Gas vs Electricity: Which Dryer is More Efficient?

December 3, 2012 0 Comments

Clothes dryers are really quite basic. There’s a big drum spun by an electric motor whereby heat is generated in one of two ways; gas vs electricity. Gas dryers tend to dry the clothes slightly faster, but only by a few minutes. So the question isn’t which is more efficient than the other, because they are both about the same. The question is operating costs. What does make a difference is how much it costs to create the heat which drys your clothes. And that’s what we’re going to focus…
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Home Improvement

Weather Sayings and Folklore

November 21, 2012 0 Comments

Many of us have heard the various weather saying and folklore, but is there any truth to these phrases? When dogs eat grass, you can expect a severe storm. My dog eats grass in the winter, spring, summer and fall. It’s got nothing to do with the weather and more to due with how the dog feels. Typically, dogs eat grass when they are hungry or when their stomach is upset. They don’t suddenly get hungry for grass because a thunderstorm is coming. If a rooster crows at night, there…
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Weather Myths & Facts

No Two Snowflakes Are Alike?

November 18, 2012 0 Comments

With all the trillions of snowflakes that are piled up in your driveway, coating the mountain tops, and plowed from the road, it’s probably true that no two snowflakes are alike. Proving this would be quite a feat, for obvious reasons, but you’ll as you read below, you’ll see why the old adage it probably true. Snowflakes are very sensitive to micro-environmental variables such as wind, temperature, humidity, air pressure, cloud condensing nuclei, and air particles. Add an element of chaos theory to the mix and you’ll see below that…
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Weather Myths & Facts

Whole House Fan Worth the Money!

November 11, 2012 0 Comments

I took the plunge and installed a whole house fan earlier this year. This was our alternative solution to an air conditioning unit that costs quite a bit to install ($3,000) and over the long run will use a lot less electricity each month. Here in Colorado Springs, it really doesn’t get all that hot and simply exchanging the inside air with outside air can make the house feel a whole lot cooler. Granted, it won’t be as cool as an air conditioning unit, but it will make a big…
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Home Improvement

Obama Wins Reelection – United We Stand, Divided We Fall

November 7, 2012 0 Comments

It’s clear to me — as it should be to everyone else — that the majority in this country are more socially liberal and secular than they used to be. We’ve now shifted to a slightly left of center position. Homosexuality is no longer taboo and is becoming more accepted, to include gay marriage now being legal in a multitude of States. The prohibition status of marijuana is taking fire as two states have now chosen to legalize it for recreational use (Colorado and Washington) in direct contradiction to Federal…
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Economy, Politics, Ramblings

Can’t open config file /usr/local/ssl/openssl.cnf

November 5, 2012 0 Comments

Given Windows XP is being phased out just about everywhere, I’m not sure how useful this blog is anymore, but it’s possible it might also apply to the other flavors of Windows. On Windows XP, Windows Vista and Probably Windows 7 you may see the error “can’t open config file /usr/local/ssl/openssl.cnf when running the openSSL executable. No big deal. The reason it can’t find the file is the environment variable OPENSSL_CONF is most likely not set, or is pointing to the wrong location. The solution is simple. Open up a…
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Information Technology, Microsoft Windows

Benghazi Consulate Attacked Because of YouTube Video?

October 25, 2012 0 Comments

Ever been stuck on a problem for hours, or maybe days, and then all of a sudden the solution just pops into your mind? And without having to think too hard about it, you know it’s right, or at least really darn close? I had one of those moments when thinking about the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya in which U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and U.S. Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith were killed. The weird thing is, it’s not that complicated and I have…
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Foreign Policy