One year ago today: December 27, 2017, she started out okay.
Five years ago today: December 27, 2013, six little wombats.
Nine years ago today: December 27, 2009, cat bathing.
Random years ago today: December 27, 2012, the superstar drive-thru.
Hello from Winter Haven, where I just discovered my car needs $300 more brake work. The joys of automobile ownership. At low speed I detected a scraping sound from the rear passenger wheel. A seized brake caliper. (Hmmm, seized isn’t “i before e”.) Anyway, the work is scheduled for tomorrow. I spent the day chasing around and Winter Haven remains the best small city in the area to do that. I was in the library, where it took eight books on plumbing to find one that did more than give instructions on fixing a drip. It looks like the old cast iron can be completely redone in PVC. The problem in a direct replacement is the central piece that ties everything together is now a $91 special order, shown here.
Rather than cut the entire system over, I may use the expedience of just moving the existing sink over to the new wall over one of the planned locations for the double sink. This would free up twelve square feet of space in what is otherwise a small and cramped bathroom. You have to march around the sink to reach the commode. This few extra feet becomes like prime real estate, bathroom-wise. It makes it possible for two people to be in the bath area at the same time, although opportunities for that have become increasingly narrow. But one can hope.
It’s not often I get writer’s block. But last evening, I got total block. I received some news that brought me to a standstill. Now is not the time for details, but return often during the upcoming month as that will be the critical stretch. Think of it as financial pashtunwali. That’s the custom in the east to give shelter to anyone, including a fleeing suspect or an enemy, until the situation is clarified.
Lake Tanganyika.
Remember to use BACK ARROW to return to blog.
Working past dark last evening, I have electricity back in the red shed. What a difference that underground supply makes. I have room for a 240V welding outlet. I have something that’s confusing me. I see two types of circuit described. What is the difference between a 120/240 and a 240. The wiring seems different and the dryer circuit has a special triangular plug arrangement. I’ll find the answer, but because it isn’t level one Internet nonsense, I’ll have to dig for it. By the way, I have the fence posts ready to start digging. I’m fiddling with the idea of running a 16-foot privacy fence across the entire width of the exposed back yard and using the hidden walkway behind the sheds as the only entrance. Think of it as my mini-witness protection program. A completely private back yard.
Next, an unusual call from the Robynette had me reviewing the December budget. I’m a record $1007.60 over budget and the month isn’t over yet. That brake bill is a conservative estimate. I still have not received news over my last pension from August. That’s the one I was going to leave until I actually hit 65, but this car is killing my wallet. It’s still a bargain over buying something new, considering what it costs these days to have windshield wipers replaced. It’s not like I didn’t know this would happen. A lot of the overage is entertainment, which has a broad definition here. Like the time JZ and I went to the Titanic and drank $107 of craft beer at what, $20 a round. That’s the time the lady slapped his table for not hitting on her all night. Serves him right. She was dynamite compared to his last girlfriend.
ADDENDUM
Much as I consider Jimmy Ruska’s news feed as a forum for unashamed libtardism, it is still my major source of news, in that I read it so often. What’s this, hospitals may soon be required to post their prices? I know, you may be thinking they always did, but this is America. The prices are available, but you have to dig for them. The crooks know you are not likely to do that in an emergency, which is the only time most Americans go near a hospital. This system would allow comparison shopping, so don’t expect it to happen in places like Canada, where the government controls the prices.
And this government shutdown over the wall. Ruska posts the “most” Americans want the $5 billion spent on infrastructure. He’s lying. Most Americans don’t know any words that big. He’s quoting one lady’s tweet, and here name is totally Spanish, so go figure. When he says “most”, he is implying a majority. He must know of a different majority than the ones who elected Trump primarily to build that wall.
The comedy of it all is a tad more subtle. The connection is that Trump knows who to hit back at and has few qualms about doing so. It is the leftards that are stalling the wall, so a government shutdown tells the world the civil service is a hotbed of Liberal treachery. I repeat what I hate about Liberals—they take without asking. How goes that saying, it is wrong to steal from others, and it is equally wrong to elect somebody to steal it for you.
Return Home
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
