Category Archives: What’s Up With That?

Ford Motor Company’s $19.5 Billion EV Bust

Technology, What's Up With That?

What’s Up With That?

In the news . . .

From the Wall Street Journal (Dec 15 2025):

Ford Motor said Monday it expected to take about $19.5 billion in charges, mainly tied to its electric-vehicle business, a massive hit as the automaker retrenches in the face of sinking EV demand.

Ford, which has lost $13 billion on its EV business since 2023, said it would bolster its lineup of gas-powered vehicles while shifting to hybrid and so-called extended-range electric vehicles that include onboard gasoline engines. 

I warned my readers 3 years ago.

Continue reading Ford Motor Company’s $19.5 Billion EV Bust →

Should You Turn Your Hobby Into a Side Business?

General Talk, What's Up With That?

What’s Up With That?

I took this image of the Andromeda Galaxy a few years ago.

For all of my adult life I have owned telescopes and enjoyed astronomy as a hobby. Five years ago, with the advent of affordable specialized astrophotography cameras, I began taking pictures of deep sky objects. I now have hundreds of completed images.

When I share these pictures with friends and family, a very common response is, I should start selling my pictures. That is, I should turn my hobby into a part-time business.

Is this a good idea? I’ll share my thoughts on this.

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Six Moons Design Deschutes CF: My “GoTo” Shelter

Backpacking Gear, What's Up With That?, ,

What’s Up With That?

Deschutes CF

Let me confuse you.

In 2018 I wrote this article, If I Could Have Only One Shelter it Would be a MLD TrailStar.

Yesterday I wrote a post stating TarpTent Scarp 1: My Favorite Shelter of All Time.

Today I am stating that my go to shelter is neither the TrailStar, nor the Scarp 1. My “go to’ shelter is my Six Moon Designs Deschutes CF, which I wrote about 10 years ago as a first impression essay.

So what gives?

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I hate Barney!!

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Hate Speech: What’s Up With That?

Hate

I’ve hated Barney and what he stood for ever since he first appeared on television in 1992 on the show Barney and Friends. My kids, who were 5 and 7 at the time, loved him. Worse than that, they were constantly singing the Barney song, I love you, you love me . . .

Fortunately in the early ’90s the Internet and the World Wide Web became a thing. Thus, began the backlash against Barney. A new song, I hate you, you hate me . . . a Barney spoof became popular. There was even a Barney hate group: the I Hate Barney Secret Society, which was part of a broader cultural movement of “Barney bashing,” a phenomenon that included college events and online platforms dedicated to disparaging the character. 

And there we have it: in the ’90s you could love or hate Barney without fear. There were a lot of things (including people) we could hate or love without fear.

Today, in 2025, all of this has me worried. I might be at risk of arrest or even more serious consequences for engaging in “hate speech” by sharing the fact that I hate the purple dinosaur named Barney.

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In Defense of Freedom (Units) part 2

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What’s Up With That?

Yesterday I wrote about Freedom Units — what it is (joke about the American measurement system) — and how to defend its use. The conclusion being, it really can’t be defended other than tradition and familiarity.

If I can’t really defend it, I thought perhaps AI, or specifically ChatGPT, could make a case. So I asked the bot to write an article in defense of Freedom Units.

Continue reading In Defense of Freedom (Units) part 2 →