MORNING
I did not know that many private land ownership regulations prohibit the erection of ham radio antennas. You can learn a bit
Here are a couple of random statements, I'm talking on the phone at the same time. Maybe I'll go see "Interstellar" this evening. It must pretty bad for the IMAX to be charging less admission than the regular screen.And all I can say to people who don’t get the job because of mistakes on their resumes is, “There, their, they’re.”
Several years back, I got to learning Morse code. But it is no fun to learn by yourself. That’s not just socially, but because you would clearly have to allow for the other person’s idiosyncrasies. Everyone can transmit faster than they receive and I got to the point I just memorized everything I was learning. So I glanced on-line to see if there was a Morse club. Nope, it is not even a requirement to get your ham license any longer.
There is a ham club in Florida, established something like 1937, I didn’t look it up. But I saw their articles of membership, and they go too far beyond the technical requirements of operating a radio. Too much emphasis on the loyalty and patriotism thing and they take far too inquisitive a stance on why one wants to learn this stuff, an automatically suspicious posture. Here's what you tell them: "So we can destroy the universe, you jerks, that’s why. Happy now?"
Can you believe this perfect weather? Nobody got underway easy, it was a sit in the backyard worry about it later day. I never could understand these places that want to charge $25 for an instruction manual when the same literature is available for a free download. I’ve always considered the manual as part of the packaging, not an extra expense. I’ve read Petrov, how the bigger the manual, the poorer the product. Anyway, I got the manual for my new BK Precision Model 2120, but not the probes yet. I see this 20mHz model (I don’t yet know what that means) was discontinued in 1993. So chances are it was not built in China. Good.
We don’t have the probes, which will now become a big deal since we want some. I think I know where I can borrow a set. Fun and games, y’day was one of the windiest yet and my jacket flew out of the sidecar. I had to loop around four miles to go pick it up, I was lucky it was still there. And I finally caught Agt. M at home. He’s reduced to crawling on his hands and knees from his back injury. But I’m no doctor, I bought him a sandwich and said I’d check back in later.
The cPod camper is being dismantled soon. The design, modeled on a Pzkw Mk III means the panels are removed by only six bolts. If you are not sure what I mean by the German designation, look up the history of the tank, it was so versatile it was continually upgraded to the very end. But what pity to take the cPod apart after so little usage. That’s just me. After all, it paid for itself in half the first trip, but I still hesitate. The cPod is my puppy.
NOON
I tackled the cPod, here is the sequence between 3:30PM and 5:30PM, when it got too dark to work. The various stages can be seen quite clearly, the sides and roof are removed and stacked, the solar panels are in the shed. It’s not that often I take apart a solar powered camper. The original sky-blue undercoat is visible, that will likely all be replaced.
The new design does not have to be completed until spring, so it will likely be as overbuilt as the original. The plan is to make it a flip-top out of thinner plywood, since it is never towed unless “buttoned up”. I would also like to incorporate an optional canvas “tent” structure to give myself a spot to sit inside. I got caught a few times in the rain, which was fine, but in the old cPod, there was no option but to lie down and get some sleep. Or wait it out in a coffee shop.
A flip-top is problematical because of the need to have the solar panels exposed to sunlight while towing. It is tempting at first to just locate the panels under the flip plate, so they’d be facing down at night. However, the panels are heavy, too heavy to swing upward. The alternative is to make a tray and slide the panels in each day, but that requires disconnecting the electrical harness.
We also know that for each piece that moves, like hinges or panels, waterproofing becomes a challenge. This means there may be several false starts once the reconstruction gets underway. An improved electrical system, both internal and external is sketched out and this time we do it right. The unit will likely be towed over to the clubhouse tomorrow for cutting and welding. The trailer bed will be reinforced with gussets, as I found three loose bolts and one bolt completely missing the nut and washer during the dismantling.
NIGHT
Cancel the movie for tonight, I was covered in road grease up to my elbows. And talk about famished, I made buns in the microwave and ate a pound of chicken before I noticed the grease I could not wash off was coming off on the buns. Ah, it's good for you. What? Ordinary buns, the buttermilk kind from the dairy case. They come out just fine in a microwave if you know what you are doing. And what else is on my calendar. Okay, I've gone three months without drinking soda at home, and only a few times on the road. I guess maybe a can or two a day was too much.
Did you read in the paper how the European Union is looking into the banking practices of Luxembourg? That's like the new Switzerland, it seems dozens of major corporations including Amazon, Apple, and Starbucks have been declaring their profits in that jurisdiction to avoid taxes. The country's leader is doing the right thing, he is saying investigate all you want, what we do is none of your business.
I tend to agree. The era of nation-states is what has kept the concept of a "New World Order" at bay. If these corporations obeyed the laws of Luxembourg and what they did was legal at the time, then to hell with other countries. it seems these "other countries" have a common feature: higher taxes than Luxembourg. If that is their best justification, they can stuff it. May there always be rebels against those who would force their will upon others.
Looking for why all the kerfuffle over the situation all of a sudden, look what I found. It seems upon joining the European Union, one of the conditions is to treat everyone equally. And Luxembourg apparently invited major corporations like Ikea and FedEx, but not Joe's Autobody and Palatka Lawn Care. Thus, the "investigators" are screaming unfair. I dunno, it seems Luxembourg treated all the corporations equally. Why doesn't every body just admit it is all about the tax money--and other countries concentrate making their own idiotic tax laws more fair instead of going after Luxembourg.
TA-DA! This blog finally hit the big-time. Today [I received notice that] October 21, 2014 was censored by Google.
ADDENDUM
Ah. Google and MicroSoft are indeed acting in collusion. Google unposted October 21 and MicroSoft froze the e-mail account associated with this blog. Could they be any more obvious? Apple computer lost a huge segment of its customer base by demanding that users each have one single “account code”. But for the sheeple that fell for it, it was a hugely successful intrusion into privacy, and you can bet your ass Google and MicroSoft were watching. And taking notes.
The target this time seems to be precisely the use of e-mail masks, triggered by the censorship event. This is where you use a fake e-mail only for the “notices” they send you, those notices that usually start with “Call us overprotective, but . . .” I am not a conspiracy theorist, but what's the term? A "coincidence theorist". I do not believe in coincidence.
Ha, MicroSoft acting in your best interests? That will be the day. All I’m going to say is I saw this one coming and it is interesting to watch them try to unravel the tangle. I suspect sooner or later they will pick one account and force action on that one [account] to unlock the others. So you cannot establish a series of circular accounts that identify no one. Cat and mouse is the game I love to play with these major corporations. Clearly the purpose of these passcodes is to unravel any scheme of e-mails that form a circular path. I’m surprised it took them so long.
What’s interesting here is the censorship role of Google. It will accept a complaint even if that complaint is clearly based on personal animosity. That is, if I want to get back at someone who posts something I don’t like, I can bypass silly things like the Amendments by claiming infringement. Here is the problem, the basis of copyright law is to prevent a diminishment of demand for the original. Instead it is being used to block reproduction, which is a different matter.
While I doubt anything in this blog ever stops people from going out and buying the original, I admit that I/we have always been lax at quoting the sources of any picture found on-line. It just seems to me if you don’t want a picture copied at all, you do not post it on the washroom wall. The existence of those photos that won’t let you copy (don’t you love those?) shows there must some pretty dumb users out there. I mean, as a final tactic, just set up a digital camera and take a snapshot of the screen, you idiots.
For now, I’m more interested in how far Google and MicroSoft will pursue the e-mail puzzle. For the sake of comparison, they have gotten so far one layer deep. My system is 32 layers deep.
For the astute reader, no, we have not been—by certain definitions-- outright censored. It was merely a notice that there had been a complaint to Google, who is not empowered by any known authority to enforce copyright law. Google did extend the option to remove what we assume must have been photos, which we did remove. However, the fact that Google acted first and sent the notice second means they took sides. They put the onus on the newer work to prove innocence, something only mentally defective people do. Such activity will always be abused by the complainer. He didn't like the post itself, so only claimed it was infringement to get it removed. Ergo, what Google did involved a form of alteration or destruction of our work, more ergo, it is censorship.
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