Category: culture

And it’s hot again. Mainly because it’s warm with crazy humidity. False Fall seems to have ended so that Summer could have a few more beers and stick around for a bit. High in the 80s in the afternoon, but dripping, stifling, humid. And today is likely to be similar.

Spent all day yesterday, when I wasn’t driving a kid somewhere or doing auction stuff online, moving stuff in and out of my office. I pulled a lot of stuff out, and sorted through it. Reorganized some. Put some elsewhere. At the moment I can walk straight into my office and sit down. Still need to work on opening up the paths to the rest of the office, but at least I got some done.

During that exercise, I also moved and sorted some stuff in the living room and ‘toy” room or library. I’ve got a ‘scratch and dent’ humidor the size of a 3.1 cubic foot dorm fridge that I had to get out of the box, and see if it runs so that I can sell it… and I finally got that set up and out of the living room. I had to lay it on its back to fix the door hinge, so I’ll plug it in today and see if I will make some money, or need to spend a bit more time and energy on it. I’ve got several to flip, but not as big as this.

Today I’ll get a pickup or two, drive the kid around, and generally continue with my cleanup, organizing, and fixing binge.

Still trying to make some money as well as stack. So I can make room for stacks, and stack some do-re-mi…

‘cuz stacks of money will solve a lot of issues…

And stacks of food will help too.

Git you some!

n

Cool with more overcast and possibility of rain. Yesterday was cool, and had rain, but not much of it. Occasional misty drizzle barely counts as rain by Houston standards. It did get stuff wet…

Between the stuff I’ve got piled up, and the stuff that needs doing, I shouldn’t have a free moment or a clear space to put stuff, and yet… I moved stuff around, did the kid driving duties, and picked up a couple of things. I’m really buying less that I used to. I ‘ve got most of what I am looking for, and that helps, but also I’m being a bit more picky. In any case, my typical pickup now is just a few items from each auction house.

There are exceptions, of course.

Today I’ll be picking up locally from one house, doing my normal household stuff, and maybe working on the list of projects. In other words, just another day in paradise…

Find your own little paradise, and get to work building it up. And stack. Paradise has needs.

nick

Cooler but still clear. Should be another nice day before any storm effects hit us. I saw a high of 88F at the house yesterday, and a low of 76F. That’s a smaller range, and lower temps overall. Enjoy!

Did auction stuff in the morning. Then in the afternoon I did one pickup. Got the kid from school. Grocery shopped. Made dinner. Domestic bliss.

Spent some time chatting with an auctioneer I don’t see very often, and my neighbor. No new insights, but both are feeling the economic squeeze. It’s wide spread and spreading. HEB had Prime chuck roast on sale, so I bought some. They also had it sliced thin and packaged as “steaks”. That’s a very inexpensive cut for a steak… almost a ‘hillbilly’ steak. The market is definitely moving downscale.

Today I’ve got to do some auction in the afternoon, but first I will do more cleaning and putting away around the house. Might find time to do some gear testing in between. I need to find my range bag…

Shooting may be a perishable skill if you are trying for Annie Oakley levels of performance, but if you have a solid foundation, I think you can get acceptable to good results, even with time off. I always start a range day with a “draw and fire” point shooting exercise- cold gub, cold me, and no time to aim. I usually put the whole magazine on the paper. That’s pretty OK in my estimation and a better assessment than a clean target with tight groups at the end of a day of exercises and practice.

We’ll see how it goes. As long as I don’t embarrass myself…

Get out there and practice a skill. Even better if you can work in some time with your friends or network, or use the time to MAKE friends and expand your network.

Stack some time on task, and some buckets…

nick

Cooler is so nice. Cooler and sunny, with warm later describes yesterday and today’s forecast. I’m looking forward to it since we apparently have a storm coming from the Gulf…

Did indoor stuff, despite the great weather. SWMBO decreed that I would work on tax related stuff, so I did. I alternated with domestic bliss and organizing and putting away things. Watched some youtube too.

Today will be more productive. I did get some of her questions answered, but I need to do mileage and some categorizing in Quickbooks. This preliminary organizing and summarizing, as well as data validating, makes it easier for our accountant/enrolled agent/tax preparer. That saves us money, and gives us a look at the expenses and finances that we could miss if we just handed her a stack of paper and a quicken file. It’s worth doing but it isn’t my favorite task.

I’ve got some other stuff to do today too, like a few auction pickups. I should at least get the one in the wrong direction from all the others. I can put those off until Tuesday or Wednesday and group them into one trip. I prefer to combine trips when possible.

It’s time to start moving some other projects forward too, now that the cooler weather is starting. I don’t know how I’ll fit them in, but cutting back on online time is probably the best and easiest way. That would give me an extra hour or two during the day… staying awake all day would help too. And not driving around doing pickups- that would help as well.

IDK what I’ll do yet, but I’ll figure something out.

If I learn to clone myself, I’ll share here in the comments.

Until then, I’ll just keep grinding and stacking.

nick

Cool-ish, warm-ish, sunny and damp. Should be mid to upper 70s, and maybe low 80s, which is a HUGE drop in temps from a week ago. Feels nice too. Yesterday was beautiful. Since we were on the edge of the forecast zone, we didn’t get the rain. We got sun and blue sky, with mid 70s temps. Windows down, and driving around…

Talked to my neighbor about fence repairs. He will get a bid or 2 and manage it. I’ll write a check for half.

Did my hobby pickup in Conroe. Saw the lake through the trees. I like lakes and woods and Conroe has both. Stopped at a “giant garage sale” since I was there… but it was a guy’s barn full of marked stuff that he obviously periodically tries to sell. Cutting the prices in half would help him… a three car garage full of stuff, and most of it was crep or to expensive and very little even caught my eye. Some people don’t have an eye for what will sell.

Then I went by my secondary to see about some electrical fittings for the generator. I have stuff that will work, but I’m still looking for a better solution. Home Depot didn’t have anything that would work for me either.

Didn’t get to see my auctioneer about taking more stuff. I thought he was in the office until 4, but he was gone by 2pm.

Got home, watched some youtube. Had a relaxing evening.

Today I’ll do a bit more in the back yard. No one else cleaned up the trimmings from the trees or bushes, so I guess I will. Amazing how gender roles come back when there is a spider to kill or some unpleasant yard work… and I’ve got other stuff to clean up and put away. Sorting through it slowly. That should be a lot easier and quicker now that just being outdoors isn’t a health risk.

Do what you can, with what you have, and when you can. And stack…

nick

Then I could post in 2124… but would it be worth reading?

Cooler all day, and overcast, with the possibility of rain. The national map has us on the edge, and that usually means, no rain. We’ll see. It was off and on light misty drizzle yesterday, which kept temps down. Only 78F in the driveway… and 82F driving around. Nice.

Did some driving around to get the kids where they needed to be. Spent some time on auctions. Even did some repairs, sorting, and putting away. I need to make some changes to my office, but don’t know what to do yet. I’d like to find room for a turntable so I could listen to some of the vinyl I’ve been picking up lately. Don’t know if that is possible without giving up too much room for my other interests.

Today I’m sleeping in. At some point, I might take oldest to the gub store to see what they have in the case. Something like a full frame 22 would be a good choice for her to keep working on some target stuff, and building some good habits. Plus, it’s been a while since I saw my buddy and his wife. Later I have an auction pickup in Conroe. I might pay the guy to bring it to Houston, or I might make the run up there because I don’t want to wait. It’s for my non-prepping hobby…

Life goes on and the wheel turns. Gotta keep moving. Stack something, learn something, spend some time with someone.

nick

Cooler, and wetter, and that’s nice for a change. The overcast kept the heat down yesterday, and the rain helped too. IDK if the same will happen today or not, but then nobody else does either… so yeah, cooler and wetter. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Did some auction stuff in the morning. Met with the plumber about the gas line for the whole house gennie. Did some pickups. Hit Costco for TP and some other stuff, mainly snacks for school lunches. Made dinner and stacked some meat for the freezer…

Today D2 has an orthodontist appointment first thing, then I’ll meet the plumber, if it’s not pouring down rain. Getting gas to the gennie is definitely progress. Then it’s up to me to get some temporary electrical stuff done. I can do that, I even think I have the cables and connectors at my secondary in deep storage. Might take a bit of digging to get to that though.

Finally some real prepping. Meat for the freezer. Work on the gennie…

And all the domestic bliss too.

Take the time while you can.

And stack.

nick

Cooler, and maybe less sun today. Yesterday’s threatened rain never did come, but the temps stayed down as the sun stayed away. Today should be similar.

After a slow start to the morning, my afternoon flew by. Auction stuff. Then kid chauffeuring for two hours. Then grocery shopping, into dinner, etc… Not many bargains at the grocery store.

Today I’ve got a meeting with a generator guy about doing the gas hookup. Then I’ve got a couple of pickups. That should eat most of my day.

In between I might be able to grab a thing or two off the list.

Or not. The beginning of school is always a bit chaotic and crowded.

Kinda like life.

Get what ducks you have in a row… and stack.

nick