While we are experiencing the coldest winter day so far, Kyle is basking in the sun of Cartagena. Meanwhile, Nicolai has returned from Costa Rica with sunburn over his entire face.
I am happy to report that the house is warm and toasty. Our geothermal system is virtually unaffected by the outside air temperature since we are drawing heat from deep in the ground where the temperature remains between 45–54°F.
Jeanine spotted 5 coyotes walking on the frozen Sudbury River this morning. I managed to capture this photo of four of them. They were very far away and I was shooting through triple-pane glass which explains the poor photo quality. If not for the 2°F outdoor temperature and the fact that I was in my bathrobe, I would have ventured out for a better image.
After snow blowing 4″ of new snow from our driveway before sunrise, I drove to the Old North Bridge to get some early morning photos before visitors could add their footprints to the scene. I launched my drone for an overhead aerial view but curtailed the flight when I got a low battery temperature warning. When I returned home, I made another short flight to capture a snowscape of our house as seen from the river.
While we were dealing with the snow and cold, Kyle moved further south from Panama to Cartagena, Colombia. I wish this “Digital Nomad” lifestyle was a thing when I was his age. I am thrilled that he is availing himself of the opportunity to travel so much. I am also glad he has moved on from Panama, given our new President’s desire to “take it back,” referring to the Panama Canal.
Jeanine and I just watched the movie “Unstoppable,” the story of 2011 NCAA 125-pound wrestling champion Anthony Robles based on his book of the same title. It was an excellent movie that we can highly recommend. Nicolai is pictured here with Anthony in 2010 after attending a wrestling clinic that he conducted. Anthony stuck around after the clinic to give Nicolai some one-on-one coaching, and we wound up giving him a ride to the airport. What is not apparent from the movie is that Anthony is a genuinely wonderful human being. We are all thrilled with the success he has earned for himself.
After receiving a quote for $2,600 to fabricate and install a stainless steel handrail for our front steps, I decided to do the job myself. The components cost $164, and it took me less than 2 hours. The design may not be quite as elegant as the custom one I originally envisioned, but it is super sturdy, and I can think of many better things to spend the savings on.
Yesterday’s game between the national amputee soccer teams for the US and Costa Rica ended in a 0-0 tie. Jeanine and I were hoping to watch the second match today between the US and Guatemala, but the live stream does not seem to be working once again. I will report on the scores once we learn of them. Final score US 4; Guatemala 0.
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.
