• cycle: 34 miles
• run: 64 miles

Snow!

For more bike and hike photos, see my Instagram.

Previous month

Let’s set aside our views on specific issues, political opinion, and party affiliation. We all share a common interest in preserving our freedom. Understand that some news publishers may choose to focus on stories their readers want to hear in pursuit of profit. Journalists are fallible. So, look at the evidence and check the sources. We should also consider the analysis and opinion of experts. Some of us want changes in the government, but we must also respect the Constitution making such changes possible and agreeable to the people. Let’s focus on the evidence and expert analysis concerning recent events in the US, in particular the EO on immigration/travel ban and the president’s conflict of interest.

As you recall from your elementary education (or Schoolhouse Rock!), the US government balances the power with three branches: Executive, Judicial, and Congress. Respect for the US Constitution means each branch should respect the others.

• US Constitution (constitutionus.com)

Conflict of interest

The US Constitution includes “emoluments” clause to ensure federal officials serve only the interests of the people. Congress may authorize a transaction. By owning business in other countries, the president is in violation. In a press conference, Donald Trump stated management of Trump Organization would be turned over to his son, appoint an ethics officer to review new domestic deals, and any proceeds from foreign dignitaries would be donated to the people. However, none of this satisfies the clause. Trump may profit from foreign interests without congressional oversight.

The Executive Order for the seven-nation immigration ban doesn’t include countries where Trump Organization has business interests. See Who Hasn’t Trump Banned? People From Places Where He’s Done Business - NYTimes

• CREW Sues Trump Over Emoluments
• Foreign Payments to Trump Firms Violate Constitution, Suit Will Claim - NYTimes
• Executive Order: ETHICS COMMITMENTS BY EXECUTIVE BRANCH APPOINTEES - White House, 28 Jan 2017
• Donald Trump’s News Conference: Full Transcript and Video - NYTimes
• Trump Is Violating the Constitution - Cole, NYBooks.com

Update:

“I don’t see how this in the slightest bit avoids a conflict of interest,” said Frederick J. Tansill, a trust and estates lawyer from Virginia who examined the documents at the request of The New York Times. “First it is revocable at any time, and it is his son and his chief financial officer who are running it.”

• Trust Records Show Trump Is Still Closely Tied to His Empire - NYTimes

• cycle: 62 miles
• run: 50 miles

This month I ran twice as much as November with fewer bike rides. Endured a bit of struggle with health, and I’m also slowly becoming acclimated to the cold. I ended the month strong, though. This photo is from the Murdock Canal Trail near Highland.

Previous month

This post contains spoilers for those never having played the main quest in TES V: Skyrim. Includes a brief lesson for beginners on using Creation Kit (CK).

Too many dragons

There are too many dragons in Skyrim! Sure, it’s the The Elder Scrolls way of continuing to play and be whatever you want your character to be even beyond the main quest ending. However, the dragon numbers in TES V: Skyrim never made much sense to me. Given that Alduin resurrects dragons from a limited number of burial mounds (and let’s assume other sources) then there should be an end to the dragons. Not hundreds of dragons. There are so many dragons, though, the Dragonborn may battle two or three at once and end up unlocking every shout in short order. The dragons aren’t all that challenging, either, certainly less scary than bears. Fighting dragons start out as exciting, but may become tedious, almost as annoying as Morrowind’s cliff racers.

The story makes more sense to me if the dragons are limited to the named dragons risen from burial mounds, the word-wall dragons, the Labyrinthian dragon, the Soul Cairn dragon, and the dragons in Solstheim. Limited dragons makes the game more exciting, especially if dragons are scaled appropriately for challenge. Dragons would seem more majestic, and less like common birds. Fewer dragons also means managing shout selection early in the game, and there will still be enough souls to unlock all shouts if desired.

For TES V: Skyrim Special Edition, I created a mod, “Necromancer’s Camp” add-on for Chesko’s “Campfire - Complete Camping System”. This mod adds necromancer-themed tents, conjured shelters, weapon, and undead minions to the game. It is, of course, compatible with “Frostfall”. Read the details on my Necromancer’s Camp page, or download on Nexusmods.

I started work on this mod in original Skyrim earlier this year using Chesko’s Campfire Dev Kit and tutorials. I recommend any player interested in adding more gear to their game, check out the tutorials. Only basic Creation Kit experience is needed as the developer’s kit takes care of the tricky parts. Creating new gear can be accomplished using Nifscope to create mesh-mashups and change textures along with photo editing software, like Gimp, to edit textures. All of my new items were created from existing game assets, some with new textures. More complicated items would benefit from 3D modeling software.

Doing more with Campfire was a minor goal. I ended up granting conjure casting bonus to the new undead minions if the caster has the Campfire Inspired or Uplifted bonus.