This year I finally made a trip up to Holland, Michigan to attend the Tulip Festival. It was a beautiful day. A lot of the flowers seemed passed their prime but they still made for a beautiful site. I went into this kind of blind and I didn't realize how spread out this was. It was a bit of a hike to get around!
David's Tangled Thoughts
259
Thursday, May 08, 2025
Sunday, March 30, 2025
My Roof Was Spared
A strong line of thunderstorms came through late this afternoon while I was at work. I knew that it was a bad storm as I approached Niles. I could see branches down at the sides of the road. The traffic lights at Fort and 11th were out. While I driving down my block, I saw a tree down on powerlines. They didn’t make it to the ground, and I was able to drive under it to get home.
Considering the other reports of outages throughout the area, I thought it would be a while before my power was restored. I went out for some Chinese takeaway since my stove is electric and non-functional. While I was eating at home, I heard multiple utility trucks go down my road. They were able to restore power in 30 minutes. I was impressed. I’m sure it’s still going to be a long night for them, though.
Thursday, March 27, 2025
Third Post Office 's the Charm!
Wednesday, March 05, 2025
No Wait at the SOS? Am I dreaming?
I had a delightful yet unexpected experience as my local Secretary of State office. I was going there intending to use the self-service kiosk to renew my car registration and tags. The SOS office has always been crowded with people and ever since COVID, we’ve had to set up appointments if you wanted in-person service. When I walked in I was about to start my transaction at the kiosk when I was called up to the counter. The lady that worked there took my renewal slip, asked me a few questions, took my payment, and sent me on my way. I even saved a few dollars because I didn’t have to pay the service fee that the kiosk slaps on. Seriously, I was caught off guard because I had never imagine service being like that.
Sunday, February 09, 2025
Old Disney World - One Last Ride
This past fall I decided to take a small trip back to Disney World. There were reports that large portions of the parks were going to be torn down and redeveloped before I had planned to go back.
Rivers of America in the Magic Kingdom was going to be removed and and replaced with a Cars land. The Muppets area in Hollywood Studios was going to be turned into a Monsters theme land--I think. Dinoland in Animal Kingdom was going to become a Latin America themed land.
Muppet Vision 3D in Hollywood Studios has always been one of my favorite mid-day attraction. A low-wait, sit-down, air conditioned attraction! All around it are interesting tid-bits to see. Did anyone ever really check to see if there was a key under the mat? I did!
Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Shifting Gears and Hitting Close to Home
When I was a kid, I enjoyed Home Improvement and Galaxy Quest. I have been a fan of Tim Allen for long time. The same goes for Kat Dennings who really should have had more time in the Thor films. I also enjoyed watching 2 Broke Girls mostly because of her. I haven't gotten into any broadcast sitcoms in years but I did give this one a shot.
I watched Shifting Gears this evening and it hits a little close to home when it comes to the more political dynamics. Especially since the start of the first Trump administration. My parents and I do not see eye-to-eye and there is some real tension as I see them move from what I would consider traditional Republican ideals to MAGA ideals.
Their approach on how they are going to live with each other is of interest to me. I have compartmentalized my life and we have our own separate personal spaces. I don't involve myself with any aspect of their social lives and they aren't a part of mine. We just come together for family time. It seems the family house is our neutral zone. In Shifting Gears, the daughter talks about building a bridge and meeting in the middle. It seems almost like a foreign concept to me.
Friday, January 10, 2025
Went back to Windows
- 32GB RAM
- 1TB Storage
- Snapdragon E Elite processor
- 13.8" display
I'm getting reacquainted with Windows. I haven't owned a Windows computer since Windows 7. I hated Windows 8 so much that it contributed to my move to Mac. There was some pain trying to use Mac OS but I have been largely satisfied. The ecosystem and the integration between my Macbook, iMac, and iPhone have been impressive.
As I started up this new laptop, I was hit by the... junk. There is a lot that goes into setting up a new computer. With this one, it wasn't just answer a few questions and then you're in. There was a lot of downloading and installing involved. Then when I got in, I had to take out the programs that I didn't want. Download the ones I wanted and log in to my accounts. Some of them, I had forgotten passwords and had to do resets because I just haven't had to do them on my Apple devices.
Setup is mostly complete but as I go through the days, I'm sure there are going to be programs and web accounts that I have forgotten.
But Jesus Christ... the ads! Ugh.
Holland -- Well, not *that* Holland
This year I finally made a trip up to Holland, Michigan to attend the Tulip Festival. It was a beautiful day. A lot of the flowers seemed pa...

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In every election I’ve voted in, polls in Michigan open at 7am and stay open until 8pm. I thought that I would go and vote when the polls o...
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...or Happy Holidays! I went to the post office this afternoon to get some extra stamps. I left with a a sheet of Kwanzaa stamps! How awes...
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A few obnoxious teens came into the store today that reminded me to tell the world: I hate popped collars. Seriously, I think that the guys ...