July 9, 2025

Yesteryear
One year ago today: July 9, 2024, The actual Valdosta event.
Five years ago today: July 9, 2020, remember EARN-IT?
Nine years ago today: July 9, 2016, phone becomes required.
Random years ago today: July 9, 2018, an early box.

           So little happened to day I was on the verge of calling the day off. Let’s go for the high points. First, held the coffee shop fell out of their chairs laughing when Biden’s doctor, when questioned about his mental balance, pleaded the Fifth. We are bombarded with news item after item that Trump is finished. He’s lost. He’s done it now, yet he’s riding the crest of a popularity wave. Who knows, today the Reb is in Chattanooga, the recycle boxes need emptying, and I may be raiding my bank account. It’s a long story. Mostly, a coffee and a good book.

           Well, the Goodwill is off my list permanently now. Today, I was refused the standard 20% discount because I would not give them a phone number. I could have given them a fake, but wanted to test their resolve. This hideously fat (and droopy-eyed ugly) “manager” refused to answer my direct question, six times, is this store policy or Goodwill policy. Yes, that is the Goodwill at Old Hickory and Lebanon Pike. There is actually a creature there worse than Oprah without makeup.
           So the so-called discount is really paid for using your personal information. Mostly I came away incredulous that in this day and age, people are still giving their phone number to strangers. But, I’ve always known there are people that stupid and I hope they get what’s coming to them. That is how they learn.

           When she realized she was not going to get away easy, she grudgingly admitted it was Goodwill [policy]. Needing a couple work shirts, I went to the Thrift on Hickory and scored this brand new MicroSoft wireless mouse for two bucks. What luck, it was one of the ancient designs, not millennial-improved. That means it is over designed and overbuilt, my kind of gadget. It means it is ergonomic, lights up when properly zinked, and the battery lasts a good six months. One of the rare MicroSoft products that worked. Did I just say zinked?

Picture of the day.
Choice Cafe, Oklahoma.
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           One of the books I started is about a Cambodian family that gets adopted by this American church. One of the church members decides to write the story of SamSung. He’s a Christian ethnic Vietnamese who is adopted by a Chinese family after being rescued from a trash bin. Day to day, his life was not that bad, as he has a part-time job and gets through high school. The local preacher’s wife teaches him English and he gets fake papers he is Chinese. (Vietnamese are not popular in Cambodia.)

           It’s interesting from describing how bad Asiatic politics can be and the worst is the Khmer Rouge who really did a number on the place. It’s a classic example of the opposite of gun control, sort of what the left wing seems to want for America.

           Now never you mind the explanation, but this is what $5,200 in cash looks like. I’ll be limping back to Florida and for the next 90 days. I wonder if my worldy experience at spending my last penny is there reason I’m not worried at all. Stop for a second as I explain that I do not use credit, so yes, there are times, like right after I bought my house, that I was nearly flat-busted. The thrust here is that at least I was never in the hole. The budget for the return trip is $181 of which $120 will be gasoline. If the van breaks down again, Sunshine, we are in for a bad time. I could not isolate the electrical problem, so I’ve taken to disconnecting the battery cable, which the Kaiser finds amusing—but I ain’t going to tackle any wiring with all my test gear two states away. I already know it is a short, so I’ll pull each fuse until it’s isolated, just not before I get back.

           After six, the Kaiser (I'll try to block the ads later) and I met up at Rosie’s. He’s got an excellent 250cc motorcycle these days. We got caught up on music, career into, and a general discussion of geopolitics. We have a common interest in one of his most-requested tunes, one that I picked out instantly years ago. “Beer-Flavored Kisses”, you might remember. The lyrics are a style missing from the shallow computer-generated text of contemporary schlock. Kaiser describes the demand situation, mentioning Netflix as an example. I did not know they held that much sway except with videos. Not so, he reports, a single requisition from them can cause a stampede.
           This is a change at their management level, so I’ll look into it. The Kaiser has the patience, for sure, but my angle is one of us should take a closer look at the process. Not to do anything, but to be aware of how this can be best approached. That is kind of my department, although I did explain to the Kaiser I do not even know what I’m looking for. But I’ll bet you it is still who you know. He mentioned completing another full album of recordings. I’ve listened to his web page samples.

           One important factor is his lyrics tell a story, we both find this to be a Johnny Cash influence. It’s a classic juxtaposition, I find his song words to be identifiable to realists, and he finds my writing to be experience-laden enough to have a poetic facet. He asked why I don’t compose lyrics and other than not thinking I had such talent, I could not come up with an answer. If I can find any samples of what little I’ve written, I’ll forward him a copy, as I’ve always felt we should probably collaborate wherever possible.

Last Laugh