Rob Fahrni

Seems like a good fit, right?

At least Priss thinks so. 😃

Two doctors visits today, one for the PE last Friday, and one knee post-op.

The PE has been gone since Friday when it occurred. So I’m good on that front.

The knee is doing really well and I was able to get my staples out. That felt amazing!

All in all I feel really great and I’m excited about where I’ll be in four more weeks, but for now, I’m exhausted. I’ve walked more today than all PT days combined, which is really encouraging, but I am definitely pooped out.

Shhhh-thump, shhhh-thump, shhhh-thump, there’s that sound again. I hear it above me in the attic and always, I mean always, at 5:30AM on the dot.

We moved into our beautiful old home 23 days ago and I’m more than a little freaked out by it but too afraid to go look in the attic. I’ve dragged Mom and Dad in here a couple times and they don’t hear a darned thing. Old ears I guess.

More later.

Well, mystery solved. We have a ghost. No, I’m not kidding, we have a bonafide ghost living in our house. A ghost who likes to wake up at 5:30AM. This time doesn’t work for me, BTW.

When the sounds started this morning I was ready. I grabbed my flashlight, walked to the end of the hall to the door leading to the attic, took a deep breath, and opened the door. I was in the right place, the shhhh-thump sound was growing louder.

I walked up the stairs and peeked over the place where the hand rail meets the attic floor. There he was, sure as shit, an old man making his way to the corner of the room, his walker in front of him, shhhh-thump, shhhh-thump, shhhh-thump.

I took a deep breath and finished off the final few steps, and said “Hello.”

The old man stopped, turned around, smiled at me, and asked if I’d like to join him for his morning coffee. I accepted.

We sat around the old two top we found in the attic the day we arrived. He’s a happy old fart. He talked about his undying love for his wife, Lois, and how they enjoyed each other’s company, over coffee, at 5:30AM every morning, rain or shine.

Eventually I had to politely dismiss myself, school and all that. It’s nice to have a new friend and, at the same time, understand why every morning at 5:30AM I hear shhhh-thump, shhhh-thump, shhhh-thump.

Maybe I can get some earplugs?

Oh, the old man’s name is Julius. I hope to have coffee with him again soon.

It’s early in the Fahrni household as I’m composing this post. I’ve been waking up fairly early since the knee surgery and this morning is no exception.

Overall things have been moving in the right direction. My movement is definitely improving and my pain levels are way, way, down.

Since I’ve become more mobile I was able to make coffee on my own this morning with the aid of my walker. There has to be a good old man with walker joke in there somewhere. 👨🏼‍🦳

CNN: ”The Justice Department removed 11 sets of classified documents from former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence while executing a search warrant this week for possible violations of the Espionage Act and other crimes, according to court documents unsealed and released on Friday.”

Of course TFG will get off without so much as a scratch. My faith in our democratic institutions is waning. I fear future historians — if they’re allowed to exist — will struggle to understand how we could piss it all away.

MotorTrend: ”Out of the 8.9 million barrels of gasoline consumed daily in the U.S. on average, only 1.8 million gallons, or approximately 20 percent, actually propel an internal combustion vehicle forward. The other 80 percent is wasted on heat and parasitic auxiliary components that draw away energy. As the world begins its shift to EV proliferation, the good news is electric vehicles are far more energy efficient on the road.”

On a positive note, EV’s are good! YAY! 🥳

Would I like to have one? Yep, I certainly would. I’m very cheap when it comes to cars so I’ll be waiting for the prices to drop dramatically before considering purchase of one.

Eventually we’ll have one.

The Verge: ”Last week, California’s DMV accused Tesla of falsely advertising its Autopilot and FSD features, alleging that the company made ‘untrue or misleading’ claims about its vehicles’ autonomous driving capabilities. The DMV’s action could result in the suspension of Tesla’s licenses to produce and sell cars in California, but the agency may not go that far.”

Speaking of electric vehicles. It seems Tesla is finally receiving the scrutiny they need to make their cars safer.

This curmudgeon believes Full Self Driving care are a pipe dream without full infrastructure support. That means roads should know to support cars with self driving capacity. Two way, active, communication.

Felix Krause: ”The iOS Instagram and Facebook app render all third party links and ads within their app using a custom in-app browser. This causes various risks for the user, with the host app being able to track every single interaction with external websites, from all form inputs like passwords and addresses, to every single tap.”

Meta(Facebook), what a scumbag company.

They need that user data so badly they implemented their own browser code. Of course if you open pages using the external browser, Safari, this scummy practice doesn’t work.

More like this. https://t.co/twq2zcTgL8

— Derek Powazek (@fraying) August 11, 2022

I really hope Beto O’Rourke can pull a rabbit out of a hat and win the Texas Gubernatorial election this year.

I know some folks needed their fainting couches when they heard someone say “motherf*cker”, but don’t say a word when there is a mass murder in their state.

To me this says we have a man, a very serious man, trying to solve serious problems against the backdrop of extremism.

Dropping a curse word in the proper context can drive home a point.

It was perfect.

Variety: ”Disney has set pricing and date for the U.S. launch of the version of Disney+ with ads, while also hiking the monthly price of the Disney+ tier with no ads. It’s also going to raise rates for Hulu — both ad-supported and ad-free versions — and introduce new Disney Bundle options.”

Well it continues to look like all that cheap, awesome, streaming is finally coming to an end. I can’t blame these companies for ratcheting up prices and offering an ad supported tier.

I know we’ve had many discussions about which service(s) to drop and Disney+ seems to be a lock because of the grandkids. 😄

This is a landmark event in 1Password history: The first time we’ve ever shipped both our iOS and Android apps on the same date with complete feature parity between them. It’s been a massive lift by our teams, and I couldn’t be prouder.

— Michael Fey (@MrRooni) August 9, 2022

Congratulations to the entire 1Password team. What a huge milestone!

It’s so satisfying to ship a new product. I haven’t installed it yet, but most certainly will at some point. It is a really spectacular service and worth checking out if you need password management for your family and/or multi platform password management.

Ars Technica: ”With Tesla stock on a rebound, Musk has just sold $6.9 billion worth of shares in his electric car company, a move disclosed in regulatory filings on Tuesday. Musk got an average of $869 for the shares, which is significantly more than the $628 that TSLA shares were trading at in late May.”

Gotta get those billions somewhere to pay that big Twitter $54.20 per share price tag later in the year.

Also, Mr. Musk, I still have the perfect domain for you.

I hope your enjoyed your coffee and the links. ☕️

Got my VAC bandage off today, managed to get a before and after shot. There are 28 staples in the incision.

I’m very emotional this morning thinking about my loved ones who’ve been caring for me. They’ve definitely taken a load off my back so I can focus on healing.

I am forever grateful. 🧡

I must admit I’ve not been good about doing my physical therapy homework. For past surgeries I was very diligent about doing what I was asked because I knew it was my quickest way to healing and feeling normal.

This time around is a different story. I lack the mental strength to cope with the pain involved. Prior to surgery I had times where I could not escape the pain in my knee. It’s wearing both physically and mentally. After surgery even though I feel pain in my comfortable position it’s nowhere near some of my more severe pre-op pain and I just don’t want to be in pain any longer.

The reality is, of course, that I have a long way to go and I am going to have pain. Just finding a way to cope, that mental toughness, has been extremely difficult this time around.

Have I regretted the surgery? Nope. It was absolutely the right thing to do. I know this is part of the healing process and one day I will be better than I was before surgery and that’s very encouraging.

My lovely wife made me a mocha to go with composing this weeks post. That combined with oxycodone, ice, and elevation are doing their job. I can focus well enough to get this done. 🤞🏼

Shelly Rosen: ”The way Google’s two-factor authentication system is designed, sets up poor and elderly people to be locked out of their accounts again and again, and without access to their email, they lose their welfare benefits, their housing, and struggle to find work.”

I’m not sure what Google can do to fix this extremely important problem. Take some time to read Ms. Rosen’s letter it lays everything out for Google. As a developer this is the kind of feedback you hope to get from folks using your software.

TechCrunch: ”Amazon this morning announced plans to acquire Roomba maker iRobot for an all-cash deal valued at $1.7 billion.”

Alexa, don’t vacuum the cat. This seems like a really sweet deal for Amazon. I can’t believe iRobot couldn’t fetch a higher price.

Los Angeles Times: “The California Department of Motor Vehicles has accused Tesla of false advertising in its promotion of the company’s signature Autopilot and Full Self-Driving technologies.”

This shouldn’t surprise anyone. Tesla has been touring Full Self Drive for years and they’re no where near the desired functionality. Is it novel? Yes. Do I trust it? No way.

I can’t wrap my brain around the challenges the developers must be facing. And the icing on the cake would be Musk breathing down your neck to get it done. No thanks.

My idea of a better challenge would be tackling mass transit with electric motors and making it easier to travel long distances on electric trains and busses.

Heck, the eBikes business is really taking off.

Cartoon Brew: ”Dreamworks Animation has unveiled plans to release its proprietary production renderer Moonray as open-source software later this year.”

I’ve had a fascination with rendering pipelines for years and years. As far as I know Pixar’s RenderMan is still the Cadillac of rendering software but having an open source choice from a heavy hitter like Dreamworks is worthy of consideration, and it’ll be open so folks can contribute to it. Amazing!

When the git repo is made public you know I’ll be there poking around. 😃

Makes you wonder if Pixar will follow with RenderMan?

TechCrunch: ”Infowars founder Alex Jones took the stand today in a trial that will determine what he owes to the parents of a child killed in the Sandy Hook mass shooting. Last year, Jones was found liable in a series of defamation cases brought by the parents of Sandy Hook victims.”

Alex Jones is a grifter. He has an unwitting audience of people willing to believe anything because they hate everything and everyone. Jones feeds their animosity with wild stories of the deep state and blood drinking Democrats to drain them of their hard earned cash. Who’s the vampire?

Vulture: ”It’s pretty well known and even darkly joked about across all the visual-effects houses that working on Marvel shows is really hard. When I worked on one movie, it was almost six months of overtime every day. I was working seven days a week, averaging 64 hours a week on a good week. Marvel genuinely works you really hard. I’ve had co-workers sit next to me, break down, and start crying. I’ve had people having anxiety attacks on the phone.”

I don’t think this is a new reality of the VFX business. Rather, a horrible expectation set by major studios.

Deadline: ”Even though Batgirl is in the final stages of post-production, Deadline has confirmed that Warner Bros. and DC Films will not be releasing the movie on any platform, including theatrically.”

This is a real bummer. I was totally ready for it.

As far as release platforms go, I was fully expecting it to appear on HBO Max. It’s the streaming platform I use more than any other. More than Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, and Apple TV. Each of those services has a place in my streaming lineup, but HBO’s ability to release new movies to streaming early is it’s real superpower.

The Washington Post: ”SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk’s countersuit to Twitter contains aggressive new claims about the social media site’s methods for tallying bot and spam accounts — as well as which accounts generate ad revenue — cementing the strategy the billionaire is using to attempt to back out of the deal.”

I suspect Musk will be forced to show up and pay $54.20 per share.

The big question is, once he owns it can he make it something better or will he lose an uphill battle?

How do you deal with bot problems and nihilistic American politicians hell bent on turning our democracy into a self serving dictatorship.

I’m sure Mr. Musk has some really great ideas. It’s the bad ideas I’m worried about.

That’s all for today. I hope you enjoyed your coffee or tea with your read. ☕️

“That knee was bad. I’m surprised you could walk.” - Dr. Edwards

The knee has finally been replaced. Tuesday was the big day and I’d hoped to come home that afternoon. Unfortunately my body had a different idea. When I’d stand my blood pressure would drop and I’d feel nauseated. 🤢

So I got to spend the night in the hospital. It was a good experience as far as hospitals go. All of the nursing staff were absolutely wonderful.

I was up early Wednesday morning, didn’t sleep much at all. Dr. Edwards dropped by as well as David, my Physical Therapist. Since I’d been able to use the toilet through the night safely and was able to walk to the end of the hall the Doctor and Physical Therapist signed off on me I was discharged around 10:30AM, Wednesday.

Thank you Sentra Martha Jefferson Hospital , Dr. John Z Edwards , and everyone I interacted with. Y’all are amazing.

Hello new knee!

So happy right now! 🙏🏼

Ms. Prissy Punkie Poopie Pants, AKA Priss, being her cute self.

I’m terrible. When my knees ache or hurt and I have household chores to do I tell myself “If you sit a while longer, they’ll feel better and you can go do your chores.”

I’m simultaneously negotiating with myself and willing my knees to feel better.

They’re not going to feel better. I just don’t want to fight through the pain to do what needs doing. 😂

Two more days to knee replacement surgery and it’s all I can think about.

I should’ve taken Monday off because I’m going to be distracted all day. 🤔

Found this brand new little feller this morning slowly moving its little wings.

Today’s podcast queue should get me through the jungle I’m gonna tackle outside our backyard fence today, and then some.

Pictures of the boys; Kolbe and King.

Kolbe is the yellow one. He’s five but acts like a puppy.

King is 10, I think, and is a distinguished gentleman.

They’re both Australia Shepard mix.

I’ll bet Ms Deer and her little spotted baby visit us tonight. 🦌

We’ve been waiting for these little aliens to hatch for a while.

I finally decided to pull the fern down and look inside. 🐦

I have pretty vivid dreams. Most of them center around a few places with certain people.

I dream a lot about Exeter, the town we called home for years and years. Exeter dreams typically center around the home Kim and I brought our girls up in. It was an old farm house that was built in the early 1900’s and is one of the oldest homes in town. In those dreams the house is much larger than usual, has a really long hallway, and is full of family members. The land surrounding the house is vast. Now, the home in the real world is nothing like that, but in my dreams I know it’s our old Exeter home.

I also dream about Lindsay, my childhood home. In those dreams I’m typically with my Mom or my Grandfather. They are the two most influential people in my life. Both had immensely beautiful hearts and loved everyone. Mom’s home was full of love, we didn’t have much, but we had her love. That meant everything. Grandpa was definitely the patriarch of the family. He was a great man who loved his family more than anything. He often helped Mom pay the bills and kept us fed. They were both selfless and gave their all to family, friends, and strangers.

Mom and Grandpa would take us to a joint called Bob’s Drive-In. It’s a burger joint that also made fresh donuts daily. Their cinnamon rolls were to die for, crunchy on the outside, chewy in the middle. My dreams in Lindsay always include them and Bob’s, amongst other things.

I’ve shared many times how often my dreams are about being back with the Visio team. In those dreams Seattle often takes on a futuristic city you might see in a sci-fi movie. Huge, really crowded, with trains, and buildings taller than anything we have today. I typically end up in the building on the floor occupied by Visio. It’s almost always my first day back and I’m usually walking around the engineering area talking with old friends and meeting new people.

That sets the stage for last nights Visio dream.

I was with part of the old Visio gang. They’d started a new venture and we were adjusting everyone’s pay down to get through the economic downturn. My brain was definitely weaving my recent concerns into the mix. I was working with Richard, an old Visio friend, on new contracts for each developer to sign outlining their reduction in pay. Some employees, like myself, signed the contract without issue. Others were not so happy. It’s at that point, Kolby, our doggie, decided it was time for me to wake up. Poof. Dream gone.

Wonder which dream I’ll have tonight?

Beauty in Kim’s flower bed.

Kim and Taylor had to take a little detour and visit Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo.

They’re having a great road trip! 🥳

Update from Taylor and Kim on the road to California. 🤣

It looks like a deer visited us last night. Yesterday the green stuff in the middle of the picture was a day lilly with a bunch of flowers on it. 😂

We just got back from BBQ and fireworks with our kids and grandkids. Had a lot of fun. 🌭🎇

Now I’m on the porch, having a beer, listening to the critters and watching fire flies. 🍺

Oh, and the temperature is perfect with no noticeable humidity. 🌡

A perfect day. 👌

We’re about to celebrate Independence Day -- but Freedom is under attack by Republican leaders in states like Florida.

Banning books.
Restricting speech.
Making it harder to vote.
Criminalizing women and doctors.

It’s time to stand up. Don’t let them take your freedom. pic.twitter.com/cFI5UzgZzX

— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 3, 2022

There are plenty of wonderful people in states like Florida but their leadership is pathetic, same with Texas.

Perhaps Democrats need to migrate into those states to flip the vote instead of luring folks out. 🤔