Hot and wet. No, there is no joke about my likes or dislikes there, definitely not. Nope. Definitely not.
Yesterday was actually not so bad, on the roasted by the sun, steamed by the swamp scale. It was actually cool most of the morning and only slightly hot in the afternoon. So was I slaving away in my garage and driveway? No, I was not. SHOULD I have been? Yes. Yes I should have been.
Got stuff done, just not what I’d set for myself. I did finally deliver an ebay item sold back in February. Nice guy. Moving from Oceanside in Cali to Lake Conroe. Plans to spend the rest of his days there. Now I’ve got an open spot on a shelf, better fill it with something. OH, I just picked up another pair of vintage speakers? WTH is wrong with me? They are selling though, so there is that. Not much else is.
And so, I set myself up for today’s tasks. Work, freezer, work, pickups, freezer, garage, maybe put the half a squirrel in the trash, cook dinner… or I could combine some of those tasks. Hmm. Which ones?
It is the zombie apocalypse and we all need to learn new skills, right?
Speaking of selling, this is the time when you get out those cheap steel cased rounds, and the $324 PSA AR-15s and sell sell sell……… remember the ones you bought just so you could flip them when prices went up? But now you don’t WANT to sell them. You figure you might need them at some point. YOU were smart and got them cheap and stocked up, so now you’re covered, and why would you sell when there aren’t any replacements? What if things go pear shaped? Then you’ll wish you had the black rifles and not the worthless fiat bux…….. Or is it just me?
Ammo Depot had 762 in stock and shipping yesterday morning. They still had some late last night. It was roughly 27c/rd. They are showing some 223, at roughly $1/rd unless you want steel jacket, and even that is 40c/rd. Score one for the commie gun in the black rifle internet flame wars. Zombie apocalypse lite happens and your barbie gun goes hungry but your re-shaped shovel from krapistan is still affordable… Don’t delay, order some today…
No idea why my brain is where it’s at, but there is still time to stock up on some things. Body armor might be a smart choice, if you’ve got everything else taken care of…
No matter what it is, you probably don’t have enough if things really go sideways.
Keep stacking.
nick
(did I mention I tipped the AAA service guy with a few N95 masks? It felt…. very strange. The world is changing around us.)
Incredible night of testimony over the homeless shelters being rammed down our throats, and the circumvention of process. This was our fourth night that we ran out the clock, well over 20 hours of testimony. Plus hundreds of emails.
We continue 5 pm Wednesday 7/22/2020. I think we have about an hour of testifiers. We need 7 hours to run out the clock again. If we can run it to midnight two more nights, we will seriously embarrass the Mayor as he has confidently stated they will vote Thursday.
Lots of empty platitudes and faux concern and interest. They got tired of having their bored expressions being turned into wickedly funny “listening to peasants” memes.
I’m tired. Full day of work then back at it.
The Assembly has no idea what they’ve done. We have been told Fox News is thinking about running a story. You heard it here first.
@Nick: I am trying to sell an old Mamiya film camera (twin lens reflex) on eBay. I got this message:
My scam detector went off almost immediately. I did not respond to the phone number but instead sent a message on eBay saying if he is interested put the money in the PayPal account, plus the shipping cost, and I will send the camera to a US address only. You being the best expert on this I am aware, what say yee?
Incredible night of testimony over the homeless shelters being rammed down our throats, and the circumvention of process. This was our fourth night that we ran out the clock, well over 20 hours of testimony. Plus hundreds of emails.
A conservative group gathered enough signatures to put a repeal of Austin’s “urban camping” ordinance on the ballot in November. We’ll see where that goes.
City Council enacted the ordinance without any public vote, but that isn’t nearly as disturbing as the homeless suddenly being provisioned with new camping gear the morning after the measure passed.
Yes, they do. They just got caught.
If one were to do some extended digging there is profit motive for some (maybe all) members of the council. A second cousin owning the property, or something along those lines. That type of behavior has been uncovered several times in Knoxville. But without a signature of a council member enriching their extended family on some document there is little that can be done. Bill Haslam was the beneficiary of many less than honorable deals in the city.
If one were to do some extended digging there is profit motive for some (maybe all) members of the council. A second cousin owning the property, or something along those lines. That type of behavior has been uncovered several times in Knoxville. But without a signature of a council member enriching their extended family on some document there is little that can be done. Bill Haslam was the beneficiary of many less than honorable deals in the city.
Mucky mucks in Tampa, including at least one member of City Council , own the right to redevelop the housing projects located in between Downtown and Ybor City, the bacchanalia -er- entertainment district. As a result, any public high speed rail project proposed over the last 20 years was crippled with the requirement to terminate at the decaying Amtrak station nearby and not Tampa International Airport, which might actually make financial sense and greatly enhance transportation in the region.
The thing to do with enemies is frame them for felonies. #ComeToMeForMoreGoodAdvice
Jenny, good luck on the meetings. And keep up the mockery of the slime.
Ray is unquestionably right that they’re upset only that they got caught. He’s almost certainly right about someone profiting, though maybe it’s nothing more than a feel of virtue purchased with others’ money and at others’ harm.
I used to be addicted to vintage audio electronics, to the point I had to rent a storage unit to hold them all. Dozens of speakers, amps, tuners, pre-amps, both tubed and transistorized. I can’t think of any well known brand or unit (in the vintage audio community) I haven’t owned and used at one time or another.
I broke the habit, and refined my home system down to a Pioneer SX-1010 hooked up to a double stack of Original Advent Loudspeakers, and a Dual 701 Direct Drive Turntable for my (extensive) vinyl collection.
So, as for those pesky speakers magically turning up every now and then, yeah, I understand that.
My father had a very similar stereo. Possibly the same model. He bought it in southeast Asia during one of his tours in Vietnam. Lots of fond memories of that thing. I think my brother has it buried somewhere.
@ray, SCAM. Not sure how the mechanics work but ebay policy is VERY CLEAR- no off ebay communication. I couldn’t even send the guy who picked up my speakers yesterday my cell or address, since he forgot to bring his sales record.
I had to refund him a dollar on paypal so I could put the info on the receipt….
Have no further contact with the scammer.
n
(it’s a new one on my, I’ll have to think about how it would work)
Some other excitement in AK last night….
From FEMA-
n
Scanner just had lifeflight picking up an “11yo hispanic male, shot in face, currently stable.”
It’s a little early to be shooting kids in the face, even by gangbanger standards. WTF?
n
MORE rain in the gulf region.
n
@bill,
I had decided not to sell speakers any more after a scammer, bad marks on my ebay, and general nuisance of dealing with dopers…
But then vintage gear started falling in my lap. VINTAGE speaker buyers are different from your average musician and from someone buying used pc or bookshelf speakers for $12 online.
Yesterday’s pickup was a vintage pair of Rectilinear model IIIs with walnut cabinets. Not too big, not today’s small, I can’t figure out how to get the grills off to check the cones and foam.
I forget how GOOD big speakers moving lots of air can sound. A lot of late 70s and early 80s speaker lore was complete BS, but man some of the old stuff sounds GOOD.
n
I used to have a Marantz 2270, 70 true watts per channel with an almost flat curve from 20-20k hertz. I had it tested at a MacIntosh clinic. I always drooled over the MacIntosh stuff.
I also had a pair of JBL L-100’s connected to the receiver. Sounded really good.
At the clinic a fellow had brought in his 10 year old MacIntosh amp to be tested. Tech checked it, went outside to his van, came back in with 8 new transistors. Tech said there was one of transistors out of spec and must be replaced. They are a matched set of eight. Replaced on the spot, no cost. Tech said the transistors cost $600.00 for the set. This was in 1973.
Ms. Jenny, I’ve been reading your posts on the homeless shelter with great interest. Along with Mr. Greg’s, it looks like a ProgLibTurd action to crush traditional social values, and, make a buck at the same time.
Mr. Ray is right. The Council got caught polishing their turd and are getting slapped in the face. Do they ever mention how much it will cost ad infinitum to maintain the “bum motel”? Utilities, repairs, maintenance and management. Probably contract “Uncle Fred” to do it. Kickbacks. Directly pay for city services. Kickback. I pray your group wins out over this.
File this under ‘march to war’–
— note that all of this was set up while the distraction of wuflu has been dominating the headlines.
n
To All:
I’m enjoying watching Professional Sport destroy themselves with SJW crap. Sports will have to reinvent itself to survive the stupidity. Rollerball, anyone?
“…I guess that’s just the cowboy in me.”
I could watch Women’s Curling and Women’s Beach Volleyball all day long. Just sayin’. 🙂
Anyone got a guess how long it takes a 2000 gallon per hour pool pump to empty the top third of a 5000 gallon pool when the hose on the return line comes undone?
…
Water bill is going to be insane this month.
After we left Florida but before our house sold, the Colonel Bat Guano neighbors helped themselves to enough water from my house to refill their swimming pool. I’m guessing they had the pool relined. 20,000 gallons.
I’ll have the last laugh, though. New non-asbestos pool liner materials don’t react well to soft water, and the outside spigot closest to their house was mistakenly plumbed off of the post-softener line. Doh! The liner probably fell apart still under warranty — can you say lawsuit?
“We advised the homeowners not to fill the pool with soft water?”
“We didn’t use soft water.”
“Can you identify for the court the location of the spigot used to fill the pool?”
When I vacate a home I turn off the water main, gas main, and main breaker on my way out the door the last time. Unless it’s winter in which case I leave the gas and electric on as I don’t want held responsible for plumbing that freezes and bursts.
My brother lived in a crappy part of town in his 20s. One Spring the snow melted and he noticed the neighbor had an extension cord running from an outlet on the side of my brother’s house and into the neighbor’s basement window. The guy had been stealing electric for God knows how long. I would have called the cops to report the utility theft. My brother just disconnected the extension cord, rolled it up, kept the cord, and then kicked in the neighbors basement window.
@Jenny:
Our local NIMBYs have been successful in delaying a homeless shelter by yapping at the city council. Proposed shelter is about 2 miles from my back yard.
Page A3 if this will open up for you:
https://ocregister-ca.newsmemory.com/?utm_email=75B34594B515623EB40E240902
What the council members should do if the commie judge who ordered the shelter puts a time limit on them: simply resign from office several days before limit, then also all future council members the same. Will the judge order them incarcerated for contempt of communism?
My cute union story:
When I was one year old, my parents and grandparents opened up a supermarket in a midwestern town. My grandfather started a fruit stand in that town many years before, and it evolved into a small family store. When My father returned from Korea, they started plans on opening a single modern supermarket. The only way that they could make the numbers work was to plan on being open on Sundays. (Union chain supermarkets weren’t open on Sundays in the mid ‘50s.)
Enter the union big shots. They demanded a meeting, on our property, which was their right by law, with all of the store employees, most of which had been with us for many years. Many more were siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. The officious bastards raged and fumed at the greed of my parents and grandparents, demanding that the gathered workers form a union and destroy my family’s stranglehold that they had on their rights and freedoms. The union bosses were the only ones that could stand up to my family, they raged. But since my family was already paying union wages, and since they knew that my family were not the bloodthirsty ogres that the union bosses tried to portray them as, the gathered employees decided to a man to vote down the union.
Did this stop the unions? Not in the slightest.
They started a campaign of terror that started on the first day of the grand opening, and continued for months. They put bums outside the store with signs, blocking the way in and trying to portray my family as grossly unfair capitalist pigs. Mostly these thugs appeared on Sundays.
The union bosses threatened to do many illegal things, implying that our family might not be safe walking the streets or going to school, but despite my Dad trying, he could not catch them threatening us when he had a hidden tape recorder going.
They stopped their harassment when they realized that our supermarket’s parking lot was more full when they were there than at any other time.
For years after that, my father, when he saw one of the union thugs in a restaurant or store would say, “Business is a little slow, could you bring your friends and some signs and picket us?”
I left that town twenty some years later. One of the unions had just won a great victory in closing down a farm equipment assembly plant. The people in charge of the plant told the unions that they could no longer submit to their demands of more money and more days off for the union members, shut the plant down, and walked away from the negotiating table forever. I left that town to the sound of the union members high fiving each other in victory as they stood in line at the unemployment office.
RE: Anchorage homeless and Assembly
We who are fighting this have no illusions about changing their minds. One is a true believer, one aims to be the next mayor, at least one we have reason to believe is going to make a ridiculous amount of money as a result of this down the road, one is eager to blow the problem OUT of his district. The Mayor is trying to fulfill his promise to deal with the problem and to leave a legacy to catapult him to the next office.
They were tolerating but ignoring our testimony the first two nights. Then hysterical memes started getting distributed mocking the Assembly members for having to tolerate the peasants. The third night they were faking concern and mouthing platitudes. They have fooled some of the testifiers.
When I say they don’t realize what they’ve done, I mean they have revealed themselves and woken up the sleeping conservatives. Certainly they knew exactly what they were doing with the ordinances, and they are annoyed that we mere peasants caught them at it and have embarrassed and delayed them.
I don’t believe they ever intended all four properties. One property they’ll buy and shut down current services, then sell to -ahem- someone who will build million dollar condos. The one next to the wealthy neighborhood will be dropped to soothe the folks with deep pockets and lawyers. The one by us will go through, we are a 30 acre neighborhood of working class and 150 houses nobody knows about. The last one will go through because that neighborhood has enough liberals to overwhelm saner voices.
I’m looking at homes in the next town over and an hour away. I do NOT want to commute. But living next to an -expletive deleted- will be worse. I have some small hope that the legal efforts will be successful, that the recall efforts will be successful. This Assembly has been bold and aggressive. Looks like my new date night is Tuesdays at the Assembly, unless we move out to the valley.
I’m sorry, but are you implying that standing next to an assembly line and holding an air wrench isn’t worth $40/hour? You capitalist pig!
When I vacate a home I turn off the water main, gas main, and main breaker on my way out the door the last time. Unless it’s winter in which case I leave the gas and electric on as I don’t want held responsible for plumbing that freezes and bursts.
We had to leave the water main on for the sprinklers until the house sold. Plus, thanks to the realtwhore’s attempts to pad her commission *despite being family* at our expense, the house didn’t sell for another three months after my wife vacated the property, and the last thing you want to happen in FL is for the toilet water supply to slowly drain/evaporate to the point where the sewer gases get out into the drywall.
@Jenny, WRT to the “homeless”, has anyone challenged the proponents with having them opening each of their own houses to 6, 10, or more “homeless” first?
Playing my “old man card” again, I can remember when… (well you don’t need another @Dad talk)
Continuing problems with our USPS, yesterday I reported our Substitute Carrier for the umpteenth time this month, again for putting our mail into someone else’s mailbox. It is getting to be an every afternoon gettogether of the neighbors at the mailbox as we sort out the mail to the correct recipients. I finally heard from (she called me) our normal outstanding exceptional carrier (she broke her foot a while back and started “desk duty” this week). She said the USPS is in chaos and the Union is doing a “confrontation and slowdown” action (which as a Union Officer she does not condone). She said in her 30+ years as a Carrier she has never seen such a situation of pure disdain for their customers and confrontation with the spineless management. She said the USPS has hired a bunch of absolutely stupid lazy (more so than normal) people and they are exacerbating the problem. She has enough “points” to retire but she wants to wait until she and her husband turn 62 in a few years so she and her husband can retire together (he doesn’t work for USPS), but she doesn’t know if she can continue to take the current crap.
The local school districts are trying to figure out what to do. They have all decided that there will be absolutely no fall or winter sports. They can’t decide/figure out how to restart schools. The parents keep begging for the schools to reopen and the teachers say “no way”. And what about the money? Well…
Have a nice day y’all. Going to be our 10th straight day of 100-degree+ weather with no relief in sight for at least another 10-days. This heat and all the craziness is going to soon boil over into something ugly. WA State is a mask mandatory state and the confrontations are getting ugly.
Ms. Jenny, I’ve been reading your posts on the homeless shelter with great interest. Along with Mr. Greg’s, it looks like a ProgLibTurd action to crush traditional social values, and, make a buck at the same time.
I strongly suspect Academy supplied the tents to the homeless in Austin. The chain started here and still has ties to the community, but the HQ bugged out elsewhere a long time ago.
Rain has stopped and the sun is currently steaming things up. 93F in my driveway.
https://videos.dailymail.co.uk/video/mol/2020/07/21/4323831480202446743/1024x576_MP4_4323831480202446743.mp4
Ah Chicago. That video is pretty impressive in the sense that it actually covers a lot of ground, even if it is a bit stale.
Anyone use the BLOXEL toy/learning tool/game dev app? I picked up two at the thrift store, but am having trouble getting them activated as the dev has decided to focus on the school market (awesome timing there) and hang everyone else out to dry. I’m interested in whether it’s worth the $20 to get the system working.
n
Our local school system just announced the first nine weeks of school will be virtual learning. I’m betting they don’t go back until 2021. Notice I didn’t say when in 2021…
Our local school system just announced the first nine weeks of school will be virtual learning. I’m betting they don’t go back until 2021. Notice I didn’t say when in 2021…
The whole point of the hysteria around the post 4th of July case numbers was to push the start of school into 2021, August if possible.
Teachers want to spend the next year “working” from home at full pay. The school systems are sympathetic, but those with bond issues on the ballot this year are hosed if they announce a 2021 delay too early.
HOK has already been paid for the stadium blueprints!
Work announced that we are on “work from home” until January for the Texas offices.
UPDATE: The local ISD has a “virtual town hall” scheduled for tonight. I just got the announcement.
Our district asked/surveyed parents whether to start in person or virtual. Turns out it was a 50/50 split. Teachers and staff were 80/20 virtual.
The board is now having an emergency meeting to look at pushing the start back 3 weeks, presumably hoping the split changes. No way is 3 weeks going to make a real difference in the situation at this point.
n
Thunder and lightning. Rain. Looks like I’m not taking a load to auction today.
n
Made for this era.
…donaldjohn…..DonaldJohn….DONALDJohn….DONALDJOHN….DONALDJOHN!….DONALDJOHN!
Ours was 37% resume in classroom with precautions, 31% resume in classroom with no precautions, 22% hybrid classroom and virtual, and 10% virtual only.
Once the WFH crowd starts going back to the office the fact that the school system doubles as a daycare service is going to become abundantly clear. Then the pressure will be on to either extend WFH or send the kids back to the classroom.
Over The Hedge: Hedge Vermin
https://www.gocomics.com/overthehedge/2020/07/22
Ah, the wife is kind.
‘I don’t believe it’: Huntington Beach a symbol of mask resistance as doubters abound
@CowboySlim: Isn’t this your neck of the woods?
MORE rain in the gulf region.
We have gotten 3 to 4 inches of rain so far today here on the west side of Fort Bend County.
Our local school system just announced the first nine weeks of school will be virtual learning. I’m betting they don’t go back until 2021. Notice I didn’t say when in 2021…
The whole point of the hysteria around the post 4th of July case numbers was to push the start of school into 2021, August if possible.
Teachers want to spend the next year “working” from home at full pay. The school systems are sympathetic, but those with bond issues on the ballot this year are hosed if they announce a 2021 delay too early.
I had an employee work from home “half time” with full pay in 2018. Her performance went to crap. I found out later that she was rebuilding her house for sale and had workmen in there almost every day. No wonder her job performance sucked. I will never do that again.
She later walked off the job and sent me an email that she was not going to work in the office ever again. I told her she just quit. She filed for unemployment and the TWC (Texas workforce commission) backed me up. Here in Texas, if a person gets unemployment, the employer has to pay back threefold. I was glad to win that battle.
I will never again allow an employee to work from home. Except the office manager. I sleep with her and I know she is doing her job when she works from home.
I strongly suspect Academy supplied the tents to the homeless in Austin. The chain started here and still has ties to the community, but the HQ bugged out elsewhere a long time ago.
Academy is based in Katy, Texas now. They are desperately trying to stay out of bankruptcy at the moment. One of my friends sons works there in advertising and is telling his parents about the weekly layoffs. They have been in trouble before the SARS-COV-2 mess.
@ DadCooks WRT to the “homeless”, has anyone challenged the proponents with having them opening each of their own houses to 6, 10, or more “homeless” first?
Heh. Look what’s happened to me opening my home to 1 person. I’ll be destitute before I get my “guest” out the door. I’m paying for a lawyer right now, she gets one for free from legal aid.
The Massachusetts legislature is still debating the 1 year extension on the eviction moratorium which was set to expire on August 18th (circled on my calendar). Yesterday the governor extended the moratorium by 2 months to October 17th. Apparently he can do that.
I’m wondering if this will stop banks from issuing mortgages in Mass? Why write a mortgage if you can’t enforce payment for a year or more? Same with a rental, why let a new tenant in if you are not sure they will pay you for a long time? Sure, they are supposedly responsible for paying eventually. Good luck getting blood from that stone.
I know this quote was about speakers & vintage audio equipment, but it’s also true of vintage recordings. Paul spent two whole days last week watching YouTube “Righteous Brothers Reaction” videos (there are hundreds of them), in which young people who’ve never heard them (or heard only in Top Gun/Ghost) watch and listen to one of their live performances for the first time. It blows. them. away. Several comment that they can’t believe this was recorded live, or done before the optimization that can be done with modern equipment (“that’s his real voice!”). Some of the women are moved to real tears. Some of those high notes give me involuntary chills, so the days were punctuated with shivers as I made peach jam and other canning listening from the kitchen LOL
@Jenny, prayers for all the work you are doing, and for God’s providence over your home – whether the current one or a new one.
A lot of what governors, mayors, and county boards across the nation are doing is of questionable legality if not outright illegal or unconstitutional (both state and federal), but there’s approximately no legal remedy because state legislators, judges, and other members of the ruling class aren’t calling them on it.
About all that’s left is passive resistance, which you’ll note is going on all over.
“First and last month plus security deposit” will turn into “twelve months in advance plus deposit”. And then there’ll be proposals for new laws to force landlords to rent because of the critical shortage of affordable housing.
“U.S. gives China 72 hours to shut Houston consulate as spying charges mount”
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-china-consulate/us-tells-china-to-shut-houston-consulate-in-move-china-calls-unprecedented-escalation-idUSKCN24N0UW
“China’s foreign ministry called the move an “unprecedented escalation” and threatened unspecified retaliation. Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the Chinese Embassy in the United States had received “bomb and death threats” because of “smears & hatred” fanned by Washington. ”
This is a big deal. I am not sure what game Trump is playing here but he is scorching the earth.
Hat tip to:
https://drudgereport.com/
I’m wondering if this will stop banks from issuing mortgages in Mass? Why write a mortgage if you can’t enforce payment for a year or more? Same with a rental, why let a new tenant in if you are not sure they will pay you for a long time? Sure, they are supposedly responsible for paying eventually. Good luck getting blood from that stone.
I wonder what happens if you do not pay your property taxes ?
he’s either a lightweight nothing, with too much ego and fluff for brains, or he’s serious and there was some serious shirt going on there. It’s a message for sure, hopefully the right people are drawing the right conclusions.
china money and influence in the entertainment industry is well known and about to go into overdrive, if I’m right. Saudi influence there has been reduced by their own reduced circumstances.
Assassination attempt on someone to send a message isn’t out of the question. That’s what would be next if this was a novel.
I’ve been tagging posts ‘march to war’ for a while…
n
I’m wondering if this will stop banks from issuing mortgages in Mass? Why write a mortgage if you can’t enforce payment for a year or more? Same with a rental, why let a new tenant in if you are not sure they will pay you for a long time? Sure, they are supposedly responsible for paying eventually. Good luck getting blood from that stone.
Doesn’t matter. The Fed eventually buys the mortgage paper for most loans. The institution which services the loan, where you send the check every month, collects an administrative fee for handling the money and pursuing any foreclosure should that become necessary.
If the Fed stopped buying the paper and mortgage rates even approached what used to be considered historic lows, say 6%, the housing market would crater. IIRC, the rule of thumb is $50k of value in the house for every 1% of mortgage rate, and cr*p shacks selling for $450k now would suddenly have trouble moving at $250k.
My first mortgage in FL in 2000 was 8.5%, and I paid nearly $150 in PMI to qualify for our house under lending standards which are best left at “draconian”. We thought we got a deal!
8.5% would trigger a depression in most parts of the country now. “Jingle mail” and suspicious arsons would be the new norm.
You know the answer to that. Property taxes are, as someone else here comments occasionally, rent to the state. You don’t really own your property.
Roger that, I’m about 4 miles up the coast from that photo and then about a mile inland.
Oh yeah, my daughter was on the Huntington Beach High School Surf Team.
Sam’s Club run today. Random notes:
– GasBuddy.com once again has a sponsorship deal with the big San Antonio Clear Channel (or whatever they call themselves now) talk station, WOAI, and the Gulf is seeing regular tropical weather. Ruh-roh. Can you say “gas shortage”?
– Austin PD had off duty officers stationed just inside the entrance to Sam’s. The store is inside the city limits and subject to the $2000 fine for not wearing the requisite mask. At one point, I saw one officer outside patrolling the parking lot. Gotta go to Round Rock Sam’s next time lest I end up in trouble for removing my mask too soon.
– Green beans in reasonable size cans stopped being unobtainium, but the brand isn’t one I’ve heard of before (Lakeside), and the cost was $0.80 per can, no claims of being organic.
– Most Bush’s products back in stock at my Sam’s, but 50 lb bags of dried pinto beans are still out of stock.
It seems a lot of people plan on surviving on rice and beans exclusively if the SHTF.
“but 50 lb bags of dried pinto beans are still out of stock.”
It seems a lot of people plan on surviving on rice and beans exclusively if the SHTF.
I’m wondering if someone local is working an arbitrage angle on the beans. The whole palette disappeared in a few days right after we returned from our trip to FL and the case counts in Texas and Florida started going geometric.
The 25 lb bags remain mostly untouched.
Mortgage rates (30-year fixed) are under 3% now, IIRC.
We refinanced our house in March and got a 30-year at 3.5%. Low enough for us, no need to try for even lower. Reduced our monthly costs as the increased value of the house allowed us to not need the mortgage insurance.
Mexicans eat a lot of beans. Just saying.
Re-fried beans are the equivalent of getting Texas Toast or a biscuit and mashed potatoes with your gravy covered chicken fried steak.
Maybe they are stocking up for the zombie apocalypse. Or Great Depression II.
Our local schools here in Seminole County Indian Country (Technically Muscogee Creek National Territory) open for kids Aug 4th. Our Great Granddaughters schools in Mississippi open a week later. Classroom learning not the pretend kind.
RE: Sams Club Run
I have to drive to the city to fill an ATM this weekend and will visit SAMS for the first time since March. We are starting to see some holes in long term storage, mainly paper products. Our local rancher told me they are taking our beef to the butchers in late August and we should get about 300 lbs of meat. They had to raise their price to $4 a pound but I’m still happy with that. Have to get my chest freezer emptied before then.
Dell Valle ISD and Travis County folded today, coughing up $60 million in tax breaks to Tesla.
https://www.fox7austin.com/news/tesla-picks-austin-for-second-us-vehicle-assembly-plant
The stupid van has a wonky passenger window. Of course, it’s a powered window. A crank window would be just fine. But no, that would involve “exercise”.
Anyway, the window jammed shut when the van was new. There’s a piece of paper in the glove box showing they took it to the dealer. Of course the dealer found no problem. Ok, I’m calling Factory Defect.
We have grabbed and pushed on the glass a few times while someone is pushing the down button. That has stopped working.
My half baked theory:
When the window works, it works smoothly and at the same speed as the driver’s window. So, the mechanism is fine and it’s the motor. Sticking between poles or whatever the word is…. like a little Radio Shack DC motor and you can spin the shaft and feel the magnets. Err. I might be wrong.
I shopped a bit. You can buy the regulator with or without the motor. Just a motor doesn’t seem an option. $40 and some change for all new window mech guts from eBay seems the easy fix. I figure it’s all made in China, might as we go for the low price.
Depending on how it looks when I get into the door, swapping just the motor might be the way to go. But being a Ford I’ll guess the motor mounting screws are facing the outside of the door… everything else on the van seems to be backwards… so I have to take the whole mess out anyway. Grin.
With any luck at all, the whole mess of the power locks randomly not working in either direction might be a bad connection at the passenger door switch. I wouldn’t care about the locks if the tailgate had a key hole.
The new window mech is pretty. Almost a shame to hide it behind a door panel.
I shopped a bit. You can buy the regulator with or without the motor. Just a motor doesn’t seem an option. $40 and some change for all new window mech guts from eBay seems the easy fix. I figure it’s all made in China, might as we go for the low price.
I bought a pair of hood lift supports for my 2001 Solara yesterday. Made in Turkey.
$80 for the pair. Genuine Toyota would be $140. Made in China is $20 each.
“We are forecasting a Stage 2 flood for the impending tropical system”
https://spacecityweather.com/we-are-forecasting-a-stage-2-flood-for-the-impending-tropical-system/
“This afternoon we’re issuing our first “flood scale” forecast for the Gulf disturbance, which is increasingly likely to move into Texas this weekend as a tropical depression or weak tropical storm. We are calling for a “Stage 2” flood event for coastal counties in the greater Houston area—Brazoria, Galveston, and Chambers as well as southeastern Harris County (i.e. the Clear Lake area). For inland areas we think this will be a Stage 1 event. As with all tropical weather, of course, this forecast is subject to change. (Read more about the scale, and why we created it).”
@Greg
Just for fun, I looked at rockauto.com . They had left and right hood supports for your car ranging from about $8 – $23. Link here https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/toyota,2001,solara,3.0l+v6,1375310,body,lift+support,1404 .
Just for fun, I looked at rockauto.com . They had left and right hood supports for your car ranging from about $8 – $23.
I have a 2.2L 4-cyl, but same price. We’re keeping the car for a while, and I wanted to get the job done yesterday.
I put Made in China liftgate supports in my wife’s 4Runner before we traded it.
0-60 is an interesting suggestion to the 4-cyl, but that era Camry platform 6-cyl has a lot higher repair/maintenance costs even to do simple things, and I got a deal on an end-of-year closeout.
Read more about the scale, and why we created it
I remember seeing the floods driving out to Houston for Memorial Day Weekend 2015.
Stage Two. Hmmm. That may not be enough for Clear Channel and Gas Buddy to stage a gas shortage absent a refinery explosion like 2017
An article today about the mail delays Mail in voting faces a slew of issues:
“Chicago USPS international processing center suffers from mailing delays of several months. A test package sent by Fox News that was routed through the Chicago processing center has been held up for five weeks and counting. In a statement, the USPS inspector general said more information may be forthcoming in September; the USPS itself offered no explanation. ”
An article today about the mail delays “Mail in voting faces a slew of issues:”
I remember a couple of mail truck “accidents” in SW WA State during the 2012 election, the first time the state used the process. Of course, the Presidential election was just a formality as was Inslee thanks to Costco’s money, but the Congressional race in our district was tight.
The Republican still prevailed. Narrowly. Perkins Coie had the Dem votes in place without too many to make it look legit, but they didn’t count on the incumbent Congresswoman’s baby being born prematurely with a severe defect of some kind.
Texas would be a fiasco if mail-in was attempted this year. The state offers plenty of social distancing in most precincts with the early voting.
Well, I have the freezer in its new spot and plugged in. The chest freezer and the fridge moved a bit, and they are running and in place.
The rest of the area is a shambles. I’ve got to change out the receptacle for the fridge and freezer, or use a strip. The right angle plugs won’t both go into a normal duplex receptacle. This is probably by design, but F that. I’ve got a receptacle with rotatable holes. If I can get to it, I’ll change it. If not, I’ll put in a short extension with a 3 fer outlet. See, it’s freaking fractal.
I did change the arrangement from my plan. I figured out that if I put the chest at the end of the row, in the corner, that I won’t have to keep the wall clear like I would if I needed to have a door swing open. The new arrangement isn’t quite as open as I’d hoped but it is a better use of space. I can put some shelves back on the end wall now.
I’ll check everything again before bed, and make sure it’s all cooling down.
Meanwhile, I’m soaked to the skin, and need a shower.
n
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8549517/Israeli-doctor-diagnosed-coronavirus-TWICE.html
n
Fact – tested by me – you cannot actually die from testifying (though you may get tunnel vision, need to vomit, and experience temporary hearing loss)
No idea what I said. Between tunnel vision and spots in my vision I couldn’t read my paper. I’m assured I spoke well. I’ll listen later.
This will be the last night. The mayor has reinstated his BS measures and no in person testimony will be allowed on anything for the foreseeable future.
We have a uniquely crooked Assembly.
@jenny, as long as you didn’t puke* you did fine 🙂
Public speaking is HARD for most people.
I’ve done voice overs, announcer work, and addressed the audience of our show in Vegas twice nightly for months. People who haven’t done it have no idea… And I started as a shy geek.
At the very least, you guys exposed the corruption and dirty dealing to a wider audience. Hopefully they’ll remember at the polls.
n
*until afterwards anyway. Afterwards is ok, if you were off stage…. 😉
This is what our Governor had to say about Tesla’s announcement, in his weekly email blast…
n
No idea what I said. Between tunnel vision and spots in my vision I couldn’t read my paper. I’m assured I spoke well. I’ll listen later.
This will be the last night. The mayor has reinstated his BS measures and no in person testimony will be allowed on anything for the foreseeable future.
We have a uniquely crooked Assembly.
Sadly, it isn’t unique.
When I was in college in Tampa, half of the county commission were led out of chambers in handcuffs one night over an ambulance contract.
And I won’t flog the expired equine about what the local governments handed to Elon Musk this afternoon.
Though, City of Austin did clean out a couple of urban campgrounds near where the Governor met with Musk this afternoon.
Gonzalo is the earliest ever “G”-named storm since the satellite era of the 1960s, beating out Tropical Storm Gert, which formed on July 24 amid the intense 2005 hurricane season, according to AccuWeather.
Nick – re your plug problem. I’ve used these before to get wall warts onto power strips. https://www.cyberguys.com/product-details/?productid=4008&rH=1214
Or, you could rotate the outlet box. You can get a new box that will mount inside the wallboard. They are called ‘old work’ boxes; mount directly in the wallboard, no nailing to stud needed. Like this one: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Carlon-1-Gang-14-cu-in-Old-Work-PVC-Electrical-Outlet-Box-B114RB/100404027 – that’s a ‘one-gang’ (one outlet plug set), or a ‘two-gang’ which gives four outlet plugs: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Carlon-2-Gang-25-cu-in-Blue-PVC-Old-Work-Electrical-Switch-and-Outlet-Box-B225R-UPC/100404169 .
Two-gang might be useful later on, assuming that the breaker circuit is not overloaded. Either one is not hard to install. Just turn off the power first. A non-contact tester is good to have: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Klein-Tools-Non-Contact-Voltage-Tester-NCVT-1SEN/100661787 .
Or, just put a new non-flush plug on the cord. I bet you have one in the garage somewhere.
We started early this year with a storm before the season even opened.
Should be interesting.
n
The great wall of silence is finally starting to crumble.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8550181/Drive-shooting-Chicago-funeral-left-15-people-injured-going-gang-war.html
–cops knew it was going to go down.
n
OI