October 25, 2014

MORNING
           That’s JZ admiring the batbike while telling me he can’t afford to take a holiday as planned. You can tell by the WNW shadows this was early morning. So this jaunt to Snapper Creek was my trip for this month. We made it over to the expensive Deli at Dadeland to go over our alternatives. This, and people-watching, since that is such a different area of town. We also discussed business, in particular, a house for sale for $14,000. There is plenty wrong with it, all things that we know how to fix.

           Next we toured the shopping plaza, noting how many businesses have come and gone in the past few years. That’s how we found ourselves in a toy store with me chatting to a lovely blond lady while JZ was acting like, well, like a kid in a toy store. Anyway, what a sweetheart of a lady, one of those things that makes you sad our society is so hung up on age differences. I’d have asked her out in an instant if she’d given me a hint. Sigh.

           From there, I made a bee-line to Sun Life stadium. Let me say, I am not much of a stadium-goer and that is one of the newest and nicest I’ve been in side. And I have not been inside a stadium since the Kingdome in Seattle in 1981. To see the Rolling Stones. From the nosebleed section.
           I still cannot figure out what the event was all about but there were definitely some places hiring programmers. Sadly, the coding environment has become fragmented into specialized “languages” instead of evolving into one universal set of commands. This disappoints me to no end, as all the so-called apps out there are, in the end, combinations of the seven basic computer commands that existed in 1971, when I wrote my first code.

           Here’s a snap of me outside entrance G, striking my best Dan Marino pose. I have no idea who Dan Marino is, though I think I’ve dined in his namesake restaurant and I assume he was an athlete and not an architect of large buildings. This show or event, whatever it was, came surprisingly well organized. For example, when you arrived, they handed you free coffee and $5 in coupons for the third level cafeteria. Give me free coffee and I’m putty, I’ll even follow you home. To avoid having that found out, I recently had to clear out of a toy store.

           The Nova turnout was disappointing but the correct topics were addressed. We need a lab portion and lecture at every meeting, or people come away empty-handed and empty headed. My stance was the firmest, we have two meetings per month at a coffee house or similar. Any other get-togethers are voluntary extras. We pool our tools and resources and establish a small membership fee. The priority is to win back our original members who left in dismay.

           How the others will react to these proposals will determine if I continue my support to the concept. The new organizer wants to hold barbeques and sessions at the Maker shed, a community tool rental facility in Wilton Manors. My judgment says such environments would be distractive where we should be immediately stressing to newcomers that the popular view of robots is a Disneyland fantasy.
           On the way home, I ran out of gas. How can that happen on a motorcycle with a reserve tank? I’m glad you asked, because I can field that one. First, the tank gauge is notoriously inaccurate and I didn’t think the mechanic had used half a tank to test it last week. Thus, it cut out while I was on a long busy stretch where I could not pull over or fumble for the fuel stopcock fast enough, and I ran the pistons dry coasting to a halt in the friendly neighborhood of Norland, Florida. You see, the bad electronics I mentioned before will start the bike, but are not enough to pull gas into completely dry cylinders.

           Within moments of stalling in Norland, I had one chap help me try to push start, a lady offered me a ride to the nearest motorcycle shop, and another man across the street gave me a boost. That worked and I was on my way. There are good neighborhoods and bad neighborhoods. Norland is good.
           And to reiterate what I wrote before, yes, I really did spend $28.65 on breakfast. It was alright. Later, since I had the $5 in free coupons to the show and the only thing I had was a soda for $4, I tipped the server the rest. What a swell guy I am or what? I get home to hear Agt. M has finally thrown out his back enough to land him at home a few days. Good, now he can show me how to work that MIG welder, which I'll likely pick up tomorrow (Sunday) morning. We need this technology.

           Today's trivia. Did you know most of the casualties on Omaha beach on D-Day were the work of one single German gunner? The claim is he shot 1,000 to 2,000 Americans in about nine hours, then decided, "To hell with this." And walked into town for supper. Note that all Allied news media controlled or owned by a certain religious affiliation, including Wikipedia, continue to deny this claim by saying it is impossible. I have yet to see any proof that it was impossible.

NOON
           Same old story, the “experts” we knew on welding turned out useless for the purchase of the machine. So I decided, arbitrarily, to go ahead with the procurement of a 90 volt model, the MIG unit. I calculate for the price tag, even if we wreck the thing trying, we’ll come out ahead.

           So phooey on all the goofy men who said they could help. Thanks for nothing when it came down to proof. Sound familiar? It should, what with my family and all. Did you know my family were world-class experts on every conceivable matter in the universe? The only requirement is you had to first tell them what the topic was.

NIGHT
           Bingo was adequate. Even if nobody can substantiate the rumors that the place is sold, it is time to behave so. All the original clientele is gone, even the dart and pool teams barely put in a showing. Um, yet the club itself won the championship tournament for the year. The games were played elsewhere. I got home early and worked on some electronics projects that have fallen behind. If that doesn't sound thrilling, you have not considered the alternative.
           See this photo? Blow it up by double-clicking. It demos me using the Yankee screwdriver. It’s hard to see, but the screwdriver is the tall vertical metal shaft I am pressing down on to drive small set screws. This seems like an excessive way to work the job, but really, the contraption works better with smaller screws. This tool is the lucky find from my excursion west last year. Cost me $5 or $10.

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