A Crummy Commercial

I finally got my id.me seal of approval on Tuesday.  This is required if you want to get online with the IRS or Social Security.  Not having an activated cell phone makes id.me almost impossible to work with.  So now that I finally have a cell phone I tried signing up on Friday (6-26).  But it didn't like something I did (I suspect that it was the VPN) so I had to have a video chat with a person.  That didn't happen until Tuesday morning (6-30).  The elapsed time was less than an hour and the call with "Irving" only took a few minutes but still what a huge waste of time/money. Anyway, another thing accomplished, I was able to get into the IRS site.  Hopefully next year I'll be able to file Federal taxes electronically or check Social Security for the first time since they started this baloney. Just wait, the 666 tattoo on the forehead is coming (for convenience at security) so be sure to leave space ! source:  https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/...

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2c9-LDP0t0 No, not some flounder, Frontier.  This ominous looking piece of mail popped up on Informed Delivery: It's the (hopefully) final insult from Frontier: Apparently for Frontier just refunding the money electronically (the way I was paying) was too easy - same for a physical checkie.  They have to provide a debit card.  I would give it away except that it literally has my name on it :( I finally flipped through enough hoops and was able to request a no-fee check for the balance: In 7 to 10 business days I should have a checkie.  I should have dumped Frontier a decade ago ! Best Regards, Chuck, WB9KZY http://wb9kzy.com/ham.htm  

Usually I get pictures like this from the trail cam: Our old blaze eyed deer friend shows up regularly.  The cam has an audible click which might be the reason for the quizzical looks :) But this was new: That's not my fingers in the first two pictures, in the third picture it appears that there was a crow that landed on the cam briefly.  The cam takes pictures in threes, then it waits for a defined period, 30 seconds, before taking any more pictures. And then a visit from "the Phantom" with a little moon showing through the pine (upper right): Finally I also found out that in addition to a click, the cam IR LEDs glow red (dimly) at night - so that might be something to either fascinate or repel the animals. Best Regards, Chuck, WB9KZY http://wb9kzy.com/ham.htm  

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/06/microsoft-adds-another-year-to-windows-10-extended-update-program/ Good news for once ?   Although I actually am typing this on a Windows 11 laptop, I do have a couple of other Windows 10 machines that I still use so this will be nice: Considering the chip shortages resulting from the AI bubble I can see why they might extend support, it's just insanely expensive to buy computer hardware.  SSD drives are twice the price they were recently. One thing: when Windows support does finally end the only nice thing is that a lot of stuff can be turned off which results in a faster bootup time IF you turn off the internet.  I have an old Windows 98 laptop that I use for printing and scanning - it never sees the internet and works just fine. Best Regards, Chuck, WB9KZY http://wb9kzy.com/ham.htm

I saw these items listed on Ebay from my favorite purveyor of miscellaneous electronic stuff: The assortment was $26.38 with tax/postage - I saw the HD-1410 keyer (don't need another one but why not ? it has the rare AC power cord) - also an Ameco CPO (don't need that either but never had one) - finally the seller mentions that they don't know what the mini blue device (upper right) is:   I KNOW, it's a DSW transceiver from Small Wonder Labs, 1st generation, the $15 on top is not a bad price either.  Depending on which band it is, I may or may not already have one :) BTW this is the same seller I got the AADE LC meter from mentioned previously: https://wb9kzy.blogspot.com/2025/10/just-because-i-could.html I suspect that I'll have to fix the DSW (and probably the keyer and CPO, too) as I did with the AADE LC meter but it'll be something to do ! Best Regards, Chuck, WB9KZY http://wb9kzy.com/ham.htm  

I found yet another magnifier: It's fairly large and has a second mini magnifier built in but I'm not that crazy about it - it slips.  The magnifier has a cord for around the neck, then you can look down through the magnifier at the work, the feet of the magnifier resting on your chest.  The idea is that your hands are free but really I was always repositioning it. I did also find this site: https://www.magnifier.com/ They seem to have a LOT of choices - maybe too many choices - but it's a confirmation that the need for magnification is real.   I'll keep looking. Best Regards, Chuck, WB9KZY http://wb9kzy.com/ham.htm

I used to live in the Village of Fox Point near Milwaukee: they didn't have these in the 1960s they had these in the 1960s but I didn't live on Lake Drive :) But I don't think I ever actually saw a 4 legged fox in Fox Point.  Here is the story that's been told on the naming: (also, the photo source):  https://www.wuwm.com/2022-08-26/the-story-behind-fox-points-name-and-historical-street-signs Anyway, I set the trail cam out on a tripod in the back yard on Wednesday.  There was a threat of rain so in the afternoon I brought it inside.  This was a picture from around noon: I *think* that's a fox - it's not red, more red tinged ?  This one, when I've been outside and yelled, just stands there and looks at me like: "what is wrong with you?"  Now this customer, about 2 hours later at the same spot: I don't even have to yell, just show myself and any deer will be off in a flash !  :) Best Regards, Chuck, WB9KZY http://wb9kzy.com/ham.htm