Category: decline and fall

Cool and clear, getting warmer later. We’ve been having a stunning run of cooler and nice days. It’s low to mid 80s in the afternoon, which for us is like winter. It’s windows down weather. Shirtsleeves and shorts. No sweat weather. Fantastic. We do need rain, especially in other parts of Texas, but for now, I’m loving it.

Did a couple of pickups yesterday. The main thing though was finally getting my auctioneer to start taking consignments again. I can move stuff out of the house and maybe even a couple of bins out of the storage unit. At this point I almost don’t even care if he pays me… well yes, I do. Since we did the taxes, my business was a bit shy on incoming money, mainly because he still owes me for last year. That doesn’t look great to the IRS, so it would be better to be paid. This year should be better.

So that’s today’s task, get a load dropped off at the auctioneer. I’ve got a pickup too, but I’ll get to that in the early afternoon. Hopefully, I’ll get the load dropped off in the late morning. Then I’ve got to do some grocery shopping. I think buying eggs today is cutting it a bit late, but I didn’t stop in yesterday. With shortages and Easter this weekend, and eldest child on a high protein diet kick, I need to increase my stock on hand. Funny how what we eat changes over time.

Gotta keep watch on the stacks, and compare against current and changing needs. I’ve got far too much peanut butter, syrup, and ketchup. Not enough eggs…

Check that your stacks still meet your needs, and then adjust.

But do stack…

nick

Cool and clear, warming throughout the day. Almost like yesterday, except yesterday got overcast and stayed grey until late afternoon. I’m hoping today will be clear all day. We need rain, but I am selfish enough to want the rain to happen overnight.

I did my two pickups in the afternoon, then hit the Goodwill on the way home. The new experiment is D1 walks home from school, instead of me picking her up at 3:15. She needs to check in and text when she leaves school (because sometimes she stays for tutoring) and when she gets home. Hasn’t worked so far, she “forgets” to text. I have a strong incentive to make it work as the 3:15 deadline shortens my day significantly. We’ll see as the week goes on.

Got some good stuff at the Goodwill for the house, the BOL, and a couple of things for resale. I haven’t bought that much in years. Got lucky I guess.

Today I’ve got a couple of pickups to do, and some errands to run. We’re headed back to the BOL for Easter, and I need a few things. I’ve also got my buddy coming into town to work on clearing out his workshop. I promised to help with that, but it will cut into my normal routine. Most of that work will be next week, but he wants to get started at the end of this week. I need to get my stuff out of the way beforehand.

And all the normal stuff awaits my attention and efforts.

I couldn’t find a bucket of sugar last night. I did find a couple of containers, with about 3 pounds in each, which was fine, but I must have taken the buckets to the lake. Hmm. RE-stack here, or just have the BOL stock? Hmm. Choices.

I need to get to work on this stuff. And I clearly need to stack…

nick

Cool and clear, warming later. I almost wish for some rain, because the grass is getting a bit crunchy… but that’s why we have sprinklers I guess. To bad they’re not working at the BOL. If we don’t get rain this week, I’m going to have to spend more time and energy on that. Meanwhile, I’m enjoying the mild weather.

Mild or not, I did get sunburned and now I’m itchy. My neck, face, and arms are noticeably darker.

Did my final cleanup and secure everything, then headed home yesterday. The kids sorted themselves out and I wasn’t under the time pressure I expected. Still, good to get home.

Home sweet home… so much to do here. I’ve definitely been slacking and need to put in some serious time. Projects have stacked up. Stuff has stacked up. Stacks have stacked up…

It’s easy for me to put stuff off, and just deal with today’s emergency, or new priority. The easy way isn’t the best way.

Do something hard today. And stack.
nick

It’s been slowly warming, so I’m going to guess that we start the day in the low to mid 60s, and get warmer during the day. I switched to shorts yesterday, because it was pretty warm and sweaty by afternoon, and I expect today to be the same. Nice and clear too.

Weather was nice, and I drove around with the windows open. (in fact I just went out to close them..)

Did my local pickup. Tried to help a guy jumpstart his car, but it didn’t work. I think it was a problem with the starter, as you could bang on it, and it would do a couple of groaning, slow turns, otherwise there was just clicking. I hit my auto mechanic skill maximum pretty early in the process. I did have the jumper cables in the truck, and a tool set to take his terminal connector off his battery, in case his battery was shorted. He ended up calling someone to help him.

Then it was off to get D1 and then a brief period at home, before heading back to school to watch a performance. It was ok. Audio was not great, but the young man didn’t get enough rehearsal time. At least it wasn’t painful.

Leftovers for dinner, a check of online auctions, and then bed. An ordinary day, albeit a bit busier than normal.

Today I’ve got two pickups on opposite sides of town. I really didn’t plan that well. Then it’s home to load the truck and move stuff around. We’re headed to the BOL this weekend, and trying to leave tonight. My non-prepping hobby meeting Saturday got bumped from its room, so we had to cancel. Next weekend is Easter, so not the best time to reschedule to. That means I could head up tonight if I’m not too tired, and if I get the truck loaded. We’ll see how it goes.

I’ve been stacking stuff for the BOL for a couple of weeks, so it will be good to get it up there. I’m probably taking the two new 460W solar panels and an inverter up too, if I can fit them on the truck with all the other stuff.

I keep stacking. You should too.

nick

Cold or cool, or just nice, these cool clear mornings rock. I’ll be happy to wear a jacket waiting for the bus if I can wear long pants in the afternoon without sweating. And that’s what we had yesterday. Great weather for driving around with the windows down.

So I did.

Got my dr visit done, had a bit of chicken for lunch, then got my free 128GB thumbdrive from MicroCenter. Picked up two more 64GB drives for $8 total, and the switch I need for my client’s house. I know they aren’t the fastest drives, but free, and $4 each is incredible. The smaller ones will be used at school for the light and sound board backups. The bigger I’ll load with music for the truck.

After that, I did pickups. Then I picked up the kid. EV not for me… I’d have range anxiety. I was anxious to find the right gas station to refill my truck, and there are gas stations at every intersection.

I was sleepy all day, which interfered with my driving. IDK if it was skipping the coffee in the morning or what, but I was wiped out. Never did catch up.

Today I have a local pickup, and household stuff to do. And all the Thursday kid stuff is disrupted by the theater performance tonight. It’ll still end up being a busy day, despite having nothing to do…

I’m engaging with my community. I’m spending time with my kids. I’m improving my position… and stacking some stuff.

I’m prepping, but mostly I’m living.

nick

Cold-ish. 45F is cold for anywhere in the South after March… so I guess “cold” works for me. It should be clear, and sunny, and warm up a lot over the course of the day. That was yesterday, and the day before, so it should be today too. I’m hoping.

Did my pickups and kid taxi stuff yesterday. Had a chat with a friend. Had a tiny little fire. Felt better after both.

Today I’ve got a doctor appointment in the morning, that I never got details for. They all rely on their “portals” putting the onus on the patient to pull info rather than pushing– unless it’s about an outstanding balance, then they’re all up in your grill, pinging your text messages, leaving voice mail, and spamming your inbox.

And every portal is different, with different log in requirements. It’s a big pain in the butt, and I’m not sick or dealing with a major illness. I can’t even imagine what it’s like trying to keep track of all the pieces if you have a complicated care plan or a major issue.

I’ll be calling around this morning trying to figure out where I’m supposed to be.

On the other hand, the diagnostic tools available are awesome, almost to the Star Trek level of imaging. And only a lifetime ago, people were dying from infected blisters and cuts.

Anyway, after the doctor visit, I’ve got a couple of things to pickup, then more stuff around the house to do. Just like normal.

Around us the world spins and events happen, and we mice flee as the elephants dance.

Stack stuff, and put it in more than one place.

nick

Cold and clear again. Nice day in other words. No precip. Just sunshine. I’m looking forward to getting more of the same.

Did get out of the house. Did do my pickups, at least the three that made sense for location and timing. The other three will have to be done today. There’s a bit more detail in yesterday’s comments, if you are really bored.

Today will be some more pickups in a different part of town. They will cluster, so I can get them in one trip. That minimizes my time, money spent, and impact on the environment. Go me!

Then there will be the usual kid taxi service.

All in all, an ordinary day. Which is kinda extraordinary.

Stack what you need.

nick