Hot and humid. Sunny and bright. It was over 101F in my driveway, even in the shade by late afternoon yesterday and today looks like it will be as hot. It’s summer in Houston.
Yesterday I did my stuff, letting the kid drive me around while I offered suggestions about things she needs to work on. Talked a bit more about some of the traffic and car tracking infrastructure that is in place. More along the theme of hidden layers of the universe. Afterwards she washed and cleaned the car.
I spent a bit of time putting some stuff away and sorting, while getting dinner on the table. I warmed up the costco heat and eat Tacos Al Pastor, and got some condiments ready to go with it. And took D2 to and from her T/Th activity. I spent too much time doing pickups. I’m starting to internalize that now. Hopefully I can turn that into not doing pickups every day.
Baby steps. I’m in a rut and my habits have morphed past useful and good to something a bit detrimental. That’s only if you consider that I have stuff I need/want to do instead of doing pickups. Which I do.
Today I’ll be challenged to get stuff done and still be at school in time to move the kid around.
There is always something that needs attention. I’m not as good at setting priorities and getting them done as I used to be. It’s a little discouraging. And a lot self centered and maudlin.
But on the other hand, time is ticking. I heard from an old friend yesterday, that a mutual friend had died. I was thinking of both of them last week and her memorial took place over the weekend. I didn’t even know she had been sick, as we’d lost touch years ago. She was a couple of years younger than me, but the big C got her. The list of people that I know personally that have crossed over to whatever is next is getting longer. I suppose that’s the way of things if you live long enough, and averages mean that someone has to go younger than me for everyone who holds on longer than me. It’s put me in a mood though.
My momentum stalled out. Time to get it moving again. Always be working. And stack.
nick
Another day eaten by locusts. I didn’t get to the computer stuff, so it will slide again. Wednesday might be the same. I will answer your helpful comments. Thanks for your patience.
Nick, you sound fatigued and a bit down. Do you need help, or maybe just rest?
Feeling a bit sluggish myself this morning, but for a nice reason. I bagged a little wild boar yesterday evening, and there was an impromptu celebration when my friends found out. I didn’t get to bed until the small hours…Meatspace, baby!
The beast weighs 34kg field dressed. Should be about right for a BBQ next week. One of my family had a “round” birthday, so that will be the “official” excuse for a hooley.
When we saw Joel live, he was the most animated playing “Tush”.
At the point in the show where he started the covers, he told the hardcore fans “Don’t get your panties in a wad.”
Those of us in the nosebleed seats were more receptive to “Tush” than the fans who paid big money to scalpers to be on the floor and up front.
I’m sure there is a lot of overlap of the Venn diagrams covering the “Boomer”, “Woke”, and “Hardcore” segments of the audience.
For a while, I didn’t know if he would even do this one, which I associate with the 90s because of “Dave’s World”. The song closed the show as the second encore.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KEMA3d6fTc
A Leaf by any other name.
It is hard to move the $35k EV when the $17k IC engine model offers essentially the same ride and handling.
For a lot of owners, the EV is about having something no one else does, especially when IHeartRadio cranks up the next Labor Day “gas shortage” in Austin.
Sometimes it helps to change up your routine. I was falling down on the housework front, and also not managing to exercise as much as I wanted. Revamped my informal schedule for both, just to change things up. It seems to have help, because it’s not the same old rut…
Elder son coming by unexpectedly today, and staying for a couple of days. Looking forward to hearing what’s new in his life.
Rich, stupid, entitled, arrogant, and yes, insane:
Microsoft Wants Your Poop
https://hotair.com/david-strom/2025/07/23/the-crappiest-netzero-idea-yet-n3805057
How about we inject BillG deep underground along with their AI’s?
The carbon credit trade is insane in general.
87F and mostly clear.
D2 is doing her band thing. D1 just woke up and let the dog out… which is quite unlike her as noon has yet to roll around.
——-
I am a little down. I’m taking small setbacks harder than they deserve and finding it hard to do the things I know I should be doing. Much easier to read a book. It’ll pass. Eventually.
I do appreciate the support.
———
Tea and a breakfast biscuit await.
n
sooooo….
Taling about it this morning, the consensus is that BillG will go down in history as the greatest intramanure of his time.
Invent a problem.
Invent a solution.
Make sure only your friends can participate.
Use other people’s money to pay for the solution.
Skim as much of that money as possible.
Direct the skim back to the people stealing other people’s money.
Escalate.
rinse and repeat.
n
Ok Nick, I resent the competition for top curmudgeon.
Pray that BillG assumes room temperature before Judith Faulkner does. Otherwise, there is a very good chance that the Boy Genius will end up with control of your health records via an acquisition of Epic by Microsoft.
I’ve spent most of my career involved with Unix/Linux so I’ve always had a dim view of Gates, but many nerds wanted to worship at the altar of the Legend of BillG and have only realized that this was a mistake after getting their jabs.
“Harvard astronomer: New interstellar object might be alien tech”
https://www.chron.com/news/space/article/interstellar-object-alien-comet-20780216.php
“Its path is so precise, some scientists think it’s no accident.”
Interstellar cockroaches again ?
Elon!
Sigh. Another crackpot theory.
The grifters are learning though: unlike Tranquility Base on the Moon and the Face On Mars there is essentially no way to check on this in the next 25 or 50 years.
BMW EV (not verified) torches Jacksonville aiport parking garage, 50 vehicles, and another 60 remain trapped:
https://hotair.com/tree-hugging-sister/2025/07/23/when-the-cars-and-garage-that-burn-arent-yours-but-your-car-started-the-fire-n3805075
$38 million to replace the structure, approximately $18 million parking revenue loss (over 18 months demo and construction), approximately $2 million in vehicle replacement costs (swag for 110 vehicles at $20k each, and loss of use for the vehicles not outright destroyed..
The article is not clear as to how the valet company might be involved (sounds like the owner parked it) and it would seem unlikely that they have any liability even if they did park it. But, lawyers.
The maintenance history is going to be key. If the vehicle was leased and the maintenance by BMW was up-to-date, they are going to have an interesting decision to make as the deep pockets on that side of the table.
And as I’ve said for years, it’s only a matter of time before the EV’s get relegated to their own parking ghetto with their 100X higher (my swag) chance of fire.
Jacksonville. Harsh marine environment with a constant onshore flow from the Bermuda high this time of year. Two years ago, not far away, it was a Mercedes that spontaneously combusted while parked in an enclosed garage.
https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/2023/07/20/homeowner-questions-ev-safety-after-fire-destroys-her-nocatee-home/
BMW is going to nitpick the battery cycles. The EVs are tattle tales on a whole other level, and many of the brand’s owners tend to have more money than brains.
Pre-Tesla fad, the X5 was the vehicle I would commonly see broken down and abandoned on the side of the road in my part of Austin. A lot of stay-at-home-mommies used them as grocery getters.
The cruise ship parked at the end of the fjord for glacier viewing. All we had to do was stand on our veranda as the ship station-kept the glacier in view. Glorious.
And, the Face On Mars is real! I saw it in a movie!
“BMW is going to nitpick the battery cycles.”
That’s the “throw the owner under the bus” choice. Absent proof of negligence on the part of the driver–such a leaving the vehicle running with the $300 MegaBlast 4th of July Fireworks Special on the seat–the next steps are a downward inflection point in EV sales, spiked insurance rates for owners, tanking value on the secondary market (including BMW dealer trade-in value), and the grand prize: a class-action lawsuit in the neighborhood of $500 million.
added:
Electric Vehicles Are Proving an Increasingly Tough Sell
https://redstate.com/wardclark/2025/07/23/electric-vehicles-are-proving-an-increasingly-tough-sell-n2191997
Wonder how many miles BMW i3’s have to run to compensate for torching an entire parking garage?
Wonder if the EPA has a calculation for that?
I looked around a bit today. I can buy a replacement screen with tools for about $22 to $35. A standard battery goes for about $12. High capacity for about $20.
I can buy a “refurb” phone for $35 and up. Or buy brand seal in a sealed factory box from $85 to $110.
Yeah. I think at $50 for parts to fix what I have that I’ll go with a brand new phone. And have a warranty. From a seller that ships from China.
I have the brand new ex-spare phone set up the way I want. It’s using the broken phone’s battery which in the last couple of months has started to lose time between charges.
I’m going to let it cycle a few times so the phone can calibrate the battery meter. It could be the broken phone had something going wrong. Or maybe I was using it more without realizing it.
Then I’ll buy a new battery.
I have a few years to go before I need to get an entirely new phone model. Being able to change the battery is a big plus to me. The infrared blaster is pretty nice, too.
Time for someone’s walk….
Today I made like Susy Homemaker. I vacuumed then damp mopped the new floor in the hallway. The bookcase is back to its place. The oriental runner rug is where it belongs. It all looks good. Like home, even.
The rug is about half an inch thick. Maybe 5/8th. For now I want to see if it crawls on the new floor (always one direction) like it did on the carpet. Staying in one place would be a novelty.
I think I might need a pad. Something open like you use as shelf liner in the kitchen. I could be crazy but I think that would be good so dirt can sift through and not be under the rug to grind up the rug and the floor. I don’t know. Then again, I’d pull it up every now and then and vacuum under it anyway.
A bit of cushion would be nice. It’s always on on carpet and it sure feels different on a hard floor. I wasn’t expecting that. Not that I expect much cushion from an eight of an inch thick pad.
Well. One more trip outside for my pest beagle. Just to make sure he’s peed out for the night.
Flo, Limu Emu, The Gecko, et al are going to spread the premium increase pain around to everyone, whether they own an EV or not.
The Gecko has multiple subsidiaries outside of insurance which have invested heavily in the all EV future, and the future CEO of the company as well as the new leadership at Pilot/Flying-J all came from Berkshire Energy.
It doesn’t matter at this point. Thanks to the EV mandates and CAFE, V8 saloons are gone, and the V6 in a sub-$50k family vehicle is almost extinct as well. Most people won’t be able to afford to drive the remaining models soon, which was the real goal of the scolds.
Oh, yeah, The Gecko is invested in the AI monkey trick as well.
And not just providing electric power. Ever heard of Lubrizol?
It’s all coming down when the power runs out. Can’t build new houses if you can’t get power run to the subdivision. Can’t build new plants or factories if you can’t get power. Can’t expand the IT infrastructure without power to data centers. Can’t sell $80K electric vehicles if you can’t charge them.
JerryP said the key to success and growth was cheap energy.
I’ve stacked a bunch of panels, and some inverters. Now I need to put them to work. I’ve got septic. I’m working on power. I’ve got stuff to maybe make my own clean water.
I probably need more of all of it.
Infrastructure is hard, and needs constant maintenance, and it’s easy to break.
You could probably shut down all of the US with 20 targets. I don’t think things have gotten better since G Gordon Liddy did the math and the plan a couple of decades ago.
n
What’s the Crime?
https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2025/07/whats-the-crime.php
Perhaps not a crime to tell lies, but is it a crime to use government resources to fabricate false evidence under the color of national intelligence? If that not theft of government resources?
At the very least we have a lot of false testimony to congress that is a clear violation of the law.
Looks like we will get to see the Clintons, Obama, Brennan, Comey, possibly Biden, and a pack of subsidiary retards (see P. Strzok) with overinflated opinions of their intelligence and stature testify.
Most of them will take the 5th, which cannot be used against them in a court of law, but will be damning in the court of public opinion, and destroy any place in history. Some of them will try to lie, and get caught.
Lesser fish who engaged in political chicanery will be identified by the whistleblowers who continue to come forth, and have much lesser access to expensive defense. There are laws such as the Hatch Act that will be sufficient to loosen their tongues.
One lever that would be appropriate would be to investigate if any of these weasels have classified government records illegally in their possession. A question for lesser fish.
In all cases participation in an attempted government coup against an elected president may be sufficient to persuade congress to revoke federal benefits, including pensions.
And televised committee hearing will provide exquisite opportunities for Democrats to look like fools heading into the 2026 elections.
Finally, there is the possibility of civil litigation. The statue of limitations will be raised but there may be an argument that there was a wide-ranging conspiracy to cover up the crime and it would be easy to craft a law to extend the period.
Except….(emphasis added) …
(similar info from various sources)
Methinks this issue (the ‘Obama is a traitor’) and other things from Trump et.al. are attempts at distractions from the Epstien stuff …. “Squirrel !!!“
“It’s all coming down when the power runs out”*
Again, classical economics identifies a limited number of ways to create wealth: agriculture, mining, and manufacturing. Much of the U.S. economy is none of the above, and only serves to move money around. The entire insurance industry does little or nothing to lessen risk, and only serves to spread it around at a huge cost–50% off the top–and provide a structure for graft and theft.
Computer software companies, including the AI “monkey trick” fall in the same class. No creation of wealth. The pattern is repeated time and again: A new industry is created that decreases structural inefficiencies and is embraced by the public, who keeps a few more dollars in their pockets . The industry evolves and must be regulated to be “fair”, which means less efficient, subject to grifters, and protective of the first companies in the business. Costs go up steeply, as government, grifters, and once-small-now-large businesses act to divert more and more dollars. Rinse and repeat.
Conversely, the aforementioned “government, grifters, and once-small-now-large businesses” have developed astonishing ways to destroy wealth. Put an idiot in charge of the USDOT and you get $80 billion spent on DIE (right into prog pockets). Import thousands of grifters from a poor country in Africa and get wave after wave of multi-million dollar thefts with no accountability. Shut down working nuclear plants because “green energy is free”. Collect glass and other useless materials falsely claimed to be “recyclable” and force people to pay to have it picked up and stored.
*The rural U.S. was electrified for the purpose of putting a dim 40W bulb in the barn. We spent more than 100 years making lighting more efficient and get 20 times the light, but now we burn 4000 watts running computers so that Google can show us ads.
For normal activities. Is lying and plotting to undermine an elected president normal? Flynn was framed in a conspiracy for the purpose of keeping him from discovering the plot against Trump. Hard to level the playing field once you give the free reign of power to that lot. Maybe bring back public dueling?
Gordon Lightfoot – Old Dan’s Records (Live In Reno)
“Dance all night to the 78’s”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9FZwo2ZwrI
It’s interesting something I think I’m seeing. The government is all evils to all people and all boons to all people. The left looks at exactly the same things the right does and sees the OPPOSITE. Obamma was going to destroy it all, now Trump is. Obbbamma was going to fix it all, now trump is.
It’s a universal hate and joy machine.
n
Maybe bring back public dueling?
– and flogging.
n
Maybe bring back public dueling?
– and flogging.
n
and the stocks with over ripe tomatoes.
and cause a ketchup shortage?!
damn, 60F here right now. July is ending cold for us.