Modern Vespa

Seen the pictures.

Nasty that.

You OK ?

That one didn't really matter. It was the running into the back of a car when almost home that was the real problem. That one will need an insurance claim and zip ties to hold the front guard together as a temp fix.

Bugger.

Egad. Sounds like a really rough day.

Some days it just doesn't pay to chew through the restraints

Wait, I've hardly changed the site at all! Today, at least.

Confirmed Hernia.

Same place as the last one.

Arse.

I was prescribed 'Cipro' for a prostrate inflammation in the late 1990's, and within a year I had problems with both Achilles tendons, which I assume ruptured from the Cipro, but I didn't make the association until around ten years later when reading an article about the drug and it's possible side effects.

Both tendons have a lump of scar tissue at the heel end, and can make stairs a bit tricky.

An arse hernia?

That's not another term for prolapse, is it?

-----

On a more serious note, I hope it all works out for you.

Rant about google:

A few months ago google added another level of arseholeishness to the arsenal. Publishing an update to my Vespa Snoop app on the store and google claims "your app is collecting user info". Fuck. So updates have not been happening recently (I knew but ran away because it pissed me).

They are *I think* (it's a guess) referring to GPS info BUT they refuse to deny or confirm this when I try to query them. They simply copy and paste their claim "you are collecting data" in their replies and insist that I declare this in the store settings. I've resisted this for the last few months since it started being a problem and tried to get human style communication with them. It had all been fine for *years*. The declaration asks me a question "how does the use delete their data: delete account or contact me etc". There is not even an 'N/A' or 'Other' choice.

So why would they possibly think this? Because my has a feature (off by default) to use gps (off by default and requires os permission prompt) to lookup the street the user is currently on primarily to get speed limit info. This feature requires an internet connection (and has a large local cache). THIS IS NOT STORED ONLINE ANYWHERE EVER. Note: google uses shitty AI scanners to monitor the behaviour of my app when it's uploaded to the store.

That does not match my usage of the term "collects data" which I interpret as involving some sort of storing some where on the cloud maybe in a user account (not such thing) or for me to track usage in an evil way or something.

There is also an option to record this on the phone in the 'trips' section of the app. This is entirely within the app and nothing to do with me. So collecting? *I'm* not doing that - the user is collecting it. The user can of course delete the trips etc.

But it might not even be gps stuff. Who f'n knows. Please talk to me ya c**nts.

Fuck I hate this sort of argument when the other party refuses to talk.

This is why people swear at support depts and call centres especially those that obviously use AI.

I definitely sympathize. But I also don't think you're going to get to talk to anyone or have any kind of meaningful dialog. Google is operating at scale, and that means most things are automated, or at best some peon in some digital sweat shop somewhere in the world has three buttons they can press for any given issue in their queue. And their queue is likely to be 10,000 issues deep at any given moment.

The best way to deal with this kind of thing is to manipulate the situation by altering the way your code works. That doesn't mean you have to NOT do whatever you're doing, but find a different way to do it.

Maybe.

The shitty reality of all large orgs including gov depts including of course banks.

Miss the old days of walking into a local branch and talking to a human. No swearing then. There's already at least a dozen popups when the user tries to connect asking for a gazillion OS permissions and if the user wants the various features such as trip recording and looking up street info etc enabled. Way to many but needed. (multiple different apis for different perms including for some I have to direct the user on what to click on the next complex os settings screen).

In the early android days an app would declare required perms in the app manifest embedded in the apk (binary) which the store would examine. When the user clicked download the store would prompt the user saying this app will have access to these perms. Zero popups inside the app required. Simple.

But I don't disagree with this part but it is tedious for both the dev and user - we both hate it. How many times as a user do you just click yes to everything without reading?. Maybe just reading the first one or two and then a feeling of "whatever" takes over?

^^ all the above might instead be about the embedded Ads (using a Google library) which will try and show and that are relevant to the approx location.

This is exactly my problem - i don't fucking know.

Now that's funny. Google complained about your app collecting data? Kettle, meet pot!

Monogodo Thank you for your kind wishes.

If it doesn't get worse it will probably be a 5 month wait or I can pay £3500 and get it done within 2 weeks.

I think I know which bike has caused it.

That was exactly my first thought. A company who's business model is selling your personal info to advertisers giving someone grief about collecting data ...

It's fairly obvious, isn't it? Google doesn't want to have to compete with app authors for the data they collect.

Just pinched the living crap out of my thumb.

In the latch on the first aid cabinet at work.



(It's like raaaaaaiiiiaiiiin ...)

ask your primary care about RFA treatment for neck nerve pain.

this has helped my c3-c6 nerve issues

Irony to the max!

These damn upside down, squeezy, sphincter-nozzle, ketchup bottles dispense their contents in an annoying 'all or nothing' splurge of barely controllable expulsion.

Whoever thought that putting a plastic, squeeze-resistant asshole on the business end of a ketchup bottle should be be forced to clean truck stop restrooms for at least six months.

If this is your biggest problem……you are having a very good day.

OFG

just make sure you give the bottle a very stiff shake first..

don't get me started on ketchup precum

Weeks away. Heads are here. Head Gaskets next week.

6 Months at the shop.

But that's the best part!

I let out an evil, villainous laugh every time.

What doubles down on the ketchup bottle sphincter thing, is that in this case, the ketchup itself is some off-brand restaurant concoction and not Heinz, or even Hunts.

It's an outrage I tell you, an outrage!!!

Actually, I'm having a pretty good day in all, running the Triumph 400 miles back home on westbound I-90, traveling among hundreds of first official weekend Sturgis rally visitors.

Running a little over 80 mph and with a bit of a headwind, and the bike getting from 28-35 mpg (US gallons), I'm getting plenty of rest and fuel stops to break up any boredom along the way.

Yikes! Our Honda Fit gets better MPG than that.

OFG

At 80 MPH?

.

The Rocket 3R averages high 30's to low 40's in everyday riding. I don't think it's ever seen a figure over 45 mpg...unless it's going downhill or on trailing throttle, where I've seen 60+ mph on the bike's real-time mph computer...but even a semi truck gets amazing mileage on a 6% downgrade.

Our '16 Miata MX-5 averages 40 mpg overall, and I was both surprised, and quite pleased with it's efficiency.

Well, no. Typically around 78 MPH on I65. But it does have AC and seat belts.

OFG

Air quality.

It's been a week, IIRC. Seems like forever. Canadian wildfires have been raging thanks to climate change. Catching various regional headlines suggesting variably that Chicago, Minneapolis or Milwaukee have the worst air quality IN THE WORLD. I've had limited experience, but nothing has topped New Delhi. Of course auto pollution, coal and burning cow dung add different qualities.

Two of our brilliant legislators wrote a strongly-worded letter to Canada a week ago. Kind of like watching your neighbor's house burn down and putting a note in their mailbox about ashes on your flowerbed.

A couple of years back we had smoke as well, and when I changed my CPAP filter, it was GRAY. Not good. Someone asked the Dept of Natural Resources why there was a metallic element to the smell and it's apparently caused by the release of benzene and other compounds, all carcinogens. People had to stop burning their leaves for the same reason.

I've not noticed much otherwise, and I've been out doing stuff in the yard, etc, but my wife has asthma ,and she's feeling it.

Guess you'll find me indoors today and maybe the indefinite future... There's always winter to look forward to.

I can't say it's the worst in the world. China was much worse. Out for coffee & donuts this morning, air isn't too bad…yet.

I know exactly what that feels like, so I can sympathize. In September 2020, the Bay Area was surrounded by wildfires, and the air quality was abysmal for a few weeks. It was hot and miserable, and also the middle of the pandemic.

These photos were taken at Apple Park, which was mostly deserted at the time because of the pandemic and the wildfires -- many Apple people actually relocated temporarily out of the Bay Area (some permanently!) as it all became too much to bear.

It's like an alien landscape.

Eww!

Yeah, California has come to mind more than once in the past week...

I pissed me off today.

Went on eBay to find a used decent quality 12v vest with controller in my size. I worked and worked the search until I got it narrowed. I examined the options and finally pulled the trigger on a Widder for ~$50 . It only had an off/on controller but I figured I could find/make a variable one on the cheap, and my previous gear was Widder. I already knew I liked it and knew about the wonky connectors.

Looked it over once more and bought it.

Closed that tab and saw a tab I had missed before: a Tourmaster vest with two variable controllers, bags of adapters, etc for ~$50. Arghhhhhh!

I beat myself up for a bit then bought the second listing also, figuring I could repurpose one of the controllers for the Widder. Then wait until early winter to resell the vest + controller + goodies to recoup the $50.

In the ongoing journey of disposing of all my possessions, I pulled what was once my most prized possession out of the closet. An Alvarez acoustic guitar that I bought way back in the (I think) late 80s. It used to be one of many of my guitars, but I thinned out my collection over the years until I had just this one left, obviously my favorite. It wasn't ever the best acoustic guitar in the world, but it was my best guitar. (The best acoustic guitar in the world was the one my dad owned, an early 1960s Martin D-28).

I opened up the case and saw that Past Jess had left me a nicely stocked supply of strings, arranged in packets organized by string rather than entire sets, and all genuine Martin strings. The strings on it -- that hadn't been played in at least 20 years -- were all quite dead. So I set about re-stringing it one last time, my final act of love and devotion to my once-prized possession.

And then I got to the packet of G strings, which was empty. Because of course it was. And apparently I was unable to count to six, or had forgotten how many strings a guitar had when I inspected my supply just a few minutes earlier.

Ah well. So now it's got 5 new strings and one dead G string. And sometime this week, I will donate it to a local school music program so that someone, hopefully, may love it again.

Dammit! Who is cutting onions in here!?!

EDIT: It occurred to me that the year of manufacture would probably be on the label inside, so I got a close-up -- it is in fact from 1986)

I am crying.



Mine is a DY-45. It will be one of my last worldly possessions.

I literally cried while re-stringing it. It was an emotional moment. I haven't played it in decades, and I objectively don't need it. Bringing it with me to Portugal would be excessive. But still, it was something I cherished, and parting with this specific thing might be the most difficult of all my possessions.

Let me make it easier for you.

This is an original piece I played into my iPad on my Yairi at the end of a scooter camping trip back in 2015. Added the backing tracks in later in garageBand.

Thank you for that.