This is actually early evening near the winter solstice. I tried to stay in for a relaxing evening and didn’t get one. Like all vicinities in Florida, there is usually a bad section of town somewhere near. There are projects across the rails and the newspeople love to park their noisy helicopters over the residential areas on this side. I have no idea what was going on, but they were at it until past midnight. I mean, what happens over there that can’t be resolved in fifteen minutes, know what I’m saying? Kick in the door and haul them off. Sort it out down at the station.These black gangs walk into local businesses and demand free sodas. Six or more at a time, usually when there is only one clerk on duty. They try to distract the clerk while checking for surveillance cameras and door locks. Sassy and juvenile, they often video record the premises. As usual, the cops are nowhere in sight, not while there are hookers that need questioning up near the airport.
The only regular pro-active police enforcement left in most of America is the traffic check stop. One guy was recently arrested over a warrant from 12 years ago, the cop that did that should be ashamed of himself. Let it go, Friday. But when there is real trouble brewing, you have to wait until you are a victim before they’ll do anything. Here comes that damn helicopter again.
And while I’m griping, the businesses near Aventura are on another get tough with parking campaign. Like downtown Hollywood, they take bribes to set up valet parking on public areas and hire goons to patrol them even when the business is closed. There used to be a parking spot near the Chase ATM over there. Now it’s pay five bucks or else walk almost a block. That is so typical of the Generation D mentality.
So, I used the time to learn. Not every experiment is successful. Here is one where I spent more time trying to discover the failure than the rest of the project. See the coil? A magnet passing by perpendicular to the windings induces a current, and Agt. M and I have handily measured the voltage of such currents before. In this case, there is a small gantry that allows a bar magnet to swing back and forth through the hollow core of the coil on a double-hinged pendulum (wiring not shown). Two meters are because the current reverses direction each period.
Calculations show that enough juice should be generated to light a 20mW LED. The result was nothing except further testing of the individual parts indicates my apparatus is at fault. But where? It was hoped that our growing sophistication with proper construction would minimize this type of elusive error. It goes to show you.
Way back I built a radio kit that tunes in local AM. You have a choice of Latin, Black, or Country. It used to pick up talk shows but no more. You know, where they let mouth-breathers call up the radio station and waste everybody’s time. They’re gone and all we hear are automobile commercials. The fact that dealerships still use radio ads says a lot most of us probably don’t care to know.
Here is an unusual photo. It is from a pamphlet (I think) distributed to Soviet anti-tank gunners prior to the battle at Kursk in 1943. It shows the aiming points that will stop a German Tiger tank. Not all Soviet artillery could destroy a modern German design, so the plan was to immobilize the tank. Then, squads of up to ten guns under a single battlefield commander would broadside the tank until it was knocked out. No German armor could stand up to that.Karaoke has gone on-line, at least that is the advertising I’m getting from RedKaraoke. Get a load of their “manifesto” because it really is a load. I know a big reason my show is always a hit is because, as the manifesto reads, they choose their own songs. And the bad singers always choose the groaners. Makes me look good. Ha!
ADDENDUM
Many, including married types, like to fantasize how dating works for real single people. Let’s give it a whirl with my account. You all remember Estelle. Here’s how our date went today. Stick around, and I will show you a photo on the beach, the picture of the invisible couple. Estelle and I met up and went to the place that sells silver. It was a hoot, more so because she is in the jewelry business. I infer she had never really seen the wheeling and dealing that goes on at floor level. Now she has.
We stopped at the mall with this gorgeous display at which point (to my surprise) Estelle said she would like to go drink some beer. Knowing her to be as substantial about appearances and not willing to wait for her to go home and change, I told her I knew exactly the place she wanted to drink: Jimbos.You talk about a good time. We were there a few hours with the sidecar parked outside. This, my friends, is how you date at my age. She picked up instantly how spotlessly clean the place was (remind me to tell Jackie) and with total class outdrank me three to two. She’s also got the oomph to help push start the Honda when it gets ornery to start.
Then to the beach. This took us via directly through the busy part of rush hour. Picture us a couple in the sidecar. We drove through the hoots and horns and howls of about half of south Florida. She was, what’s the word? Flabbergasted? Astonished? I’m accustomed to sort of waving back. She was in disbelief, probably the first time she had ever experienced this degree of celebrity.
We went to the seashore, not my favorite place. I treated to some ice cream. Give me a bench to sit down. In a moment, she doffed the majority of her clothing and was in the salt water, you could say she was veryatlantic. Here was a gal that, while preferring company, was fully capable of enjoying herself. This is the lady that I took to the library on our first date. I promised you the photo of the invisible couple.
Happy?
