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A couple big art exhibits in San Francisco. The crowds, of course, are going to the Monet, but the Etruscan show at the Legion of Honor is the one we hit today. Loved it.

Went to The City (by the bay) to see a controversial painting of a Woman with a Hat. Because: While we were there, we had a walk and took in some sights A Nice day out.

Counterpoint to my paean of primes: Modern zooms can be really good. Last fall I bought a stack of lenses from an MV photographer who had gone mirrorless. The least interesting but most useful of the bunch was the 24-70mm F/2.8L II. It's the perfect "walk around" focal range and a vast improvement of the original model (which was more than a bit of a dog.) Also pictured is the 100-400mm F/4.5-5.6L IS II which is an impressive and massive beast, but also a great way to blow copious amount of dust into one's camera body. I took all of the following with the 24-70. It's been so long since I've posted photos in this thread that we're going all the way back to last Christmas. I'll win no awards for framing on this one (especially on a stationary object) but in spite of my snapshotesque abilities with the viewfinder, I really like the the look of this shot. 30 seconds at F/22, ISO200. I really needed to do shots significantly longer than 30 seconds, and I was too stubborn to raise the ISO. At this point I had not been able to locate my remote cable. Blissfully, the remote I bought for my 30D in 2006 works with the 5D IV. This coming Christmas I can do multi-minute exposures. This is the house my father grew up in. It has a big Cyrano De Bergerac portico that juts out into an already narrow sidewalk. For something like 150 years it has served as an inconvenience to all passers-by. I love it. Cool Story Bro: My grandparents were the last private family to live in the house. After they moved out in 1940s, it became a law office and of course it's been a retail shop for decades at this point. Right next to the Vineyard Haven ferry slip. Not pictured: the December wind ripping across the harbor and through my jacket. I will cheerfully take the same picture over and over again, in different weather an lighting conditions. Happy sledders enjoying the first snow of the season. Later afternoon sun on Sweetened Water Farm. There's that patch of woods again. The calm before the blizzard. The aftermath. Ideal lighting conditions at the Oak Bluffs harbor. Still shooting that 1980s car commercial. All good things must come to an end.

It was the side burner on the grill so that counts, right?

Every 3-4 years I listen to Paul Simon's The Rhythm of the Saints, and with apologies to Graceland which I love, but has never quite resonated the same, think it's international mix fills a hole no other album does or likely ever will. I'll listen to a dozen or so times in quick succession and promptly stop again. Two times today... so far. Maybe you will find a love That you discover accidentally Who falls against you gently As a pickpocket Brushes your thigh Further to fly

@Knuckledragger - the ticks have been horrific up here this spring. For the last couple of weeks I've been finding anywhere from 2-6 on the couch every night that are presumably riding the dog into the house after he gets walked. So (joy of joys) part of my nightly ritual before sitting down to relax in the mostly dark living room is to inspect the couch via flashlight to find the little fuckers. Found two tonight right near where I typically sit, so happy to have done that and then sent them straight to hell in a blazing inferno.

I have a Taycan as a loaner while the Boxster is in the shop for a warranty repair. I kind of hated Macan EV, but I love this! These drive so so so well. Even in the base "4" trim it is quick, cruises beautifully, and is a wonderful place to watch the miles tick by. I honestly think most people I know who will never go to the track would be happier in one of these than something like a 911. If you want to go bombing on public roads, these things rock. If all you do is street drive, you can ignore the sports cars. Porsche is doing a lot of trickery with torque vectoring to help these things go around corners. The traction and stability control you can get in an EV is on a totally different level. This is not a pure driving experience and if you come from one of the sports cars you will feel it any time you get close to the limit. Still, no one will ever track these so it really doesn't matter. Sub limit handles great. I am impressed. The price on these things new is eye watering, but used or CPO I may have to keep my eye open in the future. This is an amazing daily driver. The higher trim ones must just be ballistically fast. It has all the power and speed of the performance Teslas only its from a company who knows how to make a properly fast car. If only they didn't cost so much.

Hania Rani "Home" Beautiful

Hard to believe this came out in 1972. It still seems ahead of its time in 2026. Ex.

I'm not an EV guy, but the lines on these are very nice. My buddy has one a few years old in the metallic green and it's a stunner. I do understand that, I want to say 2020 or 2021...the earlier ones are the ones you see used mostly and that's for a reason. The slightly newer ones improved a good bit from what I heard. Enjoy...it's a rental HS

Split Enz, True Colours (everything except "I Got You")

Gemini says: Design & Build The "Basic" Aesthetic: "They look like the default headphones NPCs wear in a low-budget video game from 2017." The Fingerprint Magnet: "These headphones have a better memory for my oily fingerprints than I do for my passwords." The Plastic Fantastic: "They cost a fortune but feel like they were made in a factory that primarily produces budget-bin lunchboxes." The 'Incognito' Look: "They’re perfect if your goal is to look like an IT support worker who hasn't seen the sun in three fiscal quarters." Function & Tech The Touch Controls: "Sony’s touch controls are like a social experiment to see how quickly a user can accidentally skip a song while trying to pause it." The Noise Cancellation: "The noise cancellation is so good, it’s the only thing keeping you from realizing that the music you're listening to is actually trash." The 'Smart' Features: "They have so many 'smart' features that they spend more time trying to figure out what I’m doing than actually playing my music." The "Wait, What?" Mode: "The 'Speak-to-Chat' feature is the technological equivalent of a nosy neighbor who won't stop interrupting you to ask if you're okay." The "Audiophile" Perspective The Sound Profile: "They sound like they were tuned by someone who thinks 'warm and balanced' is a synonym for 'underwater.'" The Price Tag: "The best part about these headphones is how they make you feel—mostly poor, but at least you can't hear anyone asking you for a loan."

'Til Tuesday - Voices Carry

Nao Yoshioka - Flow

Point the first: Generative AI is the devil. Point the second: Locally generated (as in on one's personal machine) is the devil we know. Point the third: I told point the second to render "A Mexican in his mid 40s, with a beard, celebrating his birthday. His head is a giant biscuit." It shat out this: Point the fourth: I am now more afraid of AI than I was before. Point the fifth: Feliz cumpleaños, FATHEAD.

#LewisMaxxing

cooked my first brisket last night. 7 lb. GMG Pellet smoker 185 for 4 hrs, 225 for 4 hrs, then when it hit 205 internally went to "warm" mode. Smoke ring is kinda visible, flavor is REALLY good and super juicy and tender.

Fondant potatoes, Andrew's request for part of his birthday dinner.

I drove her for about 10 months when I first moved out here. RIP Skanky!

Wait we're talking about random Euro-bangers? (Caution: Bare Euro ass.)

Today Ale helped me change the rear air springs on my car... Yesterday, we celebrated his 11th birthday and we got home in the early hours. His face gives him away.. 😁

This is a pretty cool take on a console system....could also go in Amp Porn but I like the wood on this one.

spit as much as you want, we're here

Combo ice cream By the bay That Bay

Mediocre BBQ in Iowa City Forgot to say it was a brisket platter and a ribeye with various sides

Hah! Love the cakes, memes, biscuit-related nonsense, and the well wishes. Actually made me smile. I actually didn't have a biscuit; I've only had 1 biscuit (when I was in Chattanooga last month), where they can actually make them. Going to go watch The Devil Wears Prada 2 (and/or Obsession) tomorrow, and perhaps have a meal or something. Today, the dogs have made sure to be extra handsome and/or beautiful and/or cute today to celebrate, which is always a delight.

Last night I was able to pick up the 70-200mm lens... I couldn't go out for a training session today (my Great Dane is in the hospital with a growth-related fever), so I suppose I'll have some time today to try it out. The only thing I don't quite like is that the shoe gets in the way when using the zoom ring, so I've had to move it to the side.

The Continental (Peacock) - all John Wick fans must see (a prequel): Not to be confused with:

Moar interwebz funz

Amused..... Several things stand out to me: They spent ten years getting it wrong, and now it's right? This ultimate peak seems like the intro to CD: perfect sound forever Japanese Hipster Marketers naming it "Collexion" does NOT resonate Japanese Hipster Engineers have funny hats 😄

Geddy.

yep

So, I think for my 45th, I'm finally read to take the plunge. What do you say, should I get JH13s? https://www.headfonia.com/fiio-jh13-review/

Happy Birthday, Brent 2024's Prompt, 2026's Model.

I had her new album in my queue and then this showed up. so Let X=X by Laurie Anderson (2026) https://open.qobuz.com/album/syta310h4wo50 Example - Just the album opener: Always a treat to have more Laurie.

Robert Fripp @ 80, the series (not just the intro, there's already a couple episodes out) I won't say one of my biggest influences, but I am deeply fascinated with everything he thinks, says, and does -- I want to be influenced by him, but that's a rather high bar -- so will definitely be watching this series with interest.

Pre Movie Brunch On the Patio In the (Brolly) shade!

Tom Harrell. "5"

HiFIMan sale going on, and extra 10% off open box/refurb with code: CLR10POFF If anyone can chime in on if any of these are any good or not, I'm sure that'd be helpful to the 83% of us who don't follow this anymore and haven't in years. Edit: add-on cable deals if you spend more than 79$: https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/accessories-779.html HE-R10 Dynamic (open box) - 219$ wired, 329$ wireless (regular 1299$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r10d-openbox.html Refurb 159$ wired, 259$ wireless https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r10-dynamic-version-refurbished.html New 179$ wired, 279$ wireless https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r10d.html HE-R10 Planar Stealth Magnet Version (open box) - 1499$ (regular 5499$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r10-planar-stealth-open-box.html HE1000 Stealth Magnet Version (open box) - $939$ (regular 2999$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he1000-stealth-magnet-version-open-box.html Refurb - 939$ (regular 2999$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he1000-stealth-refurbished.html HE1000se (open box) - 1549$ (regular 3500$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he1000se-openbox.html Refurbished - 1449$ (regular 3500) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he1000se-refurbished.html New - 1699$ (regular 3500$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he1000se.html HE-R9 (open box) - 69$ (regular 599$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r9-openbox-751.html Refurb 59$ wired, 159$ wireless https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r9-refurbished.html New 79$, 179$ wireless https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he-r9.html HE6se V2 (open box) - 399$ (regular 1899$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he6se-v2.html Refurbished (EU Only) 369$ (regular 1799$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he6se-v2-refurbished.html HE6se (refurbished) - 399$ (regular 1800$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/he6se-v1-refurbished.html ANANDA Stealth Magnet Version (refurbished) - 229$ (regular 999$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/ananda-stealth-refurbished.html New 249$ (regular 999$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/ananda-stealth-magnet-version.html Arya Stealth Magnet Version (new) - 599$ (regular 1599$) https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/arya.html Earphone sales starting at 15$ https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/earphones.html

Margined leatherwing beetle from this morning.

I'm going to try my hand at timelapse photography next week for work. So. 40000mAH external and a dummy internal are on the way for the A7IV for the 6000 or so images I'll need to capture across the 36hr exercise. Here's to hoping it's not a bunch of wasted effort. Suggestions/hints/tips are welcome.

Also.....Maphra.....sounds great on my new speakers!

RIP -- It served us and myself personally with honor. 🫡

finished my cfa3 this week, thanks kevin gilmore for the desing and the support from the forum members. running on +-30v with moderat bias, changed the gain resistors to 3.2k for lower gain. needed some 3d printed parts so that all fit fine, a cfa3 in a quad 405 chase. no pot this time, i use a dac with volume control or a preamp. after all amps i build i think the best solution for a 1 case build ist mounting the trafos outside in vertical position, absolut no magnetic hum inducted. i also added grain oriented metal band around the trafos inside the trafo cases.

My coach at Laguna had these. I love them.

It was damn hot here again so using the oven seemed crazy. So I cooked a Detroit pizza on the weber tonight for Claire's book club. I started it with the pan right over the active hot elements and then moved it to the other half of the grill where the elements were off. Kept the temp at 500-550 with the lid down. The bottom charred and I was worried at first but it was not too much and tasted good, not burnt. I failed to take a pic of the whole thing but here is the last piece and a half from top and bottom.

Made brisket tacos the other day.