January 20, 2022

Yesteryear
One year ago today: January 20, 2021, papaya.
Five years ago today: January 20, 2017, my early dating woes.
Nine years ago today: January 20, 2013, this guy gets women???
Random years ago today: January 20, 2008, bass, sushi, etc.

           Okay, what’s up? Blog readership Tuesday was six times normal. Can anybody let me in on it? Things were pretty generic all day long and you won’t find many nude pictures here. So why so many hits? Is somebody messing with me? For the record, there have been outliers before, but not approaching 600%. Hits, clicks, that’s my 1990s vocabulary, but I’ll point out today’s labels are new—but the ideas aren’t. Haven’t seen one new thing from these GenXYZ Millennials types. I got some real work done instead.

           Shown here are the post and lintel outer wall. In this design, the pieces average 5-foot-eight, so the final product will be considerably stronger than it has to be. This, and the rafters being one-foot on center eliminates the need for ceiling joist. I hefted those pieces into place myself, the hillbilly has disappeared for over a week The grey tarp in the background is to block the view from the church parking lot. There are only seven houses on this long street, but the volume of traffic can be wild.

           The wood here is further reinforced with hurricane brackets and straps. In a real disaster, this lean-to may be what survives. A couple websites claim this arrangement has survived 140 mph winds. These beams are heavy, meaning I paced myself and planned only to stand the wall up today. In the end, I got much further, plus in the down times, I got other things to do. Some of the oldest boxes I built when starting out were pretty but I’ve learned enough to go upgrade them. A little sandpaper, glue, and some clamps and so far every one I’ve tried turned out okay, even the plywood butt-joint pieces. Maybe tomorrow I’ll get you pics.
           Biden messed up again, trying to do a press conference. What a bloody embarrassment, it was truly pathetic. I care less about the guy, but his bad performance reflects on the county. Another concern is the leftoids must know the midterms are going to be a disaster for them. Thus, between now and then they have to railroad through any idea that might help their cause, and if they still lose, they aren’t giving up without violence. I’m glad to be 50 miles from the nearest nutbar city.

           The Reb’s mom has taken a turn for the worse. This could put everything on hold. I will cancel my gigs if need be and I will never forgive the politicians that caused this outrage. If they are grabbed by a mob, I would not lift a finger to help them. I’ve never believed one iota about this pandemic, including lockdowns, masks, mandates, any of it. It’s bogus and symptom-wise, the carona was just another flu. But this lack of compassion for people who cannot be with their loved ones on their deathbeds, that is the lowest of low.

           This is a dreadful end, she has heart complications and at her age, that means it may be over any time. Remember, I know these folks like family, I house-sat for them and looked after all the pets, over four long years. We dropped out of touch not long after that. There is nothing I can do now, except maybe take the pressure off the Reb. It may come to that.

           America itself is not in much better shape. They let too many idiots live here. Today I saw a post of people asking how to get a burner phone. It’s 2022 and people have lost the brainpower to get a burner phone. Contrast this with my situation. I recognized the danger of a phone in your own name on day one and you can confirm from this blog how I drove 35 miles to a small swap meet where there was a booth that sold flip phones to anyone and hooked them up to any name you wanted. To this day, I still use that phone, even though it has been compromised. This is the unit I bought many copies because it has no SIM chip, I just replace the case when they eventually wear out. However, I am down to one phone and one battery left.
           The point it, it took 15 years until I heard of anyone else expressing such concern over their telephone usage and privacy. They don’t seem to realize, once you’ve been profiled, it does not matter what phone you use.

Picture of the day.
Rare “super-recognizer”.
Remember to use BACK ARROW to return to blog.

           My first successful birds-beak cut. This was all marked, not measured. Have you noticed the error? It’s intentional because what I learned did not allow for adjustments. I’m just happy I got the cut and it fit. There is even a reason for the mistake. The original plans used 2x3s and I changed the rafters to 2x4s, so the cut is a little too deep. If you look closely, the deepest part of the notch is not supposed to extend more than 1/3 of the width of the lumber, and if you image this board an inch off the bottom, it would be the correct depth. Had to maintain the slope.

           I worked until dark, getting ten of the sixteen rafters cut. The posts are all level and plumb, making today the heaviest labor I’ve sustained in years, which blog rules I am obligated to record. I’ll make it quick. Usually labor is paced, even if I don’t feel anything. Today was different in that I unloaded the lumber, hauled it, set it up for cutting, and raised the crossbeams into place without even thinking. For you, nothing. For me, a potential crossroads.            This is how every improvement in my health has happened for years. I do something formerly impossible without realizing it—and the slightest symptom would be detected instantly. Gradual doesn’t work for me, I know I’m repairing, but on a weekly or monthly basis, it isn’t apparent. We know it’s there, so that’s good enough for me. The next picture had to be heavily enhanced because it got dark. It shows the rafters, many of them already in place. If you see the wall on the right, you can then see the raters slanting up to the ledger. I found out the hard way my ledger is crooked as hell.

           Part of the overkill is because this part of the structure is where any large falling limbs would hit. The close spacing and inherent strength should cause all but the heaviest pieces to bounce or tumble off. It may be years before I can afford to have the trees trimmed properly. Hang on, the Reb is calling. Mom has been moved to a special care unit, she may have a touch of pneumonia. I’m guessing the end is near.

           In such times, I turn to music and picked up my bass. It’s seen my through every crisis. It isn’t a perfect distraction for me but it works wonders at displacing cares of the kind I can do nothing about. I got that bass line to “I Dig Rock ‘n Roll Music” to a tee, adding four notes to each section of the song to make it more danceable and less with that studio sound. I never really listened to the song before and the second verse lyrics sound like the guy’s been smoking hash.
           Each pass on “Next Broken Heart” gets easier and the way I tell is when I can follow the inflections of the original vocalist. I admit I do this by imitation. This high range, for me, is almost forcing me into my yodel voice. Then I realized that’s what the guy is doing on the recording. This puts me in the spot of wondering is this really to high a key, or is this a new type of voice I’ve found for myself?

ADDENDUM

           So, that Serbian tennis player who got the runaround from the Australians has said he will sue for $6 million. Sue who? In what court? And why that number? Here is a photo of the first batch of Starlink satellites streaking across the sky in front of a nebula. Expect more of this as such photographs often take hours to develop.
           Berners-Lee, inventor of the web, has again appealed for controls and “solid pods”, which allow users to fragment and segment their data. Ha, it is already too late for the millennials, but maybe that concept has traction in the future. The government, of course, will demand the pods have back doors and claim it is for national security, apple pie, or to protect children. Because they’ve already done such a fine job of that.

Last Laugh