Feeling Good

Finally, was given some type of motivation and have started to walk. Whew! It's been a while. My six glutes really shrank these past few months. Have been out five or six times and have gone quite a distance. Am thinking the ass muscles are tightening, yet this may be wishful thinking, and tonight I have intent to capture an image of the Las Vegas Wash Pedestrian Overpass on L.V.B., N. When I went shopping night before last saw that it looks magnificent at night with all the lights. While recuperating after my falls, I fell behind with my chores and activities/business. Am getting caught up with my supplies, need to do laundry, and clean up a lot more. Another thing is that I may have hurt my left hip and knee. Squatting is quite difficult for my knee (posterior side) and walking is difficult on my hip when walking depending on how I sleep on it. Sprained my wrists and they are healing; right is tender. My right hip gets tired and my right knee is okay

Tonight, am cooking an easy pasta sauce. Need to look up the recipe for the correct spices. Need to go capture an image of the bridge, too, by cooking I am killing time until my woman comes online. Man, is she a hottie. Never did get permission to post an image... darn it. And have taken my meds. So after watering I should be fine. Watering gives me a chance to examine my garden closely. Is night time so will go out tomorrow. Next on the agenda is to photograph a bridge which I will explain after my return (2437 hours).

Above is one of the images I captured last night.

Got Kind Of Ill

My most recent post is dated 11 April 2017. I don't know what happened. Have kind of been out of it This is the first time my mind has been focused enough to post on blogger. Almost died once... am sure of it. Yet will whittle everything into place and slowly get re-organized. Even took a couple of photographs. Yaaaay. Have done some cleaning and ate a well-rounded homemade meal.

My hips have fallen into a poor state because I have been housebound. Will begin the ole therapy regimen. Sure am glad that I have this spot on blogger... to note recent events.

UPDATE: 18 October 17: Am thinking the way I feel this day, is the best I have felt in quite a long while. I cannot remember how poorly I felt prior to my first fall on August 24-25. I do know how I have felt since then. Miserable. Extreme excruciating pain... everyday all the time with my only relief, blessed sleep On August 24-25 my right foot got caught as it always used to when getting up out of my computer desk chair. That night my left foot hit a droplet of water or coffee when landing on it. My left foot slipped out so fast that my head hit the ground... straight on, full blast.The doctor, Dr. Salt, asked if I was unconscious or had a seizure after I fell,... said,"I don't know. And how am I supposed to know if I was unconscious?" That's how hard I hit my head.

UPDATE 18 October 17: Continued. Am writing this blog for the whole world to know I have found someone... At this time we are using the hangout feature on gmail to communicate... which is limited with constraints when texting (similar to Twitter). So I decided to construct this written synopsis for her. Am going to include her photo(with permission) and you will see why. Including this photo, the limited conversation we have had on gmail, I have seen many important things. The lady has a very warm personality, and manners. Wouldn't mind going to a fancy sit down dinner with her because she probably knows how to eat in such a setting. She could be wearing her best alongside my best. Wow. Am worried about our age difference.Thirty-five years old?? Have an image I will share if I get permission. Would like her telephone number so I can call her. She asked for mine. Would like one of her e-mails, also. This isn't too much to ask I think. Have to make sure she if aware of how old I am compared to her. I think she is trying to protect her privacy. I have given her my contacts. This should be enough to give her strength to trust me.

That said, after my first fall, I sat down for a while and collected my thoughts. Telephoned for an ambulance, went to the Emergency Room. Gosh, I couldn't walk. Even with my cane it was quite dangerous. When I got to the hospital, they put me in a bed to monitor me. Thank goodness, I think Valley Hospital is the best. Ended up waiting quite a long time and no one checked on me (4.5 hours in my opinion) so I left and came back home. At home it was very hard to manage myself. Quite a bit of difficulty reaching the bathroom. Used my walker. Had food in the pantry and refrigerator. Ended up calling for Emergency Room help on the 27th. The ambulance came, they were quite worried because I was not well. They gave me oxygen and my breathing was quite fast. Doctor Salt wanted to keep my overnight too. They put me in an observation room with a nurse right beside me the whole time.

The staff at the hospital observed me a number of hours, took a blood test, and loaded me up on potassium. Apparently, I had lost my potassium,... similar to working out in the sun and sweating too much without replenishing your supplies of salt and potassium. While I was observed a Humana Insurance rep came in and made sure I got my prescribed meds. I thank him for this.

Below, in block quote, is the draft of an e-mail I was preparing to send to Charles my brother. The letter describes my first fall and the second fall with the physical and social ramifications as of 7 October 2017. The draft of the unsent letter is archived in his folder on gmail.

Am really fucked up bro. I am trying to keep a positive outlook. It seems that at night (dark) the pain level increases. Am having discomfort in all the normal places, just a lot worse than the pain before I fell. It has been over one month since the original fall on Thursday the 24th or Friday the 24th. When I wake up it is either a high level of pain or the pain is okay. One or the other. And as the day wears on the pain stays the same as it was when I woke up. Yet, either way the pain level increases at night. When I go to bed at least I can sleep okay. Haven't noticed a problem with my sleep (thank God!!!) I have had sleeplessness before and it is just plain no good. At least with my medicine the pain is bearable too.

I seem to recall after my first serious fall (not the second time on the 11th) on the 24th or 25th of August, the pain had reached my level of tolerance. This is the first time I went to the E.R. The pain and disorientation on the 27th of August forced me into the E.R. again which is how they discovered my low potassium level. During my visit on the 27th the docs gave me a pretty good workup. Did a scan of my brain because of the fall hitting my head. They gave me a bunch of chest and blood workups because my heart was acting weird on the 27th too. So after they learned of my potassium level being low my landlord brought me by some bananas at my request, and I had my neighbor drive me to the primary doc for an unscheduled prescription pick up on the 29th of August. (with morphine which is a opiate-not an opioid-i have to physically turn in a written prescription each and every time).

When I picked up the prescription, I was scheduled to have two more blood tests which I missed due to transpo. issues on the 31st of August and the 7th of September. Those blood tests were to check my kidneys, yet eating bananas I knew my potassium level would be okay. A home nurse was prescribed by an insurance company doctor, and this nurse came over to my apartment on September 4th. Alongside all of this I was scheduled for a primary doctor's appt. the 13th of September. On September 11th I tripped, making it my second fall. So the following morning I cancelled the doctor's appt. and the transportation I had scheduled for the Sept 13th docs appt. The problem being that for the past 2 weeks my major concern was walking. Walking took so much of my fortitude, the actual action of walking was all consuming. Getting to the bathroom was a problem because walking took everything I had... getting to the bathroom caused me to be afraid that I would go to the bathroom in my pants on the way to the bathroom. This is on the 11th of September and is the reason I did not go to the doctor. I couldn't bend my legs up nor bend over to change my socks and tie my shoes. Much less put on a reasonably clean pair of pants, socks, and undies. I certainly couldn't worry about a docs appt too. Sheesh.

As I sit here after walking just a small amount my left knee is starting to hurt. But I must admit overall, the pain today is at an acceptable level.

And then there is the issue of chores around the house, and food in the refrigerator. And somewhere in this mess, either August 24th or September 11th I torqued out my right wrist and left knee to the maximum. I was so sore after August 24th I might not have noticed my wrist and knee. I think possibly my wrist and knee were hurt Sept 11th. Not sure. My parts and pieces of my body hurt all the time, so I just blow off odd pains. I wake and say,"looks like my wrist and knee hurt today. Oh well." And that is just the way it is, everyday all the time. I wake up and stand to go take a pee in the morning when I wake up. My left foot has been broken so many times, and my right foot is screwed up too. When I stand up in the morning sometimes I say, "Looks like my feet hurt today. Oh well," 90% of the time I don't fall when I get up. 90% of the time... the pain does not cause me to sit back down. So I just blow off the pain. And my doc gives me medicine to help me through the days. It's just the way it is, and I am used to it. Yet anyway, I haven't walked anywhere for groceries in over a month. Minimart, 7-11 burritos for dinner have destroyed my budget. And I haven't cleaned my floor. Hygiene is taken care of for health and safety. The kitchen and bathroom are managed just fine. The trash is never over-filled. A lot of times I don't check the mail.

In addition to not being able to shop for food, I was afraid to use the stove. After the fall on my head I was confused and forgetting things. Like leaving the stove on by accident. Not completing the transaction register calculating my checking account. Forgetting appts. and people's names, et c. Just little things Iwas forgetting. I forgot to file my paperwork with the State of Nevada to supplement my insurance premium and co-pays at the docs. And my $15 a month in food stamps. The paperwork was due the 5th of Sept. while I was dealing with the first fall (like a chicken that just was beheaded for our dinner). Yowzers. This could have been disastrous except the care worker at my doc's office was able to fix it on Sept 22nd. All is well. By the wayside my doc's name is Mary. The care worker's name is Melody.

I started this last night, Thursday, 5 October 2017, and today, Friday I cannot walk very well. Made it to the convenience store for dinner and cat food. Barely made it home. Something has to be wrong. Will study... may need to exercize, but am afraid of damage to the areas that are sore. Dang, would be nice to figure this out. Will complete this e- mail tomorrow and get it to you.

It Bloomed!!

Hybrid opuntia ssp. It bloomed. Woke up this morning and was puttering around outside and almost fell over when seeing this flower.

Such a pleasant surprise

Isn't this a neat flower. The spines are very effective. If one even glances up against the plant that person will come away with dozens of embedded stickers. Literally. The debris that has collected on the segments is quite obvious. Sometimes I go out with tweezers to remove the garbage and feathers, but it is not worth the spines that embed deeply into my gloves. Takes longer to remove them than to delicately remove the debris.

My cactus garden this Spring is thriving yet most of the plants are not old enough for blooms this year. I planted the parent segments after I moved into this place probably around the Spring and Summer of 2015. My Echinopsis chamaecereus (peanut cactus) blooms. And my Mammillaria gracilis fragilis (thimble cactus) blooms. They are both older than two years. Have been thinking about cutting back the majority of new segments growing on the Hybrid opuntia (prickly pear) to allow the plant to save energy internally. After seeing the first blossom this afternoon, I don't think it wise to "force" the plant to bloom. Maybe trimming could encourage the cactus to bloom, although it won't be necessary.Below are some blooms on the peanut cactus.

Echinopsis chamaecereus

Peanut Cactus

These Echinopsis are fine examples of the genus. There are well over one hundred species of Echinopsis according to the Wikipedia article I referenced to research for this post. The peanut cactus is hardy and easy to work around. The article provided by Wikipedia for the species chamae cereus is still a stub (a short unfinished discussion). For instance, peanut cactus exhibits a property known as nyctinasty. This characteristic is used by highly developed plants. Scientists have not discovered the purpose of a flower folding closed at night, yet they understand the physical process of how the flower closes.

Mammillaria gracilis fragilis

Thimble Cactus

This is thimble cactus to the right. It hasn't bloomed but will show small pastel yellow flowers soon enough. Checked the hybrid opuntia this afternoon and there appeared to be at least five blooms altogether. First thing in the morning I will capture an image. It is so very exciting to me... to have something that started so small blooming so soon. Will share an image of the excellent spine patterns protecting the thimble cactus. It is sooo awesome.

How awesome is that?? Would call it "starburst" which I think describes this quite well. Getting up close and personal with cactus is kind of neat because being so interesting one has to use caution to avoid getting spines embedded in your nose (speaking literally!)

Some Desert Flowers And Concerns

Am in the process of watering my garden. I received quite a pleasant surprise, maybe. I planted a hybrid opuntia and two types of polka dot opuntia. It appears that the hybrids and red polka dot are going to bloom. Am not sure about the white polka dot. This will be the first time I have had cactus in the ground bloom. If they are going to bloom... it is kind of like to be or not to be. Sooo very exciting!!! Nope, after very close-up examination, the new colorful sprouts on the cactus in the garden is just this year's new foliage (pears... hence, prickly pears). One of the images from the 19th. Actually looks kind of nice. Don't often capture a whole bee. Mostly bee butts because they are down inside the flowers grabbing some chow.

The bee is gathering pollen from a globemallow which I was able to sprout in my personal garden. Next year, my own will look this nice and hopefully attract bees as well.

Ceniza

One of my favorite ornamental shrubs here in Vegas. Figwort, purple sage, texas sage are a few common names. Leucophyllum frutescens smells nice and attracts bees. Yet, up-close in a confined space the flower aroma is pungent... offensive to me.

Was able to process and zoom in to show the foliage along with the papery purple petals of this plant.

As I work with these images, it comes back to me about my concerns with a photowalk. There is a cost and the images make it worth the effort. And sharing them. Dropped out of "social" media for a while. Rejoined and it is a lot better... photography is for people to see. And enjoy. For instance, below is silverbush (moonflowers):

The cactus are not blooming at all. I have a peanut cactus that will bloom shortly. Waited to finalize this post until I was certain the opuntia are not blooming.Below is an image of the hybrid opuntia

I circled what might have been a flower bud, yet with close examination the pad the young pad segments are obviously at different stages of development. Will continue the cactus discussion inside another post.

A Quick Post

Possibly!!?, my focus may have returned. Don't know how to explain this process of falling into melancholy and feeling absolutely no inspiration. Nor can I explain the process of (hopefully) crawling out of it. Literally crawling. Have maintained my style of living thank G-d. Started my website. Just checked the hyperlink and it actually functions correctly. Yaaaay.

"Histories" by Polybius

This is my current project. Uploaded a rough draft e-book put together by Project Gutenberg and am in the process of reading Volume I and researching the information. The characters, places, and events recorded by the historian. And the Spring wildflower superbloom is almost over. As a photographer, Spring is an important event. This is the 4th or 5th Year that I have missed the event. This makes me think that March has something to do with my melancholy. Who knows? Am just hoping that I am out of my slump.

Origin of the "State" name of Palestine

Am going out to capture images of olive trees, which made me think of olive oil leading into thoughts of Greece and Lebanon. So am going to compose a post with quotes about Philistia and Palestine. Because of the proximity to olive growing regions of the Mediterranean Sea. Cannot think of anything to blog about and this is on my mind. Our olive trees here in Las Vegas, Nevada are certainly beautiful. The images themselves are worthy of a post, yet wanted to include my thoughts.

Joel 3.4:  Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine (H6428 rolling, that is, migratory; Pelesheth, a region of Syria: - Palestina, Palestine, Philistia, Philistines.? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head; [KJV which has been added to the public domain]. The Book of Joel was written centuries before the birth of Christ Jesus according to Wikipedia. Quite a few of my link references (most of them) are Wiki because I think that the guidelines for each collection of each of the subjects keeps the discussions accurate. Inside this particular Wikipedia discussion of Joel, there is a sub-heading of "historical context" and a list for "further reading." 

Genesis 21.34:  And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' (H6430 Patrial from H6429; a Pelishtite or inhabitant of Pelesheth: - Philistine.) land many days. [KJV which has been added to the public domain]. Wikipedia discusses the book of Genesis at this permalink. Am quoting these particular Biblical verses because it shows the linkage between Philistia and Palestine. 

Now that the words Philitia and Palestine have been established as Pelesheth, the identity of Pelesheth needs exploration. I found the identity while studying a book by Polybius. Am very tired at the moment so may just go to bed. A discussion by another blogger is here. If I am remembering correctly, the Pelesheth people are named on the Merneptah Stone. Am not sure if I would be allowed to quote anything because of copyright protection. The translators certainly earned the right to protect their work, yet maybe they left it open to the public. I am not sure. After I sleep will gather some olive tree images

Went out on a photowalk to capture olive tree images. There isn't any fruit at this time of year (Spring) yet the trees certainly are olive bearing during harvest. The ground below the trees is littered with last seasons fall off and olive pits.

Olive trees are planted all over Las Vegas because they tolerate the heat and summer drought conditions. The bark is quite unique and makes identification quite easy. The base of the older trunks is ornate and very unique in their own right. Personally, I think the first people that moved into the valley planted them so much to make cooking oil so available.

The foliage provides excellent shade as well.

Am going through carefully and reading the "Histories by Polybius" located at project gutenberg dot com. As soon as I come across the information needed to trace the mention of the tribes of Sea Peoples that were defeated by the Egyptians, I will complete this blog. Pelesheth is one of the peoples mentioned. Showing that Philistians were not Arabs from the region of what we erroneously name as Palestine today (think Cana'an). I went ahead and used the Wikipedia site, Sea Peoples in order to quickly illustrate my point. Scrolling down through the page there is a list of the peoples (pirates and criminals) that invaded Egypt and were dispersed after their defeat by Ramesses. This article is well worth the time to read.

UPDATE: the olive trees have started to bloom. Am interested in following them through the season.

DISCLAIMER:
Small/fine print of course!!
I am not stating an opinion inside this post. This post is just a collection of facts easily accessible on our Internet.
This blog post is a PARODY.

Saint Patrick's Day

Below is an image of my Shamrocks. I have had these flowers for over years. The bulbs were given to my by mom. She had them for quite a number of years, also.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day 2017

I added a few images to my flickr photostream. Address is over in "About Me"

More about the Shamrock

Something I Have Forgotten

When the nuclear power plant at Sendai, Japan was destroyed by the Tsunami, I learned of the ocean currents carrying nuclear waste to America's Pacific Northwest coastline. Thought about taking a long walk along the coast with a gamma detector. It just came back into my thoughts tonight. I had forgotten, and because of my poor memory, thought it might be a good idea to record the idea.Am going to use my blog to structure a plan. Yaaaay!!

Maintaining Goal Set 11 March

Have been in kind of a slump. No motivation. Nothing. Bummed out. Was going to leave yet there must be a reason for everything. I think it was because of the pain, its limiting me, and my disappointment (trauma) of having to change computers. Something happened to the on/off switch of my Optiplex. My kid brother bought me a new machine. Flat out awesome, hey? He knows the challenges life presents me. His gift really takes the edge off of things.

I am going to repair my old machine and use Window 7. Windows 10 might be okay yet this machine is linked into another "new" browser named Edge. Instead of continuing to perfect Microsoft Internet Explorer the techie have decided to start from scratch with Edge. Instead of allowing their customers to navigate inside a brand new unfamiliar machine with a familiar browser, they have issued another set of problems to overcome. Was really looking forward to using this machine with an uncorrupted version of IE, yet it seems I will use Google. This will be fine until I am competent enough to use Linux. Am going to start using that because for instance I cannot remove "Edge" from this piece of my property without messing up its core capabilities. There "was" this talking thing on here. I removed it. Search is sufficient. I don't talk to machines with my phone neither when I use the tracking device which is rarely. And apparently this new machine is just some type of tracking device, sooo, I put Spybot Anti-telemetry on here. I keep track of my own passwords and do not need a record of the sites visited. If I cannot remember the sites must not have been that important. I keep my own list of notations using notepad. Another thing this machine used to have is access to cloud storage. The reason I have 1TB of storage is to keep my own storage locally. I do not copy video because of copyright law. I do not need video stored inside because the whole concept is to purchase a video because of copyrights. Video is what takes up the most storage. I know because as a photographer my local storage doesn't really take up that much room. The open source free e-books from Gutenberg Project do not take up that much room. For me it is all about obeying my own set of goals and rules governing "me." My images have plenty of room. My books the same. Anything I want is already on the Internet. The company the provides my service allows me to connect to this machine via a router. Which I do not use. Wifi is open and not protected by laws governing my privacy. Those beautiful young women that got hacked learned the hard way that privacy is non-existent using wifi and cloud.

My Goal Accomplishments

GARDEN: Have been working in my garden. Boring stuff... just hours of pulling weeds. A good garden takes years to "make" and this is only my second season. Last year it was Bermuda grass that choked everything. This year the grass is under control with London Rockets growing. This encourages me because my garden topsoil is healthier. Desert soil is the top two inches. The London Rockets last year could not root because the soil was too impacted yet the Bermuda grass just spread. The London Rockets this year are everywhere. There is still a lot of Bermuda grass only on top and easy to remove because I removed the root system last year.

Started a nice area for mulch last year. Am contributing to last year's area and have started another area this year. The idea is to create depth and "living" soil. Plus this year I may purchase and add some earth worms... yet am not sure they will survive the hot season.

COMPUTER: Have been working on the computer. Boring stuff... just hours of HTML5 and CSS. Over and over. For instance, this blog post. Am working with an e-book titled, <>"Project Gutenberg's The Histories of Polybius, Vol. I (of 2)." There are a lot of attribution to be given in order to use this book. http://www.pgdp.net is the location of the fine people named Distributed Proofreading that assembled the book. There is a lot of front-end coding involved to insure that people get the correct recognition. I have spent at least fifty hours organising the e-book so that when I run it using Chrome it is pleasant in appearance. Over the next few "years" I will add maps, my comments, and visual frills so that I enjoy reading the first and hopefully second volume.

In addition, I have purchased a domain name and will begin using it soon. Am just a beginner so do not know how to explain this any better at the moment. Purchased server space from GoDaddy and am using the free basic Word Press container. So I am staying active with computer but really need to review and continue further with my Alison.com lessons. It's all about motivation (I just would like to feel better).

EXERCISE: Have been working on keeping up an exercise routine. Boring stuff... just trying my best. Have discovered the need to walk more. Almost didn't make it to the bus stop the other day. At least I am not losing my balance as much. Will admit that I have slacked off because exercise is not very entertaining, yet I really need to continue.

PHOTOGRAPHY:Have been capturing images. Boring and am trying to keep it interesting.

New Desktop Background

Made the most excellent hamburger dinner the other night.

Mash the hamburger together with the spices. Thoroughly. With a lid. Cook out the fat and impurities within the meat: both sides. Then complete the cooking in the olive oil until done. Turn off the heat and melt the cheese onto the piece of cooked meat using the heat of the pan and lid.

• one-half pound of ground beef
• bread,mayo and sweet pickle relish
• tato tots
• sliced of genuine mild cheddar cheese
• one tbsp of worchestershire sauce
• one-tbsp of diced pepper
• one-half tsp. of salt
• one-half tsp. of garlic powder
• one-half tsp. of chili powder


• two tbsps of olive oil

And put everything together for proper presentation like I have shown below. This is one of the best burger combinations assembled around here in quite a while. I hope that the meat only came from 3000 different animals and not the usual 5000 different animals. This is why I drain the grease and impurities before adding olive oil to finish frying.

If anyone reads this would really appreciate a comment. Will respond.

DISCLAIMER:
Small/fine print of course!!
It is illegal to rate the quality of the products we purchase in America and the outlets that offer products in America.
This blog post is a PARODY.

Maintaining Goal Set

My four goals, exercise, gardening, computer, and photography. Have to stay focused. Have been using HTML5 and CSS regularly, yet need to keep "growth" in mind. Am getting ready to go out to collect images. just doing basic chores and stuff too. Like yesterday, I had to spend most of the day getting to the doc's and pharmacy (great bus system and lengthy). Thank god for pain meds and coffee. The clerk that gave me my prescription started a lecture on alternatives and how he didn't "believe" in using controlled substances. I reminded him of tylenol and beer. Great! He probably doesn't have a problem moving the instant he tries to get out of bed in the morning. Getting up out of my chair to take a pee is difficult to say the least. Wish I was as strong and had the constitution of a real man. Anyway, am going to fix a quick breakfast and head out to collect images. Hope I can walk. Have an image of a cool plant I found yesterday at the doc's, below

Saw two lady birds and captured some images yet they ended up being too bright to use. This upset me a lot. The climate here is so dry, that insect life... any life images are precious. Am also going to work on my mulch heap today. Have the necessary chicken wire and need to sink four posts. This will be the difficult part. Yet after I get home. Am going to leave this blog for the time being.

New Desktop - Day Four

This is about the fourth day I have been using this machine. The trauma is almost over. Back to my projects. Am still editing up some e-books. Styling them so that they are readable on the Internet compared and contrasted with notepad write-ups. Second, need to get caught back into place at Alison.com courses. And finally, get some photography captured. These are primary objectives.

All I can say is, "I need to get my bum in gear." Am going to leave this post for the moment and will complete some of it tomorrow because tasks need to be accomplished in order to stay focused on tomorrows tasks. Am cooking a quick dinner so that I can get into bed. Put off shopping because the weather is crumby.

Scrambled Eggs

Fixings

Assembled

New Desktop - Day Two

Opinion: Windows 10 Is Just A Bloated Copy Of Android

I keep getting a popup asking how I would like to open documents. Documents I wrote on another computer that were migrated to this one. Would like to open them using the program that I used to created them. Why ask? It is really annoying.

UPDATE: I have removed the Mcafee bloat that came with this computer package. Windows Defender and Spybot will suffice. Mcafee had 17 different processes running. Am noticing a lot of processes running in Windows 10. Similar to "div" itis in HTML5, I think. Another thing I am noticing about Windows 10 is that the GUI on the desktop is very unimaginative and colorless. As I use it more, it seems as though this desktop is a bloated cell phone. Except for the processor, caches and hard-drive storage. Have a lot to learn in order to remedy this. Plus there are Dell add-ons that came with this package that aren't even compatible with Windows 10. I deleted this garbage. There "was" a nice 3D package, yet required the purchase of another half. If I ever want 3D will purchase a "complete" package of my own choice. Would like to figure out how to stop Microsoft "Edge" from opening anything. Nothing. Google is supreme. I have Internet Explorer as a secondary. And "Bing" is just as obnoxious.

What is important and I must remember? Is that Microsoft has to design desktops for a novice user. So that it can just be plugged in and work. Am just disappointed in how amateur the Windows appears to me. XP looked a lot better and Windows 7 being a step-down in appearance, this Windows 10 is another step down. This is my opinion and I have a right to it. Windows 10 desktop is just like an over-blown tire chalk (cell phone). Lazy techies didn't even design a desktop calculator. It is an exact replica of the cell phone screen on Android.

My next project is how to change the sounds upon notifications. Default makes me want to vomit. Oh, and you know that stupid Cortana thingie that takes up storage space on Android? It is default on Windows 10. Found where to delete it, yet there is not a "search" text box on the sicking attempt at a start menu. So am worried if I delete Cortana, I will not be able to text anything into search on the start menu. And if I were a gamer, these default settings on start might be good... for children's games. I have it almost set-up... yet there is an annoying green icon for xbox. It is some kind of thing to buy. Sheesh. Could search for that on Google. Just more wasted space. Like I would have any money to spare.

New Desktop - First Post

New Desktop

Am surprised how many games and such are included with this desktop. As soon as I can navigate properly on this machine am planning on removing all of the cell phone type add-on thingies. This is a working machine and I am not interested in cell phone gadgets. Like I have posted before, I make telephone calls with my phone. With my computer, am planning on my photography. Am not sure where to load my pocket wizard files so will wait. Am trying to get my anti-virus stuff uploaded... this has all sorts of Mcfee type stuff that they have set up so a new user will accidently upload. Will use "choose" something else, I am thinking.

Have been on this for a few hours now, and is starting to get loosened up. Got my camera software on here okay. Just need to find an activation code for Office and then I will be able to read all of the documents created over the last seven years.

February 2017 Transition

Transition

Over time, I have noticed that my creativity alongside my artistry comes in surges... I don't know how else to describe it. For about the last seven to eight days I have been shrouded in negativity. This attitude was created by me because I was not getting out nor following my "list." Why? Then it struck me, "Maybe this is just the way creativity works with me and there is no reason to be having a negative attitude. One thought that has been rolling around inside my head

Creativity is about quality.

And quality is not measured in quantity over a short period of time. There is no deadline. It is not a assembly line job: this would be saying that quality is mass produced Chinese junk(this isn't a poor evaluation)... Americans purchase their products so it must be well thought out and the best approach because Americans think before acting... over the shortest period of time, for the least amount of effort. At this very moment I am thinking of the Roman Roads built centuries ago compared and contrasted with our Interstate Highway System. Our IHS suited its purpose for the time. Yet is crumbling. Both the Roman construction and our IHS are masterpieces. Yet, am looking deeply at quality. Myself, considering the geopolitical atmosphere when our IHS was constructed and the time frame in which the IHS was necessarily constructed... the System is a masterpiece. It is important that we systematically replace the IHS, a fact! Yet what are our choices going to be?

A Good Example

I just got home from k-Mart. $21.00 worth of items. Purchased a pair of jeans made in Bangladesh (not manufactured inside Communist China). Riveted pockets and such, appeared to be a fine pair of cheap throw-away jeans. When sewing the belt-line hole to latch the pants at the waist, the pants were manufactured with the release hole too small. So when the main latch was riveted into the hole,... the pants wouldn't open. I couldn't even open the pants to wear them. Sheesh! And the style of the cut. Yuck~! The belt-line in back is so low that they feel like and appear to be riding on my ass instead of the waist. Speaking of construction workers showing their crack when bending over? For working men this is an excusable fact of the nature of their hard labor. Yet I am just a slow-moving disabled old man. The pants look and feel like they are sliding down and coming off. Will need to start shopping for throw-aways at the local thrift store. For me, each and every penny counts. The Thrift Store would probably get me two used pair for the price of one pair ("new" and worthless from K-mart).

Sear's, K-mart, and American-Made Products

DISCLAIMER:
Small/fine print of course!!
It is illegal to rate the quality of the food we eat purchased in America and the dry goods outlets that offer products in America.
This blog post is a PARODY.

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Hacking Health - Motivation

Have been looking for motivation, and have found none. Will go out to capture images.

UPDATE: 19 February 2017 0124 hours, I have been working on stuff. Have really neglected photography, exercise, and gardening. Yet, the weather has been terrible. Have been using my basic HTML5 and CSS3 to write local pages. For instance, many, many, hours spent putting together a personal copy of The Federalist Papers and my personal copy of the Executive Branch of the 2016 election cycle. So many hours of reading and background that I cannot number the time. So even if there is nothing to add to this blog I am doing "stuff."

I have really been hard on myself. And need to lighten up.

Healthy Hacking - Motivation II

Am highly motivated today. Had a lot happen during the past twenty-four hours. And I can feel the "new" muscles I discovered yesterday. I am starting my exercise list. 0934 hours.

I have been working on a lot of things that have taken time away from blogspot. My brother bought me a new Dell Inspiron 3650 desktop. With keyboard and mouse. Proprietary, yet new. Am so excited and thankful. Have obtained a domain at GoDaddy.com which I will have as of March 11th. Purchased WordPress, Sitelock (I think it is named), and some type of Office from GoDaddy. Will have my own e-mail and site. Have chores and other basics to maintain... and gardening. Am hoping to get out tonight to capture some images. In the meantime am going to present some ofmy favorite Caesar's Palace images... am very thankful to live in this community. "Viva Las Vegas" [Elvis].

Caesar's Palace

Elvis lived at Caesar's from time to time as well as billionaire Howard Hughes. It is awesome if thought about.

Please do remember that any image I have is for sale. Am a member of flickr.com and Smugmug. Each of those sites have framed images available to order. If there is an image of something in Las Vegas you would like leave a comments below. Caesar's Palace at night would look very nice as a wall center-piece... say one meter by 1.5 meters, framed.

The same image as above, yet adjusted. The images belong to me and this enables me to "do" anything I would like with them.

Quite imposing, hey!!

Healthy Hacking - Motivation I

I just don't know how people do it. Blogging every day. Sheesh. Am trying, yet it sure does take some effort. I think that having the lists handy on these posts helps. Below is an image of the snack that I made earlier.
UPDATE:8 January 2017. What is occurring inside my environment, the 'input"... things that are happening each day affect my motivation. Had something very nice happen today, in addition to something bad but expected, and I am okay. Mentally. Have been dressed for winter for a few months. The weather is changing back to warm, so am running around stretching and moving. Feels nice and very "light-weight." Found some muscles that need work. Practically unused. Am going to wake them up.

Found an image

By KVDP (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Commitment To Excellence III

Third Post

This is my third post in a row about (I guess) my commitment to excellence. Really am going to stick with it and keep posting ideas. This way my hope is that I do not lose track of what I am doing. Completed my exercised for the day. And completed everything on the list in my CTEII post. Can refer to it in order to develop my habits. Need to nap right now and when I wake up will clean my floors. Ohhh Wow. What an exciting life, hey? In addition, need to continue developing my chili con carne book and have some neat images of some electric linemen (linepersons?) at work I need to study. Will do a bit of research to find information about their job to add to the image descriptions. Their work seems very complex.

Health:

Did the list of exercises this morning before my nap, and had plans to go to the doc's office for a prescription. It may be too late in the day.
UPDATE: 1822 hours: just got home from the bank. Had to withdraw cash for rent. Now I am set for another month. On the way home from the bank I stopped at Cashman Field Center. This has a point in the parking lot that overlooks Northeast Las Vegas. Captured some nice images displayed below.

While researching these mountain images I came across an excellent site that I decided to share. Take a look because it shows where my images fit.

Pass Leading Between Sunrise and Frenchman Mountains

In the distance to the left is Sunrise Mountain (the much smaller mountain) and to the right is Frenchman Mountain. Lake Mead Blvd. leads between the two heading out toward Lake Mead.

Gass Peak

Following the line of the Washington Avenue entrance into the Cashman Field Center it points to the Las Vegas Range of mountains with Gass Peak standing highest. In the future I intend to get a better view.

Computers:

CSS Work On The Last Blog Posting

Gardening:

Need to get out this morning. Am just waking up and having coffee. Doing my morning stretches first.

Photography:

Commitment To Excellence II

Commitments

• Health:Posted a series of blogs, Hacking Health about quick eating. And healthy. Foods that allow me to concentrate on my coding, do not interrupt my attention and concentration, and are quick. Today, I had a sandwich with a side of steamed broccoli. Will do exercise as soon as I get up from my nap. Below is an image of the broccoli.Now, does that look good or what. Took about two minutes. For some reason I have developed a taste for just plain broccoli. Maybe with a touch of salt.
  UPDATE: 3 February 2017. Copied my list of exercises from my earlier post, Hacking Health - Staying Power and added it to this post using copy paste. In order to remind myself of what I should be doing daily. Have been doing most, yet am glad that I copied this list because some have been missed.


List of My Exercises

• 20 sit-ups:

I use a pillow to keep my tailbone from digging a hole through my skin. I do the exercises slowly and using "form". Am remembering when I first began this endeavor, exercising, that I could not complete my first sit-up without pulling myself by cheating. Now I do 3 sets of twenty.

• 20 right leg-lifts:

Am crippled and deformed a bit on my right leg, so I concentrate on this appendage. When I began, was able to lift my right leg, so have been trying and strengthening it. I do 3 sets of 20 reps.

• 10 ab leglifts:
• 20 right-side leg-lifts
• 20 adductor squeezes:

Over the past year or so I have been experiencing major discomfort in this area. I put a pillow between my legs and squeeze. 3 sets of 20 reps. Hopefully, this will help me decrease the pain. It really is quite extreme.

• 5 Push-ups:

It is embarrassing to be able to do so few, but I am sticking with it. When beginning I could not do a single push-up. Now, I am proud to say (quietly) that I am able to do 5 push-ups on demand! Did 3 sets of 5 push-ups.
• Computers:Have started a lesson at Alison.com. And am using a lot of the information I have learned from this course to write this post (not this particular lesson because Blogger over-rides any properties I might use from this lesson). Am just noting that I am honoring this commitment.Another thing I noticed? The list items noted in my "list of exercises... the list-style-type is circle instead of disc. I guess that Blogger's CSS over-rides mine by default because it is a 2nd list. Sort of like a child list of the other commitment list parent. I don't know?
• Gardening:Below is the couch that Dimas and I loaded into the dumpster. It took us both because it was so darn heavy. I live in a good spot where people driving by just toss their big stuff because they feel like breaking the law unseen.I shared an image of Dimas in the earlier "Commitment To Excellence post 31 January2017.During the next couple of days I will be cleaning up my yard for Spring. Every year I put it off until it is too late and miss the first couple of weeks of Spring growth.Not this year.

• Photography:Have captured a few images today and used two in this post. Yaaaay! Had some image on the camera for my chili book. Am going to organise the stuff from the 2016 folder and move it into 2017. Have moved the chili images into the correct folder and am tidying up another. Need to edit the chili images. But am right in the middle of composing this blog, exercising, and thinking of something quick and healthy to eat.

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By the looks of the last statement inside the Photograpy commitment... this blog is going to be an all "day" thing. Currently, it is 0330 hours on 3 February 2017, so, it is not really day.

Commitment To Excellence

Commitments

• Health: have been maintaining my exercises. Have been seeing different articles and different people (these authors) speak of "changing it up." I do not think I am there yet. Will just stick with these basics until there is something to change up. Am doing what I call floor exercises: sit-ups, leg-lifts, push-ups. It still astonishes me that most of these exercises, I could literally do one or none. And sticking with it... am now doing sets. Do not let anyone say it is not worth it. Even as I sit here texting this my body is thankful. Just got done. Over and over... nothing exciting. Sure does feel nice.


• Computers: am still learning and practicing HTML and CSS. Have been competing lessons at Alison.com. Am still texting this blog in HTML. The Trump project is still ongoing. Am going to link my cabinet files to the index today. Eventually will have a nice set-up.


• Gardening: need to get out to clean this Spring's area.
  UPDATE: 2 February 2017.Spent a couple of hours out cleaning up garbage, and I think that is it today. Am 100% disabled. Have a picker upper so I don't have to bend each time, yet the process really tears me up. My neighbor Dimas helped me toss an old couch into the dumpster someone had left out on the street. Below is an image of Dimas taken last year while he was working on his truck. The image also gives an idea of where the dumpster is located out front... this is where we tossed the couch.



Dimas Out Front




• Photography: need to get out more.

Addendum

Am going to put the rest of today's commitment information onto another blog. Have been blogging regularly, but have not been opening a post for each day. May start adding a new post each day, so that it is more accurate to keep track of my commitments.

How To Prepare An Excellent Scrambled Omelette

Scrambled Omelette - Presentation

My most recent post was about preparing an omelette, yet this post is going to describe an even more tasty omelette. A scrambled omelette so that "the fold" is not involved. Was in the kitchen preparing a nice batch of chili con carne today, and had some left over diced capsicum (yellow pepper and bell pepper) and left over meat. I have a fresh tomato in the veggie drawer as well as some cheese food slices in the refrigerator. I stock my pantry with plenty of general spices: salt, pepper, garlic powder and crushed red pepper to spice the omelette. I prefer olive oil to fry the capsicum until soft and clarified.

You will need a stove top, a nice skillet (mine is an American made 10.5-inch iron skillet),and a quality spatula (mine is solid, American made, stainless steel) to prepare the meal. A one skillet meal! Yaaaay.

The white bowl contains the spices listed to the left under "egg mixture."
Directly above the white bowl are the diced peppers (shown below),
diced meat, and tomato.

Egg Mixture:
• four Eggs
• two tablespoons of Milk
• one-half teaspoon of Crushed Red Pepper
• one-quarter teaspoon of Baking Soda
• one-quarter teaspoon of Ground Black Pepper
• one-quarter teaspoon of Table Salt
• one-quarter teaspoon of Garlic Powder
• three tablespoons of Olive Oil

Filling Ingredients:
• one medium Roma tomato
• two sandwich slices of cheese food
• diced meat

KEY: Olive Oil

Note the color changing in the peppers because they are being clarified by the oil.

The image below illustrates the level of preparedness that must be organised. The egg mixture is ready to be whisked, "before" the peppers are clarified. There is about a five-minute window of opportunity to compose an excellent scrambled omelette.The image above is about the oil. Once the skillet is hot from cooking (clarifying) the peppers, the eggs will be added to the hot pan.

The spatula is handy to manipulate the egg mixture and peppers. The tomato is sliced and diced as well as the cheese being close at hand. It takes a few minutes for the eggs to firm up. As the eggs firm up, add the tomato and meat and continue scrambling the eggs. The following images show the eggs firming (I think it is water being cooked away).

This image above, the egg mixture was only been added about one minute ago along with the tomato. The heat cooks off the moisture in the eggs and tomato. The image below, the sausage has been added and the egg stays where it has been scooped.

The reason I keep emphasizing the olive oil is because of its importance, of course. "And" the temperature of the pan reached while the peppers sauté (clarify). Because if both are just right, nothing sticks to the pan. The omelette can just be ladled out onto a plate. The image below... it took three scoops and is was on my plate. No fuss, no muss.

Isn't this beautiful?

Put a lid on the skillet to melt the cheese and the heat will soften the tomato slices just right.

Healthy Hacking - How To Prepare An Omelette

Last night I set out the beginning of my day with a list: wake-up, coffee, exercise, and Alison course... no You Tube. Have been awake a few hours and have accomplished this list of tasks. It really excites me that I followed my suggestions from last night. While sitting here sipping on a cup of coffee (mud, joe), I ran across some images of meals that need to be shared to keep my blog posts up to speed. As soon as I sleep a bit will post images showing my latest omelette and the avocado-tomato-egg sandwich spread. This sandwich spread is more of a dip than spread, just depends on perspective... I have bread and don't have any crisps.

Prepped Tomatoes

When preparing an omelette, get everything ready. Here in this image are diced and prepared tomatoes. Before going much further, put a skillet onto a burner and get it hot. Prepare the eggs with seasonings to whisk, whip, or mix vigorously. For this omelette, I added some sliced cheese food (artificial cheese) which is unwrapped,pieced and waiting along with the prepared tomato seen below. Once the skillet or pan is hot, I added some spray oil and almost immediately poured the prepared eggs into the skillet. Make certain the pan bottom or cooking surface is hot, and the oil covers the entire cooking surface.

Finished Meal

Cover the eggs after they are poured into the hot skillet. Let them fry a bit. Then, I added the prepared tomatoes and the cheese that I had set aside, on one half of the frying eggs. The frying eggs look like a pancake only made out of eggs. I re-covered the mixture to let it cook. Checking almost constantly, I waited until the eggs were fully cooked and the cheese slice had melted; then carefully I folded the empty half over onto the half with the added ingredients.

Really use caution and take enough time to fold the omelette half over the other half. Watch the cooking omelette so as not to over cook, and it will look neat and tidy just as this. Can see the bread is at the ready, and personally, there is a side of beef/potato hash in that bowl. I am a big fan of habanero sauce as my spice. Can see a greenish drop over to the side displaying its color.This morning (25jan 17) as this blog is being texted out, I am getting into the mood to have an omelette.Am going to add this image to flickr.com, also.

Hacking Health - Healthy Avocado Sandwiches

Am having a wonderful day. Woke up, exercised, and got right into my computer work. Have a bunch of plans working inside my head that I do not want to forget. Listing of my thoughts is complete. Made the most excellent sandwiches for dinner. Yummo.

Prepping The Veggies

Check out that color. Yummy! A buck and 69 for that avocado. Avocados are healthy, packed full of vitamins, and avocados are known for containing good fiber and healthy fats.

Above, the avocado is neatly sliced. The avocado slicer is a kitchen "gadget" made specifically for savory (block) cheese slices. The tool slices the avocado wonderfully... this is obvious, hey?

Ready To Eat

Have my chips ready to go and my drink. Am including this image because one should note the remaining avocado w/seed and container. This is the proper way to store unused avocado. Will include an image or two of the results of this storage technique inside this post.

Have everything set out for this image because this shows the ingredients with a written recipe... a visual recipe. One can examine the image and decide for themselves how to proceed with the sandwich preparation.

Ready To Eat

So I went all out with avocado, tomato sans bacon. Quite refreshing. A good sandwich is an art form.I love avocados. Am going to share how to keep them in the refrigerator. And how I get the slices "just right."... below.

Lon's Avocado Slicer

I had a half-an-avocado left over. Want to share how to store left-over avocado so it will not lose taste. First, note the container up above in the second image. This is the container I will use... the seed is still inside the half to keep fresh. Second, below note the two images day old avocado I am posting today

Stored for Two-days

This avocado is left-over from the meal above. Note the same piece of fruit in the images above.

Using my avocado slicer (block cheese slicer) I cleaned up the fruit. The fine results are shown below.

Cleaned up and ready to eat.

I used this halved avocado in the illustrated recipe below this image.

Avocado, Tomato, Egg Sandwich Spread

All leftovers. And will start my exercise regimen as posted in an earlier blog. And then will upload the images of my sandwich spread. The whole idea is staying focused on what I have been blogging. It is taking a lot because I am "really" not motivated but I have done two sets of sit-ups and different leg lifts. Whew. Am having a very bad attitude today. Am just sitting here watching YouTube after having completed plenty of exercise. Waiting on dinner (baked fries) and my attitude is much better. It is wonderful what exercise does for us (me). I feel much more relaxed... calmer. Am so thankful I started doing this.

25 January 2017; Update; 1644 hours

Woke up hours ago. Finally, am getting a little motivation as it gets dark outside. Dang. Puts a damper on gardening, yet I did capture a couple of images. While processing them I ran across the images below describing my "fresh" homemade sandwich spread. This stuff turned out to be quite utilitarian. I used it as a chili con carne topping as well as a sandwich filler. Half a large Hass Avocado that cost me $1.69, half of a 0.25¢ Roma tomato, one boiled egg, bread, and some spices was used to constuct three meals. Filling meals. Wow. And I am thinking quite nutritious meals at that. I have been neglecting my fresh veggie intake. Will monitor veggie intake a bit closer.