Thomil's Random Ramblings

We humans sure are a peculiar bunch. As we go about our daily lives, rushing from work to play to home, struggling with bills or chafing in jobs that, for the vast majority of people, simply aren’t that fulfilling, we often forget just how breathtaking, how staggering, the world around us is. Indeed, even in this time of unprecedented access to knowledge, many of us never seem to lift their eyes too far from the infinitesimally small part of our own planet we call home to marvel at the wonder all around us, from the lushness of this world to the magnificent desolation ensconcing that little aquamarine jewel we call home. I myself have fallen victim to this mindset more than once.  In light of this, it is always nice when Mother Nature sends us a reminder of just how incredible our cosmos is. One such reminder passed by Earth back in Summer 2020. As humanity lay in the grips of the first summer of the COVID-19 pandemic, it floated serenely through the evening skies of the northern h...

Smart Home – it’s one of those buzzwords that have been flying in every which direction for the last few years. The term, vague like most IT buzzwords in recent times, is pretty vague, and depending on who you ask, it holds either the promise of a fully automated home that takes most of the mundane tedious stuff off your shoulders, leaving you to spend more time with your loved ones…or posting selfies, whatever floats your boat. For others, it spells certain death once the machines invariably rise up, with connected locks, blinds, & windows all sealing you in and slowly killing you. And invariably, it has drawn the ire of certain circles of conservative-minded people who see it as just another step in the “feminisation” and emasculation of white males, who are now to weak and wimpy to even throw a light switch, a view that also seems widely shared in Germany. So of course, I had to get in on the action ;) First, let’s talk about what this term “smart home” actually means. In ...