OT: COVID experiences...

[Don Y]

On 7/22/2022 1:22 PM, rbowman wrote:

On 07/22/2022 04:07 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 2:21 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/21/2022 11:56 PM, Don Y wrote:
I drink a lot of tea. A *lot* (to the tune of a gallon or more,
daily...
EVERY day). My preferred tea is pu-erh -- delightfully dark and
flavorful.
But, stains your teeth if you just LOOK at a cup of it!

The worst thing I\'ve found is German style red cabbage. I think the
vinegar acts as a mordant.

turns up nose> How much of THAT can you eat? (not a big fan of cabbage
in any form)

Platefuls. Rotkohl is the staff of life. Easy on the juniper berries, please.
Cabbage, red or white, is so versatile. Nothing like a bowl of shchi with kasha
on the side on a cold winter day, Krautsalat in the summer. You talk od
kielbasa led me to make a nice pot of kielbasa and cabbage.

I\'d \"tolerate\" cabbage in golabki.

It makes for good \"texture\" in egg rolls/lumpia.

But, I definitely wouldn\'t seek it out!

Likewise, kugelis.

> What can I say? I come from a long line of German peasants and cow thieves.

I much prefer (culinary-wise) the Italian side of my upbringing.
I joked with gastroenterologist, prior to colonoscopy, that my
insides were likely \"stained\" tomato red! (given the effect
tomato sauce has on the containers in which it is stored)

And, with the right type of noodles, heavenly! (Fusilli col buco,
presently, as making cavatelli is too much work for the summer heat!)

 

[John Larkin]

On Fri, 22 Jul 2022 15:18:41 -0700, Don Y
<blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

On 7/22/2022 1:22 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 04:07 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 2:21 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/21/2022 11:56 PM, Don Y wrote:
I drink a lot of tea. A *lot* (to the tune of a gallon or more,
daily...
EVERY day). My preferred tea is pu-erh -- delightfully dark and
flavorful.
But, stains your teeth if you just LOOK at a cup of it!

The worst thing I\'ve found is German style red cabbage. I think the
vinegar acts as a mordant.

turns up nose> How much of THAT can you eat? (not a big fan of cabbage
in any form)

Platefuls. Rotkohl is the staff of life. Easy on the juniper berries, please.
Cabbage, red or white, is so versatile. Nothing like a bowl of shchi with kasha
on the side on a cold winter day, Krautsalat in the summer. You talk od
kielbasa led me to make a nice pot of kielbasa and cabbage.

I\'d \"tolerate\" cabbage in golabki.

It makes for good \"texture\" in egg rolls/lumpia.

But, I definitely wouldn\'t seek it out!

Likewise, kugelis.

What can I say? I come from a long line of German peasants and cow thieves.

I much prefer (culinary-wise) the Italian side of my upbringing.
I joked with gastroenterologist, prior to colonoscopy, that my
insides were likely \"stained\" tomato red! (given the effect
tomato sauce has on the containers in which it is stored)

I don\'t like classic heavy red sauces, but Mo makes a nice light
orangish sauce with fresh cherry tomatoes that\'s pretty good, doctored
a bit with cream and garlic and parmesan.

And, with the right type of noodles, heavenly! (Fusilli col buco,
presently, as making cavatelli is too much work for the summer heat!)

Try these. Seriously.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/wqsw4gb0714tugr/AADrQVtSGhejmKbmfiSWkeswa?dl=0

 

[rbowman]

On 07/22/2022 04:18 PM, Don Y wrote:

On 7/22/2022 1:22 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 04:07 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 2:21 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/21/2022 11:56 PM, Don Y wrote:
I drink a lot of tea. A *lot* (to the tune of a gallon or more,
daily...
EVERY day). My preferred tea is pu-erh -- delightfully dark and
flavorful.
But, stains your teeth if you just LOOK at a cup of it!

The worst thing I\'ve found is German style red cabbage. I think the
vinegar acts as a mordant.

turns up nose> How much of THAT can you eat? (not a big fan of
cabbage
in any form)

Platefuls. Rotkohl is the staff of life. Easy on the juniper berries,
please. Cabbage, red or white, is so versatile. Nothing like a bowl of
shchi with kasha on the side on a cold winter day, Krautsalat in the
summer. You talk od kielbasa led me to make a nice pot of kielbasa and
cabbage.

I\'d \"tolerate\" cabbage in golabki.

It makes for good \"texture\" in egg rolls/lumpia.

But, I definitely wouldn\'t seek it out!

Likewise, kugelis.

What can I say? I come from a long line of German peasants and cow
thieves.

I much prefer (culinary-wise) the Italian side of my upbringing.
I joked with gastroenterologist, prior to colonoscopy, that my
insides were likely \"stained\" tomato red! (given the effect
tomato sauce has on the containers in which it is stored)

And, with the right type of noodles, heavenly! (Fusilli col buco,
presently, as making cavatelli is too much work for the summer heat!)

https://www.cdacellars.com/copy-of-strawberry-rhubarb-fool

No rhubarb there, just noodle pudding. Judging from their links every
time that added a recipe they copied the last one and edited it.

No way am I firing up the oven at the moment though. I\'m working my way
through a cold rotisserie chicken from CostCo to avoid even turning on
the stove.

 

[Don Y]

On 7/22/2022 8:43 PM, rbowman wrote:

On 07/22/2022 04:18 PM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 1:22 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 04:07 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 2:21 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/21/2022 11:56 PM, Don Y wrote:
I drink a lot of tea. A *lot* (to the tune of a gallon or more,
daily...
EVERY day). My preferred tea is pu-erh -- delightfully dark and
flavorful.
But, stains your teeth if you just LOOK at a cup of it!

The worst thing I\'ve found is German style red cabbage. I think the
vinegar acts as a mordant.

turns up nose> How much of THAT can you eat? (not a big fan of
cabbage
in any form)

Platefuls. Rotkohl is the staff of life. Easy on the juniper berries,
please. Cabbage, red or white, is so versatile. Nothing like a bowl of
shchi with kasha on the side on a cold winter day, Krautsalat in the
summer. You talk od kielbasa led me to make a nice pot of kielbasa and
cabbage.

I\'d \"tolerate\" cabbage in golabki.

It makes for good \"texture\" in egg rolls/lumpia.

But, I definitely wouldn\'t seek it out!

Likewise, kugelis.

What can I say? I come from a long line of German peasants and cow
thieves.

I much prefer (culinary-wise) the Italian side of my upbringing.
I joked with gastroenterologist, prior to colonoscopy, that my
insides were likely \"stained\" tomato red! (given the effect
tomato sauce has on the containers in which it is stored)

And, with the right type of noodles, heavenly! (Fusilli col buco,
presently, as making cavatelli is too much work for the summer heat!)

https://www.cdacellars.com/copy-of-strawberry-rhubarb-fool

No rhubarb there, just noodle pudding. Judging from their links every time that
added a recipe they copied the last one and edited it.

Isn\'t that how EVERYONE does it? <grin>

Then, they wonder why various bits of meta-information are all wrong! :<

I only use butter with pastina; all other pasta has some form of red sauce
(marinara, bolognese, puttanesca, etc.)

I like the fusilli because it is \"toothy\" (and the shape carries lots of
sauce). Ditto for the cavatelli -- though not as efficient at conveying
sauce to mouth. (also a PITA to make the dough -- and I only get one
meal out of it... 1 pound; it *might* survive frozen but definitely not
dried... eggs)

No way am I firing up the oven at the moment though. I\'m working my way through
a cold rotisserie chicken from CostCo to avoid even turning on the stove.

Have to bake biscotti, tonight, so no such luxury, for me. Else, SWMBO
will make the pouty face, come morning. <frown>

OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr...

 

[rbowman]

On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:

OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked. Accuweather
says it\'s 73 so it will drop as the fan pulls in air. Damned if you do,
damned if you don\'t. I went into the office Wednesday and everyone was
wearing jackets. I think they\'ve cycled through every HVAC company in
town trying to find one that can smooth out the system. It\'s an old
factory with high ceilings and little or no insulation. I like the
industrial aesthetic but it\'s a challenge to keep all the zones regulated.

 

[Jan Panteltje]

On a sunny day (Fri, 22 Jul 2022 15:18:41 -0700) it happened Don Y
<blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote in <tbf7ob$3d8i3$1@dont-email.me>:

On 7/22/2022 1:22 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 04:07 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 2:21 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/21/2022 11:56 PM, Don Y wrote:
I drink a lot of tea. A *lot* (to the tune of a gallon or more,
daily...
EVERY day). My preferred tea is pu-erh -- delightfully dark and
flavorful.
But, stains your teeth if you just LOOK at a cup of it!

The worst thing I\'ve found is German style red cabbage. I think the
vinegar acts as a mordant.

turns up nose> How much of THAT can you eat? (not a big fan of cabbage
in any form)

Platefuls. Rotkohl is the staff of life. Easy on the juniper berries, please.
Cabbage, red or white, is so versatile. Nothing like a bowl of shchi with kasha
on the side on a cold winter day, Krautsalat in the summer. You talk od
kielbasa led me to make a nice pot of kielbasa and cabbage.

I\'d \"tolerate\" cabbage in golabki.

It makes for good \"texture\" in egg rolls/lumpia.

But, I definitely wouldn\'t seek it out!

Likewise, kugelis.

What can I say? I come from a long line of German peasants and cow thieves.

I much prefer (culinary-wise) the Italian side of my upbringing.
I joked with gastroenterologist, prior to colonoscopy, that my
insides were likely \"stained\" tomato red! (given the effect
tomato sauce has on the containers in which it is stored)

And, with the right type of noodles, heavenly! (Fusilli col buco,
presently, as making cavatelli is too much work for the summer heat!)

Been eating spaghetti one day and various pizzas the other day for the last year,
all with lots of ketchup and tomatoes. Lots and lots of virgin olive oil.
grapes, kiwies, bananas, other fruit, chocolate, all sort of cookies.... bread..
cheese... And mushrooms every day.
Heading towards 76 earth years if WW3 does not interfere..
Stopped eating meat 48 years ago.. Of course may change my mind if WW3 makes other food scarce
any of you still eating human beings?

 

[Don Y]

On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:

On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.

Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)

Accuweather says it\'s
73 so it will drop as the fan pulls in air.

We\'ve debated replacing the cooler with a whole-house exhaust fan
(as the ductwork that it feeds would make the entire volume of household
air accessible/exhaustible). But, of two opinions on that score (I
really like the cooler in Summer as the moist air feels good against
the skin; SWMBO *never* likes it.)

Damned if you do, damned if you
don\'t. I went into the office Wednesday and everyone was wearing jackets. I

Ha! I\'m lucky if I put on *pants*!

think they\'ve cycled through every HVAC company in town trying to find one that
can smooth out the system. It\'s an old factory with high ceilings and little or
no insulation. I like the industrial aesthetic but it\'s a challenge to keep all
the zones regulated.

Fans to move air down (or up, depending on season) so you\'re controlling
the air around the *bodies* is a good start.

I\'ve been exploring motorized dampers to break the house into zones.
But, open floorplan means much of the house will end up being treated as
*one* zone so the added controls are likely of little value.

Would really like it if they made evaporators that could be located behind
vents and rely on the central blower to move air past them. Would be
more efficient than cooling the entire house. But, marketers haven\'t realized
this to be a large potential market (everyone with central air who wants
to move to mini splits without the ugliness of the wall-mounted units!)

 

[server]

On Fri, 22 Jul 2022 21:43:08 -0600, rbowman <bowman@montana.com>
wrote:

On 07/22/2022 04:18 PM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 1:22 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 04:07 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 2:21 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/21/2022 11:56 PM, Don Y wrote:
I drink a lot of tea. A *lot* (to the tune of a gallon or more,
daily...
EVERY day). My preferred tea is pu-erh -- delightfully dark and
flavorful.
But, stains your teeth if you just LOOK at a cup of it!

The worst thing I\'ve found is German style red cabbage. I think the
vinegar acts as a mordant.

turns up nose> How much of THAT can you eat? (not a big fan of
cabbage
in any form)

Platefuls. Rotkohl is the staff of life. Easy on the juniper berries,
please. Cabbage, red or white, is so versatile. Nothing like a bowl of
shchi with kasha on the side on a cold winter day, Krautsalat in the
summer. You talk od kielbasa led me to make a nice pot of kielbasa and
cabbage.

I\'d \"tolerate\" cabbage in golabki.

It makes for good \"texture\" in egg rolls/lumpia.

But, I definitely wouldn\'t seek it out!

Likewise, kugelis.

What can I say? I come from a long line of German peasants and cow
thieves.

I much prefer (culinary-wise) the Italian side of my upbringing.
I joked with gastroenterologist, prior to colonoscopy, that my
insides were likely \"stained\" tomato red! (given the effect
tomato sauce has on the containers in which it is stored)

And, with the right type of noodles, heavenly! (Fusilli col buco,
presently, as making cavatelli is too much work for the summer heat!)

https://www.cdacellars.com/copy-of-strawberry-rhubarb-fool

No rhubarb there, just noodle pudding. Judging from their links every
time that added a recipe they copied the last one and edited it.

No way am I firing up the oven at the moment though. I\'m working my way
through a cold rotisserie chicken from CostCo to avoid even turning on
the stove.

We get a rotisserie chicken from Safeway every few weeks, get a meal
and a sandwich from that, and broth the cadaver. Rich home-made
chicken broth blows away the weak salt water that you can buy in cans.

We freeze it into ice cubes. Drop a few into whatever.

 

[Fred Bloggs]

On Saturday, July 23, 2022 at 3:24:00 AM UTC-4, Don Y wrote:

On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.
Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)
Accuweather says it\'s
73 so it will drop as the fan pulls in air.
We\'ve debated replacing the cooler with a whole-house exhaust fan
(as the ductwork that it feeds would make the entire volume of household
air accessible/exhaustible). But, of two opinions on that score (I
really like the cooler in Summer as the moist air feels good against
the skin; SWMBO *never* likes it.)
Damned if you do, damned if you
don\'t. I went into the office Wednesday and everyone was wearing jackets. I
Ha! I\'m lucky if I put on *pants*!
think they\'ve cycled through every HVAC company in town trying to find one that
can smooth out the system. It\'s an old factory with high ceilings and little or
no insulation. I like the industrial aesthetic but it\'s a challenge to keep all
the zones regulated.
Fans to move air down (or up, depending on season) so you\'re controlling
the air around the *bodies* is a good start.

I\'ve been exploring motorized dampers to break the house into zones.
But, open floorplan means much of the house will end up being treated as
*one* zone so the added controls are likely of little value.

Would really like it if they made evaporators that could be located behind
vents and rely on the central blower to move air past them. Would be
more efficient than cooling the entire house. But, marketers haven\'t realized
this to be a large potential market (everyone with central air who wants
to move to mini splits without the ugliness of the wall-mounted units!)

LG has the Art Cool line:
https://www.ecomfort.com/cooling/lg-art-cool.html

Then there\'s the custom carpentry ideas:
https://www.protradecraft.com/photos/9-ways-hide-minisplit

 

[Don Y]

On 7/23/2022 7:44 AM, Fred Bloggs wrote:

On Saturday, July 23, 2022 at 3:24:00 AM UTC-4, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.
Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)
Accuweather says it\'s
73 so it will drop as the fan pulls in air.
We\'ve debated replacing the cooler with a whole-house exhaust fan
(as the ductwork that it feeds would make the entire volume of household
air accessible/exhaustible). But, of two opinions on that score (I
really like the cooler in Summer as the moist air feels good against
the skin; SWMBO *never* likes it.)
Damned if you do, damned if you
don\'t. I went into the office Wednesday and everyone was wearing jackets. I
Ha! I\'m lucky if I put on *pants*!
think they\'ve cycled through every HVAC company in town trying to find one that
can smooth out the system. It\'s an old factory with high ceilings and little or
no insulation. I like the industrial aesthetic but it\'s a challenge to keep all
the zones regulated.
Fans to move air down (or up, depending on season) so you\'re controlling
the air around the *bodies* is a good start.

I\'ve been exploring motorized dampers to break the house into zones.
But, open floorplan means much of the house will end up being treated as
*one* zone so the added controls are likely of little value.

Would really like it if they made evaporators that could be located behind
vents and rely on the central blower to move air past them. Would be
more efficient than cooling the entire house. But, marketers haven\'t realized
this to be a large potential market (everyone with central air who wants
to move to mini splits without the ugliness of the wall-mounted units!)

LG has the Art Cool line:
https://www.ecomfort.com/cooling/lg-art-cool.html

Those mount ON the wall. And, contain a fan, heating element, etc.

What I\'m looking for is mounting just the evaporator coil *in* the
existing ductwork, behind the vent grill. Let the existing HVAC plant
move the air through the evaporator coils. I.e., there are no VISIBLE
differences in the appearance of the HVAC system to the occupants.

[And, the ductwork would allow for the refrigerant lines to be routed
invisibly. No need to drill holes through the walls *at* each
evaporator\'s location, run power to each location, etc.]

Most (all?) mini splits look terribly commercial/industrial... like
the HVAC plant you\'d encounter in a hotel room. There\'s already an
existing place to \"hide\" the coil, why not exploit that?

Then there\'s the custom carpentry ideas:
https://www.protradecraft.com/photos/9-ways-hide-minisplit

 

[rbowman]

On 07/23/2022 01:23 AM, Don Y wrote:

On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.

Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)

I\'ve never been fond of AC. I grew up in an era when it was a selling
point for theaters and motels and seldom found in residences. However
most of my life has been lived within 150 miles of the Canadian border.

I\'ve got AC in the car since it wasn\'t even an option. Toyota has found
it\'s cheaper to standardize. I\'ve even got vestigial lane control and
collision control stubbed out to the point where it beeps but doesn\'t do
anything.

I do use the car AC. The aerodynamic design didn\'t anticipate a window
being opened for anything other than dragging in a Big Mac so there is
very unpleasant buffeting at highway speeds.

Now that all my work is done with a keyboard I don\'t even have to worry
about sweat dripping onto the schematic on the drafting table.

 

[rbowman]

On 07/23/2022 04:11 AM, jlarkin@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote:

We get a rotisserie chicken from Safeway every few weeks, get a meal
and a sandwich from that, and broth the cadaver. Rich home-made
chicken broth blows away the weak salt water that you can buy in cans.

I\'ve been using \'Better Than Bullion\'. It\'s not better than homemade
stock but it\'s a lot better than the stuff in cans or cartons.

 

[server]

On Sat, 23 Jul 2022 12:32:18 -0600, rbowman <bowman@montana.com>
wrote:

On 07/23/2022 01:23 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.

Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)

I\'ve never been fond of AC. I grew up in an era when it was a selling
point for theaters and motels and seldom found in residences. However
most of my life has been lived within 150 miles of the Canadian border.

In New Orleans, on a night in August, you learn to love that roaring
cycling box in the window just next to your bed.

I\'ve got AC in the car since it wasn\'t even an option. Toyota has found
it\'s cheaper to standardize. I\'ve even got vestigial lane control and
collision control stubbed out to the point where it beeps but doesn\'t do
anything.

I do use the car AC. The aerodynamic design didn\'t anticipate a window
being opened for anything other than dragging in a Big Mac so there is
very unpleasant buffeting at highway speeds.

Now that all my work is done with a keyboard I don\'t even have to worry
about sweat dripping onto the schematic on the drafting table.

I still draw big schematics on paper, but the weather is cool here.
Or, very rarely, hot and dry.

Our shop is near a freeway so we keep the windows closed and have a/c
with super hepa filters to avoid particulates when the wind blows the
wrong way.

 

[server]

On Sat, 23 Jul 2022 12:40:49 -0600, rbowman <bowman@montana.com>
wrote:

On 07/23/2022 04:11 AM, jlarkin@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote:
We get a rotisserie chicken from Safeway every few weeks, get a meal
and a sandwich from that, and broth the cadaver. Rich home-made
chicken broth blows away the weak salt water that you can buy in cans.

I\'ve been using \'Better Than Bullion\'. It\'s not better than homemade
stock but it\'s a lot better than the stuff in cans or cartons.

Mo makes an amazing chicken picatta. It\'s easy: flour some pounded
chicken and brown it. Add 6 or 8 homemade broth cubes and simmer and
reduce some. Then capers and lemon juice. Finally some hunks of
butter, which somehow thickens it to a nice velvet effect.

With Yukon Gold mashed potatoes and maybe something green. I do the
pounding and frying and mashing and wash-up and most of the eating. I
think being an engineer gave me good instincts for time and
temperature and general violence.

 

[Lasse Langwadt Christensen]

lørdag den 23. juli 2022 kl. 20.40.57 UTC+2 skrev rbowman:

On 07/23/2022 04:11 AM, jla...@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote:
We get a rotisserie chicken from Safeway every few weeks, get a meal
and a sandwich from that, and broth the cadaver. Rich home-made
chicken broth blows away the weak salt water that you can buy in cans.
I\'ve been using \'Better Than Bullion\'. It\'s not better than homemade
stock but it\'s a lot better than the stuff in cans or cartons.

“Of course, my stocks in class always tasted far better than my classmates’. No one could figure out how I coaxed such hearty flavor out of a few chicken bones, or made such wonderful fish fumet with fish racks and shrimp shells, all in the limited time available. Had my instructors given me a pat-down before class they might have learned my secret: two glassine envelopes of Minor’s chicken and lobster base inside my chef’s coat, for that little extra kick. They never figured it out.”

– Anthony Bourdain, Kitchen Confidential

 

[Don Y]

On 7/23/2022 11:32 AM, rbowman wrote:

On 07/23/2022 01:23 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.

Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)

I\'ve never been fond of AC. I grew up in an era when it was a selling point for
theaters and motels and seldom found in residences. However most of my life has
been lived within 150 miles of the Canadian border.

Growing up (New England), a window unit in the kitchen was our \"luxury\"
(house wasn\'t designed for forced air HVAC). But, Summer was relatively
short and rarely hit 90F. Pull the moisture out of the air and everyone
feels better -- even if the air temp doesn\'t fall much.

Here, it\'s 80F in February and 110+ by June. Both are tolerable in any
season other than Monsoon; stay out of direct sunlight and/or humidify.
It\'s almost *cold* at 80F -- at night (extremely low RH means any perspiration
cools very effectively; I *froze* when I got out of 90+ degree swimming pool
into 105F air temperature -- because all of that pool water evaporated in
*seconds*!) I\'ve seen folks wearing *sweaters* at night (WTF?)

This time of year, the ACbrrr is needed for dehumidification AND cooling.

On average, ~66 days above 100F. Some recent years, that\'s been *100*
days above 100F.

My \"record high\" was 117F. Record low was -26F (WC of -83F) in Chitown.
By far, the heat is more tolerable (3 minute exposed flesh warning at
that low temperature). I had 20T of aggregate delivered and managed to
distribute it around the yard without any problem. *BUT*, wondered
how I could drink a gallon of water hourly and never have to pee!! :<

I\'ve got AC in the car since it wasn\'t even an option. Toyota has found it\'s
cheaper to standardize. I\'ve even got vestigial lane control and collision
control stubbed out to the point where it beeps but doesn\'t do anything.

It\'s possible to buy a car w/o ACbrrr, here. I\'m not sure they sell very many,
though! (they also sell black on black vehicles... to idiots!)

I do use the car AC. The aerodynamic design didn\'t anticipate a window being
opened for anything other than dragging in a Big Mac so there is very
unpleasant buffeting at highway speeds.

My car has T-top which I enjoy removing -- but not during peak sun hours.
Makes a royal mess of hair, though.

Now that all my work is done with a keyboard I don\'t even have to worry about
sweat dripping onto the schematic on the drafting table.

ACbrrr failures neighbors have had house interiors quickly exceeding 90F if
they don\'t have if they don\'t also have coolers. I\'ve debated going for a
MUCH larger gensset to be able to backup the ACbrrr (4T) in addition to other
critical loads. But, that seems foolish. We\'ll probably buy a room sized
portable unit \"for emergencies\" and just create a \"cool room\" in the house
(probably the master). Other folks have spent the day in malls or rented hotel
rooms when ACbrrr failed. (*THAT* is an inconvenience! Esp with pets)

Dehumidifaction makes it relatively easy to stay indoors. Stepping outside
is the problem; as soon as you return indoors, you are covered in perspiration.

Leaving a glass of ice water on counter (or bowl of popcorn, uncovered)
is the litmus test. If glass sweats (or popcorn goes soggy), then you
want ACbrrr.

Baking at this time of year is a challenge because of the humidity. I have
to pay careful attention to weather if I want to get good results!

 

[rbowman]

On 07/23/2022 04:39 PM, Don Y wrote:

On 7/23/2022 11:32 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/23/2022 01:23 AM, Don Y wrote:
On 7/22/2022 10:39 PM, rbowman wrote:
On 07/22/2022 10:02 PM, Don Y wrote:
OTOH, I can wait until wee hours of morning when outdoor temps drop to
mid 80\'s so less work for the ACbrrr..

No AC here and the indoor temp was 85 the last I looked.

Ah. Yes, we rely heavily on the AC -- esp at this time of year
(in Summer we can resort to the cooler)

I\'ve never been fond of AC. I grew up in an era when it was a selling
point for theaters and motels and seldom found in residences. However
most of my life has been lived within 150 miles of the Canadian border.

Growing up (New England), a window unit in the kitchen was our \"luxury\"
(house wasn\'t designed for forced air HVAC). But, Summer was relatively
short and rarely hit 90F. Pull the moisture out of the air and everyone
feels better -- even if the air temp doesn\'t fall much.

Upstate NY would get into the 90\'s. We had a screened patio where I
would retreat at night. The screens were a necessity if you didn\'t want
to wake up desanguinated. One of the things I miss is lightning bugs.

Here, it\'s 80F in February and 110+ by June. Both are tolerable in any
season other than Monsoon; stay out of direct sunlight and/or humidify.
It\'s almost *cold* at 80F -- at night (extremely low RH means any
perspiration
cools very effectively; I *froze* when I got out of 90+ degree swimming
pool

One of the adaptations I had to make when I first started hiking in the
desert was just because you\'re not dripping sweat doesn\'t mean you\'re
not dehydrating like a piece of jerky. I figured I was getting about 6
miles to the gallon.

 

[Don Y]

On 7/23/2022 8:58 PM, rbowman wrote:

I\'ve never been fond of AC. I grew up in an era when it was a selling
point for theaters and motels and seldom found in residences. However
most of my life has been lived within 150 miles of the Canadian border.

Growing up (New England), a window unit in the kitchen was our \"luxury\"
(house wasn\'t designed for forced air HVAC). But, Summer was relatively
short and rarely hit 90F. Pull the moisture out of the air and everyone
feels better -- even if the air temp doesn\'t fall much.

Upstate NY would get into the 90\'s. We had a screened patio where I would
retreat at night. The screens were a necessity if you didn\'t want to wake up
desanguinated.

Mid 80\'s was more of a normal high, for us. Humidity, of course, but you
didn\'t know any other way of living so accepted it.

And, kids are always busy with other \"distractions\" so less time to fret
about personal discomfort.

> One of the things I miss is lightning bugs.

I was surprised to realize these aren\'t widespread! I had a friend
out visiting (midwest) from SoCal one summer. Startled, she asked,
\"What was THAT?\" Clueless, I replied, \"What was WHAT?\" \"THAT!\"
as she pointed to another firefly. \"Haven\'t you ever seen a
firefly?\" (puzzled)

It\'s amazing how many things we take for granted, growing up
(and thereafter, if naive!). I was on the beach in SoCal, one day,
with friends -- including a friend from Colorado. She was staring
out at the ocean in a daze leading me to sarcastically ask: \"Haven\'t
you ever seen the ocean?!\" (we would skip out of school and spend
the day at the beach, returning just before the bus at the end of
classes -- so our absence wasn\'t apparent to \"outside observers\")

Her reply, \"It\'s so BIG!\" It was startling as I had *assumed* that
EVERYONE had seen the ocean! How could you MISS it?!

Then, watched her kids, playing in the surf, with renewed interest.
To them, it was \"water\". I was waiting for the inevitable mouthful and
the realization that it was SALTY! Didn\'t have long to wait...

Here, it\'s 80F in February and 110+ by June. Both are tolerable in any
season other than Monsoon; stay out of direct sunlight and/or humidify.
It\'s almost *cold* at 80F -- at night (extremely low RH means any
perspiration
cools very effectively; I *froze* when I got out of 90+ degree swimming
pool

One of the adaptations I had to make when I first started hiking in the desert
was just because you\'re not dripping sweat doesn\'t mean you\'re not dehydrating
like a piece of jerky. I figured I was getting about 6 miles to the gallon.

Yes, exactly. You get wicked headaches when you forget that fact.
I think the norm is a pint every 20 minutes -- that\'s almost half a
gallon per hour!

AND YOU WON\'T PEE! Scary!

 

[Don Y]

On 7/23/2022 10:41 PM, Don Y wrote:

It\'s amazing how many things we take for granted, growing up
(and thereafter, if naive!).

I recall one of my early experiences, here. I was visiting
and looked down to see an artichoke at chest level. \"Hey,
that\'s an artichoke!\"

I\'d never considered how or where they grew -- as long as I
could buy them at the grocery store! Ditto pomegranates.
(everyone knows oranges grow on trees so no big deal, there)

 

[rbowman]

On 07/23/2022 11:41 PM, Don Y wrote:

I was surprised to realize these aren\'t widespread! I had a friend
out visiting (midwest) from SoCal one summer. Startled, she asked,
\"What was THAT?\" Clueless, I replied, \"What was WHAT?\" \"THAT!\"
as she pointed to another firefly. \"Haven\'t you ever seen a
firefly?\" (puzzled)

I don\'t know where their range peters out. A few years ago I was camping
at the Breaks Interstate Park on the KY/VA border. It had pretty much
been raining from South Dakota on but it was a beautiful, still evening
as I lay in my tent watching the fireflies. Of course the storm came in
around 3 AM and I got drenched. Spent the next night in a motel in
Bristol TN drying stuff out. All the rain did wonders for the
rhododendrons.

I knew it was bad when I met a box turtle walking down the trail at
Frozen Head TN looking for a dry spot.