66F and 99%RH.
Spent last evening in our HOA meeting. It was our “year in review” meeting, and had the election of our section reps. Most people were elected by 6-8 votes, and the contested elections were both won by 2 votes. LOCAL is where your vote counts most. Use it.
Our long serving (but retiring) City Councilwoman was there to present the current state of our district, and projects of concern to us (mainly flood control.) Again, knowing her, recognizing her and her aides, and perhaps most importantly, being recognized by her from other meetings and other organizations is important. Like them or hate them, if we are to have rule of law, it starts close to home.
Civic engagement takes time, and takes getting out of the house. It doesn’t mean knocking on every door in the ‘hood and chatting with the residents, but you won’t meet them, or see them, or be seen by them, sitting at home.
Your city council, HOA, school board, Park District, or Business improvement district are all made up of neighbors. They (arguably) have more direct impact on your life than the madarins in DC. Get involved. Don’t let the selfish manipulating progs fill every position and do whatever they want.
Thus endeth the post.
n
Those dang amish are at it again…
When will they ever learn that violence never solved anything?
n
A bit of good news…
I have never lived even close to a HOA. Based on the complaints I hear, how are these “associations” allowed to get in control? Serious question.
Here, we have enough trouble from our county govt. Thank FSM the county seat is 120 miles away, separated from us by a big mountain range, and doesn’t care much about us.
Obviously I Can Beat Him Again’: Hillary
https://dailycaller.com/2019/10/08/hillary-clinton-says-she-could-win-2020/
Me thinks she is obsessed with Trump.
@JimB
I’ve never lived in one either but I known several that have. Some are good and some not so. The horror stories are from indifferent homeowners who allow the control freaks to take over or over zealous management companies. Many of these home owners forget they own the organisation.
You’re lucky to live where you do. My last home I lived in an unincorporated county area and had a county code compliance officer come to my door because supposedly someone (anon of course) complained. My front foliage was over the 48″ deemed the limit in front of the setback.
We live in a neighborhood with a HOA. Where we live, it was all farmland 20 years ago. As neighborhoods were built, the developers created HOA’s for them, and server as the board members. When the neighborhoods were built out, they transferred the HOA board duties to the neighborhoods. Most hire a management company to handle most tasks. Some HOA’s are more strict than others. We specifically didn’t even look in several neighborhoods because of their nazi HOA’s.
Our HOA isn’t too bad, but like any organization with any sort of power, there are those that will try and take advantage. I successfully put down an attempt by ours to overreach their authority. I also stand up and ask questions. As stated above, most people just don’t understand that THEY have an equal interest in the HOA.
I have never lived even close to a HOA. Based on the complaints I hear, how are these “associations” allowed to get in control? Serious question.
I’ve flogged that expired equine plenty around here. Most of the time, the HOA is set up by a developer to pay for things like common areas and street lights, and anytime a property transfer takes place in the subdivision, the buyers sign acknowledgement of the deed restrictions at closing.
Up until 20 years ago, problem HOAs existed but were uncommon. Once houses came to be viewed as investments more than places to live, however, sphincters puckered, and in states with looser regulations, abuse of authority in the interest of enforcing subjective standards became the exception rather than the rule.
I joined my HOA board specifically to prevent the rules nazi’s from taking it over. It’s been pretty easy going so far.
Cankles is off her rocker. She is milking the sheeple for every last penny.
The cynical view: Cankles is all about the Benjamins.
The hilarious view: Cankles thinks she won last time and will win this time. It’s her turn!
The synthesis of the views: They’re both correct.
https://dailycaller.com/2019/10/08/hillary-clinton-says-she-could-win-2020/
Me thinks she is obsessed with Trump.
Me thinks she is obsessed.
The cash balance at the Clinton Foundation must be dropping.
“The Latest: Outages could spread throughout California”
https://www.chron.com/business/technology/article/The-Latest-Power-outages-begin-in-California-14503490.php
“Wildfire-prevention power shutoffs affecting thousands of people in northern and central California could spread to other parts of the state where gusty and dry conditions are expected.”
“Pacific Gas and Electric shut off power to more than half a million customers Wednesday in Northern California in the biggest planned shut off in the state’s history.”
“Southern California Edison is considering power shutoffs to nearly 174,000 customers in nine counties and San Diego Gas & Electric says it has notified about 30,000 customers in backcountry areas.”
Wow. All because they cannot maintain their equipment and cut back the brush and trees from the power lines. Somebody is making a point here.
And
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-10-08/pge-power-shutdown-winds-critical-fire-danger
I thought they shut down the Clinton Foundation…
HOA, established by the builder when he built the subdivision, 50+ years ago. Most of the deed restrictions are reasonable and have served the neighborhood well. Some new ones, added the MONTH I moved in, are more egregious- like the prohibition on “clutter”.
Speaking of clutter, I’ve skipped my ham lunch to work on my clutter.
Yesterday I got the 45 gallons of gasoline dosed with sta-bil and put away. Those were the cans I rotated and filled before our hurricane.
Today I broke down and vac sealed the meat I bought Monday, putting 5 pounds into the crockpot for carnitas (one half will be frozen when cooked), 4 ribeye steaks (one # each), and 5 pounds of chicken legs in the freezer. The chicken was 99c/# and the ribeye was <$5/# for bone in select grade. Had it for dinner on Monday and it was delicious. Had sausage and red beans and rice mix from mid-term storage for dinner last night. Got some groceries put away.
Next up, 2 pallets to the auction.
If time, stop at Costco.
n
Our HOA in San Antonio forbade any kind of trailer parked in your drive way. My brother lived with us for awhile and had a boat on a trailer. We put it in the garage, but the hitch stuck out. Nope, had to move it under threat of lawsuit and lien. That’s the same house that the IRS put a lien on based on their mistake. No apology, just got a *flimsy* copy of lien release.
Aha, developers create HOAs; that explains it. No developers in our immediate area. Just acreage, and each house was created by its first owner. It’s really a patchwork of like minded residents who don’t seem to want any outside interference.
The only thing we lack is paved streets, and the majority of owners are opposed to them. We would have to pave them ourselves, since we are not a “development.” Originally, we had a half mile to the nearest paved road. Over the years, that has improved dramatically. Now, we are a half mile to the nearest paved road in THREE directions :-!
63 pounds of mostly aluminum scrap, $13.46 richer, and some clutter out of the driveway.
One pallet of auction loaded, and I’m off….
n
carnitas cooking smells GOOD
I thought they shut down the Clinton Foundation…
What was once shutdown can be easily reopened for Hillary to accept foreign campaign donations …
The only thing we lack is paved streets, and the majority of owners are opposed to them. We would have to pave them ourselves, since we are not a “development.” Originally, we had a half mile to the nearest paved road. Over the years, that has improved dramatically. Now, we are a half mile to the nearest paved road in THREE directions :-!
Gravel streets or dirt ?
I paved my gravel streets with asphalt back to my office building. Expensive ! $2.30/ft2 with three inches of asphalt.
Wow. All because they cannot maintain their equipment and cut back the brush and trees from the power lines. Somebody is making a point here.
The CA power grid was already inadequate. That’s what Enron taught the world.
Dirt, but our “dirt” is mostly decomposed granite with just enough fines to compact to something close to concrete. Seriously, a pick will bounce off it, and water washes over it without much absorbsion. Even uncompacted desert “sand” has really low permeability, which is why we can have flash floods from very little rainfall. I can pour a bucket of water on the ground, and it will roll around as if there were oil mixed into the sand. Eventually it will soak in.
I am not a CE, but could play one on TV. In my limited formal knowledge, the soil here is some of the best I have ever seen from an engineering standpoint. It works easily with power diggers and graders, but compacts well for roads and foundations. All local roads (not state highways) are just paving on top of compacted soil. Some of these roads are decades old, and are still fine. I believe this is due to the absence of soaking rain and frost.
As for the “road” I live on, it was once just a graded path. When we poured our garage slab, the mixer trucks hardly left any tracks on the road or our yard.
Yet, those who grow stuff (not me) just add organic material and fertilizer, plus lots of water, and the stuff grows. I don’t have a green thumb.
PG&E is in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation.
The last two big fires in CA (Paradise last year, the wine ecountry one the year before) were caused by high winds. The wine country one was not caused by PG&E equipment/infrastructure, but a ‘private’ wire.
There are “106,681 circuit miles of electric distribution lines and 18,466 circuit miles of interconnected transmission lines.” (one source). That’s a lot of trees/bushes to cut down; many of them in very remote areas.
It’s a complex issue, especially in forested areas that have minimal oversight on proper fire protection. The houses in Paradise, for example, are on wooded lots, and many did not have proper fire protection practices. Many were wood siding, bark as compost, wood shingles, etc. And many were mobile homes.
There were a few houses that survived because they took the proper precautions. But your fire protection is only as good as your neighbors’. And one spark with high winds (40+mph) will travel several miles.
To see the sense of what PG&E has to deal with, this is their updates plan. https://www.pge.com/pge_global/common/pdfs/safety/emergency-preparedness/natural-disaster/wildfires/Wildfire-Safety-Plan.pdf There are many remote monitoring of lines/weather.
If you live in a forested/fire-risk area, then take the proper precautions for your property (‘fire-wise’) and yourself. Expect power to be out due to high winds. Or preventive precautions, as PG&E must do. Or cut down all of the trees within one mile of every powerline.
And putting wires underground would work, if it wasn’t so fricking expensive. Figure $1 million per mile (minimum). High voltage wiring at about $5 million/mile. Or $100 billion to do high-voltage wires everywere.
And that cost gets to be paid by the ratepayers. On power that is already very expensive in CA.
Speaking of organic stuff, since my study was electrical engineering, I only took one chemistry course in college, and part of it was organic chemistry, as in hydrocarbons. Whenever someone mentions organically grown fruit or vegetables, I wonder if the farmer poured hydrocarbons on the soil. I would make a very lousy farmer.
I always ask if the other food is made of rocks, since it must be inorganic.
I think the point being made is by the power company. Since the power company was found liable for massive fires in CA and on the hook for damages, the power company is getting even.
Along with making certain the power company cannot be held liable as they have done due diligence. Liberal CA refused to accept responsibility and passed the buck. Now the power company is making certain that the pain of losing the court battle will spread as far as possible.
I really don’t blame the directors. If I were on the board I would applaud the exact same response to high winds.
I only took one chemistry course in college, and part of it was organic chemistry, as in hydrocarbons. Whenever someone mentions organically grown fruit or vegetables, I wonder if the farmer poured hydrocarbons on the soil. I would make a very lousy farmer.
Hydrocarbons (just carbon and hydrogen) are just a teeny tiny part of organic chemistry. Adding fluorine, sodium, chlorine, iron, oxygen, nitrogen, or many other fun elements to a hydrocarbon raises all kinds of exciting possibilities and issues. Over half of our component database in our software is not hydrocarbons.
And I suck as a farmer too. I have proof !
And putting wires underground would work, if it wasn’t so fricking expensive. Figure $1 million per mile (minimum). High voltage wiring at about $5 million/mile. Or $100 billion to do high-voltage wires everywere.
I think that your costs are understated by a factor of ten. And putting wires underground does not solve all issues, in fact adds new issues such as flooding and seismic.
https://www.constructiondive.com/news/going-underground-the-power-of-burying-electrical-lines/511910/
I have a 20 kilovolt three phase line buried in the back yard. I have wondered several times how they keep it from flooding as there has been water over the top of the transformer crypt several times. Nothing is waterproof over time.
Speaking of organic stuff, since my study was electrical engineering, I only took one chemistry course in college, and part of it was organic chemistry, as in hydrocarbons. Whenever someone mentions organically grown fruit or vegetables, I wonder if the farmer poured hydrocarbons on the soil. I would make a very lousy farmer.
A true “artificial” color or smell doesn’t exist. The chemists at IFF and chemists find them in nature somewhere and figure out how to harvest the molecules intact.
“Astronauts Just Grew Meat in Space for the First Time”
https://futurism.com/the-byte/astronauts-grew-space-meat-first-time
“In 2018, Israeli-based food tech startup Aleph Farms made a breakthrough in the alt-meat industry by creating the world’s first lab-grown steak, a hunk of cell-cultured meat that mimicked the texture and structure of the beef you’d find at the supermarket.”
“The company hopes to one day provide access to nutritious slaughter-free meat to everyone on Earth — and maybe everyone in space, too, as astronauts have now used Aleph’s process to successfully grow meat on the International Space Station.”
Now we can build that generation ship to the stars.
So. Somewhat bored but not quite time to start supper. Clicked over to Jerry’s site. Re-read his last post.
“Bye for now. ”
Dang if the hair on my arms didn’t stand up like the first time I read it.
That is all.
California actually has fairly stringent building fire codes for homes in forested and unincorporated rural areas.
I was looking into buying a cabin property in the mountains a few years back and did some research into requirements. As I recall: fireproof walls, fireproof roof, vegetation setback, a water supply and standard HYDRANT no closer than 50′ and no further than 100′ from the structure, accessible by standard (large) fire equipment, capable of supplying 60psi of a certain flow rate for 45 minutes…
I doubt that 1 in a 100 of the Paradise houses was up to code. The place in the Tehachapi’s I was looking at certainly wasn’t.
I have a deep blue leaning relative in the deep blue SF Bay Area sending me plaintive texts today. It’s hard not to laugh, because:
I had *predicted* back early this year when the state essentially gave carte blanche to the utilities to turn off power without even asking for permission from the state that exactly this would happen. Every owner and every corporate board of every electric utility in California saw the state hang PG&E, and every one determined not to be the next bankrupt corpse.
I did the research, bought a generator, and let friends and family know what was up and what was likely to happen.
And…this will surprise exactly no-one here…not one person acted.
I did the research, bought a generator, and let friends and family know what was up and what was likely to happen.
And…this will surprise exactly no-one here…not one person acted.
They donated that money to Hillary’s and Newsom’s campaigns, trusting the Good and the Great to take care of them.
I was looking into buying a cabin property in the mountains a few years back and did some research into requirements. As I recall: fireproof walls, fireproof roof, vegetation setback, a water supply and standard HYDRANT no closer than 50′ and no further than 100′ from the structure, accessible by standard (large) fire equipment, capable of supplying 60psi of a certain flow rate for 45 minutes…
When and if I build another office warehouse on my commercial property here in Fort Bend County, Texas, I have to add a 10,000 gallon water tank, connect my well pump to the tank, add a pressurization pump (30 gpm at 65 psig), a fire pressure pump (400 psig), and a generator capable of powering both pumps. About $200,000. The new 6,250 ft2 five tenant office warehouse will be $400,000. I could rent the five 1,250 ft2 spaces today at $1,000/month each or so.
I am not sure that I will ever do it. But I need to do so to get more tenants on the property to help me pay the property taxes on the fourteen acres of land.
California actually has fairly stringent building fire codes for homes in forested and unincorporated rural areas.
Well, yes. But those fire codes did not apply to older/existing homes. Many of the homes in Paradise were old. (Don’t know the actual ages.)
The point is that PG&E is (probably) acting somewhat responsibly to turn off power in high-risk ares during high-risk fire weather events. Suppose they didn’t, and there was another fire. And “they need to trim the trees” is not a simple thing. The PG&E current plan (pdf referenced above) is a good start. Takes mucho time/$$$ to implement. And the ratepayers get to foot the bill.
There are no simple answers. But being prepared with a ‘power-gone’ plan is a good idea, if you can. There are resources available for those that can’t. But you are better off if you have your own plan.
There were power outages in my area the past few days (wind-related). Last weekend, I fired up the generator to make sure all is well. I’ve got the bypass panel ready. All lights are LEDs. I can run 6 circuits for refrigerator, freezer, LED TV, DirectTV, wife’s oxygen generator, and only pull about 2500 Watts.
And, of course, I have many FLASHLIGHTS.
I do have a background worry about all the trees here. I have tall pine/ash forests all around me. About 100 feet away from the house. But the house siding is concrete siding (horizontal), composite roof, and it’s pretty green around here, even during the summer.
@ed– And that is why we prep!
@ RickH– I’d suggest getting a backup O2 generator too, or having some bottles put aside. I paid ~$50 for the O2 generator I have here. It didn’t have a battery or power supply though. I intend to set up a micro torch for jewelry type repairs. There are good youtube examples.
I see them a couple of times a year at estate sales or in the auctions.
ebay has a supply but they are much more expensive.
n
I’ve had several warning calls, texts and emails from PG&E the last two days. My location is not under threat but may experience an outage because of nearby wildland areas.
Yeah Ray I’ve mentioned the vindictive angle too but there is also the fact when the power goes off the meter quits turning. Not that PG&E has ever before not been allowed a guaranteed profit by the CPUC.
I am not sure that I will ever do it. But I need to do so to get more tenants on the property to help me pay the property taxes on the fourteen acres of land.
You can’t build a fence and lease part of the land to someone with cows?
@Nick: we have a portable oxy generator with about 6-7 hours of battery capability. Plus a tall ‘bottle’ oxygen tank. Plus an auto-charger for the unit.
I am not sure that I will ever do it. But I need to do so to get more tenants on the property to help me pay the property taxes on the fourteen acres of land.
You can’t build a fence and lease part of the land to someone with cows?
I ain’t building no fence and chasing cows at 2 am in the morning. I’ve been there and done that to my heart’s content. And then some.
And stacking 1,000 freaking square bales of hay in the barn about ten rows high. I sneeze nowadays just thinking about doing that.
“In the dark: Outraged Californians scramble to get supplies as the PG&E power cut off is expected to affect about 2 million people – closing schools, shuttering businesses and overwhelming roadways
The PG&E power shutoff began Wednesday morning and is the largest effort to combat wildfires caused by windblown power lines in the state’s history
Californians are outraged as the PG&E’s power shutoff, announced on Tuesday, forces them to scramble for supplies
Schools have been cancelled, businesses shut down, roadways overwhelmed with disabled traffic lights and dwindling supplies in stores ”
“At Moroga Hardware and Lumber, the owner Bill Snider said they sold 500 flashlights and were pressed for items like extension cords.
Generators were dwindling and near impossible to find. ”
–srsly? you don’t own a FLASHLIGHT? or an extension cord? And you live in Cali, where earthquakes happen, and rolling blackouts are a thing?
NO sympathy at all.
n
@rick, sounds like you’ve got it covered then, esp. if you have extra gas for the vehicle….
n
Rick:
Yep, old houses and old code. I think I passed through in the mid or late 1990’s and thought it very nice.
I was at a wedding in Glen Ellen exactly a day before the firestorm there in 2017 (the actual wedding party was still there and evacuated through flames…something to tell the kids). The older hotel we were at (Aventine Glen Ellen) had just been renovated and came through mostly unscathed while most structures up and down the road were gone. Oak, scrub and grass, very pretty but a disaster waiting to happen.
I’m not much for increased government regulation, but perhaps house sheathing and roofing should be moved into the “safety egress” category, i.e., no grandfathering?
Stomp your tiny feet, Cupcake. Maybe Grabbin’ Nuisance will make those mean capitalists turn on the power so you never have to think ahead.
In my youth, high school years, myself and the two other members of my hay crew would do about four times that each week for about four months during the summer. Some farms we worked, with sorter haul distances and good barn access we could do a 1,000 bales a day. It was tough work. I don’t miss it.
When I loaded four bales of straw at Home Depot the worker commented that I apparently knew how to handle hay bales. Yep, there is a knack to loading a bale using the legs to assist the arms. Use the mass to your benefit and it is not difficult to get 60 pounds up to the shoulders.
Generators in California?! Who can afford the gas?
PG&E reports the conditions have improved and there will be no outages in the southern SJV. Phone, text and email again.
Hay hooks? Nah, either power conveyors or illegals. (only time I ever used them was on hay fires but bulldozers work better.)
Bulldoze the illegals atop the hay fires? Well, it’s kinder than what I’d do with them.
Oh yes, big heavy ones, custom made for my needs. Razor sharp tips. No stirrup style for me. Single steel rod, bent in the correct shape, no welds, longer than standard style. Also used chaps to protect the pants, thin and highly flexible leather gloves, straw full brim hat. Unfortunately I failed to wear long sleeve cotton shirts. My skin on my arms is now showing the results of the extended sun exposure. My grandfather always wore long sleeve shirts working on his road grader in the southern CA sun. I now know why.
Hay elevators were almost always used in the barn to unload the trailer. Especially as the barn stack got high. About 25 layers in some barns.
interesting list.
https://www.zerohedge.com/personal-finance/these-are-50-most-miserable-cities-america
I was born in one of the cities in the top half, and used to regularly pass thru Gary IN, the Number 1. Going thru Gary was a bit of a brag, showed how tough and fearless you were. One of my frat brothers lived there. I have a cousin who lives on the edge of Gary….
n
The PG&E power shutoff began Wednesday morning and is the largest effort to combat wildfires caused by windblown power lines in the state’s history
My guess is that something is going on with grid capacity in CA, and they’re using the wind as an excuse. Rolling blackouts when Enron gamed the grid got Grey-out Davis recalled and replaced with Ahhhhh-nold.
I was born in one of the cities in the top half, and used to regularly pass thru Gary IN, the Number 1. Going thru Gary was a bit of a brag, showed how tough and fearless you were. One of my frat brothers lived there. I have a cousin who lives on the edge of Gary….
Fort Pierce, FL is the head scratcher for me on that list. Not many people live there and the beaches were nice the last time I went through. Storm damage?
I’m surprised Fairview Heights isn’t on the list. I’ve noted here before that on my move west 10 years ago, within visual range of my car’s parking space at the hotel, the Best Buy and Red Lobster were scenes of racial incidents which made national news within a year.
At the Best Buy, the clerk at the door asked to check the wrong receipt. In Red Lobster, the waitress didn’t bring that bread fast enough … you know the rest.
(OTOH, even though it was the foundation of their business, in general, Darden couldn’t deliver the bread fast enough for that demographic at Red Lobster and gave up trying a few years ago.)
Even the original article https://www.businessinsider.com/most-miserable-cities-in-the-united-states-based-on-data-2019-9#1-gary-indiana-50 leaves the real reasons a mystery.
n
Even the original article leaves the real reasons a mystery.
Vantucky (Vancouver, WA) should also be on the list. 38% effective adult unemployment when we left and ground zero of the Measles pandemic (yes, it qualifies) last Winter.
Maybe it isn’t on the list because they have legalized weed.
Notice too, how many of those cities were effected by GM cutbacks. Way too many to be a coincidence…
And of course, after white flight, and however many blacks could flee, what was left?
n
Let me fix that for you:
‘PG&E reports that after calls from Cook, Brin and Zuckerberg asking that they “take off their engineers hat and put on their managers hat” that the winds were determined not to be an issue after all…’
Wow. To paraphrase Matthew Quigley, I never said I wasn’t impressed with chemistry, just that I didn’t understand it.
I have been especially impressed with the energy released by exothermic reactions: the combustion of propellants and explosives. Wonderful servants when used carefully.