COLD. Windy last night, cold today. 40F when I went to bed with temps falling. Hopefully clear and warming later.
Short shrift today as I was very tired and went to bed early.
I’ve got my hobby meeting today, then loading the vehicles, and then possibly heading up to the BOL. I say possibly because I’d like to do the driving on Sunday instead. I might have to ‘stub out’ all the week’s posts too, in case I don’t find any internet, so that at least the door gets opened and the light’s turned on…
Spent yesterday doing errands to get ready for next week, and finishing up at my client’s. Stopped at the bank to do some business too. This time there wasn’t a line. Needed cashier’s checks for an application with an agency. In this day and age, no internet payment option, no credit cards accepted. Pain in the backside.
(See, I’m living as if there will be a tomorrow, following the rules, because most often there IS a tomorrow.)
I really want somewhere outside the city to go, if I have to go, and this is all working toward that.
So stack what you can, learn what you can, and get ready for whatever comes.
nick
Good luck with your weekend adventures, Nick!
Galveston Island for the night. LaQuinta inn. Expensive for a not so great room. I wasted some good money. Sigh. It is very cool so the beach is out. Back home 4" of snow was put down last night. It will all be gone by Sunday afternoon.
Gas is running from $3.79 to $4.09 a gallon. Sometimes I pay more than the cheapest as it is not worth hunting around to save $2.00 on a tank refill. At least there is gas available and no lines.
Off to Pearland today for a couple of hours then up to Conroe for two nights to visit niece who has a newborn. Neice wants to limit exposure, typical first time mom and we will respect her wishes. Following Conroe we head to San Antonio for two nights staying at the friend of the spousal unit. The friend's husband died about 5 years ago so the widow likes visiting with the wife. I also have to look into some problems with the widow's laptop.
It was 33F at 6am and the house was toasty warm. Currently 35F so it's warming up. Fusion reactor in the sky is irradiating us all in it's glorious rays.
Off to my meeting, then the whirlwind starts.
n
Get off my lawn!
That may be where we stayed the last time we hit Galveston, during our first Labor Day Weekend in Texas. To say that the staff was overwhelmed serving the free hot breakfast was an understatement.
Since then, we've stayed at one of the new hotels in Baytown near Buc-ee's, which I assume serves Exxon business travelers. Not terrible for the money.
That side of town has the Battleship Texas and the San Jacinto "middle finger to Mexico" monument, another Labor Day trip. I believe the ship is closed for rehab, but the park is a nice way to kill an afternoon.
The weather should be decent this weekend for whatever you have planned..
Unfortunately, pleasant weather means that the bacchanalia known as SxSW in Downtown Austin will tie up traffic for miles.
UPDATE: It looks like the Battleship Texas is open this weekend.
https://battleshiptexas.org/battleship-updates/
@RickH , thank you for fixing the sidebar! Always before, it was below the posts when viewed on Ubuntu on my Lenovo, which is what I normally use. Now, it's tidy and on the right side, exactly as it appears on Windows 10 on my Dell.
I appreciate the maintenance you do to keep the site running smoothly.
@Jenny, Glad to hear that you have 10 surviving newborn bunnies! I enjoyed your video of the rabbitry that you posted the other day. Quite an impressive set up you've built.
Those things breed like Tribbles.
Sorry Ray. We're in a rented beach house in Cayucos for three nights. 65F sunny days and cold clear nights. No wind and calm seas. So fat not too crowded but maybe it the gas. Prices hovering between $6-7 around here and almost $6 at home. Trip is only about 250 mi round trip. Kind of expensive but beautiful place to be. Grandson loves the beach. Well all of us
@greg:
I suspect the writers of that episode (“The Trouble with Tribbles") took the example of rabbits, and turned it up to 11.
G.
The price I pay for curiosity.
This morning's project turned into scraping an inch of grease out of the bottom of our gas cooktop's downdraft ventilation chamber, having discovered the potential fire hazard while investigating the state of the appliance for possible replacement after much complaining from the family about the burners not catching.
I doubt the chamber has been cleaned in 12 years, since the previous owners installed the cooktop. A label on the ventilation filter says to clean monthly. Ha!
Beyond thorough cleaning, the cooktop just needs a new set of knobs.
A couple of the knobs looked semi melted. I’m never going to get any honesty about that out of the rest of the household.
I’m never going to get any honesty about that out of the rest of the household.
— that's the truth.
n
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10600971/Woman-rape-DNA-led-arrest-sue-San-Francisco.html
— this sort of thing is why you never let them have something in the first place. How in the hell did the VICTIM's DNA get entered into the db in the first place?
And does anyone still doubt that they are keeping and will eventually use the DNA from the covid swabs?
n
With the Covid testing, you're lucky if those chuckleheads get a proper sample to avoid false readings with the test.
It may be normalcy bias, but I'm guessing the volume involved precludes careful sequencing and cataloging of all of the DNA in the vial.
A rape kit is a whole different level of competency and chain of evidence required from the lab personnel.
Well, in most cases — there has been a scandal here in Austin about screwups at APD's lab, particularly with regard to handling of rape kits. I'll try to find a reference for the nitpickers lest I be accused of spinning conspiracy theories.
@Geoff Powell: Yikes.
Looking at mine this morning…the pan overflow isn't plumbed to the sump. Most of it would probably drip down…but a lot would end up in the house. Another thing to test and repair.
@RickH: A quick question about electric usage: on average about how many kWHr per day per person does your electric water heater use?
Leakage is about 1kWhr/day apparently.
For actual usage I see numbers from 2 to 12, per day per person floating about.
Two would be OK for me, twelve would easily double my electric use and put me into a higher California tier.
I suppose if you are all electric it might be hard to disentangle that particular number…
@EdH
Dunno. There's just the two of us here. One shower each per day. One dishwasher run every 2-3 days. Four loads of laundry a week (in a top loader).
The googles have some answers with basic formulas: here's one: https://www.directenergy.com/learning-center/how-much-energy-water-heater-use . Another one: https://www.thehomehacksdiy.com/how-much-electricity-energy-does-a-water-heater-use/ .
Don't the Energy Star stickers (required in US) have that info?
The electric heat pump HVAC system is probably the biggest user here. All the lights are LEDs; LED TV. TV about 4-5 hours a day. Laptop computers all day.
I'm sure better sources can be found about the problems at APD's crime lab, but this is a story which isn't sitting behind the Statesman's (local Austin paper) paywall.
https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2022/03/commission-recommends-moving-apd-forensics-lab/
Anytime I see the word “non-partisan” in Austin, I assume a left bias like the Texas Tribune.
An exhaustive analysis of the situation in Ukraine:
https://cartographer.substack.com/p/russias-invasion-of-ukraine-day-12?s=r
Could Putin Attack Britain – Ukraine War Special
The answer is "yes." And what Putin can do to the Brits, he can certainly do to Americans.
>> — this sort of thing is why you never let them have something in the first place. How in the hell did the VICTIM's DNA get entered into the db in the first place?
They operate on the "Ask for forgiveness, not for permission" principle.
"Planet of the Gods (Perry Rhodan #27)" by Kurt BMahr, translated by Wendayne Ackerman
https://www.amazon.com/Planet-Gods-Perry-Rhodan-27/dp/3441660110?tag=ttgnet-20/
Book number twenty-seven of a series of one hundred and twenty-six space opera books in English. The original German books, actually pamphlets, number in the thousands. The English books started with two translated German stories per book and transitioned to one story per book with the sixth book. The German books were written from 1961 to present time, having sold two billion copies and even recently been rebooted again. I read the well printed and well bound book published by Ace in 1973 that I had to be very careful with due to age. I bought an almost complete box of Perry Rhodans a decade or two ago on ebay that I am finally getting to since I lost my original Perry Rhodans in The Great Flood of 1989. In fact, I now own book #1 to book #103, plus the Atlan books.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perry_Rhodan
BTW, this is actually book number 35 of the German Pamphlets. There is a very good explanation of the plot in German on this website of all of the PR books. There is automatic Google translation available for English, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese, French, and Portuguese.
https://www.perrypedia.de/wiki/Im_Land_der_G%C3%B6tter
In this alternate universe, USSF Major Perry Rhodan and his three fellow astronauts blasted off in a three stage rocket to the Moon in 1971. The first stage of the rocket was chemical, the second and third stages were nuclear. After crashing on the Moon due to a strange radio interference, they discover a massive crashed alien spaceship with an aged male scientist (Khrest), a female commander (Thora), and a crew of 500. It has been over ten years since then and the New Power has flourished with millions of people and many spaceships headquartered in the Gobi desert, the city of Terrania.
Four of Rhodan's mutants accompanied the Springer ship to the Springer Captain's meeting as members of the crew. The crew does not remember them as strangers, having their minds changed by one of the mutants. They interrupted the Captain's meeting and actually killed many of the Captains while they were planning to turn Earth into a planet of slaves. The mutants escape from the meeting, steal space suits, and make it to the opposite side of the planet to wait for Rhodan's space ship to pick them up. But, there is no pickup and Pucky is sent to their rescue, also to cause further damage to the Springers.
One has to remember that this book was written in German in 1962 and translated to English in 1973. Many items that came about in the 1970s and beyond such as cell phones are not reflected in the book. However, commercial aircraft commonly traveling at Mach 3 are not available to the public as talked about in the book. Niels Bohr's saying "Prediction is very difficult, especially about the future" comes to mind.
Two observations:
1. The publisher should have put two to four of the translated stories in each book. Having two stories in the first five books worked out well. Just having one story in the book is too short and would never allow the translated books to catch up to the German originals.
2. Anyone liking Perry Rhodan and wanting a more up to date story should read the totally awesome "Mutineer's Moon" Dahak series of three books by David Weber.
https://www.amazon.com/Mutineers-Moon-Dahak-David-Weber/dp/0671720856?tag=ttgnet-20/
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Amazon rating: 5 out of 5 stars (1 review)
In Conroe for the next two nights. Drove up from Galveston stopping in Pearland. Also made a stop at a Buc-EE's off I-45. What a mess with the construction. Two mile detour in what should have been 1/4 mile off the interstate.
Traffic on I-45 through Houston is a mess. This on a Saturday at 3:30 PM. I have a lot of sympathy for Mr. Nick plying those roads every day, or almost every day. A trip across Houston must be miserable.
When we leave Conroe we head to San Antonio to get a look at MIL's old house which was significantly remodeled. Whether the new occupants will let us look is another story. Then on to Boerne to see MIL grave. Back to SA for two nights with wife's friend. I will be updating the friend's new computer.
Long trip, 1100 miles thus far.
>> With the Covid testing, you're lucky if those chuckleheads get a proper sample to avoid false readings with the test.
Speaking of Covid tests, due to the *overwhelming* number of requests, there is sufficient supply available for each household to order a free second set of four at-home tests.
https://www.covidtests.gov/
Thanks. How long are these things good for? I'm selling mine if I can.
@Mr. Atoz: I may have some down time while in SA. We are leaving Monday and will be there the 14th and 15th. Maybe an arrangement could be made to meet for a meal. Send me contact information to rayt (four) (three) (five) at comcast (dot) (fish catching device). Lunch, or dinner, on the 15th would be the best option. I do like Bill Miller.
I promise to never spam or disclose.
>> Thanks. How long are these things good for? I'm selling mine if I can.
Mine are marked "Use by 6/22/2022." They had a big stack at the register at Albertson's alongside all the packs of gum – two pack for $11.99.
On the other hand, while looking through the Free Stuff from Your Neighbors section of Next Door today someone was offering an unopened jar of mayonnaise that had a use by date of Jan 15, 2022.
Finalized the LEAF purchase…gee, they weren't kidding when they said "No Dealer Fees." Other than all of $4.21 for a temp tag there was no Doc Fee, DMV Fee, no Dealer Prep or other bogus mark-ups. Also no F&I person to deal with, sales rep (they call them "Client Advisors") ran through the extended warranty options and it was all no-pressure and no pushback when I said thanks but no thanks. Didn't even mention financing when I said I was paying cash, left a couple hundred bucks on the table. All auto dealerships should be this easy to deal with.
Now gotta be sure Uncle Joe doesn't let us run out of 'clean energy'.
https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2022/03/11/heres-kamala-harris-explaining-how-long-we-should-expect-to-endure-high-inflation-and-gas-prices/
I think this may have been posted earlier this week but I just saw the video clip today and just OMG, how anyone could cast a single vote for any ticket she's on is beyond me. Maybe Uncle Joe needs to avoid going room temperature until 2024???
You bought through Carvana?
They are still privately held.
>> You bought through Carvana?
No, won't deal with them, and CarMax had no LEAFs available at the time. Bought direct from a Nissan dealership.
More shrink-flation, at least they admit to it…
https://freebeacon.com/latest-news/doritos-cuts-number-of-chips-in-each-bag-blames-bidenflation/
One of my favorite places to visit. Schooners for fish and chips, Taco Temple for … well, tacos.
Got most of my errands done. Decided to rent a trailer for a couple of days. WAY cheaper than a truck, if not as capable or spacious. No mileage charge is the biggest difference…
Am not loaded up though. Trailer is mostly full, but I need to fill the pickup tomorrow. It wont' be a '@ss crack of dawn" departure, that's for sure.
n
Finalized the LEAF purchase…gee, they weren't kidding when they said "No Dealer Fees." Other than all of $4.21 for a temp tag there was no Doc Fee, DMV Fee, no Dealer Prep or other bogus mark-ups. Also no F&I person to deal with, sales rep (they call them "Client Advisors") ran through the extended warranty options and it was all no-pressure and no pushback when I said thanks but no thanks. Didn't even mention financing when I said I was paying cash, left a couple hundred bucks on the table. All auto dealerships should be this easy to deal with.
Now gotta be sure Uncle Joe doesn't let us run out of 'clean energy'.
So did you buy a new or used Nissan Leaf ?
I know that range is not important to you but, how far can it go ? One of my neighbors has one, it is very quiet when we are out walking, I can only hear the tires as it comes up behind us.
You do know that fossil fuel provides 80% of the electricity in the USA, right ? And of the renewables, most of that is hydro that has existed for almost a hundred years now.
>> So did you buy a new or used Nissan Leaf ?
I know that range is not important to you but, how far can it go ? One of my neighbors has one, it is very quiet when we are out walking, I can only hear the tires as it comes up behind us.
You do know that fossil fuel provides 80% of the electricity in the USA, right ? And of the renewables, most of that is hydro that has existed for almost a hundred years now.
Used, 2018, about 24K miles, $22K. Got it just before they were going to up the price by another $2K. Our other LEAF (yeah sadly it's this acronym: Leading, Environmentally-friendly, Affordable Family car) is also a 2018, 14K miles, bought it pre the 'transitory inflation' for $20K. Both are top trim level and probably about $40K new so got 2 for 1. Both still show 100% battery capacity. EPA "range" is 151 miles. Around town realistically it's probably 110-120 miles, on the highway at 65 it's 80-90. At 70 or high it starts to go downhill. Wife's god-daughter has a Subie Outback we can borrow for long trips.
Oh yeah, well aware where our electrons come from, was just digging at Uncle Joe. KWh out here in the desert still relatively cheap, but I'm sure the Dumbocrats will look to spoil that too.
I'm going to bed early, so that I can get my beauty sleep….
n
-dang it all….