November 23, 2013

           Is this a Florida day or what? At the bakery, I had to run off a bum. Earlier in the day, they gave him a coffee and some chocolate, and another customer bought him a sandwich. But he came back four more times, attempting to engage the staff in useless conversation. I escorted him to the door. I know this seems cruel to some people, but none of those people were there, if you follow my drift. You don’t have to be rough on the him all the time, but somebody has to be stern the first time so he gets the message. If you don’t have what it takes, then don’t criticize those who do.

           I’d like to say it is good to be back home, but the pod/camper travel was so fine I wish I could have continued. I believe I already told you how keeping on the move is cheaper than maintaining a local address, a subject the entire system never spells out for you. They want you to spend a quarter-million on a nothing Florida condo. Back home, where they say it is good to be? Ha, I could have easily continued who knows how long and been happy with it.
           This structure I saw in Gander Mtn, in Colorado earlier this month. It is an ice-fishing tent. What caught my eye is, and you’ll have to look close, there is a raised section at the back. Can you see it? That sets up off the ground, in this case the ice. And it has a mattress. This is meant to be propped over an ice-fishing hole, but I have other ideas. See the tent poles in the frame. This contraption folds back over the mattress into a nice flat box. It is too wide to fit on the sidecar, but the sidecar, with the box removed, is just a flat frame. Let’s look into these tents a little further, shall we?
           Here, this afternoon, I sipped tea. No wild or tame times out there. Later it was bingo time. Good tips, familiar crowd, nobody grousing. They even listened to the lame jokes I imported from just last week. Whereas I am not tired (which surprises the hell out of me) It might be wise, now that I am back and know the turf, to put up with what I have to say about comfort in this vicinity.

           See, right here? Eight people dead. And that is precisely the area a I hightailed it out of just a week ago. I lived on the prairies long enough to know when a bad winter is coming on early. In fact, it was 35 miles east of Albuquerque that I opted to head south when I detected the sun was not warming the mid-day air. When the cold comes this early, it stays on until spring with no spells. Early winters are especially hard on the homeless, the stupid, and the plain unlucky.
           I’m here with the cooling fans on and planning a movie tonight since band practice was cancelled. The oil leak has ruined some of my best slacks, though I’ve heard there are ways to wash the stains out. I hope so. I can’t afford a new wardrobe.
           Speaking of expenses, this little trip cost me $3,000. See addendum for details. But it had to be done. It was one of those situations where only being there in person would have worked. And I’ve got one guy over there who has been suspicious for thirty years. Once again, I can only explain that an error got entered into the original system concerning something very important to me. And I have done everything I can for thirty years to make sure nobody discovers that error. The error is such that anyone looking cannot tell which version is correct without contacting me. You have no idea how valuable that foreknowledge has become in my life.

ADDENDUM
           Total Gas             1,023.63
           Total Food              422.53
           Total Supplies        182.34
           Total Repairs          349.51
                  Total Business 167.00
           Non-Avoidable Expenses 2,145.01
           Total Entertainment                459.78
            Total Other                                   18.05
           Avoidable Expenses                472.33
           Avoidable Expenses Total                     950.16
                          Total Trip Expense                  3,095.17

           The final numbers aren’t pulled together yet, but the trip cost was $3,226.33. Here is the breakdown (if this table will post). Around half the money, $1,446.16 was gas and food. The trip used just over 275 gallons, I had to stop for gas 79 times. Remember, I have to stop aned tank up before desolate stretches even if the tank isn’t empty yet.
           Repairs and avoidable expense came to $1,299.67, or probably the amount I saved on motels. But the experience was incomparable. Some might say I could have done the airplane/motel/car rental for less, but that is overlooking the fun part. I’d have nothing to show for taking the plane. The largest repair was replacing the rear tire for $230.00. I easily spent $650.00 on entertainment and books, which I consider a necessary part of my travels. If I was hard-nosed and just drove, the trip would have set me back around $1,700.00 and I would regret it forever.
           Memphis cost me $400, of which $151 was train fare and $149 was the motel. See the difference the camper would have made? The whole idea was not to save the money, but to spend it on enjoyment instead of accommodation. By that criteria, the camper was an astounding success. Most people would consider just the trip to the Grand Canyon as an annual vacation. For the record, I have never, in all the years I stayed in hotels and motels around this planet, ever met a decent single woman in any one of them. With the possible exception of that gal who used to crawl under the balcony divider into my room in Acapulco when her parents would lock her in the room. They took her on vacation to keep her out of trouble, see.
           So basically, I spent half the down payment on my new house going about the countryside. But these trips also give me time to think. I’ve concluded that I have nothing to lose by risking the next couple of years speculating. It is like gambling, I suppose, but professional gamblers minimize risk and calculate odds whether they admit it or not. I’m going to repeat a conversation RofR and I had when we were around 19 years old. It concerns the ways to lose and there are three of them. They are progressive, as you learn to fail better and better.
           You can lose both the expected profit and your investment capital
           You lose, but you break even and only lose the expected profit.
           You lose by not making as much as you should have.

I’d say I’m about ready in life for the third round. Some say the system holds you back, others say there is nothing stopping you. I’m more toward the first crowd. There are definitely mechanisms in place that will prevent you from getting ahead unless you pay your dues. I grew up in a small town and I’ll repeat some observations on that. I knew the system was crooked when the town council voted to disallow log cabins to be built in the town limits. Every damn one of those men were born in a log cabin.
           And I was once denied a business license because the licensing department could not find any law that allowed me to proceed. It wasn’t good enough for them there was no law against me. That was the Laundromat where I wanted to serve alcohol. I know of several cases where a license was disallowed because there was no certain way to monitor cash flow (they couldn’t figure out how to tax to the max).

           I know only two self-made millionaires in my life. One is a dentist, the other is a slumlord. The dentist didn’t break even until he was 48 years old. The slumlord lives in LA and trades in his girlfriends when they reach age 23. I know which guy I’d trade places with.
           We have here a posed photo of the batbike and pod at the Aurora Library. See, on the outbound leg, I can tell you where all the libraries are. On the return leg, I can tell you where the great restaurants and saloons are located. But I still don’t know where the strip clubs, jar stores, and most casinos are. The bike at this library is a tradition for me when passing through Colorado. Sincerely, I hope to spend time there in the upcoming summers.
           Which brings me to the news about Marion. I didn’t say good news, you decide. The reason for her silence is because her mother, like mine, is a Canadian. Canadians always know what is best for you and her mother covered her with her “free” medical and promptly slapped her in an institution. I’m not saying this is bad, but that Marion and I had discussed this as not what we’d want for her. And the nursing home has only the desk phone where I presume the calls can be overheard.
           Such phones are still subject to toll charges so she could not call me. I had a tough time getting past the day desk, so after figuring out the shift changes at 6:30 PM, I intentionally phoned after claiming to be a relative. It was easy enough to convince the evening clerk that the day clerk had collected all my info. If I recall the nursing home, I used to drive past it to work when I had my job at the phone company. The “inmates” are allowed $90 per month spending money.