Haunted LED Flood Light

Posted on July 12, 2020 by kimerer_brian

We have a haunted LED flood light in the house.

Seriously…. this light was installed in our kitchen, and it does weird things when we turn the power on and off. I took it down to the workbench to check it out. Have a look at the video below:

Notice how it sort of wobbles and blinks when I plug it in. But that isn’t the strange bit. The strange bit is that it refuses to go off after I unplug it. It even gets brighter…. as if it is struggling not to go out. Cue the Twilight Zone® theme.

Go ahead. Watch it again!

Spooky, hunh?

But that isn’t the worst of it. Check out the box.

22 years?

Notice the estimated life of the bulb. Now check out the bulb itself.

One year?

Yes. I am that crazy. When I install a light bulb, I write the date that I installed it on the base. I just like to see how long these things actually last.

Here is a closer view in case you can’t see the date in the photo above.

Closeup

I installed that bulb on August 22 of 2019,  less than a year ago. The life of the bulb is actually 41 days short of a year. So the bulb has lasted 324 days. Now, 22 years is 8030 days, so the bulb lasted 4.03486924035 % of its estimated life.

You can’t make this stuff up.

I know what you’re thinking… “Strange person who would blog about a light bulb”.

But then….  you’re reading this…. know what I mean. Just sayin’.

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DG Moves

Posted on July 9, 2020 by kimerer_brian

DG has really gotten into this moving thing. I caught him moving just for the fun of it.

 

This could become a problem in the future.

 

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Happy 4th of July

Posted on July 4, 2020 by kimerer_brian

Happy 4th of July!

Stay safe.

Fireworks

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Rock

Posted on June 20, 2020 by kimerer_brian

Maybe that should be more like… ROCK!!!

So…. here is the backstory on the rock. Take a look at the thermometer.

91

Got that?

Now hold that thought.

So, the kids (wife and son) went out in that weather to plant some plants in the back 40. They have been doing that this summer. We have quite a plantation back there now. Looks nice, but it’s rocky soil.

Anyway, they started by digging the hole in the ground (makes sense) to put the plant in.

Then, they ran into the rock.

“Wow”, they said, “let’s dig that out of the ground”.

Kids: “You want to help dig a rock?”

Me: “No”

Kids: “You sure? It’ll be fun”

Me: “No”

Kids: “You sure?”

Me: “Yes”

So they dug it out.

Rock and hole

That is the rock and the hole it came out of.

Here is the rock, posed with the tools of the trade for scale.

Rock and Glove

Not sayin’ nuthin’ about crazy, but I will end this post with a reminder.

91!

Yours Truly, from my desk chair in my air-conditioned den.

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DG Wakes Up

Posted on June 14, 2020 by kimerer_brian

Ever since DG was created back in the 1970’s he has been a static panel cartoon. All of his gags and mischief are frozen in time and space. There must be more to it than that.

Then, it occurred to me that what he needs is to get moving and a get little animated.

I found a great animation tool called Blender, which has allowed me to wake up DG and get him moving. Check this out.

DG Wakes Up

He doesn’t seem very impressed with the improvement. Maybe I should let him sleep on it.

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Breakthrough

Posted on June 9, 2020 by kimerer_brian

We had a breakthrough. DG looked in the mirror and saw it.

Hair

A hair.

Needless to say, DG is pleased.

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Chipmunks

Posted on June 5, 2020 by kimerer_brian

Are you overrun with chipmunks this year? We are.

And they are getting rather bold. This one took a perch on the top step outside our back door and hung out there having a snack for about 10 minutes.

Chipmunk on step

Closer view.

Just hangin' out

He just sat there chillin’ in the sun, even when I tapped on the window. Pretty cheeky.

And I am not allowed to say “Awwww… isn’t that cute?”

“It’s a mouse with racing stripes!”

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Still Here

Posted on June 2, 2020 by kimerer_brian

We haven’t posted anything for a while, but we are still here.

And, we have been keeping busy during Armageddon…. we did some woodworking projects… some gardening projects…. we put up the Tiki lights around the patio…. long walks……. grocery shopping at 6:00 A.M…. (joy).

So we are getting along fairly well. Even DG has quieted down. Now he just sits around all day playing with his mental blocks.

DG with blocks

Hmm. Maybe we should be worried.

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Jack-in-the-pulpit

Posted on May 8, 2020 by kimerer_brian

Looking for a sign of spring? How’s this?

Jack

That is, of course, a Jack-in-the-pulpit, however with a slight difference.

This one is an Arisaema sikokianum, the Japanese Jack-in-the-pulpit.

According to the Wikipedia, and it has to be true if it is from the Wiki, it is

“Found only in moist, shaded areas on the Island of Shikoku in Japan.”

Well, OK then. Either we have moved or this is an import…. I am guessing that it is an import….. and for the plant, being so far away from home is what makes it a SPOTH instead of just another run-of-the-mill garden plant. I am not sure how we end up with these strange plants in the yard. They just sort of show up.

Here is a closer look.

Close up

It is a good sign of spring anyway.

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The Protest

Posted on May 3, 2020 by kimerer_brian

You may remember that DG is protesting the fact that the Cartoonists are taking all the income from the Cartoons, leaving the Cartoons with $0.00 income.

I finally made my peace with him by offering him a 50/50 split. I said I would give him half of every dollar I make.

DG smiling

But then, I had to inform him that I don’t get any income from this either, leaving him with the same old $0.00.

DG Shocked

And…. I told him…. since he hasn’t done anything funny for so long I am giving him a 10% pay cut.

DG Unhappy

I am waiting patiently to see how long it takes to sink in.

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