June 13, 2023

Yesteryear
One year ago today: June 13, 2022, another Tesla barbeque.
Five years ago today: June 13, 2018, forecast: increasingly rare.
Nine years ago today: June 13, 2014, navigation is sexist.
Random years ago today: June 13, 2008, who’d bring a computer . . . .

           A few hours after sun-up the hillbilly showed up. I immediately put him to work packing shingles, digging post-holes, and moving the fence. He said he was not hungry but I supplied the coffee and lettuce/SPAM/mayo sandwiches. This means a volume of work got done, the most important was moving that fence. Here is your primo view of him walking along the roof, in the process of cleaning out the valley clutter. I did not let the guy off so easy, he’s a month late showing up. By noon, he was hungry and SPAM on toast never tasted so good. We got fence moved, which creates an enclave in the shade near the north window, where we sat on saw ponies and drank coffee.

           Today another European country has sealed off immigration, I’ve lost track which. But they have to do something about the ones they’ve got. The popular mood is send them back and charge them for all government services meanwhile. Was it Sweden that send their “open borders” diplomat to the Congo in 2017, where she was kidnapped and beheaded? That’s how some people learn. And South Africa says it will ration water supplies to Whites. That should be fun, as the Whites can easily retaliate with fifty of their own commodities.

           Again, I required more down time today, so maybe no pictures. For unknown reasons, blog hits this morning are six times normal. What’s up, people? This odd phenomena happens on average once a year. All I’m going to say is that Taylor is not visiting me this week. Oh, and turns out they are arresting arsonists in Canada. All climate change activists, that’s Canada. If the climate won’t change, they’ll make it change.

           Don’t stand on sawhorses, I say, but I needed a special set to do that. I can’t reach the upper walls or fence and be danged if I’m going to drag a ladder around. We now have a small but extra-sturdy pair of ponies. They’ve already been used to clean the new fenceposts, which I moved out to the front yard before getting too tired. That new work area is proving its worth right off the bat. My estimate is 50% of my productivity since I got back has been at that workstation. Don’t think shade is minor in Florida. Right how it is 91°F out there with nearly 55% humidity.

           No contest, what does it mean to plead no contest? If the court considers it a plea of guilty and still imposes punishment, what good it is? The technicality is that it is a guilty plea without admitting guilt. What’s the use? The plea cannot be used in any further civil proceedings. So if you think in addition to criminal charges, the other party is going to sue, no contest is an option.
           There’s the fence moved into place some of the crown row (for privacy) is removed and you see how the fence stops short of the tree? The other panel is set back two feet which leaves a gap behind the tree. What looks like a solid fence isn’t. It is again possible to walk around the house and I did not have to fuss with building a gate. The saw ponies are visible in the enclave, with the red bag of pecans on the ground. We know how to snack in Florida. The vines are kudzu which will be cut down shortly.

Picture of the day.
Lakes in Winter Haven, FL.
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           Completely broke and needed more fence rails, the hillbilly and I drove to the south end, upon which he promptly fell asleep in the van. So, I left him there for an hour and a half. The van is fully equipped with fans that are permanently on, using the lithium battery, meaning it is always beyond comfortable.

           This meant I hauled all the lumber myself and such workouts are, sadly in a way, now frequent mentions in my routine. Total time put in today was 4-1/2 hours, so plan for tomorrow off, I told him to show up Thursday and we’ll get that tractor running or learn the reason why. I paid him $10 an hour, which is fair for having to work at my speed. The shingles are completely finished, though I will add another layer of caulk at the seam as we’ve learned my old house still shifts.

           That’s enough work for a day. I did some shopping, see the groceries and other necessaries on the door step. That’s it, check back tomorrow for more exciting fence work. Yep, if the hillbilly had kept up learning guitar, we’d be out there making $50 in tips per gig by now. Too many people think playing music requires talent.

           More avian visitors. We have a small flock of what I believe are blue jays. They scatter too fast to see when I round the corner, but I will get photos. So we have twits, woodpeckers, cardinals, and now blue jays. Moments later I got these photos. We can’t keep them, they empty the cardinal feeder in a day and birdseed is now $15 a bag. Now being experienced vermin-blockers, we will first try to surround the feeder with a wire mesh that keeps larger birds away. See, now I wish I had learned to braise. That might be a good skill to learn in the new-found northern shade.
           Birdfeeding is an art over here. We are a little more sophisticated than throwing bread scraps on the ground. The wire mesh must not provide a spot for squirrels to grip, and whatever took down my ball feeder had the weight to break the small chain. Remind yourself it is summertime, so these pictures are taken through window glass. And they stay closed until maybe November.

           Reaching record temp and humidity, we piled in the van and drove over to Kooter’s in Bartow. That big new subdivision is making an impact already. They have all new furniture and pool tables. Asking around, I got news about Charla. She’s the emcee at the big billiards hall in Winter Haven. Soon as I found out which days, I must stop to say hello. She’s a grandmother again.

           The hillbilly found a pile of old but good lumber near the pallet place while walking over here. By the time we got back, it was gone. All told, today saw a lot of work done and plenty of therapy for my shoulder blades. He knows the work area is ideal and I told him if he can think of anything we could build for spare cash, I’ll set up the assembly line. As I’ve said, he responds well to instruction.


Last Laugh