Moved my Blog

 I have moved my Blog

If you have landed on this page, you may have noticed that my blog has been relocated to a new host. While there are links to various posts, my blog can now be found on a different website. Thank you for reading and leaving your feedback. I will be posting more content on the new site, so please keep visiting tronster.net. 

Best regards, 

Tronster

White House Christmas Decorations (VLOG)

Another VLOG Episode

 

Gates to the White House

Getting Ready:

Touring the White House is always exciting.  No matter what you think of the resident at the time of your visit.  I have been living in the area for a few years now and I have visited under three different presidents.  There are couple of different tours you can take.  You may have seen an earlier post, in which it was just a garden tour.  Will this post is about the Christmas Decorations.  

You must have a ticket and go through a background check.  When you receive the invitation, be sure to read it, all of it, and the small print.  It is constantly changing, so the rules may be different than the last time you visited. 

When should I go?

My wife and I like going during the week, in the middle of the day.  Parking is always a challenge.  The Metro can get you close, and is not a bad ride.  However, recently the crime spree in DC has cautioned me to recommend the Metro Rail.  If you travel in a group, you should be fine.  But the other issue with public transportation, is there is no where to store you stuff (backpack, purses or camera bag) while you are touring.

With all of that in mind, I drove.  I paid for parking at the Willard hotel.  Just across the street from the entrance.  I did have to return to the car once prior to the tour.  This is because of the small print, I mentioned above,  My wife and her friends thought they could bring in their clutches.  But you cannot.

Christmas Tour

During the Christmas time, you can see how the "House" is decorated for the holidays.  each room is a little different.  I believe, but I am not sure, the First Lady is un charge of decorations. This year was a great a tour, as you can see from the video.  It was a great day, a little on the cool side, but clear.  Our group was able to take a few minutes before the tour and see the Williad Hotel Lobby decorations. The hotel lobby is always a breathtaking adventure.  

Plan your visit

To arrange a tour, visit the White House web site.  Follow the directions.  Make sure you read any restrictions on what can be brought into the White House.  If you drive, parking will run between $30-$50 in a garage.  I recommend spending the money on parking.  

You will have to wait outside for a 30-50 minutes, once you make it past the first line ranger checking you invitation/ticket.  Depending on how many people are visiting, you could be waiting outside the compound for close to an hour.  I would arrive in plenty of time, maybe an hour and half prior to your time slot.  They will let you in early, but I am not sure about how late (past your time slot) they will admit you.

Take a moment to view the history while you are there, not just Snap a picture and move on.  Do not be afraid to ask the staff, posted through out the tour questions.  In my experience they have all been very informative to the visitors.  

Salutations:

Thank you for visiting the site.  You will find the video is hosted on Rumble, if you don't Rumble you should try it out.  

Foggy morning drive

Saturday Mornings

We all have our adventures.  This past Saturday, my wife and I had an early morning adventure.  It wasn’t fishing, but still an early raiser occasion.  Although warmer 5han most of the days it was a little foggy.

Check out this quick video of us returning home. As I am learning the whole digital content thing, I am sharing with you all.  The phone is mounted in the car, video is on.  I used apple magic movie to put it together.  A couple of edits, and boom, I got a short video. 

#applemagicmovie, #manassasva # vlog

How to fix a squeaky door hinge

VLOG EP32 - Squeaky Door Hinge

This is how I fixed a squeaky door hinge.  Below is additional information, and the basic steps.   As an amazon affiliate, I make a small commission on any of the links you may follow from the site.  So click away.

My R10 Camera - https://amzn.to/47we1M6

The Little tool box step : https://amzn.to/3G57OLt

The Learning Process

I am no great videographer, barely a good spokes person, however, I enjoyed making this video and learning about my equipment.  The video was edited in the iMovie app, using storyboard.  The camera I used for this worked great.  

Basic steps to fix a squeaky door:

1. Get some oil.  It is said WD-40 is not good for this type of work.  

2. Remove the pin from the hinge

3. Clean the pin

4. Apply some oil to the pin

5. Replace the pin

I hope you find this little video helpful.  If you are not a Rumble person, you can always sign up.  Here is a link.

https://rumble.com/register/Tronster/

Thank you for stopping by.

VLOG EP31 Tronster takes a drive

 

Taking advantage of Happy Hour

 Happy Hour

Welcome back to the best variety blog on the Internet.  Todays nugget includes how Tronster and Sunshine (my smoking hot wife) enjoy a meal of appetizers to save a couple of bucks.  You see, most restraints have  bars in them now,  I am guessing because most of the population likes to drink.  I do not, but to each their own,  

I’ve mentioned before, many of our friends are not close, Sunshine and I both work several miles from home, and therefore get home right around dinner time,  Occasionally we have a reason to stay in our area of “work” operations.  This evening was one of those occasions.  We decided we would take advantage of the eateries in the area and meet up with a couple of friends, 

The Location:

Always ready to take our money, the Springfield Toens center is welcoming and full of different places to enjoy a quick meal.  It was a gorgeous evening, and we were not in a rush.

Our decision was the 54 Restaurant .  The town center was very busy.  The full fall colors of the trees are a easy on the eyes as we approach.

The Meal:

  

The Chicken Wings, as seen above, are delicious.  Crispy with Korean BBQ style.  There are not to spicy, and I was able to share them with my wife and only make a little mess.  In background, you can see the pay favorite part.

 

The Bulgogi waffle fries.  When I say, “OMG these things are the bomb”  I mean it.  Holy moly, they were off the chain.  The fries were crispy, the bulgogi had flavor, and the mix was just right.  Just like any other cheese, meat and jalapeño covered meal, you must eat it while it is hot.  Otherwise the friend will get soft.

The Conclusion:

Happy hour apps are normally 1/2 price.  You can stop at any restraint/bar and get a taste of their menus to see you want try out the full menu sometime.  Sunshine and i went very early for the dinner crowd.  All the food was freshly prepared and did not take very long.  The staff was very friendly and attended to our needs.  

Thank you again for checking out my little slice of the internet.

Happy Veteran”s Day

 To all the US Armed Forces Veterans on the Internet.

Thank you all for your service.  I wear my Cruise Jacket to remember the time I spent on board a Navy warship.  This year, I ask everyone to share pictures of their time in service.  Let us remember the sacrifices our veterans make, elevating this to the best darn country in the world.

I am a Navy Veteran,  There is a part of my personality and soul connected to the US Navy.  My father and grandfather both retired from the Navy.  Along life’s path, I have met and still hang out many veterans.  Many of us have a humorous side that only veterans understand.  Tomorrow is November 11, a day set aside to remember our veterans who have served.  The original intent of the holiday was to mark the end of the World War I.  (Oddly enough the war was called the war to end all wars).  Referred to Armistice Day until it was changed to Veterans Day.  

I only spent a short time in the US Navy, serving on the USS Monterey (CG-61), which was recently retired.  Here is a video of the ship and a few snap shots of when I was in the service. 

Tronster's Tools for VLOG and Blog

Equipment Check

Background

 Here at Tronster.net, I try to provide information and entertainment.  I know your time is valuable, and I am just one choice in many to waste that time.  I greatly appreciate all of you that visit, search the site and check out my little slice of the Internet. 

Today, I wanted to let you know how it has been going.  I have recently started using Rumble to post videos.  I am not one of those creators looking to quit my job and be full time on the Internet.  For one thing, you have to have a lot of traffic to make a living (and I don't).  I enjoy the adventure part so much, the content part is not my best work.  However, I do try to improve as time goes on. I ask that you look around the page, do a search for a topic and see if I have any thoughts or adventures to share.  

Videos

I post most of my vlog videos on Rumble.  If you haven't set up a Rumble account, Tronster recommends you do.  Why?  It's up and coming, and there is a wide variety of quality videos on different subjects.  There is also a wide variety of low quality videos.  Such as mine, as I learn the techniques to produce better videos.  With an account, you do not have to post videos, but you can leave comments on videos.  Otherwise you just get to watch them.

Pictures

If you have spent anytime here are Troster.net, you will see I have taken a lot of pictures.  With different cameras in different scenarios.  I recent ly purchased a new camera, and I am still learning all the settings, features and best way to use it.  Below are links to the camera and some of the items I use.  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

1. Adapter ring for EF Lenses

2. My Camera:  Cannon R10 

My Thoughts

I am a fan of the cannon products.  This is my fourth cannon DSLR/mirrorless camera.  I started with the Rebel line, move up to the 30D, back to a rebel, and now I am on the R10.  This cameras is lighter and smaller than the others.  I find the buttons easy to find. Both on purpose and sometimes on accident.  No piece of equipment will beat practice and understanding of what you are trying to accomplish.  So I have read the manual. (briefly) I have made some setting changes.  I have a long way to go, and hope you will continue to follow as I learn more.  

Thank you for stopping by Tronster, and I hope you will come again.

Ketchikan Alaska

 

Port Call

The port call in Ketchikan Alaska allowed Tronster and Sunshine to explore another city in the last frontier.  Ketchikan Alaska.  This little fishing village has a lot to offer.  Even if you do not visit the Misty Fjord National Monument or the Totem Bright State Historic Site.  Our landing party went for a walk through the town.  Although our ship was docked about 5 miles from the center, the bus provided by the cruise line was comfortable and entertaining.  The bus drivers tend to provide commentary from the pier to the city.

Historic Creek Street

This little board walk has many restored buildings.  Here you will find several local shops, with nick nacks and souvenirs.  This was the location of some businesses from the gold rush, that were, shall we say, of ill repute.  

Get Something to eat!

There are some great eateries in the town.  We decided on the little place seen in the video.  I had fish tacos, while Sunshine enjoyed a little crab.  

Thanks for stopping by, come back and take a look at my older posts. I promise they are easy reads, with the exception of spelling errors and bad grammar. (Occasionally)  

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Tour Guide

 

When the family comes to visit.

I live outside Washington DC.  Sunshine and I have family all over the United States of America.  Each with their own core family members.  (You know, kids, in laws, cousins). Most people in the US will not get the chance to see the White House, or the Capital in their lifetime.  However, we always have an open invitation for our family to come and visit.  I wanted to share a few tips I like to use to make the trip (and the visit) as enjoyable as possible.

Talk before they arrive

The Washington DC area has many sites to visit.  I find it always a good idea to understand a couple of things before the family arrives.  For instance, you have to have an appointment for certain activities in the area. (a tour of the White House for example).  Other attractions may require an appointment or may be under construction.   Here are some of the questions I ask:

• How much time do we have for touring?
• Is there one thing you must see before you go home?
• Do you have any appointments you must make?
• How long will you be with us?

All of these questions will assist you in making the trip as fun as possible.  

Set expectations

I think is is also important to let your guest know what to expect.  In my case, I tell them there is a lot of walking.  Parking is limited in the city, and therefore, we normally park in one area and walk around.  We can also take advantage of the local metro service.  It all depends on what the family wants to see.  (and if there are any mobility challenges)

Tell them about the weather that time of year.  Along with the weather, I will look into the different attractions and see if any are closed during the visit.  We don't want your family to be disappointed when they get here.  

Let them know about the travel times between attractions. We need to remember they are not from around your area.  They do not understand the traffic, and travel times.  

Plan the visit

If you need to take time off from work, or not.  Take in all the information they provided you, and your local knowledge, and make a rough plan.  My family does not like detailed plans.  I generally come up with an outline.  

• Where I plan to take them and when.  
• Where I an going to park.
• Where we will eat a meal.
• Daily start times and approximate return to home base times. 

Most times we host visitors, it's a day trip to downtown.  Family like to see the White House, the Washington Monument and Lincoln memorial. A good day of walking with the possibility of catching a few extra outdoor memorials along the way. 

Have fun!!

There was a general or commander that once said "All battle plans are great until you have first contact with the enemy."  it means, you can have the best plans, but when you start to execute those plans, life and things happen.  I think this is one of the reasons I like an outline as opposed to a detailed plan for family visits. Be prepared to answer questions for your family.  It makes them think you are really smart (a bonus), and they will get more out of the visit.  

Take photos with and for them.  In my case, I travel to the Washington DC 10 or more times a year.  I have taken enough bad photos to know, don't stand in front of the Washington Monument for a picture.  It looks like a horn.

I appreciate you visiting the site.  Please let me know some of your tips and tricks for being a family tour guide. 

Juneau Alaska

 

Cruise day 3

The Salmon Run

 

Where are you Tronster?

Sunshine and I were able to take a nice vacation to Alaska.  More details later, first I wanted to share the site and amazement I felt when learning about the Salmon.

The Pacific Northwest is known for salmon.  This year I am sure was no different than previous years.  The Salmon Run was almost over while we ere visiting.  Sitka Alaska gavels an opportunity to see a large number of Salmon.  As a fisherman, I found the hustle and bustle of the run to be very exciting.  As someone who eats what he catches, and not a fan of Salmon, I was still impressed. 

Salmon, which are born and spawn in freshwater, live most of their lives in saltwater.  Apparently this is not true for all species of Salmon.  (I did not know there was some freshwater Salmon). The life in the open ocean, lasts between 3 and 5 years for the salmon we observed.  They have been tracked to travel thousands of miles to return to fresh water. It has been studied and determined they also have a homing type sense.  They generally return to the same waters they were born to spawn and lay eggs.  Who knew. 

I also learned that salmon will rapidity age and deteriorate after spawning.  So if the bears, eagles, hawks, or humans don’t get’em, they just die.  While walking around the different towns in Alaska, I personally witnessed several salmon just dying.  I was told we were there towards the beginning, so several were still active, but in a couple of weeks, the smell may be a touch more prevalent. 

Thanks for checking out my little blog, please come back, and check out some more. 

Tronster

Vacation Cruise

 

NCL Sun and Alaska Cruise

Turning 50

That's right folks, your host has turned the corner on life and is now 50 years of age.  For s special treat, Sunshine decided to take me on a cruise.  What a great surprise.  I may also suggest this for anyone who wants to celebrate a special day, the cruise lines work very hard, and this was no exception.

Our Cruise

Alaska has always been on my bucket list.  Which now I can safely mark off the list.  Sunshine, along with 4 other couples, picked a 10 day cruise on Norwegian Cruise Lines.   This is a cruise line we have used before, and we like them.  In all fairness, we have only been on. two cruise lines.  So far, NCL is our favorite.  

There are several itineraries to choose from, ours started in Seattle

1. Seattle Washington
2. At Sea
3. Juneau Alaska
4. Skagway Alaska
5. Hubbard Glacier Alaska (At Sea)
6. Sitka Alaska
7. Icy Straight Point, Alaska
8. Ketchikan Alaska
9. At Sea
10. Victoria British Columbia (Canada)
11. Seattle Washington

The Ship

Pictured above is the NCL Sun.  A smaller, slightly older ship, with all the comforts of a hotel and resort.  Minus some of the fancy water park amenities.  But we are in Alaska, so who wants to ride a water slide?  The Norwegian Sun has 14 dining options, 12 bars, a casino, basketball court, fitness center, spa and much more to entertain.  They have a smaller crew of just over 900, and can accommodate right around 1900 guests.  I don't think the cruise was full for our journey, but I honestly do not know.  

The Cruise

Here is where I will be a little vague, on purpose.  Why?  I want to post more details in the near future about the different stops and activities.  Needless to say there are several different things you can do, to enjoy a shipboard day, a day at port, or a birthday celebration.  

Thank you for stopping by, and come back to see more. 

3 things to do for a Trip

1. Cut the grass.

If you live within a neighborhood with a Home Owners Association, the this may be the most important pre-trip activity. Okay, not exactly true. However, to avoid any hate mail from the local volunteer or the professional management company, you should cut the yard where it will remain in compliance until your return.  This may require you to lower the deck. Or my case, run the mower over the yard twice

2  Hold the Mail!!!

Another pre-trip activity should be to hold the mail. This does a couple of things. It does not give away to a casual observer you are not home. A small bit of extra security. Also, I have found the post office will not deliver all the junk mail I receive when I travel. Bonus! 

The post office has made it so easy  to hold the mail. Go to their website, click on services and have them hold your mail. You will have verify your address is “eligible” , which I suspect covers most people. You can select to have it delivered or make arrangements to pick it up at your local postal office. 

3. Pack Appropriately 

Check the wether and get your stuff ready. Think about your activities. Make sure you a little bit extra. The way airlines are charging now, don’t be afraid to use something more than once. There are some items are 1 time only. 

Well, stay tuned. Look for more advice ,  or comment below on additional steps. 

The joys of Home Ownership

 Owning a Home

When young(er) people tell me they are buying their first home.  I always tell them, you will never be able to say "I have nothing to do this weekend".  You might say "I'm not doing anything this weekend."  Be warned, there is always something to do.

Some Saturdays, I cut the grass. (During spring and summer, more so).  Other's I do odd jobs around the house.  This was an odd job that needed to be done.

Before you start any job at your home, you should ask yourself a few things before you get started.  Kind of a self assesment.

Three Questions:

1.  Can I hurt myself

If I do this myself, could I hurt myself.  This should always be the first question.  Will I be working on a ladder?  How high up?  Is there a chance I could loose a finger, go blind, fall over, start a big fire?  

You may laugh, but you should consider this for all of the home improvement jobs you do.

2. Will it cost a lot more if I screw it up?

We all know the cost of having someone else do the work can be very expensive.  If you are trying to save a buck, you may decide to do it yourself.  Not to mention the satisfaction you get when you complete it yourself.  (You guys know what I am talking about)

But if you make a mistake and have to have someone else finish, what is the cost difference?  Or, can you live with the mistake?

3.  Will this embarrass the spouse?

I also ask myself this question.  Because, it is hard to embarrass me, however, the spouse may not be as forgiving.  I say spouse, because there are a lot of DIY ladies out there, and I say "Go Girl!!"

Now that the self assesment is over, and I have research some of the DIY "experts", lets see "How I did it!"

The Window Sill refresh!

This was a simple little item, that will take the good part of a day to do it right.  So, I made my way to the Home Depot.  

Materials:

• paint
• Paint Pan
• Paint brush
• Paint Roller
• Caulk
• Stir still 
• Painter tool (my old one was warn out)
• Tape (already had some)
• Plastic
• Cleaning stuff

Clear the area, prep the space and paint away.

In the video, made with iMovie, you can see the different stages of the project as I worked my way through.

Outline of steps:

1. Clear the area.  I had to remove all the stuff we keep on the sill. In addition, I cleared the area around the sill.  Did not want any paint on my coffee pot.
2. Clean the area.  I used a pre-smoked cleaning sponge.  I have used them in the past and find they are easy for cleaning small areas and do a good job.
3. Prep the area.  I taped off the window edges and the countertop where I will be working.
4. Prepare the paint.  I mixed it up, and poured into the paint pan.
5. I applied two coats of paint.
6. Removed the tape, and restored all the stuff

Simple project, took a couple of hours.  Check out the video:

Breakfast with Tronster

 The Gear:

• Go Pro 10
• Newer head mount for Go Pro
• Frying Pan
• 2 eggs
• Mrs Dash

What you watching:

As I continue to explore and try to improve my skills, I attempt to vlog more activities.  Here you see I am making some breakfast.  Using the Go Pro camera on a head mount.  I tried to keep the noggin from wobbling so no one gets ill watching it.

I edited this in iMovie, and my skills are still lacking.  I continue to explore new features.  

Enjoy the quick clip, and give me some suggestions.  

WTF: Well that's fantastic!!

 

The Situation

I try to maintain this site with some consistency.  Let's facing, writing a full post here, takes a little longer than writing a quick post on FACEBOOK.  I spent a few days researching if it was possible to link the two, fairly easily.  

What Happened?

You see there are a few posts on the page that are blank.  BLANK.  That's like listening to the radio and hearing nothing.  Dead Air!  It turns out, the links or whatever, have been removed.  I am not a computer programing.  So I am not sure what exactly happened.  But I have no fear.  I will continue to post here and just link to the Facebook Fan Page.  At least that still seems to work. 

Special Thank you!!

I want to thank each of you visiting the site, and let you know, I am aware I am breaking the rules of a successful blog.  (Or if you were to search, How to make money blogging).  I do not have a niche, just a diary.  I hope she find it entertaining and resourceful.  

I want to thank you all for stopping by, and say, come back when you can.  Click follow.  

Tronster

Owls in the Yard

Owls in the yard

The past week I have seen a few owls in the yard.  Below there is a link to the video I grabbed the other day.

Flight of the Owl 

Back yard antics

Wild animals in the yard

I was able to capture a couple of funny moment out of the yard the other day.  These squirrels are having a great time.  I was able to get my phone, which I normally do not carry in the yard, and capture a couple of great clips.  It won't take long to watch.  

Thanks for visiting.