Retiring Guy's Digest: 2023-01-01

Saturday, January 7, 2023

CES 2023: Valencell "cuffless" blood pressure monitor

Oopsies! Looks a bit on the high side.

engadget, 1/6/2023

Valencell has been making optical heart-rate sensors for years, but at CES 2023 it unveiled a new fingertip monitor that offers “cuffless” blood pressure monitoring. Instead of an unwieldy inflating sleeve, this fingertip clip uses photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors to measure blood flow patterns. This information is combined with algorithms and the user’s age, weight, gender and height to create a blood pressure measurement, without the need for calibration. We might have seen similar technology in earlier stages of development, but Valencell’s technique of combining data makes for the most compelling device yet. Valencell plans to eventually offer the blood pressure monitor to clinics and hospitals, alongside an over-the-counter version for personal use, pending FDA approval.

Other CES 2023 posts:

Peugeot Inception Concept teaser. (12/18/2022)

First OLED wireless TV. (12/18/2022)

Sony Honda EV joint venture. (12/26/2022)

Neubie, the self-driving robot from Neubility. (12/28/2022)

Volkswagen ID Aero electric vehicle. (12/28/2022)lipstick tr

Davinci 100 electric bike, (1/1/2023)

Loona petbot. (1/2/2023)

Bespoke AI wall oven. (1/4/2023)

Lenovo dual-screen laptop. (1/6/2023)

Kohler $16,000 stillness bathrub. (1/6/2023)

Nuwa pen. (1/6/2023)

Aska A5 evtol flying car. (1/6/2023)

Asus 3D laptop. (1/6/2023)

Withings U-Scan, the first hands-free home urine lab. (1/7/2023)

L’Oréal Hapta, assistive lipstick applicator. (1/7/2023)

CES 2023: L’Oréal Hapta, assistive lipstick applicator

engadget, 1/6/2023

Rather than showing up to CES with a viral beauty gadget, L’Oréal debuted an assistive lipstick applicator that will be useful to millions. The cosmetics company worked with utensil maker Verily, which produces stabilizing and leveling cutlery for people with limited hand and arm mobility, to create Hapta. The result is a sturdy grip-and-gimbal system that lets those with limited finger dexterity or strength more independently apply lipstick. Though there are some quirks the company needs to iron out before releasing the Hapta in December, it’s impressive that this is both a finished product and has a relatively affordable suggested retail price of $150 to $200.

Other CES 2023 posts:

Peugeot Inception Concept teaser. (12/18/2022)

First OLED wireless TV. (12/18/2022)

Sony Honda EV joint venture. (12/26/2022)

Neubie, the self-driving robot from Neubility. (12/28/2022)

Volkswagen ID Aero electric vehicle. (12/28/2022)lipstick tr

Davinci 100 electric bike, (1/1/2023)

Loona petbot. (1/2/2023)

Bespoke AI wall oven. (1/4/2023)

Lenovo dual-screen laptop. (1/6/2023)

Kohler $16,000 stillness bathrub. (1/6/2023)

Nuwa pen. (1/6/2023)

Aska A5 evtol flying car. (1/6/2023)

Asus 3D laptop. (1/6/2023)

Withings U-Scan, the first hands-free home urine lab. (1/7/2023)

CES 2023: Withings U-Scan, the first hands-free home urine lab

Wired, 1/6/2023

Pee with confidence

Wrist-based fitness trackers have their place, but they can’t tell you if you’re drinking enough water or eating enough vegetables. The Withings U-Scan can. This small, unobtrusive pebble sits inside your toilet and uses a selection of interchangeable cartridges to measure the basic biomarkers in your urine. Each cartridge measures a different marker, and each one requires a separate paid subscription to use. The U-Scan will debut with two cartridge types—one for general wellness markers like pH and ketone levels, and one that will monitor hormone levels to track a female’s monthly cycle. The device goes on sale later this year in Europe for £500 (around $594), plus those monthly subscriptions. Of course, unlike a wrist-based fitness tracker, the U-Scan works on the assumption that you mostly pee at home. But nowadays, that seems like a reasonably safe bet.

Other CES 2023 posts:

Peugeot Inception Concept teaser. (12/18/2022)

First OLED wireless TV. (12/18/2022)

Sony Honda EV joint venture. (12/26/2022)

Neubie, the self-driving robot from Neubility. (12/28/2022)

Volkswagen ID Aero electric vehicle. (12/28/2022)

Davinci 100 electric bike, (1/1/2023)

Loona petbot. (1/2/2023)

Bespoke AI wall oven. (1/4/2023)

Lenovo dual-screen laptop. (1/6/2023)

Kohler $16,000 stillness bathrub. (1/6/2023)

Nuwa pen. (1/6/2023)

Aska A5 evtol flying car. (1/6/2023)

Asus 3D laptop. (1/6/2023)

UPDATE: Kix just keep gettin' harder to find. Again. Two years later.

It appears from Woodman's shelves that the original version of Kix is the most popular.

Photo by Retiring Guy

myrecipes, 2/13/2018

Katie is weird.

This morning, I ate a bowl of Kix. And then I ate another one. And then another little half bowl after that. Earlier I had stopped at the grocery store specifically to buy a box of Kix, and when the man on the other side of the glass doors told me they weren’t open yet, I sat down on the spot and waited the remaining fifteen minutes. I had to have my Kix.

1/23/2021 update starts here

Or not. In fact, it now looks as though Trix just keep getting harder to find.

Original 6/13/2016 post starts here

With apologies to Paul Revere & the Raiders

Photo be Retiring Guy

General Mills' Kix, billed as the first ready-to-eat, puffed-corn cereal, was introduced in 1937, four years before Cheerios. The latter brand quickly became king of the cereal aisle.

Trix, artificially colored Kix, made its appearance in 1954.

Kix is also the first cereal to be made with the puffing gun.

Related reading:
The most popular breakfast cereals in America today. (Washington Post, 3/18/2015)

Other cereal aisle posts:

2023

Kellogg's Tiger Paws Jumbo Snax. (1/2)

2022

General Mills limited edition dessert fest. (11/30)

Kellogg's Family Size Cosmic Brownies. (11/6)

Hocus Pocus 2. (10/17)

General Mills Limited Edition L.O.L. Surprise Birthday Cake Cereal. (10/12)

Kellogg's shocking orange Halloween Rice Krispies. (8/24)

And after a few minutes in milk, it looks like a bowl of barf. (7/15)
Retiring Guy arrives late to Cheerios 80th birthday party. (7/13)
Wheaties 100 Years of Champions limited edition collector series. (4/27)

Living dangerously. (4/19)

2021

Give your kids a sugar buzz with a new Elf on the Shelf tradition. (11/26)

Limited Edition Kellogg's Frosted Flakes Apple Jacks Mashup, (10/3)

Fall is here and so are limited edition pumpkin spice choices. (9/28)

Kellogg;s adds another variety to the Frosted Flakes brand. (7/12)
Team Cheerios. (7/9)

Remembering the Apple Jacks bullies jingle. (6/1)

Kellogg's shamelessly promotes major breakfast sugar buzz. (5/19)

Kelloggs Crayola gets the puff piece treatment @ BestProducts. (4/5)
Grape Nuts. (2/22)
Cheez-It horns in. (1/10)

2019
This box wants to party with you. (6/4)
Blueberry Cheerios. (5/16)
Snap, crackle and redpop. (2/26)
Kellogg's Honey Oat Frosted Flakes. (2/19)
Kellogg's All Bran fights for shelf space. (1/22)

2018
Cheerios adds to its long list of flavors. (12/31)
General Mills offers two flavors of Dippin' Dots. (11/28)
Kellogg's vanilla latte Frosted Mini-Wheats. (10/1)
Nutter Butter. (6/24)
Still a little bit of shelf space provided for boxes of Big Biscuit Shredded Wheat. (4/3)
Chocolate Frosted Flakes. (3/30)
It's just peachy, part 2 (with probiotics). (3/26)
It's just peachy (Cheerios). (3/25)
Snap, Crackle and Pop shrug off competition from Fancy Friends Cereal Treats. (2/23)
Lucky Charms wants you to have a daily dose of yellow 5 and blue 1. (3/9)
The takeover of Mom. (3/1)
Hoopla over rainbow marshmallows added to Lucky Charms. (2/22)
Kellogg's Donut Shop in your choice of flavors. (2/14)
Just a spoonful of sugar helps the shredded wheat go down. (2/6)
General Mills offers yet another flavor of Cheerios -- chocolate and peanut butter. (1/30)
I suspect this special edition Cocoa Puffs isn't exactly flying off the shelves. (1/16)
What's really going on with this General Mills blend. (1/10)
Giant size bargains to kick off the new year. (1/3)

2017
Satisfy your craving for chocolate. (12/22)
Pumpkin Spice runs amok. (11/7)
Danger lurks. (11/2)
Dan G. wets himself over Special K Blueberry with Lemon Clusters. (9/20)
Limited Edition Mocha Crunch. (7/16)
Kellogg's Frosted Flakes with Marshmallows. (2/1)
A marriage between General Mills and Girls Scouts of America. (1/19)

2016
Alpha-Bits is getting squeezed out.  (11/23)
Special K continues to branch out.  (10/23)
Wedding bells chime.  (10/5)
The price of convenience (22.54 cents per ounce). (8/19)
Make up your mind already!  (8/14)
Remember Nabisco Shredded Wheat?  (7/13)
Features Batman and Superman. (7/7)
Post wants you to have ice cream for breakfast.  (6/30)

Tiny Toast. (6/21)

2015
Fewer of us are starting the day with a breakfast "hoop-de-do"! (2/13)

2014
Kellogg's wants you to put out the box at bedtime. (12/20)
Decline in cereal sales bite into Kellogg's results. (Fortune, 10/30)
Americans aren't eating their Wheaties. (CNN Money, 9/18)
Cereals Begin to Lose Their Snap, Crackle, and Pop. (The New York Times, 9/10)
Why Don't Americans Like Breakfast Cereal Anymore? The once-loved product whose sales went soggy. (Adweek, 8/14)
I imagine General Mills has done the research, but what if this is the case? (7/1)
Maybe it's the rainbow colors. (7/1)
They still call it 'breakfast cereal'. (2/14)

2013
Cereal killers: Americans' new breakfast habits. (CNBC, 8/23)

Joseph Constable (1928-1945) Warren High School class of 1945

1945 Warren Dragon yearbook

Source: Press Conneccts

Joseph's high school activities:

Football (3); German Club (2, 3)

1967 Warren City Directory

Constable Leonard M (Elenora) retired h15 Glade Avenue

1983 Warren City Directory

The popularity of Joseph as a baby name is graphed here. Let's take a look at .

Source: Social Security Administration

Eleanora spent the first 40 years of the 1900s establishing a rather mediocre record. She peaked at #486 in 1916. In 2021, she made her first appearance, barely registering on the chart, since 1939.

Other members of the class of 1945 (31):

2022

Joan Dobbs Lucia. (1/22)

Henry Allen Peterson. (1/6)

2021

Wilda English Rashid. (7/25)

Rhea Schmiedel Burleigh. (5/28)

Julana Hannold Hanson. (3/19)

Evelyn Wilson Pratz. (3/5)

2020
Roger Nuhfer. (12/15)

Helen Nyberg Clark. (2/2)

2019
Myron Sorenson. (9/8)
Paul Dickerson. (9/2)
Robert Uhr. (7/16)

2018
Glenn Slocum. (4/9)
Violet Bimber Kavinski. (1/25)

2017
Richard Peterson. (1/4)
Ruth Peterson Bennett. (11/5)
Jean Park Johnson. (10/23)
Marion Cook Klakamp. (3/30)
Raymon Billstone. (1/29)

2016
Barbara Coe Sly. (9/20)
Richard Olney. (7/4)
Robert Scalise. (3/21)
Doris Dinsmoor Lyle. (2/6)

2015
Mary Ann Masterson. (9/28)
Clara Gelotte Wooster. (7/19)
Dorothy Smith Bowser. (6/30)
Charles "Lindy" McConnell. (2/14)

2014
Ruth Campbell Freeman. (2/3)
Dixie Eaton Weldon. (1/25)

2013
Dorothy Kavinski Wycoff. (12/21)
Robert Hammerbeck. (12/14)

Keeping tabs on authors in LINKcat: Fay Weldon

Source: LINKcat

New York Times, 1/4/2023

By turns elusive and confessional, Ms. Weldon liked to say she divided her life into two segments. The first, which she termed “mildly scandalous” and “delinquent,” lasted until her early 30s and was covered in her autobiography, “Auto da Fay” (2002).
The second period, spanning five decades, was more earnest, taken up primarily with delineating the fragile bonds between callous men and wounded women and the bitter contests between women. All became the grist for her dark satire, laced with wry, aphoristic asides on the human condition.

The 50 member libraries of LINKcat

Related posts:

2022

Roger Angell. (5/24)

Melissa Bank. (8/7)

Raymond Briggs. (8/20)

Thomas Cahill. (11/16)

Philip K. Dick. (11/20)

Bruce Duffy, (3/13)

Todd Gitlin. (2/8)

Rebecca Godfrey. (11/11)

Ron Goulart. (2/7)

Doris Grumbach. (11/10)

Robert Hicks. (3/8)

Thomas Hoving. (12/19)

Maureen Howard. (3/19)

Dominique Lapierre. (12/11)

Hilary Mantel. (9/26)

Nancy Mitford. (4/4)

P. J. O'Rourke. (2/24)

John J. Osborn Jr. (11/4)

Julie Powell. (11/5)

Thomas Pynchon. (12/17)

Dennis Smith. (1/27)

Susie Steiner. (7/27)

Larry Woiwode. (5/19)

2021

Joan Walsh Anglund. (4/3)

F. Lee Bailey. (6/11)

Katherine Barber. (5/26)

Mary Catherine Bateson. (1/26)

Rosalind Cartwright. (3/21)

Kim Chernin. (1/10)

Beverly Cleary. (4/8)

Angelo Codevilla. (10/10)

Christina Crosby. (1/31)

Geoff Crowther. (5/17)

Eric Jerome Dickey. (1/9)

Morrie Dickstein. (3/31)

Scott Donaldson. (1/11)

Stephen Dunn. (6/29)

Lawrence Ferlinghetti. (2/24)

James R. Flynn. (1/30)

Larry Flynt. (2/12)

Lucinda Franks. (5/11)

Joseph Galloway. (8/25)

Norman Golb. (2/22)

Lawrence Graham. (3/9)

Charles Grodin. (5/20)

Maria Guarnascheilli, book editor. (2/18)

James Gunn. (2/21)

Tony Hendra. (3/7)

Robert L. Herbert (2/12)

Norman Juster. (3/16)

Donald Kagan. (8/20)

Hans Kung. (4/9)

Lyn Macdonald. (5/15)

Janet Malcolm. (6/18)

Peter Manso, (4/10)

Jason Matthews. (5/4)

Margaret Maron. (3/13)

Larry McMurtry. (4/2)

Ved Mehta. (1/12)

Robert Middlekauff. (9/3)

Marie Mongan. (3/22)

John Naisbitt. (4/21)

Sharon Kay Penman. (2/8)

Steven B. Oates. (9/1)

Robert Quackenbush. (7/7)

Deborah Rhode. (1/28)

James Ridgeway. (2/16)

Naomi Rosenblum (3/6)

Donald Rumsfeld. (7/6)

Charles Saunders. (2/4)

David Swensen. (5/13)

Bryan Sykes. (1/14)

Athan Theoharis. (6/14/)

Ed Ward. (5/16)

Michael Thomas. (8/19)

Steven Weinberg. (8/5)

Adam Zagajewski. (3/27)

2020

Patricia Bosworth. (4/6)

Ben Bova. (12/17)

Mary Higgins Clark. (2/4)

Clive Cussler. (2/29)

Betty Dodson (11/11)

David Graeber. (9/6)

Shirley Ann Grau. (8/11)

Pete Hamill. (8/6)

Shere Hite. (9/13)

A, E, Hotchner. (2/18)

Roger Kahn. (2/15)

Randall Kenan. (9/29)

John Le Carre. (12/23/2020)

Johanna Lindsey. (1/15)

Barry Lopez. (12/29)

Alison Lurie. (12/7)

Sylvia Jukes Morris. (1/20)

Charlers Portis. (2/19)

Julia Reed. (9/8)

John Rothchild. (1/22)

Gail Sheehy. (9/3)

George Steiner. (2/6)

Jill Paton Walsh. (11/29)

Charles Webb. (6/30)

Elizabeth Wurtzel. (1/11)

2019

Warren Adler. (4/23)

Kate Braverman. (10/28)

Stephen Dixon. (11/12)

Ernest J. Gaines. (11/8)

Dan Jenkins. (3/10)

Judith Krantz. (6/27)

Paule Marshall. (8/27)

Robert K. Massie. (12/4)

Martin Mayer. (8/3)

Wright Morris. (7/25)

Toni Morrison. (8/12)

Anthony Price. (6/17)

James I. Robertson. (11/20)

Anne Rivers Siddons. (9/19)

John Simon. (12/1)

Sol Stein. (9/30)

Brad Watson. (8/2)

Lonnie Wheeler. (7/15)

Herman Wouk. (5/20)

Nearly forgotten "sociological megahits" of 1970. (6/18)

2018

Neal Thompson. (6/17)

Barbara Kafka. (6/8)

Weeding or historical sanitization at LINKcat libraries? (6/2)

2017

Aline Countess of Romanones. (12/17)

Kit Reed. (10/1)

Carol J. Adams shares feminist classics from her personal library. (9/8)

2016

E. M. Nathanson. (4/10)

2015

Gunter Grass (1927-2015). (4/15)

2014

Thomas Berger (1924-2014). (7/23)

Peter Matthiessen (1927-2014) (4/8)

2013

Barbara Branden. (12/26)

The rise and fall of the American shopping mall (Warren Pennsylvania edition)

The Warren Mall opened in October 1979. At the time the city's population was 12,200, down from its 1940 peak of 14,891, while Warren County was treading water at 47,500, down slightly from its 1970 peak of 47,682. Due to its small market size, the area arrived late to the shopping mall party.

By the late 2010s, the mall had been in a more than decade-long state of decline, with a vacancy rate approaching 80%. In 2006, the opening of a Walmart Supercenter and Lowe's home improvement store less than a mile from the mall accelerated its loss of tenants, a few of whom moved into storefronts at a strip shopping center built within the same development.

The death knell for the mall was the closing of its last anchor, the Bon Ton, in 2018, the result of a bankruptcy filing. Its other two anchors, Penney's and KMart, had already departed.

Photos by Retiring Guy (2016 and 2018)

During visits with family in Warren, I'd made occasionally trip to the mall. A death watch, to be sure. I always encountered very little foot traffic there.

By 2018, the decision was made to demolish about half of the mall's original structure, eliminating the enclosed mall and creating an open-air plan with a redesign of the remaining storefronts.

Even with the addition of Dunham.s Sports, I'm not convinced that the mall has a viable future. Since the mall first opened in 1969, the city of Warren's population has decreased 23%, to 9,404 The county's population has also declined, to 38,587, a 19% drop.

Business Insider, 1/6/2023

Day 61 of Robert C. Cahaly's self-imposed exile

Not a peep from him on Twitter since November 8.

@RobertCahaly

Cahaly is the dude responsible for a host of fantasy polls released in the final days leading up to the midterm elections.

Here's his 2022 midterm report card.

Check it out!

FiveThirtyEight reports Trafalgar poll with a straight face. (1/6/2023)

December 2022

In a year when conservative pollsters tried to drive the election narrative, Politico sez "HOORAY " for polls. (21/31/2022)
Rule #1: Never cite a Trafalgar poll to bolster your argument. (12/24/2022)

November 2022

And then there were those Trafalgar fantasy polls. (11/21/2022)

Since Election Day, we have been listening to 'The Sounds of Silence" by Robert C. Cahaly. (11/16/2022)

Looking forward to Trafalgar's first fantasy poll of the 2024 GOP presidential campaign shit show. (11/16/2022)

Governor's race in Arizona. (11/16/2022)

Governor's race in Colorado. (11/16/2022)

Governor's race in New York. (11/15/2022)

Governor's rate in Michigan. (11/11/2022)

Governor's race in Minnesota. (11/16/2022)

Governor's race in Pennsylvania. (11/14/2022)

Governor's race in Wisconsin. (11/14/2022)

Senate race in Arizona. (11/15/21022)

Senate race in Colorado. (11/14/2022)

Senate race in Nevada. (11/15/2022)

Senate race in New Hampshire. (11/14/2022)

Senate race in Pennsylvania. (11/14/2022)

Senate race in Vermont. (11/11/2022)

Senate race in Washington. (11/11/2022)

Around Town Middleton: Vin Santo restaurant reopening date postponed again

The week of November 16th came and went, and Vin Santo remains closed.

The current message explains that the restaurant will not be able to open before the holidays and to call back during the 1st or 2nd week in January for more information.

Photo by Retiring Guy

1/17/2022 update starts here

Favorite special occasion restaurant

Photo by Retiring Guy

Close-up

Our last visit took place on June 5, 2020, a delayed 34th anniversary celebration. After struggling through the summer, Vin Santo closed in September. Another Covid casualty.

Photos by Retiring Guy

Vin Santo menu (pasta)

October 2022
328 down the right-field line. (10/30/2022)
Basketball court newest addition to Parisi Park. (10/26)
The Club Tavern still sits empty (2022 edition) (10/20)
According to a recent Next Door post, this apartment building allegedly has roaches. (10/15)
Where the sidewalk ends. (10/1)

August 2022
"Tactical Urbanism" at the intersection of Elmwood Avenue and Middleton Street. (8/29/2022)
The G Spot. (8/11/2022)
Not the best choice for a vanity license plate. (8/7/2022)
How much time do these homeowners have before their wall blocks in the background topple over? (8/4)
July 2022
Turfbot mower. (7/28)
Klinke closes its North Gammon Road location. (7/15/)

May2022
Strickers Pond showstoppers. (5/15)

April 2022
Tiedeman Pond observation platform replaced. (4/20)

November 2021

Stunning fall foliage. (11/8)
What a concept! Dual-purpose dumpster. (11/4)

Club Tavern still sits empty. (11/3)

October 2021
Jim's BP reboots as Jim;s Auto Service. (10/18)

September 2021

Old National Bank. (9/29)

June 2021

Tiedeman Poud pumping station upgrade. (6/14)

Public art on the sald shed. (6/10)

Algae bloom at Strickers Pond. (6/10)

May 2021

Buying in bulk almost looks like Before Times at at Willy Street Co-op. (5/5

February 2021