On The Fly

In this episode - The Miller Effect . . . The sun hung high in the sky, casting shadows across the desolate landscape of Huron, California. Dr. Vo, a brilliant yet witty electrical engineer, stood before the main breaker box of a massive 1.4 MW-DC solar array that had confounded everyone who had dared to diagnose its persistent issue. It had been six long months of head-scratching and ten failed attempts by others before the desperate call came into Dr. Vo's office. As the sun's rays bathed the vast array in an orange glow, Dr. Vo stepped up to the Main breaker box, his sharp eyes shaded by his green Cenergy cap. He wore his North Face jacket that billowed in the light breeze, and his presence exuded an air of mystery and intrigue that was as pervasive as the problem at hand. The solar array was a colossal assemblage of panels, wires, and inverters, but the main breaker kept tripping, sending the entire operation into chaos. The workers at the site were on edge, muttering, “We’...

In this episode - A Good Cry . . . First, thank you all for your warm, heartfelt wishes and kind words of encouragement about the loss of our dear family member, Junior, the cat. I realize with all that’s happening in the world, the war in Israel and Ukraine, the ridiculous amount of school shootings and gun violence, and in general, the Bad News you hear about every night on the television news, the passing of one cat may seem quiet trivial in perspective. However, I’m afraid our television (TV) generation of violence and killings has calloused our emotional system. Somehow, we’ve become the automatons we fear in the AI sector of our world. Allow me to clarify: in my humble opinion, when you lose a family member, that “force field” surrounding you disappears completely, and if you are human at all, you can’t help but break down suddenly at any given moment into a blubbering mass with a flood of tears and uncontrolled sobbing. In a recent article from the Interesting Facts newslette...

First of all, we want to thank you all for your warm, heartfelt wishes and kind words of encouragement about the loss of our dearest member of the family, Junior. I realize with all that’s happening in the world, the war in Israel, and Ukraine, the ridiculous amount of school shootings and gun violence, and in general, the Bad News you hear about every night on the television, the passing of a cat may seem quiet trivial in perspective.  However, I’m afraid our TV generation of violence and killings has calloused our emotional system, and somehow, we’ve become the automatons we fear in the AI sector of our world. Allow me to remind you of something: when you lose a family member, that shield disappears completely, and if you are human at all, you can’t help but break down suddenly at any given moment into a blubbering mass with tears and uncontrolled sobbing. Thank God for our pets, family, and friends and for building into the human spirit that emotional thermostat. In a recent ...

This morning, there is something missing from my life. There's an empty space on the back of our sofa where my companion Tony Junior (Jr.) usually sleeps or watches the world go by through the window, perched on his soft, red, fuzzy blanket. There, he waits for me to join him in a nap so he can climb onto my chest, settle in, and purr as I gently scratch his chin and behind his left ear. You see, last night, October 10, 2023, Jr. quietly passed at about 11:30 p.m. Needless to say, I’m heartbroken. As I write this, tears are streaming down my cheeks. You see, Jr. was my special friend like no other. He never complained; he was always there to greet me every morning, at night, returning from a mountain trip, or just from a daily walk around the neighborhood. Junior, our indoor cat, had a routine of following me around the house. He never wanted to venture outside - he considered our home “his castle.” I could set my watch to his predictable daily routines. And he knew mine. See What ...

In this episode, Civil Discourse . . . Civil discourse is simply this - respectful conversation that promotes understanding among individuals with different perspectives, enhancing the learning experience - characterized by dialogue that supports the societal good. Seriously, are you concerned about the current state of education for young people? Are we teaching our children to follow the same old rules passed down from generation to generation, or are we encouraging creativity and innovation in our children. If you answered yes to these questions, let me re-introduce you to Dr. Don Hanley and his new blog, Hope for a Better World . Dr. Don's blog is launching today, October 7th, 2023. Join us as we explore history, philosophy, education, and self-esteem. I’m proud to partner with Dr. Don; our goal is to create a virtual space where you can share your views with like-minded individuals and challenge the status quo. Now retired and approaching his 91st birthday, Don’s writings inc...