sherpa

No. Flew into Madrid, took the train to Malaga, picked up at the train station and went to the cooking class location, about an hour an half west.

If you're in Ashland, you're a little less than 38 north latitude, so that should be about the slope of the solar installation. That can be tweaked a bit to obtain a little better efficiency. I'm in Charlottesville, so not much different. If you do the geothermal, seriously consider the desuperheater for water. I did it in mine and it worked great. Existing duct work is usable. The ground source heat pump should cost about the same as a normal air source heat pump, but the vertical closed loop is going to be quite expensive. I would really press for information on how they intend to ensure contact is made and maintained with the plumbing, as the heat exchange is purely by conduction, and over time heating and cooling can separate the "ground" from the plumbing. I'm sure the contractor will do a great job, but it is something I would want to know. Virginia's clay soil is pretty good at transferring thermal energy, but it can pull away. Good luck. I went a different route with this house, but I had no complaints with my geothermal, especially in the summer.

Glad to. I've had geothermal and solar hot water, and have built a house expecting to do solar eventually. Not ignorant on the issue. First, solar. I don't know how much you know about it, so I will presume you don't know much. Not an insult, just establishing reasoning for what I post. Solar efficiency is very dependent on the install. Optimally, what you want is total sun access to true south, (not magnetic-I can explain that if you want, but there is a difference), at an angle that is equal to your latitude. So if you are at 36 north latitude, you want your panel installation to reflect that, and aimed at true south. Obviously, no tree or other barriers, especially in the winter when the sun is lower. If considering, pay close attention to the annual loss of efficiency of solar panels. Not loudly reported, but a serious issue. Without getting into the details of converting DC from the panels through the battery/inverter process to AC for use, there needs to be a storage capacity and conversion. In my situation, my garage is oriented true south, at about the exact slope as my latitude, framed for the increased weight of solar panels, connected to the house, and I haven't done it yet because it still isn't competitive with on the grid systems. In other words, I have the perfect set up for photovoltaics, and haven't done it. I have a 30x40 barn, and even looking at that, I opted for a gas powered standard generator for power, as I don't use it much. Geothermal. I did a geothermal in the last house we built. Great system. By far, the best in the summer with dissipation of humidity, and free hot water, as the fluid goes through the water heater for pre-cooling before it is sent out to the field. My house was set two-three degrees warmer than my neighbors, but it was far more comfortable, as geothermal really removes moisture. The issue is the method with which you do the heat exchange, and there are many options. Dirt, ponds, deep wells etc. The problem is that the method for dealing with that heat exchange has gotten far too expensive, for no apparent reason. When I did our geothermal in our last house, it was about $5k for an incredibly effective system-five foot deep, packed in rock powder that would guarantee contact and heat exchange. If you use normal dirt, it will eventually separate from the plumbing with repeated heat/cool cycles.. That's not the total cost, that's the grid plumbing to transfer the heat. Internally, the air handler and duct work are not expensive. When I bid for our current house, the cost tripled for the outside heat sink, so I opted not to do it. Anyway, I'm very familiar with both.

We did a Spanish cuisine cooking class vacation to that area, although west of Malaga, not east where Nerja is. After an entire career of travel, I have to do something on vacation rather than just tour around or visit famous sites. Bike trips and cooking classes have been the most fun.

Really? Pretty hard to get around W2 or 1099 income. Another myth.

An example of this happened to a very good friend of mine just last week. He is a black guy, mid 50's, lives in Northern Virginia. His is a very close family. A relative in Minnesota became ill, and he and another relative rendezvoused in Ohio and rented a car to drive to MN to visit. Crossing Wisconsin, a cop pulls him over for no apparent reason. He asks what he was being pulled over for, and the cop tells him "You were following another vehicle too close in a work zone." Knowing this was BS, he figures nothing will come of it. The cop asks if he will allow the car to be searched, and he says "Sure." The cop asks him and the passenger to get out, which they do, and he's a bit worried when the cop looks at him and says, "Now what will I find in here, drugs?" He says no, he has never even had a drop of alcohol in his entire life. He's a marathon runner, vice principal of a high school in Loudin County VA. The cop suggests they are going to MN to participate in some protest. He explains they're doing nothing of the sort. Anyway, they are delayed for an hour. He videos the "search" of the car. Eventually two other WI. state troupers show up, and he can tell by their body language that they know this "stop" is complete BS. After the hour of accusation and search, the cop tells them their will be no ticket and lets them go. Complete nonsense.

Last night was a particularly good night for planet observation. Even with the dew point in the low 70's here in Central Virginia, the vis was great. I had the Celestron Skymaster glasses on. I don't have low Southwest horizon access because of trees and mountains, so the comet is not a possibility. For those who enjoy sky watching, I highly recommend downloading "Stellarium," available free at: http://stellarium.org It is a free, open source great asset that shows the full night sky, slew-able to all directions from your exact location. It knows the time, so shows the exact sky with names of all the starts, constellations and planets if you select them. I always check it before going out, as it orients me very quickly to what is out. If you have a programmable telescope, it will provide the data you can load into it for whatever you want to see. Coincidentally, tonight is the exact night Saturn will be in opposition, (earth between sun and Saturn), which is the closest it will be for the year. The exact time of opposition is 2200Z, which is 6pm eastern this evening. I'll have my scope on it tonight. Good gazing to all.

Indicted, but not convicted.

Pho is quite easy to make also, once you have the broth down. Asian food places usually have the stock ingredient. A fall/winter staple in my house, but basil is a necessary addition.

Guy goes from enlisted to Captain of the Red October.

The Mrs. and I did our traditional trek around Jefferson's estate, Monticello, today at 7am. They always have a big event there on the 4th, naturalizing new citizens to the US in a usually very emotional ceremony. This year, isn't going to happen but they have another thing planned. Still, best to be out of there by 9, and there is a great walk around the place. Simply a brilliant document by a brilliant man.

In the interest of providing accurate information, aircraft are completely sanitized between flights since this pandemic. American, United and Delta are fogging the cabins between flights. The air filtration system is the same used in hospital operating rooms, and the air is completely refreshed every three minutes. In other words, cabin air is completely exhausted and replaced every three minutes. People can decide for themselves, but those are the facts.

Yes, and am, next week.

The mount of heat required to raise 1 gram of water 1 degree C at standard atmospheric pressure, (29.92 inches at sea level at 59 degrees F). In food, it's the amount of energy producing potential that the food could release being oxidized by the body.

I have gone there a bunch of times, but have always done offshore charters, so it may not be of much value. I've done close to shore stuff as well as five trips to the Gulfstream for bigger stuff. If you read the Outer Banks fishing reports for a couple days before you fish, you'll get decent reports on who is getting what, and where. Keep in mind that these reports are funded by commercial operators like bait/tackle shops, so they are usually a little optimistic. If you go into one when you're there you can always find someone who will give you up to date info.

Embarrassing admission. I was a month off on Apollo 11. It was July 20. First sign of cognitive depreciation. Noted.

I was a Sherkston Quarry. Such a great place. "Houston.....Tranquility Base.....The Eagle has landed."

51 years ago today, Apollo 11 landed on the moon. Pretty good day.

The point I was making is that that isn't "modern day tactics," is is a more accurate way to place bombs on target that was well known two years prior, used in the Pacific and by the Germans. By the way, McClusky's strike group did not "lose their way." The Japanese carrier fleet had turned north because they had finally been alerted to a US carrier group, and were going up to engage, and there were far more than "two squads," as you call them. There were shore based Army Air Corps bombers and Marine airplanes, and carrier based fighter, dive bomber and torpedo bomber squadrons. Calm down.

This has nothing to do with radar, jets or anything other than simply choosing a far more accurate delivery tactic. Midway happened exactly two years earlier than D Day. In that battle, the US Army Air Force used level bombing tactics to strike the Japanese fleet and achieved exactly zero hits. The Navy dive bombing an hour or so later took out four Japanese carriers and changed the course of the war, so it absolutely wasn't a case of "not knowing." Hitting a moving ship is significantly more difficult than striking a fixed target, but the lessons were learned. They simply did things that way then, as they did for years of bombing Germany, with equally inefficient results. Ultimately successful, but woefully inefficient. The weather over coastal France that day was not bad enough to prevent a far more effective air campaign, but they settled for a Naval barrage and ineffective air support.

As a guy who did this for a living, and planned countless strikes against similar targets, I can't understand how these people, honorable as they were, did what they did. Level bombing is ridiculously inaccurate and foolish. What they should have done is come in low level, under the overcast, and dive bomb the German defenses. Same huge mistake made in the initial strikes on the Japanese fleet at Midway, until Navy guys dive bombed the Japanese carrier group. Having done this, and looking at what the "Army Air Force" did in WWII, I wonder why so many live were needlessly lost.

That's the speed required to maintain earth orbit. The Apollo lunar missions would do that until the trans lunar injection burn, which got them to escape velocity, about 25,000 mph, to exit earth orbit. After that burn, they would "coast" towards lunar orbit, losing velocity all the way, as earth's decreasing gravitational pull slowed them down, until entering the moon's gravity pull at about only 2000 mph. They would then accelerate and have to do another burn to slow down so they could land. Watching the ISS closely, if you get a night when it's visible for more than a minute or so, and especially three or so, you can actually tell the earth is rotating during the time you watch it, as it "drifts" due to not being in earth's atmosphere.

First landing a jet on an aircraft carrier, followed about five minutes later by first catapult launch. Actually the first time I'd ever seen an aircraft carrier. Simply incredible.

Are you talking about a regular soldier or Naval Aviator Wade McClusky? McClusky is famous for finding the Japanese carrier force in the Battle of Midway, and the annual award for the best strike squadron in the Navy is named after him. South Park High School guy I think.

Billy Shaw at the 1964 training camp. We parked our car and started walking to the field, and he was right beside us. I asked him a lot of stupid questions, as I was very young, but he was quite a gent. The better story of "what might have been...." We had two late flights from LA to Chicago. One was a 10PM flight on a 757, the other a "clean up the rest" MD80 flight at 11PM. I flew the 757 trip the night before OJ took the 11. If I had been one night later, and he one hour earlier, I would have had him on. I would have definitely gone back and talked to him, as a lifelong Bills fan. It is very likely I would have noticed any "scratches." Could have changed history, or at least I think.