July 2017

Jul 30 2017

Mattress Topper

My wife and I have had our current mattress for a while and while it is still comfortable it needs some help.  We picked up a Fieldcrest 3″ cooling foam topper at Target yesterday. Didn’t fix it 100% but it was a good first step. Also didn’t wake up covered in sweat like we used to. 

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Jul 24 2017

Wemo® Mini Smart Plug

I picked up a Wemo® Mini Smart Plug for my wife’s nightstand light last week.  It integrates nicely with Alexa (unlike my Sensi Thermostat) and so far I’m happy with it.  I’ve only had one issue with it so far that I can blame on the integration.  Every once and a while, Alexa will refuse to turn it on or off until you use the Wemo app to do it.  I’m thinking something gets a little out of sync between them but I do not know for sure.  The bigger issue I have is my wife refuses to use it at night, she just turns the nightlight off at the bulb like she always has.  Means when I get home I have to turn the light on at the bulb then tell Alexa to turn the switch off.  I’m thinking of modifying the light so the switch doesn’t work, but I’m not sure I want to do that yet.  But as of right now, I can recommend the Wemo® Mini Smart Plug, especially if you have an Amazon Echo of some sort.

 

 

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Jul 24 2017

Balance Bike

Well, we got Lucas a balance bike.  He took to it right away.  Not the best yet, but he did pretty good for his first time.  He also had a blast on hit which is all we care about.

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Jul 20 2017

PGP

Well,

I decided to try setting up PGP email again.  Not sure how it will work on my phone but on my work desktop it works great in a browser (Gmail).  If you want my public key, let me know.

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Jul 19 2017

Smart House

Well,

 

After playing with my Echo Dots for a couple of days I really want to start replacing outlets & switches to make a full smart house.  Do I need to, no.  But the ability to turn a light on or off by speaking would rock.  Especially in our bedroom, where I have to stumble past the bed to my wife’s side in order to turn her nightstand light on.  Currently looking at just a TP-Link Smart Wi-Fi Plug Mini for her lamp because it only takes up one outlet.  There are other options that only take up a single outlet, but I’ve read good reviews on them.

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Jul 18 2017

Jetpack

Well, I installed & enabled Jetpack on here.  Hopefully it helps the issue of the site looking horrible on mobile phones.  If you notice anything wonky, please let me know ASAP.

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Jul 17 2017

Amazon Echo Dot

Got the two free Echo Dots that I got for pre-ordering my phone. Both are setup, one in the living room and one in the bedroom. Looking then so far. Kind of worried that the one in the bedroom will end up lighting up in the middle of the night. Hoping not though. Really disliking the skill for my Sensi thermostat though. All I can do is set a temperature I want, raise or lower it n degrees. I cannot turn the AC/heat on/off. Hopefully it gets updated to allow this.

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Jul 17 2017

Alexa

Well,

My phone got its full Alexa integration today.  So far its pretty neat to use.  Adjusted the temp on my home thermostat a couple of times to try it out and verify that worked.  Also got in the beta test of the skill for the Monero mining pool I’m in, that is awesome too.  Also got my code for my free echo dots last week, they arrived today.  I’ll get them setup tonight and hopefully not confuse myself with saying the key word (thankfully you can update it on the echo devices, can’t on my phone).  I’m planning on putting one upstairs and one in my bedroom, and eventually getting a smart outlet for my wife’s nightstand lamp (and possible other lamps too).

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