August 23, 2021

Yesteryear
One year ago today: August 23, 2020, Trump’s talking sense.
Five years ago today: August 23, 2016, $160,000 for nothing.
Nine years ago today: August 23, 2012, still learning the sidecar.
Random years ago today: August 23, xxxx, WIP

           This trip was planned for a couple weeks. You know what they say about having fun. So, in my time-tested manner, I write down what happened and throw you the torch. Are things going well? chances are you can tell by what subjects crop up. Time for me to get back to the cabin and keep that place in running order. Again, I've planned for a three-day trip, but this route is a lot of freeway, as I want to see some things I may never get to again. I've been here a month and I know you are dying to know how went the doggie aquaintanceship. Swell.

           The dog was raised in a rough environment and around men only, who he deeply distrusts. My appearance made for initial resistance to everything, from growling to constant pulling at the leash. This continued for nearly two weeks, over which my first decision to stay on [longer] was based. The poor fellow has anxieties. We still have to keep him caged if we go out more than a couple hours. Or he may begin biting and chewing things, especially stuffed animals which he knows are toys. However, on the third week, the Reb was away all day and in her absence, he instantly began to behave. He will not curl up near me for attention and knows the van means fun poops all over town. By the time we went to Pegram Station last week, he was practically handing me the leash.

           Alas, you don't get to see all these videos. The change was quite pleasing, plus the Reb can now plan much longer trips again. The spin-off is while we had never supposed we'd be an item ever again, neither of us is looking for that. The bottom line is when we are together, it is damn good company. Compared to the Reb, other women are dullards who have to be coaxed into everything. Those of you who have ever tried anything new or outrageoous or off the wall or off the cuff with you average broad will know what sticks in the mud they can be. With the Reb, things are spontaneous. You can't pretend spontaneous.

           One other thing, I complained to the theater. I like to watch the previews and they had one family blocking the entire single cash register. There are no longer ticket booths, you purchase tickets at the concession. But it was the brand of family you cannot dare tell to hurry up or suddenly you are racist. They took close to fifteen minutes, well aware of the lineup they were causing. So I stopped this guy changing posters and asked what gives, why nobody behind the counter. He told me, they had no staff. He said 12 people had quit in the past week after working just long enough to collect Biden's unemployment. He pointed to the sign saying they paid a starting wage of $11 per hour and he said they had one taker. That was the trainee clerk at the counter. So I backed off, but said none of this was my fault, they should still not bottleneck ticket sales to past when the movie starts.
           But I see his point. That $300 per week supplement is like a free ride to the working class. Enjoy it while you can, instead of using the vacuum to rapidly advance yourself into position for when the ride stops, that's your choice. From my point of view, and this goes back many decades, American business has always underpaid their workers in terms of real wages after all is considered. I experienced their nonsense many times when I was young and powerless, how they think they own you for a paycheck. Of how education and even the ability to read and write make no impression on them. On the good side, the theater, a Regal, had fully reclining luxury seats. We were the only people in the room. Um, so we could talk out lud without bothering anyone, I mean.

Picture of the day.
Willow Creek, California
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           I finished up yard chores, painted the trim (see photo), and loaded up most of the van in anticipation of leaving any time. I even found time to drive up to Lebanon Pike for that broken tail bulb in the kiddie car, and replace it according to specs. To that end, I followed a youTube video for a similar model. This one was some fumbling Korean guy whose English was so bad it was hilarious. "Tack oud ode bowb. Oop, I dopp ode bowb. Oh sssit. Now he boken". Then I tanked up the van at the cheapest pumps on Lebanon. Still $57. I also tanked up the Reb's car last week the day before prices fell 50 cents per gallon. I found the car sluggish compared to last year so I put in marine (non-ethanol) gas which brought that kiddie car back to life. The Reb was shocked and I didn't even tell her the price yet.

           It was a 96°F heat wave out there with Florida grade humidity. There must be some storms, as Florida callers kept asking if we'd been flooded. No, the sun was shining bright. This did not stop me from my afternoon nap, after which we finally got to the movies. We watched "Stillwater", and it was another epic-length production that could have been cut in half. The Reb likes it for the development of the characters, but I found it to be low budget with mostly unknowns.
           And the daughter in jail, well, she looked a little bit too much like a rig worker's daughter. Beefy by eighteen. I got tipped off early when the daughter told her father not to get involved. The movie is worth it if you like slow drama, a lot of non-contributory scenes, weird romantical sub-plots, and the completely false portrayal of foreign police as ever asking for permission. There is only one good-looking babe in the whole movie, when one momentarily brushes past him on the sidewalk.

ADDENDUM
           On the way home, we went through a part of Nashville that I've been lost in so many times. I should know that part of town, Woodbine, but it seems I'm one of the few who even call it that. This movie was so long we got out near midnight and on the roadway, we saw this big black collie cross wandering around, lost. I thought it was a wolf but then we spotted the collar. We circled the block and found him on the street dodging cars. The Reb called him but he was terrified. Finally we got him to the curb and he picked up that he'd just been rescued. His name tag said "Cole" and contained a phone number. You'll have to wait until I get home to see photos, they did not turn out and my edit software isn't here.
           See, I told what would happen once doggies heard where the good life was. Bwaaaa-ha-ha-ha.

           Time to mention something about the grammar of this blog. Time to time, I get comments on the "lack" of proper presentation. I'll explain it again. I'm fully aware of Strunk's elements of style, and I started out using them. Once web page design became standardized and boring, I add, I noticed what worked on paper in 1918 was not optimal for the computer monitor. Gradually, this blog evolved a presentation that was best optimized for it's own presentation. These are not big changes and by that token, cannot be. So, yes, I will use quotation marks inside paragraphs, I indent all segments, with average three lines per paragraph. I indent after lists, and group most paragraphs in groups of two, whether or not their topics are related. The overuse of hyphenated words is a personal preference and I expect if reviewed by comedians, they will make light of this.

Last Laugh