What did you do today?

[havasu]

Two buck chuck

It's now 4 buck chuck.

 

[zannej]

Unfortunately, those who forgo car insurance force those like us to pay higher insurance premiums because we need to pay for "ininsured motorist" coverage. In California, half the driver's don't even have driver's licenses, therefore even if the car is insured, the insurance is no good.

Good point. Even though it is state law that everyone must carry insurance, there are still enough people who don't so we have uninsured motorist coverage. It also comes in to play with hit & runs. If you can't find the person who damaged your vehicle it is covered.

I was in an accident with an unlicensed driver back in Guam. We were having horrendous rain. To the point I could barely see anything. I vaguely was able to see someone drive past me in the left lane out my side window. I did not see that the person pulled in front of me because he didn't use a turn signal. My wipers were going max speed and one moment I saw water on the windshield and then brake lights. I pumped my brake as fast as I could but I hydroplaned into the back of the vehicle. The driver wasn't even in the country legally & didn't have a license or insurance. The cop told me that he had to issue a ticket under the orders from above but told me it was not my fault and to go to court and contest it. He didn't show up for court & the ticket was dismissed. Our premiums did not go up because of the accident because the insurance agents read the notes from the cop.

Today I ordered curbside pickup from Walmart. I ordered just enough to hit the $35 mark to get free pickup. They substituted something that brought it down to $34 so they charged $6.99 for pickup. I was a bit annoyed but I still got my stuff and I hadn't felt like going in. Sat with my friend for awhile. HIs toddler was crying bc he has double ear infection again. We joked it was bc he was surrounded by too much stupid when he was over with his mother. Friend's new gf was delivering a dress she hemmed for a cop's wife (it needed the hem taken up 3") & the toddler missed her. We went to get her stuff from her ex's & found he had just put most of the stuff outside (I say most bc he still didn't fork over her expensive vacuum and the baker's rack she's giving back to me). Tomorrow I'm going to message him and tell him I'm coming to get the vacuum & baker's rack. We didn't have room for them on that trip anyway. She was pissed that he put her stuff out where it could have gotten rained on or stolen. Lots of crackheads in the area.

I don't think he gave her Ring camera system back either.

Picked up some food from a local place and brought it home. Mom got catfish. Bro and I had chicken. I poured cat treats in to a better container (one Itsy can't rip open) & she was losing her mind trying to get to it. Put some diatomaceous earth in a salt shaker and sprinkled it around in spots where roaches were running amok. Will have to do more later when Mom isn't in her chair. Her desk is covered in the nasty things.

I restocked the toothpick dispenser, and put some stuff away. I need to do some cleaning tomorrow.

 

[Flyover]

I have one of those reusable air filters for my furnace: you take it out, run water over it, spray it with some special stuff, let it dry, and put it back in.

But I've always wondered: how long am I supposed to let it dry? I tilt it and give it a few shakes to get out as much water as I can, but it seems like it would take all day for it to actually get completely dry if I just set it on a counter or something. Meanwhile am I supposed to just let my furnace run without a filter? What's the deal?

 

[Ron Van]

I have one of those reusable air filters for my furnace: you take it out, run water over it, spray it with some special stuff, let it dry, and put it back in.

But I've always wondered: how long am I supposed to let it dry? I tilt it and give it a few shakes to get out as much water as I can, but it seems like it would take all day for it to actually get completely dry if I just set it on a counter or something. Meanwhile am I supposed to just let my furnace run without a filter? What's the deal?

Good Question! I've never had a reusable furnace filter and you've talked me out of ever having one in the future.

 

[Ron Van]

I remember one where you boil water in a flask take it off the heat and put a stopper in it and flip it upside down in a ring stand and put an ice cube on the bottom. Once the air cooled and the pressure dropped it would start to boil again. I loved all that nerd physics stuff.

That's a great experiment! It uses physics to create the vacuum (low Pressure) rather than a pump.

 

[Ron Van]

Speaking of Lewis and Clark... the rifle that first won the West was an air rifle:

The Girandoni Air Rifle: The Lewis and Clark Expedition's Secret Weapon

Almost entirely phased out by 1810, it was during the Lewis and Clark expedition that the Girandoni air rifle fully came into its own.

warfarehistorynetwork.com

Thanks for posting this about the air rifle. It's super interesting reading about the rifle and L & C (Lewis and Clark).

I used to work with a guy who was a L & C fan. He tried to make an air rifle based on the Girandoni. He discussed the valve to make it fire with me one day and how he was having trouble figuring out how to make it work. At the time, I was driving a Ford Explorer that was black in color and my co-worker mentioned that L & C also had a Black Explorer named, "York".

Lewis and Clark Expedition - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

"An enslaved black man known only as York took part in the expedition as personal servant to William Clark, his owner. York did much to help the expedition succeed. He proved popular with the Native Americans, who had never seen a black man. He also helped with hunting and the heavy labor of pulling boats upstream. Expecting his freedom after the expedition, he was disappointed when Clark refused repeatedly. While all the other explorers enjoyed rewards of double pay and land, York received nothing. Clark would not allow York to remain in Louisville with his wife and probably children. He whipped York and put him in jail. The last years of York's life are disputed. In the 1830s, a black man who said he had first come with Lewis and Clark was living as a chief with Native Americans they met on the expedition, in modern Wyoming."

 

[Ron Van]

I got the walls and trim painted yesterday.

Here’s the before and after pics

 

[ekrig]

Today I ordered curbside pickup from Walmart. I ordered just enough to hit the $35 mark to get free pickup. They substituted something that brought it down to $34 so they charged $6.99 for pickup.

They made the change that led to you being charged? When they control when that happens, it is tantamount to stealing! Most companies Walmart, Amazon, etc. have pretty shady practices. I would rather not buy from them but unfortunately sometimes they are the only places you can get what you need, or the price difference is simply too high. Sorry to hear that you had to deal with that @zannej

 

[ekrig]

Nice work @Ron Van. That power panel seems a bit unsightly in a room. Do you plan to cover it up, with a painting/picture perhaps?

 

[Eddie_T]

I have found that if you get on Walmart's case about a problem and stick to it they will usually come around. The manager has given me gift card worth more than the complaint on occasion.

 

[Ron Van]

Nice work @Ron Van. That power panel seems a bit unsightly in a room. Do you plan to cover it up, with a painting/picture perhaps?

Yes, it is an unfortunate placement but I guess it has to be somewhere. Originally, it was inside the closet. I have been thinking of all kinds of ways to cover/disguise it but Ruby assures me she has a plan to take care of it. I’m going to try to subdue my control issues and just let her have at it.

 

[Ron Van]

Nice work @Ron Van. That power panel seems a bit unsightly in a room. Do you plan to cover it up, with a painting/picture perhaps?

One idea is to hang these pictures on each side of the headboard which would cover the CB box.

 

[Eddie_T]

For political correctness Lewis and Clark will have to be removed from the history books (or maybe just Clark).

 

[Eddie_T]

The Doberman breed is headed toward self destruction due to the occurrence of Canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in the gene pool. In 1990, the DCM incidence was more than 25% of dogs affected. DCM has increased essentially linearly by about 1.5% per year. At this rate, by 2040, 100% of the Doberman breed will be afflicted with DCM.

Breeders and dog clubs can be obstinate when it comes to cross breeding. If I were young enough to see the results I would tackle the job with the Doberman. It only takes about five breeding cycles to stabilize after cross breeding. The worst that could happen would be lack of acceptance and the emergence of new breed as with the King Shepherd. The KIng Shepherd still has some GSD problems that could be solved with wolf-dog cross breeding. Whether results are accepted by clubs or not would be moot. One needs to consider the breed rather than snob appeal. Snob appeal, clubs and shows are what has destroyed the Doberman. Breed a better Doberman or GSD and people will come to their senses.

 

[zannej]

The managers at my local Walmart don't care & I don't have the energy to fight them over $6.99. If it was a higher amount I would. Not having to walk around and search for stuff while I was feeling so cruddy was worth it IMO.

Today I did my shoulder exercises and picked up mail. I need to do some cleaning later on but I'm still tired. I had trouble sleeping last night.

 

[Eddie_T]

I have one of those reusable air filters for my furnace: you take it out, run water over it, spray it with some special stuff, let it dry, and put it back in.

But I've always wondered: how long am I supposed to let it dry? I tilt it and give it a few shakes to get out as much water as I can, but it seems like it would take all day for it to actually get completely dry if I just set it on a counter or something. Meanwhile am I supposed to just let my furnace run without a filter? What's the deal?

It has two small filters but my PTHP has those instructions. I just shake all I can out of them and reinstall assuming air flow will dry anything that remains.

 

[Flyover]

It has two small filters but my PTHP has those instructions. I just shake all I can out of them and reinstall assuming air flow will dry anything that remains.

Yup, that's pretty much what I do too. @Ron Van, I didn't mean to talk you out of it! A reusable filter is great, I hate having to remember to shop for them. It pretty much pays for itself after a year or so, and from then on you save money. There is a spray you're supposed to use with it, but a bottle of it costs like ten bucks and lasts 2 years. The reusable filter is mainly a QOL upgrade.

 

[Ron Van]

I have to reconfigure the ceiling fans for the new space so I installed a new box in the ceiling I have been working on and will move one of the fans to this location.

 

[zannej]

Ron, do you use any special tools to move the wiring? Or do you have attic access?

I did my shoulder exercises again and was able to get my left hand above my head. I showed Mom that I could reach a high shelf on her desk and she was happy for me. Last week I couldn't even get my arm up to my chin (with arm straight). The rope & pulley thing is really helping with that. That is forward though. Still can't reach quite as high sideways.

I talked to the narcissistic ex bf of my friend's new gf (fiance now actually) and I've arranged to get my baker's rack on Monday. Its going to be awkward bc I know he's really depressed about the breakup. He is not a bad friend or person, he was just really an awful partner. I hope he can find someone that will bring out better qualities in him and be able to move on. Despite how annoyed he got me, I still care about him as a friend.

Back to the wiring thing, I need to run all new wires. Not a single outlet has a ground wire.

As an aside, the diatomaceous earth has been killing some of the roaches in the kitchen. I need to spread it around more aggressively in the most infested areas though. Like Mom's desk. Just have to make sure it doesn't get into her keyboard.

 

[RooferMike]

Welcome Mike. What type of roofs are your specialty?

Down here in Miami we do all types of residential roofing including metal roofs, concrete and clay tile, shingles and just got done with a flat roof on the Lions. No slate or cedar shakes down here. I guess my personal specialty would be torch applied modified. I torched the little two-story in the photo and the rest was hot-mopped.