December 16, 2021

Yesteryear
One year ago today: December 16, 2020, it’s quiet . . .
Five years ago today: December 16, 2016, the Rebel 450.
Nine years ago today: December 16, 2012, seventeen bucks, folks.
Random years ago today: December 16, 2010, Betsey, with two ‘e’s.

           Some woman is claiming she was groped in the Metaverse. Maybe she should file some metacharges. I thought the platform has a safe-zone setting, but you know these millennial hackers. They can’t get it any other way. Today saw an announcement that water has been found in a Mars canyon. That solves the problem of getting it from near the ice caps to a location where a colony could exist. Nothing shakes my contention we should already be there. If water is found in quantity, the only thing stopping us now is liberals.
           Much as I laugh at headlines declaring dirigibles and balloons to be the solution to air travel, a company called Clipper got my attention. Why? Because of changes in blimp design that make Hindenburg type explosions almost impossible, and their airship is designed specifically for cargo. It drops the shipping cost to a quarter of the cheapest alternative, which would allow for lost shipments. Here is a representation of the ship. It has a range of 6,000 miles.

           The lift is provided by hydrogen, which has a bad rap. But it is seventy times cheaper than helium. With modern design, a puncture in the skin does not cause an explosion, rather a jet of flame which can be easily snuffed. The black covering is solar panels. The initial designs sport a cockpit. There is nothing blocking these airships from becoming totally autonomous. They are ten times faster than container ships. Don’t be in a hurry to invest, the helium lobby is controlled by mining companies. And they don’t like hydrogen.
           The radio is alive with ads for truck drivers. They want as little as two years experience and will pay $200 per day while training. The shortage is artificial, a Biden scheme to cause Xmas shortages by requiring the existing drivers get the poison jab. Some 72,000 have refused. One thing the ads have in common is none mention the vax requirement.

           The porn girls win a round. They got a lady judge to award them money and a jail sentence for the producer. The crime? Telling the women their porn videos would be private, then posting them on the Internet. Sorry, I can’t side with the women. While what happened may be a breach of contract, the fact they made the porno is their own fault. They were paid up to $5,000 for the material, which apparently passed through several hands with whom they had no agreements. Nope, pornography is generally wrong, you do the wrong, you get no sympathy from my direction. You want to trust the word of a pornography producer, don’t cry to me afterward.

Picture of the day.
Lake Victoria shoreline.
Remember to use BACK ARROW to return to blog.

           More review of the business model shows some inconsistencies. They will have to be trampled because beginner’s luck does not wait. I’ve found what look like excellent prospects and I’m stuck with unclear instructions. One guy says don’t do anything until the client has signed an agreement, the other guy says while you are out there have them sign other documents. Duh, if you do nothing until there is an agreement, where did these documents come from? Not to worry, for we have the budget to do this either way and I expect to overpay for some items until we learn the ropes.

           So you’ll know I’m not totally useless on an off day, here’s the old cells I took out of my 18V drill, the one that would not recharge. I replaced the cells and converted a 20V to 18V, which now seems to work fine. If I can find a source of these batteries, I’ll be okay now that I know what to do. It’s pretty basic, these mini-batteries are 1.2V each, wired in series up to 18V. I’ve seen them for sale, but where? I know Agt. M used a lot of them but I never asked as I so rarely used battery power on the shop bench.

           The afternoon was perfect for a quick yard tidy, I burned two loads of logs, twigs, scrap pallet lumber, leaves, and such. Mark the calendar, I also ran the chain saw for a couple minutes. It’s really the only tool I have that needs that brand of maintenance. The peach tree is looking anemic, I got that watered. Same with the pineapple plants, the soil in this yard is not predictable. It was a three beer fire, nothing special. Yeungling.
           The hillbilly did not show up but that’s his problem now. Nothing keeps outdoors in Florida and that’s where his stuff is, under a cheap tarp. The newly available shed space makes everything easier inside the house so there is progress there as well. I want that washing machine even if it means I must pay retail for a deck first. Here’s a view of tonight’s fire right after light-up. In an hour I’ll have a nice bed of camphor coals with nothing to cook. I’ve never cemented blocks together. This might be a spot to practice. It will not be a pretty job.

           It was a slow day, though I still managed to put in three hours of study, fix the shop broom handle, build a small coat rack, and tidy up the tool area. Hmmm, I guess if I add it all up, I did get a lot done. Tomorrow, remind me to begin fixing the back yard hose. It has become loose at the spigot and will not seal up. You get a shower every time you turn it on or off. But, it is needed as a safety guard for any burning in the yard. Plus posting the blog, taking photos, recording the expenses (this trip cost me $1,119.09) and unpacking, I’d say it was ten hours of actual work time. So much for a nothing day around here. When do I get to really retire?
           And if any links or photos these days turn out to be duplicates, tough luck. This is a good blog that’s free with no advertising, so take your lumps. That incinerator was designed (by me) to have air inputs around the bottom and it is amazing the speed at which it converts hundreds of pounds of wood litter into a couple buckets of ash.

Last Laugh