8-year-old, looking like a haystack: “Why do I have to brush my hair? I did it yesterday!”
Category: Personal
Why is there a “small house” in IBM’s Code page 437?
This is a repost promoting content originally published elsewhere. See more things Dan's reposted.
There’s a small house ( ⌂ ) in the middle of IBM’s infamous character set Code Page 437. “Small house”—that’s the official IBM name given to the glyph at code position 0x7F, where a control character for “Delete” (DEL) should logically exist. It’s cute, but a little strange. I wonder, how did it get there? Why did IBM represent DEL as a house, of all things?
…
It probably ought to be no surprise that I, somebody who’s written about the beauty and elegance of the ASCII table, would love this deep dive into the
specifics of the unusual graphical representation of the DEL character in IBM Code Page 437.
It’s highly accessible, so even if you’ve only got a passing interest in, I don’t know, text encoding or typography or the history of computing, it’s a great read.
Dan Q did not find GC2WTXD JOIN UP THE NUDDSY’S~Pumping Station
This checkin to GC2WTXD JOIN UP THE NUDDSY'S~Pumping Station reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
Might be here, or quite possibly was shaken loose by last season’s trimming and pollarding and it’s now who knows where. Too many disappointing DNFs in this series which, coupled with the increasing rain, feels like the Universe’s way of telling me to give up and go eat some breakfast.
Such a beautiful landscape with such caching potential. Hope it gets the love and attention it deserves.
Dan Q found GC2WTZE JOIN UP THE NUDDSY’S~Forest View
This checkin to GC2WTZE JOIN UP THE NUDDSY'S~Forest View reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
Huge thanks (and a big thumbs up) to Saintsalive1 for the replacement cache container; what a great hiding spot. Rain is starting, I’d better pick up the pace if I’m going to stay dry. TFTC!
Dan Q did not find GC2WTZK JOIN UP THE NUDDSY’S~Oak Gate
This checkin to GC2WTZK JOIN UP THE NUDDSY'S~Oak Gate reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
As others have observed, container (previously destroyed) is now completely absent. Needs replacement or archiving. Such a lovely area for a series; a shame to have so many spots made unavailable by the 0.1M circles of unmaintained and absent caches.
Dan Q did not find GC2WV01 JOIN UP THE NUDDSY’S~Field of Dreams
This checkin to GC2WV01 JOIN UP THE NUDDSY'S~Field of Dreams reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
Made a search around the hint area but this one is nowhere to be seen. Based on the string of recent DNFs, it’s probably gone or else so deeply buried that it’ll never be seen again. Shame, it’s a nice spot, and the snowdrop-carpeted woods beyond are delightful. Flagged for attention.
Dan Q found GC3110V JOIN UP THE NUDDSY’S~I ‘OAK’ THIS
This checkin to GC3110V JOIN UP THE NUDDSY'S~I 'OAK' THIS reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
Woke early and unrested, grumpy and tired, after staying nearby, and figured a pre-breakfast walk through these fields might nice my mood. Coordinates pointed right to a candidate hiding spot that set my geosense tingling and soon had the logbook signed. Those nettles are fierce! One snuck up my trouser leg and got my ankle. Waved good morning to the noisy nearby sheep as I pressed on.
Giant strategy
White’s move. Mate in three. A giant chessboard is the perfect environment to teach a child some basic chess strategy, right?
Note #26287
While adding an entry to OpenBenches (openbenches.org/bench/36677), I was struck by how much of an impact this woman – Jane Gregg – must have made on her local community.
In this community garden in Bampton, in the Lake District, a bench dedicated to her includes not only a plaque summarising her achievements but it’s also been hand-carved with the words “Jane an amazing human.”
Lake District art lesson
Brought the kids up Knipe Scar with limited and challenging art materials (huge sheets of paper and thick marker pens) for a lesson in drawing what a landscape makes you feel, rather than focusing on what you can actually see.
Note #26282
“I know that losing your job was hard,” my 8-year-old said to me this evening, “So you can borrow this.” He handed me his newest soft toy.
“It’ll help you feel better when you’re sad. Keep him for the week.”
😭
Dan Q found GC47GDB Kiln Crag – Knipescar
This checkin to GC47GDB Kiln Crag - Knipescar reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
A bit of an adventure! Coming directly from the next nearest cache on this pasture I first arrived some way above the GZ. Being a little wary of cliffs since my dad’s death1, I opted to loop around and approach from below.
The scramble wasn’t especially hard, but it was unfruitful. Several attempts at the hint location, climbing and reaching, revealed nothing at all.
I decided to descend, find a spot of soft grass, and take a break, perhaps to look at the recent logs in case they revealed a clue: something I’d missed. And there, in the spot I chose for my rest… I found the cache! It must have been dislodged, perhaps over the winter rains, and fallen from its hiding place. The container is cracked (though it might have been already, based on the logs) and the logbook has clearly been wet and re-dried, but free cache was intact enough to sign the log.
I returned the container to what I suspect must have been its correct home, based on the hint. Hopefully it’ll stay nestled safely there until the next cacher comes this way! TFTC!
Footnotes
1 He fell off a cliff off High Street, just over the valley: what a tragic coincidence it would be for me to go the same way, so nearby!
Dan Q found GC1DH2A Knipe Scar – Haweswater View
This checkin to GC1DH2A Knipe Scar - Haweswater View reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.
How delightful to find such a well-sized and well-placed geocache, and in such a beautiful spot. Some fellow volunteers and I are spending the week in Bampton, working on improving some software that underpins the volunteer and rota management systems of a few hundred different charities.
Never one to let a hard day’s voluntary work keep me from a geocaching expedition, this afternoon I took a hot brisk walk up the scar to find this (and hopefully next another nearby!) cache. Caught my breath sitting on a rock near the GZ, before pressing on. SL, TNLN, TFTC. FP awarded for such a delightful spot.
Rosgill Crossroads
I’m in an extremely rural area and I needed a phone call with my lawyer about my recent redundancy. Phone signal was very bad, so I resolved to climb a nearby hill and call him back.
“I’m at a crossroads,” I said, when I finally found enough bars to have a conversation with him.
“In your life?” he asked.
“I guess,” I replied, “But also, y’know, literally.”
A Surprisingly Shit Bathroom
This bathroom at the holiday home where some fellow volunteers and I are doing some Three Rings work, this week, has a few unusual quirks, including this surprisingly-shit bathroom:
- The door has a lock… but there’s a second door which doesn’t.
- Oh, and the first door’s lock doesn’t actually do anything. The door can still be opened from the outside.