Well, we’ll see what today shapes up to be. I think we’ll start out kinda cold, low 50sF, and then get warmer. Still damp, but should be clear. Yesterday was fairly nice after it warmed up, but that took until after noon, and it didn’t stick around after dark. Which shouldn’t be a surprise since it’s mid January. And really, it’s been mild all last year, and shaping up to be mild again.
I got some stuff underway yesterday. And some continued to get attention. I don’t think anything got finished though. Mostly I worked on my two main PCs in the office. My UPS was not even covering blinks in the power anymore, and I could see grey fuzz on my air inlets on both machines. So. Clear a path to where the machines are under my desk. Disconnect, pull the machines, open, clean, replace DVD, clean some more, close ’em up, vacuum the filth out of the space where they live, get the new UPS in place, change some cord routing, fix the speaker connections while under there, and put the PCs back in place. [wow, I think I kept that grammatically correct.]
I’m not completely back together yet, since I decided to change a video cable and the adapter didn’t work, but I’m 90% of the way. I dislike changes to my main way of interacting with the world and where I spend hours every day. It needed to be done though.
I’ll check the stacks more thoroughly today and try to get the second monitor working again. It’s like being blind in one eye, or confined to a tiny box to only work with one monitor.
Aside from that, I am going to get out of the house for a bit and then do a pickup. I’ll probably hit the HEB too, as W has volun-told me to donate some soda to the kid’s school program. Soda that I don’t have in the house already. I’ll be near my secondary location too, so I can stop in and try to get the cable I need if I can’t find one here.
Too many places for stuff to live.
But I call it diversification and redundancy!
Stack, and learn, and work.
nick
Up late/early to watch a beautiful re-entry of the Dragon capsule.
Shooting up over the hills to the NW with a beautiful long orange tail in a dark starry sky.
Well worth getting up and dressing for 35F.
I note that my ski bib has become quite snug around the waist.
Thursday. Damp. Dull. Not encouraging. Good morning, all the same! At least it is the day before Friday.
I spent some time and money to upgrade monitors before and after Christmas. I replaced the mediocre pair of allegedly 28″ units provided by my employer with two true 28″ curved Samsungs, and put them on an angle-poise stand, which frees and de-clutters lots of desk. A night and day improvement, all at my own expense, but totally worth it.
I also replaced my old 28″ Samsung at home with a pair of new 32″s. So much nicer. The old monitor will go to the BOL, where it will become half of a pair with an identical unit.
I spend my working day (and too frequently working nights as well) in front of those screens. I need to have good ones. It is remarkable how very good new screens are, and these are not even premium models.
Hurray for the industrialised economy. I got four very good units indeed for about what I would previously have expected to pay for one: 100 bucks each for the 28″s, and 150 each for the 32″s, all delivered to my door.
Dr Williams, glad you enjoyed the Pärt. That is a beautiful work, and you found a lovely interpretation of it. The magic of it works astoundingly well on various instruments, although I think the original was written for two pianos.
Arvo Pärt is one of my favourite composers. Along with Carl Jenkins, John Williams and Ennio Morricone, he is proof that contemporary composition can be both beautiful and powerful. “Modern” music doesn’t have to be ugly or inaccessible. The first time I heard Spiegel im Spiegel, I literally had to sit down, I was so moved.
@Denis
YT is very useful for a quick check on musical recommendations. Thanks again for sharing.
speaking of which, would you share model numbers of your new monitors?
Google created an innovative search engine and funded Andy Rubin’s development of Android, but I’ve never understood the value of Facebook.
What I find ironic is how many conservatives rationalized and continue to rationalize feeding the Zuckerdroid beast.
Maybe it was the movie … and a deal with The Devil.
Again, that script was so good that even prime time soap retread David Selby looked like Olivier.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpj7rqTgy1k
If you’ve logged into Facebook within the last year or even just accessed the site without immediately dumping your browser history/cookies, you are part of the problem.
Just accessing the site feeds the Zuck.
Spare me the spiel about your grandchildren, which I’ve heard repeatedly. You can *call* them.
The nature of the cunning plan begins to take form:
https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/01/new-cold-war-trump-doubles-down-on-greenland-bid-as-denmark-draws-a-line-in-the-ice/
We are going to make Greenland the incoming point for all immigration into the U.S.
Northern Greenland.
And move all the Somalis there immediately, were they will have jobs in day care centers where they have natural aptitude. On the clock. Ten cents an hour starting.
Just have to complete customizing the food pyramid for the settlement. seems we have huge stores of perfectly preserved Cold War era lutefisk that were recently discovered. Waste not want not.
Gah. 36F this morning. I can tell it’s really cold out when I wake up and the furnace is blowing hot air in my face. I jinxed us.
Coffee is brewing.
Body is sore in weird places from twisting and turning under the desk. I expected that, but it still sucks.
BTW, I find it so helpful to wear a headlamp when I’m working. Everywhere I look, I can see in the bright light. Pretty much no matter where, or what I’m doing, I grab the headlamp now. HUGE difference. I use a variety that includes a petzl, a chinese no name, and some duracel branded ones. They almost all break off the ratchet or tab that controls tilt eventually, and they aren’t priced like disposables, but they are.
Battery life is so much better than the old days. I really only use ones with replaceable batteries as I don’t like to wait for a recharge.
Definitely recommended.
n
https://www.zerohedge.com/food/president-sign-bill-allowing-return-whole-milk-schools
– yeah, that’s what we need, soy and sugar. Schools WILL NOT allow nuts of any kind, no one eats kale, and broccoli isn’t sturdy enough to survive the centralized food service and delivery model schools use.
Anyone who suggests nuts in schools has never been in one and should be ignored.
Fats don’t cause fatness.
n
Are you able to provide a reference, brand, link, etc.?
Have any of you requested your report from LexisNexis? I highly recommend that you request such a report. It takes a month or so and you get sent a letter with a link to a password protected PDF. I did mine and there are multiple references to email addresses that I never used. These are also associated with marketing companies that are gleaning such information, selling that information, all to target market. I would not be surprised if there were not some nefarious purposes involved.
There is zero mystery here.
It is a choke point that combined with Alaska and the Bering Strait it allows the USA defacto survelliance and, if desired, control/denial of access to the Arctic Ocean and the Northwest and Northeast Passages.
You can expect China and Russia to fight for it with everything they’ve got.
Geography is destiny.
To receive your LEXISNEXIS report, start here:
https://consumer.risk.lexisnexis.com/request
I recently took apart a pet ramp to store temporarily. Put the metric fasteners in a plastic bag. Went to re-assemble and could not find the bag. Did finally find it.
In between I thought I would have to replace the fasteners, so I looked at the assembly instructions, got the size, and checked local sources. Bolt was M6x50mm hex drive, zinc plated.
Home Depot had that size in Phillips for $2.67. Then I looked, and blinked. Quantity:1.
eBay and other sources were still at least a buck apiece.
Closely sized ¼-20 in 2″ was $1.28 Quantity 4 (still very high).
Metric fasteners are ripoff priced.
I’ve been picking up misc fasteners at estate and garage sales for a couple years, giving away what I don’t need or want to stock. Scored a bunch of stainless recently for pennies, and got some lock nuts in the same batch that I found use for a couple days later, saving me the trip and the expense. I’m going to really start looking for metric fasteners. I already have the 460-pc assortment from Harbor Freight which is l$6.50 and even cheaper with the 30% off coupon they frequently run for under $10 items (under $20 for Inside Track Club).
MrsAtoz wanted to try the shot back in Nov 25. It took her doctor three try’s to get a brand approved by Tricare For Life. Wording is everything. She got three months worth and a renewal for the year. The next week we (all on TFL), got a letter stating no GLPs would be prescribed for anything but diabetes. $20/mo copay for what she got. Prescription cancelled. The goobermint is dumb. Getting weight down is almost the #1 way to get America healthy. It will probably be reversed. D1 and her teacher friends all get a GLP shot from Canada. $70/mo.
from Nick Sortor:
https://x.com/nicksortor/status/2011693543379652619
Next time please park a honey trap with a brick of C4 wired to the locker.
That video may be all Trump needs to invoke the Insurrection Act.
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2026/01/i-agree.html
I’m sure the nice man with the facial tattoos was just taking the rifle for safekeeping before he gives it back to the FBI.
Samsung “essential” monitor models: S27D364GAU and LS32D396GAUXEN.
After almost 14 years in my house, I’m making a claim on insurance. There’s been high winds overnight and continuing today, and about 10% of my roof left the chat. Considering the age of the house and the roof, not bad I guess. I need to get a contractor to make at least emergency repairs, I suppose. Waiting for insurance to get back to me right now.
Ray is being asked to explain his whereabouts for the past 36 hours.
Or which any adult with a working BS detector could have figured out after watching the news for less than a week in March, 2020.
Not quite right. I’ve been watching the cutoff between Boomer and Xer be nudged back a year every year or two since the late twenty-teens. Going by the comments accompanying these declarations, I conclude that the intent is to make sure that anyone in his 60s is called a Boomer.
People disregarded their BS filters in March 2020 in the hope that they could “work” from home in perpetuity.
Insurance will pro-rate the shingles. A 30-year life span shingle needing replacement at 15 years and insurance will only pay ½ the cost of new shingles and only for comparable shingles. Insurance will cover the labor. Be prepared for a battle with the insurance company. Yes, your rates will increase at next renewal, or you may even be dropped. You are no longer a cash cow to the insurance company.
Get architectural shingles rather than 3-tab. 3-tab is not nearly as durable. You might also take the time to upgrade to longer life shingles. Of course, if you are like me when I had my roof replaced, I opted for something lower than the most expensive. I don’t figure to be in the house more than 10 years, so I am not paying for something for someone else to use.
It is good to be recognized for my talents.
No doubt. And I expect only the affected slope will be repaired. What I’m hoping is that the betterment cost for a complete roof isn’t too high, which will make selling easier when it comes time.
How to annoy a millennial: “OK Boomer” “I’m not a Boomer I’m Gen (whatever)” Whatever you say Boomer.
I’ve done this, it does annoy them. And unlike misgendering, can’t be protested without looking ridiculous.
I say “OK, Groomer”. Annoys them even more.
All taxation is theft.
They need to start figuring out how to reduce the tax burden.
n
Everybody but Trump and Musk are trying to figure out how to get more money in the federal government to give out more freebies. The USA Senate is the worst. We need to rescind the 17th Amendment and go back to the Senators are elected by the State Legislatures.
https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-17/
My roof replacement with mid-grade architectural shingles was $12,800. There was some structural issues on the eve and eight sheets of OSB that needed replacing. I was expecting $20K. I also needed the chimney rebuilt down to the roof line. The bricks were failing. That cost me $7.5K.
Samsung “essential” monitor models: S27D364GAU and LS32D396GAUXEN.
I found this on Big River:
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Class-CR50-Curved-Monitor/dp/B08CXD9TFZ?tag=ttgnet-20
I just bought a 32 inch 3K LG for $389 for my main office PC but have yet to install it:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DFZVST1H?tag=ttgnet-20
I may have screwed up and should have gotten a 2K monitor instead.
I am putting new roofs on my large office building (4,300 ft2), small office building (450 ft2), and well house (144 ft2) starting Friday. $29K. I have had the old roofs repaired several times and they are 21 years old. It is time.
Brr. Grr.
At the BOL. Just arrived. There was a short power cut here last weekend. A kind and dependable neighbour came over and restarted our heating. There is a safety solenoid valve on the gas supply line – no power, and the valve fails to safe.
Unfortunately, since the last service, our central heating computer loses its date and time information if it is rebooted. I suspect a firmware update broke something. I will call the manufacturer tomorrow.
Trouble is, with no time data, the boiler doesn’t kick in at the programmed heating times. There is a frost-protection function, but it keeps the house only a bit above freezing. It is cold here.
I input the time and date, so the boiler is now running as it should, but it will take a while for the building to be warm again. Time for early bedtime and warm blankets! Goodnight.
There is zero mystery here.
It is a choke point that combined with Alaska and the Bering Strait it allows the USA defacto survelliance and, if desired, control/denial of access to the Arctic Ocean and the Northwest and Northeast Passages.
You can expect China and Russia to fight for it with everything they’ve got.
Geography is destiny.
And we already have a SAC / Space base in Greenland. Only 150 personnel at this time.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pituffik_Space_Base
When the Nazis occupied Denmark in 1939 ???, the Danish ambassador to the USA signed over Greenland to the USA at that time. We were nice and gave it back after we freed Denmark. That was a mistake.
MrsAtoz wanted to try the shot back in Nov 25. It took her doctor three try’s to get a brand approved by Tricare For Life. Wording is everything. She got three months worth and a renewal for the year. The next week we (all on TFL), got a letter stating no GLPs would be prescribed for anything but diabetes. $20/mo copay for what she got. Prescription cancelled. The goobermint is dumb. Getting weight down is almost the #1 way to get America healthy. It will probably be reversed. D1 and her teacher friends all get a GLP shot from Canada. $70/mo.
Maybe they will start putting GLP-1 in the drinking water.
My 80 year old friend / tax accountant who dropped from 285 lbs to 210 lbs on Ozempic has dropped his blood pressure medicine and his diabetes medicine. He is very happy about that.
We may be being punked.
The DOJ has decreed via memo that USC 18 1715 is not compatible with the 2d Amendment and is therefore unConstitutional. That’s the part where you can’t mail a handgun (determined by some babble about concealed weapon, but a handgun) through the USPS. This is great. You could mail a Glock19 with Priority Mail to another State where you are traveling, bypassing airports where States and cities (NYFC) just take your gun. Or traveling by car from your State through some shit-hole in NY, and they can put you in prison.
I can’t wait to see how this pans out at SCOTUS since every Blue shit-hole State will challenge it.
Brr. Grr.
At the BOL. Just arrived. There was a short power cut here last weekend. A kind and dependable neighbour came over and restarted our heating. There is a safety solenoid valve on the gas supply line – no power, and the valve fails to safe.
Unfortunately, since the last service, our central heating computer loses its date and time information if it is rebooted. I suspect a firmware update broke something. I will call the manufacturer tomorrow.
Trouble is, with no time data, the boiler doesn’t kick in at the programmed heating times. There is a frost-protection function, but it keeps the house only a bit above freezing. It is cold here.
I input the time and date, so the boiler is now running as it should, but it will take a while for the building to be warm again. Time for early bedtime and warm blankets! Goodnight.
Put it on a UPS ? That will get you five years until the UPS fails.
The only downside of the whole house generator is that you get ten seconds of downtime for everything in the house as the generator starts and synchronizes. That means most of the clocks reset and the desktop computers reset. I have yet to figure out how to the fix this, apparently the Tesla Powerwalls have the same issue.
The Orange Man just gave the mortgage GSEs $200 billion and proposed capping credit card interest at 10%.
Then there is the $1.5 trillion DoD budget proposal. God only knows how much bribery is in there for the warrior class.
Venezuela cost $1776 for each service member. What will Greenland run?
“Russia Actively Considering Using Nuclear Weapons Against Europe – Top Russian Official Tells Tucker Carlson”
https://www.infowars.com/posts/breaking-russia-actively-considering-using-nuclear-weapons-against-europe-top-russian-official-tells-tucker-carlson/
In all the craziness going on right now, do not forget that Russia has a trump card. 10,000 ? 14,000 ? nuclear weapons.
Hey, Infowars is still alive !
Hat tip to:
https://thelibertydaily.com/
I save that for when I want to offend rather than annoy.
We may be being punked.
The DOJ has decreed via memo that USC 18 1715 is not compatible with the 2d Amendment and is therefore unConstitutional. That’s the part where you can’t mail a handgun (determined by some babble about concealed weapon, but a handgun) through the USPS. This is great. You could mail a Glock19 with Priority Mail to another State where you are traveling, bypassing airports where States and cities (NYFC) just take your gun. Or traveling by car from your State through some shit-hole in NY, and they can put you in prison.
I can’t wait to see how this pans out at SCOTUS since every Blue shit-hole State will challenge it.
GOA is claiming that they are behind this. GOA does have a good legal team.
https://www.gunowners.org/gun-owners-of-america-and-gun-owners-foundation-win-landmark-legal-victory-over-usps-firearms-shipping-restrictions/
I have carried guns into an airport before in a lockbox. Very unnerving.
Roofs. I am struck by how ephemeral construction in the US seems to be. Our home, built in the late 1960s, still has its original tiled roof, as does my late parents’ house, built in the early ’60s. I expect both will outlast me.
The BOL was built in 1958, and had the original cement tiles replaced with much nicer ceramic ones around 2008. The “new” roof will certainly outlive me.
The idea of re-roofing every twenty years seems strange.
I remember, before 11 September brought us security Kabuki at airports, hand-carrying a shotgun and ammunition onto a passenger aircraft, having been given instructions at the departure gate to hand it over to the pilot for safekeeping during the journey.
That worthy, when asked to do same, said he didn’t want it cluttering up the cockpit, so he handed it back with the admonition not to use it during the flight. Nobody thought anything of it.
Those were the days.
I know all of those words but that phrase makes no sense.
“Insurance will pro-rate the shingles. A 30-year life span shingle needing replacement at 15 years and insurance will only pay ½ the cost of new shingles and only for comparable shingles. Insurance will cover the labor. Be prepared for a battle with the insurance company. Yes, your rates will increase at next renewal, or you may even be dropped. You are no longer a cash cow to the insurance company.
Get architectural shingles rather than 3-tab. 3-tab is not nearly as durable. You might also take the time to upgrade to longer life shingles.”
Insurance policies vary. More expensive policies will replace with equivalent new.
It is worthwhile to upgrade to architectural shingles. The look is better and enhances the resale value of the house. Higher weight per square translates to higher durability and wind resistance.
If you are in an area where black streaks (gloeocapsa magma, blue-green algae) on the roof are common and “roof washing” is a thing, it’s worthwhile to get algae resistant shingles. The Houston area is probably the worst in the continental U.S.
It is also worthwhile to specify “storm nailing” for attachment, i.e. 6 nails per shingle rather than 4. The roofing contract should also require that shingles must be installed per manufacturer’s specifications. To do otherwise will void any warranty. Nails must be within a specific strip within the shingle.
Tarpaper has been obsoleted by synthetic underlayment materials. These must also be installed per manufacturer’s specs for fasteners, but do not accept cheap methods that are allowed for “same day” shingling, specify cap nails (nails with integral plastic washer). Otherwise, if shingles are lost the synthetic underlayment has penetrations from exposed staples or nails that can be entry routes for rainwater. Cap nails are also much more resistant to wind when exposed–having synthetic underlayment as a backup waterproofing layer doesn’t do much good if the wind catches a seam and the stress tears it at the attachment points.
Areas that get snow and ice dams typically require that ice and water shield be applied three-feet up from the lower edge of the roof and any valleys. This comes in 3-foot x 50-75-ft rolls and is self-adhesive. It is very easy to apply and also protects when shingles are lost to wind. 3-feet is a minimum–if you get a lot of snow, particularly in valleys, more is better. Snow on the roof melts from the ridge downward and if you get additional snow before the roof is clear the fresh snow starts melting and water pools along the old snow boundary. I’ve known people who have roofed their own houses and applied snow and ice shield to most of the roof.
You probably won’t need it, but get at least a bundle of the new shingles and find a good place to store them. Not in a shed where they get cooked into a solid block or on a shelf with a bunch of crap piled on that has the same effect.
Likewise, check the manufacturer’s date on the shingles. Shingles have a seal-down strip that is heat activated, which does not happen until summer in the northern tier states of the U.S. Shingles that are stored outside (most) can stick togethe very firmly if they have seen too much heat, and although they can be separated the seal-down is much less effective.
The date, lot numbers, and warranty information are on the wrapper. You should save a wrapper for future reference. If lot numbers are mixed on the roof they should be done so according to manufacturer’s directions. If you’ve ever seen a base-down triangle on a roof that changes color above it’s because the lot changed and the roofer didn’t care. You should also be aware that even if the initial installation looks fine the triangles can appear later. This is usually because there is a dust-suppressing oil that is applied to the granule during manufacture that darkens the appearance slightly. That oil gradually wears off during the first few months to a year. The application amount can vary, and in some cases can make color variation between lots more pronounced.
Getting a good roofing contractor involved from the beginning can help when dealing with insurance companies.
If you’re building new or will be staying in the house for a long time, it’s also worthwhile to consider metal roofing.
“In all the craziness going on right now, do not forget that Russia has a trump card. 10,000 ? 14,000 ? nuclear weapons.”
The Russians are mounting Starlinks on horses. How well have they been maintaining their nukes. Specifically, how long has it been since they manufactured tritium?
Indeed they did. Initial emergency repair, covered 100%. Depreciation on shingles, 72%. Labor TBD. Between depreciation and deductible, it may be cheaper to cancel the claim.
“In all the craziness going on right now, do not forget that Russia has a trump card. 10,000 ? 14,000 ? nuclear weapons.”
The Russians are mounting Starlinks on horses. How well have they been maintaining their nukes. Specifically, how long has it been since they manufactured tritium?
Do you want to find out ? I do not.
So long as they have one missile and one warhead.
FYI, any Russians who are reading this, The Real United States of America is at 40°42′46″N 74°0′22″W . Everyplace else which calls itself “America” is just a fake and shouldn’t be nuked.
“Do you want to find out ? I do not.”
I suspect our intelligence analyst have a pretty good idea. We’ve been able to detect chlorofluorocarbon manufacture from space for 30 years, and it’s likely that tritium manufacture has a pretty obvious footprint.
When the Heinleins visited Russia in 1960, Virginia concluded that the Russians were lying about the size of Moscow and the population of the country in general. I’ve said for years that someone should seek the photorecon info from the declassified U.S. archives and make an assessment. Not that the Russians are know liars or anything.
“Wall Street” is in New Jersey.
Virginia concluded that Moscow’s population was smaller than claimed based on the number of children per woman.
Robert reached the same conclusion based on the feel of the city.
A flag officer acquaintance reached the same conclusion based on rail lines and other logistics.
Now do the PRC’s million-plus cities…
Some of them have adequate freight capacity for their claimed population, assuming 1200kCal/day per person, mainly dried rice. Some. Only by applying a very generous fudge factor do Chongqing and Chengdo feed 20M+ people a starvation diet. And that doesn’t take into account some freight capacity being needed for things other than food.
(Based on publicly-available information, including satellite images, descriptions of railway lines, and descriptions of typical freight train configuration. I estimated yard efficiency as the same as a typical American yard’s, which was a SWAG.)
And with any chinese anything, decrease for theft and breakage.
n
Starfleet Academy. Geesh. Tig gets to go full DEI lesbo nut job on cadets. Clips are enough. I won’t watch it. The first episode is on YT they are so desperate. 1,000 years in the future and we need a lesbo talking about our DEI feelings.
FAFO:
Blinded ‘Dare to Struggle’ Member Who Rushed Cops Says Doctors Say It’s a Miracle He’s Alive
Don’t try to interfere in an arrest. Don’t stand next to someone with your megaphone who is interfering in an arrest.
It is going to get worse, and much blood will be shed by the PLTs.
Chairman Mao would be proud
https://hotair.com/david-strom/2026/01/15/too-on-brand-school-purges-1984-animal-farm-lord-of-the-flies-and-other-books-to-promote-diversity-n3810878
George Orwell would be laughing his glutes right off.
“Kamala Harris Buys $8.2 Million Seaside Mansion After Warning ‘Sea Levels Are Rising’ Due to ‘Climate Crisis’”
https://freebeacon.com/democrats/kamala-harris-buys-8-2-million-seaside-mansion-after-warning-sea-levels-are-rising-due-to-climate-crisis/
“Harris’s new home features many of the same amenities—such as a gas stove and fireplace—that the Biden-Harris administration targeted with regulations”
“Former vice president Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff purchased an $8 million mansion in an exclusive oceanside Malibu neighborhood last month. The move came after Harris spent years warning that such communities could be threatened by the “climate crisis.””
Wait, there are portions of Malibu that have yet to burn down ?
And why do these people all buy seaside mansions for incredible amounts of money ?
And where do they get the money and sweet-heart deals?
Between runs to Ralph’s for special “juice boxes”, Kamala’s husband is a high priced entertainment lawyer.
If Kamala had won, the speculation is that her bestie, Dana Walden, would have been named Iger’s successor as Disney CEO.
Obama bought the ultimate seaside mansion, the Hawaii estate that served as The Robin’s Nest from “Magnum PI”, and then promptly razed the house.
As long as an “NCIS” show is on the air, the Bellisarius storytelling universe continues.
Woman without enough self-respect to brush her hair before having her photo taken tells men how they will be judged for making coffee:
https://www.insidehook.com/gear/you-man-should-have-morning-coffee-routine
FWIW, I would hustle her out the door with a togo cup before I got the good mug out so I could relax and read Denis’ first post.
That was a plot point in a Tom Clancy novel; the US and the Russians had started retiring their ICBM silos. Russian observers noted the US silo was pristine and well-maintained. The first Russian silo the Americans looked in had several feet of rusty water, and the missile was obviously corroded.
@CDRSalamander had a similar point a few years ago; if Putin wanted to nuke Ukraine, would the weapons work? And with Russian corruption in their “maintenance” programs, could you ever be SURE?
https://cdrsalamander.substack.com/p/want-a-nuke-wargame-ive-got-one-for
@Ken Mitchell
Fraction of a second faster.
You really believed. Sweet Summer Child.
Tubi has “Galaxy Quest” now. Go watch the flick instead. That’s more “Star Trek” than anything coming from Bad Rebot and Secret Hideout these days.
I will pull the Frakes episode. It may be the last “Star Trek” he directs.
Make many strong children and give them small allowances:
https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2026/01/another-reason-to-like-sydney.php
The Universe Might Be Hiding the Gravity Particle From Us…
https://www.realclearscience.com/video/2026/01/14/the_universe_might_be_hiding_the_gravity_particle_from_us_1158624.html
…because it learned long ago not to trust monkeys.
(Still has poo stains on back of favorite hoodie)
“The Bear and the Dragon”? Before or after Clancy wrote the words “Minister Sausage” which marked the end of his run … and sanity?
Don’t underestimate the Russians. That’s the kind of thinking that takes place at the freak show commands at MacDill in Tampa, where they calculate things like the “mine shaft gap”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLRZ1XA1bcI
Only my Sweet Summer PaPa gets to call me that. Sniff.
I watched ST:TOS on network TV every week when it first aired. I have the boxed set with the plastic boxes with the communicator logo. Also the boxed set of ST:The Animated Series.
I’ve had Galaxy Quest on my server for ages. Yep, better than today’s Trek. So is The Orville “Now entering the glory hole”. The cigarette addiction arc with Bortus is hilarious.
MrAtoz, I have a bitter pill for you to swallow: If multiple people are calling you Sweet Summer Child, it may mean that you are a Sweet Summer Child.
https://thatparkplace.com/star-trek-starfleet-academy-already-a-flop-free-youtube-premiere-draws-shockingly-low-viewership/
You don’t have to stand downwind to smell the rotting corpse that is the heritage of John Nathan Turner.
I pulled up BritBox last weekend and caught “The Pirate Planet”. Brilliant writing, and I have no idea how many LGBQRST’s were in the cast or portrayed characters.
I have a scene that could be dropped into ST: anything at random:
Character gratuitously claims he is being discriminated against because he looks different. Alien looks him over and says “Actually, in the frequencies I see, you are an unsettling combination of shifting patterns of puce and orange reminiscent of a poisonous plant on my planet called ”vomit fruit”.”
https://redstate.com/rusty-weiss/2026/01/15/homan-vows-to-expose-lefty-agitators-reveals-trump-teams-plan-to-make-them-famous-n2198198
Anyone have Mr. Homan’s email? I have some suggestions…
Douglas Adams.
I still love you the most, Dad.
“Trump rolls out ‘The Great Healthcare Plan’ to lower healthcare costs for Americans”
https://www.oann.com/newsroom/trump-rolls-out-the-great-healthcare-plan-to-lower-healthcare-costs-for-americans/
Sorry, won’t work. Just open Medicare to all USA CITIZENS.
Very, very, very true. Still, the Russians are not 10 feet tall. Their pre-invasion military budget was estimated at $60 billion per year. Their GDP is ~5% of ours. They should have wrapped up Ukraine in the first week, but failed utterly. Every soldier’s death is another slice against terrible demographics and a population that never was more than ½ of ours. A moot point: their last nuke warhead count was treaty limited ~5600.
“New York Nuclear Plan”
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/01/15/new-york-nuclear-plan/
“New York Governor Hochul plans to pursue “the most ambitious development of nuclear power in America, setting a new goal to build five gigawatts of new nuclear capacity”. While I believe that nuclear power is the best option to reduce electric system GHG emissions, this announcement represents another New York politician meddling in energy policy. This summarizes a more detailed post at Caiazza’s blog.”
This reminds me of the ultrafast train flop in Kakafornia.
Just finished a delicious steak that went to freezer camp in 2020.
Data point, Kraft mac n cheese, if stored in a cool dark and dry place (my kitchen pantry) is still edible, and only slightly less tasty than normal at 1 ½ years past best by.
Of course it’s the new formula, less orange colored version so it might be less tasty to begin with.
n
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2026/01/it_will_be_marco_rubio_in_2028.html
Tucker has been mindf*cked. I don’t know if he did it to himself, someone did it to him, or if there is a virus that causes irrational extremism.
By 2028 Marco Rubio will be doing every other job–he may as well be president.
“Death Becomes Her (Kurtherian Gambit)” by Michael Anderle
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1642020184?tag=ttgnet-20
Book number one of a twenty-one science fiction and paranormal fantasy series. There is also an eleven book follow on series and several other books related to the main series. I read the well printed and well bound POD (print on demand) trade paperback self published by the author in 2015 that I bought new on Amazon in 2026. I have ordered the next three books in the series.
The book is a cross between science fiction and paranormal fantasy. A thousand plus years ago, an alien space ship crash landed in the Baltics. A man, Michael, found the space ship, went inside, and was forever changed into the first vampire. However, there were werewolves and werebears already existing on Earth and they still exist.
Michael has sired vampires and they have sired vampires. But only one of the vampire “children” is a daywalker like Michael. And Michael enforces strict rules among the vampires and the weres, no blood drinking, no letting humans know of them, etc. Violators of Michael’s rules face swift termination.
But it has been thousand years since Michael was changed and he now sleeps for years at a time. Michael is looking for a strong willed religious young person who is dying to become a new first generation vampire. His helpers have found a young woman named Bethany Anne working for the USA government who is dying of a rare blood disease.
Warning: this series might be damaging to your savings account.
The author has a website at:
https://lmbpn.com/
My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Amazon rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars (8,618 reviews)
Lynn
If things continue at their present rate, he’ll be in charge of 47 nations in the Western Hemisphere. Might as well add the US to make a full set.
“’We’re hot on their trail’: Trump zeros in on leakers after IT contractor allegedly spills Venezuela secrets to reporter”
https://www.theblaze.com/news/we-re-hot-on-their-trail-trump-zeros-in-on-leakers-after-it-contractor-allegedly-spills-venezuela-secrets-to-reporter
You know, treason is such a nasty word. But, treason fits really well in this case. This moron could have gotten several Delta force members killed.
“US federal court ruling allows Revolution Wind to resume construction”
https://www.offshore-mag.com/renewable-energy/news/55343143/rsted-us-federal-court-grants-allows-revolution-wind-to-resume-construction
“The preliminary injunction enables work to resume immediately offshore Rhode Island and Connecticut.”
“As reported by the Providence Journal, Judge Royce C. Lamberth in the US District Court for the District of Columbia granted the project developers’ request for a preliminary injunction at a Jan. 12 hearing, casting doubt on the federal government’s stated concerns about national security and ruling from the bench that the order on Dec. 22 halting work on the $5-billion-plus wind farm as it neared completion appeared “unreasonable and seemingly unjustified.””
These wind turbines are around 800 feet tall. So any low flying plane approaching the USA coast can use these to hide behind. Maybe ships also.
So far the new DVD drive has successfully ripped a half dozen discs that the old worn out drive couldn’t read.
Hooray.
n
Is that the Alan Rickman one with Sigourney Weaver en déshabille? Wonderbra probably got the award for “supporting best actress”.
The universe is conspiring against me. I left the heating running overnight to warm up the cold BOL. Now I woke at 05:30 because I am too hot. Ah well, at least I can read what y’all have been babbling about.
Ah. It seems like the fédérales have invited the nice man with the facial tatoos in for tea and scones to thank him for looking after their rifle.
Yeah, at least they’re dumb criminals.
n
Midnight. I’m headed to bed. Stiff and sore from yesterday’s adventures under and behind my desk, and knees aching from weather.
Best if I retire early.
n
Kamala, why are you posting here, and what did you do with Nick?
Friday! Good morning.
We were talking about beautiful “modern” music. BR Klassik just played the second movement from Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez. Exquisite sadness.
Not the version I just heard, but this is a fantastic performance of the Concierto:
https://youtu.be/-oxH-7VklBI
Another astounding one is from the soundtrack of Brassed Off, with the Black Dike Mills Band.