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. At the end of WW2 the inhabitants were encouraged to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Americans and get tortured and eaten. They jumped off the cliffs at the souther end of the main island. If you have seen theoriginal color footage taken at the time. I am sure you were moved with mothers holding their babies jumping to th...
Post a Comment
-

The solar system is coming together. I have all the major components. I still need to get some PEX pipe, insulation, pressure relief valve, expansion tank and some valves & fittings. I ended up getting an evacuated tube collector instead of my using my homebrew system. I hooked up with two Chinese PhDs and we are collaborating. You never really know how things turn sometimes, bizarre sometimes.

When I was taking the collector off the truck I took the cardboard off because it got wet in rain. It was out sitting exposed to the cloudy-rainy sky for about an hour before I could get it off the truck. Surprisingly, when I grabbed the water outlet it was hot. I don't mean warm. I mean hot. And it was raining out. This thing really works. Cool. Well, Hot. The complete system costs are not tallied yet. I will be doing that for sure, but it is easy to justify the system with it costing $800 to fill the oil tank. This has been one of the more satisfying projects this summer, err Fall.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

-
I am still connected getting the lunch menu from the ice. It is tough to decide. mactown food versus home. Hmmm... Mactown menu Thursday - February 1 | LUNCH 11am-1pm Roast Pork Loin w/Gravy Beef Chili Vegetable Ragout DINNER 5pm - 7:30pm Thai Beef Stir Fry Teriyaki Grilled Chicken w/Pineapple Vegetarian Buddha's Delite
Read more

Maine Coastal Islands

-
Image
As part of my recent Maine trip we decided to explore a little out on Vinalhaven (Vinyl Haven) Island. There is a ferry that runs out there. I was pleasantly surprised that it isn't totally about tourism out there. I daydreamed about buying a waterfront property and doing fishing and lobstering. The properties I found were somewhat affordable and essentially turn-key fishing bases. I also had to stop and take a couple fan-boy pics of some antique rolling stock. They must get snow up in Maine. I didn't see any in September.
Read more

California, Berkshire NY, Baltimore Maryland and Washington DC

-
Image
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...
Read more

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. At the end of WW2 the inhabitants were encouraged to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Americans and get tortured and eaten. They jumped off the cliffs at the souther end of the main island. If you have seen theoriginal color footage taken at the time. I am sure you were moved with mothers holding their babies jumping to th...
Read more

Mostly in Georgia

-
Image
Gracie decided to give us a presentation regarding current world shipping issues. She thinks she is so smart. But she is wrong about port congestion. If we allow anyone to drive commercial trucks there will be no backup of containers moving inland. Gracie, a tip for public speaking, Never turn your back to the audience. We had "Demo Days" at work again this past week. I was busy on most of the days, but I went up to the demo site after the event was over on Friday and took a look at machines we have on site.
Read more