Go Big or Go Home!

We headed out this morning for the sold-out 11:00 AM screening of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, armed with tickets secured three weeks in advance. The drive out to Langley was remarkably smooth, taking an easy half hour each way.

The entire motivation for making the trek was the rare technological indulgence of 70mm film projection. Langley hosts one of only nine venues in all of Canada capable of running physical 70mm celluloid. And it's one of a mere 41 in the whole world that is screening it.  For the inner statistics geek, the mechanical scale alone is impressive: at 5-perf standard projection speed, film whips through the gate at roughly 112.5 feet per minute. Over a nearly three-hour running time, that translates to approximately 18,000 to 20,000 feet of heavy ribbon, an astonishing three linear miles of physical polyester rattling past the lamp.

The immense scale and uncompressed audio certainly dominated the room, though being accustomed to our 55-inch OLED panel at home spoils conventional projection. Throughout the darker scenes, one could not help wishing for absolute, self-lit black levels rather than the typical hazy grey inherent to massive xenon bulbs. Cranked to that cinematic volume, our home Onkyo setup would undoubtedly incite an immediate strata revolt on Carnarvon Street.

As for the film itself, Nolan delivered his signature revisionist brand of mythmaking. Homer's ancient epic was stripped of whimsical divine intervention, turning the gods into psychological fractures and transforming Odysseus from a favored hero into a shell-shocked veteran rationalizing two decades of disastrous avoidance. Penelope’s court became a tense, claustrophobic political thriller rather than a portrait of passive virtue.

A few peculiar artistic liberties stood out. Polyphemus was gifted a horizontal ocular slit, an anatomical trait belonging strictly to grazing prey animals, making the legendary brute resemble an oversized, irritated goat scanning the Mediterranean coast. On the other hand, staging the final bow-stringing contest as an agonizing physical struggle of aging, failing muscle, rather than an effortless demigod triumph, added genuine dramatic weight.

While modern digital contrast has fundamentally altered our visual expectations, experiencing three miles of roaring celluloid in a packed cinema remains an exceptional mechanical spectacle. I am very glad we made the trip to see it in true 70mm.

Giving Up the Ghost, Literally!

Back in 2022, sitting comfortably under the tropical winter sun in Sri Lanka, I had what felt like an airtight engineering epiphany. Looking ahead to the summer's punishing vertical climbs of New Westminster, I convinced myself that proper micro-mobility demanded dual hub motors and maximum peak wattage. I clicked "preorder" on the Apollo Ghost without a second thought.

What arrived was not a nimble urban runabout; it was a 30-kilogram (65-pound) slab of forged alloy that handled less like personal transit and more like an uncooperative anvil. I put fewer than 50 kilometers on the clock before the sheer misery of wrestling that unbalanced battering ram across door thresholds and into elevators permanently cured my enthusiasm.

For the subsequent four years, the Ghost was placed in covered balcony exile. It sat there, occasionally plugged into the mains, soaking up the weather, slowly losing tire pressure, and occupying prime patio real estate that was meant for morning coffee and river watching. Even with the financial ledger balanced, watching an expensive piece of hardware slowly forfeit its battery capacity to calendar aging was a constant visual rebuke. It was easily the undisputed heavyweight champion of my personal regret purchases.

Today, I finally executed the eviction. Loading that awkward, front-heavy mass into the back of Kimchi, our Hyundai Kona, required dropping half the split rear seat and engaging in some serious lumbar gymnastics, but I got it done. I hauled it across the Fraser to a dedicated repair shop in Surrey.

The shop will patch the flat, bench-test the 52-volt battery, and pass it along cheaply to someone who actually needs the transport, whether that is a newcomer establishing a daily commute or a teenager whose family budget cannot stretch to a vehicle.

The flat tire is now a workshop project, the balcony is officially liberated, and four years of domestic buyer's remorse have been hopefully converted into an honest piece of community mobility.

Singing Praises for a Piece of Luggage!

Travel can be exciting but getting ready is never much fun. 

We have it pretty easy this time as we're only going to be away for around 9 days. Usually when we pack, we have to be very selective.  We go away to some far corner of the globe for four or five months every winter. 

Comparatively, this little upcoming cruise from Barcelona will be a breeze. In fact, we've decided to take a single suitcase and share the space. Yet, we'll each have our own backpacks as carry-ons.

   

Today, we rolled out my trusty old friend. This is a photo of the best suitcase I ever owned because of its durability and security. It seals shut and snaps tightly closed. I have little faith in modern luggage with a mere zipper holding it all together. 

After many years, this piece still has all of its wheels. I remember buying it prior to COVID in Kuala Lumpur.  We never let the pandemic prevent us from going away, so it has been through at least six winters. For the last one alone, it was in and between five different countries. I admit the old gal is starting to look a bit sketchy but I like its secure latches, I hope it keeps on going forward for the foreseeable future.

It'a Nice When Something Lasts

This is the best piece of luggage that I've ever owned.  Please note that it has no zipper around the middle.  Almost every bag now is held together by a cloth and metal zipper.  That must be the stupidest design possible.

This has a rubber seal and three latches.  It  opens from an interlocking hinge on its opposite side.  I love it.

I bought this sturdy suitcase in Malaysia.  As I took it out of the front closet today, I wondered how long I'd had it.  

(This is where the power of my blog comes into play.  Allowing me to find practically-useless information, such as this, is my blog's special superpower.  It took only a few seconds to do a search to find any references to luggage.)  

I discovered I purchased the teal-colored item on February 18, 2020, in a post named, OK Boomer.   I've been using it for four and a half years.  That's a lot because we do a whole lot of travelling.  I'd hate to venture a guess as to the total number of places this has visited since I first christened it.

Although it sports a few bumps and scratches it is still in serviceable condition.  None of its wheels have been lost.  It will be what I'm taking to the airport on Saturday.  I'm sure Jay's been through several suitcases since I got this one.  In fact, he starts our trip on Saturday with a replacement.  

Levoit LV-PUR131S

 

We'd really gotten used to the Levoit Air Purifier. I have a model that uses wifi and it is convenient to set schedules. Our machine made a noticeable improvement in the quality of air in our small apartment. We like a little white noise for sleep, so we set it to a fan speed that will allow us to mask some outside noises. It is pretty quiet at the lowest speed. 

We leave for winter, so the unit we had for nearly two years, really only had one year of use. Then, as must be prone with a certain batch, we had problems. The machine stopped turning on. As two years were about to expire, I emailed their support team. After sending documentation including a small video showing the problem, they sent us a completely new unit. It came in less than a week via UPS. 

I like clean air and the automatic function as it senses dust. It works as it comes on after I apply body powder or cook some types of foods. I cannot live without an air purifier now and I will stick with this brand simply because I feel pleased that they backed up their device with a suitable warranty.

A Heavy Metal Band

The excitement of an Amazon delivery can quickly wear off if the product isn't what one expected.  However, today I was pleased with one item which was dropped off. 

I got a Google Pixel watch when they were released last fall. Overall, I'd say my feelings can be summarized as muted satisfaction.  First, I suppose it's useful to read the header when an email arrives right on my wrist.  And being able to see phone app notifications with the phone still in my pocket can be convenient.  More importantly, I like the integration with Google Wallet, so I can hold my wrist near a cashier's terminal and safely pay with a credit card.  Specifically, the activity tracking features are what I find most useful. I've been tracking steps for at least a decade with other devices. I also find Fitbit's constant information about my heart rate and sleep stats useful.  

So after six months of use, I'm pretty used to the device now.  My main complaint would have to be its poor battery life.  I can't say having to charge it so often is welcomed.  

 

The watch came with a comfortable but uninspiring silicon band. Yesterday though, the Amazon guy brought a package containing a metal Miimall® band. I have rather small wrists and had to remove two links. However, the package came with an easy-to-use tool. In a couple of minutes, I strapped my Pixel watch back on. I'm happy with the quality of the build and how it looks and feels.  For the price, it was a great purchase.

After a Few Months of Use ...

This is the 'all-in-one' Win10 machine that came back to Canada in our luggage. The Acer Z24 has proven to be a fine replacement for the old, now-retired laptop.  It generally sits on our table but will be easy to move when we find the need.

I remember with faint nostalgia the PCs I've owned over the years.  Those big, beige boxes have all but disappeared from the world.  Now, I see the term 'modern PC' used to help categorize those old devices as historical. 

This svelte model makes a fine tool for life in 2020.  However, I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss the days when owning a computer was branded a bit nerdier.

Nowadays, there's hardly a thing one needs to do for maintenance as Win10 has become pretty self-sufficient.  Once in a while, I open up the control panel or Windows settings just to make myself a little feel more in control.

My Fire is Being Extinguished

A bit over a year ago, I ordered a 10" Amazon Fire tablet. I remember the date as we were outside the gate on an airplane but I was still connected to Toronto airport's wifi. The purchase was a bit spur-of-the-moment and I'd not really done my homework. I wanted a larger device for Snapseed photo editing and the Amazon hardware had a 1920x1080 display.

The Amazon was pretty cheap but I've found it a very uninspiring piece of hardware. I was expecting a cleaner version of the Android operating system; I had to jump through a lot of hoops to load the tablet with the software I require. Although I'm a Prime member, I don't need much of the bloatware that Amazon designed inhouse. It has been a very disappointing purchase.



When waiting for the new MS Edge to load earlier today, I thought, "Enough." I have been checking to see what was now available in Android tablets and it's a pretty grim picture. Most have crappy displays and Samsung products cost much more than they should. By chance, I somehow ended up at the Lenovo Canada site.

I now have a Lenovo Tab M10 FDH (2nd gen) being processed for shipping. I like that it has a free charging stand and will work as an ambient display for my Google Home. I expect it to charge on my bedside table displaying one of my Flickr albums during the day and the dimmed time at night.

Faller Northwest Pale Ale with Dinner

One great part of being in British Columbia is access to its beer. I've stopped at the liquor store only once since being back. I bought another great Vancouver Island variety pack. I really like the scope of their offerings and didn't really come across one I didn't like. Also, it seems they do not try to sneak low alcohol content Radlers into the summer packs.

Still, I feel it is definitely time to get back to filling up my growlers! The Central City brewery store must be open. Now, there's a good errand for this Canadian long weekend.

Workmanship

At the risk of sounding like a crotchety old fart, I often find replacement products inferior to ones made several decades ago. Usually, when I have to replace things in the apartment, I discover that I'm replacing ones that were made in Canada thirty or forty years ago. Who knew that most hardware and building items used to be produced domestically! More than likely, the newer replacement will have more plastic and less metal. Generally, it'll also be lighter and flimsier.

Today, however, Amazon dropped off a single package with an outdoor electrical outlet cover. (My recent orders are frequently split and arrive on different days.) The item was reasonably priced, so I assumed it was going to follow the characteristics mentioned in the paragraph above. However, the Hubbel Bell waterproof cover is well-made. It is solid and will last a long time. I found the replacement was better quality than the original and that one must've been attached to my outside wall for the better part of 35 years.

Something to Smile About

I've been told I have a big mouth. However, it wasn't big enough for all my adult teeth. To prevent crowding, my parents had the dentist of my youth pull a few healthy ones. There's that and then the time I broke my lower jaw in a car accident in Kuwait. Needless to say, I do not have a mouth of perfectly aligned specimens.

As an adult, I've come to rely on a Waterpik® device. Mere flossing cannot extract all the food which can sometimes get caught between my teeth. Besides, having a clean mouth simply feels much better.

I finally replaced my travel Waterpik® that I've been using daily for a few years. My new one does not sport that famous, brand name though. I have been unhappy with my last purchase from that company. It was designed for travelling but only came with large, clunky 120v plug. We are overseas a lot and require alternative power. Secondly, it never held enough electrical charge to last more than one session. Perhaps, most importantly, it literally screamed during operation. That purchase always felt like a downgrade from the counter-tank versions I'd owned prior to it.

On Amazon, I ordered an ABOX FC2561 water flosser developed by a Chinese company. The package was delivered yesterday, on a Sunday no less! My new device is great. It overcomes each of the problems mentioned. The more-than-ample battery charges via a standard USB outlet. So far I've run it six times and there's no sign of any battery discharge. It is nearly silent, but powerful with a solid feel. The 'nozzle heads' seem rather cheap but it shipped with at least a half dozen different ones.

All this is almost enough to make me smile!

I'm Ready to Sweat this Summer

Oh my God! Today is the very first full day of summer and I ran out of Snake powder, my favourite brand.



Phew. I remembered to pick up another can in SE Asia last winter. I'm all set with a brand-new tin of cooling body powder. It can be purchased on Amazon by resellers but is dirt cheap in Malaysia and Thailand.

FreshCo Fails to Impress

I am going to tell you about a quirk. It's definitely not a secret as I am sure I've mentioned it right here before. Anyway, here goes: We enjoy visiting supermarkets! Many people find doing grocery shopping a chore but we like it.

In fact, when we are travelling whether on a nearby road trip or overseas, we have made it a habit to seek out supermarkets simply to visit and look around. Many tourists seek out the historical district or trendy restaurants but Jay and I like walking around unknown aisles of food, produce, and household products. I think seeing the organization and products of global supermarkets would be an awesome avenue for sociological study. A public food market says a lot about a culture and its values.



We saw some local information about a new supermarket chain here. We wondered if it'd be worth checking out too. So, we went to visit a FreshCo in Richmond, BC. There are already two in that 'city by the airport' and I asked Google Maps to navigate us to the closest. In addition to their own brand, Sobey's a conglomerate operates IGA, Safeway, Price Chopper & Foodland, and Thrifty Foods in Canada. We nearly never shop in any of them.

I guess we won't be bothering with FreshCo markets either. I assume these stores are just Safeway rebrandings. The inside looked similar without the fancy sections. I guess the emphasis is on cheaper staples as there were no prepared food offerings. We walked out with nothing.

Smart Life vs Magic Home

I have six lights around the apartment which are set up in Google Home and can be controlled through any of our smart speakers.

Setting them up in the Smart Life Android app is pretty much a no-brainer. One just holds a button or switches the bulb on and off a couple of times. When the light starts blinking, it is easily paired with the app through a wifi signal. Next, the app is 'linked' to the Google Home app.

Saying, "Hey Google, turn on the dining table lamp and set it to 55% brightness," is fun the first few times. It remains useful even after the fun has worn off. I have a 'routine' for further automation. When I shout, "Okay Google, get ready for bed," a whole series of lighting adjustments occur. It is easy.



However, trying to set up an LED strip with the device shown above is difficult and ultimately useless.

One has to open the Magic Home app and then log-in to a temporary IP address created by the controller itself. After that, it prompts to add the real wifi and password and connects the controller to it. Getting it running in Google Home is pretty much the same as mentioned previously.

However, these controllers often drop signal and appear 'offline'. I almost always have to control the strip with a small battery-powered remote which came in the package. If your only experience with home automation is through a similar LED strip, please understand that all other products perform in a superior manner.

Really, Flickr?

Flickr is considered one of the very first Web 2.0 websites. At the time, it was a new realization that netizens add value to a site by providing free data which can be monetized. It is now being changed by a new owner.

So, I sadly discovered that all non-paying accounts will be able to keep just 1000 photos. The problem is that all other photos are scheduled for deletion. Really? That puts an enormous chunk of Internet data up for disposal. It's also a very poor business decision as that enormous value of digital images will be voluntarily discarded.



This might be the oldest image which would be deleted from my account. It was taken in 1959 and uploaded in 2015. My very first upload occurred on June 21, 2005.

I just paid a lot of money for an annual PRO account. However, at 59 years old, I do not plan on living forever. So, the year I stop paying their ransom, it all disappears. Sad. And a stupid business decision.

Boys Forever Need Toys

It sneaked into the room inconspicuously sitting near the back of a living room table. I got a Google 'Home Mini' because the little device looked cheap on its current, half-off sale. It has already given me a ton of enjoyment and much to consider about how stuff works.

I'd not given much thought to home automation. As I said to someone in an email, "I used to laugh at the whole idea --- thinking that it'd be better if people got off their asses to switch off the bathroom light." Basically, for me, home automation could only mean lighting though.

I don't need a smart thermostat because we no longer live here during winters and we primarily use a gas fireplace for heat. We don't own a single smart appliance not only because they weren't an option when we got most of everything, but because we have such a simple life there's not much to automate.



However, after a few days of actual banter with Google Home in my home, I've changed my tune. I am speaking figuratively not when I have said, "Okay Google. Play my 100 Song playlist on my TV's HTS."

I am going to buy another Mini for the bedroom although this whole apartment is less than 725 sq ft. Today, I also ordered a 4-pack of wifi, smart plugs on Amazon. From bed, I want to be able to say, "Okay Google. Turn on the living room lamp." Or while on the couch, I might like to request that 'News 1130' be cast to the bedroom Mini.

It's all kind of silly but the 'Home Assistant' suckered me in. I posted this on Mastodon today:

After my Google Home told me when a movie was playing locally, I said, "Okay Google, thanks." It replied, "Wow it is not for nothing that people say Canadians are nice."

Shopping Should Be Easy

I find myself shopping for sandals, again. That really doesn't make me very happy as I bought a pair less than a year ago uptown. I really hadn't heard of the Khombu brand but they looked fine and the price was right. As it turns out, they are crap. I've resorted to a whole stick of glue and the glue-gun to keep them together temporarily. They probably represent the worst experience with footwear I've ever had. However, sandals are important to me for we often spend a lot of a typical year in places suitable for their use. I will soon need a good pair while traversing Greek islands.

I know exactly what I want. Let me buy a pair of Keen Men's Orroyo II, size 8, in black olive and Bombay brown, please.



Shopping should be easier here. My only option is to cough up list price on the Keen Canada site. I simply cannot find a cheaper option on this side of the border. The local SportsChek doesn't seem to carry my desired model of Keens. Mountain Equipment Coop doesn't carry the colours I want. The Canadian version of Amazon doesn't have any bargains at all and, unfortunately, there are few other viable, online shoe-store options here.

I've never had to spend the equivalent of over $US 100 for a pair of sandals before. Yet, it looks as though I am probably going to have to.

Our Amazon.ca Rewards Visa Card

Some places on the Net today were all agog about Amazon's primeday. You'd think it was, well, Christmas or something.

I carry an Amazon Canada Rewards Visa card primarily because it does not impose any foreign transaction fees on foreign purchases. Having one is very handy for us. For example, I recently added the Amazon card to our Holland America shipboard accounts as they're are always kept in US dollars. I won't get dinged an extra 2.5% as with most every other Canadian credit card.


But I can think of one place where the technically savvy behemoth could concentrate. Well, I guess, in actuality, it is Chase Canada which much move into the modern era. Although I love the card there is no way to turn off paper billing! This is no longer 1987, guys. Get your act together.

Fabulawesomness and Gloriosity

The weather we'd been waiting for has arrived. There is something so spectacular about this area when this weather hits that it sort of leaves me without words, at least real ones. It's as if the stifling gray cloud cover has finally been ripped back to reveal a scorching blue sky.

That happened here yesterday. Today it is finally heating up as well and tomorrow promises to hit 28C. We were out in it so you may wonder why today's image is a bed. Let me explain.

We bought an Endy memory-foam mattress the first week of December. Time flies and that means we have been sleeping on it for a half year. We'd recommend the product to anyone. It's a marked improvement over a traditional type of mattress. I'm sure it helped in Jay's recovery from heart surgery during those first few weeks when he was confined to sleeping only on his back.

Today, we figured we could rotate it. This mattress cannot be flipped as it has a cooling gel top. The company, however, does suggest that it be turned every six months. We did that today because it was such a perfect day to dry the bedding under the rays of the strong sun.

Wrapping Up My Kiva Participation

In August of 2009, I joined Kiva. So, for nearly eight years I helped make micro-loans to people willing to repay small debts to improve their lives, families, and livelihoods.

With capital of around $200, I was able to lend out $1425. As a loan was repaid, I would re-lend the funds to a different borrower. Over the years I participated in 39 loans in 24 different countries.



If you have as little as $25 on which you're willing to forgo interest, you could do a lot of one-on-one good in the world. Check out Kiva.org!