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2025 spring

sufficiency

2025-05-08: No one is an island, but you can live on one and have some security.

400th

2025-05-07: My 400th column.

hidden TV cords

2025-05-06: I’ve done my best to hide the cables going to the TV.

pilot lights

2025-05-06: This once-dark house is now filled with pilot lights.

gardenias

2025-05-04: Gardenias are one of my favorite flowers, and there are many around the compound.

nesting boxes

2025-05-03: HA ordered and assembled nesting boxes; the chicks are growing up!

finishing gate

2025-05-02: The electric gate is installed.

spamming Mastodon

2025-05-02: Apologies if you had to look at multiple copies of the picture of my hair.

twoprops’ hair

2025-05-01: I am tall, but my hair is taller.

shepherds

2025-04-30: I didn’t expect to be adding “shepherd” to my CV.

spigot

2025-04-29: I installed a water spigot on the garage.

starting gate

2025-04-28: I started installing the electric gate opener today.

night sky

2025-04-27: I watched the end of the Lyrid meteor shower this morning.

chicks

2025-04-27: We got our chicks today.

ebike

2025-04-25: I brought an e-bike to the island. It won’t carry me up the mountain.

robot vacuum noises

2025-04-24: It’s so quiet here, the robot vacuum noises can be startling.

backyard lights

2025-04-24: We installed solar lights for the hot tub area.

toaster oven

2025-04-23: We now have a large electric toaster oven.

pavilion

2025-04-22: An outdoor living pavilion is now on our project list.

static conversion for WordPress sites

2025-04-21: Here’s how I converted my WordPress sites to static HTML.

neighbor hibiscus

2025-04-21: Our neighbor, whose late husband was a gardener and hibiscus aficionado, brought us this blossom today.

old websites

2025-04-21: I finally have my old web sites back on line.

fingerprint fix

2025-04-19: I have a patch for the KDE Plasma Desktop fingerprint screen unlock.

coop frame

2025-04-18: The Hand has erected the chicken coop frame.

mesh

2025-04-16: I’m experimenting with mesh networking for emergency communication.

pot rack

2025-04-15: I hung up a pot rack today. It has history.

fitted sheets

2025-04-14: I do not understand fitted sheets.

fans fixed

2025-04-13: I’ve figured out fixes for the ceiling fans.

spontaneous charging

2025-04-12: How long before all of us simply get in the way?

chargearium

2025-04-12: We’ve organized our mess of cordless tool chargers.

first flush diverter

2025-04-11: Our first flush diverter is finished. Now all we need is rain.

PoE

2025-04-10: Power over Ethernet (PoE) simplifies my WiFi extension wiring.

water harvest

2025-04-09: Our first catchment system water harvest.

back of the TV

2025-04-08: We attached things to the back of the TV-On-The-Ceiling.

morning people

2025-04-08: I am not a morning person.

ceiling TV

2025-04-06: We put our TV on the ceiling.

gutter

2025-04-04: The next step in the water system is installing gutters.

new display

2025-04-03: I replaced the display in my laptop today.

Timmy recall

2025-04-02: Timmy the Titan got recalled; Luna got to go.

suburbanization

2025-03-31: Our garage is looking more and more suburban.

loose ends

2025-03-30: Today was a day for tying up loose ends.

distractibility

2025-03-29: With so many projects going on, it’s hard to stay focused.

luxuries

2025-03-28: I put a couple more luxuries in place today.

pairing ceiling fans

2025-03-27: I’ve got into a pickle pairing our ceiling fans.

steps forward

2025-03-27: Making progress against the setbacks.

two steps back

2025-03-26: Progress on the water supply; regression with the hot tub and computer.

filled tank

2025-03-25: I moved and filled the water tank today.

painted deck

2025-03-24: The hot tub moves ever closer — the deck is painted!

backup generator

2025-03-23: I got the backup generator working well.

Creative Commons

2025-03-22: twoprops.net gets a new copyright notice.

pipe bending

2025-03-22: We’re building a chicken run out of bent PVC pipe.

primed deck

2025-03-20: The hot tub is coming soon — the deck is primed.

2024-2025 winter

dEI

2025-03-19: Even our washing machine has joined the anti-woke trend.

syringe order cancelled

2025-03-19: I still cannot take my medication after 57 days.

water tank

2025-03-17: We picked up our water tank today.

new toilet

2025-03-14: I guess it’s scatology week here at twoprops.net.

new security

2025-03-14: We have fearsome new physical security.

gimbal

2025-03-12: I put a gimbal for coffee cups on our wheelbarrow.

hot tub deck

2025-03-11: The hot tub deck is under construction.

rake infield

2025-03-10: Most places I’ve lived, this would never fly.

clear liquid

2025-03-09: I’m having a colonoscopy tomorrow, so I’m on a clear liquid diet today.

pharmacy follies

2025-03-08: Filling a prescription should be easier than this.

first anniversary

2025-03-06: twoprops.net was reborn one year ago.

hybrid sourdough

2025-03-05: Is it a sin to put commercial yeast in sourdough bread?

rewire finished

2025-03-04: The Great Re-wire is finished, ahead of schedule and under budget.

rewire

2025-03-03: We got the house re-wired and the garage connected today.

level bathroom

2025-03-01: We leveled our tilted bathroom floor.

catchment

2025-02-28: Our planned water catchment system.

gravel drive

2025-02-27: A freshly-graveled drive is a beautiful sight.

muck fusk

2025-02-26: What to do with a beloved classic Tesla in 2025?

rockin it

2025-02-25: We finally got rocks for our driveway.

another migraine

2025-02-24: It’s been almost eleven months since my last migraine.

robovac

2025-02-23: We got a robotic vacuum.

compound

2025-02-22: I believe I am now living in a compound.

good to be home

2025-02-22: Olowalu was nice, but also a reminder of how much I love my home.

black screen solved

2025-02-21: I seem to have solved the screen-going-black-after-login problem.

vacation without longing

2025-02-19: I’m enjoying this trip, but not wondering why I don’t do it more often.

robust web

2025-02-18: The web is losing its robustness.

knee

2025-02-17: Yesterday we hiked the Waihe’e Ridge Trail in the morning, and I lunched my knee getting into a kayak in the evening.

after beach showers

2025-02-17: Ingrained memories from my childhood include showers after swimming at the beach.

gone to Maui

2025-02-13: HA and I are on Maui.

computer glitch

2025-02-13: An update to my computer has broken the display.

update 1958

2025-02-12: I updated the page with the 1958 photo of the house with another photo.

sourdough rising

2025-02-10: My new starter has a great flavor, but doesn’t rise well.

useful LLM

2025-02-09: I just used an LLM and, for the first time, got a useful result.

landscape lighting

2025-02-07: I installed new landscape lighting.

drywall

2025-02-07: The studio is ready for drywall.

npm horror

2025-02-05: npm just wrote garbage to the entire twoprops.net directory.

down tree

2025-02-04: A tree fell across our road and threatened our internet service.

forty-nine

2025-02-03: It got down to 49° last night!

island sourdough

2025-02-02: I baked my first loaf of bread with my new island sourdough starter.

generator backup

2025-02-01: We did a real-world test of our backup generator today. We learned things.

cutsie dates

2025-01-31: First and foremost, I want straightforward dates.

new starter

2025-01-31: I’m making new island-native sourdough starter.

north-south passage

2025-01-29: I finally cut a north-south passage through a down tree.

bathroom wall framing

2025-01-28: The studio bathroom is framed.

pedestals

2025-01-27: We got pedestals for our washer and dryer.

the dump

2025-01-25: I found a router at a transfer station thrift store.

water break

2025-01-23: We had a catastrophic water pipe breakage today.

300th

2025-01-22: My 300th column.

sleeping on dessert

2025-01-21: I have noticed that I sleep much better when I eat dessert at bedtime.

then and now

2025-01-20: Our little home, then and now.

shower lighting

2025-01-20: The critical part of the shower lighting is fixed.

laundry day

2025-01-19: Today was our first full laundry day with our newly-functional washer and dryer.

stepping stones

2025-01-18: We bought a pallet of stepping stones.

guest

2025-01-17: Our first overnight guest!

security camera

2025-01-15: I installed a security camera, and hosed my Home Assistant.

unpredictability

2025-01-15: Things didn’t go as predicted today.

LG door gasket

2025-01-13: Tips on reinstalling the door gasket for LG washing machines.

laundry

2025-01-12: At last, we can do laundry!

testing backups

2025-01-11: Even if you spot-check your backups, you can still get burned.

rain walk

2025-01-11: A walk with Luna the Big Dog™ in the rain.

web annoyances

2025-01-10: Web site features you, the reader, don’t need.

how I surf

2025-01-10: How I ride the internet.

lost mail

2025-01-09: Google seems to be losing my email.

little improvements

2025-01-08: Being in a new space presents opportunities for little improvements.

atomic clock

2025-01-07: The “atomic” clock suddenly re-set itself.

weatherstation horror

2025-01-06: A badly-supported weather station griefed me today.

burned bridge

2025-01-05: I gave away the old solar equipment today.

setbacks

2025-01-04: There have been a couple of setbacks in our projects.

rhythm of days

2025-01-03: We’re slowly developing rituals and routines.

plugs, pigs, dog

2025-01-02: It’s been a busy first evening of 2025.

New Year’s Eve

2025-01-02: We went to a fun party for New Year’s Eve.

coffee and cycads

2025-01-01: These are some of the botanical treasures at our home.

enchanted tiki room

2024-12-30: I’m living my enchanted tiki room dream.

broken washer

2024-12-29: Today I discovered that our washing machine was broken in the move.

retinologist

2024-12-28: There is (was) a retinologist on this island.

vlc conversions

2024-12-27: VLC is a great video player. It does conversions, too, but they can be tricky.

Christmas at the beach

2024-12-26: We spent Christmas night at our favorite beach park.

merry Christmas

2024-12-25: There is still magic in seeing the date 25-Dec.

pencil sharpener

2024-12-24: A pencil sharpener I bought for my children is surprisingly helpful

electrical equipment cabinet

2024-12-24: I finally finished the electrical equipment cabinet at the studio.

solstice stuff

2024-12-23: There was a lot going on for us on solstice this year.

Kilauea

2024-12-22: We went sightseeing to Kilauea caldera.

2024 fall

fatigue

2024-12-20: My fatigue has been somewhat worse.

solar cabinetry

2024-12-19: I’m building an enclosure for our solar/electrical equipment.

assistants

2024-12-18: I may be overwhelmed with assistants, but I think it will be useful.

kitchen outlet

2024-12-17: I put a new electrical outlet in the kitchen.

nativefier

2024-12-15: Making a widget to monitor my solar plant.

tooling up

2024-12-14: Two extremes of tool use.

right turn

2024-12-13: Why have Big Tech’s leaders seemed to move to the right politically?

gift cards

2024-12-11: I tried to order Amex gift cards for my children. Amex wouldn’t let me.

867-5309

2024-12-10: Want the discount without the tracking?

health insurance

2024-12-09: I have way too many stories, but as I read a recent ProPublica article, one reality stood out.

solar assistant

2024-12-08: My new solar plant had some problems. A product called Solar Assistant fixed them.

bitcoin

2024-12-07: I sold some bitcoin.

excess energy

2024-12-05: We have too much electricity. That’s a good problem to have.

espanso on fedora 41

2024-12-03: A quick fix for running espanso on Fedora 41.

rock walk

2024-12-03: We made a quickie rock walkway today.

address follies

2024-12-02: I’m still having trouble changing my address.

lift ‘n’ peel

2024-12-01: Lift and peel?

do I own it?

2024-11-30: When a device you purchase requires an internet connection, do you really own it?

pedants

2024-11-28: How many pedants does it take to change a light bulb?

pastry crust

2024-11-27: It’s time to make Thanksgiving pies, and that means…

multimode fiber

2024-11-26: If you have a long cable run, consider multimode fiber.

gods have called

2024-11-25: If a man loves the labour of his trade…

Joulee is registered

2024-11-25: After some complications, Joulee is registered.

botanical palette

2024-11-24: Since coming to the island, I see landscaping in a new way.

island time

2024-11-21: Things happen more slowly here. That can be a good thing.

rainbow

2024-11-18: Just a rainbow.

postscarcity

2024-11-17: I am having to re-think life with abundant water and electricity.

woodburning

2024-11-16: Is it okay to burn wood in my stove for heat?

we have POWER

2024-11-15: The solar array is on-line, and we have power to spare.

studio fiber

2024-11-14: I ran a fiber optic cable to the studio.

panel mounting

2024-11-13: The solar panels are being mounted now.

t-post puller

2024-11-12: HA is an awesome t-post puller.

trenching

2024-11-11: They’ve started trenching for our solar array.

garage door finished

2024-11-10: The garage door is now finished.

twoprops restored

2024-11-10: I have recovered almost all of twoprops.net.

garage door

2024-11-09: The garage door is finally here — almost.

re-reborn

2024-11-09: The restoration of twoprops.net is going better than I’d hoped, though more slowly.

reconstruction

2024-11-08: Reconstructing this site is a bit trickier than I’d hoped.

404!

2024-11-07: Major data loss at twoprops.net! :(

interruptible

2024-11-07: Sick of interruptions cause by my “uninterruptible” power supply. I’ve junked it.

black

2024-11-06:

gas, not ICE

2024-11-05: I’m driving a gasoline-powered car, but it isn’t internal combustion.

flatpack

2024-11-04: I’ve been assembling a flatpack cabinet. It’s easier because I’m retired.

shortwave

2024-11-02: The abandoned shortwave radio in my parents’ garage.

power station

2024-11-01: I bought a battery-powered power station on a whim before we moved.

joulee returns

2024-10-30: Joulee the Free Salvage Tesla is home!

a darn good web site

2024-10-29: I was surprised by an actual decent web site.

fire and rain

2024-10-29: We’re using our woodstove for the first time.

bananas

2024-10-28: We have a banana tree, and now we have bananas!

icemaker

2024-10-27: Sometimes it’s okay to prioritize the luxuries.

still no joulee

2024-10-27: Joulee the Free Salvage Tesla still isn’t home.

network strangeness

2024-10-22: I’m having a bizarre networking failure.

voting

2024-10-21: I voted today. You should, too.

old plumbing

2024-10-20: Dealing with old plumbing can be… challenging.

lost key

2024-10-18: It seems that Matson lost the key to the Tesla, which is now stuck at the Big Port.

more RSS

2024-10-17: Cory Doctorow has a nice explainer on why you should use RSS.

consumer reports

2024-10-17: Consumer reports has gone to the Dark Side.

peak video

2024-10-16: I have finally found the ultimate instruction video.

nightlights

2024-10-15: Rechargeable, motion-activated night lights are useful at our island place.

wire?

2024-10-14: I can’t find the wire I need on the island.

comet

2024-10-13: Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is visible in the early night sky.

garage curtain

2024-10-12: What to do when you don’t have a garage door.

online signing

2024-10-11: I find online signing platforms problematic.

our ship came in

2024-10-10: Our ship came in!

awaiting delivery

2024-10-10: I am anxiously awaiting delivery of our mainland household goods.

200th

2024-10-09: Following up on previous columns to celebrate my 200th.

windows-open rain

2024-10-09: I’m enjoying being able to leave the windows open when it’s raining.

is Joulee lost?

2024-10-08: Joulee the Free Salvage Tesla is in limbo.

checklists

2024-10-07: I find checklists to be indispensable.

outdoor shower

2024-10-06: Outdoor showers are a fixture of island life.

moldy

2024-10-05: This is a mist forest: damp, warm… and moldy.

pinnacle

2024-10-04: Thomas Wolfe on success.

out of range

2024-10-03: The island place suffers from being out-of-range of too many things.

renderfog

2024-10-01: Someone keeps lowering the render distance in my back yard.

syndicating to mastodon

2024-09-29: Another try at syndicating to mastodon.

external monitor

2024-09-29: Life is better with a second monitor.

80th birthday!

2024-09-28: Happy 80th birthday, Barbara!

incidental flowers

2024-09-26: One of the joys of the island place is the frequent discovery of incidental flowers.

the Tesla turns around

2024-09-24: Joulee the Free Salvage Tesla arrived on our island… and was promptly sent back out to sea.

cheap tools

2024-09-23: My cheap drill bit purchase was probably pretty expensive.

2024 summer

Hawai’ian Maukamute

2024-09-22: We have decided that Luna the Big Dog™ is now a Hawai’ian Maukamute.

ceiling fans

2024-09-21: We like ceiling fans. We may need ceiling fans. The studio probably needs them, too.

Phanpy

2024-09-20: I browse Mastodon using Phanpy, “A minimalistic opinionated Mastodon web client.”

sunset & moonlight

2024-09-19: Views of the island place at sunset and in moonlight.

dead ‘ōhi’a

2024-09-19: ‘Ōhi’a are beautiful, native, sacred trees.

shoutout

2024-09-17: I got a shoutout from one of my favorite creators, and I’m touched.

home theatre, make-do edition

2024-09-16: We decided to try to do something “normal” this evening.

Thermacell revisited

2024-09-16: The Thermacell mosquito repeller actually works.

noreply

2024-09-15: “noreply@” sounds a lot like “We don’t actually care.”

the twoprops process

2024-09-14: The process of posting to twoprops.net seems helpful to my writing.

bidet

2024-09-13: We love our bidet toilet seat.

alarms

2024-09-12: I like timers and alarms. I also like not needing them.

dried peaches

2024-09-11: HA dehydrated the peaches so I could have some.

stars

2024-09-10: Luna woke me up at 04:30 this morning, and I decided to go out and look at the stars.

address change

2024-09-09: It’s truly a simple problem, but apparently way beyond the skills of many web developers.

wiring

2024-09-08: I’m wiring the studio. I almost made a big mistake.

minimalist

2024-09-08: Another description of the minimalist web.

isn’t here

2024-09-07: isn’t here

dark, silent night

2024-09-06: Last night at the island place, it got very dark and very quiet.

deprecated software

2024-09-05: What happens when a company pulls the rug out from under a platform on which you rely?

garage

2024-09-03: Our new garage is starting to look real!

moving details

2024-09-02: So much detail goes into moving!

dns saga

2024-09-01: Another round of DNS troubleshooting.

another server

2024-08-31: I got another server running today.

mortality

2024-08-30: Would we make limited lifespan a disease?

old school email

2024-08-29: Email protocols date from a different time in internet history.

it’s on the boat

2024-08-28: I think we’re going to have a new answer to the question “Do you know where the … is?”

Luna in flight

2024-08-28: Luna is on a cargo plane bound for the island.

I’m home

2024-08-27: I’m on the island. It’s good to be home.

peaches

2024-08-26: The peaches are finally (almost) ripe.

pathology

2024-08-26: My pathology results were negative.

moving time

2024-08-25: It’s moving time for the servers.

young folks’ moving day

2024-08-24: The remaining young folks are moving out today.

mail server moved successfully

2024-08-23: I tested the portable mail server today.

follow via email

2024-08-23: If you don’t like RSS, you can follow twoprops.net via email.

dropoff

2024-08-22: I dropped off my younger son yesterday; he’ll be starting college.

sailing, sailing

2024-08-20: Joulee the Free Salvaged Tesla is leaving on a cruise!

locked safe

2024-08-19: I seem to have a permanently locked safe.

pod10

2024-08-18: It is ten days since my thyroidectomy.

retrospectoscope

2024-08-17: Medicine’s most powerful diagnostic instrument.

automatic

2024-08-15: I’ve been told my first word was “automatic.”

to the cloud!

2024-08-14: twoprops.net has moved temporarily to the cloud.

pod5

2024-08-13: Postoperative day #5.

cold feet

2024-08-12: My feet are subjectively cold, very cold.

scraping

2024-08-11: Scraping is in the news. I remember an… incident.

without a thyroid

2024-08-10: What is life like without a thyroid gland?

too many peaches

2024-08-10: Our little peach tree now has too many peaches.

pod1

2024-08-09: Post-op day #1

it’s today!

2024-08-08: Today is the day of my surgery.

the day before

2024-08-07: The day before my thyroid cancer surgery.

preparing for surgery

2024-08-06: I’m preparing for my thyroidectomy surgery.

the nostalgia of packing

2024-08-04: Packing up all our stuff isn’t just an organizational task, it’s an emotional one.

customer disservice

2024-08-02: A medical practice that has no respect for their patients.

the wolf and the coyote revisited

2024-08-01: I revisited the wolf and coyote video; the video is re-encoded and is much smoother.

closeness

2024-08-01: What makes a relationship “close”?

school cafeteria

2024-07-31: I remember an insulting attempt to deceive us in the school cafeteria.

DNS again

2024-07-29: Another simple project made complicated by DNS woes.

discharge summaries

2024-07-28: I fear hospital discharge summaries will soon be replaced by AI-generated garbage.

portable email server

2024-07-27: I’m trying to make my mail server portable in advance of my move.

referrals

2024-07-26: The way medical referrals work is disorganized and fraught.

Thriftymart

2024-07-25: All roads lead from Thriftymart.

television

2024-07-23: Watching little television has been good for me.

Paramount+ are scammers

2024-07-21: Paramount+ is facilitating credit card fraud, and their web site is so brain damaged that the victims suffer further.

SoFineDog

2024-07-20: Luna has a new nickname.

cancer surgery

2024-07-19: I saw the thyroid surgeon today.

not ready for a charge

2024-07-18: At least around here, the EV charging network isn’t ready.

screening

2024-07-17: Sometimes it’s okay to be “glued to your screen.”

notifications

2024-07-16: The more I disable notifications, the happier I am.

summer vacation

2024-07-15: This is likely the last of our traditional summer vacations.

2024-07-14: I’ve added a “next” link to match the “previous” link

wallpaper

2024-07-13: Desktop decorations make life better.

cancer

2024-07-12: I have a cancer diagnosis. Now let’s dispense with the violent metaphors.

tag tyranny

2024-07-11: Tags are cool, but they can lead to lock-in.

mosquito repeller

2024-07-11: I bought a mosquito repeller, but is it safe?

the swimming pool

2024-07-10: The role of the swimming pool in years gone by.

borrowing others’ eyes

2024-07-09: When I think someone I know might be looking at my web properties, I tend to review my writing as though through the other’s eyes.

outage

2024-07-09: Yet another Comcast internet outage.

little revisions

2024-07-07: I can’t seem to get away from having to make small revisions to my columns.

full screen web pages

2024-07-06: Why do so many web pages assume you have your browser window open to the full screen?

fifth of July

2024-07-05: He who goes forth/With a fifth on the Fourth/Seldom goes forth on the fifth.

file uploader

2024-07-04: I decided to implement a file uploader…

113°F

2024-07-03: The temperature reached 113°F today.

sad news

2024-07-02: We learned of an accidental death today.

featuring revisions

2024-07-02: When I revise an old column, how can I make the changes discoverable?

breaches

2024-06-30: Cybersecurity incidents seem to have something in common, and the elephant in the room is not being addressed.

100th

2024-06-30: My one hundredth column.

infrastructure

2024-06-29: Preparing to depart, I’m noticing more my role in maintaining infrastructure.

archiving minecraft worlds

2024-06-28: Archiving our multiplayer Minecraft worlds

walking the dog

2024-06-27: Walking the dog is good.

eye exam

2024-06-26: My annual retina exam.

malware blocker

2024-06-24: It’s not an ad blocker, it’s a malware blocker.

the preciousness of tools

2024-06-23: Tools used to be precious to me, then were less so, now they’re precious again.

weather balloon photo with map

2024-06-22: The weather balloon stratosphere photo with a Google Earth map inset.

twoprops.net reborn

columns

2025 spring

2024-2025 winter

2024 fall