Monthly Archives: February 2017

Lighting

Photograph taken on Wednesday, February 08, 2017 by Henry
Lighting

Lighting

We were at Upper Rock Circle again this evening and I took some more pictures of the decor in one of the public rooms of the building. This is a meeting room with a kitchen area and these lights are above the bar that has the stove top and also serves as an eating area.

It’s been quite warm the last couple days, with high temperatures above 70°F yesterday and today. The forecast is for snow tomorrow, and then colder weather for a little while, so perhaps we’ll have some winter for a change. I don’t mind a balmy day in midwinter but 70°F is overdoing it.

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My Family’s First Computer

Photograph taken on Tuesday, February 07, 2017 by Henry
Ohio Scientific Superboard II

Ohio Scientific Superboard II

In 1978 (or thereabouts), when I was in college, my dad bought this computer. It was made by Ohio Scientific and is a Superboard II, a.k.a., model 600 single-board computer. It came by default with 4k of RAM but dad knew that he’d need more than that so he doubled it to 8k. He initially built a power supply for it but the power wasn’t clean enough so he bought one. The computer was connected to a small black-and-white television set and a portable cassette player for program and data storage. I actually did more BASIC programming on this machine than on any subsequent computer I’ve owned, moving on to Pascal in 1984 when I bought my own NEC computer. Although this was the family’s first computer, Ralph had one sooner. I believe he bought it with a friend at school and it was a more powerful thing, using an Intel 8008 processor, if I remember correctly.

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Old Family Photographs

Photograph taken on Monday, February 06, 2017 by Henry
Old Family Photographs

Old Family Photographs

Cathy’s been working her way through a box of old family photographs and making some interesting connections. In the bin in this picture, the picture on the left is Cathy’s grandfather, Albert, from high school. We were hoping that we might find a picture of Ernest Hemingway, who attended the same school, Oak Park and River Forest High School, from 1913 until 1917, a few years ahead of Albert. Unfortunately, we didn’t. But you never know what might show up further down in the box.

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Another Feather

Photograph taken on Sunday, February 05, 2017 by Henry
Feather

Feather

It was cool and cloudy today but not so cold that we wouldn’t go out (actually, I didn’t even need a jacket). We drove to Meadowside Nature Center and walked on the trails around it, going south west to the edge of the lake and then north to where there are some log cabins. This photo of a feather was taken on a fallen log. I’m not sure what sort of bird the feather came from but I assume it was taken up onto the log to be eaten, either by another bird or by a mammal of some sort.

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Sunset

Photograph taken on Saturday, February 04, 2017 by Henry
Sunset

Sunset

The sun is setting later and later now. Not long ago it was going down as I left work at 5:00 PM. Not it’s after 5:30. I’m not complaining (far from it). It means I have a little time after work to get some pictures while it’s still light. Of course today is Saturday so I have more time. I took a few pictures this morning in my mother-in-law’s yard but they aren’t anything worth posting (not that I haven’t posted plenty of such). The sunset wasn’t a full-sky affair this evening but still quite beautiful. This was taken out our back door, looking over the house behind us.

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Woodpecker Feather?

Photograph taken on Friday, February 03, 2017 by Henry
Woodpecker Feather?

Woodpecker Feather?

I’m no sort of expert on these things so I really don’t know what sort of bird has feathers that look like this. I know there are woodpeckers with dark feathers with white spots running up both sides. There are also owls with this sort of pattern. The feathers were not terribly long, so my guess was one of the small local woodpeckers, such as the downy (Picoides pubescens) or hairy woodpecker (Picoides villosus). I’d be happy to have someone who is more knowledgeable set me straight. This was in the woods behind my building.

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Sous Vide Pork Chop

Photograph taken on Thursday, February 02, 2017 by Henry
Sous Vide Pork Chop

Sous Vide Pork Chop

For Christmas, I was given a sous vide appliance. It’s a small device with a heating element and a mechanism for circulating heated water. The device is placed on the side of a deep pot and filled to the proper depth. The desired temperature and cooking time is set and the water is heated to the requested temperature. The pork chops are placed in sealed bags and the air is suctioned out (which is where sous vide gets its name, from the French for “under vacuum”). It’s a fairly slow method of cooking but the meat retains its moisture. A quick sear after its done and its ready to eat. Pork chops with sauteed apples and green beans.

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Wooden Chandelier

Photograph taken on Wednesday, February 01, 2017 by Henry
Wooden Chandelier

Wooden Chandelier

This isn’t technically a chandelier, because the formal definition includes branching structure to hold multiple lights. The word chandelier comes through the French from the Latin candelabrum or candle holder. Of course we apply it to those that hold electric lights but this only has a single light, as far as I can tell. Still, it’s a pretty, hanging light fixture and the term is fluid enough that it might encompass it. We were at a place on Upper Rock Circle this evening and this is in their lobby above a simple but effective fountain.

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