One year ago today: October 8, 2019, the audacity!
Five years ago today: October 8, 2015, they bypassed the meter.
Nine years ago today: October 8, 2011, 20 bands & 7 girlfriends.
Random years ago today: October 8, 2014, with someone like me.
First off, I’ve been up for hours and I think it’s possible the old hot water tank just made up m mind about replacement. I think I caught the leak in a few minutes, but it could have been a couple of hours. Pics to follow. That’s a priority. Listening to Tampa radio, what’s this talk about fielding Michelle Obama as a candidate in 2024? Unless the average IQ declines by 25% between how and then, I don’t think so. But mass IQ depression has occurred in America before, after the liberal takeover of the education system, and again with satellite TV. As it got light, I opened the floor hatches and found the leak in a minute. Human error, one of the dry fitted joints had never been properly cemented. For a moment, consider what happened here.
They were sold by Sears who maintains mountains of spare parts. This water heater is the one slated to become the ambient tank. I’m having a heck of a time finding the serial number. Ah, what’s this? A date scrawled on the back panel. It says 9/12/84. September 12, 1984. That’s 36 years. Older than Taylor, at least a bit. Now I’m miffed. I cannot find the serial number on that tank, all my flashlight batteries are dead, and I can’t find my PVC cement. That last one bugs me because I found the box where I always keep it. Do I scrounge around for it, or drive downtown and buy a $8 kit?
The solution is to stop and have an extra coffee, relax, plan ahead, think it through. Aha, I just got a flash, the purple can of primer, I tightened the lid. But where was that? More coffee. I give, I’ll drive into Winter Haven. I could wait until tomorrow when I’m in the south end for therapy, but that would mean showering in cold water. I’ve discovered the brand is not Maytag. This brand is State, built in Ashland City, Tennessee. Lookie here, they have a decent website and they are still in business. But there is no mention of this model, which might be older than anybody who works there.
While the lid was off, I may have found the cause of my poor hot water pressure. There’s a kinked copper line. It’s flexible so I’m tempted to cut it and solder in an elbow. But for now, get it running and call it good. With the hatch open, I can see the stretch of floor that needs leveling and it is tempting to begin before winter. I just spent a summer making sure I would not have to do such work in the summer. The water bill arrived, saying I used 8,000 units in August. They must be reading the meter funny, but I’ll keep an eye on things. The leak did not occur until after dark last evening and it was loud enough I heard it.
Then I took a closer look at that highway Norway is building that uses floating tubes. They aren’t floating, they are buoyant and anchored around 100 feet below the surface. They didn’t go into it, but at that depth, all tides and wave motion is gone and the temperature is fairly stable. I consider it a brilliant idea if it works. The route will open up some areas that were isolated by difficult terrain and where surface roads and bridges were often subject to blizzard conditions. It will be pretty amazing if they can afford it. To me it is mostly a commercial venture, since the scenery would be pretty bland. Like driving through the Eisenhower, but forty miles longer.
Ice blue Ichthus.
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Here’s the model plate from the water heater. It’s State Model CV 30 2T11 and it no longer exists that I can find. If I can get it working, I’ll leave it until I get a new tank. The 30 means 30 gallons, which has been plenty and I figure if I have the tempering tank, the result will be limitless hot water. That’s something I never skimp on. And why do I just know when I get back, I’m going to find the two cans of PVC liquid in some obvious place. That’s how the Florida system crumbles. Ashland City is between Memphis and Nashville, between the two major east-west freeways. It’s only brush with the news was when it got flooded out in 2010. Hardest hit were the lone grocery store and Wal*Mart. The problem with peace and quiet is once you attain it, you’re usually stuck with it.
I took a late break switching to milder Columbian coffee and watched some documentaries on Antarctic exploration. The phrase “age of heroes” is evident where I prefer to think of it as the age of expeditions. The community knew the exact parts of the planet that remained unexplored. So you came up with some loony idea like dragging a sled to the South Pole and sold it to the government or some institution. Usually you insisted they move fast before the other guys got there. The British could not seem to get things together. I mean, taking horses to where it is 30 below? The Norwegians, they ate their dogs and survived.
Needing some challenge, I began reading the most advanced text I have on celestial navigation. The only part I’m easy with is calculating the GP of the sun and never got as far as using the stars to find position—but I understand the theory. The concept of a celestial sphere complicated early studies, so I glossed over, now I want a solid background, time permitting. Let’s listen to the news such as it is. IBM to split into two companies next year. It’s doubtful either one will produce a computer that actually works. Watch for another 100,000 layoffs. A poaching operation stung by fake sea turtle eggs. One telltale sign of a primitive society is their aphrodisiacs are always food and always from endangered species. I caught the story because the GPS tracking eggs were made with a 3D printer.
ADDENDUM
What a joke of a debate. Every question put to Pence was angled to make any response seem negative. It was like a Rasmussen poll. I doubt anyone could answer their slanted questions without coming across as either a redneck or pro-liberal. (Witness their question of what you think is the proper annual level of immigration where the smallest answer is 500,000.) These were the wrong questions for this debate. Like someone who has been out of work six months gives a shit about masks and climate change.
It bordered on ridiculous, focusing on which side has the better scientists while the country is in lockdown. Talking about social distancing when freedom is at stake, what universe do these people live in? And how about that climate change question, giving Pence a mere 120 seconds to state his entire stance on that expansive issue. All that did was narrow down what points he could make so Harris could haul out her prepared answers. What’s more, the questions were largely repeats of the same tired material that has been answered countless times. It left the impression the Democrats are going to harangue us with the same talking points until we give them the answer they want just to shut them up. Where have we seen this before?
I stopped watching since it was going nowhere, but did note that Harris lied a number of times and Pence did not. Careful again, the Democrats are past-masters at the framed answer. Once again this put Pence in the position of over-talking his time-limit or cutting her off on the side issues she was constantly trying to slip through. It was also annoying hearing her state that Trump was the cause of the troubles the Democrats were having in their own camp. It fooled nobody, it was just annoying.
Once again the Democrats are better at stage-managing. They are far better at appealing to the lowest IQs in the audience. Overall, Harris came across as a little too rehearsed. Her theme seemed to be that the Trump administration was not telling the people the “truth” her party insists they need to hear. Not facts, oh no, but “truth”. This type of debate only polarizes the voters, since it offers no enlightenment. Both sides will say they won, with a slight edge toward the Republicans. They didn’t keep reducing every talking point to absurdity, but on that point, Harris won handily.
What I picked on was how Harris was cashing every time Pence spoke first. She would state things he said were discredited. Not that we know of, lady. She kept referring to her stance as “we”, like she was the mouthpiece of the American people. That will hurt her. This may backfire on the Democrats because it was evident that the Democrats expected to get away with sliding in side-issues the way they could before Trump came along.
Oh, and what do most Americans think the correct amount of immigration should be? It’s not zero. It’s around negative 11 million this year.
