When all else fails, read the instructions, or consult AI.

AI is good at condensing long lists of instructions to simpler answers for questions I have. I've used it to navigate complex software. For instance, it helped me install Linux Mint on an old computer. I don't have the patience to take classes, read books and so forth. It talked me through that process and was kind of fun doing it with AI as a patient tutor.

I haven't tried to debate with AI as if it had opinions. I tend to debate people and society's mainstream talking points. I do use AI to learn more about the talking points that are out there so I can have more informed opinions. I also look up dates in history and more solid (if anything is solid) facts about news I remember. I want to have correct information, or at least enough fact checking so people don't think I don't have the facts correct. Still, they might think that anyway.

I just don't have the patience or the time to read through the many books and articles that are thrown at us each day related to topics that come up in daily news and on social media platforms. It is interesting and complex times we live in.

Was pressure from Israel a big reason for Trump to start the war with Iran?

Tucker Carlson is now critical of Trump; especially the war on Iran. A war largely driven by the government of Israel.

In my own thoughts, Carlson has been an advocate of conservative agendas and agendas can go too far. Trump has stumbled into the war in Iran, which in some ways does not suprise me. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is also a hardliner, religious conservative along with the leaders of Iran. Hardline, religious conservatives.

I even think it could be true that creation of the state of Isreal, in reaction to the German atrocities in World War II, was likely a mistake. I have heard that hindsight can be better than forsight.

Still, Israel's recent scorched earth reaction against the Palistinians in Gaza is a reaction out of fear and concern for safety after the brutal Hamas attack on Isreali civilians on October 7 2023. Violence begets violence.

I am hoping for at least a slightly more liberal leadership, in Israel, after the upcoming election there. Also hoping for more liberal members of Congress to better put guardrails on our president, after the US elections in November.

The people and the nations that exist on earth are realities that we still have to work with, or maybe work around. Change seems to best come incrementally.

I also think part of Trump's war against Iran was his desire to help the civilian protesters, who were rising up against that brutal regime at that time. The war was not a good strategy.

At this point, it seems like Saudi Arabia is benefiting from higher priced oil now being pushed, by the US military, through the Persian Gulf at higher prices.

Oil dependency still plays a big part in recent wars, including George Bush's first war against Iraq in 1990; Operation Desert Shield. This was partially waged to protect stability of oil supply out of the gulf for the global economy. There was that dispute over sideways drilling and so forth between Kuwait and Iraq. We and many other nations got involved when Iraq invaded Kuwait.

President Carter warned us of the possibility of major wars in the Persian Gulf clear back in the 1970s when world dependency, on that oil, was a big issue. Remember his speech about that thin line of oil tankers stretching halfway around the world?

Back then, the Vietnam War and even the Red Scare and the Cold War was starting to fade into history.

Could the cost of trying to reopen the Strait of Hormuz be paid for by a carbon tax?

More oil being pushed through Persian Gulf by US military at great cost. Gasoline and especially diesel is still expensive anyway, though more supply could lower prices in longrun.

Who pays for US military? Will US start charging a toll on oil it pushes through the gulf given its 40 trillion dollar debt? Right wingers don't want a carbon tax to address climate change, but the cost of defending supply chains is a factor also.

When Bellingham Herald Building celebrated its 100th year since it opened.

The Bellingham Herald Building just celebrated 100 years plus a few months since it's opening in 1926. Celebration was Sept. 26 2026. There were tours and festivities. We even got to the roof. I was there.

The Newspaper is not there anymore. Bellingham Herald's offices are in Barkley Village. The old building still has many uses, however.

Big turnout for tours going most of the day. Tours by the Bellingham Good Time Girls organization.

Old flooring in a beauty salon that used to be production spaces for the newspaper.

Tours were booked full due to the chock point of elevator capacity. How many folks can fit in a Volkswagen?

More of us could be accommodated if we took the stairs. I was happy to do that.

We got to the roof above the 6th floor. There is also a penthouse that would be a partial 7th floor.

Yes, a unique perspective on Bellingham. Rumor's Cabaret, the red building, has solar panels. I didn't know that before.

Looking down to the corner of Chestnut and Railroad.

Walking on the roof.

Under the iconic Herald Sign.

What some of the hallways look like.

Dancing to 1920s music before a community group picture.

Getting ready for the group picture.

I'm in the group pictures they took with my bright green shirt and bicycle helmet. Photo from Daylight Properties Facebook Page.

Will Alberta become the 51st US state? No, but an even dumber idea is for Alberta to become an independent country.

That referendum is being voted on Oct 19 and it isn't expected to pass. If Alberta was to leave the great nation of Canada, it would be North America's only landlocked country; something like Mongolia, which is stuck between Russia and China.

Part of this referendum is probably for political leverage as that landlocked province wishes to push more oil and gas out through pipelines to the BC coast. This helps to avoid depenency on the now more unfriendly US, for bringing product to market.

Oil and gas consumption is still a reality around the world. Transition to greener energy is happening too slowly as demand and populations continue to grow around the world.

Much of the world's fossil fuel supply comes from authoritarian, places in the troubled Middle East as well as Russia. There is the opportunity for Canada, a more democratic society that respects human and gay rights, to cash in on supplying more of that continued world demand.

Some Canadians say it is better to produce the oil and gas in Canada where there are more environmental controls. Much of the consuming world is in crisis with cutoffs of supply from the war torn and troubled parts of the world.

Living in Bellingham, WA. I listen to lots of Canadian news on the radio.

A solution for trying to buy a remanufactured computer in Bellingham.

My next desktop computer is on its way. Ordered from Amazon. Turns out local businesses use Amazon and other online platforms as their retail outlet. I've been learning about how much of retail business is done in the field of remanufactured computers.

AI suggested I go to IPC, a large electronics recycler who deals in remanufactured products. They look like just a warehouse and loading dock, but, supposedly, they do retail for things they have refurbished. Turns out their retail is on Ebay, a large website for buying and selling.

I rang the doorbell at the loading dock. The door rolled open and I ask a young fellow if they sold computers. He said they sell them over Ebay.

I mentioned that in more chats with AI and the AI I was using thanked me for the correction.

Riding my bicycle, I tried Goodwill and Habitat for Humanity. They don't do windows, I mean computers. Habitat for Humanity does have windows.

Office Max only had 3 brand new computers at quite high prices.

Then I decided to try a repair / retail shop across town. At first, the staff person looked like he was asleep, but the sound of the door awakened him.

He was quite friendly as I explained my story. Not a lot of choices there as well, but they service computers. He offered to be the safe place I could have my computer sent to for pickup. Better than my apartment building where it may not get to the right door, or Amazon's often full pickup desk.

Problem solved. I ordered from Amazon.

Chatting more with AI, I discovered that medium sized cities don't have enough resale volume, or choice, to make it worthwhile. It might work in a big place, like Seattle, with businesses like Boeing Surplus.

Many local businesses, in the computer field, have now pivited toward customer service and repair; rather than maintaining large inventories themselves. They tend to use the giant online sellers, like Amazon and Ebay.

Shopping around through traffic is more difficult than shopping online. We do live in a constantly changing world.

Bellingham, like most American cities, has quite a few of these type of choices.

Some problems when shopping for computers that are not brand new.

What can be called a "first world problem." Computer issues.

Windows 11 has outgrown the inexpensive laptop I have been using for my home desktop. It doesn't have enough memory for Windows to see complex websites, like Facebook, so it keeps crashing.

I got the lightweight laptop to for bicycle travel as my old tablet no longer worked with today's motel wifi. At home, my larger desktop unit was getting so old that Windows actually worked better on the laptop, so I started using the laptop as my main home computer. It worked better because it was newer technology. That worked for a while, but Windows then moved on.

Using AI as a guide, I figured out how to install Linux Mint on my old desktop computer. It works fine, but using Linux is yet another learning curve.

I really do like the way Windows folders help me organize my vast amount of photos, memories and political rants. Even today, Windows on my laptop handles and organizes my external hard drive well. It's mostly some complex websites that makes it crash.

So I got a new tablet computer which is even lighter for slipping into my bicycle panniers. It does Facebook well as its operating system is Android. Still, it's a bit clunky to use.

Compared to even my income based rent for a subsidized studio apartment, electronics is a bargain. I can also buy a new, more up to date desktop computer.

I don't need the cutting edge latest technology. There are great deals on yesterday's technology; technology that is maybe 4 years back, rather than 15 years back.

Try finding that with the limited selection in local brick and mortar stores. They push the latest stuff.

Amazon has a vast selection of remanufactured older models at low prices, but they don't ship by US mail. They use their own drivers, or other private shipping companies. Problem is, in an apartment building, they often leave a package in the lobby.They do usually bring it to my floor near my door, but sometimes not. It can be risky.

So I decide to have it shipped to Whole Foods Amazon pick up window. Turns out some third party sellers, on Amazon, do not ship to that counter.

I find a seller, using Google AI's help, that will ship to the counter for me to pick up. Problem is, the storage space behind that small, but busy counter is not accepting quite often. It's booked up much of the time.

Getting all these stars to align is difficult, so now I am back to suggestions from AI. Yes, Bellingham has some local recyclers that also sell older stuff. I plan to try that route. Today, it's raining, but I am not in a hurry.

While frustrating, I basically see this as part of life's learning experience. I'm figuring out things about the changing world of computers, retailing and so forth. None of this is super critical as if my life depended on it.

How much do I need to hold up my reputation as a bicycle tourist?

Nice autumn rains are back. I was thinking of doing a several day bike tour, but the long range forecast turned wetter. That trip could have been just to uphold my image as a bike tourist. A rainy forecast is another excuse to cancel that plan. Instead, I did my day trip to Birch Bay as the weather was sunny on Monday.

People keep asking "Do you have any long trips planned this year?"

I keep saying that there are so many social things to do in Bellingham, not to mention all the stuff I want to do online, that holding up my reputation as a bicycle tourist gets more difficult. It's like juggling a lot of things, motel reservations, weather, routes with less traffic and so forth. I still plan to do some long distance trips in beyond my 71st birthday, but doing it just to prove myself isn't that appealing anymore.

It could be old age, but my legs and my lungs are still fine. I am getting tired of riding alongside all that traffic. These days, I plan routes carefully with bike trails and lightly traveled, or better shouldered, roads. I take transit with the easy to use bike racks on buses. This can skip me over less desirable areas. In years past, there were no County Connector buses. We have them in this area now, but they are very rare in areas like Eastern Washington.

In past years, I wanted to prove myself by pedaling the entire way, such as when I took 2 1/2 months off and ended up in Massachusetts. Even with my ability to take a bus, with my bike, to Mount Vernon for just 1 dollar (senior citizen rate, $2 general), I still prefer to bike most of my distances, mostly because I take so many pictures. My trip to Birch Bay was all from pedaling my bicycle and I got over 100 photos. I used to pride myself riding all the way to Seattle, but now I take buses at least as far as Everett. Most roads, in North Snohomish County, are pretty bad.

In the past, there was less traffic, but I also got through North Snohomish County by riding on the wide shoulder of I-5. I could still do that, I guess, but traffic is flying by at over 70 mph. I still remember the days of the 55 mph speed limit due to the 1970-80s energy crisis. Snohomish Centennial Trail is wonderful, but getting to its north trailhead is a bit challenging. I might as well take buses to Everett, in south Snohomish County, and then ride in the more friendly urban areas around Seattle. Those urban areas have bike paths and quiet residential streets galore.

Long trips and leave of absence was great while I was working. My night shift job as a custodian was a bit mundane and the trips were a good excuse to take time off work.

That job was a good job, however. Nice people, low stress and a good cause. I was on the custodial crew of the YMCA.

My avocations of bike travel, writing, and the gay community life were more interesting than just the job, itself. Now that I am retired, I still seem to have a life filled up with gratifying things to do.

I'm glad I did those ambitious trips during my younger, working years. Many people wait till retirement to follow their dreams. I may have been living in my dreamworld all my life.

I may have been in a dreamworld, but I did work. I wasn't in a high end position. Rents were quite affordable back then. Now I am in subsidized housing, but I still pay (I think) around 2/3 market rate for my little studio apartment. My subsidized rent calculated based on my income.

Meanwhile, I'm enjoying life in Bellingham.

My day trip to Birch Bay and back from Bellingham by bicycle.

I was thinking of doing a several day bike tour, but it is hard to leave Bellingham with so much to do here. Then a wet weather forecast for later this week gave me cold feet. I decided, spur of the moment, to do a day trip just to Birch Bay and back.

A compromise, but some folks would say, at age 71, Birch Bay is a long trip at 49 miles round trip. I left in early afternoon so I didn't even miss lunch at the Bellingham Senior Center.

Mount Baker from Ferndale near Labounty Road.

Douglas, a more quiet road.

Phillips 66 refinery in the distance. I like ironies. Some of the most peaceful riding is near our oil refineries where most people don't want to live. They have large buffer areas around them.

Bellingham has a rainbow bridge. Near where the old aluminum refinery was is a rainbow road.

A big reason for this trip is the Point Whitehorn Road who's easement has been turned into a trail. A way to escape traffic. It's in buffer lands near BP Refinery. We have two oil refineries in the county.

I must be getting close to Birch Bay.

Yes. the state park.

Artistic mailboxes.

And a phone booth, probably not hooked up.

Moon and sunset as I head back home near Ferndale.

Mount Baker in sunset.

Crossing the Nooksack River at Ferndale.

Bellingham's Rainbow Bridge, on Northwest Avenue, greets me. I'm almost home. The last few miles after sunset. I have good bicycle lights.

Passing part of Franklin Academy private school on Northwest Avenue.

When my grade school teacher said my art could not be published because it would just be a blob of ink running through the ditto machine.

Ink on paper from the old mimeograph machine I had in the 1980s. I wanted to see what would happen if I turned the crank with no stencil in the machine. The results are a keepsake.

It reminds me of an experience I had in grade school where my mind was too full of ideas. The assignment was for everyone in the class to draw a picture. The teacher gathered up each drawing and made copies from the ditto machine in the office. Copies of each persons drawing were bound into a booklet of copies for all the classmates.

My drawing was not included. The teacher apologized and explained that my drawing was too complicated. It had too many lines and solid areas of black so the machine would just print a big blob of ink.

Mimeo, with black or colored ink, was often used in church bulletins while ditto, with the blue ink was used in many schools. Some folks will remember the smells of those copies. This was before the internet days.

In the 1980s, I used the my hand cranked mimeograph machine to publish a small newsletter of my own opinions; Robert's Telling Tales. That publication never got big in the media world, but it was a good experience.

In 1981, the Tacoma New Tribune did a feature about me. It was titled, Cranking Out Happiness at Robert's Think Tank. See a link in comments.

Don't let the grass grow under your wheels. Rush, rush, rush.

New highway pushing forward. My cartoon idea. Drawing by AI. Yes, I know, many worry about AI, including me. It's a useful tool, but, like the automobile, it could also be a curse. One big problem is our feeling that we have to rush into it to keep up with China. There is also the rush, among companies, to keep up with the Joneses. There is the rush among people just to keep up with the cost of living. It could be driving us over a cliff.

Or maybe feet. Picture I took locally.

Touring the Bellingham sewage disposal plant.

I went to an open house at the Bellingham sewage treatment plant. This was part of a yearly Water Week festival with behind the scenes tours of things that keep our lives going, without making the environment unlivable.

Tour for the water treatment plant was filled, but I signed up just in time for a spot at the sewage plant, a cherished experince.

The week had several educational events, including a self guided tour of local water topics, like storm drains, pump stations and creeks along Bellingham trails, mostly. I am aware of many things anyway, when I ride the trails.

Normally not a tourism destination, this was an open house.

Where solid things that get thrown in, like trash, get screened out. Lots of things, people inadvertently put in the wrong place, can hurt the equipment and the environment.

The tour proceeds. Hardhats and vests required.

You never know. Some people might.

At a settling pond.

It is a complex process beyond just the settling ponds. Bacteria is used in much of the process. Bleach also.

Ironically, near the plant is a blue heron rockery. People don't like living near a sewage plant as there is some smell. This makes it better for blue herons and other wildlife than most neighborhoods.

How biodegradable are various things put down sinks and toilets?

Paper towels and various wipes can remain too intact so the screens have to sift them out to protect machinery and the environment. Toilet paper tends to be the best.

After the process, cleaned water is released back to a lagoon and on out to Bellingham Bay.

There happened to be a truck headed down the railroad track when I took this picture.

Trails around the outside of the plant.

Looking out from another trail above the plant.