At the start of winter in 2020, my mailbox got hit by the snow plow. I kept it going for the winter by pounding in a safety fence post and then zip-tying the wooden mailbox post to the metal fence post. You can also see that the curb and part of the street here has been repaired from past years’ snow-plow shenanigans.

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For the 2nd year in a row, I coerced my family to participate in a Parks & Recreation ice fishing event on MLK Day. It coincides with the Minnesota DNR’s annual free family ice fishing weekend. The Fridley Parks & Recreation event was hosted by Fishing for All. For $5 I don’t think you can beat it.

While I do enjoy fishing, ice fishing has never been my jam. But this was so fun and easy that it even made me think twice about getting some ice fishing gear…

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The weekend of WordCamp US 2022, I took Sunday off to attend another event happening in San Diego that weekend: Fully Charged Live. Fully Charged is a YouTube show that centers around electric vehicles, but it’s really about electrification of everything. In the same vein, the show had a plethora of electric cars, but it had a lot more: electric motorcycles, bikes, skateboards, and one wheels. Also there was a lot of information about non-transport related electrification, such as efficiency in your home. One suggestion: try a portable induction cooktop to see if you like it.

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Before we get into Mixer Hell I want to talk about what is currently consuming my life: MBI Winds. It’s a brand new WGI Winds ensemble put on by Minnesota Brass – sort of like an indoor marching band, but just the horn line. Our first contest is in one month and we still have open positions for flute, clarinet, saxophone, baritone & tuba. Here’s more about our 2023 program and how to join: https://mnbrass.org/2022/11/2023-winds-show-announcement/

For this new ensemble we have audio equipment (computer, mixer, powered speakers) that are used for our backing track – non-winds sounds and percussion. Since this is a new ensemble with a limited budget, I took the approach to beg & borrow as much equipment as possible.

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The other day I was at a stop light next to a hopped up Civic with a fart-can exhaust pipe. I got to wondering if the Bolt was faster than a Civic Si. I did some research and the answer is yes (depending on the year & trim).

The Chevy Bolt clocks in at 0-60 mph in 6.4 seconds, and a quarter mile in 14.9. My old WRX could run the 1320 (1/4 mile) in 14.3 seconds. But as you can see, the Bolt is no slouch and it’s in pretty good company with some cars that people would associate as sporty:

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