Once upon a time, I worked at a company where the lead scientist/CTO for one of the divisions had some compulsive behaviors. He was a German PhD electrical engineer of the small, wizened tinker gnome persuasion. Whatever Grimm’s fairy tale mental picture you have of a watch/clockmaker is pretty much spot on, though put him …
Category Archives: All News
Puerto Rican BBotE Update
I just wanted to take a moment to field a question I’ve gotten from a few folks about the BBotE I do made with beans from Puerto Rico. So the quick blurbs are: GOOD NEWS: I laid in a decent supply of the beans from my roaster of choice in Puerto Rico so I have …
Laser Products I Hate
I’m going to ask you all to bear with me here. I tried to find a way to divide this into a couple of posts but, well, it’s so intertwined and problematic that I couldn’t figure out a way to do it. This is gonna be a long one, but I hope educational. TL;DR version: …
The 2017 Atomic Heritage Roadtrip, Part 3: Trinity & Titan
As it is July 16th, the anniversary of the dawn of the Atomic Age, I suppose it’s time to get to the third and final part of the Atomic Holiday. The whole genesis of this trip was the fact that we could go visit the Trinity Test Site on April Fools Day, along with all …
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BBotE Line Up Changes & Vacation Alert, Summer 2017
For those of you that pay exquisite attention to the length of the BBotE production windows, you may have noticed they tend to be two weeks long and end on Saturdays. The slots that have just gone up are for a slightly shorter window than normal as I’ll be heading up to Alaska for a …
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State of the Black Blood of the Earth, 2017 Update
Short version: production is ticking along nicely, a new experimental variety going into play, a reminder on special requests, and Ambassadors. So, first off the the pre-order slots for the production window ending June 10th are now up. To be honest, everything is gonna ship by the 9th as I have a wedding to be …
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The 2017 Atomic Heritage Roadtrip, Part 1: ABQ & the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History
Well, I’ve now stood on my second nuclear weapon ground zero. (the first I did on this trip) April 1st was the Trinity Test Site open house, one of the two times a year that the White Sands Missile Range opens up to allow the public to visit. They used to open it up on …
Some Holiday Related Bullshitting I Am Proud Of
[NOTE: This tale is originally occurred before Easter 2009] At work on Thursday, my co-worker asked me what my holiday plans were for Easter. I told him that I’d be going down to see my folks and eat some delicious ham. A puzzled look crossed his face and he asked, “Phil, why is it considered …
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The Twilight of the Steins
Some unfortunate news to share which impacts you, the beverage consuming public. The Steins of Science which I have on hand right now are, likely, the last of their line. I’ve lost my good supplier connection that allows me to keep the steins reasonably priced. Yes, I know that may seem silly to say for …
Herr Direktor Funranium Goes to Chernobyl & Kiev, Part 3 – Kiev, Hero City
Let me get this out of the way upfront. I didn’t even spend long enough in Kiev and I want to go back before it’s too late. My time in the city was all too brief and all too enjoyable, among people who are putting on a brave face over deep insecurity and fear. Get …
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An Old Friend Returns and the Harpy Cometh
Got a few changes to report to you this Inauguration Day. Don’t panic, this is all good news. First of all, I’m happy to report the return of Ipsento Panama BBotE, the lovely tart blueberry light roast coffee which has been missed by yours truly, is back for little while. The nice folks at Ipsento were …
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Money Rant Two: America Could Plan Once
In the previous money rant, I finally addressed Lesson Nine from this list of potential rants. It’s time to move on to a more positive one. Let’s talk about a time when America had its shit together, The Great Depression. No, really. I’m not kidding. Much as we may deride President Woodrow Wilson for other …
Good Enough for Government Work
Okay, yet another rant. This is an old saw of mine which I’ve decided I want to write up so I could point at it later. When I hear someone doing a half-assed job that they’re just going to walk away from, usually incomplete, say with a shrug “Good enough for government work”, I get …
Herr Direktor Funranium Goes to Chernobyl & Kiev, Part 2 – Chernobyl, the Town & the Reactors
When you have the incredibly photogenic and not bulldozed ghost city of Pripyat to take pictures of, it’s easy to forget the other towns and villages that were once there, or still are in the case of the city of Chernobyl. Generally the name “Chernobyl” is associated in everyone’s head with the the reactor that …
The DECEMBERING 2016 Draws to a Close
Most of the order slots for production have zeroed out at this point and many have already flipped over to the next window that ends New Year’s Eve. I will still be cranking BBotE & steins out all next week, but all bets are off as to things showing up in time for those of …