I love the layers of light in this photo of me taking photos in the desert near Death Valley 📷 #MBApr A gravel road leading over a hill with a person kneeling to take photos in the distance, mountain ranges layered in the background, and a clear sky with radial sunbeams through dust above.

Compared to my old Intel 16” MacBook Pro, this M3 14” MBP is dreamy. As everyone reports, the battery life is ridiculously good. 76% remains and still 20 hrs predicted life. Oh, and I can use this as a _lap_top. Amazing. Funny part? I didn’t notice the lack of a touchbar. 📷 #MBApr A laptop displaying a web page with weather content, including a map showing a weather forecast. The laptop keyboard and touchpad are also visible.

I’d love to be this solo seagull flying sapphire blue skies 📷 #MBApr A seagull in flight against a clear blue sky, with focus on the bird’s underwing and head visible.

Death Valley’s Telescope Peak from Furnace Creek. It is the park’s tallest mountain at 11,043 feet (3366 m) 📷 #MBApr A scenic view of a mountain with snow-capped peaks in the distance, layers of hills in the midground, a golf course with lush green area with trees and grass in the foreground, and a small body of water at the very front.

Mid-March 2024 at the Donner Summit rest area (east-bound). I suppose once the building was dug out, ice formed in the alcove as heat warmed the snow’s bottom (ceiling in this case). Pretty neat. 📷 #MBApr An alcove filled with a large accumulation of snow and ice, with a metallic overhang above and stone pillars on the sides. A trash receptacle sits partially visible in the foreground to the left.

We’re planting only one row this year. Just tomatoes, various peppers, basil, and an overwintered thyme. All prepped, just need to plant! #gardening A sunlit garden with a pile of branches, green shrubs, flowering white clover, a drip irrigation hose, gravel paths, and small orange flags marking a planting locations.

The new The Libertines album “All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade” is solid if you like Britpop

A slightly early birthday present to me: a Sonos Move 2. Sounds very good! It’ll be great keeping me from the odd anxiety of silence and listening to food chewing 😆 📷 #MBApr A Sonos Move 2 smart speaker on a media center. To the right, there’s a crystal with an etched Dresden Frauenkirche inside.

Neighbor’s gas mower they use every year: won’t start. My electric mower I start every couple of years: works like a charm! A backyard with a recently mowed clover, an electric lawnmower, an orange electric cord wound on a holder, and a variety of plants and trees under a sunny sky.

Got off work just in time to find out Congressman LaMalfa voted against aid for Ukraine. 😩 Fortunately saner, less toolish politicians are prevailing.

Here is a random Death Valley vista. They’re all stunning no matter my mood 📷 #MBApr A desert landscape with eroded hills, winding roads, and a backdrop of mountains under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Definitely looking forward to the absolute transcendence that is homegrown nectarines! Our two Asian pear trees also have a great fruit set this year 📷 #MBApr A hand holding a small, unripe nectarine fruit among green leaves, with a silver ring visible on the ring finger.

Gotta have a bit of the flâneur spirit to partake in street photography. Or you’d miss a random dog-dog encounter in San Francisco. 📷#MBApr Two small dogs in costumes on leashes, with a person standing nearby. One dog is in a yellow outfit with eyes like goggles, the other in a red plaid jacket. They appear to be on a city sidewalk outside a souvenir shop.

Today I lucked out and saw a small Painted Lady butterfly delighting in our clover. My X-T5 camera and telephoto lens were thankfully ready to go! 📷 #MBApr A butterfly with orange and black wings perched on white clover flowers surrounded by green foliage.

A gorgeous Barrel Cactus from Joshua Tree National Park 📷 #MBApr A colorful cactus with pink spines and yellow flowers amidst rocky terrain.

My spouse took a page from Korean cuisine and made a nice gochujang-based BBQ sauce for tonight’s sweet potato & kale burgers 📷 #MBApr A sweet potato, kale, and bean burger topped with avocado slices and Korean barbecue sauce on a plate.

In X-Plane 12, I finally managed to get the 747-200 (modeled by Felis) up to cruise with only minor passenger discomfort. Had a little trouble with the auto-throttle. I’m still loving the Yawman Arrow controller #XPlane12 #macOS #YawmanArrow #FlightSimulator A United 747-200 airplane flying at night with the United Airlines livery visible on its tail and fuselage. The aircraft’s navigation lights are illuminated. An aircraft about 1000 ft below is approaching.

I installed my first Sharkbite plumbing fixture and it’s kinda magic how easy & low stress it was. Anyway, the ridiculous hosebib setup is why no one should let me do plumbing. Listen, I learned a lot from this low-stakes project! 📷 #MBApr Outdoor plumbing setup with a brass faucet with bright blue valve attached to a vertical pipe, green tree tape securing it to a fence post, and various hoses at the base.

Uncovered a historical artifact while cutting back the lavender. Guess AT&T hasn’t needed this equipment portal for quite some time. PG&E at least periodically inspects their stuff. Utility manhole cover with “PACIFIC BELL” text, surrounded by rocky soil, sparse vegetation, and lavender flowers, with a partial view of a person’s foot in a black shoe and beige pant leg to the right.

Perfect day in California for yard work. So much to do. I can’t believe this young of the year mix of native grape and very not native maple. The maple won’t survive early summer but the grape…

Young freshly germinated grape and maple practically covering a gravel path.