Busy Day...

 

We planned to go with Steph and Dan, and the Guide Dog for the Blind puppy Lonnie they are puppy sitting this week, to the big farmers market we went to a month or so ago.  Good training for the pup (who is 10 months old) and good bread and other stuff for the humans.

We left the house at 8:30 - it is about a half hour drive to the farmers market.  According to Steph, "Everything is about a half hour away."  Obviously, we go to different places, but I digress.  The market is held in the parking lot of a large church - and it attracts thousands of people; we had to drive to the far end of the parking lot to find a place.  Then, getting in some steps to get to the market and walk through the market.  Here's Steph and Dan with Lonnie...

 We filled that blue roller basket with stuff from the market, then went our separate ways... Steph and Dan heading for home, we were going north.

I had made arrangements with the guy who bought the stock seat for the Burgman to get it to him when we were done with the farmers market.  He is a nice guy, doesn't have a car, and no good way to carry that big seat on a scooter (that already has a big seat on it).  Yes, this is the guy who lives at the nudist resort.  Is "clothing optional" the more correct term?  Anyway, my new (nude? as Steph says) friend, Steven.  He met us at the gate to the resort, he paid me and I gave him the seat; we visited for a while.  He actually gave me more than what we agreed on, "to pay for the gas," but I gave the overage back to him.  I said I would get it to him, and I am just doing what I said.

I think Stephanie was disappointed that we didn't drive into the resort, get naked, and give him the seat.  She can be a weird kid sometimes.  I don't know where she gets that from.

This place is much further north, the east, then north some more from where I thought.  Definitely out in the boonies.  Or rather: the desert.  The real desert, not this in-town stuff that we landscape.

More running.  Joan has been encouraging me to get a new Apple Watch... I'm not saying mine is old, but it is no longer being updated by Apple... and, it uses a sun-dial to determine the time.  She and I both researched it.  Apple can no longer sell the Series 9 that has a blood-oxygen app on it (a patent infringement) and that is something I wanted.  But, you can find an "open box" at Best Buy that has the watch that was made before the patent infringement was settled.  And, she found one at the Best Buy in Goodyear.  We went there, the sales guy got the watch "out of the back," opened the box... and it wouldn't turn on.  "The battery just needs to be charged," he said.  Hopefully, that is all it is.

Lunch at the Snitch.  Joan's choice; yes, really.

I was anxious to get home and start getting the new Apple Watch set up.  But, truly, my current Series 3 has been a real champ.  But, it is important to keep up with the times (pun intended).  And when we got home, waiting for me is the new camera I ordered a few days ago: the Insta360 X4.

 

What a conundrum: which new technology do I start on first?  Well, both of them needed to have batteries charged.  As I started to set up the X4, I got a text from Mark - he has a question about his Emerald guitar... this trumps new technology.  I went to my music room to talk and have an Emerald in front of me.  I called, we discussed.  I think we came up with an answer.  We'll see.

Back to the technology: the first X4 battery showed a full charge.  I went to set it up with the Insta app on my phone, and... of course, the camera needed firmware updated before I could do anything.  I started that download, and spent some time looking over the camera: it is slightly bigger than the X2, I have.  Improved resolution - up to 8k from 5.7k on the previous versions.  About 70% more pixels.  A higher frames per second rate.  Improved contrast.  It comes with lens guards that screw and snap in place... and can be replaced if/when they get scratched... which is much better than getting a scratch on the lenses (yes, 2 lenses - that's how it shoots in 360).

While I will be using this mostly on the motorcycle and scooter, I (of course) wanted to test it out.  In the low light of the house interior (not this camera's strong suit), I shot a video and a couple stills of Murphy... in wide angle...

The wide angle perspective doesn't show off how handsome this boy is in real life.  I just wanted to make sure everything was working.  It is.  I think this camera is going to be a nice addition to the ride videos.  At some point.  It is, however, going to use up even more memory on the computer.  I off-loaded stuff yesterday when I did a back-up on the hard drive to free up some space.

On to the Apple Watch.  It is pretty...

A bit bigger than my "ancient" Series 3, a nice loop band (Joan says the bands from my Series 3 will fit), and the face/screen is significantly brighter, although I didn't think my old watch was too dim.  The newer technology means the "face" is on all the time, where it would go blank (black) on my old watch.

The transfer of info from the old watch to the new watch was reasonably fast and uneventful; the watch and the phone did most of the work... I just patiently watched and waited, giving my "go ahead" when asked.  I had been told that you had to "clear off" your old watch to get going with the new - that is not the case.  You can have more than one Apple Watch connected with your phone.

Joan asked if I had tried the blood oxygen app: not yet, but I'll give it a go (it's the reason I went for this particular watch - or, as Joan said, "Blood ox - an additional $100; cellular capable - an additional $100."

I do believe everything is working.  And the updated apps are nice!  And, it tells time!