One year ago today: May 8, 2024, too politically correct.
Five years ago today: May 8, 2020, zero decibels.
Nine years ago today: May 8, 2016, no traditions.
Random years ago today: May 8, 2009, evil is already there.
There’s a squabble across the way. The City truck was there last evening, I heard some heated talk. The code people seem to have jumped on this project, yet the house is by no means the worst in the area. Over behind the church, those houses are really old fishing shacks along a creek that is no longer there. Then this morning, a whole new crew showed up prying off the aluminum siding. The way this town unevenly enforces code always has the same outcome. They bully until they get sued, then they shift focus to the next victims who just will not do things their way. And their way seems to be spending as much money as they want you to. I know.
Here is some video of the raccoon activity, the best footage I have for you today. This is likely one of the kids, as the shade of brown in the fur reveals it is not a sign of age. I have blocked their access to the laundry deck, so they will soon find other accomondations.
Most soloists do their best but too often just leave the intro off. But my experience is faithful intros are appreciated by audiences, the more so if it reflects good teamwork. I believe the extra effort I direct to this part where possible is about the best possible way it can be done with just two instruments. Myself, I am more than grateful my playing some of the lead notes to achieve this effect has met with no resistance at all from the guitar player.
Later, word arrived that the Prez & wife arrived in Charlotte after a 12-hour drive. I know this trip very well and that is one long stretch of road. He’s not usually the kind to take chances like that, but I wasn’t there. Good guitar players are too rare for such adventures. I received e-mail from Rob that rehearsal this week is a no-go due to overtime. Has Trump freed up overtime yet? Don’t ask me, by Rob’s age I had been retired over ten years already.
I’m watching “Congo”, the DVD about the talking gorilla. The usual, a special diamond in war-torn Africa and lots of fantasies about being the only White woman on an all-male expedition. Great scenery, too bad it is in Africa. The Yeti is on the bench with the CD player and a time-lapse camera. Caltier has missed another disbursement. No vacuum tube sales this week. I’ve rearranged the building fans to take advantage of the cooler shade on the north side. I’ve learned to operate at least four fans including the attic exhaust before turning on the A/C.
The connection here is the criteria for an emergency generator. I won’t have all the requirements for a bit. I see there is the usual hype over the power ratings. I need something that will continuously handle the fridge, lighting, those fans, and at least one A/C. And I need it to run 8 hours minimum on a full tank. This alone pushes the cost over $4,000. Another option is two smaller units.
Another broiler, if outside work is futile, I may experiment building boxes with a lid. The best size for me is an interior of 12” x 8” and a depth of whatever wood is handy at the time. I’ve had “Congo” on the overhead. We have got past the obligatory paragliding scene and the tribal ritual part, and just not they are rafting over the rapids. The shot where the boats have no option but to ride out the current, but you still have some jokers paddling like crazy. If I ever visit central Africa, I am not going to walk along the rim of any active volcanoes. Hollywood explorers always find forests and islands that have no swarms of insects.
By 10:00AM, we hit a snag. There is a building support exactly where I had planned running the electric cable under the building. The good news is those cross-braces I put in have made the floor smooth and rigid for the first time since I got here. I may have to cut or drill access to the only space between the joists that this wire will fit nicely. Fortunately, I have my best man on the job. With luck, I can even make it look nice.
Latest reports on World War Poo is that both sides have ducked and fighting is now mainly by drone. The US Navy, deploying to the Pacific, may soon find out the Chinese missiles are not the same breed as the Houthi's facsimilies.
Bridgetown market, 20 years ago.
Remember to use BACK ARROW to return to blog.
Since 2018 I have not needed full A/C here for the short summer periods. That has changed. I must also consider two units. One for the kitchen and another for the front bedroom. This time, I’ll smarten up and install surge protectors. I’ve lost around $450 in fried air conditioners since I moved in here, all due to lightning strikes nearby. If I didn’t say, the neighbor’s buttonwood tree got one huge limb taken off during the storm in April. He had to work a chainsaw for nearly an hour just to get it out of the tangle.
The z-box template has proven versatile. Here is a box of thicker wood made to the same dimensions. This video was made for another demo, but you can see the stronger joints. It requires more handling and nearly twice as many staples. This is my present choice to copy for cases for small tools. I would sell this box for $12 to $14, as is, no hardware. This box requires 44 staples. The folks at the lumber yard last day were appalled that I still cut the hinge mortises with a hammer and chisel. I tested my old Dremel with the jammed bit and it works, or would work if I can unjam that bit. I see it uses carbon brushes so I’m hesitant to open the housing to find why that bit cannot be removed. It is too small for the task. At the moment, our people in the Congo are outrunning some lava. They even worked a hot air balloon into the trip.
Tell you what, let’s stay inside and study. If I can’t find anything new that is challenging and worthwhile, we’ll go back to transistor amps and navigation. I am still fascinated by how that guy plotted a Great Circle course using the Sight Reduction Tables. The Yeti test is already inaccurate but it reveals the unit is not as advertised. The inaccuracy is that when driving, I will finish one audio disk and pop in another. I would not normally set the deck on auto-repeat. Thus, the disk played only when I noticed it was done and pressed play again.
And that is where I noticed the power gauge. There is a display that predicts how many hours are left. A full-charge reading with the deck is 44 hours or so. But simply restarting the CD knocks up to five hours off. Turn off auto-play if you link to this video of the Rooster drone.
ADDENDUM
It was Donald Trump who made political comments part of this blog, but I still avoid certain stances that favor the man. Of course, I fully support any candidate who gets attacked by the liberal maniacs. And the Democrats have become synonymous with maniac. This gains attention as there are already rumors circulating about the 2026 mid-terms. It appears the Democrats are in deep trouble, which is causing them to attack Trump now. And that is the point, they are not running a campaign to appeal to more voters, it’s all about Trump.
They have not learned their tactics have not worked on an outsider. It makes them look foolish, launching multiple impeachments and law suits that just get overturned. Nobody district judges blocking executive orders is their current favorite, but people are increasingly just ignoring them and the opposition is getting tougher. We are seeing some arrests but they are low-level and appear to be testing the water.
Such arrests are not appeasing the voters. They want to see Pelosi and Schumer cuffed and in prison, a sizeable faction wants them executed. Considering what they’ve done, I would not defend them. And Trump knows if he doesn’t do something, the Hildebeest is 100% going to rub out him and his family. She has stated he cheated her out of her place in history.
Polling is a Democrat darling, where they pick which polls support them and deny the others. This time, they face a public right up to date on-line. Their fudging does not work as they try to cover up approval ratings down in the teens. Last month did not help when they advised people to sell their retirement stocks because Trump was going to crash the economy. And if they still had their old power base, they just might have produced the media hype to portray that. Instead, the signs of recovery are pouring in amidst and air of optimism.
Not so at the checkout. I’ve been stocking up a bit and have sticker shock. Packs of chicken that were $3.85 are not $9.25, and that goes for many commodities. I view people paying for small purchases by credit card as a warning sign. It is not uncommon to be in line behind people who have three or four cards declined before one that takes.
