Month: April 2025

Another day like the last two. Warm, damp, threatening rain. Windy. Grey. I’ve been moody the last several days and I think at least part of it is the lack of sunny days. It would be nice to have an itsy bitsy spider day…

I did get a couple of things done yesterday. In the morning I fixed one of the TVs I have laying around… I’d bought the boards a couple of years ago in an auction for a dollar or two, but couldn’t remember where I put them. I saw them in my storage unit the other day, while picking up something else, so I grabbed them and got one thing off my list. The TV is going to the dockhouse at the BOL, which will get another thing off my list. Got a couple of other small things done too.

Then I had a meeting with one of my auctioneers. Well, really I just went to get my money for some consignment items he sold for me, and chat. Turns out they are changing their focus from returns auctions to estate auctions… and I’ve got the kind of stuff they will be selling sitting in piles pretty much everywhere. We’ll work something out and I’ll have a new place to consign items and finally start moving some of this stuff again.

Their rent has been killing them, and they have been paying more for stock as there are new players bidding up the wholesale part of the business. It’s been a truism in the resale auction market for as long as I’ve been doing it that when prices go up, it’s because new people and new money are coming in. It happens on the retail buyer’s side, and on the wholesale buyer (the seller) side. The new players don’t understand they are paying too much, or they know but feel they have to to get stock. On the buyer’s side, the new buyers are happy to pay more because they are still getting a good deal, but they don’t understand that it’s usually an even better deal. It’s a bit more nuanced than that, but it explains why pricing moves in waves. It’s self correcting over time. The buyers become more picky about what they’ll pay and what they’ll buy, and the auctioneers that pay too much for stock go broke and get out of the business.

Anyway, today I’m doing a pickup in the afternoon, mostly stuff for my non-prepping hobby. I’m debating whether to spend the morning doing stuff around the house, since I intend to head to the BOL later tonight or early tomorrow, or do a quick trip to my client’s house to install the new theater receiver. I am leaning toward taking care of my client, but doing the house stuff takes care of my wife… money or marital guilt units? Which do I need more?

BTW, I’m feeling the effects of crawling around in the attic and pulling cable. My arms, shoulders, and lats are all sore. I’m old and weak… poor me…

I should stack up some more stretching and maybe a workout.

I’ll add it to the list.

Stack something.

nick

Another warm, damp, and probably overcast day. It wasn’t a 10 at 10 day yesterday after all. It took quite a while to really start getting warm, but it was mid 80s F by afternoon. I had the windows down, but the air on “blast” too. And today should be more of the same.

I did stuff around the house yesterday morning, then did most of my pickups. I missed one, but it’ll only cost me $8. I hate that. I didn’t print the invoice, so when I was in that area, I didn’t remember to hit that seller too. Dumb mistake as I even had time.

Then it was kid taxi duties, until the younger one’s band concert. We’d all forgotten about it, thinking she just had her normal Tues/Thur thing. Good thing we remembered. I wasn’t looking forward to the Beginning Band portion, but it turned out fine. Didn’t even need my earplugs. The Band Director is a genius with bringing the kids along. He’s building quite a group in just a few years. The Beginners were good. They even did multipart numbers. The Advanced Band (really just kids with prior instruction, or second and third year at the school) rocked the house with Peter Gunn, and Oye como va, among others. The difference as they’ve progressed is stunning.

Ate dinner at Chuy’s which has condensed their menu even further, if I’m not mistaken. Food was good, and not crazy high priced, but they don’t seem like they’re on the way up. Kid loves the food there though.

Today I’ll either do some cable pulling at my client’s house, or push that to tomorrow and do a couple more pickups. I’m leaning toward pickups, just because of timing, and because I don’t have the replacement gear yet. I like to combine trips and spend more than an hour or two onsite as it’s a one hour round trip for me. OTOH, I can get there early, pull the cable, then leave before getting sucked into issues and still make my pickups. That has the benefit of being cooler in the attic too.

I’m going to play it somewhat by ear.

In any case, I’ll be stacking some do re mi, and that is a good thing.

Get you some!

nick

Warm, damp, even hot later. It got well into the 80s yesterday, and didn’t cool down until dusk. I expect the same today. I’m hoping for more clear though. I like seeing the sun.

I spent yesterday running around. I did a pickup early, then went to my client’s house. After troubleshooting, I decided that it wasn’t something easy to fix, like smoked gear, it was the cat cable that connects the stuff in the front attic to the network switch in the rack. That is not an easy cable to run… so replacing that is on my list now too. Then it was kid taxi service, dinner, and a few videos before bed. I did manage to get a couple of small things done too, including portioning the hamburger I bought, and getting it bagged and frozen.

And wasting time on the internet with my friends.

Today I’m doing home stuff in the morning and pickups in the afternoon. I need to order some stuff for my client too, and I don’t have time to get back to his house and run the cable today. Too many kid things in the early afternoon. I’ll get back there Wed. and hopefully be able to swap out the rest of the damaged gear too.

Too busy to engage in tomfoolery or play the jackanapes today. But keep it in mind when out and about… others might.

I’ll be working on improving my position, with cash, and stuff. And I’ll stack it, like every good boy and girl should.

nick