Gravity: Consistant & Reliable

Drop something, it “falls,” all things. Moreover, the rate at which it falls is totally predictable. It is based on the mass, the air resistance & so on. You notice I put falls in quotes. That implies the direction it “falls” is always the same, down.

Down, of course is aways defined as toward the earth’s center. Never is it this way or that way. Always down. Perhaps for millenia, mankind have thought about that. In recent history, huge papers have been written on the subject since Issac Newton & Leonardo de Vinci. People have been studying it and we still still know little more than we did, maybe less.

Perhaps, the one thing that amazes me the most is the way it reaches out into the millions of light years and helps control the orbits of orbits.

The average person thinks the astronaut in orbit has escaped gravity, but not so. It just is that he has other has another force acting on him, inertia. Take the inertia away, that big space station will fall like a big piece of metal.

By the way, Inertia is an awfully reliable force too. Then again, there are many laws of science we only pretend to understand. Isn’t it amazing how God put it all together? He did it all without our help.

Then, oddly, there are those who say God doesn’t exist. It all just happened by accident. And all those laws of science just fell in place without anyone setting them in place.

Just what requires more faith, the presence of God, or that it all just happened. I’m putting my faith in God. The gravity that is caused by accident can fail at any time, by accident…as well as well the thousands of other laws we must trust daily. We must, like it or not.

Couldn’t Figure it Out

Ordered a little, I guess you call it a wallet. I call it a credit card holder. When I got it, I couldn’t figure it out. As I put one of my cards in there, I was afraid I’d not get it out again. However, after about 30 minutes, I figured it out. It works great and has for quite a while, I guess about a year now.

I suppose it is designed to fit up to 8, but I never have more than 6, many of those are not credit cards. When I need one of the cards, I push a lever and up pops 3 cards, somewhat separated. Sorry, just cant think of the right word. Nonetheless, if I want my Kroger card, it is easy to separate if from the other 2. If I want one of the other 3 cards, I use the other lever.

It actually works faster than the wallet I was using and the other wallet was cracking and breaking the cards. The card easily goes back into the place designed for it. Once I figured it out, it works far better than I expected. Moreover, I have gotten a number of complements on it. Someone sees me get a card out and they say something like, “Wow. That’s neat.” I think maybe I should keep the name of web site handy for the next person that asks about it.

It has some side benefits. The cards are safe from hacking and I would suppose, they do provide some anti-theft advantages.

Just thought I’d pass it on to someone, maybe looking for a solution. Sorry, like all other wallets, it is not large enough for SS cards or Medicare cards. I figure one day, they will either make the cards smaller or the wallets bigger. They just might switch from paper to plastic as well, but not likely in my lifetime.

As mentioned, I got it through Amazon. I looked it up and it appears that they are still sold through Amazon and VM Fashion also has its own site. I don’t know. I might buy another, maybe two. The size is 3.74 x 2.56 x 0.59 inches, not much larger profile than the card itself. Also, as I checked, I noticed they had many other things along the same line. There might be a good gift among them.

Might I remind one and all, I do not get money for this blog site. I am not receiving anything in return for this post. It just is, when I see a good idea, I figure I should pass it on, for whatever good it might serve.

Automated Restaurants

Those that report the first automatic restaurants must not have had their eyes open. I have seen automation at some level since 1975. You put the the raw burger in one end and it comes out the other fully cooked in less than 3 minutes. I saw them firsthand. This is more than twice the speed as a regular grill because the burger is cooked on both sides at once.

There is a place in Southaven that has done much to automate cooking of pizzas. I also saw on TV a machine that totally automatically pancakes. This was, I guess decades ago.

Here’s the thing. None of the machines I discibed has any real computerization. It would take very little to fully automate them. It is not that new. Building the more automated equipment is simply a matter of an increase in the demand.

As an aside, I remember seeing a McDonald’s with fry machines totally automatic. I remember watching in fastenation. The potatoes went through a peeling station then sliced. There they fell into fryer baskets.

Whenever needed, the baskets were transported to the fryers and into the oil. They were dumped under a warm light and salted. The only thing a person did was bag them.

I have no idea if any McDonald’s still does this, perhaps at busier stores. Even though the machine could take place of a couple of people, I am sure the machine would need cleaning from time to time.

Thing is, right now the automation is possible. The question is, how much business does it take to justify buying machines that must be cleaned and repaired.

Another point that I have noticed, far more important, how much time do the employees stand around talking as apposed to being productive. I guess this is a question to be resolved by management and customers. So far I have seen a significant tolerance by McDonald’s & Wendy’s management. Automated or not, making customers wait 15 to 20 minutes in a store with 2 customers is unsatisfactory from the customer’s point of view. It should not be tolerated by management either.

The Rule Concerning the TV Series

Not all TV series are successful. The rules that determine which ones work and which ones don’t are as varied as the ditch digger’s work day is long.

Some that are predicted to be big successes don’t last the season. Then there are the unexpected ones with little known lead actors that take off.

Some who are as old as me remember little lines like, “Missed it by that much.” I suspect a few thought Get Smart would become one of those extra special shows, not only successful, but also highly quoted. I mean, would you believe people would quote and re-quote parts of the show next day around the water cooler. And let’s face it, some watched the silly almost slapstick comedy just so they would be part of the next day’s discussions.

The show was something of a copy of a copy of a spoof. It all started with Goldfinger. Then the copies hit TV. It is the biggest rule in TV. When something works, copy it. Remember the westerns, the private investors, the hard hitting cop shows.

Then, there was CSI, followed by CSI, NY, CSI, Miami. Did they ever have one for LA. I don’t remember. Speaking of alphabet soup, there were a bunch of NCIS shows. I am convinced the only good one was the original. Never cared for any of the others for various reasons.

Law & Order was a good show. I suspect I watched every episode at least 3 times. Don’t watch any of the copies at all.

Thing is…I just really wonder…would TV succeed if it were required to be original. Then again, I suppose copies are what we, the public want, at least sometimes. Sometimes, not so much.

Personally, I’d like it if they would drop all the spin-offs of Law&Order and bring back the original. I really think it’s time to drop the NCIS spin-offs too. They owe all of any of their success to the original and the copies are doomed to drag the the original down.

I’m sure there are a few, very few that would disagree with me, but you have your right to be wrong. Disagree or not, you can’t deny, there is a whole lot of copying going on. Originality is rare.