Posts
Eagle, Houston. Comm Check.
Origins
Today is July 20th, 2025. 56 years ago today, humanity took its first baby steps on an incredible journey to another world. Reaching the moon was no small task. Set out following President John F. Kennedy’s challenge to the nation, NASA accomplished what no other nation to date has done. In my spare time, I participate in an Amateur Radio program called NASA On The Air. This organization participates in radio activations to commemorate milestones in American and Human spaceflight. Including all of the Apollo Missions.
Background
Some time ago I bought a cheap vertical tower fan for my project room from a big box store. No thrils, no built-in IOT connectivity, just a cheap and simple fan that redirects air from a hallway into a room bustling with electronics!
Most of the time, when I purchase some appliance, there’s some long term strategy and thought it put into place regarding if it’ll be integrated into my smart home - usually a google search seeing there is some form of HomeAssistant integration. In this case however no such planning was made. As part of my quest to develop both a secure and automated smart home, I wanted to integrate this into my HomeAssistant ecosystem without having to purchase a new product.
Talking Heads said it best:
And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife
And you may ask yourself, Well, how did I get here?
