Cool and clear, but warming significantly later. Supposed to be nice. It was mid 70sF when I went to bed. Forecast looks good for a nice weekend.
I spent Friday doing stuff. A few things got done around the house, then I started my errands and they kept me busy until almost 8pm. It’s a great life, if you don’t weaken.
Today I’m headed to the BOL where a huge list awaits my attention. HUGE. But I will get at least a few things done. Well, probably just started, not finished, but we’ll see.
Sometimes the list gets re-ordered, and sometimes it gets ignored. Sometimes things get the attention they need. We’ll see if this is one of those times.
One thing that always gets some attention is stacking. I’ve got stuff and fuel to stack on this trip. And relationships to strengthen. The relationships are probably the part most people skip when they’re prepping. Don’t. They will be critical to success or failure.
n
Saturday! Good morning.
Up early to see sibling off. Dragging a bit – a couple of weeks of early mornings and late nights are wearing. I suspect I will have low productivity today. I will do a few domestic bits, tidying and cleaning the BOL, running the dishwasher etc.
Strange to be on my own again. Perhaps I will have a nap, as I have nobody to look after but myself this weekend…
Have a good day!
“I suspect I will have low productivity today”
T-shirt
@Ray Thompson
“I think it is time for the mother to remove both kids from her will and instead leave her money to her church, the animal shelter, the school where she taught, a local charity, anything other than the two kids who would not help their mother for a few days.”
Pronto. Without discussion. Let it be a surprise when the time comes.
And don’t forget to include provisions for the dog–it’s not only the right thing to do but it will frost the children.
We’ve allowed too many Colonists into the country, particularly in Texas.
Uh, oops. Posted on the wrong day. So here is again, my rant for the day.
The spousal unit has been staying at a friend’s house for the last four days and may return by Monday.
Not what one would think. The friend, whom we have known for 35 years, whose husband was my best friend for 29 years and passed away suddenly 10 years ago of a massive heart attack in the Cayman Islands, needed significant back surgery. She had a choice of being placed in a nursing/recovery facility or having someone at the house to help her. She has a dog and that presented problems for the dog’s care. The wife volunteered.
The wife said she would take the friend to the surgery, take her home, and stay at the house for a few days to help with the recovery. The friend’s two children should have stepped up and helped. The son, who lives less than 10 miles away, had more important things. Could not visit a couple of times a day. The daughter, who lives in Richland Washington and is a professor at a local college, could not be bothered. Even though almost all of her instruction time is done remotely, and the daughter rarely goes into the actual college. She could not be troubled to fly in for a week to help her mother. Even though her mother flew out to Washington state to help the daughter for a week when the daughter had shoulder surgery.
The friend is afraid to fly alone. We made the trip to Washington state with her, drove to Atlanta, flew to Spokane, dropped her off in Richland, and the wife and I visited my brother and traveled around the area, then made the return journey.
I think it is time for the mother to remove both kids from her will and instead leave her money to her church, the animal shelter, the school where she taught, a local charity, anything other than the two kids who would not help their mother for a few days.
Paxton Scores A $10 Million Victory In The Fight Against The ‘Trans Kids’ Industrial Complex
https://thefederalist.com/2026/05/15/paxton-scores-a-10-million-victory-in-the-fight-against-the-trans-kids-industrial-complex/
Late last nigh @nick asked about the new Murderbot book, and in the course of the discussion I noted that it was not up on Martha Wells website. Ms. Wells has had medical issues for several years and is apparently still recovering and conserving resources.
In looking at her wiki page I found a reference to “Unbury the Future”: Martha Wells’ Full Speech from the 2017 World Fantasy Awards with the text here:
https://reactormag.com/unbury-the-future-martha-wells-full-speech-from-the-2017-world-fantasy-awards//
The speech contains some interesting information, much without references. The page is on a web site called “Reactor” and some links are included to other pages on the same site. It appears that the site is largely stagnant, with new pages of the last three years or so largely consisting of monthly lists of books.
A number of links in Wells’ speech are broken, and worse, a number of links on referenced pages now lead to malicious sites. Beware.
Way back during my first marriage, when The Elder Child was a baby, we all drove with my wife’s mother to a family reunion. M-i-L stayed with one of her sisters and the rest of us stayed with a paternal aunt, a widow around 70 years old, for about four nights. While there, I fixed a couple dozen small things that she couldn’t take care of, nothing requiring any particular expertise or tools, just basic screwdriver and can of three-in-one oil and the basic skills expected of a homeowner (who isn’t a 70-year-old woman). I was happy to do it in exchange for her putting us up.
The relevance to Ray’s comment is that the woman’s younger son and his family lived close. Not halfway across the country, not ten miles away, but their back yards abutted. His wife routinely sent the elementary-aged kids over to grandma’s so she could “do a few things”, which SFAICT meant getting her hair done and gossiping with her friends. The wife came over twice while I was in the house to “borrow” some groceries. The son stopped by once to say hello to his mother but left after a few minutes because he was busy. During that time he did mention that he was going to get to whatever I was taking care of at the moment, but couldn’t even be bothered to make up an excuse. “I’ve been really busy with work” would have been a transparent lie but would show that he at least felt a little guilt over it.
The aunt broke down in tears at some point because her son was a parasite (my word, not hers) who had married a worse parasite, and she wasn’t sure where she’d gone wrong or what she could do about it now. I knew that my suggestion (cut him out of the will and change the locks on your house) wouldn’t be appreciated, so I let my wife deal with her while I finished touching up the chips in the enamel on the stove and sink.
Texas Children’s and, to a lesser extent, the pediatric hospital with my employer’s name on the door were setting up quite a medical-industrial complex near my house to do … something.
The development doesn’t just cover hospitals but high end housing for workers, corporate apartments, extended stay hotels, and retail, including a new HQ building for HMart across from one of the largest stores/food courts in their chain.
A lot of things changed suddenly in that area when the RINOs in Texas needed a distraction from the truth about property tax “reform” in 2023 and Abbott signed the bill into law banning “confirmation” treatment in Texas.
Even HMart seems to have backed off plans to relocate their HQ to Austin.
Another windstorm today in the California High Desert,, should continue through tomorrow evening.
It kind of sucks because we were supposed to have a astronomy club dark sky party, but looking at the forecast for the ranger station in the mountains next to the site the prediction is for winds to 25mph and temperatures at just above freezing.
Very strange since it was in the 90s last week…
Ah well.
Feeling better today, some energy, which is nice.
The relevance of the second part of the above post to the first is not obvious. Ms. Wells’ appears to have a worldview that is largely influenced by feminist, alphabet, CRT and other leftist concerns which color her vision.
She makes some good points to start, and notes some egregious abuses (editor changing the race of characters in one of Andre Norton’s books). In some cases she is blatantly revisionist (“Mercury 13” is a tortured appellation made up in 1995).
In others she conflates “largely forgotten by history” with “suppression”. When the fringe works of unheralded authors are not lionized in the popular culture it is entirely possible that they are simply not very good and deserve to be forgotten for what they are, as opposed to being elevated for the cultural biases of the author.
She mentions forgotten female writers whose work appeared in newspapers of the 1800’s as if there is a sinister conspiracy. Sorry, no. Edgar Page Mitchell wrote during that time and his works are only remembered through one book of collected stories published ca. 1974 through the efforts of Sam Moskowitz. Those stories are gems and deal with topics easily traceable to the foundations of science fiction, and the book istill in print for that reason. If Ms. Well’s believes that there are women writers whose work should be found and preserved, she can make her case by doing the same kind of work or finding someone to be the Moskowitz in the endeavor.
ADDED:
I’m out of time this morning, but one final note: Ms. Wells speech is only accessible through one web page on the internet, and in the days of print only would be inaccessible and “lost” a mere nne years after delivery. Not suppressed, just not considered important enough to expend the effort and resources.
I don’t expect WA State to ever return to “normal” at this point. The pandemic ended any chance of that happening, and the Dems are pretty much ensconced in power unless mail-in voting is ended.
85F and rising. Sunny and warm. Humid. Sweaty.
Loaded up the kinder and the frau and they are on their way. I have a few things still to do before heading out.
Nice day in a sunny/hot/sweaty way. Should be cooler at the lake though.
Talk amongst yourselves…
n
T-shirt to you too!
I had a weakness from about after brekfast (noon) until a few minutes ago (6pm). Not planned, but probably very necessary. Feeling the better of it, and perhaps also a wee bit hungry. Hmm, what’s in the fridge?
The wife said she would take the friend to the surgery, take her home, and stay at the house for a few days to help with the recovery. The friend’s two children should have stepped up and helped. The son, who lives less than 10 miles away, had more important things. Could not visit a couple of times a day. The daughter, who lives in Richland Washington and is a professor at a local college, could not be bothered. Even though almost all of her instruction time is done remotely, and the daughter rarely goes into the actual college. She could not be troubled to fly in for a week to help her mother. Even though her mother flew out to Washington state to help the daughter for a week when the daughter had shoulder surgery.
The friend is afraid to fly alone. We made the trip to Washington state with her, drove to Atlanta, flew to Spokane, dropped her off in Richland, and the wife and I visited my brother and traveled around the area, then made the return journey.
I think it is time for the mother to remove both kids from her will and instead leave her money to her church, the animal shelter, the school where she taught, a local charity, anything other than the two kids who would not help their mother for a few days.
Family dynamics are tricky.
I am doing about 2/3rds of the work for my mother. My middle brother is doing the other third when he is in town. With five homes, he is out of town a lot.
Our youngest brother is not doing squat. And he lives in Houston. He has been to see Mom twice since I moved her here last October. He swears that he is off the booze and drugs but I doubt it.
“ISIS Global Second-in-Command Eliminated in U.S.-Nigerian Operation”
https://discernreport.com/isis-global-second-in-command-eliminated-in-u-s-nigerian-operation/
Are we in a global war against radical islam? It sure looks that way. And I am not sure that we are winning. As far as I can tell, radical islam is spreading like wildfire.
Please tell me I am wrong. But it looks like we are heading to Tom Kratman’s “Caliphate” book about the 22nd century where the USA is the last holdout against islam. You can read the book for free at:
https://www.baen.com/caliphate.html
Hat tip to:
https://thelibertydaily.com/
We’ve been in a war against islam since GWI at least. The intensity has varied and we don’t know what we don’t know. Watching youtube interviews with the spec ops guys that were over there doing the stuff, there is a SHITETON of stuff that isn’t generally known.
——
Headed out. Stopping at Academy sports for marine stuff, and my shop for stuff that is waiting to go up… and stopping in the woodlands for a pickup, and conroe for gas….
n
T-shirt to you too!
I had a weakness from about after brekfast (noon) until a few minutes ago (6pm). Not planned, but probably very necessary. Feeling the better of it, and perhaps also a wee bit hungry. Hmm, what’s in the fridge?
https://www.amazon.com/Respect-Privacy-Funny-Sleep-Deprivation/dp/B07X1V4NLH?tag=ttgnet-20
https://www.amazon.com/Unfortunate-Circumstances-Awake-Performance-T-Shirt/dp/B0H129VXKZ
We’ve allowed too many Colonists into the country, particularly in Texas.
Yup. Tough times are coming. We may not win this battle.
This brought to mind a story I’d read called “The Barbie Murders” by John Varley. I think we’re close to this, lacking only an appropriate cult leader.
Uh oh. I smell smoke, wind from the W in the high 30s gusting into the mid 40s….
And sirens now.
Powerlines, solar fields, bbq’s, arson?
The advantage we have is that most are stupid on an “Upper Class Twit of the Year” level, and this is reinforced with a rigid caste system.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdFnfcxhNnA
@SteveF
While there, I fixed a couple dozen small things…he was going to get to whatever I was taking care…
You are a man of integrity in a selfish world. I would go so far as to label you a good man.
I was gonna do lots today. I’m still in jammie’s and it’s just past noon. Instead of driving out to Wasilla to help with cleanup at a camp, I’ve played cello on the deck, scheduled the dogs for their annual, finished moving an IRA BDA from NFS to Schwab and associated account manipulation to get the funds into higher yields.
I stayed home because I decided burning brush accumulated in the yard was more important but now the wind has kicked up. Anchorage outlawed burn piles and you cannot obtain a burn permit to make it legal. So I’ve got a fire brazier and pack of hotdogs in the freezer for burn days. It’s a much bigger hassle than a burn barrel or burn pile.
Anchorage assembly this spring outlawed using leaf blowers to clean gravel from driveways (DUST! the horrors!). But hey, if you’re a vagrant you can poo with impunity in front of City Hall.
Mother in law is making steady gains at the skilled nursing facility. She has regained enough strength that she can take a few steps and transfer from bed to wheelchair. I continue to spend an hour or two with her every morning (my husband takes Saturday mornings and most evenings, her husband spends most of each day at her side). It’s pretty clear her progress is due to the time my husband and I are spending with her. Her husband is a very sweet man who has been pretty ineffectual through this entire ordeal. In his defense he is also quite elderly and being a take charge kind of guy was never a strength for him.
I guess I better get cleaned up and face what’s left of the day.
The parental care thing was me.
Five brothers and sisters, four of whom were within 30m of them … I did 90% from 350 miles away.
I try not too think about it too much, it’s just anger over water under the bridge.
John Hinderaker is one of my favorite columnists at Powerline. I have only found him to have an opinion that was totally incorrect on one occasion, and that was on a cultural topic*.
Mike McDaniel is likewise one of my favorite columnists at American Thinker and his home blog Stately McDaniel Manor. is well worth a look.
Today McDaniel quotes at length from Hinderaker, extending the point with precision in the discussion of the Minnesota Democrat Party’s push for gun control in a desperate gambit to distract from the multi-billion dollar Somali r*pe of the U.S. taxpayer:
Minnesota fails to ban
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/05/minnesota_fails_to_ban_assault_weapons.html
Mike also includes: “Hinderaker suspects the rural members of the Democrat Party may have signed their electoral death warrants.” concerning the forced party-line vote that will likely get a number of them dis-elected this fall, just in time for the likely coronation of Senator Amy “Doorknob” “She who eats salad with a comb” Klobouchar.
*Sorry, John, but Hall and Oats were not the best singing duo of the twentieth century–they aren’t even in the top ten.
de gustibus non est disputandum … but the “taste” that Hall and Oates were the best makes me question that homily.
That sounds lovely! Lucky you.
Saturday bedtime. Much of the day was consumed by napping. Now that I have got the hang of sleeping, I am going to bed! Lots to catch up on tomorrow.
Unfortunately, we had a death in the extended family. I need to go back to base and pick up a funeral suit, then see on Monday if my colleagues will cover for me on a weekday.
Goodnight!
The rejoinder is: Omnis gustus tuus in ore tuo est
“Now that I have got the hang of sleeping, I am going to bed!”
Practice makes perfect?
“Of course, if we are to believe science fiction movies on this topic, it seems that major cities attract destructive objects from space like trailer parks attract tornadoes.”
https://redstate.com/wardclark/2026/05/16/new-discovery-huge-asteroid-to-skim-earth-on-may-18-n2202403
Too much to ask that someone with an advanced space-time machine had popped in to arrange an impact on Qom.
FIFY. Maybe they could split the object and hit both targets.
“New York Following Cuba’s Strategy For Powering The Electrical Grid”
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/05/14/new-york-following-cubas-strategy-for-powering-the-electrical-grid/
Don’t worry. So many people are leaving New York that not much electricity will be needed.
I never thought that “Escape From New York” was a documentary but it appears to be so.
FIFY
Higher yields? Good luck.
AMC Theaters have 40th anniversary “Top Gun” screenings this weekend.
We have tickets for the IMAX double feature tomorrow.
The list is so long…
All good choices but it leaves too many evil people as survivors.
Bombay, Peking, Moscow, Medina, Brussels, NY, Hollyweird… It goes on and on.
It won’t be long before we are all receiving speeding tickets from NYC.
We drove past the Volo Museum in 2023 but didn’t have the time to stop. It is a long way from New York.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/speeding-ticket-sent-to-knight-rider-kitt-replica-on-display-at-illinois-museum-this-is-a-new-one/ar-AA23lCvk
“The world’s biggest rocket: How SpaceX’s new Starship ‘V3’ differs from its predecessors”
https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/the-worlds-biggest-rocket-how-spacexs-new-starship-v3-differs-from-its-predecessors
“Starship V3 will also launch from SpaceX’s newest pad, the second the company has erected at its Starbase site in South Texas. The upgraded hardware is meant to mature Starship’s design, moving the vehicle from test flights toward an operational architecture that can support the rapid reuse, high flight rates and orbital refueling necessary for missions like the ones Starship plans to fly for NASA’s Artemis program, which will land astronauts on the moon.”
“V3 stands about 5 feet (1.5 meters) taller than previous Starship builds and packs a much heavier punch. Both stages —Super Heavy and Ship — have been equipped with SpaceX’s new Raptor 3 engine — sleeker, more powerful and more reliable upgrades over the previous Raptor 2. For the Super Heavy booster, that means 33 engines firing with a combined thrust of over 18 million pounds at liftoff.”
Big sucker. Gonna be a heck of a ride.
I disagree. Our people, Northern Europeans, did not settle what is now the US and Canada because we have hot babes with blond hair. . Along with colonizing much of the rest of the world excluding China.
We will win. Gonna be a lot of blood.
Ah. Well the question is answered. I knew there was a catch.
Starlink gave me a Mini. $5 a month. It’s on “standby” which is enough for e-mail and web sites like this place. Oh, and now it’s going to $10 a month.
Ok. $120 plus $10. Ok.
I can do $10 a month just for the back-up hardware.
But just now, I received an e-mail saying my $120 a month plan is going to $130.
So they want $140 a month? Including the $10 for the Mini?
Yeah. They are getting the the Mini back.
Although, be it noted, we do have hot babes with blonde hair. Hot redheads, too.
The Mini is a back-up. Like if a near lighting strike zaps my Starlink. But I can go to Home Depot and buy an entirely new system for about $350 the last time I looked.
Paying $120 a year for a back-up that’s sitting in a box, just doesn’t wash considering I seem to get a cataclysmic lighting strike in the area about every 12 years.
Yeah. I can make a buffalo nickle bellow. I’m proud of that skill and I have been complimented about it.
So…. when I first got a wireless connection it was 256Kb up and down. It was really zippy compared to a 26.4 dial-up connection. I think, by memory, Starlink on Standby is 500Kb. Twice the speed.
Sure, not gonna stream stuff. And it takes a while to download a video. I’m used to that.
Oh hey. Maybe get rid of the Mini and then put the big dish on “standby” for $10 a month.
Ya want to hit me up for $140 a month now? What if I down plan to Standby and pay just $10 a month?
And all you get from me is $120 A YEAR.
@paul, you are on the Residential Max plan at $130/month. You can downgrade to the 100 mbps plan at $55/month.
https://starlink.com/residential
Nope. The 100 mbps plan is not available at my address. I’m not rural enough.
As far I can tell.
Feffign black web page with white type is pretty much unusable for my eyes.
Oh wait. The 100 mbps plan is there.
So… first, get rid of the Mini. Then change my plan. It’s just me here, I don’t Roku, 100 is actually faster than what the local wISP offers. And $35/month less.
My inner buffalo is liking this plan.
Do not forget the hotness of a brunette. Dark brown hair with wash of red…. flips a lot of switches to On in my head.
The brisket turned out really good. I deviled a few eggs. Always a hit.
Why Jim showed up with a crockpot of crockpot baked sweet potatoes is a well, eff it, the dude dose strange things.
I sent them each home with a 4×6 tub of brisket. Chinese restaurant tubs. All of $18 for 50 on Big River.
They both said “that’s enough to eat for a week!”. Yeah, it is. And if you don’t take it, I have more than a month worth to eat.
Snack on it. It’ll go away pretty quick.
I’m almost certain that you have dogs. And I’m almost certain that dogs need – I mean neeeeeeeeeeed – to sample brisket to make sure it’s fit for human consumption. And I’m almost certain that if you do not share some of your bounty with your dogs, you are guilty of crimes against humanity, crimes against caninity, and crimes against nature.
Why Jim showed up with a crockpot of crockpot baked sweet potatoes is a well, eff it, the dude dose strange things.
I love sweet potatoes with butter and pepper.
I’m currently having my bedtime snack. Assorted sliced meats (variations on pepperoni), hard boiled egg (minus the yolk, which I just don’t love), and sliced turnip, with a small bit of mozzarella. And the tiniest nibble of sweet onion for extra zing.
my glucose monitor is on my right arm this week, and the low alarm is really loud so I want to avoid that. Plus, I’m hungry.
———
Got here without any drama. Got the grass mowed. It’s growing like crazy. It was sunny and humid, but wasn’t too hot. The breeze was cooler. because I got here late I didn’t do the maintenance, maybe tomorrow.
One thing I discovered while shopping for oil for the outboard, the gallon jugs of oil are much cheaper by the ounce than the little additive bottles I see in the big box stores, and it says right on the jug that it’s good in other 2 stroke engines too. I’ll be buying the big jugs from now on as I have mostly 2 stroke engines. Just have to follow the dilution ratio on the big bottle to get the 50:1 I need.
———
Sat out on the dock with the radio, kindle, and a tiny little fire. Tuned around the bands a little and was hearing a lot from 5-8mhz, but nothing above that. Even 10.00 (time) was super weak. I don’t know if it’s the little radio, that I’m not putting out the long wire antenna, or conditions. Really nice to be out by the water though.
Sky was dark and relatively clear, so the stars were out. Too humid for really good viewing but better than the last several months.
———
Earlier while sitting on the deck the critter that has been digging under our foundation showed himself. Big honking armadillo! Bold as brass too, he came right up to us, even sniffed around under my chair, before leaving when W ‘tisked’ at him. With the armor I guess they don’t worry about much.
———
Time for a shower and bed. I need to get stuff done tomorrow, but W and the kids will want to take the boat out. I might not get anything done on the list, but life is what happens while you are making other plans.
n
Buc-ee’s now sells what I call a “dog pack” of brisket, enough for two sandwiches in a sealed plastic box.
I buy the “no sauce” sandwiches for myself, but buying one of those for the dog left the problem of the bread.