December 24, 2018

Yesteryear
One year ago today: December 24, 2017, in 1,670 words.
Five years ago today: December 24, 2013, I never made Orlando.
Nine years ago today: December 24, 2009, every youthful penny.
Random years ago today: December 24, 2016, a day on the Rebel 450.

           The rest of America settles down to a big dinner and here I am, up in the cabin installing the wiring to the electric sub panel in the shed. First, here is a picture of the usual scenery as seen from a car ride in Florida this time of year. Clear, cool, dry. It rains, but generally this is the dry season. In a few weeks the terrain will take on a grey-yellow tone, like bales of hay. That’s deep winter in these parts. I got the invite twice to go to Miami but had to graciously decline. This place has to get mostly done without constant delays. I’ve dedicated the next three weeks to getting many of the smaller projects finished.

           That’s where the work shed comes in. The snag there was the wires were trimmed too short, or should I say, they were trimmed at a time when the panel was intended to be mounted on the exterior. But city bylaws put paid to that idea. Upon moving the panel inside, the wires were slightly too short. Two things could be done. One is to yank the wire out of the underground further, since there is close to a yard of slack built in. Or, unscrew four bolts and move the panel six inches closer to the side wall. For now, I’m going to splice the wires and continue.

           We’ve already listed the advantages of a work shed for any homeowner. In my case, it is a necessity because I could not begin to afford repairs to the standard of the new city bylaws, which essentially means paying through the nose to replace it to new. Instead, Xmas dinner for me will consist of six baked calamaris (310 calories), a slice of whole wheat bread (160 calories), limeade (0 calories), and all the coffee I want for dessert (30 calories per cup because I use Carnation. I may drive over to some place open on Xmas Eve, but not because I’m a lonely old man, but because of my habit of making sure I’m out of the house every day for at least an hour.

           Yeah, I was reflecting this time of year, I should be a grandfather at least by now. But of my entire demographic, only one marriage has ever worked out. And even then, nobody seems to know the details on that one. I tend to have a cozy image of what marriage would be like, but as I’ve said many a time, I’ve never met a woman who could have lasted with me. I have no doubt that had I married any woman I’ve met in the past 28 years, I would still be paying alimony and/or child support to this day.

           Even that is somewhat optimistic. I would not have gotten married earlier than 35 years old, probably more like 40. No matter how you do the math, I could not have afforded it. In reality, neither could most of the people who did marry, only they didn’t know it at the time. The money pressure alone was thus a near guarantee of failure. I’ve been in love, but never got anything like it back. I’ve had my clinging girlfriends and gold-diggers, but as I’ve said, every woman I’ve met since 1995 has had something seriously wrong with her. That might cause some to say I’m seeking perfection, but that is wrong to the point of just being stupid about the situation. When I say something serious, we are talking addictions, mental conditions, criminal behavior, and uncontained moral issues. Let’s not confuse these with personality quirks.
           Furthermore, I made the error of thinking there were be a small but available supply of older women who had learned to be self-supporting so they would at least have that to offer a man they met later in life. Whoa, was I off the mark on that. The few that have money use it to pretend they have even more. I’m also of the opinion that too many women who are desperately along sit around waiting to get met. By whom, I wonder? I mean, you never see them out at social events and the few you see make an almost fatal error when it comes to meeting men. Most men will not approach a woman with a group of two or more other women with her.
           Even I hesitate, and I have no fear of rejection. It’s more of a barrier of not wanting to be scrutinized by three women at once. Most guys who learn this do so quite early in the game. Plus, a round of those flowery drinks they think makes them look classy can set you back $50. Anything less will make them think you are playing favorites, which you are, but they will pounce.

Picture of the day.
Hello the smart factory.
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           Here’s the inside of the sub panel. I see now it is missing a ground bar. It attaches to that small black plastic flange that juts down from the bottom. As shown the wires will have to be spliced, but there are a number of acceptable solutions. There are 32 outlets in the white shed and this box has provision for six breakers. One will be a twenty amp for the air conditioner. Another is needed for the red shed. And I may temporarily put a washer and dryer in there. Six circuits really isn’t that many these days.

           The shed is framed for an air conditioner on the north wall. Remind me to make that cutout soon, today was quite pleasant all afternoon but there is talk of another cold spell. Get all your outdoor work done during the cooler weather. Once spring rolls around you won’t stay out there more than minutes at a time.

           At 5:41PM, LizJohn was on the phone. Just wishing a happy Xmas, she’s also single. We dated a bit in the 80s and 90s but turned into better friends than anything else. She’s a sweetheart. I’ve always felt she never married simply because she has too much common sense. I’ve watched her navigate conditions that would fool 90% of other women. Did I ever tell you how I met LizJohn? Let me check the rulebook, um, yes, that’s a go-ahead.
           I learned how to type in middle school, long before computers even used keyboards. When I hit the phone company in 1979, they had plans to put their massive record system onto databases, and it was common in the summer to have technicians like myself go help out the clerical people. Well, in no time it became apparent I could not only type, I knew how to read (and correct) the records. As fate would have it, I found myself permanently indoors in a room with 393 women, you’ve heard that story many a time.

           LizJohn was on the other end of the office, quite a distance inside the building. She did exactly the right thing. One day, she walked over and said she was taking the vacant desk across from me. She did not ask, she took the initiative. Why was it the right move? Because, depending on a host of other factors, this is the approach that works best on me. I already had the reputation that you could talk to me without me hitting on sex, but I would point out that is not out of respect as much as the just-mentioned host of other factors. I don’t do married women, I don’t do divorcees, I don’t do fatties, and so on.
           No doubt I’ve said, but I was considered therefore, a “safe date”. You or a group of gals could invite me along to events they did not want to be seen unescorted. I have no problem dating two women to the movies, or to a market. Dining out, well, I draw the line there. I don’t enjoy going out for dinner in a group setting. Later, LizJohn and I talked about how we met, and she said she easily read that into me. She watched how I reacted around other women, surmised that she had the qualities I like, and saw that direct action would be the best move. I could say she guessed right, but she said there was no guesswork. She knew 100% it would work.

ADDENDUM
           How did I spend one of my last Xmas Eves? I worked inside on the drywall and soundproofing. The main wall is not completed as I had to leave any portions with electrical wiring exposed. I have to get at it since I only ran in the original basics as needed. For instance, the attic lights and fans were formerly on the same circuit. So if something went wrong up there, you’d be replacing the fan in the dark. And on Xmas Day, I’m planning to rough in some of the plumbing. I know, I should be in Miami with the family.

           It turned bitterly cold right at sunset, so I stayed home. I threw on that Julia Roberts movie about Erin Brokovitch, the one where they sued the power company for chromium in the water. The movie where a lot of the bit parts had better acting than she did, but what a total babe. I stayed up late drinking tea, that’s it for retirement excitement. Blame it on the lack of guitar players.

           I even watched a documentary I picked up called “Mysterious China”, but after an hour of watching bird colonies on some forgotten plateau, I decided China was never that mysterious anyway. They seem as a race to be childlike in their approach to anything. They invent things but don’t or can’t do anything with them. The music is sing-song and I find I don’t care for the fusion of Chinese lyrics to opera music. They don’t seem to have any baritones. One empire after another, it gets tedious since however advanced their civilization once was, it stayed the same for so many centuries that it fell behind. As for their recent industrialization, it’s probably the only real change in 2,000 years.
           I predict they will meet with woe simply because they are adopting Western material possessions but not the culture and attitudes that make those things work well here. They can build the smart factories but the raw materials are still being dug by hand. Speaking of smart factories, Korea has taken the lead. Don’t blur smart with robotics. It’s a factory that has a kazillion sensors that monitor the progress of each step or department in real time. I’m watching it because if it works as planned, it eliminates the need for a huge middle-management staff. While management can look good on paper, it is so difficult to find anybody to fill the positions.

           And after my experiences with the phone company, I’m okay with huge numbers of middle management types being turned out into the streets with zero skills at that level. I took all the courses, you know, scientific management and Maslow’s Theory, and found it to be amusing at the theoretical level. Changing the topic, take a look at these two pictures. The bottom panel has been enhanced by a Nikon app that came with one of my cameras that is no longer in service. The shot was taken through the car window, so it is paler in the top view. The bottom panel shows a truer coloration. The problem is, the software was so difficult to use and the instructions so useless, I finally uninstalled it.
           So, how was your Xmas Eve? My present to the nation is an idea. I propose than starting immediately, all battery powered devices incorporate a simple set of lugs or plugs that allow them to be easily wired to a permanent power source.

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