cahwyguy – Page 5 – Observations Along the Road

🎧 Success! Turning an Android Phone into an iPod Backup

Posted onSaturday, November 11, 2023Sunday, November 12, 2023Authorcahwyguy2 Comments

If you’ve been following my blog for any length of time, you know I enjoy listening to music. Perhaps “enjoy” is too weak a word. I love listening to music. I have since I was a kid, and I would lug a briefcase of hand-recorded cassettes to camp. I jury-rigged my own cassette player to car interface in my first cars. I’ve used various Walkmen, Discmen, and finally iPod Classics … all in a quest to have all my music with me at all times. Further, I don’t want any of this streaming crap, where you are only leasing the music from the music companies at any time. I want my albums, with my album covers, when and where I want them without a dependence on an Internet connection. Albums in the cloud? Feh!

In this quest, I’ve modified my iPod Classics to remove the spinning hard disk, using the iFlash card to replace the hard disk with solid state memory. I used the iFlash Dual card to put in 2 256GB SD cards, making each iPod Classic have 512GB, or about 477-483 GiB. But there is a limitation on the iPod Classic software — it gets wonky and likes to reboot over about 42K tracks. So my iPods only have part of my collection. I have two iPod Classics, each with the same collection of music synced to iTunes regularly. If you need a good person to do iPod hardware mods in Southern California, let me know and I’ll get you in touch with my guy (who is out in Pasadena).

How many songs do I have? Right now, just over 56K.

So I’ve been searching for a solution to have all the songs on my phone. I will not use an iPhone. I don’t want to pollute and confuse the iTunes ecosystem. I’ve been using Android phones that can accept SD card storage. There are many mid-brand models that do — I’m currently using a Samsung A51 with a 512GB card.

Previously, I had been using the combination of iSyncr and Rocket Player from JRT Studio. But they sold their company about 2 years ago, and the new owners screwed the pooch and broke the software. I NO LONGER RECOMMEND iSyncr and Rocket Player. Under the new owners, Muma Studios, the software no longer works and is overpriced. The key advantage of their software and this combination was: (a) the player could play from storage; (b) the player had an equivalent of smart playlists; (c) it synchronized the music between my PC and Android, and (d) the synchronization tool could move metadata (ratings, last played, etc.) to and from iTunes.

I’m pleased to say that I’ve found a new solution. It isn’t turnkey — you’ll need to do a bit of fiddling and a sync takes about 1/2 hour. But it works. Here’s what you need:

An Android phone with SD card storage. The Samsung A series works will (the high end line seems to not take SD cards). There were also some Motorolas and Pixels, as I recall from my last search. Here’s a search for appropriate phones.
Syncthing. Syncthing is a continuous file synchronization program. It synchronizes files between two or more computers in real time, safely protected from prying eyes. There are versions of the software available for almost any platform, and it is free.
Gone Mad Music Player. (Google Play). This is a customizable music player, with loads of skins, that supports the equivalent of smart playlists and can play music from SD card. There are a few limitations: the smart playlists aren’t as smart as in iTunes (that is: not all of fields you can test on in iTunes are available in GMMP); the ability to bookmark in a track works different (i.e., in GMMP you bookmark as you are playing to come back; in iTunes it is a “Remember Position” flag on a per-track basis (useful for podcasts and audiobooks; GMMP does have a setting that allows me to Auto-Bookmark all podcasts, which should work for me); there is no per-track “skip when shuffling” flag — instead, it is a global setting of Audio>Other>Stop After Each Track (yes, I know, not quite the same — I use skip when shuffling to create smart playlists of podcasts, and if every track is “skip when shuffling”, it stops after each track). But it’s about the best I can find. This has a small one-time fee to move from the trial version. That is well worth it.
Perl. Either Strawberry Perl or ActiveState Perl; both are free for personal use. Perl is the tool I use for the script I wrote. Right now, I’m also using a Visual Basic script adapted from one written by Steve MacGuire (TuringTest2 on the Apple Support Forums (iTunes for Windows; iPod). I hope, one day, to move that functionality into perl as VBScript is being deprecated by Microsoft. That will also require me to understand better the iTunes COM interface.

Here’s how the process works for me right now.

Setup.

Synchronize your phone with Android. I’ve got syncthing set up to “mirror” my iTunes Media Library to the SD card on my phone (send only on the PC, receive only on the phone). This took a bit of figuring out to get the SD pathname correct.
Get GMMP, and get it set up to look only in where you have stored your music on your phone. Do a scan to have it find all your music. Set up equivalent smart playlists in GMMP to your iPod playlists
Add another directory to syncthing — this time, you want bi-directional syncing between the GMMP directory on your phone (in my case, /storage/emulated/0/gmmp) and a directory you create on your PC (in my case, it was d:\dpf\music\GMMP).
Create a directory, GMMPStatFix, to hold the scripts and such (in my case, d:\dpf\music\GMMPStatFix\).

Updating.

Synchronize iTunes and your phone. I don’t normally leave syncthing running, so I start it up on both ends and wait for everything to be synchronized.
Start up GMMP on your phone and do a scan to find all the new tracks (Settings > Scan)
Backup your Stats in GMMP (Settings > Backup > Backup Stats). This creates a stats.xml file, which syncthing then copies to the GMMP directory on your PC.
Once stats.xml is copied to your PC, go into iTunes and Export your iTunes library into the GMMPStatFix directory (File > Export > Library). Save it as iTunes.xml
Run the updatestats.bat file. This file runs both the perl script GMMPStatFix.pl and the VBScript ExportImport.vbs, which is a slightly modified version of Steve’s script (primarily, to work with ASCII files instead of Unicode). This is what the perl script does:
1. Copies the stats.xml file from the GMMP directory to GMMPStatFix.
2. Runs the perl script, which does the following: It slurps in the old stats.xml file, if it exists. It slurps in the new stats.xml file. It then chews that stuff with the iTunes XML file. This allows it to figure out the new information for the stats.xml file in terms of ratings, last played, and playcount (I don’t care about skip counts). It will also figure out when the ratings, playcount, and last played needs to be updated in iTunes. It will warn if there are computed Album Ratings, which I hate. It then generates a new stats.xml file, and a file of changes to be made to iTunes.
3. The perl script also extracts all the playlists, and creates them in a subdirectory of GMMPStatFix called playlists. This includes the current (static) versions of smart playlists. These are all prefixed with (iT). To move the playlists to your phone, simply create a playlists directory in your Media library on your PC, and copy those playlists you want on your phone to that media library. When syncthing syncs, it will copy them over, and your next GMMP scan will add them to your GMMP library.
4. The perl script lastly invokes ExportImport.vbs to make the changes to iTunes if there are changes to be made. I’m working on fixing the dialog boxes so it doesn’t confirm everything, but does output to STDERR what it is doing.
5. Lastly, it copies the stats.xml file back into the GMMP directory.
Syncthing then copies the stats.xml file back to the phone.
Once stats.xml has been updated on the phone, go into GMMP and Settings > Restore Stats.
Close syncthing on both sides if you want.

That’s it. Both sides updated.

If you want a current copy of the perl script and the modified VBScript script, just drop me a note at faigin -at cahighways -dot org, and I’ll get them to you (or comment here).

🛣 Headlines About California Highways – October 2023

Posted onThursday, November 2, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

We’ve made it to November. Two months to go and 2023 will be in the history books. Then comes the election year of 2024. Oh. Boy.

October has seen me finish the “scripts” for the first 10 episodes of the podcast; my attention will now turn to Route 2. The first two episodes of season 2 are now up. As always, you can keep up with the show at the podcast’s forever home at https://www.caroutebyroute.org , the show’s page on Spotify for Podcasters, or you can subscribe through your favorite podcaster or via the RSS feeds (CARxR, Spotify for Podcasters) . The following episodes have been posted this month:

CARxR 2.01: Route 1 – Orange County (The start of a 10 episode series on Route 1. This episode focuses first on “first” highways, then LRN 1, and then all about Route 1 in Orange County)
CARxR 2.02: Route 1 – Los Angeles County (The second episode on Route 1. This episode focuses on Route 1 in Los Angeles County)

A side effect of the new season is that I’ve discovered a number of interesting historical articles and sources. Some will be in the entries for the episodes themselves, but I’ve also saved some to the headlines list so that I’ll go through them again to update the pages. These articles will be marked in the headlines list with the Historical (Ħ) flag. Next up is recording episodes 2.03 (Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties) and 2.04 (SLO and Big Sur), and working on the Highway Pages — specifically the October and November headlines, AAroads posts, and the CTC minutes.

One last plug: For those in the cybersecurity field: Registration for the Annual Computer Security Conference is now open. Look at the program — which is strong — register for the conference, and make your hotel and travel. I hope to see you in Austin in December.

Well, you should now be up to date. Here are the headlines that I found about California’s highways for October:

Key

[Ħ Historical information | ＄ Paywalls, ＄＄ really obnoxious paywalls, and ∅ other annoying restrictions. I’m no longer going to list the paper names, as I’m including them in the headlines now. Note: For ＄ paywalls, sometimes the only way is incognito mode, grabbing the text before the paywall shows, and pasting into an editor.]

California Highways: Route by Route Podcast

The podcast is currently on a break between Season 1 and Season 2. Back episodes are available at the Podcast’s forever home, as well as on its Spotify for Podcasters home. The Spotify (nee Anchor.FM) link also has links to the podcast’s page on most major podcasting services.

Highway Headlines

Ħ Proposed Parkway System – 1949 – Los Angeles (FB/Sharrye Hagins). Map of 1949 Proposed Parkway System
Caltrans: We Need Complete Streets at Freeway Interchanges (CalBike).\ When Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed CalBike’s Complete Streets bill in 2019, he assured Californians that we didn’t need the mandate for safer streets. Caltrans, he noted, had new leadership and would implement the needed changes without legislation. Caltrans does appear to have made some positive changes in the past four years. CalBike is working on a report to assess how well the agency has done and where Complete Streets upgrades are lacking. Take our Complete Streets Survey.
Monthslong closure of Highway 35 in Santa Cruz County begins (KSBW 8). Caltrans fully closed Highway 35 in the Santa Cruz Mountains as they began winter storm damage repairs on Monday. Highway 35 closed starting Monday, Oct. 2, three miles north of the junction of Hwy 35 and Hwy 17, near Bear Creek Road. Caltrans hopes to complete construction by Dec. 10. Once the work is completed, this section of Hwy 35 will remain under one-way traffic control for several weeks.
Caltrans held a public meeting to discuss Highway 46 widening project (KSBY). Caltrans held a remote public meeting from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to discuss a proposal about converting a 3.6-mile section of Highway 46 East to a four-lane expressway in San Luis Obispo and Kern Counties. The project will include modifications such as changes to the highway alignment, avoiding high utility relocation costs, and reducing the existing grade of the highway., According to Caltrans, the antelope grade stretch sees the most volume of trucks on the central coast. The steep grade makes it harder for larger trucks to speed up causing bottleneck congestion.
Report: Bike Lanes Can’t Make up for New Roads (Planetizen News). A new report calls on California to rethink its “traffic-creating, pave-the-earth approach to transportation,” highlighting the environmental and public health impacts of rampant freeway construction. According to an article by Melanie Curry in Streetsblog California, despite the state’s efforts to support clean air and water policies, the inertia of the status quo and a fear of change “has led to focusing on difficult but politically plausible solutions like electric vehicles, cleaning up the electricity sector, and calling for low-carbon fuels.” For the authors of the report from NextGen, those efforts are in part a distraction from lower-hanging, but more politically challenging, fruit: “As long as California keeps expanding highways to accommodate driving, all the other efforts – to increase EVs, to produce clean energy, to add bike lanes – will have been a waste of time.”
Caltrans details plans for elevated Highway 37 causeway near Novato (Marin Independent Journal). The first phase of a massive plan to elevate Highway 37 to prevent regular inundation from sea-level rise is set to begin with an estimated $1.6 billion project in Marin. Caltrans officials held a presentation recently on the agency’s plan to rebuild a 2.5-mile section of the 21-mile North Bay commuter route as an elevated causeway from the Highway 101 interchange in Novato to the Atherton Avenue exit. The project would be the first in the agency’s plan to elevate the entire highway onto a causeway before the road connecting Marin and Solano counties becomes regularly inundated by rising sea levels, which Caltrans projects will begin in 2040.

🇮🇱 So, About Israel

Posted onWednesday, November 1, 2023Wednesday, November 1, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

With all the discussion about what is happening in the Middle East, and all the discussions about Israel and Palestine, I thought I should make some things clear:

I unequivocally support Israeli’s right to exist as a nation, and as a space where Judaism can be practiced safely. The land where Israel is located is the traditional homeland, going back to biblical days. We can quibble on the exact borders, but the current borders — which exclude Gaza and portions of the West Bank, are as reasonable as any.
Many — but not all — of the Arab and Palestinian groups that are involved in these battles have as a fundamental tenet that Israel does not have the right to exist. At all. A Hamas member stated today, “Israel is a country that has no place in our land. We must remove that country because it constitutes a security, military and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation and must be finished.” You can not negotiate with organizations and nations from a position where they deny your right to exist. Simple as that. Were they to recognize Israel’s right to exist in some form, a solution can be achieved. While they refuse to do so, a solution is not possible. Note that Israel has recognized the right for some form of Palestinian nation to exist, by ceding the land of Gaza and portions of the West Bank. Note that other Arab nations have not provided land for the Palestinians, even though the land was part of the same British mandate.
Hamas is behaving much like ISIS did on 9/11: They specifically attacked civilians to create terror, and have specifically located their facilities in civilian areas because of the PR benefit they gain when their military facilities are attacked and civilians are harmed. Hamas has specifically made the decision to put their population in danger. Israel’s war is with Hamas, not the civilian population. Hamas has made it nearly impossible, however, to root out the terrorists without collateral damage.
That said: Support for Israel does not mean I always agree with the actions of the Israeli government. Judaism is not the same as Zionism; support for the nation of Israel is not the same as supporting their government. I love and support America; I despise Donald Trump (especially when he was President). I do not agree with all the actions taken by Netanyahu, although I do agree that Israel has the right to go against Hamas, just as America went against ISIS.
Israel has not always treated its Arab population well. It didn’t treat the established population of Gaza and the West Bank well when it governed those lands. That fact cannot be changed, just as America has no excuse for its abuses in the areas of slavery, or in the abuses of the internment camps, or in any other form of racism that has occurred. That can only be corrected moving forward (and is unlikely to be corrected under Netanyahu, alas); and will only be corrected once said population is not trying to wipe Israel off the map. That really is the fundamental problem.
There is no excuse for antisemitism. Period. End of story. In particular, Jews throughout the world are not the individuals who have governed the Palestinian areas. That treatment is not what Judaism believes in. Dislike or even hate the current and past Israeli governments if you feel that way, but do not take it out on Jews throughout the world. The same is true, by the way, for anti-Muslim hate. Hate Hamas and these terrorist organizations. Do not hate the Palestinians or Muslims, who outside of those organizations are peaceful and kind people.

Let us all hope for the day, when each side recognizes the other’s right to exist in the Middle East, and we can work to negotiate a settlement based on that recognition, and the fact that beneath it all, we are all monotheistic siblings with a shared basis.

🤣 You’re out of luck today. The banks are closed

Posted onMonday, October 9, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

In 1961, the humorist Stan Freberg issued Volume 1 of The United States of America, a musical telling of the founding of America through the Battle of Yorktown (Volume 2 goes through the end of World War I (“They’ll never be another war…”)). The first scene on Volume 1 relates the story of how the Native Americans discovered Columbus. Although many things have changed since 1961 when this was recorded — Columbus is no longer held in the same regard, the portrayal of the Native American would be very different — there are still points that ring true, especially the exchange:

Columbus: Alright. Hello there. Hello there. We white man. Other side of ocean. My name, Christopher Columbus.
Chief: Oh, you over here on a Fulbright?
Columbus: No, no. I’m over here on an Isabella, as a matter of fact. Which reminds me. I want to take a few of you guys back on the boat to prove I discovered you.
Chief: What you mean discover us? We discover you.
Columbus: You discovered us?
Chief: Certainly, we discover you on beach here. Is all how you look at it.

Over 15 years ago, I started posting this particular scene from The United States of America every year on Indigenous People Day (nee Columbus Day). I do it as a celebration of Stan Freberg, who died in 2015 at age 88, one of the best satirists America has seen. Although it is clearly dated, every time I hear it I find new references and insights. It is always Stan Freberg day for me. It is a day when we celebrate the story of how Native Americans discovered a Italian sailor, and the world was never the same. Just look at all he brought us: “real food: starches, spaghetti, cholesterol, … all the better things. That’s called progress.” It is a day when we celebrate how the inhabitants of Miami Beach discovered an illegal boat person on their shore, and made the gigantic mistake of offering him and the others on his boat asylum… and look at what happened. It’s a day that highlights the arrogance of Columbus and his party, just taking land and pushing aside the Native Americans. Or, just perhaps, it is a day that celebrates a city in Ohio for reason no one really knows, other than we needed to give bankers a 3-day weekend in October, because we all know they need the respite.

In any case, the banks are still closed.

I present a transcription of the scene, just as it happened. If you would like to listen to it, here’s the YouTube of the track:

🛣 Headlines About California Highways – September 2023

Posted onSunday, October 1, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

Happy new year to those who celebrate: Be it the new Jewish New Year, or the new US Government Fiscal New Year. We have a continuing resolution; we don’t have a shutdown—this is good news. And so: Happy New Year.

September has been muchly getting ready for the new season of the California Highways: Route by Route podcast. I’ve been busily writing episodes. This season, we’re covering Route 1 and Route 2, and I’ve written six episodes covering Route 1 from Orange County through and including San Francisco. Next to write is the episode on the Golden Gate Bridge. A side effect of this is that I’ve discovered a number of interesting historical articles and sources. Some will be in the entries for the episodes themselves, but I’ve also saved some to the headlines list so that I’ll go through them again to update the pages. These articles will be marked in the headlines list with the Historical (Ħ) flag. I’ll soon be coordinating with Tom to start recording episodes. If you think you might know a good interview subject for the following segments of Route 1, please let me know ASAP: 2.01 Orange County; 2.02 Los Angeles County; 2.03 Ventura and Santa Barbara County; 2.05 Monterey and Santa Cruz; 2.06 Pacifica and San Francisco.

I also expect to get back to working on highway page updates, now that I have a headline post to go through. First will be catching the legislative updates, as the session has concluded and bills sent to the governor for signature. My goal is to have the next update round cover September and October.

No roadtrips on the horizon, although there will be a So Cal Games Day in October.

Well, you should now be up to date. Here are the headlines that I found about California’s highways for September:

Key

California Highways: Route by Route Podcast

Highway Headlines

Stretch of highway in California named after slain Indian-origin police officer (The Hindu). To honour a fallen national hero, a stretch of a highway in the US state of California has been named after 33-year-old Indian-origin police officer Ronil Singh who was shot and killed by an illegal immigrant in 2018. The stretch of Highway 33 in Newman was dedicated on Saturday to Mr. Singh from the Newman Police Department, the Modesto Bee newspaper reported. Signage proclaiming the “Corporal Ronil Singh Memorial Highway” stands at Highway 33 and Stuhr Road.
State allocates more than $39 million to highway projects in Mendocino County (Fort Bragg Advocate-News). The California Transportation Commission allocated more than $3.1 billion for projects described as “improving the state’s transportation infrastructure, making it safer, more sustainable and more reliable,” the California Department of Transportation announced this week. According to a Caltrans press release, “the allocation includes nearly $1.8 billion in funding from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021and almost $200 million in funding from Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017.” […] The projects funded in Mendocino County were listed as:
＄ Napa has bridge replacements planned – drivers beware (Napa Valley Register). Here is a tale of five bridges to be replaced in coming years — one smack in the city of Napa, the others farther afield — and the traffic impacts that might result. Don’t take these bridges for granted even though they cross small creeks instead of mighty rivers. You can’t get here from there without them, not without a detour. That leaves the challenge of how to handle traffic while replacement work is underway. Caltrans and Napa County are already making plans for bridge replacements that are to start in 2024 and 2025, giving plenty of advanced warning. Here’s a preview of what’s to come:
Roundabout coming to State Route 121 and Eighth Street East intersection in Sonoma (Sonoma Index Tribune). Elected officials met at the intersection of State Route 121 and Eighth Street East on Thursday to celebrate $1.5 million in new federal funding for a roundabout to replace the current T-intersection. Leaders of the proposed roundabout project — and an accompanying bike lane — say its introduction will help increase vehicle safety, but it will require drivers to operate outside of the box — and into a circle. “During the recession years ago, (the roundabout) fell off in the shop plan,” First District Supervisor Susan Gorin said. “Sonoma County Transportation Authority) were working on the roundabout at the four corners down there. And so it just made sense for them to continue their work with Caltrans on the design.”
September 4: This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History (Metro’s Primary Resources). 1948: Lankershim Boulevard opens to traffic under a newly completed Hollywood Freeway overpass as part of the “Barham-to-Vineland” segment of US-101. Much of the construction involved overpass accommodation for both the Pacific Electric rail lines and six lanes of freeway.
Caltrans completes $8.7 million SB 1-funded project to repair State Route 14 in the Mojave Desert (The Ridgecrest Daily Independent). Caltrans today announced the completion of the Freeman III Project, an $8.7 million State Route 14 project that repaired 15 lane miles of pavement, stretching from one mile north of Red Rock Canyon Road to three-and-a-half miles south of the Freeman Gulch Bridge. The project was fully funded by Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. The contractor Griffith Company used a sustainable partial depth recycling (PDR) technique, which supports Caltrans goal of leading climate action by recycling existing pavement. During the PDR process, crews dug out current road material in localized sections and recycled it, combining the material with Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA). The HMA was then reapplied to the excavated areas. Crews then laid a two-and-a-half-inch layer of Rubberized Hot Mix Asphalt on top of the PDR to restore the high-quality ride and serviceability of the existing roadway.
OHLA Converting Expressway Into Freeway in California (Construction Equipment Guide). OHLA USA Inc. began work on Phase 1 of the California Department of Transportation’s (Caltrans) SR-71 Expressway to Freeway Conversion Project in spring 2021 and crews are hard at work to deliver it by summer 2025. The $174.544 million project, taking place in the city of Pomona, covers 2.7 mi. between SR 71/I-10 interchange (Mission Boulevard) and the Los Angeles/San Bernardino County Line. Phase 2 of the project, the North Segment, covers the area from the SR 71/I-10 interchange to Mission Boulevard. Construction is expected to begin next spring, with a completion in spring 2027. Thus far, OHLA USA has completed Stage 1 of the roadway jointed plain concrete pavement (JPCP) roadway project, which included demolition of existing AC/JPCP, excavation and backfill of base, placement/revisions to existing drainage systems and placement of new JPCP.

🍏🍯🍎🍯 L’Shanah Tovah – Happy New Year – 5784

Posted onWednesday, September 13, 2023Wednesday, September 13, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

Apple in Honey userpic=tallit Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, starts at sundown Friday night, September 15^th. Thus, it’s time for my annual New Years message for my family, my real-life, Blog, Facebook, Universeodon, Dreamwidth, Tumblr, Twitter/X, and AARoads friends (including all the new ones I have made this year), and all other readers of my journal:
(* Yes, it is an old picture. I still find it funny.)

L’Shana Tovah. Happy New Year 5784. May you be written and inscribed for a very happy, sweet, and healthy new year.

For those curious about Jewish customs at this time: There are a number of things you will see. The first is an abundance of sweet foods. Apples dipped in honey. Honey cakes. The sweet foods remind us of the sweet year to come. Apples in honey, specifically, express our hopes for a sweet and fruitful year. Apples were selected because in ancient times they became a symbol of the Jewish people in relationship to God. In Song of Songs, we read, “As the apple is rare and unique among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved [Israel] amongst the maidens [nations] of the world.” In medieval times, writes Patti Shosteck in A Lexicon of Jewish Cooking, apples were considered so special that individuals would use a sharp utensil or their nails to hand-carve their personal hopes and prayers into the apple skins before they were eaten. And the Zohar, a 13th-century Jewish mystical text, states that beauty – represented by God – “diffuses itself in the world as an apple.” With respect to the honey: honey – whether from dates, figs, or apiaries – was the most prevalent sweetener in the Jewish world and was the most available “sweet” for dipping purposes. And as for the biblical description of Israel as a land flowing with “milk and honey,” the Torah is alluding to a paste made from overripe dates, not honey from beehives. Still, enjoying honey at Rosh HaShanah reminds us of our historic connection with the Holy Land. Although the tradition is not in the Torah or Talmud, even as early as the 7th century, it was customary to wish someone, “Shana Tova Umetukah” (A Good and Sweet Year).
(Source: Reform Judaism Website)

Rosh Hashanah Images Another traditional food is a round challah. Some say they it represents a crown that reflects our coronating God as the Ruler of the world. Others suggest that the circular shape points to the cyclical nature of the year. The Hebrew word for year is “shana,” which comes from the Hebrew word “repeat.” Perhaps the circle illustrates how the years just go round and round. But Rosh Hashana challahs are not really circles; they are spirals… The word “shana” has a double meaning as well. In addition to “repeat,” it also means “change”. As the year goes go round and round, repeating the same seasons and holidays as the year before, we are presented with a choice: Do we want this shana (year) to be a repetition, or do we want to make a change (shinui)? Hopefully, each year we make choices for change that are positive, and each year we will climb higher and higher, creating a spiritual spiral. The shape of the Rosh Hashana challah reminds us that this is the time of year to make those decisions. This is the time to engage in the creative spiritual process that lifts us out of the repetitive cycle, and directs our energies toward a higher end.
(Source: Aish Ha’Torah)

There are also apologies, for during the ten days starting Saturday evening, Jews examine their lives and see how they can do better. On Yom Kippur (starting the evening of September 24^th), Jews apologize to G-d for their misdeeds during the past year. However, for an action against another person, one must apologize to that person.

So, in that spirit:

If I have offended any of you, in any way, shape, manner, or form, real or imagined, then I apologize and beg forgiveness. If I have done anything to hurt, demean, or otherwise injure you, I apologize and beg forgiveness. If I have done or said over the past year that has upset, or otherwise bothered you, I sincerely apologize, and will do my best to ensure it won’t happen again.

If you have done something in the above categories, don’t worry. I know it wasn’t intentional, and I would accept any apology you would make.

May all my blog readers and all my friends have a very happy, healthy, and meaningful new year. May you find in this year what you need to find in life.

🛣 Changes to the California Highway Website covering June – August 2023

Posted onSunday, September 10, 2023Sunday, September 10, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

Whew! The updates for June through August are done. Now to go back to writing scripts for the podcast. As always, “ready, set, discuss”.

This update covers June, July, and August 2023. Before we dive into the updates to the California Highways site, an update on the California Highways: Route by Route podcast. Episodes are regularly posted around the middle of the month. You can keep up with the show at the podcast’s forever home at https://www.caroutebyroute.org , the show’s page on Spotify for Podcasters, or you can subscribe through your favorite podcaster or via the RSS feeds (CARxR, Spotify for Podcasters) . The following episodes have been posted since the last update:

July | CARxR 1.12: The Organizations of the State Highway System (where we explore the organizations behind the state highway system: Caltrans, the CTC, regional transportation agencies, and AASHTO)

Turning to the updates to the California Highways pages: Updates were made to the following highways, based on my reading of the (virtual) papers in June, July, and August 2023 (which are posted to the roadgeeking category at the “Observations Along The Road” and to the California Highways Facebook group) as well as any backed up email changes. I also reviewed the the AAroads forum (Ꜳ). This resulted in changes on the following routes, with credit as indicated [my research^(ℱ), contributions of information or leads (via direct mail or ꜲRoads) from Concrete Bob⁽²⁾, Tom Fearer (Max Rockatansky)⁽³⁾, Cameron Kaiser (ClassicHasClass)⁽⁴⁾, Occidental Tourist⁽⁵⁾, Plutonic Panda⁽⁶⁾, Skluth⁽⁷⁾, Chris Sampang (TheStranger)⁽⁸⁾, Joel Windmiller⁽⁹⁾: Route 1^(ℱ), Route 4^(ℱ), I-5^(ℱ,9), Route 7⁽³⁾, Route 11^(ℱ), Route 12^(ℱ), Route 14^(ℱ,3), Route 15^(ℱ,3), Route 16⁽⁹⁾, Sign Route 18⁽³⁾, Route 20^(ℱ), Route 22⁽⁵⁾, Route 25^(ℱ), Route 29^(ℱ), Route 37^(ℱ), I-40⁽⁶⁾, US 40⁽⁹⁾, Route 46^(ℱ), Route 47⁽⁶⁾, Route 49⁽³⁾, US 50⁽⁹⁾, Route 56^(3,5), Route 57^(ℱ,3), Route 58^(ℱ,7), Route 60^(ℱ), Route 68^(ℱ,2), Route 70^(ℱ), Route 72⁽³⁾, I-80^(ℱ), Route 82^(ℱ), Route 84^(ℱ), Route 90^(ℱ), US 91⁽³⁾, Route 92^(ℱ), US 95^(ℱ,4,3), Route 99^(ℱ), US 101^(ℱ,3), Route 115⁽³⁾, Route 116^(ℱ), Route 120⁽³⁾, Route 145⁽³⁾, Route 155^(ℱ), Route 156^(ℱ), Route 163^(ℱ), LRN 166^(ℱ), LRN 173^(ℱ), Route 186⁽³⁾, Route 188⁽³⁾, I-210⁽³⁾, Route 214⁽³⁾, Route 221^(ℱ), LRN 230^(ℱ), Route 245^(ℱ,3), Route 249⁽³⁾, Route 252^(ℱ), Route 262^(ℱ), I-380 / I-280 / Southern Crossing⁽⁸⁾, I-405^(ℱ), US 466⁽³⁾, I-580^(ℱ), I-605^(ℱ), I-680^(ℱ), I-710^(ℱ,3), County Sign Route E15⁽³⁾, County Sign Route J40⁽³⁾, County Sign Route N3⁽³⁾.
(Source: private email through 9/10/2023, Highway headline posts through the August Headline post, AARoads through 9/10/2023)

Added a new link to the list of state highway websites, as AARoads has added a page for Alaska. As a reminder, if you have a highway page for a state, and its not on the list of regional highways, please let me know.

Added a reference to the Gribblenation Blog on the 1959 Era White shields to the California Numbering page.

Reviewed the Pending Legislation page, based on the California Legislature site, for bills through 2023-09-10. As usual, I recommend to every Californian that they visit the legislative website regularly and see what their legis-critters are doing. As many people are unfamiliar with how the legislature operates (and why there are so many “non-substantive changes” and “gut and amend” bills), I’ve added the legislative calendar to the end of the Pending Legislation page. Noted the passage (or veto) of the following bills and resolutions:

🛣 Headlines About California Highways – August 2023

Posted onFriday, September 1, 2023Friday, September 1, 2023AuthorcahwyguyLeave a comment

Two-thirds of the year is now past. This has been an … interesting August. We’ve had intense heat, and surprisingly, a tropical storm that has inundated our low-lying deserts and flooded roads. In the northern part of the state, we’ve had some intense brush fires. The impact of these should be showing up in future emergency road repair requests. Hopefully, everyone has been safe through all of this.

Work is continuing on the highway pages. I’ve gone through the June and July headlines; after this post is up, I’ll do the August headlines. I’ve also started working through the June and August CTC minutes. Also still to go is the review of the actions of the legislature, and the review of the posts since the last update on AARoads. Hopefully, I’ll have something to post by mid-September. I’m also working on writing the first few episodes of the next season of the podcast, so we can start recording them.

Roadtrips in July include a trip up and back to Davis, and a trip out to Las Vegas and back. Don’t care about the gambling. However, if you want to know some great restaurants in the area (off-strip), just ask.

Well, enough chit-chat. Here are the headlines that I found about California’s highways for August:

Key

California Highways: Route by Route Podcast

Highway Headlines

＄Why the lights on freeway onramp can’t end traffic jams (Los Angeles Times). It’s hard to enter a highway in Los Angeles County without encountering a stoplight at the end of the entrance ramp — a pause that’s supposed to ease the crush of rush-hour traffic. But like many Angelenos, West Valley driver Liza Olson wonders what, exactly, those lights are accomplishing. “Have you ever sat at a freeway metering light that’s red while hardly any cars zip by? Have you ever driven through a freeway metering light that’s green only to join gridlock? What gives?” Olson asked in a recent email.
Work on Avenue J interchange begins (Antelope Valley Press). Crews will start work Monday to expand the Avenue J interchange at the Antelope Valley Freeway/State Route 14. The $28.8 million project includes widening the existing northbound on- and off-ramps. There will also be four new retaining walls and new on- and off-ramps on the south side of Avenue J. The project will be funded with Measure R funds by the city of Lancaster, Caltrans and the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Lancaster received $65 million in Measure R funds about 11 years ago to make major upgrades to the highway interchanges at avenues G, J, K and L and Columbia Way (Avenue M) over the next four years to improve traffic flow and safety.
The cost of convenience (BenitoLink). San Benito County is changing. And while it might feel like it’s sudden to some residents as they watch construction machinery and safety rails along Hwy 156 between Hollister and San Juan Bautista taking over agricultural land, it’s been over 20 years in the making. Two other transportation projects moving forward are the Hwy 25 widening, between San Felipe Road and the county line, which will eventually go to the Hwy 101/25 intersection and the new trade corridor, which is connecting Hwy 152 to Hwy 25 somewhere in the area of Shore Rd.
Work at Paul’s Slide on Highway 1 paused as crews assess recent slide activity (KSBY). Debris removal work at Paul’s Slide on Highway 1 has been paused as crews assess recent movement of the hillside, Caltrans announced Wednesday. Geological engineering (“Geotech”) crews studying measurements of recent slide activity will determine the specific next steps for repair efforts, which have prioritized — and will continue to prioritize — the safety of crew members who have been working “almost nonstop” since March to remove slide material and stabilize the hillside, according to Caltrans.
Recent slide activity along Hwy 1 in Big Sur could further delay reopening (KSBY). Recent slide activity along the Big Sur Coastal Highway could further delay reopening. Adam Oates, who is visiting the Central Coast from Bakersfield, originally planned to drive north with his family all the way to Monterey. But he says the road closure along the Big Sur Highway drastically reduced the distance of their trip. “Uh it cut it in half. It literally cut the distance in half,” said Oates. Though disappointed the trip would be cut short — his family still decided to visit the areas that are open. “It is what it is,” said Oates.
Caltrans adding ‘safety and beautification’ improvements along Highway 99 (Fox 40 Sacramento). If you’re driving along Highway 99 in South Sacramento, you may look out your windshield and notice some aesthetically pleasing visuals on your journey. Those visuals are courtesy of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), which has begun implementing “safety and beautification” improvements to Highway 99. “Working with community groups, several ‘river-themed’ additions have been added to this 9-mile stretch of the highway,” the department said in a social media post. The accompanying image shows the bright blue river covering the wall of the underpass on Broadway and Florin Road. Another image shows a light brown wall with a black design that mimics the appearance of trees on the horizon.