Wayne Yoshida Blog

Extreme wintertime weather may impact natural gas vehicle engine starting and performance. Low or decreased fuel pressure to the engine and cold intake air to the engine are the most common troubles when ambient temperatures are below freezing (32°F/0°C). · Although we cannot con ...

Rocks come in all shapes and sizes and are everywhere. But some stand out from the rest. Although I don't consider the people in my network rocks, I do have many outstanding people that stand out from others. · If you are not familiar with these outstanding folks - you should be! ...

I've been working out at the company gym for about eight months and noticed some things. · First, I'm inspired and encouraged by my new hero Jocko Willink. I am applying discipline to “get after it” every day and established a routine. But sometimes there are days when I just do ...

I got stuck in an elevator yesterday. · Although I don’t have claustrophobia, this is one of my recurring nightmares, probably triggered by some of the movies I’ve seen. · Like everything in life, random situations are about timing and making decisions. · I went to the restroom, ...

Feed a Crowd with Something Special · As the office "grill guy" I am always called upon to cook on the company barbecue. It's a gas grill, but I prefer charcoal and use ceramic cookers (Big Green Egg). · So a few weeks ago, it was decided we would have a "home cooked" meal for th ...

The Importance of Hobbies and Extra-Curricular Activities · I often meet people who talk about their dissatisfaction with work. I find this curious because I have always worked in industries, companies and products that match my personal passions. I ask them why they torture them ...

A few years ago, I made this zero-budget Christmas light controller. It was inspired by an old model railroad signal, a small electronic sequencer with three channels and a speed control. · As Tim Allen from the TV show “Home Improvement” would say, “I didn’t fix it, I improved ...

Lately, my social media feeds have been filled with so much negativity. In the spirit of Thanksgiving and the holidays - and to contribute to a small bump to change this negative stuff to something more positive, I present the 2017 You Rock Awards. · Each year, I think about the ...

I recently completed another version of my Lightning Detector for next year’s Maker Faire season. It is the same circuit but packaged in a small desktop cabinet. The new configuration is more compact and self-contained and looks more like a “final product" rather than a “pre-prod ...

Fancy red, orange and yellow bell peppers were on sale last weekend, so I decided to make a batch of giardiniera. This is a spicy-hot and very tasty condiment for just about anything. I discovered this condiment while on a business trip to Chicago many years ago. I love this for ...

A Search for a Missing Tool Turns Into a Life Lesson · While working on my car project, I noticed my 9 mm, 3/8-inch drive socket was missing from my tool drawer. I looked everywhere for it, even though my “tool habit” is to always clean and put a tool back to where it belongs whe ...

As an introverted person, I am always intimidated by networking and other social events, which is one of the reasons why I practice public speaking and meeting new people as a volunteer LinkedIn instructor and career counselor. · During these sessions, it is very common to hear p ...

Our office moved a few weeks ago. Like any re-location, this disrupts the commute from home to office and creates an adventure for discovering new places to go during the day. I especially like going to new places to eat, and finding better alternatives for burgers and fries. · I ...

Maker Faire events are a natural habitat for ham radio operators and builders, artists, engineers, mechanics, electronics experts, hobbyists, cooks, bakers, teachers, kids and grown-ups. It is a place for anyone and everyone to watch, learn, demonstrate and teach others about the ...

I was looking for something different to make on my Big Green Egg this past weekend since we had a break in the rain. I randomly found this recipe by Judy Cowan for Simple Stromboli. · Stromboli triggered a nice memory from many years ago, when I lived in West Hartford and Newing ...

I decided to move away from making a ham for Christmas and made these two tapenade stuffed pork loin roasts on my Big Green Egg instead. One has a green olive tapenade and the other uses a black olive tapenade. · This recipe is based on Steven Raichlen's version in his book, How ...

Have you ever measured something – like a piece of pipe or lumber, and then cut it to length, but it came out just a skosh or smidgen too short? · “Measure twice, cut once” the old proverb Norm Abram always emphasizes is still sound, but here is my more practical statement for ev ...

Blow your own horns because no one will do it for you. · One of the most important items in your career management arsenal is a bank of quantified success stories that describe your skills and accomplishments in brief, one-line statements. Let’s call them “power stories.” · A lot ...

Over the past several years, I have been finding ways to streamline the time it takes to decorate my house at Christmas. Previously, I had to drag out the ladder and string out the lights onto little hooks on the rafters and other places, taking up more than a full day of work. T ...

Insecta: Diptera: Stratiomyidae (soldier fly) larva · Recently, Susan Rooks - the Grammar Goddess -- mentioned something about the fear of not remaining relevant. So, I decided this post would have something of value to folks. · All of us should continuously be aware of new dev ...