Honshu and Okinawa

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I am back. I spent 10 days in Japan, 5 days for work on the main island of Honshu and 5 days of solo adventure in Okinawa. Travel is so invigorating dispite the uncomfortableness. Jetlag, anxiety, crowds, and other discomforts aside, it is mind-expanding and rewarding. Work went well. I flew a new airline (Skymark) from Tokyo to Naha. I am always wary of strange discount airlines and all the traps they set. However, I had a great expereince with "Sky". I was actually shocked. Super easy checkin at the airport, no extra fees even with extra luggage. The primary mission in Okinawa was to visit the Peace Park and the suicide cliffs of Okinawa. From what I understand, at the end of WW2 the inhabitants were encouraged to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Americans and get tortured and eaten. Besides other types of suicide, they jumped off the cliffs at the Southern end of the main island. If you have seen the original color footage taken at the time, I am sure you ...
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I am looking at solar systems for domestic hot water. It appears the best way is to buy a Rheem/ruud (model 81V080HE1) 80 gallon water heater (electric). That water heater has a built in heat exchanger for a solar panel system. Then you use zone pumps, valves and thermostats normally used for radient heating but in reverse. That way I can have a zone that heats water from the coal stove if on, or the solar panels, if hot, or another source. Maybe the llamas give off heat...biomass.

It's Wednesday. Halfway mark. We are super busy at work. We have a big event down in florida 3rd week in March. It is our International Dealer Meeting. We have it every 2 years. This year I am going. I have a booth for technical publications. Everyone seems to be working on the event in marketing.

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Honshu and Okinawa

-
Image
I am back. I spent 10 days in Japan, 5 days for work on the main island of Honshu and 5 days of solo adventure in Okinawa. Travel is so invigorating dispite the uncomfortableness. Jetlag, anxiety, crowds, and other discomforts aside, it is mind-expanding and rewarding. Work went well. I flew a new airline (Skymark) from Tokyo to Naha. I am always wary of strange discount airlines and all the traps they set. However, I had a great expereince with "Sky". I was actually shocked. Super easy checkin at the airport, no extra fees even with extra luggage. The primary mission in Okinawa was to visit the Peace Park and the suicide cliffs of Okinawa. From what I understand, at the end of WW2 the inhabitants were encouraged to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Americans and get tortured and eaten. Besides other types of suicide, they jumped off the cliffs at the Southern end of the main island. If you have seen the original color footage taken at the time, I am sure you ...
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California, Berkshire NY, Baltimore Maryland and Washington DC

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I am back from a speaking engagement at a familiar conference (CIDM) in San Jose California. Afterwards, I met Angie at the ATL airport and headed to the farm and to see my cousins, Aunt and Sister (and my newest relative) in Baltimore and Washington DC. It was a densely scheduled trip, but nothing compared to our typical overseas vacation trips. I have been having educational fun with my recent birthday gift. It is a Radiacode 103. It is a very sensitive scintillation radiation detector. Loads of fun. The 1k µS/hr spike shown is what the carry on baggage x-ray machine doses out. I am glad I wasn't inside the x-ray equipment. Stopping at some antique stores along the way, I found a number of uranium glass pieces. Yes, they are radioactive. Yes, the dose is comparable to that you get from riding in a commercial airplane. I took a couple of pics of property in Upstate NY. Unbelievable. It will beat out images of the best trailer trash anywhere. And yes, the vehicles are systemica...
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Priorities

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One of the strangest processes I go through is setting priorities of what I need to work on. I can't say I finish one project and start on another. I often take a project to "a stable place" and then start on another "comprehensive" project that ends up as many smaller projects with their own lifecycle. The good news (and what allows me to be proud) is that I finish projects. Finishing is a big deal to me. I enjoy that part. A lot of folks get joy out of starting projects, but then get beaten down by setbacks and reality. Real progress (and growth) comes in steps. The stair rise is seeing and knowing progress. The stair step is when you dont see progress. You have to have faith you will get to the next rise. It will happen. In my latest "comprehensive" project "zoom room improvements" includes deep cleaning (inside and out), new electric, ethernet, and flooring. In addition, some foundation repairs. The original posts were set poorly and th...
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Southern Africa!

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