Cool and damp. Possible sunny later. I really hope it’s nice as I’ve got stuff to do. Was nice yesterday but I ate something that disagreed with me and I was afraid I might do a Biddn if I strained lifting and toting… so I worked on stuff around the house until it was time to get D2.
Mondays are short work days for me anyway with the kid home and projects piled up. This time we did a sewing project. I picked up a fabric backdrop of a fantasy jungle scene, and put it up as the back wall of her lower bunk, making a kind of jungle play fort out of the bunkbeds. Unfortunately it was two pieces and they were only glued together, and they seam failed. Fast forward and we have a nice project to sew it back together. So we sewed. Got the machine out, set up, tacked the seam back together with fusible interface, and then ran a line down the seam. She did the next one. She did ok for her first time, and we’ll try something more complex next time.
Since everything was out, I did some small repairs on a back pack/ laptop bag that has been waiting for a long time for the repair. It ended up being a bit more complicated than I thought, but I got it done. It’ll either go into the auction, or my wife or kid will steal it…
I think everyone should know how to do basic sewing with needle and thread, and at least straight seams with a machine. My ‘everyday altoids tin’ has a golf pencil, with 18 inches of stout black thread on a heavy needle wrapped around it. It’s great for a quick repair, and works well on webgear too. I’ve got an embroidery capable sewing machine, a serger, the wife’s machine, and an antique mostly manual machine. You don’t need much- a set of needles, a few spools of thread, some fray check liquid, and some fusible interface will go a long way. A basic machine isn’t expensive though, and a pair of good scissors is worth spending money on. You can do a lot with just an iron, fusible interface, and fray check. Heck, for years I kept a variety pack of iron-on patches in my travel bag. If I got a tear in my pants or shirt while on the road, I could iron the patch onto the INSIDE of my pants and fix the tear very well until I got home. For fabric and leather, I hit up the Goodwill, and I used to hit the IKEA ‘as is’ section for drapes, bedsheets, or curtains to re-use.
In the last year I added specialized leather repair tools- mainly stouter needles, heavier thread, and something called a ‘jerk needle.’ I’ve got some hope that I can do some leather work at some point just because I think it is cool, ever since seeing a guy doing tooled leather at a craft booth at the Silver Dollar City amusement park when I was a kid.
I don’t expect I’ll be making shoes or shirts after the fall, but it’s definitely worth knowing how to fix your own stuff, whether it’s gear, shoes, or clothes. (I did make an entire long overcoat/trenchcoat modeled on the one Jack Nicholson wore in Witches of Eastwick for my final project in my costuming class. Well, I designed it and sewed it. The woman that ran the shop did the pattern and cutting…) For anyone who is too ‘manly’ to sew, it’s a POWER TOOL! Are you going to tell me there’s a power tool you won’t try to master??? You don’t have to actually master it for it to be useful, but it is good to have an idea of what you’re doing around sewing. One more skill, one more system to add to the stacks.
Keep stacking my friends,
nick
53F and damp. not a breath of breeze at the moment. Still and quiet.
Won't last. Time to make the breakfast, and lunches.
n
I guess Ford finally saw the stupidity of paying for maps. Unfortunately my vehicle does not fall in that category. I am still stuck having to pay $150.00 for a $2.00 memory card. Not going to happen. The Garmin is a much better GPS with traffic, alternate routes, junction view, lane assist, all very significant features. Ford, in my vehicle (SYNC 2) does not even come close.
So much bad beliefs about GPS out in the wild.
OK, I was a Navigation Electronics Technician in the Navy when GPS was being deployed, just to establish my source of knowledge.
Short answer: GPS is a time beacon in space and the receiver the distance to each satellite.
Satellites transmit UTC time every millisecond. They also transmit the almanac data, approximate orbital data for every satellite ,every 12.5 minutes. The signal also contains the ephemeris, precise location data, for the satellite. You need 1 satellite to get the almanac, 2 for accurate time, 3 for 2D location (Lat and Long), 4+ for 3D location (2D and Altitude). Most receivers can track 5 satellites, maybe more. I doubt you get much more accuracy from more satellites, since the additional sources are close to the horizon and have the most degraded signals. By knowing where the satellite is and when you received the time tick, you can calculate your distance to the satellites, and thus your own position. More satellites means a more accurate location. It is basically a much more accurate Loran system, except the transmitters are moving in space.
GPS receivers do not transmit anything, including your location, as part of the GPS system. Any device can, of course, transmit any data it is programmed to relay over another system, such as cellular or WiFi radios.
There are 2 frequencies transmitted to allow the calculation of the signals refraction by the atmosphere, thus correct for it.
There are also 2 different copies of the signal: Acquisition/Coarse and Precise. The P code is encrypted and only available to "authorized" users, mainly military, and provides more precise data (almanac for sure and I think a better time tick) and thus location. Originally GPS A/C codes were supposed to have intentional errors introduced but the Air Force made a mistake and all the satellites had the exact safe dithering pattern. Differential GPS used a fixed station to determine the pattern and broadcast a separate correction signal near airports and harbors. Congress told the Air Force to just shut the dithering off when USAF asked for money to replace all the satellites to correct it. I suspect that that problem has been fixed by now and it could be turned on at any time to reduce the accuracy of non-US GPS guided munitions.
The satellites are in an 18-hour orbit. Cheaper and a bit more redundant than a geostationary orbit system. When I was in the Navy number of satellites on the constellation and the number of spares was still in flux, but the system needs about 18 satellites to provide complete coverage. If a satellite goes down, there may be reduced accuracy while that satellite is above the horizon until a spare is moved to that location in the constellation and the ephemeris and almanac is updated. I don't know if there is coverage at high latitudes, probably not.
There are 4 different systems: US GPS, European Galileo, Russian GLONASS, and China Beidou. The Russian system is optimized for high latitudes and its constellation is in more of a polar orbit than the other systems. Other regional systems, notably Japan and India, are in development. Most commercial receivers capable of receiving signals from the other systems can also use the US system. We were first and have had exceptional reliability.
Probably more than you ever wanted to know, but here it is.
Probably more than you ever wanted to know, but here it is.
–-nope, that's what I love about the people here, and why I keep doing it. The depth of knowledge and breadth of experience is fantastic.
Drives me nuts too when someone talks about their GPS receiver broadcasting their position. It may feed it to something else, but by itself the system doesn't have any idea where users are.
One of the most important functions of the GPS system now is to provide accurate time signals for network use. EVERYTHING online uses GPS time broadcasts to coordinate time.
n
–"hate" crime. bad think.
n
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10179223/Miya-Ponsetto-aka-Soho-Karen-appears-Manhattan-Supreme-Court-against-claims-attacked-teen.html
added- as a 22yo in the City, I bet she was all for punishing bad think.
Getting the "Daddy" hat in the photo is a nice touch by the Daily Mail editors.
Schadenfreude. Spoiled rich girl.
Quiet this morning….
n
Plus an all-purpose excuse. "I can't help it, I'm ADHD!" "It wasn't me, it was one of my alters!" (alternate personalities) "You can't expect me to come to work every day because…"
Plus a marker in the intersectionality game. "Yes, I look white but I identify as a native plus I have self-diagnosed PTSD as a survivor of emotional abuse."
There are also a variety of augmentation systems: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNSS_augmentation
Including Japan's QZSS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasi-Zenith_Satellite_System
My GPS's talk to my phone via Bluetooth and geocaching.com (and others) via WiFi.
Thanks to Clayton W. for his description of the GPS functionality.
Not even close. Appreciate the update. I sort of knew how GPS worked, travel time of signal, requirements for 2D and 3D, etc. Each satellite is a circle on the earth. The intersection of the circles is the location. I also knew about the error being eliminated, but not why. Way to go USAF.
I find it utterly amazing that located can be determined by a difference in signal travel time of fractions of a millisecond. But then I am also amazed that the brain can determine the direction of a sound because the sound arrives slightly after the other ear, in the distance of a head. Biology and technology are amazing.
My Garmin GPS Map, an old unit, could acquire about 10 satellites, accuracy was displayed as 6 feet, sometimes less. My Garmin driving unit only gets about 10 feet accuracy, good enough for driving. I have no idea how many satellites it acquires, at least four as I get altitude.
I find it amazing that surveyors use GPS for positioning and property line location. I have been told the accuracy is within a fraction of an inch. I have no way to confirm or deny that assertion. I find it hard to believe but with surveys requiring some accuracy, especially for large buildings, it may be true.
I find it hard to believe but with surveys requiring some accuracy, especially for large buildings, it may be true.
— they are using 'differential' GPS, not just the signals from the satellites. The additional known fixed location beacon (in SanDiego there was one at one of the local survey companies) lets them refine the accuracy by quite a bit.
What drives me nuts about the surveyors, having looked a property lines for my rec association, is the assumption by every subsequent survey that THEIRS is correct and all the others before are wrong. You read stuff like "located NW corner of property, found iron rod 3" to N and 1.5" to west of corner. Placed a 1" iron rod". Um, that rod IS the corner of the property unless it was moved by someone. The result isn't more accuracy, it's LESS as some corners can now have 3 or 4 markers in a square foot area. Now the best you can say is that the corner is somewhere inside that square foot box.
n
added- the systems used to describe the points in space have changed over the years too. Texas has used at least 4 recently, and IIRC 8 or more in total. The surveyor or the transcriptionist often drops a – sign too, resulting in the coordinates being in the entirely wrong part of the world.
This started being a thing in the late 1980s. I can still remember talking to young women (teens and young adults) who said they just got out of an "abusive relationship" and my kneejerk reaction was to envision some horrible scene from a Lifetime movie where the poor young lady was laying on the floor with her eye swollen shut and a pool of blood under her nose. Someone would inevitably pipe up with "Oh my God, I can't believe so-and-so hit you!" and then would come the clarification "It was an emotionally abusive relationship" or "It was a verbally abusive relationship." You could almost hear the mental eyerolling in the room. So, basically, anytime you and your partner get mad at each other and say hurtful things it's abuse. If he or she regularly does things that make you feel shitty then it’s abuse. Well, I suppose it’s typically only considered abuse if a man says or does them. 🙄 It used to just be a sign you didn’t belong together and maybe it’s time to go your separate ways.
Fart rape is rape!
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-10180487/Lady-Gaga-reveals-wore-BULLETPROOF-DRESS-sing-President-Joe-Bidens-Inauguration.html
what a f-ing tool.
n
Schtick. The premiere of "House of Gucci" is tonight in London.
When you watch the sportsball, you give people like this money.
just two in a long long long list.
n
What drives me nuts about the surveyors, having looked a property lines for my rec association, is the assumption by every subsequent survey that THEIRS is correct and all the others before are wrong. You read stuff like "located NW corner of property, found iron rod 3" to N and 1.5" to west of corner. Placed a 1" iron rod". Um, that rod IS the corner of the property unless it was moved by someone. The result isn't more accuracy, it's LESS as some corners can now have 3 or 4 markers in a square foot area. Now the best you can say is that the corner is somewhere inside that square foot box.
Nick, you are right. What I am about to say probably varies by jurisdiction, and is old, but it came from a friend who was a surveyor. Incidentally, he died a few years ago at 102! He was also a neighbor, and surveyed a good part of our local environs.
Before we installed a fence, I hired him to place and register the corners of our property, at the easements. We are on acreage, and the only previous surveys were the gross property lines, which include all easements. We are on a corner, so the gross lines include to the center of both streets. Some easements, such as power, can be fenced, and others, such as streets, can’t. We are at the corner of an edge and center line of our section, so there are existing markers that are nearby and accessible.
He placed the four markers, and each has his brass tag with his registration number. He also registered the new markers with the county. He explained that these are now official, and I now see them on the section drawings. He suggested putting the fence one foot inside the markers as proof of intention that it be on our property. The exception is a shared fence with a neighbor, which is centered on that property line. He also said that the one foot idea is plenty sufficient to cover any future surveys that might be more accurate. Any future surveys could be made official in the same way his was.
He explained that we are fortunate to be where we are because the surveys are fairly recent (late 1800s) and pretty accurate. The two master benchmarks, one in northern CA, and the other on southern CA, are considered official, and should not change even if they are measured more accurately. That has already happened, and the system works.
An interesting side note. He told me that our valley uses both state benchmarks, which is not uncommon. He told me where to look to find minor misalignments where surveys based on the two references meet. Accuracy will always improve, but at some point we need to freeze what we have and go about life.
The ancient Egyptians needed to re-establish surveys after each Nile flood. Their system used triangles instead of rectangles. It is simpler, and could be adapted to rectangles: two triangles adjacent make a parallelogram, and a rectangle is just a special case. Imagine never having to square a rectangle, which is often a nuisance.
>> The GPS is a Tom Tom and it is typical of car GPS maps: shite.
I always found even the stand-alone Tom Tom GPS to be inferior to Garmin. IIRC some automakers did/do use Garmin for their in-car GPS.
Still have a stand-alone Garmin that can be pulled out for long trips where the junction view, lane assist, etc. is worth having. Otherwise Google Maps is more than sufficient.
Surveyors in my area use Trimble GPS units.
https://www.ebay.com/b/Trimble/bn_21837411
Slight correction. They transmit a time count (started at January 6, 1980) from their internal atomic clock. It's slightly off from UTC due to leap seconds being added over the years. It's now 18 seconds off of UTC.
Post Gruden house cleaning. He brings a lot of negatives to an organization, including personnel management.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-10180487/Lady-Gaga-reveals-wore-BULLETPROOF-DRESS-sing-President-Joe-Bidens-Inauguration.html
what a f-ing tool.
n
I just read a NGSW update in my Sept 2021 issue of Guns and Ammo magazine. The Army and Marine Corps are moving from 5.56 mm x 45 mm NATO to 6.8 mm x 51 mm using a composite case. The new ammo was specifically chosen since so many soldiers and combatants are now wearing body armor. They also include a test of the new Sig Sauer M4 replacement and M249 replacement using the new 6.8 mm ammo.
https://asc.army.mil/web/portfolio-item/fws-cs-2/
Psaki's standin is probably the worst spokesperson I've see at the WH. Can't be bothered to memorize TPs, reads from notes, give pat answers and can't thing on her feet. How the H*ll did she get that job? Oh, yeah, Amish.
@lynn:
ISTR reports by British squaddies in the Falklands (so that's 1982) that 5.56mm NATO in a British SA80 didn't have the stopping power of 7.62mm NATO in a Belgian FN SLR. There were multiple reports, sadly apocryphal at this late date, of Argentinians taking multiple hits from an SA80, and continuing to charge. And this was before widespread use of body armour.
G.
My CPAP machine is dying. I got a message on the screen where the motor life has been exceeded. In addition the humidifier is no longer heating the water. Machine still works but the lack of moisture really dries out my mouth. I did not know there was a life limit, tracked by the machine, on the motor.
I purchased my current machine on my own back in June 2012. I did not go through insurance. They required me to "rent" the machine at $200.00 a month for 9 months. The amount applied to my deductible. Since the rental period would cross over a deductible year I would be out the full cost of $1,800.00. Instead I purchased outright from an online supplier for $950.00, almost half the cost of the one through the insurance provider. Price gouging scum.
I am wanting a Resmed S11 and according to the sleep doctor that is what I would receive. Medicare will cover the cost, 80%, supplemental the other 20%. Medicare pays the rental on the machine for 13 months of use without interruption. Nothing is specified what interruption entails. Probably the same overpriced cost as before. Will have to pay another deductible crossing into 2022. But this time it will be cheaper than buying my own machine. My Medicare deductible plus supplemental deductible will be about $600.00.
I need a new sleep doctor appointment to get a new machine as Medicare requires a doctor examination within six months. I have an appointment scheduled a year ago for November 30. They are going to try to get me in sooner but there are currently no openings.
ISTR reports by British squaddies in the Falklands (so that's 1982) that 5.56mm NATO in a British SA80 didn't have the stopping power of 7.62mm NATO in a Belgian FN SLR. There were multiple reports, sadly apocryphal at this late date, of Argentinians taking multiple hits from an SA80, and continuing to charge. And this was before widespread use of body armour.
G.
The new 6.8 mm x 51 mm round has much more energy than the old 7.62 mm x 51 mm NATO due to the composite case allowing 80,000 psi of explosive energy. I would not reuse the case though. There is also a new spoon pullthru for automatic belt-fed weapons.
https://www.gunsandammo.com/editorial/true-velocity-delivers-more-than-625k-rounds-of-compositecased-ammo-to-us-army/387379
There is another Nick that has his own web site, and some of us should give it a look once in a while. Nick Panaritis is an old school engine builder who can make anything run better. His results are conservative and realistic, and he has a good appreciation for the original designs. His shop is in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. There is much more, but take a look at his YT site, or just view parts of this very long video:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Dug7qklWv-k
I have recommended I Do Cars
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7L9awvNBRU
for engine teardowns, but Nick does it all. In this video he coaches a new employee on how to work with tools. That alone is worth a look.
It is also about one of my favorite subjects, the Chrysler (Mopar) 440. The engine being torn down is typical of mid sixties Chrysler conservative design. Nothing fancy, but attention to good cooling and oiling that made these engines last a long time with good maintenance. Enjoy as Nick looks at this never-been-apart 50+ YO engine.
The current effort is NOT funded to replace the weapons, just a prototype effort. This has been tried many times since the M-16 was introduced and every effort has failed, This one does look more promising, but replacing all the rifles, LMG's, and ammo will be hugely expensive and I kind of doubt Congress will fund it.
IIRC… Doesn't most of NATO (and the rest of the world) actually use 7.62? We're the weirdos with 5.56.
Yeah. You pretty much need to replace all the rifles, etc. at once to make logistics work. I expect that SpecOps will transition first, then they will start making the new weapons while the old ammo is used up, then everyone gets the new kit.
One of the many problems that the German army in WW2 had was the vast number of different vehicles they had. It make logistics a nightmare.
And billions of rounds just to train up the troops on a new weapon. Remember that ammo shortage? I can imagine the bidding frenzy from ammo manufacturers. They'll probably throw in the cost of building entirely new factories, too.
The current effort is NOT funded to replace the weapons, just a prototype effort. This has been tried many times since the M-16 was introduced and every effort has failed, This one does look more promising, but replacing all the rifles, LMG's, and ammo will be hugely expensive and I kind of doubt Congress will fund it.
I doubt that the cost of rearming the Army and Marines is even close to that of one of those precious F-35s. I suspect that the cost would be a rounding error on current DOD budget of $715 billion.
Hatian-Amish. Things that make you say "Hmmm…"
Plus, LGBTQXYZ.
Just got back from the small HEB in our neighborhood. Markdown meat! Hooray!!! Top Sirloin, PRIME, ~$6/ pound. limit two packages though. I bought two more packages at 50c/pound more too.
Shelves looked ok, except for TP, which had a big hole in the middle, but still had charmin red and some other national brands. Pasta was wiped out. Asian imports were very sparse. Meat was expensive, with even "value beef" being more than I like to spend on choice. Burger was $3.89
Gasoline was $2.899 last week, it's $2.999 this week.
They had milk and eggs, but no HEB brand tubes of biscuits. They had pillsbury though.
Other outages looked like simple restocking delays. Cereal had good depth to the shelves.
Regular HEB bacon was 41c/pound. The thick sliced value pack I buy was still 31c, but that is up from the 24c I used to pay.
Lays Chips were up from 2.50 to 2.89 a bag and I think the bag is smaller for the flavor and size I usually buy.
Canned veg had full shelves, but choices were very limited. 2 national brands and a house brand but "corn" and "creamed corn" were the only flavors, and green beans were the same- "green beans" and "french cut green beans". In the before time, there would be a dozen flavor combos and alternatives.
n
"SHOCKING: Shots Fired in Poland As Thousands of Muslim Migrants Rush Border Crossing – Military is Deployed, Warsaw Warns “Major Shooting Incident” is Possible – (VIDEO)"
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/11/shocking-shots-fired-poland-thousands-muslim-migrants-rush-border-crossing-military-deployed-warsaw-warns-major-shooting-incident-possible-video/
The Polish are not going to allow themselves to be invaded again. Once in the last century was enough for them.
I doubt that the cost of rearming the Army and Marines is even close to that of one of those precious F-35s. I suspect that the cost would be a rounding error on current DOD budget of $715 billion.
F-35’s are not as pricy as everyone implies. The A version (USAF) is about $70M a copy. The proposed new construction of F15’s will be more than that and the latest version of the F-16 was about the same amount. The F-35B is quite a bit more, but the V/STOL version always was going to be more expensive. We don’t make nearly as many and they are more complicated. The F-35C hasn’t had enough made to determine what they cost.
And the F-35 is STILL in Low Rate Initial Production. The manufacturer’s have not been allowed to develop or purchase the jigs and equipment that will allow the price per unit to go down. Well, they CAN buy it, but they can’t get paid for it. Knowing the procurement laws, they probably can’t use it either since that would screw up the accounting.
The cost per hour IS unreasonable, but that price will go down as the design is matured, as it always has.
A new standard service rifle? That would be a huge pork project.
"House passes infrastructure bill with petrochemical taxes; methane tax, higher royalties, fees may follow"
https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/government/article/14213635/house-passes-infrastructure-bill-with-petrochemical-taxes-methane-tax-higher-royalties-fees-may-follow
"The House passed a $1 trillion infrastructure bill Nov. 5 with revived Superfund excise taxes on petrochemicals along with a range of spending approvals for improvements in ports, roads, waterways, and other basic infrastructure."
Ah, so the new distilled products taxes are going into the Superfund catchall fund. The Superfund has been known over the years as the lawyers payoff fund since they continuously sue the feddies and get paid out of it. The last time I saw the expenses of the Superfund, legal settlements with lawyers was the number one expense.
This current staffing shortages affecting every business have a variety of causes, but probably the hardest one to deal with is that people just don't want to do shit jobs anymore for any amount of money. The problem has been staring society in the face for decades, but has finally matured.
We all want to go out for brunch on Sundays, but nobody wants to work Sundays. Just who the f_ck do you think is going to cook and serve your Sunday brunch if nobody wants to work Sundays? "I honor the Sabbath, but my enjoyment of the Sabbath is reliant upon other people not honoring it so they can serve me." lol
We all want to stay in a hotel room, but we'd all be embarrassed to say we clean hotel rooms for a living. Well, if you're so unwilling to do such demeaning work then why do you think there's this supply of people that are perfectly okay with it?
When your kid pukes in the hallway at school somebody has to mop up the vomit. You'd lose your shit if your kid's school had dried vomit stuck to the floors. Do you want to mop up vomit? Does your kid want to mop up vomit? Do you know a single person who wants to mop up vomit? If I puked in the corner and then handed you a $20 bill and told you to go clean it up you’d tell me to piss off. However, you assume you’re going to be able to pay someone exactly that to do exactly that.
Do you want to stand on your feet all day, cutting and packing animal carcasses in a refrigerated plant under the thumb of minimum productivity standards day after day , year after year? Nope. But we want $5/lb beef. lol
Society has been functioning for a long time on the assumption that there's this endless supply of people willing to do all of these shit jobs. Turns out… there's not.
Just realized I used a lot of "you" in that comment. This not directed at anyone in particular. Consider "you" to be society.
China now has the world's largest navy – with another new high-tech aircraft carrier set to be launched by February
–if they can keep them… and keep them running.
n
@Chad: well said. I think (hope) the solution is more respect and higher pay. If you do an unpleasant job, you should be compensated accordingly. Sitting in an office shuffling paper? Not so much.
Ah, finally some more info.
n
My clocks may be getting old.
The Grandfather clock has been running for not quite 35 years. It stopped dead last week.
Yeah, ok, time to oil it. And I did. And the chimes sound different because who knew, until after it was all put back together that having the movement a hair in either direction mattered?
Clock ran great for a few days. Today? Nope.
What I think has happened is that by oiling the clock, letting it soak a bit, blotting it off and re-oiling, wasn't enough to clean the grunge.
Time for triclorofloro whatever passes for contact cleaner nowadays.
Unless someone has a better idea.
But, but, but what about all those illegal Mexicans Geraldo Rivera says we need to do exactly those jobs? Was he full of shit?
GPS in cars seems silly. What's wrong with paper maps?
I looked at the Nissan site and the updated map chip for my truck is $149. For an SD card. I think the version they have for sale is 13a. Don't quote me.
What version does my built in December 2019 truck have? I have no idea. I don't find that info in the menus. The SD card itself should say "version X", I would think, but no.
It did set the clock. Under a metal carport.
Easy enough to turn the GPS display off. Problem solved.
Anyway, it's a very decent sounding audio system. The back-up camera is taking a bit of time to get used to…. what the hell is that gawd awful chirping!!! Anyway, so far the noise goes constant when I'm about 20 inches from the dock at the feed store.
Was he never NOT ???
Oh. Went to Indiana on vacation about 10 years ago. It was sorta odd to see white boys doing the landscaping stuff. Looked pretty normal, actually.
There is a clock repair place on the corner of Avery Ranch and Parmer at the border of Cedar Park and Austin.
I took our cuckoo clock in there when we first moved and the movement was frozen. They resolved the problem without charge since the issue was that the chain had gone slack during the move and got stuck in the wrong place.
Time Masters … ?
UPDATE: Time Masters. Apparently, they make house calls for the big clocks, but you might be beyond their service area. If all else fails…
@paul, your clock question deserves a longer answer. Short answer is, clean the pivots (the holes in the plates with pins in them -the axle of the gear) and make sure the new oil won't make a slurry of dust or dirt and oil. That will actually cut the brass.
then VERY lightly oil each pivot. VERY, like the end of a toothpick droplet. Too much oil and the oil running down will siphon out all the oil…
There are probably a couple of bent wires that have to properly enter slots in the edges of disks, they count the hours and the quarters for the chiming. If they are bent wrong, they can hang up every thing.
Mainly though, if your pivot holes aren't hogged out so big the teeth interfere with each other, it's probably just over oiling and dirt.
n
Is that a fact? Lol, welcome to the club!
Ask your pharmacist? Seriously, BrakeKleen, or whatever it's called nowadays is the right idea. Work from the top down, so the accumulated cr*p gunking up the works has a place to go.
@Nick
Is there a doohickey like a staple remover which will punch/pierce little holes in thick leather instead of using an awl? It would be even more wonderful if it had four or five needles instead of one.
Well said @Chad. And @Brad, too. Re the hotel maids: hotels once were clean as a whistle. The maids were paid full time wages with regular schedules and could work 20 years at the same hotel. It didn't matter if people smoked, the rooms were so clean that no odor remained and the next occupant could breathe freely. And bed bugs were a myth to send children to bed by.
We all know all the things that happened to change that. At each change for 'business efficiency', it was the same: owners who cheaped out, and who forgot that housekeeping is a skilled profession that deserves a predictable paycheck with a regular schedule week in and year out.
Something very similar that happened to hotel housekeeping is responsible for the hospital nurse shortage. Owners cut expenses by importing labor, then setting up 12 or 16 hour scheduling schemes to reduce headcount. When this undercut local staffing, they started offering sign on bonuses. Now the regular nurse who wanted to work an 8 hour day at the same hospital on the same shift has thrown up their hands. And hospital management doesn't have a clue how to get them back.
No matter how prestigious the job or how high the hourly pay, no one really wants to work constantly changing shifts, or be sent home unpaid despite being scheduled, and not know from week to week what their paycheck will be.
The answer is: 40 hours of work every week, and paid for such, with the same schedule or at least a predictably rotating one. If that means employers have to provide some kind of health insurance for every employee (thanks to Obamacare), and not give management better policies than the janitors, then so be it. Employers who want staff need to stop playing games with employees daily lives.
From what I've heard, the science is settled: cryptocurrency is uncrackable.
Heaven forbid the unthinkable happens because a lot of money is going to suddenly disappear. Just a thought.
You have to pass it to read what's in it:
Congress approves alcohol monitors in ALL new cars to stop drunk driving in Biden's new $1.2T in infrastructure package
This is infrastructure how? I'm guessing some type of visual or inertial system, linked to the black box and available to LEO without a warrant.
I used to have a tool something like a hand riveter, used mainly for putting snap fasteners on clothes but which also had punch heads. Depending on just how thick the leather is, that should work. I think I got it at a Joann's Fabrics, a couple-three decades ago.
I'm not sure if you're joking, snarking, or serious. Bitcoin, the current major player, was never uncrackable, per se. If you can martial enough computational power, you can push fraudelent data into the record. "Enough computational power" means more than half of the total working on a block, so it's not a practical attack for anything short of the US or Chinese governments.
Other digital currencies have other vulnerabilities, at least in theory. Some relied on computationally difficult operations and others relied on "needle in a haystack" hiding of value stores, so they're vulnerable over time to faster or more plentiful hardware or to math advances leading to faster computation. Other currencies are account-based and are vulnerable to fraud or carelessness of the "bank's" humans in addition to the technical vulnerabilities.
@~jim
There's a tool called a stitching chisel. Coincidentally I was prompted to watch a video on French seams in leather by the YuuTuube algorithm recently.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAeejJUEP5A
He provides links to a leatherwork supply shop.
Gavin
You have to pass it to read what's in it:
Congress approves alcohol monitors in ALL new cars to stop drunk driving in Biden's new $1.2T in infrastructure package
This is infrastructure how? I'm guessing some type of visual or inertial system, linked to the black box and available to LEO without a warrant.
Just another mandated technology without a solution present yet. People keep on watching movies where everything is pretend and think that technology presented there is real. Instead, it is some guy XXXX dude XXXX person pulling a string at the appropriate moment. Or flicking a switch.
I predict that this new technology will not go well. Just like those "automatic" seatbelts in the clown cars that would strangle big and tall guys like me when you closed the door. And then would not allow the engine to start until you fiddled with the system. One rental car I had, we ended up clipping the sensors together with my friend the alligator clip.
What? Stark Industries isn't real? Has anyone told Tony?
They'll do a breathalyzer but they won't call it a breathalyzer. It will be yet another sensor built into the windshield.
From what I understand, replacing the windshield on a new Corolla is $3000. And I thought $600 for my wife's Exploder was bad.
2026 means the tech has to be in the pipeline now.
And another refinery goes down. "Phillips 66 to convert refinery to terminal facility"
https://www.hydrocarbonprocessing.com/news/2021/11/phillips-66-to-convert-refinery-to-terminal-facility
"Phillips 66 announced today it plans to convert its Alliance Refinery in Belle Chasse, La., to a terminal facility. The conversion is expected to take place in 2022."
"“We made this decision after exploring several options and considering the investment needed to repair the refinery following Hurricane Ida,” said Greg Garland, Chairman and CEO of Phillips 66. “Alliance’s existing infrastructure and Gulf Coast location make it an attractive midstream asset. Phillips 66 will continue to be a major refiner with 12 facilities in the U.S. and Europe.”"
"The Alliance Refinery employs approximately 500 employees and 400 contractors."
I am guessing that we are down to about 95 refineries in the USA now.
They'll do a breathalyzer but they won't call it a breathalyzer. It will be yet another sensor built into the windshield.
From what I understand, replacing the windshield on a new Corolla is $3000. And I thought $600 for my wife's Exploder was bad.
2026 means the tech has to be in the pipeline now.
Yup, sounds problematic and expensive. Expensive to build and expensive to replace / fix.
I just noticed that my 2019 F-150 4×4 has a camera built into the top of the windshield. I hope that I never have to replace that dude.
When I had my Subie fender bender repaired, the repair company said only a Subaru OEM windshield can be used as a replacement. The cameras won't work with a third party and that means no sensors work. The cruise control won't even work since it relies on the camera sensor system for auto braking to maintain distance. You can't just turn it on for speed hold only.
When I had my Subie fender bender repaired, the repair company said only a Subaru OEM windshield can be used as a replacement. The cameras won't work with a third party and that means no sensors work. The cruise control won't even work since it relies on the camera sensor system for auto braking to maintain distance. You can't just turn it on for speed hold only.
Makes my older cars seem very desirable.
Today is the second Tuesday of the month. We know what that means!
@Pecancorner:
This. Exactly this. When I was part of the salary-earning workforce, initially at Auntie, we worked something called the "A.P. pattern" of shifts. This dated from the days when the Beeb transmitted television from Alexandra Palace, in North London (hence "A.P." – the Beeb was big on initialisms), which involved working 7no 12 hours days in 14, for an average of 42 hours a week, and every other weekend. It was a rigid pattern, the days-of-the-week never changed, just the hours worked. For the inconvenience of this, you received "shift pay" of an extra 7.5%, compared to a day worker with the same qualifications.
That pattern started in about 1950, maybe earlier, and ran until at least 1988, when I left. For all I know, it runs to this day.
The rest of UK television used the same shift pattern – at least the 7-in-14 bit – although the exact choice of days varied.Certainly, at my last job, it applied. That's until 2016, so the idea is a venerable one. And the pattern was rigid, unless you decided, at your sole discretion, to accept an offer of overtime days.
For me, at least, this tended to produce a degree of loyalty – I was at Auntie for 18 years, and at my last employer for 26 years, with a short interval at Murdoch's $ky, where I was passed over for promotion, twice, although in hindsight this was a good thing.
G.
Who gets sued when the mandated sensor malfunctions and won't let the car start and someone is stranded in a blizzard or can't get to work or gets raped?
@greg:
This is one of the many reasons why I drive a 19-year-old car, and will continue to do so until I give up driving. I don't want the automated goodies, and monitoring. My 2002 Seat has nothing like that, so I don't end up fighting something like "lane assist" or similar. Driving is stressful enough without having to fight the car's idea of what you should do.
Oh, yes, and I patronise an independent garage, at about half the labour cost.
G.
>> Psaki's standin is probably the worst spokesperson I've see at the WH. Can't be bothered to memorize TPs, reads from notes, give pat answers and can't thing on her feet. How the H*ll did she get that job? Oh, yeah, Amish.
So you're saying that 'Circle Back pSaki' does a *good* job parroting for the puppet masters?
Maybe she and the Kamel could swap jobs.
Exactly! Thanks, I'll go visit JoAnn's and see if they've got something like that.
@Gavin
I appreciate the link. I'm pondering how to rebuild an old purse (for lack of a better word) and your link gave me plenty of recipes.
*****
I know nothing of the technical details behind cryptocurrency. I'm idly speculating of the deflationary aspect if a large amount of currency is suddenly withdrawn from circulation. Bitcoin & Co. smells like a boondoggle to me and loopholes always get torn. I think I've mentioned it before but _Extraordinary Popular Delusions and The Madness of Crowds_ is a must-read.
>> The current effort is NOT funded to replace the weapons, just a prototype effort. This has been tried many times since the M-16 was introduced and every effort has failed, This one does look more promising, but replacing all the rifles, LMG's, and ammo will be hugely expensive and I kind of doubt Congress will fund it.
All depends on whose districts the requisite factories are in and how much seniority those Congress-critters have.
>> Is there a doohickey like a staple remover which will punch/pierce little holes in thick leather instead of using an awl? It would be even more wonderful if it had four or five needles instead of one.
Is this what you're looking for? https://www.ebay.com/p/1924569433
I've had one of these for years, used mostly for punching new holes in leather belts.
I don't think it's available from "Craftsman" (whoever they are these days – Lowe's maybe??) anymore.
>> Inflation butchers your holiday roast! Bone-in rib eye DOUBLES in price to $16.99 per POUND while bacon, beef chuck and steaks reach highest price in a decade as 'meatflation' sets in across America
None of this would be a *savvy* supermarket chain sneaking in some pre-Thanksgiving/Xmas price gouging disguised as inflation? Right??
@JimB: WRT to engines, in 2006 i bought a Jeep Grand Cherokee with the 5.7L Hemi. I have no regrets.
Well, I do prefer our USA units system to the EU metrics. For example, when we bought a Dodge Coronet station wagon for the wife it had a 318 cu. in. V8. Later, in 1995 bought her a Jeep Grand Cherokee with a 5.2L V8. Same block, rigjht? I guess they have to do what they think sells best.
>> "House passes infrastructure bill with petrochemical taxes; methane tax, higher royalties, fees may follow"
And a whole lot more…
The bill is 2,740 pages long (see here for the "table of contents" and a link to download the entire PDF).
Hatian parents, born on another Caribbean island.
UPDATE: Martinique
re: leather punches – lots of them on the Zon. Several that are sort of plier-like. I've had one years ago, and it was difficult to get a good hole in a typical belt. It may have been a cheap model, though. I think I still have it out in the garage tool cabinet with all the other old tools I don't use anymore.
From a quick glance at the reviews, some are better for thicker leather (like belts).
You should be able to find one at your local JoAnns or Michaels.
Austin still has Tandy Leather IIRC. Other cities may have locations.
Yes, the same Tandy.
>> This current staffing shortages affecting every business have a variety of causes, but probably the hardest one to deal with is that people just don't want to do shit jobs anymore for any amount of money. The problem has been staring society in the face for decades, but has finally matured.
So how are these 20-somethings with maybe a GED supporting themselves other than having four roommates or stuck in mommy's and daddy's basement? There are some places offering north of $15/hour in a store or business and the worst of it is being on your feet for eight hours. Same jobs that used to be $9 or $10/hour.
>> We all want to go out for brunch on Sundays, but nobody wants to work Sundays. Just who the f_ck do you think is going to cook and serve your Sunday brunch if nobody wants to work Sundays? "I honor the Sabbath, but my enjoyment of the Sabbath is reliant upon other people not honoring it so they can serve me." lol
Most anyone in the food service industry will tell you to avoid Sunday brunch as you're likely to have the lowest line cook playing chef for a day.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/233981643498?hash=item367a648aea:g:UigAAOSwmGtghNcO
That's the thing you want for stitching. and possibly a jerk needle. There are kits with cheap versions of everything you need.
n
For leatherwork, and green wood working, and traditional handicrafts, I like watching a guy named Harry Rogers. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUydSC4GgiVQbcpjQTR_zQw
Just a guy in his shed making cool stuff.
n
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OYlDEpgoRY
How To Refurbish A Vintage Leather Bag
How are 20-somethings with degrees in Grievance Studies and $30K in debt supporting themselves? Some will get jobs in HR or in other corporate make-work positions, but there are more people with worthless degrees than there are worthless jobs.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10182839/Metallurgist-admits-faking-steel-strength-test-results-Navy-subs.html
Jebus.
n
I have to pay you for the hamburger I bought yesterday?
I appreciate the leatherworking tips and links. The "purse" in question is a 30 yi small messenger bag by Coach, back in the day when function and craftsmanship came before appearances and little leather tags. I've been wearing it since forever and I'm sure it will outlive me, but I'd like to approximate something a little less careworn. I'll let you know how it goes.
WRT Worthless Degrees. mine was BSChemEng, I was hired prior to graduation and got by for 45 years in Aerospace. Hopefully my grandchildren, now at USC, will do as well.
If you have files spread out among several disks – online and offline – maybe this might be interesting:
If you have files spread out among several disks – online and offline – maybe this might be interesting:
Thanks for the reminder ! I bought one of the 12 TB WD Externals for $241 plus tax for my semiannual retirement of one of the office rotating backups.
Obviously the hard drive shortage is over. I noticed that http://www.backblaze.com bought several thousand WD 14 TB and 16 TB drives so I suspected as much.
https://www.backblaze.com/blog/backblaze-drive-stats-for-q3-2021/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rA-kg6PsKLU
BEFORE & AFTER HANDBAG REHAB Vintage COACH Legacy Companion 9076 Restoration
n
The trouble is that those $15 an hour jobs are not 8 hours, and not 40 hours a week. They are 15 or 20 hours a week, split shifts of 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the evening, three or four days a week, with days and shifts that change every single week (and the employee won't know until Thursday night which shift he'll have starting Sunday). And if traffic is slow, they will be sent home without any pay despite showing up for work.
Even skilled trades such as welders are faced with this kind of obtuse management, that will not give them a day's work. I've even heard companies trying to "hire" welders but only offering them piecework – paid only by the piece and only if they happen to need you that day. It's all being run as though the employees are nothing but day labor. Such companies are un-serious.
Inflation Watch:
10/21/2021: Purchased 2 20 pound tanks of Propane from Lowes. $49.97 each
11/9/2021: Purchased 2 20 pound tanks of Propane from Lowes. SAME STORE. $63.98 each.
–dirty lying fuxers. Exactly what people suspected.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10183857/Report-Biden-amassed-records-54-million-gun-owners-2021-new-crackdown.html
n
n
Lol @Nick, you must be reading my mind. That's almost the same bag but mine is not quite so stylish.
–dirty lying fuxers. Exactly what people suspected.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10183857/Report-Biden-amassed-records-54-million-gun-owners-2021-new-crackdown.html
n
I am surprised that you are surprised.
And those records do not cover private transactions. I may have acquired a gub or ten privately.
Inflation Watch:
10/21/2021: Purchased 2 20 pound tanks of Propane from Lowes. $49.97 each
11/9/2021: Purchased 2 20 pound tanks of Propane from Lowes. SAME STORE. $63.98 each.
Be glad that you can buy the propane now. You may not be able to in 12 to 24 months if Bite Me has his way.
And Bite Me has yet to drop his carbon tax on us. He has been assured by lawyers that he can do so via fines in the Clean Air Act. There is a case before SCOTUS right now addressing this that everyone is watching (EPA versus Ohio or something like that).
Got this from Abbott's campaign —
–yeah, not likely. I spent ~$400 on groceries today, when I used to spend ~$300.
n
I am surprised that you are surprised.
–not 'surprised' but angered that we finally have confirmation. You know that if they have it, they will use it. Officially or not.
Nick, you must be reading my mind.
–that is the same style I have purchased for my wife at least twice, only in black. It's a great looking basic bag, and the Coach leather feels SO good.
n
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10183647/Americas-NINE-political-tribes-according-Pew-Research.html
interesting
n
Well, I do prefer our USA units system to the EU metrics. For example, when we bought a Dodge Coronet station wagon for the wife it had a 318 cu. in. V8. Later, in 1995 bought her a Jeep Grand Cherokee with a 5.2L V8. Same block, rigjht? I guess they have to do what they think sells best.
Not the same block. While I appreciate your (and my) preference for units of measure, you are comparing the 318 LA engine series to the 5.2L Magnum series. The Magnum was an evolutionary redesign of the LA. The only parts that are the same are the connecting rods. All other parts are not interchangeable. However, IIRC the mounts and bellhousings are the same, allowing compatibility with existing transmissions and vehicles. Here is a comprehensive article, with lots of links to more detail:
https://www.allpar.com/threads/chronology-of-the-la-series-chrysler-v8-engines.229877/
In short, the Magnum differed from the LA with roller tappets, more modern combustion chambers, port fuel injection, serpentine accessory drives, and numerous smaller improvements. Both engines are conservative designs that can last for a large number of miles. The Magnum was discontinued in 2002-3, replaced by the third generation Hemi.
During Monday's proceedings, Thomas struck a deal with prosecutors that sees her facing up to 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
Firing squad.
"'I loved him dearly and was honored to know him': Scott Bakula pays memorial to Quantum Leap costar Dean Stockwell following actor's death at 85"
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-10184263/Scott-Bakula-pays-memorial-Quantum-Leap-costar-Dean-Stockwell-following-actors-death-85.html
Great actor. I did not realize that Dean Stockwell was Dr. Yueh in the first Dune movie.
Got this from Abbott's campaign —
I am fairly sure that Abbott can beat Bozo. I just don't know if Abbott can beat McConaughey. But McConaughey walked away from the dumbrocrats today. And rightfully so.
https://thescoop.us/matthew-mcconaughey-has-not-given-covid-vaccine-to-his-children-and-doesnt-believe-that-kids-should-be-mandated-to-take-it/
@nick: @lynn:
Remember the meme, "How do you tell if a politician is lying? His lips are moving."
And my recent comments about chimneys and smoke.
G.
>> Finally received my passport. I got the old design with a paper identification page. My wife got the new design with a plastic identification page. Her passport also has the passport number tattooed on each page, mine does not. I would have thought all the passports issued would be the new design. Apparently not. Maybe they are using up old stock where my passport got issued.
@Ray, you'll find out the difference the first time you use it and you find yourself in a window-less room with a big, burly guy telling you to bend over and cough.