The Coffee House

[smoke665]

@jcdeboever since November of last year I've lost 30# by calorie counting with an app on my phone. Basically you calculate the total calories you need during the day based on your activity level and hold your intake under that. My goal is 195, and right now I'm hovering in the 197 to 201 range.

 

[snowbear114 46]

I like the McD's parfaits - yogurt, blueberries and strawberries. As far as customer service, they are better than some of the other chains.

 

[jcdeboever]

Oh, I stopped in a brick & mortar camera store yesterday to inquire on a unusually inexpensive used lens for my Fuji, to good to be true but condition was listed as fair to good. Well, they sold it before I got there. No biggy, I really wanted to buy one of those peak straps anyway which was the main reason for the stop, besides, I was working the area. I walked out with a 5K shutter count Fujifilm X-Pro 2 for a grand. Looked brand new, box and all. They were asking 1295 but since I didn't need it, I said I would walk out with it for $1000 out the door. He checked with boss, and it was mine. Charger, box, instructions, strap, two Fuji batteries. Now I have my second shooter. I ended up buying 2 of those straps. He even threw in a 1 year warranty for free. Such a pretty camera. Of course, had to call Gary and he just laughed, I think, he think JC is crazy....lol

 

[JonA_CT]

That's been one of the terrible parts of this trip. Here are my meals so far...rest area food court, bertuccis, hotel breakfast, McDonald's, mall food court, and hotel breakfast. I need some vegetables in my life.

 

[smoke665]

That's been one of the terrible parts of this trip. Here are my meals so far...rest area food court, bertuccis, hotel breakfast, McDonald's, mall food court, and hotel breakfast. I need some vegetables in my life.

To much of anything can be bad. Years ago, when I traveled with a very forgiving expense account, I enjoyed the finer restaurants across the country. So much so that by the end of the trip I was craving McDonald's. LOL

 

[terri33 4]

That's been one of the terrible parts of this trip. Here are my meals so far...rest area food court, bertuccis, hotel breakfast, McDonald's, mall food court, and hotel breakfast. I need some vegetables in my life.

Sounds like road trip/vacation food to me! Quick, fast, and easy - and usually sub-par. It can be challenging to eat well when you're away from home - the mystery is why we seldom consider it until we're on vacation looking for better food!

In other news, happy Friday, hosers!

 

[Gary A.]

That means more suckers out there for the greedy who have either the parts and or the know how.

And even the manufacturers get into the game. Every day you hear about a recall, but what about the ones you don't??? Last year the ice dispenser on our big expensive side by side quit working. When I took it apart I found one of the little plastic ears that held the lever to actuate a micro switch had broke. Quick google search reveled there was known problem with a weak part, but once it was out of warranty the manufacturer wouldn't cover it. A replacement plate (same design) was close to a $100, and would likely fail again. Little redneck engineering and scrap from the shop I was able to redesign and fix their broken part. I fully expect it to last forever now. I just don't understand how businesses can continue to operate like they do.

Gary thinks society in general, including most business have lost their souls to money. At one time society had a premium on reputation, craftsmanship and honor. It seems, that focus has shifted and now it is all about money and profits and "me". For people their first thoughts, are no longer about right or wrong, their first thoughts are not about ethics, but rather, "What do I want right now ..." or "What would make me feel good right now ...". In business it is getting the most return for the least amount of effort ... as opposed to performing/crafting the best you can and tack on a fair profit. Gary has a friend, a judge actually, who used to work for Marantz. His job was to inspect prototypes, remove/replace all the expensive stuff and install cheap stuff while still maintaining the same output. Cheap stuff, typically, doesn't last as long as good stuff.

Society has always had people and businesses that were just looking out for themselves, but Gary thinks that segment of society has dramatically increased. If looking out for yourself means embracing one's honor, reputation with ethical actions ... then that works. But if looking out for yourself means having a good time here and now or acquiring the most material things, without regards to others ... then Gary thinks it is a big step backwards.

Gary misses the magnanimous people and companies of the good ol' days.

*Gary steps down from his soap box.*

 

[Gary A.]

The wife is doing some commissioned work for autism awareness. It's a hooded towel.

View attachment 138913

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

Gary has never seen a 'hooded towel'. Is a hooded towel just a clever/cute thing or does it has beneficial/usefulness for autistic people? Gary's youngest daughter works as a behavior therapist with autistic kids.

 

[Gary A.]

That means more suckers out there for the greedy who have either the parts and or the know how.

And even the manufacturers get into the game. Every day you hear about a recall, but what about the ones you don't??? Last year the ice dispenser on our big expensive side by side quit working. When I took it apart I found one of the little plastic ears that held the lever to actuate a micro switch had broke. Quick google search reveled there was known problem with a weak part, but once it was out of warranty the manufacturer wouldn't cover it. A replacement plate (same design) was close to a $100, and would likely fail again. Little redneck engineering and scrap from the shop I was able to redesign and fix their broken part. I fully expect it to last forever now. I just don't understand how businesses can continue to operate like they do.

Yep... 'few years ago the family bought Dad [what we thought was] a very high-end floor model drill press for his new shop. He called after a few months and said that the table wouldn't raise or lower properly anymore. This is especially odd since he rarely changes the table height. We estimated that the table had probably travelled less than 10' in total over the period of four-ish months.

Removed the table and found that teeth of the small spur gear that acts on the rack were worn to half or less of their depth across about 2/3 of the face and that the shaft on which the gear was mounted had almost 1/8" play at each end. Given how little movement the gear had, I was astounded at the wear. I removed it, ran a file across it and found that it was only slightly harder than warm butter.

Bought a new gear from the manufacturer ($25), hardened it in the forge to about RKc 49, machined two bronze bushings for the shaft, and presto... works like a charm and has for over ten years. The manufacturer would have been happy to replace the gear free of charge, all I had to was ship the complete drill press back to them.

The devil is in the details.

 

[Gary A.]

Why McDonald's Workers May Not Be Entitled to $15/hr

In a hurry this evening so we went through the drive through on the way home. My wife was driving, so she did the ordering, as we pulled up to the speaker. Now my wife is the epitome of the graceful southern woman, who does not get flustered, nor speak ill of others.

Wife: I'd like two Big Mac Meals and two Diet Cokes, please
Order Girl: Pepsi?
Wife: Ok diet Pepsi then
Order Girl: I'm sorry but we don't have Pepsi, would Coke be ok
Wife: (holding temper), yes that's fine
Order Girl: Ok two regular Cokes
Wife: (Teeth clenching) I said DIET COKE
Order Girl: Ok that's two Big Macs and two DIET cokes, that'll be $$$$ please drive to the first window.
Wife: YOUNG LADY!!!!
Order Girl: Yes Ma'am
Wife: I told you from the start I wanted MEALS.
Order Girl: Oh
Speaker goes dead and we sit, and we sit, and we sit
Wife: YOUNG LADY ARE YOU STILL THERE?
Order Girl: Yes Ma'am we're trying to figure out how to change your order
Speaker noise in the background we hear multiple people trying to explain to the girl how to cancel and re-enter the order. Finally multiple heads prevailed and we think they've got it.
Order Girl: Ok Ma'am I have two Big Macs and two diet Cokes
Wife: I WANT MEALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Order Girl: Oh I'm sorry I meant meals, that'll be $$$$ please drive around
We drive to the window, and the lo and behold here is the Order Girl
Order Girl: that's two Big Macs and two diet Cokes
Me & Wife: IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE MEALS!!!!
Order Girl: That's what I meant.

When we pulled to the second window, couldn't help but look to see if Abbot and Costello were behind the counter!!!

Sounds like someone in training, or very bad communication hardware or a combo of both. Hopefully incompetence hasn't reached the pinnacle of corporate America.

 

[pixmedic]

The wife is doing some commissioned work for autism awareness. It's a hooded towel.

View attachment 138913

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

Gary has never seen a 'hooded towel'. Is a hooded towel just a clever/cute thing or does it has beneficial/usefulness for autistic people? Gary's youngest daughter works as a behavior therapist with autistic kids.

It's mostly a thing for kids. It's basically a towel with a hood built in.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

 

[Gary A.]

That's been one of the terrible parts of this trip. Here are my meals so far...rest area food court, bertuccis, hotel breakfast, McDonald's, mall food court, and hotel breakfast. I need some vegetables in my life.

Sounds like road trip/vacation food to me! Quick, fast, and easy - and usually sub-par. It can be challenging to eat well when you're away from home - the mystery is why we seldom consider it until we're on vacation looking for better food!

In other news, happy Friday, hosers!

Jon is somewhat corralled by 225 squirrely kids as to what food trough he can visit. Gary wonders how you feed 225 squirrely kids at one time at a McDonald's?

Yelp (or equal), is one's best friend when traveling (replaces Michelin). Gary and Mary Lou usually dine at local only, off the beaten path, places when we travel.

 

[jcdeboever]

That's been one of the terrible parts of this trip. Here are my meals so far...rest area food court, bertuccis, hotel breakfast, McDonald's, mall food court, and hotel breakfast. I need some vegetables in my life.

Sounds like road trip/vacation food to me! [emoji38] Quick, fast, and easy - and usually sub-par. It can be challenging to eat well when you're away from home - the mystery is why we seldom consider it until we're on vacation looking for better food!

In other news, happy Friday, hosers!

I lost 4 lbs. on vacation. I ate fish and veggies for dinner every night. Zero fast food.

Grocery are good places to get a healthy sandwich, some fruit, and a salad. If the wife doesn't pack me a lunch or I stay overnight while working on the road, I'll stop by one now and get a deli sandwich, piece of fruit, and a salad.

 

[jcdeboever]

The wife is doing some commissioned work for autism awareness. It's a hooded towel.

View attachment 138913

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

Very clever.

 

[Gary A.]

Buenas Dias Coffee Hosers. Yesterday was a busy day for Gary. He worked from home and in between work stuff he he the detail work on the patio deck, cleaned out the pond skimmer, trimmed up the grapes, moved a small fountain from the BBQ patio to the regular patio, he installed a new pump of the pressurized bio-filter and after about an hour of frustrations Gary finally sealed off the leaks and he made some flatbread, plucked some fruit and made lemonade.