My sister couldn't sleep last night.

MyEverettNews.com started received messages early this morning about super loud horn or siren that was keeping folks awake on the hottest night of the year. The sound was thought to be coming somewhere from the waterfront.

We checked with the Port of Everett this morning and they issued the following apology…

Neighbors:

We apologize for the prolonged horn noise at the Port last night. One of our customers has been doing some finishing work on a new ocean-going tug boat, and the horn malfunctioned. Our customer has assured us they have remedied the issue.

Please accept our sincere apologies on the noise, the time it took to figure out how to turn off the horn and the fact that it happened on the hottest day of the year so far.

Sincerely,

Les Reardanz

CEO Port of Everett

So there is your answer. Glad we could help. Were gonna go take a nap now.

Via MyEverettNews Read the rest

Electronic Football is the only sportsball I've ever liked! This remake is pretty great!

The sounds, controls and rinky-dink electronic screen are back! I am sure I remember there being some kind of passing game in the original, but this running game kept me busy for an hour or so.

Relive the virtual excitement!

Classic Football Electronic Game via Amazon Read the rest

Nothing says MOTORCYCLE SAFETY like the Rockford files theme and a British accent. Read the rest

This stand stops my spool of kitchen twine from rolling off the counter.

Years ago I bought a loose spool of kitchen twine. My cat constantly knocks it off the counter. I finally finished that spool, and replaced it with this spool on a stand!

Seriously a spool of thread lasts so long that I want a stand for it. I like to keep it on the counter, and not in a drawer. I do not like it on the floor. I don't like it rolling around.

Thoughtfully, this stand even has a string cutter on top!

Regency Cooking Butcher's Twine on Handy Dispenser with Cutter for Meat Prep and Trussing Turkey via Amazon Read the rest

During a concert, this June, someone at Berkeley, CA's Greek Theater called out "FREE BIRD!" Naturally, rock and roll legend Bob Dylan obliged. Read the rest

Evidently you can be full of the wrong shit. A cyclist, by testing her friends fecal output, determined she needed better critters up in herself to improve her pedal pushing. So she did.

The madwoman behind “poop doping” is Lauren Petersen, a postdoctoral microbiologist at the Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine. Petersen has been racing bikes all her life, but as she told The Scientist earlier this month, she’s struggled with chronic Lyme disease since her teen years. She finally rid herself of the disease in 2013, but the intense course of antibiotics she took had ravaged her system and left her with chronic fatigue and stomach problems.

Eventually, she learned that her microbiome (the colony of microbes in her body) was dangerously unbalanced and was not functioning as it should. She was not breaking down any food, and she learned that she was not eligible for a potentially beneficial fecal transplant. So she simply did one herself. As she said, it was a fairly dangerous DIY procedure and it wasn’t fun, but it worked better than she thought it could:

In February 2014, with the support of her family, she recruited a donor and did it herself. “I just did it at home. It’s not fun, but it’s pretty basic. It costs like six bucks to do.” (The $6 being for the drugstore enema kit.) The do-it-yourself solution worked. “Within two months I was a new person,” Petersen says. “I had no more fatigue. I could ride my bike hard three days in a row, no problem.” She started racing four months after her fecal transplant, and was winning races at the pro level soon after that.

Read the rest

Holy cow! How did the motorcycle stay up?! Read the rest

Ethically challenged former US Congressperson Newt Gingrich has proclaimed Donald Trump a liar. Gingrich claims there are no tapes of Trump strong-arming former FBI Director James Comey, it was an uncalculated bluff.

President Trump is supposed to reveal this week, six weeks after making the initial suggestion, whether he actually has tapes of his White House conversations. Trump last month wielded those potential tapes as a very thinly veiled threat against former FBI director James B. Comey. And ever since then, he and the White House have decided to withhold the truth from the American people, refusing to answer a simple yes-or-no question.

But Newt Gingrich just gave away the game, for all intents and purposes. In an interview with the Associated Press, the Trump-backing former House speaker basically admits that Trump was just bluffing to try to get inside Comey's head.

“I think he was in his way instinctively trying to rattle Comey,” Gingrich said. “He's not a professional politician. He doesn't come back and think about Nixon and Watergate. His instinct is: 'I'll outbluff you.'”

Apparently not being a “professional politician” is a license for dishonesty.

Via WaPo Read the rest

Amazon offers this heavy plastic bag with a locking seal to let you use your phone in the water. Ziploc has long been my favorite beach case for my phone and kindle, wonder how they compare?

This less than $3.00 plastic bag does a great job of keeping the sand and sea water off (or out) of my iPhone 7+. You can easily use the touch screen through the clear rubber surface, and take photos through the material.

Alternatively, there is another better-known brand of plastic, well sealing bag that has served me well for years: the Ziploc Freezer Bag! I use them for sous vide, kids lunches, throwing crap in the freezer, and reading my kindle in a hot tub.

Comparatively, the AmazonBasics is purpose built and will take more impact and abrasion than a Ziploc. The Amazon also has a handy lanyard, the only way I know of affixing the Ziploc to me is duct tape (duct people, duct.) I think the Ziploc freezer bag more reliably activates the button-less haptic button on my iPhone 7+, however.

The price seems to float around on the Amazon bag. For $3 it is worth having around if you are going to spend a lot of time at the pool or beach.

AmazonBasics Universal Waterproof Smartphone Pouch

Ziploc Freezer Bag, Gallon, 28 Count via Amazon Read the rest

I am very happy with the solar power solution I've adapted for my van camping needs. I can power all my toys! Read the rest

My daughter built The Phantom. I wanted the Chopper and Grand Admiral Thrawn minifigs, (Kanan is ok too.)

She had a great time building the set in an afternoon. The laser canon work and the projectiles sting a little. The minifigs are delightful.

LEGO Star Wars The Phantom 75170 Building Kit (269 Pieces) via Amazon Read the rest

It is really easy to affix a camera to any foam board these days! This video was quite literally our first wave.

I'm using these stab-through-the-board style GoPro mounts.

Choose a location on top of the board where you want the camera. It is likely far more interesting to have the camera facing you in its default, and most secure position. If you want other angles, You can use the myriad go-pro and tripod mount adaptors to work it out. Remember the mount is designed with foam cutting blades that'll hold it steady in the board while you rush down the faces of awesome waves. Pushing it into place will permanently scar the board, so removing the mount is a bad idea. Installing is a 1-time thing, so get it right.

You'll need a large diameter, Phillips head screwdriver, and a quarter. Again, installing one of these is a breeze if you give it a little bit of thought. Not thinking may result in ruining the board. If your board has a slick, laminated on kevlar/plastic type bottom and not exposed foam in a net style material, make sure to puncture the board THROUGH that layer (in the bottom and out the top,) because puncturing from the other direction will tear that layer loose. You MUST puncture a hole where you want to insert the mount to a) start the process and b) leave a clear channel for screwing the thing together.

Insert the top piece with some force, centering the piece over the starter hole. Read the rest

My daughter has long hair. This cheap drain snake has cleared a number of plugged bathroom sinks, and our tub. The snake drags out a lot of hair. Perhaps because it is so "supple."

When it is the kitchen sink, and dishwasher, that aren't clearing however, you may need to call a plumber. :(

Vastar 3 Pack 19.6 Inch Drain Snake Hair Drain Clog Remover Cleaning Tool via Amazon Read the rest

Guess how I'm spending Saturday morning? This bicycle chain tool works for both my road bike and my mountain bike that loves to break its chain.

Oumers Universal Bike Chain Tool With Chain Hook via Amazon Read the rest

Next to my trusted Wagner #9 skillet no other single kitchen tool gets as much use as my ChefSteps Joule. Not even my chef's knife. Read the rest

Celebrate the life and works of James Joyce, at the Hammer Museum, tonight at 7:30pm. Admission is free!

“The stirring live readings from the book—presented by a cavalcade of dramatic actors in the museum’s Billy Wilder Theater—is most certainly gratis, and most certainly glorious.” —Alysia Gray Painter, NBC LA The Hammer’s eighth annual Bloomsday celebration features a staged reading of James Joyce’s only play, The Exiles, drawn from his short story “The Dead.” Followed by live music by Rattle the Knee, Guinness on tap, and Irish snacks available in the courtyard.

Bloomsday at the Hammer, 2017 Read the rest

A driver on California's 210 freeway attempted to block and scare motorcyclists out of lanesplitting. Read the rest