Thursday, March 30, 2023

Dr Jim aka Every Blade of Grass


Sisty received a text message from him. He is still in rehab but doing better than expected.

He hasn’t been blogging because he only has a cell phone and can’t get into his account.

Still doesn’t have an ETA on returning home.

Updates will follow when I have them.

Feel free to share this with other bloggers.

Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Get A Grip

 

Hysteria

USA population is North of 316,000,000 + illegal’s. 480,000 people get a urinary infection from improperly prepared meat. That is .00152%. Wonder how many people will develop health problems from eating the chemical stew “plant based meats”? Is it possible, in today's world, to write a "scientific" paper without, "the sky is falling"?

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The Elites have more ideas

Another way to make the population docile.

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100 Year Ago

From our local rag.

• The National American Homes Bureau announced the results of a country-wide poll this week. It showed women love cosmetics, movies, cigarettes and motor cars more than they love babies. They said this could lead to a national catastrophe.

Can’t trust those women to stay in line?

Springtime in the Rockies


Oh well, we need the water.

Lawyers need more work Firearms "Control" edition

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This man wants to be your next President

He is trying to re-image himself as a Libertarian. Pushes more government power in practice.

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Climate Change Hysteria

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12,500,000,000  gallons of water from the 3000 billion tons of melted ice. The oceans contain 352 quintillion gallons.  Math isn’t my best subject but using the internet 12 500 000 000 is 3.55114e-09% of 352 quintillion.

Have the Obama’s put their Martha Vineyard on the market?

 MYOB

A Northeast Utah railroad project has the Colorado trust fund Democrats (and one RINO) all aghast.

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The area has been poverty stricken for decades. The thing residents want most is a decent paying secure job.

Despite these “leaders” ignorance of geography not one drop of Unita Basin water flows within the borders of Colorado.

 You want to sit on my couch?



Windsor Water Village

Say you have a large gravel pit that is becoming hard to work because of seepage from a nearby river and constant pumping raises costs. Solution? An upscale subdivision with lakes, golf course, and walking trails. Cheapest house there starts at $900,000.

Why, WSF, do you bring this up? Because I spend a lot of time there delivering mortgage delinquency notices. Does it surprise you that the more affluent people are, the more nasty comes out when confronted?  Sisty will affirm my descalation skills are meager. Mainly, because I don’t care. Try to intimidate me? Ain’t happening.

My initial approach is polite and professional. I take no pleasure in making people uncomfortable. Sort of, “stand up, speak up, and git”. For most of my calls, that works but every damn one in Water Village becomes confrontational.

Easy Aircraft to Identify

My Dad and I bought this airplane to learn to fly. 85 hp off a 7,000’ elevation runway was a challenge.  We soon learned where the reliable updrafts were to be found.

 

More Colorado Green Insanity

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 Several issues come to mind. Outside of the urban I-25 corridor, every trip is most likely 100 miles one way. With the war on fossil fuel electricity generation, where is the electricity to charge these vehicles coming from? Wind farms and snow covered solar panels? Yeah, that is a reliable source.

Colorado winters are cold and batteries don’t function well in the cold.

Where is all the copper, cobalt, and lithium for the batteries coming from? China?

LTG Michael Flynn has stated we are in a 5th generation war. Are these destructive and financial ruinous policies a component?

 I’m Shocked!

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Whatever works.

As always, YMMV

Likely

Sunday, March 26, 2023

Latter Day Luddite Makes Slow Progress

 

Simple isn’t it, to use hyperlinks? Not for me but after several years of torturing the few readers that venture this way, I was determined to learn how to do it.

Banner Report

All is well now with the cut in his left rear foot pad. No complications and he never was in pain. A gentle soul, he never fought me as I treated him but passively resisted. Trust me when I say a strong 80 lb Lab passively resisting is a challenge.

Montgomery, Al

Hyundai has a factory there and Kia nearby in West Point, GA. Several retirees, including me, worked for Roush Industries driving pre-production and prototype cars and trucks out of Henderson, CO. Hyundai was one of the manufacturers and often wanted vehicles returned to Montgomery and others picked up. While Roush employed many different people to drive the local routes, the manager was very selective about who drove the long routes (Naples, FL, Montgomery, AL, Las Vegas, Bemidji, MN, and Lavonia, MI). Those assignments usually went to older drivers with proven reliability. (The trips also paid a lot more)

One trip three of us stayed in Montgomery while Hyundai got their shit together and two decided to ride the city bus downtown to see the Hank Williams Museum.

How things change! The home of the Rosa Park bus protest and the home of Martin Luther King saw two senior caucasian retired farmers in bib overalls riding a bus driven by a black driver with mainly black passengers. Telling, to me, nobody seemed to find the situation unusual.

Montgomery is the home of the Southern Preposterous Lie Center. Their headquarters reinforces the lie; doesn’t look poor to me. In conversations with local residents, most expressed contempt toward the SPLC, often heatedly.

Bass Pro Shop

Another time in Montgomery, while we waited for Hyundai, three of us decided to visit the Bass Pro Shop in one of the cars we were to bring back. One man’s cell phone rang, it was his wife, and the overheard conversation went something like this.

“Honey, we are waiting for cars to take back so we are going to the Bass Pro Shop”.

“You are going to a Bass Pro Shop with our credit card?”

“We drove past three Jiggle Joints on our way”.

“You would do a lot less damage to our credit card in a Jiggle Joint than Bass Pro Shop”. 

For what it is worth, he didn’t buy anything.

Kidnappers

Several vehicles tested by Roush were never for sale in the USA. Skoda, for instance. Once I asked the manager about this and he explained all these cars needed to be tested at high altitudes for sales around the world.

“We’ve never had any drivers or vehicles kidnapped and held for ransom’, he explained.

Not Too Smart

The son of a woman killed in a mass shooting in Boulder is suing the firearm manufacturer.

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In Colorado civil actions, the losers pay the winner’s legal fees.

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Nathaniel Getz will  be getting massive social kudos in the People’s Republic of Boulder. Watch everyone scatter when the bill comes due.

Speaking to the truth has consequences.

People v. Jenna Lynn Ellis

In November and December 2020, while serving as a senior legal advisor to the then-President of the U.S. and as counsel for his reelection campaign, Jenna Ellis made multiple misrepresentations on national television and on Twitter regarding the 2020 presidential election.

According to the disciplinary opinion, among the misrepresentation were: 

·         On Nov. 13, 2020, Ellis claimed that “Hillary Clinton still has not conceded the 2016 election.”

·         On Nov. 20, 2020, Ellis appeared on “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business and stated: “We have affidavits from witnesses, we have voter intimidation, we have the ballots that were manipulated, we have all kinds of statistics that show that this was a coordinated effort in all of these states to transfer votes either from Trump to Biden, to manipulate the ballots, to count them in secret . . .”

·         On Nov. 20, 2020, Ellis appeared on “Spicer & Co.” and stated, “with all those states [Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia] combined we know that the election was stolen from President Trump and we can prove that.”

·         On Nov. 21, 2020, Ellis stated on Twitter under her handle @JennaEllisEsq., “ . . . SECOND, we will present testimonial and other evidence IN COURT to show how this election was STOLEN!”

·         On Nov. 23, 2020, Ellis appeared on an MSNBC show and stated, “The election was stolen and Trump won by a landslide.”

·         On Nov. 30, 2020, Ellis appeared on “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business and stated, “President Trump is right that there was widespread fraud in this election, we have at least six states that were corrupted, if not more, through their voting systems. . . We know that President Trump won in a landslide.” She also stated, “The outcome of this election is actually fraudulent it’s wrong, and we understand than when we subtract all the illegal ballots, you can see that President Trump actually won in a landslide.”

·         On Dec. 3, 2020, Ellis appeared on “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business and stated, “The outcome of this election is actually fraudulent it’s wrong, and we understand than when we subtract all the illegal ballots, you can see that President Trump actually won in a landslide.”

·         On Dec. 5, 2020, Ellis appeared on “Justice with Judge Jeanine” on Fox News and stated, “We have over 500,000 votes [in Arizona] that were cast illegally . . .”

·         On Dec. 15, 2020, Ellis appeared on “Greg Kelly Reports” on Newsmax and stated, “The proper and true victor, which is Donald Trump . . .”

·         On Dec. 22, 2020, Ellis stated on Twitter, through her handle @JennaEllisEsq, “I spent an hour with @DanCaplis for an in-depth discussion about President @realDonaldTrump’s fight for election integrity, the overwhelming evidence proving this was stolen, and why fact-finding and truth—not politics—matters!”

The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved Ellis’ stipulation to discipline and publicly censured Ellis, effective March 8.

Disclaimer. Since I’m not an attorney I don’t quite understand why the discipline and how it will affect her working as an attorney.

Chicken Wings



A favorite weekly cartoon. Being a Later Day Luddite, I can relate to Chuck.

Nanny State

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What further pisses me off is one sponsor represents my district. He is a RINO that came clean and became a Democrat. Due to a quirk in the census creating a new district he escaped running for office.

Emperor Polis’ latest “Green” idiocy

A long article about ozone levels and his plans to reduce levels. All will further cripple the petroleum industry.

I am convinced he will run for President.

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Peoples Republic of Boulder bit in the ass

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Samsung A14 5G



While out in the boondocks harassing debtors, the back of my Motorola cell phone disintegrated despite being in a hard case. Back in town the salesman at Xfinity sold me a new phone. This Latter Day Luddite has no present need for 5G (hell, I don’t even know what that means). What I can do is make cost/value determinations and the cost to replace my phone with another led me to this choice. Shit, new instructions to read! Maybe some of Banner’s senior groupies may be impressed!

As a bonus I can now toss out the instructions, which I never bothered to read, for the old phone.

Will I now read this book I bought?

Captain Obvious

Wonder how many tax dollars was pissed away on this?

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Springtime in Colorado



March 20th? During the night of March 24th we were hit with a nasty, but short term, blizzard.

Fashion



Ahead of me entering the supermarket was a middle aged woman with one of the hardest facial expressions you will ever see. What struck me was the front of her hair was streaked with Columbine blue. From the rear? Don’t think those tights match her hair.

What do I know? My fashion sense is making sure my zipper is closed

The end

I will leave you with this. As always, YMMV. 
























Tuesday, March 14, 2023

High School Sports



 

High School Sports

Small spot out in the patch (Brggsdale) has a state champion basketball team, the first for the town. The girls basketball team.

I approve of high school sports and especially for girls. Back in the day (1961, 42 graduates) the only thing available for girls was band and cheerleading. In Ski Town, USA where I graduated, several female skiers became Olympic competitors but this was on their parent’s dime. 

Small historical note. My Senior year we started with twelve cheerleaders and ended the year with three. The other nine got pregnant. The two drug stores in town wouldn’t sell condoms to teenagers. The only real source was vending machines in Wyoming.

Long before the trust fund snots discovered Steamboat, the high school had a gifted teacher and coach, Carl Ramano. A Korea War Marine, he coached wrestling and taught shop classes. In thirteen consecutive years, the school was six times state champions and seven times runners up. Wray, CO High School was always the other school.

I was a wrestler, 2nd string, but the attitude developed as a wrestler helped me in life and the skills learned in Coach Ramano’s shop classes I use to this day.

Comets

Visible comets are in the news and that sparked a fond memory. 1996, Comet Hyakutake was in the news. At the time we lived in the Puget Sound area and my youngest son had recently acquired a Dodge Charger. We went on I-90 to the top of Snoqualmie Pass one evening to see the comet. On the way back down he asked,

“Dad, can I open it up a little?”

“Not a good idea, son. There are better places”.

Sure enough, a few moments later the WSP clocked him ten miles over and we had a father/son moment as he got his first ticket.

Son’s Dodge Charger

Not his, but you get the idea.

My son dropped out of high school due to his life being in danger from out of control black students. Travis wouldn’t back down, wouldn’t defer, etc. The assistant superintendent, a retired Seattle Seahawk (and black) put the blame on my son. We had words and I was escorted from the school by the police.

But, I digress. Travis, as a freshman, passed his GED tests with a 82% score. I put him to work as a lot man at the dealership where I worked and helped him buy a Chevy LUV pickup.

A customer traded in a Dodge Charger that he had been turning into a race car. The car looked bad but was sound. The rebuilt engine was from the premier MOPAR shop in Seattle. The suspension and brakes had been upgraded. Larger and better tires were fitted. The owner had given up and traded it in for an economy car. I wasn’t the salesman involved.

Travis came up to me with that “look” and said, Dad!”

I bought the car for $300. He drove it for five years, raised all kinds of hell in King County, and later in Colorado when he moved.

He was a gifted driver. When he was much younger we spent a weekend at Ocean Shores where there was a rental go cart track. He was too short at the time but, as it was a slow day, a $20 bill slipped to the attendant let him grow a couple of inches. He had never driven a go cart but within three laps he was drifting that under powered go cart around the corners and passing everyone.

Would Dr Jim approve?

Bank Failures

I don’t trust banks and will only use credit unions.  I have no need for other bank services. YMMV. Do your own due diligence.  Below is an email from one of my credit unions.

 

 

Dear Member,

 

During the past few days, there has been uncertainty in the financial system resulting from questionable business decisions made by Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. These failures resulted from insufficient risk management practices at these institutions and are not systemic issues that will impact Credit Union of Colorado.

 

Credit Union of Colorado’s balance sheet is strong, and our systems are secure. We have cash availability from both primary and multiple contingent sources that will allow us to serve all our members' cash-flow needs. None of our vendors have been significantly impacted by these events. 

 

At Credit Union of Colorado, our primary purpose is to serve our members’ financial needs. Unlike a bank, we are not-for-profit; we are not reliant on investors looking for profits. As a result, we maintain well-positioned and strong financials that allow us to return value to our members through lower interest rates, limited fees, and competitive dividends. 

 

We are committed to keeping the Credit Union of Colorado financially resilient. Thank you for your continued trust and for allowing us to assist you in meeting your financial goals. As always, we are here to help.

 

Sincerely,

 

 Terry Leis

 

 

 

Weather Modification

 

Has always been part of human efforts from shaman rain dances to this tidbit 100 years ago in our local rag.

 

• Members of the Army Air Force have announced they are close to bringing rain to areas that need the moisture, by flying over clouds and dropping sand on the clouds, which will be turned into rain. Experiments begin next month.

 

Daylight Savings Time

Always a PITA. Do I really need nine time keepers, including vehicles? No, but I do and twice a year curse my way as I change them. With two I always need to look up and follow instructions. Frays my man card.

Of course, “science” always needs to chime in.

https://scitechdaily.com/daylight-saving-time-a-medical-nightmare-a-neurologist-weighs-in/

Survivor



My parents had one late 1960’s and it was a fantastic car for them. In a town with a then population less than 2,000 they had the only white one. One day a white Volvo 122 stopped near where my Dad was standing. He opened the passenger door, hopped in, and said, “Where are you going, honey?” Oops! Not his honey.

Colorado Politics

I’m so disgusted with our radical Democrats I can’t even work up a good case of giving a shit. Latest insanity at a 3 am weekend session the House passed a bill allowing “safe” injection sites for illegal drugs. However, they voted down a bill making selling illegal drugs that results in the death of the user a felony. That begs the question; do the cartels control the far left Democrats?

As always, YMMV.

 

Thursday, March 9, 2023

Grease is Cheaper than Machinery


 A favorite saying of my father. Recently the 2002 Ford Taurus went in for an oil change and minor tune up (spark plugs).  $192 for all NAPA filters and synthetic oil, new spark plugs, and new PCV valve. The mechanic discovered cracks in the PVC valve holder causing an intermittent vacuum leak.

For most of my life I’ve done my own routine maintenance but age now makes that difficult.

“Putting a pencil” to it is depressing. Say my fuel economy is improved by 2 mpg. Over 6,000 miles at current gas prices I will save around $32. Yes Sisty, I can hear you muttering about your cheap ass brother!

The real payoff is peace of mind knowing I have a reliable vehicle that won’t leave me stranded in someplace like Last Chance, CO. What is that worth?

Prompted by LL’s blog

 


More Radical Democrat Foolishness

Passed the House and on to the Senate, lowers the fine for operating a commercial vehicle without a Commercial Driver License to the lowest level possible – around $100 and no “points”.

Should improve highway safety, no?

As Dirty Harry explained, a man should know his limitation. In my case, I’ve demonstrated many times I’m not qualified to operate anything larger than a one ton flat bed pickup.

Weather

Daily Conspiracy

The building I live in is managed by the Weld County Housing Authority for private investors. The investors enjoy certain tax write offs. We have several residents who constantly look at ways changes may affect our leases, etc.

Most evenings a group gathers in the lobby to discuss and solve all the world’s problems. Senior housing has been the recent hot topic.

Banner enjoys joining the group as some carry treats for him. I enjoy bringing my Mr. Maytag persona (always agitating).

As an aside, I pay full rent and don’t qualify for programs like SNAP, etc. I’m grandfathered in income wise but face annual rent increases. Many of my neighbors live on the ragged edge financially. Their concerns as to any changes by the housing authority are legitimate.

Currently several hundred “Senior Affordable” apartments are under construction in the area. With rents starting at $1,200 for a 600 sq ft one bedroom and increasing to $2,000 for larger apartments, I don’t think anyone relying solely on Social Security can afford them.

Emissions Update

Bizarre, son’s engine/catalytic converters passed emissions but his car was flagged for “alignment”. I suspect someone spotted a serious safety issue and made a decision not covered by regulations.

Probably a good call as this Saturday the Focus will get $1,200 in front end work.

Son can afford it and I’m ok with someone deciding the car is unsafe.

The good news is the passing emissions. That buys another year before the car must be replaced. From what I hear, the used car market at the wholesale level is in free fall. Add the ongoing financial collapse and some bargains will be available this year.

Sucks if you are one of the people who will be harmed. Too bad, probably voted Democrat.

As always, YMMV.


Sunday, March 5, 2023

Enough Winter Already


Welcome, California Import
They have opened a couple of Colorado locations and have closed on a property about ten minutes from my apartment. I always enjoyed eating there when I was in California working.

Poor People have Poor Ways

One of many things that piss me off is the way affluent “save the earth” types don’t care how their decisions affect poor people.

If you live along the Colorado Front Range your vehicle must pass an emission test in order to be licensed. The test only costs $25. What happens when your vehicle fails? You are fucked. Big repair bill.

Poor? Too bad. How do you get to work?

Middle son is currently in this jam. Should his 2002 Ford Focus need a new catalytic converter, that is around $1,800. He can cover it with a credit card but what a bite!

After years of bad alcohol induced decisions, wrong friends, and especially wrong females, he has his life on track. He doesn’t need this! He was here today and I fiddled with his car. Got the check engine light out and poured in some “Guaranteed to Pass” snake oil. Fingers crossed!

My perfectly usable Mitsubishi pickup is current stored as it won’t pass emissions. I can afford the repairs but have other priorities at this time.

Relocations


When my youngest son was medically discharged from the Army, he relocated his family to the Spartanburg, S.C. area. An Army buddy was managing an ambulance company there. Big changes are in the works. My daughter-in-law and youngest grandson plan to move to Tucson, AZ this summer where her parents live. Her two older children will probably stay in the Spartanburg area.

 My other granddaughter graduates high school this year and will be off to either a military academy or a university, possible Emery-Riddle in Florida.

Her brother and fiancée are moving to Corpus Christi. He has already submitted paperwork to transfer from the South Carolina Guard to the Texas Guard. From a selfish point of view, I don’t approve. He is firmly in the rear with the gear and unlikely to ever be deployed in the South Carolina Guard. Texas? Who knows?

Looks like Banner and I will be spending a lot of windshield time in 2023. I loathe the entire airport/airline hassle. Too many years of doing it has soured me. If it is not an emergency, I am driving.

Kick in the guts

A neighbor’s granddaughter was murdered. No details as the neighbor is too distraught to discuss her loss. She is the kindest lady in the building who will help anyone and one of Banner’s favorite people.

Ukraine

Aside from the huge sums of our nearly worthless money being laundered there, I don’t give a shit about the whole situation. Has there ever been a prolonged time that region hasn’t been at war?

Eyes

Had my final exam Friday. Left eye, 20/20. Right eye, with the macular degeneration, 20/40. What is more important to me is my night vision has improved and I feel safer driving at night. Glare is still an issue but I can deal with that.

Hell in a Hand basket

Radical Democrats are having their way at the State Legislator this year. Among the many things they are doing are:

Unconstitutional firearms laws. Bruen decision?  We don’t care.

Legalize drug dens.

Regulate hours, days off, etc. for restaurant workers. (More restaurants will close and more automation will happen in the fast food segment)

Rent control

Allow non citizens to vote in US elections

 Will they claim credit for:

5th highest gas prices in the country?

Nearly 30% spike in property taxes?

All of this should make Emperor Polis nervous as he re-brands himself as some kind of libertarian in advance of his Presidential run. Hey asshole, you will forever be a Boulder puke.

Football


Two big stories regard the hiring of Deion (Prime Time) Sanders as head coach for the University of Colorado team and Sean Peyton as the coach of the Denver Broncos. While not a fan of either team, many friends and relatives are. For their sake, I hope both are wildly successful.

Fremont Troll (Seattle)

Oldest son sent this. Not sure just what is going on but seems to be associated with Valentine Day.

Cell Phones

I’m old enough to remember packing around a pager


 that required four D Cell batteries. 

As always, YMMV.