One year ago today: January 4, 2025, I fail Oxford.
Five years ago today: January 4, 2021, a morning of lolling.
Nine years ago today: January 4, 2017, my first cardinals.
Random years ago today: January 4, 2003, a lame, but accurate, post.
There was no progress this morning, but a long chat with the Reb cheered me up—rare for a phone call. What happened is the calendar year end often has a set of expenses that need to be pro-rated before things line up with my fiscal year, which is October 31. I’m used to small items like a tank of gas or vet prescription, it’s that things take time and this year caused a lot of headache. Here is an item you don’t need to know, but I think it harms nothing to give some generic information. It makes more sense if you understand I do not expect others to follow my rules or keep the same standards.
This photo is NOT the condo, but is representative of what we are dealing with. It is a seriously luxury two bedroom, but also includes the complete studio next door, the “maid’s quarters”. What has happened is the delays have run past our contract dates and although we are honest people, technically and legally, that property now belongs to the Reb. Of course, we recognize the breach was by frustration and the intention is to await that courtyard. Still, decisions must be made and today’s decision was to wait and see. The short version is a delay over there is causing a shortage over here.
Ha-ha, BMW didn’t listen, now they are recalling 37,000 cars because the steering wheels go spastic. Folks, the problem is not computers but the hiring of idiots. So BMW, how much did you save hiring coders instead of programmers? Good morning, Trump now has Demtards defending dictators. Silver hovers around $73 in what must be an insanely expensive exertion for the banks.. One prediction for 2026 is a huge upswing in copyright lawsuits against A.I. companies. While I disagree with certain aspects of copyright, this would serve them right. I need somebody to steal this blog so I can sue them. You know, let the do all the publishing work for me.
Morning coffee and a video of Operation Agreement, the Allied attempt to retake Tobruk from Rommel. It failed, but the novelty was how German 88s sunk a Brit destroyer. The HMS Sikh got in too close, presuming the coastal artillery would be traditionally inaccurate. But the German 88 crews were used to picking off airplanes and tanks at maximum range. They had a party, hitting not just the ship, but individual gun mountings, the bridge, the ammunition lockers, and anybody who tried to plug leaks. When another destroyer tried to tow the Sihk out of range, some sharp-eyed German shot the chain in half.
Historic Nevada scenery,
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It was boxes all afternoon, just not all carpentry. How would you like a turn at managememt? Yes? Okay, here’s the situations that need timely decisions. It takes 30 minutes to cut five sets of side panels and drill the thumbholes, so we don’t want to disturb that process. The logo is on one of the end pieces. This is easiest done while the box dissembled because the laser is inside the cabin sixty feet away. However, this obligates the assembly be done a certain way, and many of the cosmetic aspects are not evident until the box is mounted on the jig,
This picture shows just six of the eight boxes ready for yagasuki and they already stack to the rafters. I do no relish carrying those across the yard, through the kitchen, down the hall, and back again. Your input is requested.
Missing from the above materials and labor is the box bottoms. The best design, including sales appeal, is the recessed bottom slats. I have built both other possible designs and they look funny or take too long. What goes wrong with my system is the dimensions vary enough that the final slat must be custom cut. It takes 30 minutes to assemble the five sets without the bottom—if everything goes smoothly. (Today it did not, the wood was hard to work with, requiring a lot of clamping.)
To conserve wood, I slice three slats for the bottom. Turns out it is not that easy. No amount of careful measurement gets it close enough. This next photo shows two of the pieces cut and installed, you can see there is no problem with precision, you cannot fit an Aztec razor blade between those cuts. But that third and final piece never (not once) has ever fit snugly across the width. I usually leave it a bit proud, then run over it with the electric planer which never works exactly right. Don’t make it too shallow or you will wind up throwing out too much wood. So the box bottom is the expensive bottleneck.
That made for a quiet evening of reading, and I did make a loaf pan of bread pudding, that’s today’s food mention. I wonder about people who say they cannot smell vanilla. They probably don’t drink coffee, either, the poor saps. How do people plan without coffee? What was I planning? If I rig up the small table saw, I can create a Z-box with a rabbet joint, which I’ve made before and I like the results. But it uses more glue and the piece with the exposed end-grain is prone to warping. So my quest is to learn about sealing end-grains. Here’s what I found.
First lesson, there is no magic to it. I was hoping to find a method or product that was easy and did not involve using even more glue. Sealing goop costs even more than the glue, so scre that. Plus, who has time to apply it with a paint brush. My thinking after this is to simply seal the pores with the cheapest glue I can find, probably watered down ModgePodge To wind down the day, I put in 30 minutes reading the score to “Hotel California”.
That’s when I read that Target, the store that does not hire White people, shows that its largest annual expense is employee theft. Serves them right.
ADDENDUM
I was up a little late, not happy with some of the passing notes to Lennon’s “Imagine” until I figured out the snag was a mistake in the recording. The piano player, probably Lennon, added a turnaround that’s inconsistent. My policy is to play mistakes just like anything else, so I added in new notes that fit. Then I watched the effect on video. Hmmm, maybe I should hold back playing this version, it could scare off some of the weaker specimens.
Mind you, I’ve seen lot more mediocre bands with a great song list who are in demand than bands who expertly play the wrong mix. I like Mozart, but I don’t play it in a crowded after hours country bar on a Friday night, is what I’m saying. You do not want your crowd waiting for your breaks because what they want is on the juke box—I’m even suggesting (and remember you heard it here for the first time in history) that getting requests is often a sign of band list failure.
