Graduation 2019

Melissa and I graduated on the same day!  Melissa graduated from Grand Canyon University with her Bachelors of Arts in Elementary Education, and I graduated from Western Seminary with a Masters of Theology (ThM). We decided to attend my graduation, as it was closer (shorter roadtrip) and we got to meet our new niece in Washougal. It's been a busy couple of years, and I'm hoping to have more free time and enjoy some of the things that the intense study has precluded.

A.M. Leonard Soil Knife

I've been gardening off and on as a home-owner and vineyard planter. I've had several hand trowels, and they always seem to wear out quickly. After the last one broke, which looked quite beefy but was apparently crafted out of Chinese pot metal, I reeled in the sails and decided to take another tack. This time, I purchased a classic, the A.M Leonard Soil Knife. From the heft of the steel, you can tell that this thing is solidly built. The orange handle makes it hard to miss in the dirt as well. I'm hoping for it to last for years to come.

Computer Headphones

Having used headphones for computer gaming a fair bit, I thought I might share about my current headset, as it will be a long time before I need or want to get another one. Currently, I have a David Clark Model H-PC Headset. David Clark is famous for their aviation headphones providing all manner of headphones for airplanes and helicopters. And those can be some noisy environments. My previous headphones seemed to not last long (xBox one headeset), or not work very well (Turtle Beach Wireless). I have an small external USB audio card that I plug the headphones into that eliminates any kind of feedback loop, as it is powered over USB, and the external nature means it is outside of the computer case where cables are likely to endure induction whine. These are phenomenal. I love them.

David Clark HeadsetProduct Code:40642G-01
The Model H-PC headset for computers, tablets phones and other smart devices provides excellent audio performance and outstanding comfort. Features dual, 3.5mm plugs and volume controls on each dome for individual volume adjustment in each ear. Wired for stereo.

• Terminated with dual 3.5mm plugs (for Earphones and Microphone)
• Undercut, comfort-gel ear seals for outstanding comfort Super-soft, double-foam head pad
• Dual volume controls
• Stereo performance
• 15-ft. extended coil cord
• Durable construction
• Dynamic earphone elements, 20-20,000 Hz
• M-55 noise-canceling microphone, mounted on universal flex boom
• SPDT microphone On-Off switch
• Weight - 16 oz.

Strawberry Hanging Planters in Rain Gutters

I've seen images of rain gutters being used for strawberry planters, particularly in more industrialized environments. And I've been wanting to do something along those lines for over a decade.  However, the impetus to actually create some hanging strawberry planters came from the unintentional over-watering of our yard, and the resulting wave of slugs that infested our strawberry crop last year. So this year, to start the strawberries over, I've constructed some hanging planters.

I bought some shelf brackets and 8' of plastic gutter. after a few weeks, I bought some chain, eye bolts, washers, lock-nuts, and some all-thread. I drilled some drainage holes in gutters, and setup the brackets. I then made the chain hangars and cut the all-thread rod to the right width. Leveling out the gutters, I then put a layer of sand, and then covered the remainder with potting soil. I'm planning on doing a 1/4" soaker tube to make sure they get watered.

Winter Reading Review

Recently finished the book Mile-High Missionary: A Jungle Pilot's Memoir, by Jim Manley and Design for Hackers: Reverse Engineering Beauty, by David Kadavy. And have started a few others, such as the 14 book fantasy series, The wheel of time, with book one, the Eye of the World, by Robert Jordan.
I've read most of True Community, by Jerry Bridges. I enjoyed The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, by Aidan Dodson. I was rather disappointed by After Acts: Exploring the Lives and Legends of the Apostles, by Bryan Litfin. I enjoyed both History of the Persian Empire, by A.T. Olmstead, and The Course of French History, by Pierre Goubert, though I wish it covered pre A.D. 900 era.
I have a few books to work through, Created for Worship: From Genesis to Revelation to You, by Noel Due, Oxford World Classics version of the Complete works of Francis Bacon, and Sermon on the Mount and Human Flourishing by Jonathan Pennington. And am re-reading Men at Arms by Terry Pratchett.

Slow Motion Yergacheffe

Continuing on in the popcorn coffee roasting method, here is a slow motion video of some Ethiopian Yergacheffe being roasted.

Some books of the last year

Some historical fiction comedy, Dodger by the late Terry Pratchett. Some fantastical reading, The Black Elfstone, the Skaar Invasion, as well as re-reading the The Sword of Shannara Trilogy, by Terry Brooks. An interesting read, as I have a small un-credited cameo in the book, Baba's Love, by my cousins, Bill and Cristy Millington. I've been re-reading Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. I read the science fiction, The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, by Neal Stephenson. And those were among the plethora of books, articles, and commentaries that I consulted, referenced, or otherwise osmosized for researching and writing a ThM thesis (books like Resurrection, Immortality, and Eternal Life in Intertestamental Judaism and Early Christianity, by George W. E. Nickelsburg). Currently reading Autobiography of a Yogi, by Paramahansa Yogananda.