Long Shot (2019 on Amazon)

Long Shot was watched as a result of a recommendation of semi-loyal reader who has made some good recommendations in the past, and based on the assumption that it must be really good given that it's not on Amazon Prime but has to be paid for in actual real money which is not the kind of thing this semi-loyal reader is known to do. All that said, why anyone would recommend Long Shot is a complete mystery. It has some funny moments (through at least the first half, which is as far as this reviewer got) and starts off clever and quick, much in the mold of Veep. But, as it goes on, it devolves into a totally stupid and stylized infantile (Dare I say purile? Yes, I'll say it, purile) rom-com with nothing to commend it except the outstanding supporting performance turned in by June Diane Rafael.

IMDb Link to Long Shots

Reduce Your Internet Speed to Save Money Without Any Degradation

[Prefatory Note: This post is crafted in terms of Cox. But it likely applies to other ISPs as well]

Cox's two lowest internet speeds are 30 mbps and 150 mbps. Cox doggedly pushes the 150 and in fact will provision any new service at 150 without even asking a new customer if 30 might be preferred. The monthly difference in cost is not trivial, unless you consider $20/month (which works out to be $240/year) trivial (e.g., the savings is the equivalent of getting Netflix and Amazon Prime for free, and also will help you off-set the money you mis-spent watching Long Shot noted in the above post). The 30-level likely will be plenty for you but, if for any reason it's not, you just call Cox and they'll switch you to 150 remotely. Likewise, if you're now running 150, you can call Cox to have them switch you to 30 remotely and, if you are not happy (with your internet speed performance--Cox is not good at dealing with other kinds of unhappiness), call them again and they'll switch you back. In contrast to what Cox says about needing higher internet speed, here is what an independent internet speed test reported on my system with two computers, two tablets, two phones, and one smart TV connected and running:

Prius Spare Tire PS

A loyal reader has pointed out that, as he put it, you can open as many thingys as you want on a  newer Prius and you will not find any spare tire. Instead, you get a so-called "tire repair kit." This short video explains it all, but caution, it's a bit scary to watch: Link to Understanding the Prius Tire Repair Kit

Consider Buying Your Own Cable Modem

If you are paying a  monthly charge (expressly or in a hidden charge) for a cable modem or a combined cable modem/router, and most people are at the rate of $10-$20/month, consider buying your own cable modem and returning your ISP's cable modem. Each ISP has a published list of acceptable cable modems, and many can be bought brand spanking new on Amazon for $60 or less. You are likely to find the exact same make/model that currently is being rented to you by your ISP You can do the math. You might also be able to get higher internet speed in the bargain for no appreciably enhanced cost if you're on a 30 mbps or lower plan.

How to Find a Prius's Spare Tire to Avoid Looking Like an Idiot

Even a Prius might pick up a nail in its tire, and when it does, and you've had AAA put replace it with a spare, given that the tires are 4-years old, you just might decide to have all four tires replaced, and so you take it to the shop and leave the car there until its done. The next day, you can't find the netting that belongs in the back storage area, so you lift up the floor thingy, and there is a big storage space with the netting but no tire. You call the tire place (which actually was your Toyota dealership where you've had the same service advisor for over 11 years) to tell them that the spare was not put back into the car, and they invite you to bring the car in immediately to rectify the situation. As it turns out, there is a second even lower storage space which is revealed upon lifting up another thingy, and voila, there's the spare tire. In fine, then, to save time, effort, and embarrassment, be sure to lift both the first and second thingies before accusing a tire place of not replacing the spare tire. Other cars might have similar secret passages.

VPN Endorsement: Express VPN

A VPN, or virtual private network, is a secure tunnel between your device and the internet. VPNs are used to protect your online traffic from snooping, interference, and censorship. A VPN can also act as a proxy, allowing you to mask or change your location and surf the web anonymously from wherever you want.

A loyal reader graciously agreed to try a VPN, specifically one called Express VPN, and report back on his evaluation, which he did. After studying his extensive report and putting him through a vigorous debriefing, we are delighted to report his conclusion: "I have Express VPN on both my desktop at home and my iPad, and, while I am comforted by the enhanced security it provides me, I am pleased to say that there has been no noticeable slowing – if anything, I may be getting connected to some sites more quickly, and there is no noticeable slowing in what I download."

Link to Express VPN Website

It is meet to note that Express VPN is not free. But it is the top-rated VPN. There are free VPNs and this article rates the top ones: Link to Free VPN Ratings

A Cautionary Comment on New Miracle Cancer Drugs

You likely have read from time to time about a possible new revolutionary drug for treating cancers. Let's hope any or all those stories come true. In the meantime, here is a cautionary word from a loyal reader: 

PS: It is also well to remember, as one stable genius keeps reminding us, guns don't kill petri dishes, people do. Crazy people.

Windows Repair Toolbox

If a PC is having problems there are several good tools available to diagnose problems. Windows Repair Toolbox puts almost all of them at your fingertips.

Windows Repair Toolbox is a compact, excellent program that includes most of the well known and reliable programs and utilities needed to analyze and repair many Windows problems. It's small, portable and you can choose whether to download tools as needed from the original sites so you get the latest versions (requires an Internet connection) or download them all at once so the toolbox can be used offline. With two exceptions, all tools in the programs are portable and won't install anything on the computer it's being used on. Several will likely be familiar to anyone who has worked on PC's.

These are some of the key features from the developer:

-Ability to download all the tools at once (and also to keep them updated) with 1-click so that you can use the toolbox in offline computers, or simply to have all the tools already downloaded in advance.

– Ability to select several tools to run successively in unattended mode, in order to perform malware removal, system cleaning and repair. An email letting you know that the process is complete, and containing the logs, can be sent to you.

– Displays relevant information about the computer to be repaired: CPU temperature, name and % time; amount of RAM installed on the system and % of use; Disk model, capacity, basic health check; amount of free space left in the system partition; Windows edition and install date; System boot time; and more.

– Contains a functionality – “AVLeftovers” – that helps to identify what antivirus applications have been previously installed in a machine, so that you can run the respective manual uninstaller(s) before installing other antivirus of your choice, or simply when trying to solve some problem potentially caused by the incomplete uninstall of a security solution.

– Allows you to perform quality assurance tests after the repair is complete;

– Allows you to save notes about the repair process;

– Provides 1-click access to some useful Windows tools: Chkdsk, SFC, Event Viewer, and Reliability.

Tools are grouped by functions: Tools, Malware Removal, Custom Tools, Final Tests, Notes, and Settings, and About.

Each group has subcategories, for example, the tools group has sub-categories with tools for hardware, back up and recovery, useful tools, Windows, repairs, and uninstallers. Hovering the mouse over each tool shows a pop up box with information about the item.

The Windows Repair Toolbox has two modes to choose from. It can be run in regular or minimal mode. In minimal mode, the webcam test and system monitoring features are unavailable. This is a great set of tools in one small program, and a great addition or new tool if you find yourself needing to troubleshoot Windows problems.

Link to Windows Repair Toolbox Download Site

Google Voice Chrome Extension No Longer Works

No one but me cares, but the Google Voice Extension for Chrome no longer is function. When text, you simply get a message saying "Please try again later." Don't bother. You can still text through GV but you need to do so through its web portal, so it takes two clicks instead of one. Yes, a major pain, but that's the hallmark of The Google's mission statement: Just when customers like a particular function, get rid of it.  

UPS Tracking Now Viewable in Real-Time

With Follow My Delivery from UPS, you not only can track a package as it moves from the shipper through the UPS system, but once it's on the truck, and the truck reaches your general area, you can see on a map exactly where the truck is. As Michael Keaton so perfectly put it in Night Shift: Is this a great country or what?

Link to Sign Up for UPS Follow My Delivery Service

This Is Not Who We Are

Perhaps, the most repeated line by those with TDS (Trump Deranged Syndrome), and one does have to question the mental state of anyone at this point that is not TDS, is that: This is not who we are. As loyal readers know we don't do politics here, but, as an existential factual matter, until Trump is gone from the presidency: This is who we are. 

Free Movie and TV Streaming Through IMDb

IMDb has a substantial list of movies (including like La La Land, which also is available on Amazon Prime, as might be all other Amazon Prime streaming content) and tv shows that are available for free and can be streamed through its app (or through its website). What makes this alternative nice is that you don't have to buy and download a movie to watch it on your tablet when traveling ... you can simply stream it through the tablet assuming you have internet access.

Link to IMDb Free Movie/TV Streaming Website

When to Start Taking Social Security: 62, 65, 67, 70? (According to the Motley Fool)

[Prefatory Note: This is courtesy of and strictly the view and analysis of the Motley Fool. We express no opinion on the subject. That said, we do find their analysis insightful, cogent, and thoughtful]

Deciding when to start collecting your Social Security benefits is a bigger decision than you might think, because your checks will be smaller if you start early, and they'll be bigger if you delay.

It may seem as if waiting to claim benefits until age 70 is smart -- and it is, for many people -- but there are plenty of solid reasons to start collecting early. Here are three of them.

Two lit birthday candles are shown -- one is the number 6 and the other a 2, spelling out the number 62.

Image source: Getty Images.

No. 1: You have to

You might have your plan all set -- perhaps to work until age 65 or 70. That's great, but things don't always work out as planned. The 2016 Retirement Confidence Survey found that 46% of retirees left the workforce earlier than planned, with 55% citing health problems or a disability as the reason and 24% citing changes at work such as a downsizing or workplace closure. Many people retire early because they have to. And in such situations, income from Social Security is often welcome, if not critical.

What can you expect to receive? Well, the average monthly check for retirees was recently $1,472, or about $17,600 annually. Those who earned more than average during their working years will receive more than that, though: The maximum benefit for those retiring at their full retirement age this year is $2,861, or about $34,300 annually. If you start collecting your benefits early, though, you'll be receiving reduced benefits -- they can be as much as 30% smaller if your full retirement age is 67 and you start collecting at 62. (The earliest age at which you can start collecting is 62, and the latest age is 70.)

To find out more precisely what you can expect to receive in retirement, head to the Social Security Administration (SSA) website and set up a my Social Security account. Doing so will let you see the latest estimate of your eventual benefits, based on the SSA's record of your earnings. While you're there, it's smart to examine that record and make sure it's accurate -- because if it isn't, your benefit checks can end up smaller than they should be. (Setting up an account can even prevent identity theft and associated headaches, because you may be doing so before a scammer does so for you, aiming to collect your benefits.)

No. 2: Delaying may not be worth it

While starting to collect benefits early will shrink them, delaying can make them bigger -- by about 8% for each year beyond your full retirement age that you delay. Delay from 67 to 70, and you can make your checks 24% bigger. What's not to like about that? Well, understand that the system is designed to be a wash: The Social Security Administration has explained that "If you live to the average life expectancy for someone your age, you will receive about the same amount in lifetime benefits no matter whether you choose to start receiving benefits at age 62, full retirement age, age 70 or any age in between." After all, those who get smaller checks are likely to get far more of them than those who wait for bigger checks.

Waiting until age 70 if you can is well worth it if you end up living a very long life. Few of us have a clear idea of how long we'll live, but if you're not in the best health or you have many relatives who passed away in their 70s or earlier, starting to collect at 62 can be smart. (Be sure to think through any coordinating strategies with your spouse, though, as sometimes it can be effective to employ a strategy such as having one of you start early while the other delays.)

No. 3: You may be able to retire early

A last good reason to start collecting Social Security at 62 is that it can help you retire early. You only live once, after all, and if you don't love your job and you can manage to retire early, why not? Retiring early can give you the best chance of being able to make the most of retirement; young retirees can generally enjoy their money more, being healthier and more able to travel, enjoy recreation, and so on.

Be sure that you can swing an early retirement, though. Read up on how much money you might need, and figure out how you'll amass it. Even if you don't have enough socked away to retire right now, there's a good chance that if you get more aggressive about saving and you invest your money effectively, you can make your retirement happen sooner.

Here's how much you might amass, depending on how far from retirement you are, if you average an annual growth rate of 8%:

Growing at 8% for	$10,000 Invested Annually	$15,000 Invested Annually	$20,000 Invested Annually
5 years	$63,359	$95,039	$126,719
10 years	$156,455	$234,682	$312,910
15 years	$293,243	$439,864	$586,486
20 years	$494,229	$741,344	$988,458
25 years	$789,544	$1.2 million	$1.6 million
30 years	$1.2 million	$1.8 million	$2.4 million

Social Security income is critical to the vast majority of retirees -- including, probably, you. So take some time to learn more about it so that you'll be equipped to make smart decisions that can strengthen your future financial health.

Why Arpaio's Running for Sheriff Is Good for Dems

Where turnout is a big factor in the top ballot race, turnout can be greatly affected by down ballot races as well as ballot propositions. Given Arpaio's history and diminished reputation, his presence on the ballot should help to the Dems in both the presidential and senate races.

How to Retrofit Your Car for Full Infotainment for Under $50

[Courtesy of the NYT]

Plenty of us bought cars before infotainment systems like Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto became popular. That’s not a bad thing — physical knobs and buttons are easier to control than touch screens while keeping your eyes on the road. But at the very least, a car should be smart enough to play music and show maps from our phones, right? Fortunately, it’s easy and inexpensive to add those capabilities.

For starters, you need a Bluetooth adapter that plugs in to your accessories port and the car’s auxiliary jack. This will let you wirelessly play music from the phone to the car speakers. Examples include Bluetooth kits from Mpow and Anker. (If you don’t need wireless audio streaming, you could just plug the auxiliary cable straight into the phone’s headphone jack.)

Then you just need a mount that holds up your phone at the front of the car— one that’s sturdy so you can easily type in your maps destination. Wirecutter has a guide on these mounts; you might like the CD-slot version from iOttie.

Those two accessories combined should cost roughly $50. That beats swapping out the stereo or buying a new car just to get a smarter setup.

An Obit Worthy of Emulation

[Prefatory Note: This obit, brought to my attention by my favorite aunt, was published in the NYT on August 9. I've highlighted in yellow the part that makes it so memorable. So, for those of limited attention spans, you can scroll down to the portion highlighted in yellow]

BRANDT--Katherine E., died at home in Charlottesville, VA on August 4, 2019 under the care of her family with the expert guidance of the University of Virginia Palliative Care Clinic. She was 54. Beloved wife of Kimberly D. Acquaviva and devoted mother of Greyson K. Acquaviva. Survivors include sister-in-law Terri Brandt McGrath (James), father-in-law Philip C. Acquaviva (Virginia Bertrand), sister-in-law Jennifer (Acquaviva) Bass (Warren), brother Theodore L. Brandt (Selena), BFFs Gary Gardia (Dennis McClure) and Kathleen Taylor, and countless family members and friends. Kathy was preceded in death by her parents Ann Lowden Brandt and Robert Eugene Brandt, and much-loved aunts Mary Lowden and Betty Lowden Hansford. A graduate of Mount Holyoke College (1987), Kathy championed hospice and palliative care for more than 30 years, working to improve timely access to quality care. Among her many accomplishments, she was the author and editor of the NCP Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care, 4th edition. She was a member of Friends Meeting of Washington and a longtime volunteer with Capitol Hill Scouts Troop 500. A Memorial Meeting for Worship will be held October 26th at 2:00pm at Friends Meeting of Washington. From the time Kathy was diagnosed with clear cell ovarian cancer six months ago, she was clear with her family that the cause of death should be listed as the Trump Presidency in her obituary. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be sent to whichever candidate secures the Democratic nomination even if you really wish someone better were running.  

Faster Bandwidth: Not Worth the Extra Cost

The Wall Street Journal has an excellent, in-depth article explaining why paying for extra bandwidth is not worth it, and why faster internet speeds make for virtually no difference by any metric (including: streaming quality; download time; start-up time; number of devices supported at the same time; etc.) to most households. Here is the link to that article with its robust detail: Link to WSJ Article re Bandwidth  Here is the basic text of the article: 

Americans are spending ever more for blazing internet speeds, on the promise that faster is better. Is that really the case? For most people, the answer is no.

The Wall Street Journal studied the internet use of 53 of our journalists across the country, over a period of months, in coordination with researchers at Princeton University and the University of Chicago. Our panelists used only a fraction of their available bandwidth to watch streaming services including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and YouTube, even simultaneously. Quality didn’t improve much with higher speeds. Picture clarity was about the same. Videos didn’t launch quicker.

Broadband providers such as Comcast Corp., Charter Communications Inc. and AT&T Inc. are marketing speeds in the range of 250, 500 or even 1,000 megabits a second, often promising that streaming-video bingers will benefit. “Fast speeds for all of your shows,” declares one online ad from Comcast. But for a typical household, the benefits of paying for more than 100 megabits a second are marginal at best, according to the researchers. That means many households are paying a premium for services they don’t need.

What follows is our evidence that you’re being oversold:

To gauge how much bandwidth, or speed capacity, households need, it helps to look at an extreme scenario. Our users spent an evening streaming up to seven services simultaneously, including on-demand services like Netflix and live-TV services like Sling TV. We monitored the results.

Peter Loftus, one of our panelists, lives outside Philadelphia and is a Comcast customer with a speed package of 150 megabits a second. One afternoon, Peter started watching ‘Ferdinand’ on HBO Now using an Xbox One. Five minutes later, he launched an ‘Indiana Jones' movie on Netflix using an iPad. Next he added ‘Despicable Me’ on HBO Now using an iPhone. He used 97 Mbps — his highest speed during the test — when he added ‘Christopher Robin’ on Netflix on a laptop. Then he launched ‘The Young Turks’ on Facebook. He noted a little blurriness, but his usage was well within his plan’s capacity. His sixth stream was an episode of ‘Vice’ on YouTube. Finally, he streamed an episode of ‘Last Week Tonight’ on YouTube.

Peter’s median usage over 35 viewing minutes was 6.9 Mbps, 5% of the capacity he pays for. For the portion when all seven of his streams were going at once, he averaged 8.1 Mbps. At one point, for one second, Peter reached 65% of his capacity. Did his video launch faster or play more smoothly? Not really. The researchers said that to the extent there were differences in video quality such as picture resolution or the time it took to launch a show, they were marginal.

“For many people they are not going to see huge differences between 50 Mbps, 100 Mbps and a gigabit per second,” said Nick Feamster, a University of Chicago network-performance expert and part of the research team on the Journal project. Some 61% of U.S. households had speeds of 100 Mbps or higher as of December 2018, according to research firm Kagan.

We found similar results across our 34 testers who ran five, six or seven streams at once. The eight users with speeds 100 Mbps or higher who had seven streams going used only about 7.1 Mbps of capacity, on average.

People who paid for even faster speeds still streamed video at about the same speeds as everyone else, resulting in their using a smaller portion of available bandwidth. One person with a 300 Mbps connection streamed at a median of 7.2 Mbps, using 2% of the capacity she pays for.

People with speeds of over 100 Mbps used on average less than 6% of the broadband they pay for.

Shalini Ramachandran, who subscribes to the 15 Mbps tier, used all her bandwidth for a significant portion of the seven-stream test but didn’t report any issues with quality. Mr. Feamster said most households don’t use applications that would use up anything close to the bandwidth they pay for. “We had to create an experiment to push the envelope,” he said.

There are some cases—such as downloading videogames or other very big files—when full capacity gets used briefly and there would be advantages to having a faster speed, said Guilherme Martins, a researcher on the study. Those situations are rare for most households. In the future, virtual reality and augmented reality may require the superfast speeds providers are selling, Mr. Feamster said.

Mr. Feamster and his research associates have received research funding from companies and institutions including the cable-industry consortium CableLabs, Comcast, tech companies such as Cisco Systems Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google, and the National Science Foundation. No financing was specifically earmarked for the Journal’s internet-speeds project.

Representatives for major broadband providers Comcast, Charter, AT&T, Verizon, Altice and Cox said in separate statements that consumers are demanding fast internet speeds to support the many devices in their households, from security cameras to smart appliances, and activities such as ultrahigh definition (4K) streaming, online gaming and telecommuting.

“The demand for speed and capacity will continue to grow rapidly,” said Comcast spokeswoman Jennifer Khoury. “Video is only a piece of the speed story.”

While the Journal’s testing focused on major streaming-video applications, the researchers’ software saw how much overall bandwidth households were using. Internet traffic from gaming and other sources like web cameras didn’t significantly increase bandwidth usage, the researchers said. Google’s cloud-gaming service Stadia recommends users have at least 10 Mbps, while Comcast says 3 Mbps to 6 Mbps is the minimum needed for most online gaming.

The companies also said emerging technologies will require even more bandwidth in coming years. Cox spokesman Todd Smith said the company has a vocal segment of customers “who want to be prepared for the future even if they don’t need the speed now and those who want to be the first on the block to have it.”

When you press “play” on a streaming service, it responds by quickly sending you a chunk of the video file. Those are the brief spikes you see in the Peter Loftus graphic. People with higher speeds can get higher spikes.

The researchers said the impact of those momentary bursts on “startup delay” is almost imperceptible. Across all users—slowest speed to fastest—the start-time differences for Netflix videos were within one second, on average. The difference in startup delays for Amazon and YouTube was even smaller. Did those spikes in Peter Loftus’s test translate into higher picture quality? Barely.

For most modern televisions, the highest picture clarity is the “full” high-definition standard, 1080p, followed by the slightly lower HD standard, 720p, then “standard resolution,” 480p. The Journal study found a household’s percentage of 1080p viewing had little to do with the speed it was paying for. In some cases, streaming services intentionally transmit in lower resolution to accommodate a device such as a mobile phone.

When all HD viewing is considered—1080p and 720p—there were some benefits to paying for the very highest broadband tiers, those 250 Mbps and above. Premium-tier subscribers experienced the highest-quality resolution just one-third of the time while watching Netflix. On Amazon, all people below the premium tier experienced roughly the same amount of 1080p resolution. On YouTube, users across the board experienced much less 1080p resolution than on the other services. Premium-tier subscribers experienced the highest-quality resolution just one-third of the time while watching Netflix.

Streaming services compress their streams in smart ways, so they don’t require much bandwidth. We took a closer look at specific services by gathering data on our households’ viewing over a period of months. Unlike the “stress test,” this was regular viewing of shows and movies, one at a time.

Netflix streamed at under 4 Mbps, on average, over the course of a show or movie, with not much difference in the experience of someone who was paying for a 15 Mbps connection and someone with a one gigabit (1,000 Mbps) connection. The findings were similar for the other services.

There is a brief speed spike when a stream begins. Netflix reached the highest max speeds of the services we tested, but even those were a fraction of the available bandwidth.

Users watching YouTube might launch a video slightly faster than those watching Netflix, and at lower resolution, but this is a function of how those services work, not your broadband speed, the researchers said.

Whereas Netflix tries to load “nice high quality video” when you press play and hence has higher spikes, YouTube appears to “want to start as fast as possible,” said Paul Schmitt, one of the researchers.

A spokeswoman for Alphabet Inc.’s YouTube said the service chooses playback quality based on factors including type of device, network speed, user preferences and the resolution of the originally uploaded video. A Netflix Inc. spokeswoman said the company aims to deliver quality video with the least possible bandwidth. Amazon.com Inc. had no comment.

Broadband providers often suggest in their marketing and communications with customers that faster speeds translate into tangible streaming benefits. Cox Communications plays down its 50 Mbps tier in advertisements, saying it is primarily for web surfing and email, whereas 300 Mbps would be optimal for “large file downloads and video streaming.”

Faster tiers generally come at a premium. For example, Comcast’s “Blast!” 250 Mbps service costs $94.95 a month in Jersey City, N.J., compared with $49.95 a month for a 15 Mbps connection.

So what is happening when you encounter a spinning wheel as Netflix attempts to load? In most cases, said the researchers, it has nothing to do with the broadband speed. Upgrading to a higher speed tier often isn’t the answer.

There are a number of factors that could impact users’ experiences. A streaming video can pass through multiple internet middlemen—even across different states—before it gets to your broadband provider. Then it goes through your router, often over Wi-Fi, to various devices throughout your home. Those are opportunities for bottlenecks or hiccups.

Broadband-industry experts said when consumers complain about service, the most cost-efficient action for call-center representatives is offering a faster package, even if that doesn’t solve the problem.

That “makes the tech support call shorter,” Mr. Feamster said, “and it helps the internet service provider sell faster service.”

Misreading (Over-reading) the Polls re Biden's Lead

The most recent (national which are irrelevant anyhow) polls show Biden with a double-digit lead over all contenders. All the pundits seem to conclude this means he has far more support (now at least) than any of his Dem rivals. Here's the flaw: Those polls are showing Biden vs. each of the other contenders. Take all but one away and then look at the numbers. And if that one were Sherrod Brown, which it should be, there would be no contest for the nomination.

Time to Refinance Your Mortgage?

Mortgage rates are at historic lows. Even if you have a low 30-year mortgage of say 3.85%, you might consider refinancing to a 15-year mortgage which now see rates at close 3%. You might find that, for a few hundreds dollars more per month, depending on how long you've had your 30-year mortgage, you will pay off the mortgage years faster and save tens of thousands of dollars in interest payments. 

Restoring Lost Battery Icon in System Tray (and a PS re Device Manager)

If the battery icon all of a sudden stops showing up in the system tray, there are two easy fixes. First, right-click on Taskbar/Taskbar Settings/Notification Area/Turn system icons on or off/Slide Power to On. Second, if the Power is grayed out so you cannot slide it to on, then Start/Control Panel/Device Manager/Batteries, and on each entry, right-click/Disable and then right-click again/Enable, and then re-boot.

PS: There are many other "lost functions" than can be restored by going to Device Manager and disabling or uninstalling the device and re-booting. For example, if a USB port stops working, this procedure should restore it.  

Jane the Virgin: Another View (and Switch to Glow Season 3 on Netflix)

Loved Jane the Virgin to start, as noted in an earlier post. But as Season 1 dragged on, it got slower and slower and more boring and more boring and increasingly more predictable. Have given up, and likely will not return to it. Am switching to Glow (Season 3 is now out on Netflix), and don't have undue hope, but it can't be worse. 

Best Letter to Editor Not Published (and I Was Not the Author) [CORRECTION]

The following letter was submitted to the Arizona Republic on August 17, which so far has yet to publish it. It just might be the best letter to a newspaper editor ever written and certainly is the best I've ever seen. I did not write it. It was written by a lawyer of the absolute highest caliber and achievement who happens to be the brother of a loyal reader. Here is the text of that letter:

"Abba Eban, legendary Israeli foreign minister, said nearly 50 years ago: 'The Arabs never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.' Sadly, that now can be said of the Israelis, who recently missed an opportunity to show two members of Congress, whose enmity to Israel knows no bounds, a democratic state, with all its strengths and, yes, also its warts. Who knows whether these two critics of everything Israeli would have taken the opportunity to learn about Israel, its values and its importance in the world.  Most likely not. But then the world would have seen these two members of Congress for who they are: persons committed to abolishing the only democracy in the Middle East. What a missed opportunity!"

CORRECTION: The Arizona Republic printed this on August 20.

Don't Ridicule People Who Dress All in Black

There are some people who dress all in black. All the time. From shirts and jackets to pants to socks to shoes. At first blush, you might think this is some kind of OCD thing (and, of course, it might be, a conclusion that could be strengthened if they also have an all black car). But, before you jump to such a pejorative conclusion or otherwise harbor thoughts of "that's weird," as a very smart loyal reader pointed out, there is a counter-explanation: The person might be color blind; and by having an all black wardrobe (or other single color wardrobe but black would be the best), the person will not have to worry about donning some clashing attire. 

PS: There is a difference between OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and OCP (obsessive compulsive personality), and they should not be confused. OCD can be problematic. OCP, in sharp contrast, can be very functional and efficient, as those gifted with OCP focus on routinizing things that should be routinized and those who are not so gifted and don't so routinize can only marvel at the benefits that routinizing might bring to bring order into this chaotic world.

Long Term Rentals

If one wants a long-term getaway stay (e.g., to escape the Phoenix summers), one might think buying is the only option. It is not. As an alternative to buying, there just might be more and more affordable long-term (1-3 month rentals) available. Such places might be found on Airbnb, but there also are entities that specialize in long-term rentals. One of them, Long Term Lettings (which likely is a British given that prices are quoted in Ls and the word "letting" is a bit of a giveaway old chaps and chapettes), allows for pinpointing your desired destination in various places all over the world. By way of example, searching on the Oregon Coast, one can designate each of the beach towns one might be interested in, as well as apply various filters, all in one shot.

Link to LongTermLettings Website

A Not So Pretty Look at Inspirato Pass

A loyal reader has shared the following: Link to What Negative Nabobs of Negativism Are Saying

Luxury Travel Redefined: Inspirato Pass

Inspirato Pass is a subscription service that enables you to stay in absolutely the highest end homes and hotels, and take amazing excursion trips, with NO nightly rate, fees, or tax--and concierge and maid service and more also are included (plane fare is not included). And you can stay at a place for up to 60 days and can spend as many days as you want vacationing ... every day of the year is possible. With that, the base rate of $2,500/month is a bargain, and the tier 2 level of $5,000/month where you can share the membership with others might even be a better deal. The only "catch" is that you cannot make your next reservation until the last day of your current reservation on the tier 1 level, but you can hold 2 reservations at once on the tier 2 level. So, for $25,000 per year, it just might be possible to stay in 6 luxury places and not have any home to take care of or pay for. 

Link to Inspirato Pass Website

If you think this is all too good to be true, read the below linked article. It also will answer your questions as to how the "catch" actually plays out as well as cover in some detail various pluses and minuses of subscribing.

Link to Review and Explanation

Chances Are ... (Richard Russo, 2019)

Chances Are ... is Richard Russo's newest book. Whether it's as good, better, or worse than other books of his are not for me to say because apparently I am the last person in the world to read a Richard Russo book. I can comfortably predict, however, as with other of his writings, this will be a movie or a TV series. It's a cross between The Big Chill (looking both in present time and back 40 years later (and even going back further at times) on three guy friends who went to Minerva College because they could not get in to Wesleyan (which stretches the credulity because Wesleyan has no reluctance to admit total losers)) and Gone Girl (sort of). If you need a plot/story to unfold linearly, this book is not for you. It goes back and forth and around the corner in time, so careful if you're prone to vertigo. I cannot promise you will enjoy it (quite a few of the reviewers on Amazon didn't), but I did--the characters are real, the descriptions are insightful, and the suspense is fun.  

Link to Chances Are ... on Amazon

Correction to Post re Rape Suit Against Trump

A loyal reader has pointed out that my post about the child rape suit against Trump did NOT settle. The plaintiff dropped the suit because of concern for her personal safety. My bad!

That Hilarious, Whacky Yield Curve

The yield curve inverted this week, meaning the 10-year Treasury bill rate fell below short-term Treasury bill rates. The blather has focused on the fact that the such an inversion of the yield curve has been followed by a market drop about 18 months later and a recession about 24 months later with each of the last 7 recessions. Here's the question: If it was the case, which it arguably could have been, that in each of those 7 instances, the short-term rates actually rose to exceed the 10-year rate which had remained relatively stable, does it make it difference that this time the short-term rates have remained relatively stable while the 10-year rate has had a dramatic drop (from 3.2% to 1.6% just this year)? Put another way: We are seeing, as often is the case when one listens to market gurus, a classic school yard brawl: "This time it's different. No it's not. Yes it is. No it's not." Even if we had the answer (and we assuredly do not), as our loyal readers know, we do not weigh in on market, economic, or financial issues any more than we do on politics. Rather, our role is to stimulate thought and discussion. In the meantime, however, we will make one observation: No one knows when one of these is coming or what to do if it shows up--but the book of the same name by Nassim Nicholas Taleb is certainly worth reading and gives some sage counsel about what to do before one of them shows up:



Link to Mr. Taleb's Book on Amazon

Of course, sometimes one those avians goes through a metamorphosis of sorts and comes along in a totally unrecognizable form. Indeed, here is what many are now saying they have seen and swear is one of those avians aka the cuckoo bird (although no one says he has any clue what an inverted yield is or what to do about it):

How Trump Could Be Made to Have His Head Explode With One (3-Part) Question

[Prefatory Note: The idea here is the result of my not understanding why Trump would retweet (and later actually accuse) that Clinton conspired to murder Epstein. I put the question to several people who had no answer, but one did: To set out a different narrative in the event that the child rape accusation against Trump resurfaced. I was dubious. I now think that's correct. More important, it puts a challenge to the press which some might hope is met]

GQ lays out the facts that Trump was sued for raping a 13 year-old (around the time Trump was hanging out with Epstein). Link to GQ Article The article speaks for itself. That suit was settled shortly after Trump's victory in the 2016 election and has since been under seal. No one actually denies the facts set out the article, namely, that Trump was accused of raping a child, he was sued as a result of doing so, the suit settled, and litigation and settlement were sealed.  

All it takes, then, is one brave reporter to ask Trump the following: Were you sued for raping a 13 year-old child, did that suit settle, and are you willing to have the court papers and settlement unsealed? Once the question is out there, Katie bar the door. If the question is not put out there, there is little reason for the Emperor to don any clothes.

The End of Patience in Today's World

[Prefatory Note: Although it takes off on sports events, the following piece by Jason Gay in the WSJ is very well written with insightful and even humorous observations on the agony of waiting for anything]

Link to the Article in Print

Hour-long wait at a restaurant? You have to be kidding me.

Movie taking two minutes to buffer on the iPad? I think I might die.

Another 850-word sports column about sporting events taking too long? Cut to the chase, Jason!

We’re all so restless and in a rush. Have you been to a baseball game recently? You can fly in a hot-air balloon from Chicago to San Diego—and then take a covered wagon back across the Rockies—in the time it takes to play the average baseball game.

I’m serious. My neighbor took his 4-year-old to a double-header this summer. By the time they got home, the kid was 6.

(The Journal’s baseball czar Jared Diamond rolls his eyes when I make fun of baseball’s pace of play. But I know for a fact that Jared brings a Harry Potter book to the press box every game—and finishes it by the fourth inning.)

Baseball has tried to improve pace of play by experimenting with a pitch clock in spring games. Photo: Chris Carlson/Associated Press

College football is worse. College football games drag on longer than, well, college. If it runs into overtime, you can tack on a couple of years of graduate school, and a medical degree. Nick Saban grows a long, shaggy beard by the end of the average Alabama game.

Even tennis is trying to speed up. Chair umpires now warn players who take too long with the bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce before their serves, even if it means getting a laser death stare from Novak Djokovic. We just had a Wimbledon men’s final with a new tiebreaker format that cut the match down to…OK, that match still lasted almost five hours, it’s probably not the best example.

Perhaps the most chronic time offender is golf. A sport invented to ruin the weekends of reasonable human beings, golf is not tailored for accelerated modern life.

You need at least four hours to play 18 holes of golf, and that’s if you’re playing briskly. Four free hours? Who do you think I am, Jay Gatsby? Do you think leisure time exists in 2019? I have to take the kids to a birthday party, shop for organic cheese sticks at Trader Joe’s, get the car washed, and it turns out the cat may finally have to go to the vet for a hairball thing.

Four hours? I can give you 20 minutes. How much golf can we do?

Even golf pros think golf can go on too long. Witness the recent controversy around the young golf star Bryson DeChambeau, a wildly talented, tournament-winning 25-year-old who sometimes moves around a golf course like, well, a tortoise on Benadryl.

A viral video made the rounds this past weekend of DeChambeau preparing for a putt at the Northern Trust. DeChambeau looks at his putt from one angle. Then he looks from another angle. Then another. DeChambeau spends more time prepping for this putt than I did for my wedding and the birth of my children combined.

The whole thing lasts…well, it only lasts a bit longer than two minutes, but it feels like forever. One of DeChambeau’s playing partners starts reading Dickens. The other crochets a cable-knit sweater. OK, I’m making that stuff up, but you get the point.

Here’s the big finale: he misses the putt. It’s like watching someone spend six hours making a pie, only to drop it on the ground.

DeChambeau seems to feel he’s getting scapegoated as the slow play villain. I refuse to pile on any further, because DeChambeau is one of golf’s more interesting human beings, and because I read that he’s studied stipple drawing—that’s right, the style of tiny dot drawing style that is used to illustrate the visages of business and world leaders in the pages of the Journal.

(Bryson! Give us a call! Let’s go stippling.)

A serve clock has been added in tennis. Photo: Michael Noble Jr./Associated Press

These are hard days for unhurried athletes. Take too long to putt, to pitch, to pass, to kick, to serve, and you’re going to be targeted for impatient ridicule. This is a world, after all, where people pay extra to cut the line at the amusement park. This is a world where people buy gin and tonic in a can. That’s right: we’re all in such an urgent scramble, we don’t have the two seconds it takes to mix gin with tonic.

Sports say they are trying to get better. They’re installing time clocks and cutting commercial breaks to lop minutes off the game.

They might want to get more aggressive. We’re on the go, barreling around, barely tapping the brakes. There’s no more luxurious leisure anymore. The era of the meandering sporting event is over. There’s a pre-made gin and tonic waiting at home. And I think that movie has finally loaded.

Is everything in sports taking way too long? Can pace of play be improved? Join the discussion.

Write to Jason Gay at Jason.Gay@wsj.com

Refrigerator Organization

Refrigerators are the latest frontier in home organization, with color-coordinated lineups and pristine shelves wowing house guests, baffling family members and inspiring boasts on social media. Enthusiasts say tidy drawers and shelves have them eating healthier, buying fewer duplicate condiments and wasting less food because everything is accounted for. Here is what our refrigerators looks like, which we're now proudly willing to share having installed LED bulbs:

  

For more on what are called Refrigerator Konds, see this link from the WSJ: Link to WSJ Article