Cape Honeysuckle

An Interesting Development

 

Cape honeysuckle is native to southern Africa but grows, like a weed, in my California backyard. 

All writing and images ©Cliff Hutson unless expressly noted. Do not use without permission.

National Cookie Exchange Day

December 22 is National Cookie Exchange Day

National Cookie Exchange Day is supposed to be a festive day wherein  groups get together to bake their own cookie creations and swap them to enjoy a variety of flavors.

That is not going to happen here. But, I do have photos of home cooked cookies  that people have given to me over the years. 

All writing and images ©Cliff Hutson unless expressly noted. Do not use without permission.

Pocket Knife Triptych

Tools With A Purpose

Three useful knives listed in the order in which I remember buying them:

Kershaw Baby Boa

Kershaw Baby Boa: photo by Cliff Hutson

Kershaw's Baby Boa knife, designed by Ken Onion. It uses a "SpeedSafe" torsion bar mechanism for assisted opening. This system allows the user to simply press the tang extension to snap the blade open and lock it in place.

Kershaw Chive

Kershaw Chive: photo by Cliff Hutson

The Kershaw Chive, also designed by Ken Onion, is one of the most popular assisted opening knives ever made.

Leatherman Skeletool KBx

Leatherman Skeletool KBx: photo by Cliff Hutson

A versatile combination blade, that can make precision cuts and slice through tougher materials. The built-in bottle opener on the clip is handy as well.

EDC

Knives are tools, functional items many people integrate into their daily lives. I have used the Skeletool as a regular part of my EDC for about two years. However, I will be switching back to the Chive as I believe it is easier to deploy. The Baby Boa is a good knife, but it is not as comfortable for me to handle as the other two and it is important that one be able to use their tools.

Pretend to Be a Time Traveler Day

 Back to the Future or Ahead to the Past?

World Time 1972 Reissue: photo by Cliff Hutson

Pretend to Be a Time Traveler Day is observed each December 8, which entices people to act as if they are from another time period, either past or future.  The original blog post that got the day rolling can be found here.  Since this post has not been made in a timely manner, I have noticed that the comics Day by Dave and Frazz have also taken notice of the celebration of the day.

Even though I feel that much of my life is performative, I am much too inhibited to go out in public and act as if I am a time traveler. However, I do have some time related photographs of a few of the modest watches in my modest watch collection that tie into the subject.

The above image is of a type of watch known as a world time are designed to display the time in multiple time zones simultaneously, making them ideal for travelers of the terrestrial type. As illustrated, if you know the time in San Francisco you can determine what time it is in 22 other cities around the globe. 

GMT Watch: photo by Cliff Hutson

This next watch has a complication commonly called an Office GMT. Its purpose is to show the time  in your home country, e.g. your office, and  to display a time zone in a different area of the world. This function is also known as a Caller GMT as it is very useful if one is doing business, or has relatives, overseas so that you don't try to contact them at an inconvenient time.  While there are GMT watches decidedly designed for the purpose, this watch would also work while traveling.

Back to the Future: photo by Cliff Hutson

This last watch is directly connected to time travel. It is a Casio CA53W-1 which is the current iteration of the watch worn by Marty McFly in the last two of the three Back to the Future movies. Some sources say that he had a CA-50 in the first one.

So, I am running out of time to get posted on my every Monday schedule. If only I could go back and do it time for those of you who would have participated had had ample warning. Oh well, there is always next year.

Reading Log: November 2025

 The books that I finished reading in the month of November 2025

November 2025 Books: photo by Cliff Hutson

"Chasing the Dime," Michael Connelly

"2054," Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavrids 

“The Proving Ground,” Michael Connelly

“Exit Strategy,” Lee Child and Andrew Child

“Dead Lions,” Mick Herron

“Real Tigers,” Mick Herron