Gordon Meyer's Profile

Ms Allred generally liked her daily commute to Pritzker School, alas not everyday was great because the Blue Line is frequently crowded. But today she couldn’t help smiling. She was standing in the back by a window and got a... Continue reading

Posted yesterday at Gordon Meyer

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What's your #BucktownBlocks story? (1)

Once Chris got started playing at Walsh Park it was pretty much impossible to get him to leave. Between the playground and running laps he was having too much fun. At least until he remembered what was for dinner! C-ya!... Continue reading

Posted yesterday at Gordon Meyer

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Book review: Superstitions

Superstition: Black Cats and White Rabbits by Sally Coulthard offers a history of common folk beliefs, and being a UK publication, many of the tales are heretofore unknown to most Americans. And even those you might already know — such... Continue reading

Posted Jun 25, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Tablet Stands I’ve Known

I love the AmazonBasics Adjustable Tablet Holder Stand so much that I’ve purchased four of them. Not because of breakage or loss, but because they work so damn well. In addition to being suited for a variety of digital devices... Continue reading

Posted Jun 24, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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A true story from Las Vegas

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Posted Jun 18, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Shopping Bag Museum returns

After a long absence (caused by the debacle at FatCow) the Shopping Bag Museum has finally been restored online. That’s right, breathe a sigh of relief, as you can one again peruse the decades-old lovingly curated collection. See it at... Continue reading

Posted Jun 12, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Book Review: Chicago Gets Four Stars

Local writer Joe Mason (of The Chicago Reader, among other publications) has new zine titled Chicago Gets Four Stars that offers succinct and interesting summaries of offbeat Chicago history. Mason has chosen (if the book were more expensive I’d say... Continue reading

Posted Jun 8, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Quick fix for the KitchenAid Nespresso Espresso Maker

If you have a Nespresso Espresso Maker by KitchenAid (Model KES0503SZ) then you have likely discovered a minor flaw. Namely, the design of the water tank can make it difficult to see how much water is in its tank. If... Continue reading

Posted Jun 3, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Book Review: The Little Winter Book of Gnomes

This charming book artfully combines two meanings of the word “gnome.” That is, it features not just woodland wee-folk, but also wise and pithy sayings. (Interestingly, the latter definition is the oldest, according to the O.E.D.) The author of the... Continue reading

Posted May 31, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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The Silver Ingot: A Las Vegas Text Adventure Game

I've written a short text adventure game you can play in your web browser. It's called "The Silver Ingot: A Las Vegas Adventure" and it's based on actual events. To play, just click this link: Play Now It has been... Continue reading

Posted May 29, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Automatically open the printer status window

If you're a Mac OS X (macOS) power user, you should certainly have a copy of Keyboard Maestro. (If you don't stop reading now and go there. You're welcome.) This tiny little trick requires that you have it... My HP... Continue reading

Posted May 25, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Book Review: Why You Should Read Children’s Books

It was almost as if this book was following us around the bookstores of London, almost like a lost puppy. There it was, near the cash register at every store we visited (which was, frankly, too many to count), waiting... Continue reading

Posted May 15, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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A Cat at Begraafplaats Huis de Vraag

Begraafplaats (cemetery) Huis de Vraag (House of Inquiry) in Amsterdam isn’t near the tourist center of the city. To get there from our apartment in Plantage we took the subway to Centraal Station, then a tram, then walked for about... Continue reading

Posted May 15, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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A nursery rhyme for troubled times

Inspired by reading Pop Goes the Weasel: The Secret Meanings of Nursery Rhymes by Albert Jack. Continue reading

Posted May 14, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Announcing: Bizarre Fact Files

My newest publications are now available! Bizarre Fact Files are pocket-sized books of Chicago neighborhood history and tidbits. Fact File volumes now available: Bucktown Wicker Park Notable Neighbors Notorious Neighbors For sale now at Quimby’s bookstore (mail order and curbside... Continue reading

Posted May 12, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Book Review: Grave Plots

I was slightly surprised when I learned that the ‘zine Grave Plots was about the sale of cemetery lots via Craigslist. I’ve only used Craigslist a couple of times (to obtain purportedly haunted furniture for my performance studio), but in... Continue reading

Posted May 9, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Dr Fauci and Time Travel

Forbes is a questionable source of news (particularly tech news) and while this article is interesting, they are missing the obvious conclusion that Dr Fauci is a time traveller. Here are photos of the "two" men side-by-side. Continue reading

Posted May 2, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Clever garage door sensor hack

Just filing this away here... a nice homemade bracket that adapts a door sensor to a garage door in a very clever way. Garage Door Bracket for Wyze Sense - YouTube: "" Continue reading

Posted Apr 30, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Creating a yearly macOS Mail archive

I’m sort of a packrat when it comes to email messages, so by the end of the year my IMAP account is cluttered messages I’ve read. I like to keep them around for reference, but I also want to clear... Continue reading

Posted Apr 29, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Multiple TXT records with Route53 DNS

It’s common for providers to ask you to add a TXT record to a DNS so they can verify that you own the domain. If you use AWS (Route 53) for your domain, be aware that while you can create... Continue reading

Posted Apr 20, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Sending text from Ulysses to MarsEdit

These days, I do all my writing in Ulysses, but I use the fantastic MarsEdit to manage this blog. This means that when I'm ready to publish something, I have to somehow get what I've written from one app to... Continue reading

Posted Apr 17, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Using Tinderbox for Mail Merge

I have a handful of different email messages that I need to send out on a fairly regular basis, but most often, I’m only sending them to one person. For this reason, a regular “mail merge” setup is overkill and... Continue reading

Posted Apr 17, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Our Will o’ The Wisp

Gale noticed it first, a strange ball of light dancing high in our living room. I immediately recognized it as as a legendary Will o’ The Wisp and grabbed the closest camera. (Which, thanks to a quarantine cleaning binge, was... Continue reading

Posted Apr 13, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Cure for a SwitchBot that forgets its schedule

Currently, one of the best home automation devices in my system is the "SwitchBot Button Presser." It looks a lot like a Rube Goldberg device, but it works perfectly for activating non-smart switches. If you're looking to retrofit an existing... Continue reading

Posted Apr 11, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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Beaglebone Black card box

When nerdy interests intersect: Discovered that a Poker-sized card box is a suitable case for a Beaglebone Black microcontroller. Continue reading

Posted Apr 10, 2020 at Gordon Meyer

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