The Future is Upon Us (Maybe)

I can now ✅ curling off of my bucket list. I joined a curling league at Dakota Curling Club in downtown Lakeville across the street from B52s. Like almost everyone else, I've seen the sport featured in the Olympics every four years and have been somewhat intrigued by it. So when friend and neighbor Rebecca put out an announcement looking for people to join a novice-level curling league, I didn't hesitate to add my name. 

I was a little worried about my knees allowing me to get down into the proper position to push off from the 'hack' to slide the 40 lb stone down the ice but it wasn't the problem for me that I was expecting it to be. However, I did overdo it on Sunday night when the facility was open for two hours during the Super Bowl for anyone who wanted to come in and practice. I figured I threw 70 stones in my time there. The next morning both of my knees were cussing at me. They hurt! I suck at moderation. Another curler (with 15 years of experience) who was there on Sunday offered to give me some tips on form and technique; something I'm woefully lacking. She was very helpful. Here's a short clip she took of this beginner for the archives. 

I'm all in with the sport. I bought some curling shoes and a broom (used for sweeping the ice). I hope to continue with leagues in the winters to come. It's so much fun and also very challenging. Give it a go if you ever have the chance.

Tammy and I went to the Apple Store at Southdale last Saturday to demo the new Apple Vision Pro spatial computing headset that was just released last week. Our friend Patrick manages the store and has been encouraging us to come in and give the Vision Pro a test drive (you can schedule a demo in the link above). Because we both wear glasses and the headsets aren't compatible with eyeglasses, our Vision Pros needed to be fitted with lenses that matched our eyeglasses prescriptions. They're able to do that all within the store in a process that takes only a few minutes. The demo lasts about 30 minutes and takes you through most of the features of spatial computing.

I was impressed with the technology (10 years in the making) that's packed into Vision Pro although I don't see them taking the place of my laptop just yet. Where I do see them being very useful would be along the lines of entertainment, such as movies and possibly some sporting events rendered in full-surround and 3-D. I think this is where they're going to ultimately find their place, at least for me. I don't rule out their use for general computing at some point down the road.

We were sitting around with friends on Saturday night and talking about uses for this technology. Mark mentioned placing cameras inside a Formula 1 race car and giving the viewer at home a fully immersive 3-D experience of being in the race—turning one's head to look at the action from different perspectives. Or watching other sporting events where cameras are placed at various places around the playing field that users could toggle between while listening to the play-by-play and viewing the action in full-surround 3-D. Concerts as well. You could pay a fee and see a show in another part of the world that you couldn't otherwise see. And they would mount cameras onstage! 

I was also thinking about how I could someday use a Vision Pro-like device for indoor riding. It's not ready for that yet due to the bulkiness of the headset being worn during a hard workout but at some point, it will be—maybe about the time I'm ready to stop riding outdoors. 🤷🏽‍♂️

Another appealing aspect is the ability to change your environment while wearing the headset. You can choose between a variety of places: the moon; a beach; Yosemite; Joshuah Tree; Mt. Hood, and several more. I can imagine myself tuning out the real world and getting lost/immersed in one of the 3-D environments then sitting down to write in my blog. No doubt, I would love that!

The only downside that I experienced in my demo was the weight of the headset which weighs 1.3 lbs. I don't know if it's something one gets used to or not but I would guess it's only going to become lighter in future versions. It's a technology that they're only scratching the surface with up to now and I'm curious to see where it goes in the years ahead. I'm rooting for it.

I'm still spending much of my days and evenings down in our basement making my little sun-catchers for my Etsy store. My most recent pieces can be seen here and here (swipe left to see additional photos).

Our mild weather continues. Steve and I actually made it out golfing last Wednesday at Hidden Greens. It was a breezy overcast mid-40s (7.7ºc) day but it was nice to be walking the links again.

One last thing before wrapping this up: Tammy was the big winner from our group of 6 at BINGO last Tuesday night. She won $34 plus two tickets for Sunday brunch at the Chart House restaurant. Woohoo!

Extra credit reading.

That's all I've got.