Not sure what this photo is? Our bird bath. The thermometer is to make sure the water does not go above 80 degrees. It doesn’t but the thermometer kind of stays there now. The pot lays atop one of the 8 brick pillars along Forest Wally. Since we cleaned out the undergrowth, it is a much more comfortable area. The breeze can get through and we now have a family of mockingbirds. The downside is these birds are very territorial and chase away all small songbirds. We are considering moving the seed bell into an area too branchy for the larger birds to roost. Mockingbirds don’t eat seeds, they are carnivores.
But isn't that sweet? My temperature-sensitive bird bath for my little tweety friends?
The guitarist was in today for computer coaching. Poor guy does not realize how far he was to go. He doesn’t know how to install software of organize files on a computer. That isn’t a barrier provided all one does is surf and read email. The trouble begins when you also purchase a digital camera and plan to put your rock video on youTube. True, we all know people who did it in five minutes. But they were computer literate.We got the camcorder software installed and tested. He’s running Vista, which has hidden all the familiar commands and controls, so I could not locate files in the time allowed. Vista displays file paths for folders that do not exist, of all things. When I advised him that he has a few hundred hours of hands-on computer work before he can do what he has in mind, I think he didn’t believe me.
We naturally got to talking music and sure enough, he’s got the guitarist mind-set. That he is better and worth more than they are paying him. When it comes to music, there is no finer barometer of your talent than what you are being paid. Music remains an outpost for supply and demand. I know I am worth $60 per show. He said he is making $135 and is worth much more. He only plays in groups, meaning a trio would have to make at least $400 per show. That’s a tough call in this town. I queried, if he is that caliber, why he does not do a single act? No answer. That brand of hubris is common in Florida guitarists.
Big Al called. He is one of the lucky guys who still has the cash and interest to check out new things, and he’s got himself a Blackberry. We got it working, or I should say I did, since he called me for that. Right off, you can tell it is one of those gadgets that most people learn only the basics and live with that. It has GPS, voice messaging and ten other features. Which are great if you use them. I researched the object and it was invented in Canada as a personal assistance device. Yep, that makes sense in a way. Bleeding heart Liberalism sells in Canada, big time. But not much else.
The major barrier was the non-responsiveness of the “buttons”. Al’s model, the “Storm” is a screen, the keys and menus are icons. Somehow, they are just too small to be pushed with your pointer finger. Time after time, I’d scroll to a selection, but upon pressing it, the contraption would select something else and open that. The menus are not very intuitive either. I compromised by using my little finger which requires too much concentration.
We reached a decision that rather than spar with it, we’ll meet up at Oakland [Park Shopping Plaza] on Monday and go to a seminar. I note that people tend to confuse Blackberry with Bluetooth. Blackberry is a device. Bluetooth, which I know nothing about, is a short range wireless sharing network. Or something. I see the Blackberry has a carefully worded paragraph about using it to connect your laptop to the Internet. More to follow.
I like to drive a vehicle that is unique as much as the next guy. But not this unique. This is the local Weirdmobile. I don't know the story behind it so make up your own mind. Do you suppose the owner is a Dragons & Dungeons fan? Could be. He looks like he's in his sixties.
The guitarist was in today for computer coaching. Poor guy does not realize how far he was to go. He doesn’t know how to install software of organize files on a computer. That isn’t a barrier provided all one does is surf and read email. The trouble begins when you also purchase a digital camera and plan to put your rock video on youTube. Yes, we all know people who did it in five minutes. But they were computer literate.We got the camcorder software installed and tested. He’s running Vista, which has hidden all the familiar commands and controls, so I could not locate files in the time allowed. Vista displays file paths for folders that do not exist, of all things. When I advised him that he has a few hundred hours of hands-on computer work before he can do what he has in mind, I think he didn’t believe me.
We naturally got to talking music and sure enough, he’s got the guitarist mind-set. That he is better and worth more than they are paying him. When it comes to music, there is no finer barometer of your talent than what you are being paid. Music remains an outpost for supply and demand. I know I am worth $60 per show. He said he is making $135 and is worth much more. He only plays in groups, meaning a trio would have to make at least $400 per show. That’s a tough call in this town. I queried, if he is that caliber, why he does not do a single act. No answer.
Speaking of no answer, Wallace is on a kick that he’s “lost a third of his money” on this place. The logic is that the Canadian dollar has fallen from around $1.06 to $0.76 in the prior six months. In that case, all of Canada has “lost” a third of their value, but I think he is saying this exchange rate fluctuation is somehow my fault. When he bragged about the Loonie [Canadian dollar] being high last April, I reminded him that was the first time in 40 years and that the traditional level is around $0.75. But nobody listens to me. I did not ask him if “losing” a third of the value of his car was my fault as well.
There is another factor. Before he left for here, I twice advised him to put away enough cash in reserve to absolutely guarantee he could get back home in an emergency “without relying on anyone else”. He told me that that was “all taken care of”. Turns out it was not. Between the exchange rate and people who were supposed to help him, guess what? I think every last person who promised him they would assist him has bailed out. Just like I indirectly warned him they would. So much for relations, now I have to protect myself against their broken promises. I wonder if that is also my fault?
Seeing where this is heading, I offered to buy out his share of this place, over time, for the same value of Canadian dollars as he paid for it. This is more than fair because we never purchased this place for the purpose of flipping it at a profit. He would be getting back the full amount of money he paid out(it is also the full amount of money that I can possibly afford, period). But I got a funny feeling somebody is going to get greedy over all this. He is already insisting he is losing money but won't say how. Again, I think I see where this is heading. Our agreement was that we would only sell the place to each other at cost. He will meet with woe if he and his associates are conspiring to break that promise.
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