After returning from some consulting work for a new client, I spent several hours trying to figure out why our doorbell chime had ceased to function. A visitor for Jeanine arrived this afternoon. I was in my office and heard the driveway sensor signal the presence of a car. I looked at our security camera feed and saw her friend walking up to the front door. I was puzzled when the doorbell did not ring. When I let her in, she confirmed having pushed the doorbell button. After confirming that the doorbell camera/button was working, I searched online for the applicable documentation and began to troubleshoot the chime. I did a factory reset and attempted to re-pair it with the doorbell. When this did not work I created a support ticket with the manufacturer (Reolink) but will probably not hear back for some time. Because the doorbell has a working chime on the outdoor unit, guests will be under the impression that we have heard the indoor chime and they will have no reason to knock. For this reason it is fairly urgent that I get this situation resolved. I eventually decided to purchase a replacement with overnight delivery. Had I known that this would only cost $19, I would have started with this solution in the first place. I should know by tomorrow if this cures the problem.

As he did last winter, Kyle traveled to Panama to enjoy sunshine and warm weather. Working remotely offers him this opportunity since it matters little where his desk is located. He brought his big screen monitor and full-size keyboard with him so as not to sacrifice productivity. When it is time for a break, he enjoys the running path pictured below.

Meanwhile, Nico is in Costa Rica with the US National Amputee Soccer Team, preparing for an international friendly against their hosts. It remains to be seen how his shoulder holds up after the injury he sustained during the USA Cup late last year.

Our landscaping plan for the River House did not include lighting to illuminate the driveway. Cars have headlights, so there was not much motivation to spend money for their benefit. For neighbors visiting on foot, however, the +300-foot walk from the street to our front door can be a little intimidating in the dark. I considered hardwired, fixed lighting, but that only looks good until the first one gets knocked over. Solar lighting fixtures were an option, but some portions of the driveway receive very little sunlight, creating the likelihood that some lights would never get sufficiently charged to stay on for several hours. I am very pleased with the solution I arrived at, one I have never seen used before. I placed an outdoor LED rope typically used to decorate trees or frame houses on one side of the driveway. It is a very low energy solution that is both functional and entertaining (see video above). They are programmed to come on at dusk and turnoff 6 hours later.

Jeanine volunteered me to help with the construction of “photo boards” to be used during the Concord 250 celebration in April. Pictured here are four pairs of stands that will be used to support 4’x6’x1/2″ plywood sheets. A neighbor who is in charge of the project and I finished the task in a couple of hours. We will cut face holes and support holes in the photo boards after they are painted. The wind load on a 4′ x 6′ surface in 20 mph winds is approximately 25 pounds. This will require about 45 pounds of counterweight placed at the right location on the legs. I will recommend 25-pound sandbags for each leg or that they be staked securely to the ground.

The new drone I recently purchased (DJI Mini 4 Pro) arrived today. Despite the high winds, I wanted to make a couple of test flights. I noticed that Verrill Farms has been constructing a permanent event space to replace the tent they have used in the past. I thought this might make an interesting photo. I also decided to revisit the neuron-shaped thaw patterns in the Sudbury River. The Mini 4 has three key improvements that convinced me to buy it. The radio range has been substantially increased, and it now has obstacle avoidance in all directions. These features will make it more intrinsically safe to fly. The newer drone now offers RAW only photo files which is more convenient for me than the previous RAW+JPEG mode.

As the Sudbury River has begun to thaw in certain areas, I decided to put up my drone for an aerial view. When I studied the images, I noticed some very interesting neuron-shaped patterns throughout the ice sheets. It appears to be a consistent pattern that can be seen all the way up the river suggesting it is the normal pattern for melting. I have never seen such a pattern before and will have to investigate further.

My sister Mayela shared this image taken at the North Carolina Zoo with the family.

Closer to home, we enjoyed our first proper snowfall of the season, just a little over 2 inches. A nice consequence is that we can see animal footprints in the snow and use our surveillance video to zero in on the visitors. Yesterday, this included a fox and coyote.

From ChatGPT:

Ice can make a variety of sounds, including cracking, crunching, tinkling, whooshing, groaning, sizzling, and roaring. The sounds ice makes depend on how it’s interacting with its environment, such as temperature changes, wind, waves, and icebergs.

None of these words come close to describing the sounds emanating from the frozen Sudbury River this morning. The closest thing I can think of is the sound made by a handsaw whose blade has been pulled into an arc and then released. I made several attempts to use my audio recorder to capture the sound with no success. Later in the day, Jeanine and I went for a walk along the opposite side of the river down to Fairhaven Bay, hoping to hear the ethereal song again. Once you hear this sound, you want to hear it again and again. It is yet another gift of the river for which we are grateful.

This morning, a light coating of snow and high winds produced mesmerizing moving patterns on the frozen Sudbury River. Due to the freezing outside temperatures, I operated my drone from the comfort of our great room. It felt a little like cheating. The stress of flying in high winds, on the other hand, made for a traumatic flight. The experience made me think about picking up a used backup drone for our upcoming trip to New Zealand, should I lose or crash my primary one. Instead, I opted to purchase a newer model that has better safety features and radio range. This combination of enhancements should reduce the probability of a fatal crash or loss of aircraft.

When I initially installed the vent hood over the induction cooktop on the kitchen island, I set the height so that it would just clear my head. Good for me, but not so much for taller cooks. Such hoods perform better when closer to the cooking surface, so my instinct was to keep it as low as practical. Today, I raised it by 7 inches after a recent guest bonked their head on the glass canopy. To compensate for the increased height, I installed new electronics that allow the fan to operate at a 75% higher flow rate. A pair of band clamps were just what the doctor ordered to facilitate an otherwise very precarious operation. Head clearance is now 6′ 3″. If you are taller than that, you cannot go on the ride.

At the end of February, Jeanine and I will be leaving for a 5-week New Zealand and Australia vacation. I spent the entire day and a good part of yesterday securing reservations for air, car, and ferry travel and lodging for 18 different accommodations ranging from an overnight voyage into the Milford Sound on a small cruise ship to a tiny hut previously used for sheep shearing. The array of housing also includes a small cottage on a llama farm and an off-the-grid tiny house. Even though we will be traveling during the shoulder season and we are booking almost 2 months in advance, it is crazy how many places are already fully reserved. On a positive note, we finally received a check for the energy credits earned by our geothermal system. The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center calculated the projected output of our system over the next ten years and provided a one-time payment based on the greenhouse gas emissions savings our system will deliver. The amount will cover the cost for our entire vacation. Even though it is money that came out of our pocket to pay for geothermal in the first place, it was still a welcome psychological treat.

In November, Jeanine signed me up for a senior adult recreational pickleball league. Today, the program commenced, and I played for the first time. Just as she insisted, the game is a lot of fun. The time I spent learning about it on YouTube proved to be quite helpful, and I felt pretty comfortable halfway through my first match. It should be noted that I was one of two men in a group that included 11 women, half my junior and half my senior. If my knees prove they can tolerate the sport, I think I may join a more competitive group next session in light of a request from one player who asked me not to hit the ball so hard.

Conantum, our neighborhood, has common land shared by all who live here. This includes a community garden, boat dock, tennis and basketball courts, playground, baseball field, and a network of trails. These amenities are maintained by volunteers from the community. I recently joined the Trails Committee and received my assignment today. I am to be the Steward for trail segments X and Y as labeled on the partial map above. I will be responsible for keeping the path safe and clean. As illustrated below, this may involve the occasional clearing of fallen trees. Jeanine joined me for an initial assessment this afternoon and I am pleased to report that my predacessor has left the trail in very good condition.

While sectioning downed trees in the yard with my chainsaw today, I encountered the work of another lumberjack who shares our property. Interestingly, beavers can fell up to 300 trees in a year, with a single beaver capable of cutting down a medium-sized tree in just one night. When beavers cut down trees, they primarily want to eat the inner cambium layer of the tree bark. In addition, doing so is necessary to maintain their fast-growing, self-sharpening teeth. These animals are truly remarkable. I wonder what it would take to train them to work on the downed trees that are the target of my efforts?