Cool and clear, still damp though. Picture postcard blue skies yesterday, but so damp the puddles wouldn’t dry.
Took care of my pickups and got D2 in due course. Didn’t get to the grocery store. Not critical, as we have plenty of food, just no fresh milk. I’ve got strawberry and chocolate for the kids’ lunches in UHT boxes, and some whole milk UHT boxes for cooking use. I used it last night for the mac n cheese box that accompanied dinner. Dinner included some indian pouch food, spicy potatoes with chick peas and a sauce. Looked just like the picture on the pouch and tasted pretty good. Best by, 2015. The rest of the meal came from a box, the freezer, and a can. Yum, all the food groups.
Started putting up some Christmas decor, put away the Thanksgiving stuff.
Today is a busy day. Wife is headed to San Marcos for training, so I have D1 to orthodontist in the morning, and D2 to pick up from school in the evening. In between, one pickup, and then off to my client’s house to continue the install. My time is not my own today or tomorrow. Nothing will leave the house or get listed for sale. Christmas decorations will probably not progress either. It is what it is, I guess.
No rest for the wicked, or peace for the weary.
And I need to get to the store for this week’s groceries. Good thing I have stacks, and nothing is critical.
That’s why we do it. Stack it high.
nick
48F and saturated. No actual rain, but condensation on my camera domes. Ick.
n
This should prevent the Federal government from passing vaccine mandates. And a lot of other things. I wist SCOTUS had found that taxing the people then giving the money back in exchange for restrictions (Such as 55 MPH speed limit and school policy) was a vionaltion of the 10th.
“This should prevent the Federal government from passing vaccine mandates. And a lot of other things. I wist SCOTUS had found that taxing the people then giving the money back in exchange for restrictions (Such as 55 MPH speed limit and school policy) was a violation of the 10th.”
The cabal behind Biden probably never intended the vaccine mandates regarding private businesses to survive legal review. Even inside the Federal Government, the unions are pushing back at places like the VA and Post Office.
The point was to provide cover for the C-suites who sold out their workers, at least until after the holidays this year. I’ve heard the lectures from friends and family who normally sit in the nice offices but have had a free pass to “work” at home for two years.
It is. The bonds are usually for the bare minimum required coverage. In some states as little as $25K. I have dealt with a guy that was DUI and his insurance was the minimum. It cost me and my insurance company money. I currently carry a $1 million liability. It takes very little to cause $50K in damages in an accident.
Probate has finally been completed on the MIL's estate. Got emailed the documents yesterday, physical copies in the mail. Now the wife has to deal with the entities involved to get them to release the funds. We no longer have the original of the will as that was kept by the probate court.
Arg. It was fog not condensation. Heavy low lying fog. Blue sky though so that should burn off quickly now that the sun is up.
n
Tyler Durden cowardice, probably protecting someone *inside* ABC News.
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/another-federal-judge-blocks-biden-vaccine-mandate-omicron-emerges
Until I turned in notice, my current employer was evading the subject of the mandates and how it related to my situation. Everyone just wants to make it through the next couple of weeks and then go ignore their phones until after President's Day again.
Of course, that plan didn't work out well in Texas last year. If it happens again this year, Robert Francis will become an immediate contender not only for the Governor’s Mansion but the VP slot as well in 2024.
@Alan, a couple hundred for a hard copy abstract back to statehood would be well worth it. However, the title company charged IIRC $1200 for their erzatz"service". When I asked for the real thing, they told me at the time that a hard copy abstract would cost $5,000. It would be great if computing and online records have brought the price back down to something rational! Were you able to get one for that price?
None, really. I'm pointing out millions don't have cars to register thus don't *have* to have insurance. I believe you can drive a car on private property without insurance, also, if someone would chime in. Obola care tried to make health insurance mandatory (thanks to Roberts), but had to settle for a penalty in lieu of insurance because it would be unConstitutional.
You're doing it wrong. Last year's Christmas stuff should still be up.
Multi-level takedown of federal health care workers vaccine mandate:
https://hotair.com/ed-morrissey/2021/11/30/federal-judge-bidens-mandate-on-health-care-workers-looks-arbitrary-and-capricious-n432106
Of particular interest:
“As another example, CMS rejected20 mandate alternatives in those with natural immunity by a previous coronavirus infection. 86 Fed. Reg. at 61,614 (noting “many uncertainties” about the immunity in those previously infected “compared to people who are vaccinated”). But, elsewhere, it plainly contradicts itself regarding the value of natural immunity. Id. at 61,604 (“[A]bout 100,000 a day have recovered from infection . . . . These changes reduce the risk to both health care staff and patients substantially, likely by about 20 million persons a month who are no longer sources of future infections.”) (emphasis added). Such contradictions are tell-tale signs of unlawful agency actions.”
It wasn't working anyway. The revenue generating work of healthcare requires highly skilled individuals who were already in short supply.
The C-suites are probably arranging a retreat from their prior position and once again want cover from the Feds. Cowards.
Just gotta make it to, say, two weeks from Friday, when the schools let out, and it will be two months of “I was on PTO yesterday and didn’t check my phone”.
" Giving Tuesday"? WTF?
ASPCA running TV ads saying they need just 1000 donors. Don't know what tv ads cost right now, but they will need more than 1000 donors to pay for the ad…
N
Very true. A newer car is easily worth $50k, and an accident can involve multiple cars. Add in medical expenses and incidentals, and you are quickly at a quarter million. Then, in the US at least, you get the lawsuits: people trying to turn an accident into a lottery win. Even if you (or your insurance) prevail, the lawyers always want paid…
– – – – –
Snow forecast for later this week, but the quantity is wildly uncertain. One forecast says about 8 inches, another says 24. We have a neighbor who is arts-crazy: he commissioned a play, hired an actor, and has scheduled outdoor performances for this weekend. It wasn't the best choice of dates – Fall is usually stable weather, but November/December are often rainy/snowy and cold. Dunno what he will do, if the snowfall is heavy…
– – – – –
Corona numbers here continue to peak, although hospitalizations are remaining fairly low. Likely, we'll see a new lockdown, or some other measures, in the next few days. FWIW, last week saw voting on an initiative that confirmed the government's authority to do lockdowns, etc..
Meanwhile, I wish they would start handing out boosters to everyone – currently, they are only for people over 65. I would get the booster in a heartbeat, because I am continually in contact with college students, who are not known to be terribly careful…
I just went and got my own a couple of months ago. I just walked into a completely different provider and acted like I had not received the vaccine at all. 20 minutes later I had a booster and was driving home. I’m sure I am one of millions who have done the same.
A $50k car in the US is, in real terms, unaffordable for the vast majority of the population in the country.
So true. And that reality does not sink in with the Federal government or the electric car proponents.
This is interesting. The chart shows both the actual and "adjusted" prices of gasoline from the 1920s through 2015.
Ah, the days of paying 19 cents a gallon at the discount gas stations in my teens before the embargo! LOL! 😀
https://www.energy.gov/eere/vehicles/fact-915-march-7-2016-average-historical-annual-gasoline-pump-price-1929-2015
Save that chart. It will serve as a grim reminder soon.
Who counted the ballots?
More effort required on the MIL's estate. The never-ending saga.
We have the documents from the court giving my wife executor duties. The credit union in San Antonio, where my wife is joint on the checking, will not transfer the certificates to a personal account or to the checking account. The money must be transferred to an estate account. Somehow wife is not joint on those certificates which violates everything I know about credit union accounts.
We now have to open an Estate account. We can do that locally. The credit union we will use has to have their lawyer review the probate documents before the account can be established. We also have to get an estate ID from the IRS for tax purposes. That was easy and was done online.
Now comes the question of taxes. Will the dividends be reported under the MIL's estate account and the estate pays the taxes? Or will the dividends be reported on my wife's SSN. I guess I will just have to wait.
An IRA account will also be closed. Same deal on the reporting. Based on past experience with the FIL demise I think that gets reported on my wife's SSN and I pay the taxes.
Seven months, going on eight, to get probate settled. Lawyers are the winners, at least in Texas. In TN we could do probate ourselves. Texas requires a lawyer for probate, no other choice. Doing this long distance has presented its challenges. The good news is that we do not have to travel to Texas.
I am beginning to think I should see a lawyer and put everything I have in a trust with my son as the beneficiary. No probate involved when I and the wife die.
Above, with Mr. Nick, you don't have to have auto insurance.
In GovScrewsomeState, if a cop pulls you over and isn't shown auto insurance document, the car will be impounded until fine and impound fees are paid and insurance is proven. Yes, I carry documents in both wallet and glove box.
@cowboyslim:
In UK, upon being required to show documents, certainly in vehicle cases, and maybe others, you are handed a document requiring you to show paperwork within 5 days. There is no immediate action.
This showing can be done at any police station, not just the station where the issuing officer is based. Never happened to me – not yet, anyway – but I don't discount the future possibility.
I have more exposure to this, being a radio amateur (a la @nick) but it applies to anyone. You don't have to actually carry the docs, just have them within 5 days reach.
G.
@ray:
We've done this, in our case it is for (entirely legal!) tax minimisation. We established a "nil-rate band trust", which is basically a way for the survivor to bank the first decedent's inheritance tax allowance, pending her (probably) own demise, since bequests to one's partner do not attract inheritance tax. This will benefit our daughters, since there will be 2 lots of allowance against the final estate's tax liability.
In the matter of probate, the process is long in UK – up to 6 months, and convoluted. My late mother appointed her bankers as executors, so probate was expensive, but painless.
My parents-in-law didn't get a trust set up before my FIL passed, so this involved further legal gymnastics involving the Court of Protection to get it set up, successfully. Then, when MIL passed, we could set two IHT allowances against the estate, that's 2x £350k against an estate of between £800 to 900 thousand. I don't remember the exact amount. My wife and her brother were the sole beneficiaries, although they complied with MIL's request to pass the monies to their children. D1 and D2 used the monies to buy themselves flats, I don't know what D3 did.
G.
"Citadel: Troy Rising II" by John Ringo
https://www.amazon.com/Citadel-John-Ringo/dp/1451637578/br?tag=ttgnet-20 />
Book number two of a three book military science fiction series. I read the well printed and well bound MMPB published by Baen Books in 2011, this is the fourth printing from 2017. I first read this book in 2011 so this is a reread. I bought new MMPBs of the series for this reading since my original books are carefully packed away in the garage.
John Ringo borrowed Howard Taylor's online comic Schlockverse to base this story series on. In fact, Howard Taylor even wrote a forward in the book. The book is a story of how Schlock Mercenary could have started but is not the official story as there is none.
https://www.schlockmercenary.com/
One day, an alien starship appears in the Solar System dragging a ten kilometer wide stargate. The aliens place the stargate in the Sol-Earth L2 Lagrange point and then give the stunned Earthers a user's manual. They then leave through the stargate. The second set of aliens shows up with a trading ship. The third set of aliens, the Horvath, show up with a military cruiser and demand tribute after dropping rocks on three Earth cities.
In his travels on a Glatun tramp freighter, Tyler Vernon manages to find an Earth product, maple syrup, that allows the Glatun to achieve a good ten minute drunk, a first for them. He wraps up the rights to all of the maple syrup in the USA and builds a solar array for mining asteroids with the proceeds. He convinces the Glatum to run the Horvath out of the Solar System. He uses the solar array to build Troy, a stationary hollow 2.2 trillion ton fort of nickel, almost 10 kilometers in diameter with 1.5 kilometer walls, to guard against further incursions by the Horvath.
This is military scifi of the best order. There are good space aliens, bad space aliens, space ships of all types and sizes, ray guns, artificial intelligences, body modifications, etc… The Universe is a dangerous place and John Ringo aims to prove it by his story-telling.
This book is dedicated to Jane Mary Morris Ringo. Born December 15, 1920 in Brooklyn, NY and Died December 13, 2009, Sautee-Nacoochee, GA. World traveler, writer, bon vivant and mother extraordinaire. And as always: For Captain Tamara Long, USAF, Born 12 May 1979, Died 23 March 2003 Afghanistan. You fly with the angels now.
There is a twelve page eulogy for his mother at the back of the book. It is very interesting as John Ringo is the sixth of six children, born to his 43 year old mother, and mostly raised outside of the USA in 23 countries while his father was building chemical plants in various countries, mostly Iran. After his older brothers and sisters left the household, his mother bought a red roadster which she drove John Ringo and her on exploratory journeys across the USA, the middle East, and parts of Europe.
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Amazon rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars (508 reviews)
IIRC, it took nearly a year to settle my father-in-law's estate when he died in Plano but in the portion of the city across the Denton County line. That court insisted on my wife being present for the hearing.
We still got phone calls from creditors for a long time after he passed, including one from collections at the hospital where my wife's father died.
During the time it took to settle my mother's estate, all the income from rentals and investments was reported against the tax number for the estate, and tax returns filed with the estate being the taxable entity.
Years ago, and in Illinois, so state tax returns were needed as well. I had a lawyer involved the whole time.
Over The Hedge: Bruce The Elf On The Branch
https://www.gocomics.com/overthehedge/2021/11/30
Oh yeah, I knew RJ was gonna try something.
>> None, really. I'm pointing out millions don't have cars to register thus don't *have* to have insurance. I believe you can drive a car on private property without insurance, also, if someone would chime in. Obola care tried to make health insurance mandatory (thanks to Roberts), but had to settle for a penalty in lieu of insurance because it would be unConstitutional.
And then there's good ole New Hampshire…tree huggers, Bernie-ites and Subarus…
"New Hampshire is the only state that doesn’t require residents to have insurance, or even prove they could cover their liability in an accident, according to the Insurance Information Institute and Property Casualty Insurers Association of America. But if you do cause an accident, the state will demand proof of insurance or an ability to pay for treatment of up to $50,000 in injuries and repair of up to $25,000 in property damage. If you can’t, you’ll face suspension of your license and registration. Drivers can meet the requirement, if they must, with a surety bond or by depositing money or securities with the state treasurer, or with alternate evidence that shows you have the ability to comply with state requirements."
"The “Live Free or Die” state might also require you to prove financial responsibility for at least three years after being found at fault for an accident, driving while intoxicated, failing to stop and report an accident, vehicular homicide or assault, or a second ticket for speeding or driving recklessly."
Another scarring holiday memory for my children is me throwing away the Elf On The Shelf in a rage one day before Christmas in Vantucky when the game got carried too far and my uber supertitious mother-in-law wouldn't touch/move the elf out of the bathroom so my daughter would take a shower.
MIL *DID* however turn off the shower, which I had spent several minutes testing and adjusting to my child’s preferred temperature. “Don’t waste water.”
No one dared get that friggin' elf out of that garbage can. He went to the landfill the next morning AFAIK.
IIRC, it took nearly a year to settle my father-in-law's estate when he died in Plano but in the portion of the city across the Denton County line. That court insisted on my wife being present for the hearing.
We still got phone calls from creditors for a long time after he passed, including one from collections at the hospital where my wife's father died.
The wife had to probate her father's will in Denton County, 300 miles northwest of us in Fort Bend County. She hired a probate lawyer in October 2020 for $2,500 (IIRC). The court handled everything in a Zoom call in August 2021. They specifically did not allow anyone to go to the court other than the judge and his secretary.
The wife has been slowly figuring out what her fathers assets are and distributing them to her and her sister. Her sister is very lucky that the wife is willing to do this, I would have charged her. Her father passed with eight checking accounts, two saving accounts, three rent houses, a townhome, two deferred annuities, two life insurance policies (who writes life insurance on an 87 year old man ?), five lake lots, several stocks (none in the FAANG), and a IRA. And one mortgage on the townhome. It has been a paperwork nightmare but a good nightmare as there is always a pot at the end of the paperwork.
Oh yeah, and five timeshares. The wife has killed off each of those with prejudice from our lawyer. But one of them, in Florida of course, is refusing the kill shot and wants her to go through probate there in Florida. She told them to stick it.
>> None, really. I'm pointing out millions don't have cars to register thus don't *have* to have insurance. I believe you can drive a car on private property without insurance, also, if someone would chime in. Obola care tried to make health insurance mandatory (thanks to Roberts), but had to settle for a penalty in lieu of insurance because it would be unConstitutional.
I presume you can drive on private property without insurance, or for that matter, a driver's license. Now let's say a friend was visiting you and riding as a passenger in your uninsured vehicle and you run into a tree and your friend is injured. Absent any auto insurance, if necessary your friend's lawyer is going to sue you personally.
Now with regard to "mandatory" vaccines, so far as I've heard they're attempting to be made mandatory as a requirement to do something, from going into a bar, attending a sporting event, going to your office, etc. We're not at the point (hmm, bad pun) *yet* where someone in a uniform with a sidearm is knocking on your door to jab you, so if you choose to remain on your private property, work for a remote-only company, set your groceries delivered, etc., you're free to remain vaccine-free.
BREAKING…
Active shooter situation in Michigan at a high school, at least 3 dead, at least 3 more injured, suspect reported in custody.
Westgate? Did he go to the seminar for the "free" Disney tickets and wasn't able to stop himself when the ex-stripper closer walked into the room?
Go watch "The Queen of Versailles" on Netflix if you haven't already. I've passed along the recommendation before.
Of course she worked for IBM.
Westgate? Did he go to the seminar for the "free" Disney tickets and wasn't able to stop himself when the ex-stripper closer walked into the room?
Go watch "The Queen of Versailles" on Netflix if you haven't already. I've passed along the recommendation before.
Of course she worked for IBM.
They gave him free Alaskan and Jamaican cruises for that $11,000 timeshare. We had no idea at the time. And they just sent the wife a $1,000 bill for the 2022 maintenance which the wife trashed immediately. They are claiming that Texas inheritance law has no power over them (the inheritor can pick and choose which items to inherit in Texas over nine months after the will is probated).
"Armed Agents in Texas School District Arrest Concerned Parents in Their Own Homes"
https://prather2022.com/articles/armed-agents-in-texas-school-district-arrest-concerned-parents-in-their-own-homes
"The Round Rock Independent School District (RRISD) in Texas is using its own armed agents to arrest parents who speak out against the school board’s policies, according to Christopher Rufo in the City Journal."
And this is why school districts should not have police officers and departments. This looks like a case of official misconduct and oppression to me.
Of course that was also when I was able to support a family of four on $475/month, while buying a 3-bedroom house in, albeit remote, California.
If I borrow your Jeep, I don't need insurance, you do. I may get arrested for not having an insurance card in the car (your fault), but it's coming back to you.
Who issued the arrest warrant? Did the popo just show up on a no knock because they were rowdy at a school board meeting?
Florida law allows for a "rejection of bequethal", but the time window is very narrow after the reading of the will.
Since Bruce Williams passed, no one with a national platform spotlights quirks in Florida real estate and probate laws, which often have impacts far beyond the state’s borders since the place is a retirement and tourism mecca.
Williams lived north of Tampa.
The Williamson County Sheriff was deposed and replaced in the last election. No word on which law enforcement organization did the arrests.
RRISD is our school district. Apple built their new campus within the ISD boundaries to avoid City of Austin hassles/taxes so the trustees and superintendent are feeling invincible with the fresh infusion of tax base.
@Alan – I had not – thanks! I just ran the installer and it works as advertised.
Yes, insurance is the mandated responsibilty of the vehicle owner, not any other driver.
I see where Epstein's former pilot has testified that Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Prince Andrew flew aboard his plane. I fully expect the pilot to die of suicide from three self-inflicted shots in the back of his head. Or all four engines on a plane will mysteriously and suddenly explode while flying the pilot is flying a plane.
And, as my wife reminds me, not only is Apple in the ISD, but the campus is conveniently located to make frequent use of the ISD's 1500 seat performing arts hall, similar to how the theater at DeAnza College was frequently utilized by the company when everything centered on One Infinite Loop.
The ISD is already making noise about building another similar facility.
Nah. Those names were well known as Lolita Express passengers.
Strange that they didn't mention Bill Gates. The pilot didn't even use a code name for him, being so excited.
One upside of the pandemic and the unwrapping of the mystery that is Pedo Island — no more Legend of BillG, Uber Nerd, The Smartest Man To Ever Live.
Gates will be one of the first against the wall in the purges if something bad really is going on with the vaccines. There won’t be a place on the planet he can hide, the downside of being Wag-Ed’s founding client.
>> You're doing it wrong. Last year's Christmas stuff should still be up.
Until Cynthia comes along.
I made a big circle today. Paid my property taxes at the office on the courthouse square. The lady there looked bored out of her mind.
Then to Walmart. A few items like Wolf Brand Chili and a couple of cans of spaghetti sauce. Top off the supply stuff. Oh, Jiffy Cake Mix while they have it (and it's going to be vacced and frozen for a few days). I looked for canned gravy, no luck. Canned Mac'n'Cheese was on the list, just to try it, but the Chef Boyardee type of stuff was wiped out.
Traffic in Marble Falls was a cluster of WTF. Out of a parking lot in front of a huge Ford pick-up and across the road into a left hand turn lane? Plenty of tailgating, too.
Tractor Supply was out of the dog cookies I wanted. They had plenty of cat chow. Six 44# bags should get me almost to the end of January.
Then back to town, filled up at the Valero / Circle K and home.
The dogs are happy I didn't abandon them forever. Buddy especially.
The Jiffy Cake Mix? I have a SaladMaster electric skillet. Oil filled and all that. It has a recipe for pineapple upside down cake that calls for a box of Jiffy.
The mix has not been available locally for several years.
My plan is to try it with a can of fruit cocktail. Drained, just like the pineapple is drained. Maybe a bit of bottled lemon juice to add a bit of the tartness pineapple has. If it works, great. If not, well, 79¢ for cake mix plus a can of fruit and half an hour of time… raccoons gotta eat too.
If fruit cocktail works, then onward to canned peaches and canned pears. Mandarin oranges might work. I'm going to pass on canned tomatoes until I get more chickens. Tomato Preserves are a thing.
Commie say wut:
CNBC’s Jim Cramer says it’s ‘psychotic’ that we have immunocompromised people walking around ‘lawfully unvaccinated’
He'd probably be the first one to bash your head in like a baby seal if he thought you were UNCLEAN.
Tractor Supply was out of the dog cookies I wanted. They had plenty of cat chow. Six 44# bags should get me almost to the end of January.
That is a lot of cat chow. Do you have about a hundred cats ?
My plan is to try it with a can of fruit cocktail. Drained, just like the pineapple is drained. Maybe a bit of bottled lemon juice to add a bit of the tartness pineapple has. If it works, great. If not, well, 79¢ for cake mix plus a can of fruit and half an hour of time… raccoons gotta eat too.
My parents have four raccoons living outside their house. Plus about a dozen squirrels and a fox. I watched the raccoons gang up on the fox a couple of weeks ago when she ? tried to get a couple of bites of the bird feeder food that squirrels had dumped on the ground. The raccoons did a standard two by two formation and hit her from the front and back. She was eating the bird seed and her head whipped up and she ran for it just before the raccoons got to her. The raccoons then finished off the pound or two of bird seed on the ground.
All I got is a stinkin' possum.
Sam's Club in Lakeline has been stocking the Chef Boyardee canned ravioli again after dropping it for a couple of years.
I'll take a pass down that aisle the next time I'm in there to double check.
"Elon Musk tells SpaceX employees that Starship engine crisis is creating a ‘risk of bankruptcy’"
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/30/elon-musk-to-spacex-starships-raptor-engine-crisis-risks-bankruptcy.html
"Elon Musk described a dire situation with SpaceX’s development of Raptor rocket engines the day after Thanksgiving in a companywide email, a copy of which was obtained by CNBC."
"“The Raptor production crisis is much worse than it seemed a few weeks ago,” Musk wrote."
"Raptor engines power the company’s Starship rocket, with Musk adding that SpaceX faces “genuine risk of bankruptcy if we cannot achieve a Starship flight rate of at least once every two weeks next year.”"
That is a heck of a goal for a space ship that has not been in space yet.
Hat tip to:
https://www.drudgereport.com/
All I got is a stinkin' possum.
Possums eat ticks sir ! You are a lucky man.
We are thinking about getting a 17 inch lightweight laptop for the daughter for Christmas. Consumer Reports likes the LG Windows laptops the best. Her main usage is Minecraft and message boards. I found this one on Big River. Price is ok and says that they have 16 in stock at the moment. Thoughts ?
"LG Gram 17Z90P Laptop 17" IPS Ultra-Lightweight, (2560 x 1600), Intel Evo 11th gen Core i7 , 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, Upgradeable Windows 10 Home, Alexa Built-in, 2X USB-C, HDMI, USB-A – Black" for $1,620
https://www.amazon.com/LG-Gram-17Z90P-Ultra-Lightweight-Built/dp/B08SW1LTST//p?tag=ttgnet-20
It does have a chicklet keyboard which I dislike but, she is ok with.
Flying out of Boca Chica? With more thrust than a Saturn V?
Remember, beer money, not food money.
WRT the Starship engine issue: 20 years ago I was in the Delta II propulsion group launching the Iridium and GPS satellites, among others. If EM wants my help. I will do so at a minimum of $500 per hour.
I'll be back tomorrow with my update on auto insurance.
WRT the Starship engine issue: 20 years ago I was in the Delta II propulsion group launching the Iridium and GPS satellites, among others. If EM wants my help. I will do so at a minimum of $500 per hour.
My guess is that when EM moved the raptor engine shop from California to Waco, TX a while back, he did not put any startup time into his estimates of getting to producing 100 rocket engines/month. EM is both scaling the California shop (producing 2 ? 4 ? 10 ? rocket engines/month) into the new Waco shop and creating the new Waco shop simultaneously. Sounds heroic to me.
https://www.kwtx.com/2021/07/11/elon-musk-says-spacex-planning-second-rocket-facility-near-waco/
All I got is a stinkin' teenager.
Actually, she doesn't stink so's to mention but her room reeks of BO and despair.
And she doesn't eat ticks, either. So far as critters to keep around, I'm going to have to rate this one as totally useless.
"Cloud computing has won. But we still don't know what that means"
https://www.zdnet.com/article/cloud-computing-has-won-but-we-still-dont-know-what-that-means/
"The cloud revolution means big changes ahead for jobs and more. And don't expect the rate of change to slow."
Crap, I may have to finagle a cloud version of my software soon.
Waco does not have the aerospace infrastructure or available skilled labor like Southern California.
Ask a Californian to move to Waco, and the first thing that will pop into their heads is the Branch Dividian fiasco.
Musk goes where there will be a proper quantity and quality of toadying by public officials.
>> @Alan, a couple hundred for a hard copy abstract back to statehood would be well worth it. However, the title company charged IIRC $1200 for their erzatz"service". When I asked for the real thing, they told me at the time that a hard copy abstract would cost $5,000. It would be great if computing and online records have brought the price back down to something rational! Were you able to get one for that price?
@Pecancorner, when we closed on our current home the title insurance policy included the abstract. We paid around $1,200.
You might try a couple other title companies, but from what I recall there's a lot of under-the-table collusion to keep people from price shopping. There have been some upstarts trying to 'break' the cartel with discount pricing but haven't heard much about that lately.
>> " Giving Tuesday"? WTF?
ASPCA running TV ads saying they need just 1000 donors. Don't know what tv ads cost right now, but they will need more than 1000 donors to pay for the ad…
You're better off supporting your local animal shelter(s). They avoid all of ASPCA's overhead.
Many shelters are really suffering lately…our county shelter has over 600 dogs and they are waiving all adoption fees. Many kennels are doubled up and they're even starting to put portable kennels in the administrative offices. So tempting to add to our pack.
First Pournelle,
Then Nolan, now…
http://ace.mu.nu/archives/Screenshot%20(840).png
>> Meanwhile, I wish they would start handing out boosters to everyone – currently, they are only for people over 65. I would get the booster in a heartbeat, because I am continually in contact with college students, who are not known to be terribly careful…
>>>>I just went and got my own a couple of months ago. I just walked into a completely different provider and acted like I had not received the vaccine at all. 20 minutes later I had a booster and was driving home. I’m sure I am one of millions who have done the same.
That's what I was planning to do before they added the '3rd shot' for the immunocompromised and I got that, so my 'booster' is still five months away.
@brad, is walking in and claiming "unvaccinated" an option for you?
You don't have to actually carry the docs, just have them within 5 days reach.
—that used to be the case here too. No one could force you to produce "papers". If you had a valid DL but didn't have it with you, you got a 'fixit ticket' and had to appear and show the Judge that at the time you did in fact have a license. Ditto for a lot of things. TPTB have been chipping away at those freedoms for a long time.
n
"Cloud computing has won. But we still don't know what that means"
But we know some of it, like…
We don't know what our data is doing on a given night, or who is doing our data.
>> A $50k car in the US is, in real terms, unaffordable for the vast majority of the population in the country.
Exactly why I wound up buying a like-new 2018 LEAF for $20k while a new 2021 with equivalent trim was around $45k.
>> I am beginning to think I should see a lawyer and put everything I have in a trust with my son as the beneficiary. No probate involved when I and the wife die.
@Ray, your son will thank you when your entire estate is handled by the trust without a day in probate court and without a dollar being siphoned off by a lawyer. And if it matters, while filed wills are public record, an estate trust is not. Find a good estate planning attorney and you'll be golden.
The DevOps inmates are running the asylum, stringing together Docker containers which contain services built from layers of poorly understood Node libraries. This won't end well, but, hey, Hot Skillz!
The irony is that users have a much lower expectation of privacy in legal terms than any customer of AOL's services back in the day, and an aol.com email address used to mark a person as a n00b.
"The irony is that users have a much lower expectation of privacy in legal terms than any customer of AOL's services back in the day."
But the bean counters fully understand the compromise they have made to save the BigBux.
Hey, my aol addy is older than college students…
n
>> The wife has been slowly figuring out what her fathers assets are and distributing them to her and her sister. Her sister is very lucky that the wife is willing to do this, I would have charged her.
The person named as executor is typically entitled to a fee for their services, paid from the estate funds. Of course, YMMV depending on your wife's relationship with her sister.
At least the pickup was a Ford…
https://prather2022.com/articles/houston-man-sentenced-to-more-than-9-years-in-prison-for-getting-nearly-1-6m-in-ppp-loans-and-spending-it-on-lamborghini-strip-clubs
>> I am beginning to think I should see a lawyer and put everything I have in a trust with my son as the beneficiary. No probate involved when I and the wife die.
@Ray, your son will thank you when your entire estate is handled by the trust without a day in probate court and without a dollar being siphoned off by a lawyer. And if it matters, while filed wills are public record, an estate trust is not. Find a good estate planning attorney and you'll be golden.
Only if he is aware of how things are done normally and all the issues he would be able to avoid….
Nevertheless, as a father I would be all for it regardless of any thanks.
>> I am beginning to think I should see a lawyer and put everything I have in a trust with my son as the beneficiary. No probate involved when I and the wife die.
@Ray, your son will thank you when your entire estate is handled by the trust without a day in probate court and without a dollar being siphoned off by a lawyer. And if it matters, while filed wills are public record, an estate trust is not. Find a good estate planning attorney and you'll be golden.
The word "revocable" needs to be in there somewhere. Maybe multiple times.
And the good estate planning attorney is not free. And it is ultra important that the trust manager be someone who is very much trusted. Not a bank manager. Not the estate attorney.
My business partner who passed away last year left everything to his wife. I am now writing checks to her trust while hoping all the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed. I am comforted by the fact that his oldest son is a near billionaire so he can get most things fixed for his mother if needful.
Even when it's handed to them, the admin f'd it up.
n
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10259715/Authorities-4-6-people-shot-Michigan-school-shooting.html
>> The wife has been slowly figuring out what her fathers assets are and distributing them to her and her sister. Her sister is very lucky that the wife is willing to do this, I would have charged her.
The person named as executor is typically entitled to a fee for their services, paid from the estate funds. Of course, YMMV depending on your wife's relationship with her sister.
My wife and her sister are tight, very tight. Only three years apart. Especially since they are now orphans which actually does bother them a little. My wife's sister is dealing with a nightmare, her husband is 65 years old 6'4" 230 lb guy with Lewy Body Dementia. Their last three years have been horrible, starting with his neck surgery to fuse T2 – T3 – T4 together on an emergency basis (she took him to a neurologist who called ambulance and operated next morning). He is about a year away from skilled nursing care (SWAG). In fact, after the fusing he spent almost six months in skilled nursing care learning how to walk again since he had so much spinal cord damage. Their youngest son quit his job and now helps them out which may delay the skilled nursing care. But they are telling him to find a new job which I hope he does.
"Police said in an update Tuesday afternoon that the teen might be tried as an adult for deaths of a 16-year-old boy and two girls, aged 14 and 17."
I'd say:
'Sheriff's office, safe to come out'
ticks all the necessary boxes to turn "might" into "will".
Meanwhile, ex-school principal is checking his student loan account to see if he'll be able to swing a new degree to go along with the new profession.
I have been through drills at school while subbing. Our instructions are make certain the door is locked, cover the window in the door, students as far away from the door as possible sitting on the floor. We must never open the door, for anyone or any reason. The school officials will unlock the door.
New law allows for warrantless spying on Australians – where next?
30 Nov, 2021 01:00
The move allows the agency to collect signals intelligence on individuals within the country without a warrant, although allegedly only in situations where there is an “imminent risk to life.”
https://www.rt.com/op-ed/541624-australia-law-allows-spying/
like, hypothetically, a viral risk to life?
https://thenationalpulse.com/news/los-angeles-county-sheriff-rejects-gene-firm-partnership-over-china-links/
Screw the cloud.
Do you know where your swab is tonight?
Do you know where your swab is tonight?
—look no further than your driver's license to see mission creep in action. NO WAY they aren't keeping those swabs and building a DNA database. They admit to holding them for long periods of time and retesting them looking for new things. EVERYONE who had a chinaflu nose swab test had contributed to the DB…
What are they gonna use it for though?
n
We are thinking about getting a 17 inch lightweight laptop for the daughter for Christmas. Consumer Reports likes the LG Windows laptops the best. Her main usage is Minecraft and message boards. I found this one on Big River. Price is ok and says that they have 16 in stock at the moment. Thoughts ?
"LG Gram 17Z90P Laptop 17" IPS Ultra-Lightweight, (2560 x 1600), Intel Evo 11th gen Core i7 , 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, Upgradeable Windows 10 Home, Alexa Built-in, 2X USB-C, HDMI, USB-A – Black" for $1,620
https://www.amazon.com/LG-Gram-17Z90P-Ultra-Lightweight-Built/dp/B08SW1LTST//p?tag=ttgnet-20
It does have a chicklet keyboard which I dislike but, she is ok with.
My son says “I would burn it like a witch for having Alexa built-in, but I think she would like it. I am not sure what her requirements are beyond watching YouTube and playing The Sims and Minecraft, which almost anything new would do.”
>> What are they gonna use it for though?
Does it even f'ing matter anymore? Some unknown TLA agency probably already has it. Our privacy is pretty much gone.
Hmm, now what was my AOL email address? Good thing I saved a few of those CDs. Oh wait, do I even have a CD-ROM drive?
Hmm, now what was my AOL email address? Good thing I saved a few of those CDs. Oh wait, do I even have a CD-ROM drive?
I have an external CD-ROM drive at the office that plugs into a USB port. Works well and allows me to install older software that we still use to build our software. I do have to plug it into an power outlet also though.
I have an external CD-ROM drive at the office that plugs into a USB port.
–I have an external USB FLOPPY drive that I can use when needed… which admittedly it has been a long time since I needed it. My wife still occasionally has to deal with an industrial control system that only supports floppies. Actually 3 1/2" hard shell floppies.
I've got some blanks in the closet too.
n
My son bought an external DVD writer from Samsung that is USB and does not require any extra power. Draws enough from old laptops. That was several years ago and still doing the job.
I think it is time you upgraded yours…