My coffee of choice

On June 26, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn Coffee, recommendationsLeave a comment

Ever since the late 1990s (yeah, I know), my coffee purveyor of choice has been Whiting Coffee, in Albuquerque NM. We found it while attending UNM and have been customers ever since. I make coffee in a Bodum insulated press, and their French roast is superb for that – complex, flavor rich, light acidity and no burnt notes. And their prices have been excellent.

As a side rant, most French / espresso roasts I’ve tried are overcooked cheap beans, thin on flavor and strong on burnt. Yuck. Whiting actually has a really good South American mix of beans they use for theirs.

Anyway, until now you had to telephone them, tell them what you wanted and they’d include a paper bill with the beans. As of June 2021, they now have a website! Where you can order! I’ll save you a browse and just direct you to my favorite: https://whitingcoffeeco.com/order-online/ols/products/1-pound-espresso-french

You’re welcome.

Good sunset

On June 23, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Good sunset

Lithium ion batteries – state of the art

On May 24, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn climate, EVlifeLeave a comment

Really fantastic long-form roundup at ArsTechnica – absolutely worth your time, for cars, phones and more. As we add renewables, energy storage is necessary, so this applies there too.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/05/eternally-five-years-away-no-batteries-are-improving-under-your-nose/

Today’s wisdom

On March 29, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn AphorismsLeave a comment

The road not taken would also have gotten me home.
James Richardson, “For Now”

Building a Cathedral — The Prepared

On March 22, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn essays, Random, recommendationsLeave a comment

Well worth your time! https://theprepared.org/features/2019/4/28/building-a-cathedral

Today I learned the iPhone’s excellent document scanner can be controlled from a Mac – The Verge

On March 19, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn recommendationsLeave a comment

Cool trick – as they say, no wires required, and I just tried it out to import a receipt for reimbursement. Works really well.

https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/1/22306875/apple-continuity-camera-ios-ipados-document-scanner-macos-mojave

Excellent news and a reading recommendation

On March 19, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn essays, recommendationsLeave a comment

For years, I read the absolutely amazing ‘Do the Math’ blog by Tom Murphy, a UCSD physicist carefully explaining so! many! things! (Energy: generation, storage, usage, loss. Details of his lead-acid solar/battery home setup. So much more)

Now the good news – his dormant blog tells us that he’s written a textbook based on on that work, and even better its been vetted and revised and best yet? Free online and inexpensive if you want a print copy. I cannot recommend this enough. https://dothemath.ucsd.edu/2021/03/textbook-debut/

Textbook Debut

ignore the code: Bookfeed.io

On February 17, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn recommendationsLeave a comment

As I keep saying, RSS is awesome.

Beyond Burned Out

On February 15, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn research, Work and jobsLeave a comment

1. Unsustainable workload
2.Perceived lack of control
3. Insufficient rewards for effort
4. Lack of a supportive community
5. Lack of fairness
6. Mismatched values and skills
Beyond Burned Out

Interesting HBR paper on the causes of burnout, with links to the research.

Immigration Enforcement and the Afterlife of the Slave Ship | Boston Review

On February 13, 2021 By Paul HubbardIn essays, Politics, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Immigration Enforcement and the Afterlife of the Slave Ship from Boston Review. Coast Guard techniques for blocking Haitian asylum seekers have their roots in the slave trade. Understanding these connections can help us disentangle immigration policy from white nationalism.
— Read on bostonreview.net/race/ryan-fontanilla-immigration-enforcement-and-afterlife-slave-ship

Damn. I had literally no idea.