REFLECTIONS

Corroded It fits right under the ice cube/water dispenser. It's where you place your glass to fill it with ice cubs or water. I soaked it in vinegar overnight. It's clean but the finish is partly gone. It still looks bad. I phoned GE for a replacement and the price for a new tray is $60.02! 😧  What? They offered me a special deal price of $49.41.❌ I'm not sure what to do next. At Loews they had nothing to replace it.  I'm thinking of going to Hobby Lobby to see if they have any ideas.  Maybe they haves some sort of silver waterproof paint that will stick to plastic. After spending all that money on the refrigerator you'd think they'd use metal, not plastic. Have any of you had a similar problem? Do you have any ideas?

I think pistachio ice cream tastes a lot like almonds.  Even so I like the flavor and chewing on the pistachios. Do you taste the almond flavor? I wonder how it would taste with only pistachios. It does have almond extract in it. Here's a recipe: Pistachio Ice Cream recipe | Epicurious.com From the website:

This video is 20 minutes long but in my opinion well worth the time.  It has some detailed reasons that make sense, more than just a taste for a certain style. The TRUTH Why Modern Music Is Awful

This is a "free" photo editing program but as usual some of the features are not free. Hopefully I'll only need the free ones. Sorry I haven't been posting recently. I'm just too tired. I'm seeing my family doctor on Wednesday. Blood work should help determine the cause. Looks too good to be true doesn't it? Hopefully any advertisements should cover it. Ill be surprised if most of theses features don't cost something. Nothing is truly free. Everyone needs income. 

Last week I posted about the symbols used for washing clothes, Laundry Symbols".  Now I found some symbols used by hobos. For me these symbols are difficult to understand but the descriptions are great.  Their lifestyle is so interesting. Try a full screen and louder. I had to put it on maximum sound level. You can turn down the sound level for this one!

I never knew there was a different type of keyboard like DVORAK instead of QWERTY (named after the first six letters on the left of the first row) , at least not in English or similar languages. Chinese has a modified QWERTY keyboard something like: Or maybe this keyboard below is purely Chinese: Back to English:  The video below explains why the QWERTY keyboard is used almost 100% today and some future possibilities.  Not changing my keyboard, it's not worth the effort for me .

I found this article and short video about Roman concrete that I'd like to share. Modern Concrete Ancient Roman Concrete From article:    Ancient Rome Concrete Mystery Solved by Scientists | Time Modern cement mixtures tend to erode, particularly in the presence of seawater, but the Roman recipe of volcanic ash, lime, seawater and a mineral called aluminium tobermorite actually reinforces the concrete and prevents cracks from expanding, researchers found. The reaction was caused by the seawater continually ramming into the structures for hundreds of years, allowing the mineral mixture of silica oxides and lime to grow between the volcanic rock aggregate and mortar to develop resistance. “Contrary to the principles of modern cement-based concrete, the Romans created a rock-like concrete that thrives in open chemical exchange with seawater,” lead author Marie Jackson from the University of Utah said in the journal.

Notice how the narrator's pronunciation changes as the video plays. What do you think? I couldn't download the video but here is the link What If English Were Phonetically Consistent? : videos  

I'm scheduled to take another EEG exam for three days.  I'll have the electrodes put in tomorrow, wear them all weekend, then have them removed on Monday.  I will go home wearing the wires on my head. It's not painful, just annoying.    This weekend I'll keep learning how to use the new iPhone I just bought.  My flip-phone would not recharge. This is the second flip-phone I've had that did this.  Besides, it was time for me to finally get a "smart phone".  Kidding around I used to call my old phone a "dumb phone" because all it could do was to make and receive calls and text.  It was easy with almost nothing to learn about using it.  The EEG will be checking all the areas of my brain.  I must be in there somewhere. Maybe the combination of all the functioning areas make up a soul. Maybe the soul just goes for a ride in the body, like a person riding in a car. Who knows for sure. It would be great for me to have more faith in God and a me

I always liked chess openings, looking for the perfect opening which would guarantee a win.  But there is no such opening. At best they only have small advantages, especially if your opponent is not familiar with the one you use. I rarely play. When I do it's against my computer, maybe once every few months. I'm not sure why but I've lost interest in it. I love the shapes of the pieces.  Maybe if there was more luck involved, like in a card game or Bingo, I might enjoy it more.  It would be less serious.  Maybe there's a chess game variation that uses dice somehow to increase the luck involved. "Invented in India in the fifth century, it was named “Chaturanga” and this is likely one of the oldest games of our era. the game then spread to Persia. When the Arabs conquered Persia, chess was taken up by the Muslim world and subsequently spread to Southern Europe. In Europe, chess evolved into roughly its current form in the 15th century. The game was develop

I have a problem this week about my hot water smelling like rotten eggs.  Not all my hot water from the faucets smells bad. It's mostly in one of the bathrooms. The cold water is not affected so I know it's the hot water heater. Hydrogen Sulfide Luckily I bought a warranty. the water heater should be repaired or replaced later this month.  Here's a video about what I believe is the problem.

Just curious as to why it's called America even though he was not the first to visit.  I believe the Vikings were earlier and then Columbus.  It may be that he got things rolling with his explorations. Like in the above engraving, he "woke up" America. I'm finally back to blogging again.  I missed it.  It was over six weeks that I spent time in a hospital and then a rehab center, not for drugs or alcohol but for my neuromuscular disease flare up; my CIDP (Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Ployneuropathy).  I had episodes of wooziness, falling and violent vomiting. Six ambulance rides to the ER for hitting my head after a fall. I don't think it had anything to do with seizures but I'm not sure.  There are much worse things that could have happened so I can't really feel sorry for myself. Amerigo Vespucci, I wonder why it was not named "Vespuccia".  Was Amerigo his last name? He demonstrated that the New World was not part of

NATIONAL PRETZEL DAY "National Pretzel Day is observed annually on April 26.  A bag of nice crunchy, salty pretzels or a big, warm, soft, cinnamon pretzel is the question of the day.  Either one is an excellent choice. There are a few different accounts of the origin of the pretzel.  Most people agree that it does have a Christian background, and they were developed by the monks.  According to  The History of Science and Technology , in 610 AD, “an Italian monk invents pretzels as a reward to children who learn their prayers.  He calls the strips of baked dough, folded to resemble arms crossing the chest,  pretiola  (little rewards).” Another source puts the invention in a monastery in southern France. The looped pretzel may also be related to a Greek Ring bread from the communion bread used in monasteries a thousand years ago.  In the Catholic Church, pretzels had a religious significance for both ingredients and shape. The loops in pretzel may have served a practical

A comparison of what is practical and what I can afford vs a luxurious waste of money.  I'm not that rich but completely happy with what I have.   Much of the manufacturing of their pens is done in Italy. "Is available for purchase as a Group Buy" (= on sale?)  $1, 341.00 Germany for sterling silver and other metal pens. Depending on the work required, however, specific work will be done where the best skills are available. For example a number of the pens have painting work done by craftsmen in Russia. Here's a link to their home page: Krone | Luxury Pens and Timepieces (also other videos) This is more my style.

It is not clear how this day got started, but who can resist the idea of celebrating National Meatball Day?  There are many different ways to celebrate meatballs: Spaghetti and meatballs Swedish Meatballs Meatball Sub Meatball Pizza Turkey Meatballs Lamb Meatballs Porcupine Meatballs (made with rice) and the list goes on and on. There is a restaurant in New York that has 54 different kinds of meatballs.  Not only do meatballs allow for variety, but they move from appetizer to side dish to the main dish quite easily.  Meatballs can be made the night before and put in the crockpot, or days before and kept in the freezer.    HOW TO OBSERVE To celebrate, some restaurants give a free side order of meatballs, while others are donating money to homeless shelters. Cook yourself up your favorite meatballs or go out and order some from a restaurant near you! Use #NationalMeatballDay to share on social media.   HISTORY Within our research, we were unable to identify the cre

NATIONAL PIZZA DAY "National Pizza Day is observed annually on February 9th.  Whether it is thin crust, Chicago-style, deep dish or anything in between, pizza is an American favorite. Here are some interesting facts about pizza: Pepperoni is the most popular pizza at 36% of all pies ordered. Over 3 billion pizzas are sold in the USA each year.  Add another 1 billion on frozen pizzas 17% of all US Restaurants are pizzerias.  Antica Pizzeria, the first Pizzeria, opened in Naples, Italy, in 1738.  Gennaro Lombardi, the first Pizzeria in the United States, opened in 1895 in New York City. Americans consume on average 23 pounds of pizza per person each year." From: NATIONAL PIZZA DAY – February 9 | National Day Calendar

For a long time I've been having trouble pumping gas in both my cars, Chrysler Concord 2001 and  Toyota Camry 2003.  At first I thought it was the gas stations' fault.  It gradually became worse. I finally tried asking my mechanic. He suggested that it may be a problem with the vent by the gas tank being clogged.  By forcing air through a hose it may become unclogged.  It's not expensive except if a part needs to be replaced. Here's a better explanation: "There's a problem with the Onboard Refueling Vapor Recovery system. As you fill the gas tank, the gas vapors are supposed to be forced thru the carbon canister in the EVAP system before the gas tank is allowed to vent back into the atmosphere. If there's restriction in the ORVR system the gas tank can't vent and this causes the pump to shut off. Have someone check all the hoses in the EVAP system for a restriction. Did you know spider egg sacs can cause this problem? Tester"

I needed information about using the remote control to the speaker upgrade for my new TV.  I could not find it in the papers that came with it. After consulting the site I copied the information I needed. This was just what I needed. I think they make money from advertising somehow. Here's the site: ManualsLib - Makes it easy to find manuals online!

NATIONAL PHARMACIST DAY "National Pharmacist Day is observed annually on January 12.  This day has been set aside to recognize and honor all pharmacists across the nation. The role of pharmacists over the years has shifted from the classical “lick, stick and pour” dispensary role to being an integrated member of the health care team directly involved in patient care. After mastering biochemical mechanisms of action of drugs, physiology, and pathophysiology, pharmacists interpret and communicate their specialized knowledge to patients, physicians, and other healthcare providers. Historically, the primary role of a pharmacist was to check and distribute drugs to doctors for a patient prescribed medication.  In modern times, pharmacists advise patients and health care providers on the selection, dosages, interactions and the side effects of prescriptions, along with having the role as a learned intermediary between a prescriber and a patient.  Monitoring the health and progr

Happy New Year! In ancient Roman religion and myth, Janus is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces, since he looks to the future and to the past.  -from Wikipedia I believe the sickle symbolizes the death of the old year.