Month: March 2025

Cool, warming later, possibility of rain… same as yesterday, but we didn’t get the rain. And it got into the low 80s F with fairly high humidity. Not a great day for yard work.

But that’s what I did. I was having some spasms in my middle back, which is unusual. It means I can’t take a fully deep breath without the “pinch”, and I can’t really hold my arms out in front of me, like to carry something… So I piddlefarted around the house all day, grabbing small tasks when I could. I got some stuff done, but it wasn’t a super productive day as most of those things didn’t need to be done right this minute. Still, they are off the list now.

Today I’m supposed to swap out the new tv at my client’s house. I’ll hit the chiropractor, then Costco for the TV, then head out there. I’ll make it work somehow. After that, it’s modify the control software to integrate the new TV, check that it’s all working, pack up the old tv, and hit the road. I’ve got a pickup that has to happen on the other side of town, so I need to wrap up at my client’s before 2pm. I’m picking up another 400W of solar panel. I think. Should be anyway. There are a couple of other things, but that is the main item.

Then it’s home to be a kid taxi service… that’s my life.

And it’s a pretty good one.

Of course it could use some tweaks, and It probably won’t continue forever, but right now, it’s good.

Preps and a preparedness lifestyle got us easily through many things that could have been bad. Most were just mildly inconvenient instead. I say that you should prep like your life depends on it, but really, hopefully, it’s mainly your comfort and peace of mind that depend on it.

Stacks help with both.

nick

Cool and clear, should be a nice day. Yesterday started cold, but ended mid 70s. Really nice to drive around with the windows down. Hoping for more of that today.

Did some stuff yesterday. Drove around and did a big loop of pickups. Got some good stuff. Talked to one of the guys and he’ll take the two biggest things in my foyer on consignment. Talked to another, and he’s giving up on the reseller life.

Ventured out into the community to buy some Friday night fish fry and ran into two people I know, one a friend from my hobby club, the other I saw at Costco for years. I’m bumping into people I know when I’m out and about. That used to be my signal to start thinking about moving. Now I’m firmly rooted, and it’s a signal my meatspace plans are working. Now these are ordinary people not movers and shakers, but those aren’t really the folks I wanted to meet. I don’t really want to come to their attention. I like recognizing someone from a store or business outside that context. It tells me I’ve been paying at least a little bit of attention, and that I’m getting out among the people.

It’s very easy to isolate at home with a few contacts. I think that’s not a good idea though, as comfortable as it may be. Who you know and who knows you might be vitally important in a world run face to face. Time to get out there and practice.

Speaking of practice, today I’ll be letting D1 drive me around to my pickups. One is in Seabrook, about an hour and a half away, then the other is due north an hour to Baytown, then back across town to the west side and home. I don’t know how much of that I’ll let her drive, it’s pretty exhausting when you are a new driver. It will give me some time to coach her on the expressway. I have only been able to coach her on surface streets so far. Pray for light traffic, and calm drivers…. and my composure.

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Get out and about. Talk to people. Stack relationships.

nick

Cool and windy, but still clear and moderate. Yesterday was pretty nice, between wind gusts. I’ve got a bit of chapped lips, despite drinking water and not being in the wind all that much.

I finished the tasks I’d set for myself at D2’s school. I moved some stuff, set up the light we provided, talked with the kid doing sound, and searched the theater for some missing gear… and I found some plug parts and fixed the followspot electrical plug. The strain relief had gone missing and someone had just wrapped it with e-tape. Better than NOT wrapping it, but not as good as replacing the missing part. At some point some sound gear went missing. I found the manual in a closet, so I know it was probably delivered when the district did the ‘tech refresh’ but it vanished after that. As a tax payer, I get upset by their poor stewardship of my funds.

Then it was off to make some smoke and noise, then lunch, and kid taxi duties.

Slightly more productive than most of my recent days…

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And I’ll say that sometime in the last three weeks I had the 59th anniversary of my birth. Never thought I’d get here, now I don’t want to leave… not that that is imminent. Or at least no more likely than random chance. This will also be my 20th wedding anniversary in a month or so. THAT is astounding too.

Anyway, today I’ve got pickups to do. Two down south of me, then several fairly close together north and northwest. Some preps, some hobby stuff, some household items.

Stuff to add to the stacks.

Pile it up!

nick

Cool, bordering on cold, and windy and clear. That should do it for the next couple of days. Yesterday started with some overcast but the high pressure zone from the north west blew in and blew everything out… mid 70s in the afternoon but the gusting wind made it a bit unpleasant. Today should be similar, with maybe a little cooler temps, and hopefully a bit less wind.

Yesterday I did stuff around the house. I did a project for the middle school theater. They were going to rent something that I have in my stacks. I said, nope! I’ve got that… and I did. Just needed to get all the parts in the same place. Today I’ll deliver and set up the lighting stuff and do some audio stuff at the school. Then I’ll do some fun stuff. After that, it’s a bit of home work, then Thursday taxi service for a couple of hours.

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Wednesday’s dinner was pork roast, sauteed zucchini with cheese, and take and bake bread. Yummy. Simple. Relatively cheap.

Anyone can learn to cook. Anyone can make tasty and nutritious meals, for less money than take out or restaurant food. Learning to cook is a prep… and a lot easier to do when the grid is up and stuff is plentiful and cheap.

Add cooking to your preps if it isn’t already part of your life.

And stack what you need to cook.

nick

Cool and clear, warming later. Did I mention it was in the 40s yesterday morning? It did get to the high 70s, low 80s by late afternoon though. Kid thought it was a bit chilly at the bus stop. Beautiful, drive with the windows down, day. I’m hoping for another…

Did my site visit. Solved one issue, which was configuration in the control software, but the other issue was a dead TV. TCL with a few years on it, just not turning on anymore. We installed them knowing they were probably crep, and we got extended warranties, which we used many times. They were incredibly cheap and looked great for the money. They fail pretty much on schedule though in a rough environment. Indoors, climate controlled? They would probably last twice as long. I went by Costco to see about replacements.

The direct replacement, which is bigger, is only $239. It’s a Roku tv, full of spyware and data gathering, which subsidizes the cost of the hardware. The equivalent Sony was $499, and it’s a googleTV loaded with google’s spyware and monitizing software. We keep them off the network and don’t use the “smart TV” features. My client’s kids will occasionally defeat that by joining the wifi and using the built in apps to access their own streaming accounts. I take them back off when I find them connected.

There is some indication that they are never really off the net, but I do what I can to minimize the number of piggies feeding at the trough. If you are really concerned, you install Planar control room monitors that don’t have any smart features. They are a lot more expensive, but are built to run 24/7 for years and not spy on you. I’ve got a Planar 55″ 4K that I’m thinking of putting at the BOL. It’s a tank. Other manufacturers also make monitors for commercial use that are big and high resolutions.

In any case, I’ll be replacing the dead TV later this week or early next week.

After my site visit, I did a couple of pickups. Notable items were birthday gifts for the kids, and a cellular boost antenna for the cellular repeater at the BOL. I would like to get a couple more dB of signal going into the repeater.

Today I’ve got some kid school volunteer stuff to get organized, and a couple of pickups, and maybe the normal Tuesday/Thursday kid taxi stuff. Maybe not as D2 is feeling poorly. Two of the chaperones from her trip tested sick, one for flu, one for covid. Dunno which she has, or if it’s something else, but she’s coughing and snotty. On the other hand, D1 is mostly done with that, and W1 is starting to feel better. Sleep is a universal cure. I’m hoping to miss it entirely. REALLY hoping.

I thought I’d have some time this week to get caught up, but instead I got my client’s issue, and kid volunteering issues… oh well. No rest for the wicked.

Stacking is easy. If you can’t do anything else, do some of that.

nick

Sunny and clear, moderate wind and temps. Like yesterday. Which I ignored and stayed inside all day.

I did office stuff. I meant to get out in the sun and wind, but I was feeling a bit under the weather, and with wife sick and one kid getting over the sick, I didn’t feel like doing much more than sitting. They watched TV all day, Grey’s Anatomy and Walking Dead. Not sure which show is which any more, they are both sudsier than most soap operas.

Today I’ve got a visit to my client for a troubleshooting mission. He’s got two TVs not working. That is a bit of a mystery, as the simple failures would take out 4, and I can’t think of anything to just take out the two… so I have to go poke at it.

I’ve also got some auction pickups to do, so I hope to get the site visit out of the way quickly.

All the normal home stuff is still waiting for attention too. So I’ll be a busy boy after my Spring break…

At least I’m not broke.

Stack something. Fix something. Make something. Meet someone.

nick

Windy cool and clear… should be a nice day, mostly. Yesterday was all those to the extreme. Started at the BOL where it had been raining overnight, moved through the windy dusty area, then made it home.

Spent most of the day doing pickups. Got some good stuff for the house and some future projects, and hobbies.

Family is all together for today at least, which is nice. Kids grow up and separate but I like my kids and I like having them around…

Prepping them to live on their own is our biggest prep.

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Today I’ve got stuff to do around the house. I need to make some more progress putting stuff away and in order. Meanwhile, I’ve got a sick wife on the couch coughing and sleeping… I just hope I don’t get it next.

Always something to do. Always an adventure. Keep stacking.

nick