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Category: government

Sat. Apr. 30, 2022 – may go north today…

Forecast for another nice day.  Yesterday certainly was nice, although humid.   Evening was very nice.  It’s nice when it is nice out.  So nice.

Did some errands.  Picked up some stuff. Took the smaller kid to swim practice.   Talked to a septic contractor.

Today I’ll take the smaller kid to swim, then either head to the lake, or work around the house.  I really need to get up there, but there is a ton of stuff to do here too.  Having my wife and one kid out of the house makes it easier to do stuff here so I should take advantage of that, right?  Oh, and the HVAC contractor wants to look around again and get a contract signed and I’d have to be here for that.

On the other hand, not having D1 here to manage the dog means I have to do it.  That complicates going to the BOL, as he can’t be trusted not to bolt.  I did not and do not want to be one of those people who are bullied by a pet, arranging everything around that pet.  Him climbing onto the kitchen table is pretty close to the last straw.  No good solutions to this problem.

I guess we’ll just have to play it by ear.

There is always something you can be stacking, always something that will improve your position.  Find that thing, and stack it, find that thing and do it.

nick

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Fri. Feb. 18, 2022 – you load 16 tons and whadda ya get???

Cold today.  Yesterday was rainy in the morning, but dried up and got hot in the afternoon. Temps  started dropping in the late afternoon and it was down to 42F at 11pm.  Wind was variable but quite gusty.  Stuff was blowing around in the yard and driveway. Today is supposed to be cold with overcast.  Joy.

Did my pickups.  Got some stuff for the BOL.   Got some stuff for this household.   Picked up a couple of small things to resell to pay for the rest and one item for my hobby.

Got stuff to donate to school.  White man’s burden?  Noblesse oblige?  Can’t call it either, but in our district they definitely expect parents with the means to step up and contribute in some way to the schools and the district in general and there isn’t a lot of diversite’ above certain income levels.   It’s not just income though, it’s free time and the ability to work at something effectively.  The loss of the fraternal service organizations and their ‘women’s auxiliary’ and the womens service clubs was a nearly fatal blow to US society and western culture.  “Moms’ Clubs” and other informal groups are stepping up, but they lack the continuity and structure of the old groups.  The transition from high trust to low trust is everywhere and increasingly common.

Stuff for the BOL is piling up.   I need to close so we can start moving stuff out of my spaces and out to the country.  Unfortunately,  unless the title company pulls their head out of their backside, I don’t think we’ll be closing on Monday.

There is the additional macroeconomic consideration too.  We transferred a bunch of money into one place, in preparation for buying the BOL.  Now Canada has gone and said they will seize bank accounts if they feel like it.   That SHOULD cause a bank run.  There is some suggestion that at least a low key bank run is happening.  A real bank run could cause widespread damage and disruption worldwide, but certainly in their largest trading partner, the US.    So, I want to get the transaction done without delay, so as to avoid getting screwed if the banks shut down.

And all of the vehicles need maintenance of some kind.  Ranger and Expy need oil changes.   Expy is going to need new front brake pads soon.  Wife’s minivan probably needs everything…  it never ends.

The house still needs all the stuff it needed a couple of months ago, with the only exception being that the water heater is installed and making hot water.   Not completely installed, or anywhere near finished, but installed.

After a month or two of feeling resigned, I feel like fighting again.   Not rested, but going back at it anyway.

I’m stacking, hopefully the right things, and you should be too.

 

N

 

(and congrats to everyone that is, Mr Lynn, Mr Atoz, and anyone else who is trying out a prep, or stacking.)

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Fri. Dec. 3, 2021 – work work work. While the world burns…

Last day of cool and clear this week, maybe. ‘Cuz they lie. And they’re wrong. It’s been clear but really quite humid for as cool as it is. That isn’t a super comfortable state.

Spent the day at my client’s house working on his upgrade. Felt like I really made some progress, but there is a bunch more to do, and some of it involves more Ubiquiti UniFi stuff. I will get to that last, I think. And I’ll be back over there next week as well.

Puppy is doing fine. Eating, running around the back yard, sniffing frantically. There was some sort of stinky wildlife skulking around last night. Zeus was very excited, and he got to bark at a cat! Made the cone of shame more tolerable, I’m sure.

Home Depot had several green leafy vegetables in pots for planting when I stopped in two days ago. It must be still fall planting season down here. Not much dirt for the raised beds, but at least most of a pallet in bags of the kind I like. I think I’ll try to get a few more bags this weekend. I didn’t see ANY seeds and the whole display was missing. Could be they were cleaning up and changing out that area, or it could be that they sold out. If you want a garden this year, you might want to secure some seeds, bug killer, fertilizer, and whatever else you need. Stock up early and avoid the rush.

Might go look at a lake house this weekend. The house looks nice, the part of the lake is less developed, and it’s difficult to get to the property. All good things in my book. Septic, propane, city power, and water. There must be a reason that part of the lake is under developed though, and I think it’s because the lake is very shallow there. My wife will be checking the lake depth chart today. 5 ft is ok, 1 ft of depth is not. Inflation continues to eat away at our savings. Buying a white elephant property would too, but they call it “real” estate for a reason.

I am trying to get to Costco today, but I’ve got other things to do before heading to my client’s place. I got more of an item that is a steady seller for me. Not huge profit, but every sale counts. I also got some stuff for a future lake house in another auction. It’s either a great score, or there is something I couldn’t see in the photos. I’ll find out later today.

The doddering old fool in the Whitehouse continues to decline. He can’t help but make up stuff, and he’s as incoherent as ever. If it weren’t our country and our lives on the line, it would be funny. As it is, it’s just a harbinger of bad times ahead.

So get to stacking. Because they are coming.

nick

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Fri. Sept. 17, 2021 – another week gone in a flash…

Slightly cooler, still humid, maybe rain. Had overcast most of yesterday and some threatening clouds, but never did rain where I was. It’s lot easier to do auction pickup with the pickup truck but then I need to be fairly confident that it won’t rain.

Pickups are the order of the day, at least the order of the afternoon…

Yesterday’s pickup went well. Got stuff for my non-prepping hobby, including something to flip. In the late afternoon, I finally got together with the craigslist flake and did a deal. Sold my $5 auction purchase for $250. I wish I had more of them… I do have more high value items to sell, I just need to get busy with listing them.

I am starting to see a difference in my house, my office, and my secondary location. It’s just slow going.

And I want to go faster, because the decline is accelerating. The latest is fedgov limiting the drugs that 7 southern states will get to treat covid. We’re using up too much, what with our not vaxxing, and not cowering, so they need to save some for the others, who might need it later, because we’ve been BAD and don’t DESERVE the EXPENSIVE treatment. So, people in Florida and Texas can just suffer and die. If there’s anyone thinking that “well they should hold some back for the other people who might need them later” contrast this action with NY Governor sending State Troopers to other parts of the state to seize ventilators for NYC’s use in the early lockdown days.

The uniparty intends to bring us to heel. I don’t think that is going to work out like they think.

USE the time that’s left. Always be improving your position. And stack stuff. Lots of stuff.

nick

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Thur. Aug. 26, 2021 – month is winding down

Hot and humid. Chance of rain. Almost a surety that it will rain SOMEWHERE in Houston. It got pretty hot yesterday. I think my weather station topped out at 104F in the sun. It was still over 80F at dinner time, and just 80F at midnight. I did drive through some rain during my errands too.

Did a lot of running around yesterday. Did some thrifting too, since I’ve got a guaranteed auction coming up and he’ll take the stuff to his warehouse. There were a couple of good scores.

Today I’ll be packing up stuff for my non-prepping hobby show this weekend. So far they haven’t asked me to help load a truck today, so it’s all my stuff to get ready. I really hope some or all of it sells.

Moving the stuff is the important part, getting some money is second. Hanging out with people who share an enthusiasm is pretty cool too.

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I got a funny phone call yesterday. Out of the blue, someone from the local Republican party called and asked if I wanted to be a precinct chair. It turns out the precinct is basically my neighborhood, and a couple of blocks around it. The duties seem to be trying to get out the vote, shaking hands and knocking on doors. I’m actually considering it, since I encourage all y’all to get involved with local politics. Well, if not involved exactly, at least familiar with the people and the process. IDK if I would be good at it, or want the exposure, or would be acceptable to them. Everything they said about Kavanaugh could have been said about me… only the names and places were different. The 80s were a great time to be coming of age…….. Anyway, no one’s had the position in years. This tells me that the local R’s might be trying to up their ground game.

That they think they can overcome fraud with effort is funny. And I don’t actually care about most of the R’s, since they turned out to be politicians first, deep staters or quislings second, and generally not people I’d put in charge of a Prom Committee, but they at least aren’t actively pushing socialism. We can continue to pretend things are normal for a while longer. And it might lead to some good insights… or a spot in front of a pock marked wall. That last being the important bit. Hard to be the grey man when people know you as part of a political machine.

I’ll put it in the ‘meatspace baby’ pile for now and give it some thought. I don’t see much upside to doing it, and a lot of potential downside.

We’ve still got some time, use it wisely. Stack all the things!

n

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Thur. July 8, 2021 – flyin’ by…

Hot and humid, chance of rain. Might be sunny. Yadda yadda. Well, yesterday started cool, got hotter, got sunnier, and then ended hot and sticky. Lots of mosquitos in the yard too.

We are working on housebreaking the new puppy, which means sitting outside while he sniffs the entire yard looking for the perfect spot to NOT do his business, until we give up and let him back in the house. Then within a minute, he’ll have soiled something… so I’m getting reacquainted with sitting in the sun in the yard, swatting bugs. Joy.

Spent the day mostly not getting stuff done. I did get pickups done at two different auctions. One was half household stuff, the other half stuff for my non-prepping hobby, the other was all household. Got a tiny little dog life jacket for the new little guy. Fits him, and is even a bit big. He doesn’t like it at all, but if we ever find some lake property, we’ll need it. Got some pink safety glasses for the girls in my wife’s troops. If they’re gonna do woodworking with saws, hammers, and screwguns, they need safety gear. Got some small sized gloves for them too.

I did not get daughter two signed up for a day at the rock climbing gym today, but will get her in for tomorrow. She likes the gym and they had lots of day camps there the summer before wuflu. I will try to send the puppy to day care too. That should break me loose to actually do some work. And I REALLY need to get some auction stuff ready.

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Meanwhile, I think I’m starting to see the shape of the rest of the summer. The Dems in DC are establishing offices in other states for the DC police. Federal police force expansion cued up in 3, 2, 1 …

Chicago will ask for fedgov police or troops as the murders and lawlessness continue to get worse. They already have gangbangers trying to kill each other in the street with ARs firing 3 rnd bursts from 100 rnd Beta mags in broad daylight. I watched the video with my own eyes. Cops are saying “F this noise” and leaving or retiring on the job.

If Chicago falls, NYFC will be the next to ask for help. Cops in NYC are doing the same thing as cops in Chicago and elsewhere. Ie, leaving.

Whoever DC sends will just be more targets for the ‘bangers and revolutionaries who are already targeting cops (at least 3 that I can think of off the top of my head before the triple shooting in Chicago this week.)

NYC and Chicago are already blaming legal gun owners, and the gun manufacturers for the “gun” violence. The word they should be using starts with a “g” but rhymes with “bang”, and not “fun”. They’ll try to crack down even harder on the people who traditionally have just shut up and taken it. Only I don’t think they will this time.

Which should lead to even more sportiness, which the pro agitators will be sure to take advantage of. Their cadre has been blooded now, cycled away from the ‘front’ to share their experiences, and to gear up for the next wave. They haven’t gone home to tend their gardens and make war no more. They’re waiting, organizing, and equipping for the next skirmish.

Then there is the question of outside interference. Some people are concerned that China has used the foreign exchange student programs to pre-position tens of thousands of troops here already. We have a failed narco state to our south, that can move drugs, people, and guns over our border with impunity. THEIR fifth columnists are fully emplaced, dispersed to every city and town in the US, ready to provide an organized force either directly or as harassers. They are savage and have an ideological framework based on the Reconquista, and La Raza movements. If and when they are unleashed, the streets will run with blood and cities will burn.

There are many forces at work, they sense the weakness. Some of them have worked to create the weakness for decades. They’re looking at the fat, bloated, drug- addled Elvis, and they’re ready to kill the King and divide up the kingdom. My only hope is that we’ve been getting ready too, and no matter how much family fights, they all turn on the outsider.

The economy isn’t going to survive something like that. Personal violence is going to go through the roof. The economic engine of the world will stop, and then the whole world is in a world of hurt.

The elephants are dancing. I hope all the mice have a nice little bolt hole ready to hide in. If they don’t, what’s stopping you? Get to stacking.

nick

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Wed. June 30, 2021 – summer is flying by

Hot and humid, chance of rain. We did get rain yesterday, and sun, and heat (but not terrible heat). Today should be more of the same.

Spent the day mostly indoors, doing a bunch of stuff I’ve put off too long. Paid my toll invoices for driving around without toll tags in my new truck. Put the toll tag in the truck. Did a bunch of other paperwork stuff. Played with the puppy.

Today should be a bit more active. I have to do an auction pickup, and take both kids for their Girl Scout Camp physicals. I’ve got other auction stuff to do too. I was sorting through some stuff to sell in one of the local auctions last night. She’s got a guy who buys all of one particular item that she lists, and I’ve got a bunch of them. She’s waved me off on general items since she has a huge listing backlog, but maybe I can squeeze a dozen of these in. While going through that box of stuff, I might also have found a really good score. I’ll share with the guy who gave me the box though, I’d feel bad taking it all, it’s that good a score, and there were other things in the box that should bring good money on their own.

Part of the fun of thrifting/estate/garage/yard sale hunting is the treasure hunt aspect. You literally don’t know what you will find, and sometimes you do find the treasure.

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Got my FCC license for GMRS about 10 hours after I applied. It’s a “pay the fee and get the license” application, and the license covers your whole family. The FCC isn’t issuing actual hard copies anymore, they just send a link to a pdf. I guess there is very little intrinsic value in the paper, that would make it worth forging. In any case, I’m current for GMRS again. FWIW, I got a new license rather than renew my lapsed one. There were two additional hoops to jump through and a huge fee ($210) to bring my old one current, so I just got a new one ($70 for 5 years) instead.

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There are a lot of people that would make arguments against paying for the GMRS license, working from at least 3 different points of view. Don’t care. I don’t want to give them (.gov) that handle to use against me.

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There are a lot of lists out there. My radio stuff puts me on one or more. My CERT training put me on another. My previous work clients put me on yet more lists. I’m a blogger, which probably puts me on a list. I am on lists with HPD and our Constable’s office, and the associated alumni groups. Purchasing certain items with background checks put me on a list. Visa and Mastercard probably maintain lists based on my purchase history. Amazon certainly does, and likely collaborates with .gov by compiling and selling lists. My school district has me on at least 4 lists. I’ve been to China twice so I’m on lists there, and I’m certain the US State Dept. has me on lists because of my travel to the middle east and the middle kingdom. I’m on a list in Canada, I had a work permit there for several years. I was working on a project subject to ITAR and had to go through that paperwork – that’s another list. At one point in my miss-spent youth, I’m sure I was on some other agencies’ lists as a “known associate”. There may even be criminal enterprises that have me on a list, if they do that sort of thing.

Don’t let the fact that you’ll end up on a list keep you from doing something. There are lots of us on lists, and the more there are, the more noise there is to get lost in. Use the lists to your advantage. I have access to more training activities now that I’m on a vetted list with HPD and the Constable’s Office. The CERT training is very broad based, and definitely worth trading for a spot on a list. So is ham radio. Medical training likewise.

If everyone’s the ‘biggest risk to the US’ then no one is.

Of course, be aware of when you really DON’T want to be on the list, and try to conduct at least part of your life so you don’t get on lists. Especially when it comes to stacking, you don’t want to be on the list of resources to be plundered. And since local is the new hotness, be very careful about getting on your neighbors’ lists… and consider making a few of your own.

You can think of the lists while you’re stacking.

nick

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Mon. June 28, 2021 – if you don’t practice it, you will never learn

Hot and humid, possible rain, and surely some sun. Or some variation on the theme. If you guys are getting tired of the repetition, imagine me living with it 🙂

Yesterday was mixed rain and sun, with plenty of humidity and heat. I did get a bit of work done outside anyway, namely most of the grass cutting.

A quick look at the garden had more tomatoes ripening, lots of green still on the vines. The potted lime has 5 nice fruits on it. The blueberries are still ripening, with at least another half cup of berries ready soon. I harvested the one tennis ball sized onion out of what I planted last year. The grape vines died back almost to the root stock, but one is sending out new growth. It’s about 3-4 feet so far. I need to prune out all the dead grapevine sometime in the future. The herbs are flourishing.

It didn’t take too long to harvest the few things, and pull a couple of weeds.

Really I spent most of the day catching up on my online reading. There is plenty going on in the world and little good in the news. There is continued progress in the new race to space, and that is good, but it’s not something I follow. Of course the news is rarely full of ‘good’ news. Even accounting for that bias, there is a lot of stuff going on. For example, someone in south Chicago shooting up a car in traffic with a full auto rifle and a 100 round Beta magazine, in broad daylight. That is an escalation in the security situation in the city. Likewise, there was yet another daytime shooting in NYFC Times Square.

Nationally, we’ve now got the sitting President telling us rifles aren’t enough to keep the FedGov from killing us, we’ll need F-15s and nukes. It was bad enough when some nobody jerkoff from Cali said almost the exact thing, but now it’s the President? The president who seems more bizarre every day? Who does some sort of scary whisper voice during press conferences and talks about getting in trouble if he doesn’t do what ‘they’ say? THAT president? The same president who’s own party doesn’t trust him with nuclear launch codes?

Nationally, in big cities, and locally we have bad things getting worse. Yeah, doom and gloom. The end is nigh-er… but. Can you make the case it’s not?

And if not, then I hope you’re stacking it high.

nick

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Thur. June 17, 2021 – too much left to do, no time

Warm and wet, with possible tropical storm pushing up from the Gulf. Not that I was right about yesterday. It was hot. And it was humid. But it was also clear and sunny for almost the whole day. There were some glowering clouds in the distance late evening, and some lightning, but no rain for me. It was 80F at 1 am.

I spent the day doing some auction stuff, cleaning and organizing, and playing with the puppy. I wanted to get out of the house but couldn’t drop the kids at the pool, which ended up with me stuck at home all day.

I don’t think I can get my stuff ready for the pallet auction before I leave on the trip. I was hoping my wife could work from home today, but she’s got in-person meetings all day. I can’t even do ebay listings because I’d have to stop them in a day anyway to go out of town. It is very frustrating, and I feel like I’m falling behind.

I KNOW I’m falling behind, but I’m not willing to have my family travel without me either. Spending time with my mom is kinda important too. It’s getting closer to just calling a haul off company time…

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The world situation is changing quickly too. There should be no doubt in the G7 about where the US is, and is headed, assuming the coup plotters can keep a lid on the dissent. No one really knows when or if that will happen. What is radical islam doing? What are they plotting for us? China, Turkey, Russia, all licking their lips and rubbing their hands together about something…

Some things I’ll be watching for- our allies now know we are F’ed internally. They either know who is really running Joe, and approve, or they are realizing they will be on their own (as we turn inward). If the UK increases their military posture, brings troops and assets home, that might be a pretty good indicator which it is. Germany and France have their own internal issues but they should be positioning themselves for whatever they see coming, and soon. When was the last time we heard about bank stress tests, IMF loans, European central banks, and negative interest rates? Remember the concern over the PIIGS? Think they are in better shape after a year of wuflu lockdowns?

Estonia is probably pretty nervous right now. We moved a bunch of assets into the Baltics, iirc, what are they up to now?

Israel and the middle east is up for grabs at the moment, or will be soon.

I expect a bunch of realignment in the next year. And while I’d normally be a kind of ‘let them deal with their own issues’ if it happens because of our weakness, I am concerned that it won’t end with them.

So if you needed more reasons to stack, there you are. Stack it high. Can’t hurt. Might save your life.

nick

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Sun. May 2, 2021 – [singing] Do-oo-oomsday, it’s always a day a-way! [music playing]

Moderate, rainy, with periods of clear. Like yesterday.

My wife had periods of good weather at camp too, and the timing worked well with their activities. They have been having a great time. I’ve just been dodging raindrops all day.

I spent the day mostly indoors, other than getting two pickups done. Cleaning supplies, and birthday presents, bought before need. And 8 new in box zippo lighters. Genuine made in the US zippos, for <$2 each. Yeah, I had to drive to get them. Drove to get the other stuff too, though so the marginal cost was low. Our ability to make fire separates us from the animals, right? So anything that helps with that is a good thing. (Although any wick based lighter will dry out if left alone, so they are not good for a 'stock it and leave it' bag or stash- use butane for that.) One thing I had a chance to catch up on is the last couple of essays by Sarah Hoyt. I’ve linked to her before. Her mood seems to fluctuate, and she has written about battles with depression, so there is always that to consider, but she has a way with words, and as an immigrant and naturalized citizen, she’s got a different history and perspective than most people on the right side of the blogosphere. Always worth reading. Anyway, her last two are much more specific and pessimistic than usual, and even I find myself shaking my head and saying “that can’t be right”. But it might be.

Specifically she’s writing about the Biden EO that has gotten a bit of coverage on the right, and how it sets up the ‘legal’ structure to unperson, bankrupt, and starve anyone they can pin the ‘russian agent’ tag on. American Thinker wrote about it too. It’s titled “Executive Order on Blocking Property with Respect to Specified Harmful Foreign Activities of the Government of the Russian Federation “. Consider it in light of this section describing who can be determined to be at fault- “(F) activities that undermine the peace, security, political stability, or territorial integrity of the United States, its allies, or its partners;”.

Couple that with this restriction “Sec. 2. The prohibitions in section 1 of this order include:
(a) the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order; and
(b) the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.”

That is some pretty broad language. We know rule of law is dead, so don’t expect any meaningful challenges to this EO. The penalty for helping or taking money from the unpersoned is to have the order applied to you and your FAMILY too.

Read the whole thing at the Whitehouse . gov. It’s short.

Remember that the people who hid Anne Frank and her family were breaking the law, and the person who turned her in was following it.

Prepare yourself for what will happen when people begin to be affected by this EO. And if it could apply to you, or be MADE to apply to you, prepare for that too.

You probably don’t have enough stuff stacked, or sturdy friends. I am pretty sure I don’t. Keep stacking.

nick

(It’s always a day a-way…. until it’s not. Slowly, then all at once.)

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