Tom – Page 81 – Random Connections

Stuffed Poblanos with Chicken

February 16, 2014May 16, 2014 Tom No Comments

Recipes

This actually started several weeks ago. It was the weekend of the Super Bowl, and I was expected to bring my bacon-wrapped chicken jalapeno poppers. My usual routine is to go to the Augusta Road Flea Market on Saturday and get the peppers from one of the Mexican markets there.

This time things were…different.

First off, this place is always just a bit weird. This particular Saturday it seemed even more so. In addition to the occult stores, head shops, and other semi-legal endeavors, there seemed to be lots of “stripper wear.” There were lots of booths selling revealing clothing for women (or men, I guess). Some might call it club wear, but it looks like it belongs on a pole more than a dance floor. I guess I’m getting old. Not related, but I even found a mountain of bras.

Backyard Time Lapse Set Up

February 16, 2014May 16, 2014 Tom No Comments

Gear, Photography

We have a very active family of beavers in our back yard. They have managed to dam almost our entire little lake (or the streams that run through what used to be a lake.) While I personally like the beavers, and enjoy seeing the lake much fuller just upstream, their activity is flooding some of my neighbor’s yards. One of my neighbors will occasionally disrupt the dam and let the water flow through. But, the beavers build it right back. It’s a never-ending battle.

On Saturday I looked out the back window to see the water flowing again. With all of the melting snow, I guess there was the danger of more flooding, so my neighbor broke through the dam once again. I knew it wouldn’t last, that the beavers would rebuild quickly. I figured this might be a good time to try out my long-term time lapse rig with the Raspberry Pi.

Snowpocalypse 2014

February 15, 2014May 16, 2014 Tom No Comments

Miscellaneous

Backyard Snow Panorama — Backyard Panorama

Winter is one of my favorite times to get out and about and do some cool stuff. You can see so much more without leaves and undergrowth in the way. I was hoping to have a couple of blog posts in the pipe by now, but things kept getting in the way. Subsequently, I’m doing a catch-all post this week. I’ll try to do better, but I’ve got some healing to do first.

We missed our second Saturday outing with Lowcountry Unfiltered, and last weekend I was battling a nasty head cold. That was one blog post down. We did have a good day on Sunday. There was an excellent party with neighbors and friends from Furman. Had a great time catching up with both groups. That evening I attended a benefit for my friend Russ Morin, who is batting cancer. Gene Berger from Horizon Records put on an excellent gathering at The Bohemian. I was able to catch up with a long-lost cousin, and saw even more friends from Furman.

Vegetable Cream Cheese Spread

February 5, 2014May 16, 2014 Tom No Comments

Recipes

I haven’t posted a recipe in ages. This one is more a simple concoction than recipe, but I like it. Laura and I have been going to the fitness center together on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If time allows, we immediately undo all of that exercise by stopping by Greenfield’s Bagels. Lately my favorite has been … Read More “Vegetable Cream Cheese Spread” »

Picker’s Paradise in Newberry

February 4, 2014May 16, 2014 Tom 2 Comments

Family, Local, Miscellaneous

Two times in less than a week I’ve been drawn in by an “as seen on TV” sign. First time was a rather bad experience at a restaurant in Gaffney. This time, C. T. Summer Hardware Store in Newberry turned out to be a real winner.

It was my sister, Beth’s birthday, so Glynda and I drove down to take her out to eat. We had dropped by Prosperity to pick up our mother, and then drove back to meet Beth at The Cabana Cafe. We had a great lunch (sorry, no cafe review this time) and were surprised by Beth’s son, Mason, who had come in for lunch during his work day.

During lunch Beth mentioned that we needed to check out the hardware store next door. I had spotted antiques in the window, and had seen the “American Pickers” sign on the front window. Having been burned once recently by a TV show advertisement, I was skeptical. Glynda and I said we would be back on a less cold and rainy day. Mother, on the other hand, said she wanted to go right after lunch. Looks like we were visiting a hardware store.

Time Lapse with Raspberry Pi

February 3, 2014May 16, 2014 Tom 1 Comment

Gear, Photography

Take a look at the video below:

Now look at this one:

Both of these time-lapse sequences are by UK photographer Neil Bromhall. These types of time-lapse photos take a huge time commitment – weeks and months. This one, from Norway, took a full year.

In order to get the correct effect, the camera must remain in place throughout the video. Unless you’ve developed some miraculous method for placing the camera in the exact same spot each time with the exact same zoom and focus, the image will jump around and not look right. That means that you’re going to have leave your camera there, probably outside, exposed to weather, and not very secure.

Cat Trio – A PicoBoard Theremin with Scratch

February 3, 2014February 3, 2014 Tom No Comments

Gear, Music

OK, I’m sure that’s the most confusing post title of all time. I’m sure it will make sense by the end of this post.

This is a Theremin…

…and I want one. Unfortunately, Santa (aka, Laura) didn’t agree. Something about it being too expensive and weird-sounding. 🙂 Oh well. So, I decided to look into options for building one. I had been playing with the PicoBoard and MaKey MaKey, and thought those would provide excellent options.

It seems that everyone wants to make banana pianos with the MaKey Makey. Since a MaKey Makey imitates a keyboard, it’s great for discreet keys and tones. However, a Theremin operates on a continuum, sort of like a violin or trombone. Therefore something else was needed. That’s where the PicoBoard comes in, with its ability to return values along a continuum based on its sensors.

A Cold Cherokee Ramble – Part 3

February 3, 2014 Tom No Comments

Photography, Rambling

So far the day’s photo trek across Cherokee County had been a mixed bag. We had found an old concrete airway beacon near Reidville, which was cool. We found a cool old chapel near Pacolet. But we had encountered No Trespassing signs just about everywhere else we tried to go in Cherokee County, and had a sub-mediocre lunch at an over-hyped joint in Gaffney. It was time to see if things would turn around.

On the way into town Tommy Thompson and I had noted the location of the Cherokee County Historical Society. After lunch I wanted to stop by to see if we could get any information on the Cooperville location, so we headed back that way. The entrance wasn’t readily apparent, but we think we found the right location and pulled in. More discouragement. First, there was a sign saying there was a $5 charge to enter, then…the door was locked. We’d had enough frustrations for one day, so we left.

Lunch at Harold’s of Gaffney

February 2, 2014February 3, 2014 Tom No Comments

Restaurants

Tommy Thompson and I had been out on a photo trek across Cherokee County. We had reached the town of Gaffney and we were ready for lunch. We were looking for something quirky and local – not the chain places located out near the interstate. Gaffney is a college town, so I was hoping for something like what we found in Athens. However, Limestone College is no UGA, so pickin’s were slim. When we saw the sign on Harold’s Restaurant saying “Featured on the Food Network” we decided we had to check it out.

Background

Harold Tindall opened the restaurant in 1932 with a unique recipe for a chili burger. The place gained a local following, and sometime in the last couple of decades (time unknown) Tony and Holly Lipscombe purchased the restaurant. They retained all of the original recipes, and pretty much all of the same furnishings and decor.

Atmosphere

It’s a dive. Period. One walks into a narrow space lined with booths on one side and a lunch counter on the other. First up is a massive menu board with instructions to order at the counter. Several other diners were seated either in booths or at the bar. The place is decked out in yellow for Gaffney’s high school football team.

A Cold Cherokee Ramble – Part 2

February 1, 2014 Tom No Comments

Photography, Rambling

So far Tommy Thompson and I had found an old airway beacon pad, and had visited a wonderful old chapel. There was more to see, though. I had several places I wanted to check out in Cherokee County that Glynda and I had explored previously, including the ghost town of Coopersville and the abandoned Cherokee … Read More “A Cold Cherokee Ramble – Part 2” »

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