@bud_t@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Maybe I don't get out much, but is it stylish now to wear a business suit and loafers with no socks? Seems kinda gross

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr @bud_t To me, loafers without socks goes with khaki pans, Izod shirts, stupidly expensive sunglasses and plenty of cocaine. It was a super popular look with bro dudes from rich families who knew they were never going to do any real work their entire lives.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

🙄 $365 coffee machine. Also lazy journalism, looks like what you'd copy/paste from a press release here. Your review should not be marketing copy (IMHO). https://techcrunch.com/2024/04/12/home-coffee-brewing-aiden-machine-fellow/

Constructed from high-quality materials that are both aesthetically pleasing and long-lasting, Aiden is designed to be a staple in the kitchen for years to come. This commitment to quality materials not only enhances the user experience but also aligns with ecological sustainability practices by reducing the need for frequent replacements — and if something does need repairing, you can get spare parts easily.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr I've been sending event announcements and other promotional stuff to small newspapers for years, and they often get printed as an article, not a calendar item. And even major media has accepted produced "news" for a price since the concept of "news" was first imagined. Used to be a drinking game years ago, having a drink every time Hal Fishman on Channel 5 read a news item that was not even a thinly veiled advertisement.

ai6yr, to cycling
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

#BikeTooter achievement unlocked. This cyclist went to the market. This cyclist did not stay home. This cyclist bought arugula and butter. This cyclist put it on the new rack and pedaled (wee! wee! wee!) uphill all the way home.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr A picky eater is simply insufficiently hungry.

ai6yr, to diy
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

Stucco: where, literally, goofs you make are set in stone, LOL. Decided to punt on the color matching, and will instead be painting this to match.

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Good choice about painting; you'll never match stucco color because stucco isn't one color. Wait a couple of months before doing so; it will burn through paint and leave brown stains.

ai6yr, to Cats
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

ScienceAlert: "Mysterious Link Between Cats And Schizophrenia Is Real, Study Finds" https://www.sciencealert.com/mysterious-link-between-cats-and-schizophrenia-is-real-study-finds

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr Without a causative link, you've only got statistics, not science. And their statistics are admittedly quite shaky and vague.

If you can't make a definitive point with statistics, you don't have any point at all, just a vague correlation.

Their headline goes from vague speculation to outright lie. Not a good look for whoever "ScienceAlert" is.

ai6yr, to random
@ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org avatar

A+++ contracting and painting work!

W6KME,
@W6KME@mastodon.radio avatar

@ai6yr https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xk-24nP2Lb0

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • JUstTest
  • mdbf
  • ngwrru68w68
  • tester
  • magazineikmin
  • thenastyranch
  • rosin
  • khanakhh
  • InstantRegret
  • Youngstown
  • slotface
  • Durango
  • kavyap
  • DreamBathrooms
  • megavids
  • tacticalgear
  • osvaldo12
  • normalnudes
  • cubers
  • cisconetworking
  • everett
  • GTA5RPClips
  • ethstaker
  • Leos
  • provamag3
  • anitta
  • modclub
  • lostlight
  • All magazines
    •