Of Blue Skies and Autumn Leaves

Of Blue Skies and Autumn Leaves

Byrichard

Today we might as well speak of blue skies and autumn leaves because that is what we’re facing. The Septemper/Autumn grey clouds, fog, and cold are not here yet. Instead we have warm sunny days. The habit of walking one and a half hours a day is perfectly safe, with such a stable weather system.


Sigg Bottles


I have two Sigg water bottles, the half litre and the one litre. For months or even a year they lied dormant due to the pandemic and attempts to clean them. I used the tablets but I didn’t like the taste so I left them aside. Yesterday or the day before I decided to take a sponge and clean the exterior and mouth of the bottles. That’s when the taste I expect from these bottles came back.


Previously I had cleaned the bottles with a brush but that didn’t work. Using a sponge did. It is something so simple, and yet I did not consider it. If you don’t like the taste of a bottle try cleaning with a sponge. My one litre bottle lives inside a neoprene sleeve so although it has been smashed about over the years it still has no scratches on it, despite hiking, climbing, via ferrata, conferences, work and more.



Forgetting to Track a Walk


Today I went through the motions of tracking the walk and I thought I had started the tracker but when I went to stop tracking as I arrived home I noticed that either I forgot, or I pressed the wrong button. Before the pandemic, and even slightly into the pandemic I would have been annoyed not to have a perfect record of my walks and activities. One and a half years into a pandemic I don’t care. I stopped using Strava because I grew tired of seeing who was ignoring common decency by not self-isolating locally.


I also do the same activities day after day, for years in a row. It isn’t interesting. There is no mystery. I also have no link with people doing group activities. People who do city things have returned to their old habits, but I see that group sports have not returned. The pandemic is still too volatile for things to be as they were.


Although I forgot to “track” my walk it is still logged as steps, heart beat and more. The effort is logged, but it’s not visual.

Of Beets, Columns of Black Smoke and Finished Books

Of Beets, Columns of Black Smoke and Finished Books

Byrichard

If you walk around at the moment you see that they have cut corn, sunflowers and beet. You also see that there are piles of beet in fields, queues of tractors waiting to send them on a train journey and more. Agriculture is busy at the moment.


Plenty of Beets
Plenty of Beets


This morning I heard quite a few sirens of emergency vehicles and as I looked out of the velux I saw a column of black smoke rising. I was curious as to its origin. I thought “Is it a car or is it a building.” It turns out that a car had decided to start burning while being driven on the motorway. I saw no mention of injuries or other. It seems a strange thing, for a car to spontaneously combust. I wonder what mistake led to the fire.


Recently I have been very good at picking up books, but terrible at actually reading them. I want that to change. There was a time when I was reading 8000 pages a year, and this year I have managed just 2900, in theory. I want that to change. I want to get into the habit of finishing books again. In 2015 I read 29, and this year I read just twelve. My reading habit has really changed since then. I took a journey back in time and read plenty of James Bond books.


I skipped recycling today because the experience of driving and shopping this morning was unpleasant. The obligations of normal life, without the rewards. Pandemic life.


See you tomorrow.

With A view of the Mont Blanc
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With A view of the Mont Blanc

Byrichard

I’m afraid to open the veluxes because of the threat of finding yet another large spider. I don’t mind having to dispose of it, but I hate the idea of having one walking around without me knowing. A great alternative to open windows is to go for your daily walk. You’re far from neighbours, from smokers, from metalworking and more. You are free to daydream. Today the Mont Blanc was clearly visible. The image is at max zoom with an iphone 8+.


A view of the Mont Blanc, as seen from Vaud


Yesterday and today the harvesters are out collecting corn and sunflowers. I captured a harvester as it dumped sunflower seeds into a trailer before moving on to finish the field. It is a shame to miss it at work.


A combine harvester unloading Sunflower seeds
A combine harvester unloading Sunflower seeds


What I Am In The Process Of Learning


Today I got a step closer to being able to control WordPress more proficiently than I can at the moment. With hierarchies related to taxonomies via specialist post creation. Coding your own post types and your own taxonomies gives you enormous control over what you can do with WordPress. I have projects. I know how I want to use this newly acquired knowledge.


This website will be overhauled. The static part will be moved into the CMS, and the CMS will behave, as the old website did, but with ease of new post creation and more. The challenge is in updating to new technologies, and using this process as a learning and consolidation phase, as I did with CSS and other technologies over the years and decades.



I don’t feel comfortable writing about my trials and tribulations on Linkedin because it feels as though you need to be at your peak, rather than as a between achievements point. With the blog, I can document the learning curve, and the progress I make as I work towards acquiring new skills, in my efforts to build a different career path than the things I have done so far. I also have a project to work on in my free time, aside from the website. The second project is ambitious, and useful. You will learn more, as I get ready to reveal more.


Broken Stones, Good Weather and Autumn

Broken Stones, Good Weather and Autumn

Byrichard

Today as I looked at the ground I saw broken stones. The one in the image below is especially beautiful. I don’t know why there were more broken stones than usual. It seems that the conditions were right to bring the stones to the surface and for the farmers’ machinery to break them all to pieces. It’s impressive to see the size of some of the broken stones.


Plenty of broken stones
Plenty of broken stones


The leaves have started to turn, as various plants give up on feeding their leaves. They are turning from green to orange, yellow and red. The temperature is comfortable for us, humans, but nature knows. I also looked out of a window earlier and I saw plenty of birds and insects flying around. I don’t know why there were so many insects. Birds were happy to have so much food.


Leaves on a wall starting to change colour.


In a shopping centre I saw that you could buy Raclette sets that use tea candles to melt cheeese and I found the idea interesting. Today I googled these things and I finally bought one. For 20 CHF there is little risk. The advantage is that once you have one of these you can have an instant and easy meal. Buy the right cheese, a little pepper and you’re ready.


View of the Lake
View of the Lake


And Finally


I still have not used YouTube. I used to spend two to three hours a day watching content on YouTube because I liked what I saw but recently I have felt that the sensationalism and ability to put up with rubbish is to a high a price to pay for using the network.


I did consider using Vimeo because this is a network by people with a passion for the art of video, film and cinema, rather than just a suplemental income. The one drawback is that this content requires focus, attention, and a certain amount of concentration. It feels more like studying than relaxation. I also haven’t found the content I want to watch yet.


A River Runs Dry, Wood builds a Natural Dam and Corn Grows Eratically.

A River Runs Dry, Wood builds a Natural Dam and Corn Grows Eratically.

Byrichard

When rain becomes a treat you get used to looking at rivers that are running drier and drier with every passing day. The river pictured below is so low that you see the river bed in many parts. It’s a meter or more below it’s usual level. Imagine being a weather forecaster during a drought. Today it will be dry and sunny, as it has been for a few seasons.



In periods of heavy rain the water reaches to the tree roots currently covered in moss. At the moment they are high and dry. In another part of Switzerland some people decided to empty a pool into a local river. It didn’t explain why or how. The water was chlorinated and it caused fish in the river to die and they will now be fined.


One of the consequences of the lack of rain is that branches and logs that fall into a river bed have a tendency to accumulate for months at a time. When the rains finally come they serve as a means of transporting all that wood down the river until it gets blocked. As in the example below we see that two or more logs that got jammed across the river blocked smaller branches and detritus from getting by. They piled up and now we have the natural wood dam/mess.


River built dam
River built dam


Over my walks I have looked at corn, out of curiousity and for a long time everything looks normal, until one day you come across the condition we see below. This is called Corn Smut apparantly. scroll down that page. There are plenty of interesting names for corn ailments.


Corn smut
corn smut


When you go on your daily walks look around you. See what unusual things you spot, and document or take note of them when you do. Nature is interesting. Keep attentive.

Water bottles and Oxydation

Water bottles and Oxydation

Byrichard

I often hiked with a Sigg one litre water bottle and it has served me well. It has been with me for rock climbing, via ferrata, hiking and more. I like it because it is light, easy to use and maintain. I liked the one litre version enough to get a smaller 600ml version for conferences and work.


Recently I noticed that the mouth of both bottles seems slightly discouloured. I don’t know whether they’re chipped or whether it’s oxydation from sitting around for so many months during the pandemic. I will probably still use them, once the world decides that Zero-Covid is the right strategy.


My other solution was a 750ml camelbak waterbottle and I find that this is a good solution too. I found that it was too large for home use, and everyday use so I’m now playing with a 600 ml water bottle and I prefer this form factor. It’s better for carrying on daily walks.


When I was studying about water filtering solutions I often came across the mention of nalgene bottles and after over a year of hearing about them, but having no curiousity in them I bought one a few days ago. I like that it has a graduated system on the side although I don’t usually need to ration water.


The wide mouth and it’s cap are suboptimal for drinking, especially if you’re walking. The advantage of nalgene wide mouths is that they helped to set the standard, at least according to one or two articles I read. This means that you can take most camelbak tops and put it on a nalgene bottle and vice versa. This increases drinking comfort.


There is no need to buy specialist tools or brushes, or cleaning tablettes etc.



Learning Node.JS and Bullet Journaling

Learning Node.JS and Bullet Journaling

Byrichard

For a while I have wanted to learn Angular, Laravel and other frameworks but I felt overwhelmed so I decided to learn JavaScript but then I found that I had gaps in my knowledge too, so I went over to Node.js. Now I feel that I am starting to understand more. I understand the context better. I understand the underlying code better. I have spent enough time studying around the subject that I have gained the contextual understanding not to be completely lost.


With HTML and other technologies you can build and fail, and build again and fail, and eventually you will get what you want. With Javasscript, and to some degree with CSS too, you need to understand what you’re doing to see a result. You need to find code, tinker with it, and get it to do what you want. It takes trial and error, and hours of experimenting in some cases.


That’s why you watch courses. With courses you have it explained to you. You then try to copy the code without inserting errors, and then you debug until you have found all the typos. Plenty of people will say that you’re not meant to just copy code. My aim, in having examples explained to me, is to gain a contextual understanding of how to do things, and how they work. The aim is to become self-sufficient enough to write my own functions and applications.


Bullet Journaling


I have known about Bullet Journalling for years but I have had no or little interest in it because it seemed like an archaic way of keeping track of tasks, projects and more. Yesterday my curiousity was woken again so I have decided to play with the concept. I am using an old notebook that I have had for years. I have until January to see if I like the idea or not. I want to see whether it has a positive effect on how I get on with projects.


I will write more, when I have more experience.

Lopsided

Lopsided

Byrichard

Flowers, a bale of Hay, and a road less travelled.


I am using the Trevolution Ultralight Daypack at the moment. It weighs 120 grams and folds small enough to fit in a jeans or jacket pocket for when you’re not using it. It also has a volume of 21 litres but I would not use it to carry 20 litres or kilos. It has no zips or moving parts. It has two side pockets, one for a water container, and the second for the phone charger. The main pocket is accessed through the top and uses a folding system. You fold at least three times and then cloes the clips.


It also has zip cord at the front for a helmet or other voluminous object you might want to carry. I walk every day so it’s nice to have a light bag that you can forget you’re carrying. It’s also nice to have the flexibility to fold it away and forget about it until you need it.


Your first thought when you see the image is that it was taken at an angle, clumsily, and without any attention. In reality it’s the hay bale that was placed in the wrong place and rolled down to hit a pole.


The weather was good today. It was warm, it was dry. It felt like a summer’s afternoon or evening, as is clearly evidenced by how many people are out doing things in the evenings. It is a great day to spend time outdoors.


Today I experimented with the Camelbak chute system to see how it differed from the Eddy+. The two differences are that


A)It’s half the price


B)It’s a very quick system for drinking


If water is plentiful then the chute is good, but if you’re trying to conserve water try the Chute system.

A Tractor Ploughing A Dry Field in Switzerland

A Tractor Ploughing A Dry Field in Switzerland

Byrichard

Today a tractor was ploughing a dry field. A cloud of dust was not that visible but you can see that rain would now be welcome. I walked by the usual river and looked down and the rocks in the riverbed are uncovered. There is no water running over them anymore. I notied that in another field pumpkins seem to be ready.


A dry Field In Switzerland
A dry Field In Switzerland


https://twitter.com/meteosuisse/status/1432303148119560193
Lack of rainfall in August


MétéoSuisse note encore qu’après les deux mois d’été très humides de juin et juillet, des précipitations inférieures à la moyenne ont été enregistrées dans la plupart des régions de Suisse en août

Météo – Un mois d’août plus frais mais avec moins de pluie – 20 minutes


Years ago I used to use weather apps to see when it would rain and I would even do things extra early to avoid being caught by the rain. Now I use weather apps for the opposite. Now I even consider driving to somewhere where I could be caught by the rain. I am bored of never seeing rain. I like rain. I like the sound. I like the smell, I like that it cleans everything. I also like that being indoors when it’s raining feels cosy.


Rain would also break the monotony of being able to go for a walk every single day without questioning whether the weather the weather is good enough. The weather is always good enough. The weather is so good that rivers are running dry. The climate has changed.


For several weeks I did not touch YouTube and as I have time to spend time there again I found that I am repulsed and don’t want to use the service anymore. Between the sensationalist content that is pushed on us, the non stop adverts and a general feeling of malaise the site is one I think I should now avoid. Its golden age is over, and now it’s time for it to become Yahoo or flickr.

Signs of Drought

Signs of Drought

Byrichard

Today as I walked I could see clear evidence that Switzerland is now dry. As you walk by the side of the road you see that it is yellow, and that there is no growth. Crops are withering away and water gauges are now filling with dust, rather than rain.


We now go for weeks without rain. If I wanted to pick up the soil it would crumble in my hands and blow away as dust. I see that one of the local rivers is drying up again.


  • A dry water meter
    A dry water meter – There is very little rain
  • View of Grass and the Alps
    View of Grass and the Alps
  • Dry grass by the river side
    Dry grass by the river side
  • Dry grass by the river side
    Dry grass by the river side


La Suisse bientot à court d’eau


Malgré la pluie, la forêt valaisanne est déjà en danger d’incendie