GTKY: Daily Question Thread - May 2023 Edition

[Jasper_the_2nd]

Quick update on the fires around Halifax (question will appear after my morning meeting).

My wife's cousin lost their house.  The daycare a friend's kid goes to is gone.  But all of the horses that had to be released from some stables ahead of the fire have been recovered.  And a local kennel owner is being praised after walking 3 km through the woods towards the fires to get to her business and rescue the 16 or 18 dogs that were in her facility.

[ttuckerman]

23 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

I'll get around to answering my questions later, may even find some pics.  I got home late and had to actually go into the office for an ergonomic assessment (and confirmed, our desk chairs are crap......well, they are probably fine if you are 5 foot 6 or something, but not if you are 6'2").

Question, Monday May 29th.

We are seeing a significant number of wildfires breaking out in our area, which is fairly unusual traditionally for our area.  How are things weather related your area?  Are they the expected norm or are you having an unusual year for conditions?

Last few days have been sunny and warm. Over the month it has varied from cold to warm and wet to dry.  This is May, it may rain, it may snow, it may...

[Jasper_the_2nd]

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

[Thoramel]

On 5/26/2023 at 9:21 AM, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Friday May 26th.

In your area, what is considered a long drive vs and short or average drive?  And do you measure the length of a drive in kilometers/miles, or in time?

 

Question, Saturday May 27th.

I'm at the race track running race control for the first motorcycle race round this weekend.  What are your views on motorcycles in general?  Are you a rider?

 

Question, Sunday May 28th.

Today is the Monaco F1 Grand Prix and the Indy 500. Have you ever been to Monaco or Indy? Would you like to travel to either (for the race or any other time)?  

 

 

 

26th: My city exists in some weird travel dimension where every place you need to go is only twenty minutes away - seriously, newcomers to town are always commenting on this. Anything longer than a twenty minute drive away seems like it takes forever. 

 

27th: I like motorcycles. I grew up around them. My grandpa rode an Indian with a side car, my dad had Norton's and eventually switched to one of those big Kawasaki touring bikes, I had a few Kawasaki's when I was younger - a KZ440 and a KZ750. They're great fun, but stupidly dangerous even if you're a careful driver. My dad has steel pins in his legs from where he was run over as a teenager, a coworker was in a coma for a week after being rear ended on her bike, and on and on. Add to that the cost of insuring, storing, and maintaining something I don't use too often and I don't really have a desire to own another bike these days. That being said, I'm like a lot of folks here and cannot stand most bikers. The reckless ones, the loud ones, the criminal gangs, the idiots riding off roaders on the street, etc... Something about these machines just attracts dangerous fools. Kind of a shame.

 

28th: I've never been to Monaco and have a feeling I wouldn't fit in very well there. Looks pretty though and it would be kind of fun to go watch the big race there. As for Indianapolis, yes I've been there, and it is my firm belief that no one should ever have to go there willingly. Or to the rest of Indiana for that matter.

 

23 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

I'll get around to answering my questions later, may even find some pics.  I got home late and had to actually go into the office for an ergonomic assessment (and confirmed, our desk chairs are crap......well, they are probably fine if you are 5 foot 6 or something, but not if you are 6'2").

Question, Monday May 29th.

We are seeing a significant number of wildfires breaking out in our area, which is fairly unusual traditionally for our area.  How are things weather related your area?  Are they the expected norm or are you having an unusual year for conditions?

 

It's been fairly mild around here the last few weeks with a series of pleasant temperature days and very little rainfall. Can't comment on whether or not this is unusual because May in Ohio can mean just about anything when it comes to the weather. It has been fairly dry though. Nothing of concern just yet. Though the Maumee River Valley up around Toledo, Ohio is already under a D0 drought. But the long term forecast for this summer is looking hot and dry. If that ends up being the case, then we could end up with mild to moderate drought conditions is several parts of the state. Which is never good for a state with so much agriculture.

[WhiteWulfe]

13 minutes ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

 

Nervous laughter goes here.  We'll go with "not as much as I wanted, but given the circumstances in happy" as my answer. 

 

13 minutes ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

Yeah, life did a thing, that's for sure.  Three and a half weeks off work that thankfully our third party coverage is covering, although I'm still not back to full.  Given what I was dealing with and it's aftermath though, I'll take being at about 80% of the capacity I was at before getting sick, as I am seeing week over week improvements. 

 

I did get into something new though, adult colouring books, and not only have I broken in my Polycromos pencils (and love them) I've also acquired some alcohol markers and the more I use them the happier I am with them, especially with the results! 

 

As for planned goals, I had planned on having that Zaku finished, but I'll take having gotten significant progress done on it, doubly so all that's happened this month.  Which reminds me, I should update that thread at some point, since I've had some progress on this and that... ^_^;;;;

 

Still super tempted to print an almost 200% scale Celestial Hound and paint that for pride month, because a) doggo, b) I wanna paint one, and c) just seems fitting. Oh yeah, really looking forward to progress on Meirsoa and Oleana in the near future too! 

Edited May 30 by WhiteWulfe

[Thoramel]

22 minutes ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

 

I got most all of my adulting goals done with the exception of getting a hood vent for the kitchen. But we changed our plans there and are going to be purchasing a new refrigerator first as our old one is on it's last legs. As for my hobbying goals I wanted to brew some beer and get my kegerator torn apart, cleaned and reassembled - that happened. I wanted to finish getting all the gear I'd need to start kayaking - that happened. And I wanted to finish the Bones V Cyclops from the Greek Odyssey expansion - almost done with that one. Just a few more days and it should be done. 

 

Life didn't necessarily throw us any roadblocks this month. A few family members tried to unload their constant drama on to us, but we managed to avoid the worst of it. So all in all, a pretty productive month!

[Chaoswolf]

48 minutes ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

It went well overall. 

One of goals (although it wasn't necessarily a goal that had to be accomplished in May) was to adopt a dog. We accomplished that one which caused other new and exciting things to pop up.

[Zink]

56 minutes ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

 

I accomplished almost zero of my goals of any kind. Motivation and energy was low while breakdowns and external distractions were high. Luckily nothing seriously bad happened but it's been incredibly frustrating trying to do anything.

[ejala]

3 hours ago, TGP said:

Both. 
As I reckon things, 5 months in, it’s been  closer to the expected norms than anything else. But, not according to:

 

The Chief

 

Oh No. No, no, no! You see we need to get the app, on our phones, we need to tune in everytime! Because…

 

The Chief

…has to save us by warning us. From what?  You’d rightfully ask. From those deadly Thunderstorms that are going to hunt us down that’s what! (The Chief Meteorologist at one of our local Telly stations goes into conniptions anytime radar detects anything bigger than a buzzard.)

 

A couple of nights ago…

The Chief

 

(they really say it like that) was first up on the 10pm evening news. Ahead of all other stories. THERE WERE THUNDERSTORMS OUT THERE !! and we needed to know. They were just a little North and a bit West of Abilene.    For those unfamiliar with the geography of Texas, these storms were so far away you could fit the entire country of Ireland in between  @Chaoswolf’s house and where these storms were.  They were about six hours out. Six hours is a eternity for a Texas thunderstorm. Anything can happen in that timeframe. But, 

 

The Chief

 

…had to let us know. That he didn’t know. If it would be bad, or how bad, or where exactly it might be bad. 

It rained for about twenty minutes around 3 am. 

I don't know if it's better or worse here that our local weathermen are most known as the fat one and the one who's now in prison for child porn. 

[ManvsMini]

2 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

 

Well, I spent most of it lying down due to my back. Missed work for 2 weeks this month due to it, so I'm a little bit behind on what I'd hoped to earn financially, but not really hurting. I'd been hoping to have an easier time at work so that I could ease back in, but that hasn't happened due to people taking vacations. I have managed to walk 66 miles last week at work (according to my step-counter, which I wear on my ankle for a more accurate count), so fitness it fairly good?

 

The back is doing better, which I'll take. Trying to put some trust back in humanity after the past 3 years by not wearing a mask at work. So far, so good, I'm rarely up in anyone's face and only near people when I answer a help call, so I'm still able to avoid prolonged contact. I went to a friend's house yesterday for the first time in years. We were outside flying his drone and tossing a boomerang around.

 

No hobby goals have been met. I did a little bit of house painting this weekend, so there's some progress.

 

Overall, not a bad month. Could have been better, but also much much worse.

[Glitterwolf]

5 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

 

 

Hobby related, I did paint a reasonable amount of minis.

Took a short vacation this Month and we hiked/shopped and went out dinner and visited a zoo.

Even did some work around the house.

[Jasper_the_2nd]

5 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

May is getting into track season for me, so I knew I wasn't going to get too much done.  But I did plan to do some panting.  That didn't happen at all.  What hobby time I did have went toward 3D printing related stuff. I did get started on some helmet prep, but that is going slower than I expected, mostly due to lack of time.

I did get down for the events at the track I'd planned for and got to see my folks.

So all in all not too bad but I'd have liked to have gotten a little painting.

[Corsair]

6 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

Goals went well for the hobby side this month. Got my gun cart finished [prototype #3] and a bunch of ammo reloaded. Mini terrain under construction and on schedule for Reapercon. On vacation with family, which was our main goal for this month! Uncle Corsair gettin' lots of hugs from g'kids.

[chaosscorpion]

On 5/26/2023 at 9:21 AM, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Sunday May 28th.

Today is the Monaco F1 Grand Prix and the Indy 500. Have you ever been to Monaco or Indy? Would you like to travel to either (for the race or any other time)?  

I visited Indy on my trip out to the Philmont Scout Ranch in 1983.

 

The start of the Indy 500 always gave me goosebumps.  I think it would be interesting to attend Monaco Grand Prix.

On 5/29/2023 at 8:46 AM, Jasper_the_2nd said:

I'll get around to answering my questions later, may even find some pics.  I got home late and had to actually go into the office for an ergonomic assessment (and confirmed, our desk chairs are crap......well, they are probably fine if you are 5 foot 6 or something, but not if you are 6'2").

Question, Monday May 29th.

We are seeing a significant number of wildfires breaking out in our area, which is fairly unusual traditionally for our area.  How are things weather related your area?  Are they the expected norm or are you having an unusual year for conditions?

It's that time during the late spring were the fire risk tends to increase, as temperatures and wind increase, drying out the debris, and dead plants from last fall but, full verdant growth has not completed coving these areas to hold in the moisture and reduce the risks again.

6 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Well, that month has flown by.  With it almost over, how did you do this month in terms of any goals or plans you might have had?

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

As always the list of importance changes.  Stuff gets done, but how quickly something needs to get done is mutable all month.

[Inarah]

7 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Quick update on the fires around Halifax (question will appear after my morning meeting).

My wife's cousin lost their house.  The daycare a friend's kid goes to is gone.  But all of the horses that had to be released from some stables ahead of the fire have been recovered.  And a local kennel owner is being praised after walking 3 km through the woods towards the fires to get to her business and rescue the 16 or 18 dogs that were in her facility.

 

Hoping for the best for everyone involved.  I have a friend who had to evacuate in the middle of the night, and they don't know when they'll be able to return, or if there will be anything to return to. 

 

 

7 hours ago, Jasper_the_2nd said:

Question, Tuesday, May 30th.

Did you accomplish any of your planned goals? Did new and exciting other things pop up and become the focus?   Or did life decide now would be a good time for things to get too busy for goals?

 

It's been busy.  Goal this month was to get the garden planted.  And parts had to be replanted for various reasons.  Still don't have straw and weed barrier down, and something has been eating my tomato plants -- not even tomatoes yet, just plants-- so I got 5 more to put in this week.  Lettuce is coming faster than we can eat it so I need to get out there again soon.  And I'm not even going to talk about the flower beds or the neighbor's encroaching poison ivy farm. 

 

We took 3 days off this weekend and did some outdoorsy things: 

 

 

Most of it went well but we hit some rough spots and very nearly went into the drink, and friends who were with us did capsize in one particularly bad spot.  Fortunately no one was seriously injured.  

 

Would have liked to do more painting, but didn't have time, and arthritis has flared up and is giving me a pinched nerve/numbness in my dominant hand so I'm trying to avoid repetitive motions/ sitting for long periods. 

 

 

 

 

5 hours ago, ejala said:

I don't know if it's better or worse here that our local weathermen are most known as the fat one and the one who's now in prison for child porn. 

 

Our beloved weather guy (who really knew his stuff) retired in Dec and we're stuck with some idiot from LA who has never seen anything like real midwest weather so his spiel is like "It's sunny out, and uh, 78 degrees, and later today it's going to be, uh, real nice, and warming up to 84, and tonight it won't be sunny, but probably still warm until it cools off later, with a  chance of rain in the morning..."  while I'm looking at the radar and thinking "that's a multi-cell thunderstorm forming out west, we're going to get 50mph winds around dinner time, better bring the plants in and pull the sun shade up."