Blue Moon...

 

If you said, "The Marcels, 1961," you are kinda right and get 15 bonus points.  If you said, ""Blue Moon" was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934. The first vocal performance in a film was by Shirley Ross in the movie Manhattan Melodrama (1934), while the earliest commercial recordings as a single were by Connee Boswell and Al Bowlly in 1935," you get 5 bonus points for knowing how to use the Google.  ;-)

Blue Moon... no, it isn't blue... come on, you didn't really think that, didja? Anytime there is a second full moon in a given month, it is called a "blue moon." And, since the moon cycle is approximately 29.5 days, the blue moon only happens every 2 or 3 years generally. So, if you didn't get out there and howl at it last night, you'll have another chance tonight.  The peak was 12:46 am this morning, so it will still look full tonight.

A couple interesting facts: It's a Micromoon; because the moon is currently near its apogee (the farthest point in its orbit from Earth), it will appear about 14% smaller and slightly dimmer than a typical full moon.  Depending on your sky, you may also be able to spot the planet Saturn or the red supergiant star Antares glowing brightly right near the moon.

Oh, yeah, and the photo...

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A bit of a milestone...

Yesterday, the views on this blog hit a big number...

 Over 3 million views.  Over 400,000 views in May.  I don't know why.  I have mentioned before that I get some statistics, but not specifics, as in: who.  I can tell you that about 90% of the viewers are from the US.  I know what kind of devices are being using to view (iPhone, Mac, Windows, Android) and the different browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari).  There have been a variety of websites that have linked to the blog over the years, but the majority of people are checking in directly or through Blogger (from another blog).

Nothing to be gained from the numbers; this blog is not monetized.  Just an almost daily posting of what's going on with us.  As Joan calls it: my public diary.

 

Not just the people...

 

Last night, we brought some kitty carriers into the living room...

 Stella said, "These look like fun."

Murphy responded with, "You are so naive.  These things mean we are going to be in the little house that moves.  For hours and hours; days and days."

Stella said, "That sounds like fun."

Murphy said, "We won't have all our toys.  Mom and Dad have two separate beds, so you have to make a choice.  Mom will want to hold you on her lap while Dad drives the little house."

"Do we still get food?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, sometimes they stop the little house so they can feed us."

"That doesn't sound so bad."

Murphy said, "You are so naive."

Stella said, "I don't even know what that means.  I think I like this little bedroom"...

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This morning, we started doing some work around the RoadTrek: Joan emptied out inside, while I did the same on the compartments in the back that hold all our utility hook-up stuff.  Into the garage with that so we can go through it and decide what to put in the storage pod and what stays home.

Joan asked me to go through the whole van and check all the screws keeping the interior solid...

 The good news: there was very little tightening necessary.  A few people on the RoadTrek Facebook Group said they had an issue with things loosening up.  Not us.  At this point.  I'll give it a regular check out before any long trips.

Joan asked for another project: remove the compartment door on one of those compartments I emptied and it will be the new "private bathroom for the feline family members.  I can work with that...

 That's it in the lower left.  Yep, that's gonna work.  Next little project: move the fire extinguisher from behind the passenger seat on the floor.  Sounds easy enough.  I knocked out that 5 minute job in just a half hour...

 And then, time for lunch.  Steph and Dan joined us for Mod Pizza.  Tasty!

Next chore: start the water system sanitizing.  Getting warm out, I turned on the air conditioner in the RoadTrek - easy to do with the lithium system and the inverter.  Yep, that's hot...

 No, it was not 110º out, but the van was closed up.  Fortunately, it cooled down pretty quick.  Oh, and that shot above: it's from the app on my phone.  I really like being able to be outside the van and check or run all the stuff in it with the connection to the FireFly system (the "brains" for the RoadTrek).  Slick.

Next order of business: introduce Stella to the RoadTrek... a little bit at a time.

 

 

Prepping...

 

Does that make me a "prepper"... as in: "I'm a prepper, he's a prepper, she's a prepper, wouldn't you like to be a prepper, too?"  Hmmm - isn't that from the Dr Pepper commercial?  Close, but no cigar.

Today, we are "prepping" to get out of here.  We brought the RoadTrek in from storage; put the Stowaway2 cargo carrier on it before bringing it in.  We are looking to do a "short-ish" outing to see how Stella does as a travel cat.  We know Murphy settles in after a couple hours from initial departure.  The RT is now in the driveway, so I plan to introduce Stella to it in stages...

 

That may be easier said than done; Stella has no interest in being outside.  She isn't a fan of being on a leash.  But, she has been adaptable for other things; so, that's the hope.

Out at the storage slip, we grabbed a few things out of the cargo trailer and put them into the Stowaway2; after attaching it to the hitch on the van.  And once we got home, the first thing we did was take the Stowaway2 off the van and roll it into the garage... we need to see what will go in there and how we will load it.  That cargo carrier looks huge on the back of the van.  Putting a few things into it at storage made it feel like it was filling right up.  The plan: put stuff in there that we will use when staying in an RV park; 30 amp electric cord, fresh water hose, water pressure reducer, water filter, cable (when a park has cable TV), leveling ramps, patio chairs, patio mat - these are all things that we store inside the van.  Moving that stuff to the cargo carrier will give us that extra space inside for clothes and stuff.  And, with 2 cats, we are going to need space for more "cat stuff" inside.

Before we left this morning, we moved bikes and stuff around inside the garage to make room for the cargo pod...

 That's the cargo carrier in the foreground.  It needed to come off the RoadTrek while it is in the driveway - the van just fits for length.  We'll have the next few days to decide what goes with us, what will be in the van, and what will go in the cargo carrier.

 

Posing...

 

Yes, back to what keeps the internet going: cat content.

I can't even take credit for this shot...

 Joan took this with her new iPhone; the camera is much better than her old phone.  And, the subjects are especially fine looking.  I am biased... but, that doesn't make me wrong.  Murphy is that handsome and suave big boy.  And, cute little Stella will look you right in the eyes.  And then flirt with you.

They look sweet in that photo.  And, they are.  Generally.  This morning, around 5:00am, they acted out the chase scene from Bullit; with cats instead of cars.  On our bed.  While the humans were still trying to sleep.  The San Francisco hilly streets were the humans.  So, fun.  For them.

I guess I'm up now.

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I got out for a bicycle ride this morning.  My intent: ride.  I would say: "No tech," but... I like to listen to something when I ride: music, podcasts, YouTube videos.  I said to myself, "Self, no shooting videos so you don't have to work anything up when you get home."  I didn't say anything to myself about not taking any photos.  So...

 I just thought it was a rather pastoral scene; in the park, some water on the walkway (from sprinklers, not rain), and looking towards the sun with all the trees backlit.  Yeah, I used the camera in my glasses.  Because... it was there.

I played some music for an audience of 3 (Joan, Murphy, Stella) when I got home.  No music scheduled with any of my music buddies this week.  I like that schedule.

This is shaping up to be a chill day.  Well, it is "National Hamburger Day," so I'm guessing a visit to Smashburger will be in order.

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I did take this hot chick out for lunch.  To Smashburger; they had a special for National Hamburger Day: any single burger for $5.28 (get it - today's date).  We do go there once a week or so... there is one young man who works there that is friendly and remembers us when we come in.  ("Welcome back - good to see you again" sorta thing).  Today, as we got up to the register, it was already showing 2 BBQ Bacon Burgers - he said, "That's what you usually order, right?"  (big smile)

"I guess we are predictable.  Yes, that's what we're going to have - plus an order of Smash Fries, a soda, and a Cookies 'n Cream shake."  I was impressed that he remembered our order.

That is a really good burger - onion crisps, several thick strips of bacon, BBQ sauce, the burger, and a grilled bun.  What's not to like?

 I included that photo just to show how decent the image quality is; that's from the Oakley glasses.  Decent exposure, good contrast and color balance.  Like an image from an action cam rather than a mirrorless or DSLR camera.  But, from glasses.  Impressive.

 Oh, and the burger is really good.  :-)

 

Dust off some old tech...

 

Well, not that old.  I'm talking about the HoverAir X1 Pro drone.  Knowing that the batteries drain themselves to around 50% when the X1 Pro isn't being used, I charged everything up this morning... while taking Murphy out for his morning walkabout in the courtyard.  It has been a while since I've used it.

My plan: get out on a bike ride and shoot some video with the HoverAir X1 Pro and the Oakley Meta Vanguard glasses... and then see how things go with editing those together.

 

I didn't get a chance to work on that editing until this afternoon; Joan and I went out for lunch, with a few other stops afterwards.  Back home, I started sorting through the video clips.  The audio from the beacon on the HoverAir isn't as good as that from the Oakley glasses.  But, it was an interesting experience.  I had the beacon mounted on the handlebars of the bike... and one abrupt bump sent it flying... fortunately, into the gravel and not into the pond in the park that I was riding around.

I tried some "dolly track," where the drone flies backwards, capturing me from the front.  Some "follow" shots (those are easy).  And a "zoom out" where the drone flies up and away while shooting video of the subject.  And, I supplimented that video with some clips from the new Oakley sunglasses.  The camera in those glasses shoots only in a vertical format, so it gave me a chance to see what I could do with cropping that horizontally; better than the same thing from the Ray-Ban Wayfarer glasses, due to the wider field of view on the Oakleys.

And, the finished product...

 

It keeps me out of the bars and pool halls.  For now.

 

D-Day...

 

Nothing to do with World War II - I need to make a decision today regarding which pair of Meta sunglasses I will keep.  They both have good points and bad - no idea why I have been racking my brain over this decision.

But, in the meantime, I got out on the CTX this morning.  And, at the last minute, I tossed the Ray-Ban Wayfarers in the trunk of the bike.  I tried to put them on under the helmet, but... no go; they wouldn't fit under there.  I didn't even try the Oakley Vanguards, since they are significantly larger.

A great morning for a ride, but warming up quickly.  A couple still images...

 Yes, shot with the Wayfarer's camera.  And, the video...

 Since the glasses wouldn't fit under my helmet, I rode without a helmet for the short time I was trying the glasses.  Yeah, that was a bit unnerving.  I may not always wear a jacket due to the heat here in the desert, but I always wear a helmet.  Even if I am just taking the scooter around the neighborhood.

The video is "unlisted" - not being put out anywhere except here on the blog.  The audio was a bit distorted at times.  To be fair, these glasses were not designed for video/audio on a motorcycle.

I have one more thing I want to try with the Oakley Vanguards, then it is decision time.

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Glasses... blah, blah... you know what we come here for.

Yes, I do...

 

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I tried the third of three nose pieces that came with the Oakleys.  They are designed for different nose bridge heights.  I do notice a difference with each, but I can't say that one is a better fit than the others.  The Oakleys "grip" your head; the Wayfarers fit like more traditional sunglasses

More angst.  A list of pros and cons.  In the end, it came down to: one of these has better sound, a better camera position, a better lens field of view, and (for me) are better sunglasses (no frames in your line of sight; nice gray lenses).  The cons for these glasses: more cost and and what some consider "an aggressive" style.

Yeah, the Oakleys...

 When I visited with Joan about it, she said, "A year from now you aren't going to miss the money difference - keep them both if you want."  No, I really don't need two smart glasses that do pretty much the same thing, even if the approach for each is different.  Then, she added, "And as far as the unusual look to them, since when do you care what anyone thinks about the way you look?"  That's a fair question.  But, some people are put off by the Oakley styles... I used to be one of those people.  I'm not keen on having something that screams "Look at me!"  That's probably in my head.  Hopefully not on my face.

I cleaned the fingerprints off the Ray-Bans and packed them away, just like new.  Joan got the return label printed.  It's a done deal.

She also asked, "When will the next generation of these glasses come out?  The action cameras you buy seem to get a new version released right after you buy them... so, if a new version of these glasses come out with something you can't live without, get 'em."  She gets me.  ;-)  For the record, the Gen 1 Meta glasses were out almost two years before the Gen 2 versions came out.  And these Oakleys have been out for about 6 months.

Now I can obsess about something else.  ;-)

 

 

A Threesome...

 

Me, the Ray-Ban Wayfarer Met Gen 2 Glasses, and the Oakley Vanguard Meta Glasses.  Out for a ride again this morning - starting with wearing the Wayfarers, then switching to the Oakley Vanguards.  I need to make a decision today, then get one or the other boxed up to go back.

 One more video...