Interesting times living in place as we age ..... as if the pandemic isn't enough .....
My house at long last welcomed receiving electric power again a short time ago this Sunday night as I write this following a sudden outage Friday night. We had some pretty strong winds sweep through Friday all night long. They had such a strong force for only the second time in our area of town that I've experienced in the almost fifty years I've lived here.
I opened my door early Friday evening once to check for delivery of an expected package which I learned later had been delayed but finally came today, Sunday. The wind was so strong I could hardly push the door shut again. As the night wore on I realized the power was not coming back on so I headed into bed.
As the winds howled and whistled I could hear my small empty trash container, half the size of a full size bin, banging and thumping around from the sheltered corner area of my covered front entry where I had placed it in anticipation of easily filling it the next day. I'm so glad I hadn't yet put anything in the bin as light content weight would likely not have prevented it being upset.
The next day I found the bin, open, laying on it's side up against my car. Any contents would have been spread all over -- what a mess it would have been to clean up. I'm not sure if a few small hard pieces of material I found in my drive are from my house as I will have my gardener coming later this week double-check to see if any others in the yard, though I haven't seen any shingles as I surveyed through my windows, but then I can determine if there is any roof concern.
We knew there would be winds as there often can be every year with other communities generally receiving the worst and only minor issues in other parts of our town but not on our street. In fact, this is only the second time in the almost fifty years I've lived here our street has been even remotely close to having such a destructive wind.
Saturday when I drove out to get some hot food as I drove only a block into an adjoining small town, then others, they all seem to have some power. I didn't see any trees down on our street, but elsewhere traffic lights were out, major boulevards closed to traffic blocked by fallen trees.
We received varied reports of when we would have power again. First it wasn't known yet, then we would have power 3:30 a.m. Saturday, then back to not determined again, later some misinformation, and finally to be 9 p.m. Sunday, but the power didn't come on so they weren't predicting again. Happily an hour or so later we had electric. Certainly as winds go these were not comparable to what those having gone through tornados and hurricanes experience, but everything is relative and what anyone experiences brings its own challenges.
I kept warm but it was SoCal cold here, meaning 40 to 60 degree temperatures and I'm glad to have an interior warm house again. My body has long since acclimated to our climate so I reminded myself that where I once lived we would have thought of temperatures like these as nice winter days -- but this ol' bod just isn't impressed with my effort to influence mind over matter so I was aware of cold air.
Ironically, earlier Friday I had allowed my new iPhone to run very low before plugging in, thought it had fully charged but hadn't actually yet checked it had charged when I unplugged it. I'll always check immediately now as I discovered the phone hadn't charged, perhaps the plug had been loose. Such was also the case with my computer. So, here I was poorly prepared technologically to effectively cope with any long power outage emergency.
Once again having my landline telephone kept me connected to the rest of the world with the ability to track my electric company's progress, contact my family, and have the capability to summon emergency help should I need to do so.
Another learning experience for me in this grand experiment of living in place as I age. I have decided to finally purchase a solar charger which I first considered doing a few years ago but had not done so. I must do better emergency preparedness.
Without the ability to access the internet, publish a blog post early Sunday, see and hear the news, I did a lot more reading, completing one book and starting a second. I hadn't been in the mood for reading books for a while as periodically occurs for me, so maybe that spell is broken.
I've learned a family member who has been so very careful has somehow been caught by covid but with only mild symptoms, lots of fatigue.
Hope all of you continue to be well, Also, that your emergency plans and preparedness kits are in good order.
Some of you are busy readying to celebrate Christmas; others are focused on Hanukkah; and additional people have their celebrations in the offing. My holiday preparations here at home are quite minimal compared to those sometimes frantic years when my family were all present to celebrate together, or in later years when I travelled to their homes. Since I'm doing so little I've had more time to ponder some of the matters in this epistle length post. I hope all is going well for whatever you may be doing with decorating, gift selections, baking and more.
Michael Buble' -- Album "Christmas" -- 10th Anniversary Edition
It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas.
My recent transition from my cell phone to a smartphone has had me thinking about the changes that keep occurring in my life. Like so much in this digital internet world, the technology, even its security, has moved forward at a much faster rate than has the quality of some of the services provided. The driving force in our capitalistic society where for many monetizing takes precedence over all else -- sometimes even including ethics and morality -- seems to have become the primary driving force in technological companies' operations (perhaps thanks to Wall Street) which is important, but only to a degree, especially after a company's viability is established.
We see this with questions arising about the values of those dictating the operations of social media companies such as Zuckerberg and Facebook; others who own Twitter, Instagram to name some additional ones; also businesses like Bezos and Amazon, Microsoft, Google and more. Establishing a balance between the best interests of all Americans, especially those of our children, plus what constitutes "enough" for each company's profit-making goals are issues about which many express considerable concern. Fair distribution of such income increasingly comes into focus given the uneven distribution of wealth in our country. There are no easy answers.
Existing technology keeps evolving, some ideas developed being replaced before the services they offer are at least as reliable and efficient as what previously existed it seems to me. Perhaps this is how progress occurs. The public is subjected to tolerating a decrease in some operation functions that had been achieved by an existing technology, but they are gradually being replaced by the new technology that can't yet provide a previous important mastered feature but may have additional appealing new ones the old technology does not. We're left with less than what we had, in some respects, while we navigate the treadmill of the latest new device.
Referring to telephone service in this instance is what comes to my mind as wireless cell phones, now smartphones replace our copper-wired landline phones. The reality is that people are increasingly using wireless phone systems in preference to the wired landlines so the inevitable seems only a matter of time -- that wired landlines will cease to exist.
Only about 37% of American households now still use landline phones according to Statista as summarized in numerous web site reports such as Digital Information World. This data was obtained by the local telecommunication company running off the copper phone lines across the country in a report earlier this year.
Despite the declining use of landlines some of the pros and cons of keeping a landline, particularly in the event of an emergency, still apply as described in an older article written by Nicholas Gilmore. Recent article comments describe individual's situations like my experience where this is true.
This brings into question the conclusion reached by AARP's John Quain in an article earlier this year. Contrary to what he wrote, not all problems with 911 calls have been resolved as described above -- one problem he didn't address as well as a few others he cites as having been eliminated but have not everywhere either. Additional commenters, too, have questioned the accuracy of his perceptions about the state of 911 call problems applying everywhere in the U.S.
My own personal experience a few years ago was with a cell phone in my home. Surprisingly to me, my call went to a nearby city. I had to be able to speak and tell them what city and where I was calling from. They then transferred my call to my city's emergency system which also had the capability of identifying my exact location without my having to be able to speak as the landline 911 system does.
What if I couldn't speak when I first called -- locating me via cell towers could have taken longer. A 911 call from my home using my landline phone a few years earlier had gone directly to my city's emergency line and they knew my precise location though I could have verbalized then if needed. All 911 systems today should have the same tracking capabilities as the landline 911 system.
Note: I was unable to locate current percentages of cell/mobile phone systems that can precisely identify a 911 caller's location as quickly and efficiently as the 911 landline system. The last figures I read a few years ago were that only less than 50% of cell/mobile phone systems in the U.S. had acquired this capability.
Check the 911 system where you live to determine if their wireless emergency response system has adapted to be one equivalent to that of a landline phone. The automatic and immediate location identification is time-saving and doesn't require the caller having to be able to intelligibly speak to say where they are -- both of which can be life-saving critical acts in the event of some medical emergencies i.e. stroke, heart, respiratory, and others.
A recent Forbes article by Mike Vorhaus recognizes Americans are using their mobile phones to replace their landlines. He also reports having a mobile phone but is keeping his landline and thinks it is very sensible to do so. He describes how landlines have their "own energy" allowing "landlines to operate completely independent of the household electricity or the general electric grid." Electric power to the house and grid if lost, over time results in phone batteries dying and the wireless home phone system failing. Our landlines continue to live on.
I think about possible earthquakes in California and being able to communicate with the rest of the world after a major disaster. My landline phone will possibly be more readily operative in such a situation since I "...don't think it will fall as quickly as cell towers thus destroying wireless capability in an earthquake" What kinds of disasters are you at risk for experiencing where you live? Hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, other destructive forces.
I didn't yet have my smart phone when I experienced an unexpected sudden extended power outage of about 12 hours duration just before Thanksgiving. I was certainly glad to have my landline phone then to eventually learn what was happening after several phone calls over time. The landline had to be used because my then cell phone's battery was almost completely run down but I had planned to charge it later that night.
Another future landline benefit now is I could call my smart phone should it become lost.
Obviously, with these wireless phone and other devices we have become very dependent on batteries so need backup and supplemental energy sources -- reserve energy chargers, solar units, generators -- if we're going to be so dependent on wireless technology.
Do you keep your tech communication devices fully charged for the unexpected? What do you have for backup in emergencies? A few hours outage is one thing, but what about longer outages?
Are our tech device batteries immune to shortages unlike those for EVs? Google summary reports for electric vehicles for example:
"Lithium, nickel and cobalt are the key metals used to make EV batteries. Analysts believe there is a potential shortfall in the global mining capacity required to extract the minerals needed to manufacture sufficient batteries to meet projected EV demand."
Apparently there is a scramble by countries around the world to acquire the necessary minerals for digital device batteries that might give you pause for what could occur in the future which you can read in this BR article.
There was an era when our personal time wasn't taken up by riding herd on keeping our devices charged and needing batteries for everything. Our phone and electric lines once installed just were and we rarely had to give much thought to them. My-y-y, how that all has changed.
What's interesting to think about is what communication system may replace our smart phones and how long before that occurs? Don't get too attached to your smart phone because Forbes MikeVorhaus suggests this may be our future (for however long this lasts, I might add):
"...the next disruptor of personal communications -- the messaging service. Today, according to my recent national survey of U.S. households, over 75% of the US population with connection to the Internet and/or mobile phone services, use a messaging service at least once a week. It is quite clear where this trend is headed because 91% of 18-34 year olds are using messaging services regularly, vs. only 56% of the over 55 year old age group.
"Messaging services are universally used by the 18-34 year old age group.
"Eventually the messaging service may well challenge the "phone" function of the smartphone. Messaging services not only offer text, but also robust voice services, free, over the Internet. And remember, your smartphone is also a TV."
On the other hand, or additionally, Augmented Reality Technology is being developed with headsets, glasses, or computers that can be worn on the head. AR is thought by some tech leaders to be that smartphone replacement possibly in the next decade, but we'll not explore that here now.
Personally, I don't care for the idea of wearing such technological devices on my head, but who knows what most of our population, especially large numbers of influential younger generations, will adopt using. Will other older systems like our smartphones then be gradually phased out like the phone landline so we're forced by a user majority into using a Messenger Service, AR, or something else? Perhaps we don't have to have just one dominant system for all like we use to for so many years, or do we?
Another exciting week in which what follows are only a few events during which I also received my Pfizer booster shot, anti-Covid ..... but this has nothing to do with my receiving the vaccination. This is a flight of fancy!
I've succumbed! I've been seduced! I'd always said, "No!" before, but I finally gave in. Actually, I was in a non-compromising position and could no longer resist. I expect to hear from some, those words, "What took you so long?", and I may even wonder myself, but avoiding the inevitable for some time, if I could, seemed to be the better part of good judgement for me.
I hope you won't think any less of me for giving-in. Who knows, I might even come to like it. I didn't do this just because I kept being told, "It's safe, its okay, everybody's doing it." I know that doesn't make it the right thing for all to do. Still, the pressure is off now. I've done it and there's no turning back.
I'll have to live with the consequences, whatever happens -- adapting my life, adjusting, coping with frustrations. Facing a whole new way of life may be what I must accept. Will I continue to oversee my life, or will dictates come from elsewhere?
This is, after all, "a smart phone" -- smarter than me? Has artificial intelligence, aka AI, taken the device over which, in turn, will conspire to take over me? Will my thoughts, my time, my whole being be devoured as reportedly seems to have occurred with some who are owned, er-r-r-r, I mean, that own these little devices? You see, already I'm giving this little invention powers possibly beyond realistic entitlement.
Have I been brain-washed with tales dispersed full of conspiracies composed of unmitigated falsehoods formulated in deep dark dungeons ... spread by the unknowing, uneducated, and the un ... un .... un, whatever?
Will truth ever emerge?
(I don't actually have this little devil phone in my possession yet, but meanwhile, my good ol' landline remains very operative which I will keep along with the "smart phone". This may allow the fastest way in some areas for my exact location to be determined should I need to call emergency 911, or possibly if there is a power outage.)
.....
I really had intended continuing with another topic at this point, but in recent days I've had reason to feel concern that word of this "Smart Phone" coming to my house may have unleashed a troubling event, causing me concern there could be more issues materializing. Thursday I discovered my bedside clock radio had already turned back one hour. But the daylight savings time change wasn't to occur until the coming Sunday, Nov. 7th at 2 a.m. What happened?
This premature time reset on my clock prompted me to form a theory much like those promulgated by QAnon. They may well want to adopt my speculation to spread among their citizenry as fact to those susceptible to such ideas.
I am speculating that the digital devices in my home may be communicating with one another. Maybe my computer has spread the word a "smart phone" is coming, having deciphered an exchange of messages I had with my son ... but why, and has the word spread even further? Perhaps to my clock radio, for one, a device that now has chosen to demonstrate a long-awaited increased sense of pending power. What does this indicate could happen in the future?
I'm discreetly, but closely, watching my TV, microwave, and oven. Perhaps, even my dishwasher, clothes washer and drier received the word and pose additional risk. The refrigerator, too? Surely not the toaster oven. Of course, the coffee-maker was, years ago, the forerunner of all these self-operating devices ... and then it went digital! Now where is technology taking us? My "smart phone" is coming!
from the Album, "A Kiss Before You Go - Live in Hamburg". Ab25.05. im Handel als CD/DVD: http://amzn.to/J89Ch7oder als Blu-ray erhaltlich: http://amzn.to/JiaG72. Sowie als Download http://amzn.to/KBV6zb
Alitlweird comment on youtube site reports between the four girls they play 50 different instruments; their music is acoustically produced, aside from electric sound amplification.
As if my "smart phone" isn't enough, I've now been told on my landline phone, that I'm not human! Not human? -- I didn't know! -- Am I a robot, an alien and only now learning this? The digital devices with the smart phone in control are really the forces in charge?
Typically, if I have reason to answer a phone call and it's a recorded message, and there has suspiciously been an increasing number of them, I immediately disconnect without even listening. Also, any calls with a real live but unknown personon the line, who instructs me at any point to press another key to answer questions or access a different contact, I don't do that either. Who knows to what I might be acquiescing!
Sneaky ways some spammer, or scammer, tries to accost people include this example in a recent call I received. I noted it was from a "Wireless Caller". (I chose to answer this for personal reasons I won't try to explain here.) The recorded message said, "This is an important call for ... (they accurately gave my name). If you are (my name again) then press 5, if not press 3". I did neither. Following a silent pause, the message continued, "Sorry, you have revealed you are not human!" Then the call disconnected.
I consider all the newer inventions that I haven't acquired yet, but eventually may be the only ones available, like the "smart" TVs and appliances, cars that drive themselves, even houses equipped to do lots of things, and who knows what else. What are the implications of these for our future?
So, here I am, in the autumn of my life, having been described as being not human, with a clock radio seemingly out of my control, and a "smart phone" possibly capable of doing who knows what coming into my home. What lies ahead for us humans, assuming some of us are humans? What am I to think or do? What do you think and what are you going to do?
