Quick Sanding Hint

If one were to be running a power sander for hours at a time, and he had the wherewithal to figure out the advantages of ear plugs early in this project, you'd think he'd have known that it would behoove him to employ the services of the dusk masks, which are easily found in the modern marketplace, before completing 9/10 of the power sanding which the project entails.

However, even if only one hour out of twenty was worked using the dusk mask, one glance at the thing after an hour or two of sanding would confirm its value.

I'm out of breath just typing this. And the sanding is done for now. Two hours out of more than I'm willing to admit. Only two hours of not breathing finely ground teak and who knows what mixed in. I will say the balance of unprotected sanding was less than 100 hours.

I'm an idiot.

--still pleased with the 1/4 sheet sander made by Ridgid

Quick Reminder

It is rarely noted, but none of the TSA bans on toothpaste, nail clippers, etc., and the searches and pat downs initiated as the result of 911 would have prevented 911. Box cutters are not such a big deal. For all the purpose they served, a well honed credit card would have done the same thing.

We knew who Bin Laden and many other players were. It was odd that people were paying to learn to fly, but did not care about learning to land. There was much intelligence which was neither applied, nor shared with flight crews.

Prevention is often more complicated and has something to do with culture, the nature of what people see, read, hear, etc. Rarely is it to be found in politically motivated band aids and power grabs.

Never Let Someone Else's Suffering Go To Waste

Hey, sorry for your loss, mind if I borrow the tragic death of your loved ones to kind of boost my image? Thanks, I knew you'd understand. You can go back to being numb and in shock now. In no time at all, I'll be out of here and you won't have to worry about roads being blocked and such.

But before I leave, I'd like some M&Ms, and none of them had better be blue. Or else! I feel your pain, now get lost while I psyche myself into my cool, calm, yet compassionate leader/and/or celebrity persona. I need that mirror to make sure my concerned face is tuned up. Photo ops await. Another few minutes in the lime light. This is about me. Your job is to be a good prop.

So sorry for whatever it is that has you folks down; but this is an opportunity for my campaign or news story or power grab or another chance to play Papa to New York City or to spin something unfounded against my philosophical rivals, or bolster my entertainment career. Matters not what you may call it, I call it pay day.

Of course many of us have our spots reserved in the VIP tent for whatever vigil. What's this town called?

Oh, look! Michael Moore is here with his crew to make a documentary. He says rich fat white guys are to blame--except not him, of course. Wow, this party is sure to last awhile. I can put on a real performance, get some publicity, and all the while pretend to just be in somber mourning solidarity with the people who are actually suffering.

How many people were killed in Afghanistan and Chicago over the weekend? What's it matter? No percentage in that angle. Nope, Pay Day is right here.

PS: Dear El Presidente del Mejico, Senor Calderon

How about you figure out how to run your own country and quit pretending you know how to run ours. I dislike you more and more every time you express your illogical bizarre itch to play US politics. You suck. other than the guns Eric Holder made sure went down there, I think the notion of US gun stores supplying your gangs which have killed 55000 or so in the last five years has been found to be a somewhat erroneous assertion. You still suck.

Ever Wonder if an Online Purchase Was Legit?

My skid plate has not arrived, and it is due. I finally got fed up with the plastic under-guard, that Subaru uses under the engine, because it keeps falling apart, so I ordered a well reviewed skid plate made of aircraft grade aluminum. I am familiar with that stuff; very rigid and tough.

Considering where I live and the occasional rabbit who bumps his head under there, not to mention the once a year, unexpected big rock in the road (oh, I just mentioned it), I think the more durable protection is the way to go.

Gearing up and I have no idea yet for how long or which path I'm going to take. Young nephew needs to get me the specs of that crate I'm probably picking up for him so I know if it is something I can do. Also I need to know exactly where to meet the shady vendor. I have faith the young engineer wouldn't place me askance the law or in harm's way, but in the path of semi-lunatics, he'd not hesitate.

The vultures have landed

Maybe that is what the Adam and Eve and the serpent story is really talking about: evil beings invariably do what they can to screw up Paradise. Spineless nincompoops (the Adam character) do the rest, spurred on by gossip mongers who want to own some of the victimhood (Eve), and often have hidden control issues and motives. Just a spur of the moment theory.

the above references characters of representation but is not meant to imply the Adam equates to men or the Eve equates to women.

I have tried to avoid news for most of the day. Hard to do. I got the story, and many of the facts. Fortunately, I do not rely upon ABC--the same outfit which edited 911 recordings to paint a race crime picture in the Zimmerman case, and the same ones who tried to pin the latest outrage on the T Party.

All that seems to be missing, and it could be that I merely missed it, is Al Sharpton demagogue-ing in, trying to start a riot. All the other demagogues in the nation have been making noise in order to further whatever agenda grabs their fancy. Wonder if Jesse weighed in. Or maybe the neo-nazis or the black panthers. Every one else has had something meaningless to say.

I understand that it is expected of certain officials, although I am not sure why. They are useless, and you know most of them don't give a damn, except to the extent it furthers their ambitions.

I guess it is tough for a news outfit not to play into the fantasies and fame lust of such lunatics. The more you put a name and picture out there, and the more you re-hash the crime, life, motive, early childhood and dietary habits of aberrant murderers, the more likely it is to happen again and again. There are better deterrents which would draw many viewers. Probably not legal though.

If the media is somehow indicative of the culture in which it operates, a good measure of the banality and total idiocy of that society is easily found in print and broadcast immediately after any traumatic incident, whether it be (alleged)man-made, or destructive force of nature.

Thank God I remembered to purchase some dust masks before I went to work today. That stuff was working on me big time. I must have inhaled enough to start a small paper mill on Wednesday.

Played Decent Enough short gig; bad mood and all

It must be the heat. Sometimes I don't like anyone or anything; especially playing music, but not exclusively.

We actually played a little show for an assisted living facility. A billion people, many of whom looked no older than I am. The MC girl got on my nerves. Everyone seems so patronizing in these settings. It wouldn't be a bad place but I think I'd shoot the condescending volunteers, and staff, too, if they have that attitude. Good thing I don't live there.

I hate anonymous comments. Especially from people just smart enough not to know that their point is only semi-valid. Example: being called out for saying I have to go inland somewhere in the Bay area.

The Bay area, up around the San Francisco area defines a large part of the state at that latitude. Inland in that area indicates that you go up to the Bay and take a right, but if you cross over too many mountains or hit Nevada, you've gone too far. I'm not giving directions for others, so who cares?

It is interesting that those who sometimes entice me into conflict always do so over matters which actually do not have to do with them. It is never over me telling another how to live his or her life. Always over another criticizing my choices, how I write, how I speak, what I buy or don't buy.

I do not not like conflict, and I see the quickest way to avoid it is to ignore that sort of discussion. Asking one's opinion is a different sort of conversation altogether. Openly barbed criticism can be masked in many ways, but the reality is that it is a hostile thing. Something I've yet to quit attracting. Those things happen.

Most people who are that adamant about my choices tend to be ignoring their own situations, or else they assume they have no choices, and the fact that I do is in no way the result of my actions or decisions or attitudes prior to this point in time.

Oh well, who can blame them? It is not as easy as it may appear to those who judge, but living my life is not a bad way to go. I can't imagine trading with anyone--even though I do think I have to quit letting the ones that got away get away.

One of those days. Is the whole country turning into small minded, impolite creeps, or is it just that CA is over stocked with rednecks and haughty nincompoops?

Probably my mood, and most likely a result of 90 deg F temperatures and no A/C. (except in the car). When I think about it, it is not all that bad. I'm amazed that a little bit of heat gets to me like that lately. The sensitivity to it comes and goes.

Still Gearing Up

With all the other work I have going on lately, paying for my various purchases, and trying to figure out my route to OR, I have worked late, forgetting a practice, forgotten to pay rent, and probably something else.

My landlord always returns the envelope which I use to drop off the rent check. It is almost like a tradition. It has their names on it, and I place it in the basket by their front door. In a few days, it appears in the mailbox by my door. I never think to look inside.

So, it sat there for a month, then today I placed a check with a note apologizing for being 2 days late on rent. Inside the envelope was a fifty dollar bill with a note from them thanking me for looking after certain chores while they were out of town. I couldn't believe it.

I would have done the work for free. It pays to kiss up to the landowner when you have a great rental arrangement. Make them like having you there. Amazing. So, I figured, "yippee, fifty bucks! Let's go shopping for some stuff."

I finally got my haircut, after three months, bought a pair of bargain jeans at walmart--and they are made in Mexico and have no logo on them whatsoever. Nine dollars and something. I can't believe it. And the fit better than most. That fifty paid for some other things too, like batteries for camp fans and mini lanterns.

My theory on things like lanterns is; the last thing I want to do is carry something around that requires liquid fuel. The old Coleman style lanterns were cool, but not temperature wise, and a hassle. LED and battery is for me.

So, I have a couple of mini lanterns which slide down to become flashlights, can be hung up in a tent, and are not afraid of rain. Plus I have two battery powered fans which seem to have received good reviews, and they were cheap.

The girl who cut my hair says that most of the camping up THE ONE is already reserved. Who would have thought you had to make reservations to sleep in a tent outdoors? Not me. Apparently many others already knew the scoop. I'll bet I find places along the way.

I have to go inland somewhere in the Bay area to pick up a crate for my nephew. He bought some device to further his ever burgeoning basement printing shop. He started with one 100 year old press, which he fixed up. Now there are two. And with the new device, he can create the plates himself. Sounds like a possible money making venture--if you get my drift.

Don't ask- don't tell, I always say. His wife is the one who creates the graphics, and up until now they had to send her art elsewhere to be made into printing plates.

Couple of neo-bolsheviks; probably printing money and propaganda for the Obama effort to nail this dictatorship down once and for all.

It will be good to just be out and about. I figure I better do it while it is still semi-legal, and before someone dreams up a tent tax and who knows what. This is California. And the new USA. I hope the change changes in nature and direction. These things scare me. I'm not a good comrade kind of a citizen. I not only do not support my local police, I don't even trust or like them, on the whole. Maybe I'm the sort that is being weeded out of this new 21st century across-the-bridge place. Hopeville. "Utopia for all except those who we think are too not like us."

So, good review on Kelty. Good review for the new air mattress, whose make I don't recall. It was a bargain online--campmor.com. I can use the pumps that came with other airbeds I've had which developed leaks pretty quick. This new one appears to hold air and shape better than the last few I've had. I have one that is still OK, so I have a spare.

Now I need bear spray--for possible carjackers, bug repellent of every kind. Not everywhere is like SoCal, where bugs are so few you can count them on one or two hands.

Who knows, I may yet divert my path over toward vagabond lady land. I don't know. I've been guilty of being too stand offish, and some people say the hell with it and grab another dude and never look back. Who can blame them? Not I.

On the other hand. I may hit the coast--got to save money, and ignore the thoughts of people who aren't even living my life. And definitely not dealing with my budget, history, or else. Everyone knows how to live anyone's life but his own. Not everyone, but enough people to make you wonder. That was a case of the extinct universal "his". Substituting "their" when possessive is singular is not a good answer to this stupid politically correct change in grammar.

Maybe "hiser" or "hizer", and "shehe" will gain traction. As it is when I see she or her used universally, I knee jerk into defensive mode, assuming the female writer is a castrating new woman of the 21st century, or that the male writer is a phony, trying to kiss up, thinking he'll get lucky. Ladies, those guys who play that "I'm a feminist" role are not real. They are doing it solely as a seduction ploy.

The rest of us would shoot them if we could get away with it. But it makes us so sick to watch the dynamic, and how you sucker for it, pretending not to know it is BS, that we'd probably be incapable of good aim anyway.

In Tents-ity2

The Kelty tent was a good choice. I tested it and found it to be roomier and better designed than expected. It is really easy to put up. One person, no problem.

It is called Kelty Buttress 4. Not sure what the buttress part is, except if you actually had four people sleeping in there, you'd pretty much be buttress buddies, like it or not. I could see how it could be done. But why would you want four people in your tent? Never mind. I can imagine many answers which don't apply to me or this discussion.

I was concerned that this thing would be too hot with the rain fly set up. I was wrong. There are many ways to take advantage of the benefits it provides, like the little shaded front foyer, while still allowing for good ventilation. It is pretty versatile. Whether they expected someone to do it how I did, I can't say. I pulled up one of the back corners enough to expose some of the mesh area. It folded neatly and tightly over the upper part of the tent. I opened part of the front to allow good air flow through the littler vestibule thing.

For someone who only camped maybe twice in his life until I left Memphis, this whole thing is bizarre. I'm not a long time committed outdoorsman. I'm still afraid of bears and most other animals. But then I don't generally pitch my tent out in wilderness where no human has ever been. Probably better off if you do. The animals won't associate you with food and eat you. Or rip out your car windows because they know food often resides in cars inside coolers.

The material is easy to deal with--strong, lightweight. For the money this has to be one of the best things going. I also like the metallic poles. I wearied of the fiberglass ones. These also fit together so there is no snagging at all. We'll see how it all goes in more windy conditions, but I think it will work well.

Even though it is hardly a house for four, it is roomier than expected, and all I need. Tall enough that I'm not in that backache inducing stoop if I try to do anything other than crawl around. That reminds me, the door works better than what I'm used to, as well. Something about the shape makes entry and exit quite easy.

I'm satisfied with the campmor.com web site, and how they do business. Quick delivery, good communication, and things arrive as represented. I'd like to be enough of a critic to give them 4 stars, and Kelty 4 stars, but based on my experience so far, I can't deduct anything so they both get my 5 star recommendation.

Really, it is such a piece of cake to put this up and take it down, and it is the size the would usually be far easier with two people. In this case you might save a minute or two if the other person was there. Certainly the time and effort savings would be minimal, because the time and effort for one person is already minimal. Even at double the price the thing might be worth it, relatively speaking. I wasn't going to spend that so it is great that it was on sale for about half price.

Hard Luck 2

I have to differ with the president's comments regarding success. We'll have to assume that we're on the same page in defining the word, although I wonder if we are.

His comments indicated that he believes those who have achieved success in terms of finances and a good standard of living did nothing different than the person who works a job which barely covers rent all his life. They were just lucky and only got there because others put them there.

It is true that such fortune can't be done without others somehow being involved. For one thing, you don't get rich unless others buy what you have to sell, or in someway enter into trade. A hermit can make a fortune trading stocks or futures or whatever on line, but without the others who work at the companies touched by the stock or commodity, he's in a vacuum.

Beyond that the hermit only gets rich because he's smart at trading and puts in the kind of work which yields results. Not everyone can do it, even if they want to. I don't know how or I would do it.

I've known several wealthy people in my life. People who made their money in the private sector, lived stable lives and supported reasonably stable families. I never totally itemized all their common traits, but they did have some that stood out.

For one thing, they did not throw money away on things they couldn't afford. They seemed to have a different attitude from most people. I did not notice them contemplating their bad luck and looking to blame others when things out of their control went wrong. Not that they wouldn't fire employees who proved to be more liability than asset. The "why me?" syndrome was largely absent among those of whom I am speaking.

I know that some people inherit, appear successful because they have money and the other trappings people think marks success. But I do not consider a gangster successful. I'm speaking of people who have done things honestly and methodically.

To diminish the credit they deserve is not even rational. These people provided much for those around them, employed people, contributed something positive in the market. And I do think some of them are smarter than average, and work harder than average. Plus they have an attitude and outlook that serves to direct the work and thought in such a way that the goals are achieved. I have fallen short in those regards most of my life, but I have sense enough not to belittle those who have done better. That would be petty jealousy and small minded envy.

I'm not sure where he's going with this, but he's wrong to encourage idiots to think that successful people somehow stole it all from them. I guess when all you've done is involved with government, you really don't understand where the wealth of a nation is generated, or what life is like in the real world.

I was stunned at this effort to pander to those who refuse to accept that some people will find a way to success under all kinds of roads blocks, and that it is not at the expense of those of us who have more difficulty seeing reality in such a way that we can identify, and capitalize on, our talents and abilities. For one thing, it is rare that you will build much of an empire if you spend all your time at the corner bar, or at home watching TMZ. Unless you know how to turn cheap gossip into gold--like the TMZ people. Or worse, turn the lowest of life forms into gold, like Jerry Springer.

Anyway. That whole bit offended me because it was demeaning to those with special vision and work ethic, and it rang of the rhetoric which preceded many totalitarian, nightmare regimes.

It's a Hard Luck Life

Not mine. My life is not a hard luck life, but the overall deal these days outside of my bubble is peculiar.

I was listening to people discuss healthcare pros and cons regarding regulation and lack of it. I have to admit, I see the sense on both sides of that concern. What doesn't seem to be within the thought process is a great deal of knowledge about how things became as they are.

All the explanations tend to be missing a lot. I think there are factors which involve government, insurance companies, and health providers (including the world of pharmaceuticals). Then there is also the influence of lawyers and the courts. My belief is that the unholy interaction and partnership of all these entities has corrupted the process to the point where people actually believe more of a collusion of these interests, overseen by the IRS will somehow improve our world.

On one hand, people ask if it is right to deny someone care. On the other, I ask if it is right to force insurance on those who may not want it at this point in time, due to personal circumstances, yet do not expect others to pay the costs they may incur due to medical needs.

Here is where the philosophies diverge. Some believe "we must all sacrifice for the greater good of all". That would be the group who likes the new law controlling healthcare--although I've yet to find anyone who knows exactly what the thing entails, or who has actually tried to skim and look into any of the actual text.

Some believe it is anathema to a free society to force individual sacrifice for what others deem the greater good. I tend to fall into that group.

Still others fall somewhat in between. They don't so much mind the whole thing of forced sacrifice for what they consider the greater benefit, but they don't trust the mechanism for executing this if it means that federal bureaucracy has total administrative autonomy.

Seeing their points and feeling good about them are two different things. I believe that an honest picture of how things became odd even before this law is almost impossible to find. It is like looking through a window on a foggy morning after a hundred disgruntled kids unloaded a hundred eggs on all the transparent surfaces of your abode. How do I know that and on which end of the eggs' flight was I? Maybe neither. I'll never tell.

I've been considering the thoughts of those people who were in the discussion. I've concluded that the only reasonable approach is a very tedious one. All the regulations have to be filtered through and analyzed regarding right and wrong, not who will kick back to your campaign.

Throw out what doesn't belong. I suspect that would involve laws and regulations passed over the last 6 or more decades. Not all of them, but some. This may involve things like requiring a prescription for many medicines and drugs which ought not require it.

Sure people can kill themselves or others through misuse of some of these, but they can do the same thing with clorox and ammonia, for cryin' out loud. And that is but one tiny piece of it.

Why can't insurance be competitive nation-wide?

Anyway, it is not impossible to think of things which do not violate my idea of human rights, individual liberty, and which still allow for a system in which little johnny isn't required to rot away from gangrene because his parents are flat broke. I would turn away most illegals. And probably people I just don't like.

Do people do much checking to see how hard it is to legally move to other countries? Believe me, they do not welcome broke individuals who sneak in with open arms. They don't welcome just average, hand to mouth, willing to work, types with open arms. And they really don't want you if you are over 40. Unless of course you come bearing flowers and a pot of gold which you plan to park on their doorstep.

Regardless of people who sneak over hoping to do the work I now do, does it make sense to accept something that forces sacrifice, even though you don't even know all the sacrifices, and from whom, it requires? I guess if you trust people who make laws, then exempt themselves from its requirements.

Don't trust insurance companies but you are now required to do all your physical upkeep through them? I don't get it. I do get that many people need things they can't now afford. I'm all for ways that would facilitate some of that care. But anything reasonable can only be done by a real purge of the bad deals, corrupt rules and regs which produced this expense and confusion.

What do I know? Just thinking.

Maybe I'll go test my tent at the naked place. Cheapest and best facilities and no one knows me so what the heck. Test it, go to work to finish teak work bloc two, then purge my own house of what is nonsense, then off to the great Northwest.