October 2024

Subscriptions.

I am really enjoying YouTube these days. The mix of engaging and entertaining content is far more interesting than streaming and network offerings these days. Since I have a YouTube Premium subscription, I don’t see ads outside of sponsorship mentions embedded in videos.

My subscription list is relatively short, as I am constantly tweaking who I am following based on their content, but more importantly, my state of mind at any given moment. I find a large subscription list to be overwhelming and as mentioned in a previous video, occasionally I find tech oriented channels to be “triggering”.

A few of the channels I follow are focused on better ways to make video content. I have a few aviation stalwarts, and of course, I have my storm chasing interests as well.

Here’s a few of my top mentions (in no particular order).

SAMTIME
I recently discovered SAMTIME, but from what I can tell from his content list, he’s been around for quite a while. I love the way he presents his spin on what’s happening in the tech world, and there’s more truth in his videos than most would probably like to admit.

TORNADO TITANS
I have been following Tornado Titans for a number of years, and in 2023 I had the opportunity to meet Raychel Sanner in person. She is super knowledgeable and more importantly, her videos are educational when it comes to storm chasing. Highly recommended for those interested in learning about the weather when Mother Nature is in a feisty mood.

OUTSIDE BEYOND THE LENS
If there was ever a channel that inspires my hiking videos, it’s Jeff Aiello and Outside Beyond The Lens. The cinematography is gorgeous and really pushes me in a creative mood.

FLIGHT CHOPS
I have been following Flight Chops since he first started making videos a decade ago. We’ve chatted online a few times and I look forward to our paths crossing in person in the future. (Hello, Airventure in Oshkosh next year)? His videos are informative and the production value is top notch.

BECCA FARSACE
I just started following Becca when she started her channel a few months ago. I don’t know a lot about her but her content is fantastic. I think she may have worked for The Verge or something. Like other videography channels I follow, I find her inspiring.

PHIL EDWARDS
Like Becca, I didn’t start following Phil Edwards until he had his own channel. I think he came from an online magazine. His personal content is outstanding and informative, and he tackles subjects I wouldn’t think of. Another YouTube creator that inspires.

18 October 2024 by J.P. Geek 0

Hello

Truman and I are sharing a moment on the roof. He says hello.

17 October 2024 by J.P. He's A Feline. 0

Triggers.

I don’t like the word “triggered”, as in, “he was triggered by something she said”. It has a strong Millennial connotation to me, and as a solid Gen-Xer with a weird need to belong to something, it’s strange to me to identify with something I consider to be “Millennial”.

Someday I’m going to share more detail around how my brain works. In the meanwhile, I’ll try to stick to topic.

Whether or not I enjoy the word and any connontation around it is irrelevant, the truth of the matter is, as an impressionable type of person I can be triggered into a mood rather easily.

Whether it’s the never ending litany and monotony of this never-ending presidential election, some other assfoolery going on in the news, or even blog entries highlighting the latest fad in “optimal productivity”, my mind wants to go along with that crowd and my attitude usually adjusts accordingly.

Upon returning home from vacation I decided that I would need to scale back from Mastodon and Instagram a bit so that I could let the good vibes from my vacation marinate and simmer into something that would hopefully echo some permanence in my psyche. Instagram has figured out that I enjoy animals and, as all corporately controlled algorithms are designed to do, the outrage machine is cranked up to 11 with ads that would make Sarah McLachlan weep. I know there are many animals out there in the world that don’t have it as good as Truman and Lucky and Jinx have it here in the house, and my heart aches a lot for these poor little souls. My heart also can’t take the constant barrage of these images without tears constantly being in the back of my throat, so I’ve stepped away from Instagram until it settles down.

Mastodon, and the Fediverse in general, triggers me a bit in a different way. I’ve been pretty deep in the Apple ecosystem for a while and every time I go on Mastodon and see some of my Linux friends doing their thing, I feel bad because I haven’t abandoned the evil fruit and corporate America in general. Then I feel triggered even further because I’m just too tired for the amount of outrage required to be what I guess is a responsible American citizen in this day and age by clutching my pearls, my husband’s pearls, and the pearl’s of a random stranger on the street every time Trump belches, J.D. Maybelline farts, or someone says Kamala Harris’ name incorrectly (even though they’re solidly on her side of this election turned football game turned WWE fake wrestling match).

This country is one news story away from a complete Idiocracy.

Yes, Your Honor, I object to the word “triggered” but I there’s a lot of things triggering me in a bad way on this Internet thingee, and by taking a step back I’ve gained a slight bit of sanity.

Not much, mind you, but a bit.

There’s a part of me that feels like this Election nonsense is the appetizer to the sheer chaos that’s coming after the election, no matter who wins what where, and for that?

I’m looking at the wine list.

17 October 2024 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 0

Bright Morning.

The moon is very impressive this morning.

17 October 2024 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 0

Mesmerizing.

On most nights I’ll go out on the roof over our garage to gather my thoughts for the day before calling it a night. This is not a “Love On A Rooftop” situation; our home has a flat roof that was originally designed to become a rooftop deck. The railings for this are in place and it’s perfectly safe to go out there, I just have to be sure I don’t put my foot through a skylight.

When I went outside I noticed we were just shy of the latest full moon. I found the lit up clouds to be absolutely mesmerizing.

Mother Nature has such a wonderful way of being beautiful.

16 October 2024 by J.P. Spiritual Stuff. 0

Mount Blue Sky. Almost.

15 October 2024 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 0

Tuesday.

I have a love-hate relationship with WordPress, the engine that is running this blog. Love-hate is actually a strong term, it’s more of a like-dislike relationship. I’ve never been in love with the WordPress software, but it does what it needs to do for the most part and I’m fine with that. I like the “plug and play” aspect of the experience, versus building something from scratch that would need constant fiddling. There’s a lot of drama going on in the WordPress community and I’m trying to avoid that as much as I can. I don’t have the bandwidth to follow another train of outrage.

Tuesday is my least favorite day of the week. I seem to be the most out of sorts on Tuesday. On Monday I stumble (usually after a most excellent weekend), on Tuesdays I’m out of sorts, but by Wednesday I’m starting to get on my game for the week.

That doesn’t sound terribly productive.

Even when Tuesday is more like a Monday because we were traveling on the actual Monday, it’s still Tuesday and my brain apparently knows it’s Tuesday.

Catching up with work after being off for six workdays is always a hoot and a half.

I’m looking forward to our next vacation. That frivolity is yet to be determined.

15 October 2024 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 0

A380.

I watched a British Airways A380 land in San Francisco from a cramped seat on a United Boeing 737 today.

Flying an A380 as a passenger is on the bucket list. Tell my husband.

14 October 2024 by J.P. Ponderings and Musings 0

Reflecting on Tech.

This is the first time I’ve been in a vehicle that has a camera and display instead of an actual rear view mirror. We are in a Lyft en route to SFO. The resolution is impressive and I enjoy the traditional form factor being maintained.