Stirring the Pot

 

Stirring the pot

The above was copied and posted on my Facebook page. I do many, “Stirring the pot”, posts. This one touched nerves. Over 45 thumbs, 29 comments, and one share so far and growing. (P)regressives and TDS sufferers make up most of the (vile and nasty) comments. Mission accomplished

Wolves

Wolves “saved” Yellowstone.

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This theme is used to support reintroduction of wolves and other predators elsewhere. The above short clip is only one of many, some hours long, fostering the idea.

Not so fast, L.L. Beaners

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 I believe people with a ranch/farm upbringing have a clearer idea of what works. Feral horses and burros, for instance, will reproduce until the land they inhabit won’t support their number.  Then they die of starvation. A memory from my youth is seeing a feral horse, dead of winter, leaning against a power pole because it was too weak to stand. No food was available on that winter range.

Outrage is futile, disgust remains

A Colorado specific rant. Blue Colorado voters eight years ago voted in (P)regressives to every state office. Now we are faced with eight more years of the worst Attorney General becoming Governor. An example of his diminished moral fiber is on display. Likely, he can’t even recognize his own hypocrisy.

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Can anybody be held responsible? Likely not, as one Christopher S.P. Gregory has found.

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David vs Goliath and Mr. Gregory’s sling may be too short.

Car Story

A story of driving while intoxicated.

After leaving my crazy twenties I stopped driving if I had consumed more than one drink. If the wife was sober she drove or we got a cab.

That ended one December night.

The area Isuzu representive was hosting a Christmas dinner in a Burien, WA restaurant banquet room. A nice dinner with open bottles of wine liberally distributed, the atmosphere was congenial but the room was too warm. As I sat there I kept helping myself to some white wine. When I walked out into the cold night air, I realized I was shit faced.

 Pre cell phone days meant calling my house from a pay phone. As a single custodial parent, I wanted one of my sons to come get me. Of course, being young men, they were out doing young men things.

I then made the decision to drive the 8.2 miles home. My ride was one of my $100 acquisitions, a 1970 Dodge 100 long bed step side that was an ex Hanford Nuclear Complex fleet vehicle. I can’t remember what the license plate belonged to but not the Dodge.

The fifteen minute drive home was done at exactly the speed limit with intense concentration to lane discipline and proper use of turn signals. I arrived home without incident greatly relieved and thankful traffic was light.

Yes, I did try to call a cab. Up to one hour wait.

 I kept that Dodge longer than most of my vehicles. Slant six, five speed, it was unusual. Civilian Dodge step sides were short beds and I don’t remember ever seeing one that was a five speed. Most were four speed only or three on the tree.

While one of the better engines ever offered, that slant six was prone to carbon buildup in the exhaust ports. The easy fix was to slowly pour water into the carb and let the steam clean out the carbon. Once the exhaust went from black to white you were done.

Poor people have poor ways.

As always, YMMV

 

Jobs? We Don't Need Anymore Jobs

 

Elites Snobs against jobs and essential commodities

Back in the day in Steamboat Springs CO a sawmill operated on the west end of town. In those days waste wood was burned in large “beehive” furnaces. On the few days a month this one operated smoke would occasionally drift into town.

One day a resident encountered my Dad on the sidewalk and complained, “Bob, this smoke is terrible!”

My Dad paused, sniffed the air deliberately, and replied, “I smell a $100,000 payroll”.

One of three cement plants in Colorado is, woe to them, located in Boulder County where it has operated since 1969. Located at the intersection of Colorado Highway’s 36 and 66 at the outskirts of Lyons, it is very visible to the passing Subaru brigades. They don’t like it.

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Never mind cement is essential for nearly every building, bridge, sidewalk and storm sewer. Never mind the 100 jobs. L. L.Bean Karen’s find it offensive and it needs to go away.

Meanwhile in Boulder County.

From Goggle AI.

One manufacturing job typically creates 1.4 to 3.6 additional jobs in supplier and local industries, and can range from 5 to 7+ additional jobs if broader household spending and public-sector jobs are included.

The Deficit: The county has worked to close a total projected $30 million to $40 million General Fund shortfall spanning from 2026 through 2028 because expenses are outpacing tax revenue.

Science

In Montana a decades old murder was linked to the perpetrator from DNA recovered from a set of booking fingerprints.

DNA recovered from 44-year-old booking fingerprint cards successfully broke a major cold case, marking what investigators believe is the first time in U.S. history a homicide has been solved using DNA lifted from old fingerprint records

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Kudos to whoever thought of looking for DNA on a fingerprint card.

NFC West

For my sins I’m a lukewarm Seahawk fan. When they were formed and entered the league our company had season tickets. Every year it seems all the experts miss and the hated San Francisco 49 Niners are firmly in first place in the NFC West. It is hard to be excited when the Seahawks lead the league in fumbles.

CarStory

From way back, two GI’s “meet” the Netherland Queen and her daughter.

This story rambles. US Army circa mid 1960’s, owning a POV usually meant getting permission from you unit commander. In our unit, you needed to be a E4 or above. There were other hoops to jump through. The available pool of “GI cars” rotated owners every two to three years and most had numerous “hillbilly/farm boy” mechanical fixes. Cosmetically, they were seldom much to look at.

The first one I owned was a mid 1950s left hand drive Ford Anglia. A buddy from an adjacent bridge company and I set off on a ten day leave. First stop, of course, was Amsterdam. He was dead set on visiting Stockholm. Leaving Amsterdam with the intent of reaching Copenhagen, I missed some turn but pushed onward northbound. The land was flat and featureless, fog with the sky overcast, and we were pulled over to the side of the road with our maps. Lost, we were!

Two ladies on bicycles pulled up and offered their assistance in giving us directions. We thanked them and they rode off. Trailing behind were four very large men on bicycles, dressed in dark cloths and giving us a hard looking over as they rode pass. Not far ahead the party turned left into a tree lined road and disappeared in the fog.

When we passed the road we glimpsed a large stately house at the end of the road. Consulting our maps, we determined it was some royal palace. It dawned on us the older lady was likely the queen.

Of note, both my buddy and I were “Pathfinder school graduates”.This is not to be confused with real Pathfinders; they are up there with Green Berets, Forward Air Controllers, etc. Our school was ten days of map reading and route planning. bridge load bearing, intersection turn radius, narrow city streets, etc.

One note about the Anglia. It had the old school oil filter canister you removed and the filter was inside. It was leaking; gasket shot and we were in Koblenz parked by a Gasthause. Across the road was a Ford Dealer. We never traveled without tools and I was able to get the gasket out.

We went into the dealership (little German on our part and none on the counterman) but he examined the chewed up gasket, went in the back and returned with a few gaskets. One matched and I asked how much.  He wanted to know what car I had and I pointed out the Anglia up the street.

“Nien!”, he said. “Dat is fur a Deutcher Ford, nist is fur der Englander Ford”.  The bastard wouldn’t sell it to me.

We retired to the Gasthause for a beer. Looking at the cardboard beer coaster, I asked for an extra. Settling the chewed up gasket on the beer coaster, I carved out a gasket. Keeping the coaster, I put the gasket I cut out in the housing and reinstalled the oil filter. We started the Anglia; no leaks!

My companions tried to stop me but I went back to the Ford dealership. Finding the counterman I tossed what was left of the coaster on his counter and said, “Das if fur der GI Ford, arshlick”.

Before anything else happened, my buddies hustled me out of there.

Always made an effort towards German/ American friendship.

As always, YMMV

Sue the Bastards!

 

Coyote vs Acme

The Roadrunner cartoons were my favorite so I went to see the movie. Two hours of escapist silliness I enjoyed.

Steam, Steam, Steam

Longtime readers of this blog know I have an interest in steam engines. I will be looking forward to this event.

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Wolves

How much wishing by starry eyed environment justice warriors can overcome natural selection? We are finding out despite blowing millions of dollars.

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The Colorado Rockies are not Yellowstone. If the habitat, once suitable but now changed, could support wolves they would have moved in on their own.

7½ Years of Democrats in charge

Who is minding the store?

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The product of not caring about the qualification and proven competency of the candidates they put forth, IMO.

Shut Up! Prole your betters want this

Front Range Rail Service 

Will the  (P)regressive wet dream die?

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Worked well in California, no? Came across a poster who said the cost of our actions dealing with Iran is about the same amount of money that goes to fraud in California annually.

Car Story

“You are overweight, $200 fine”, said the arrogant Dumont, CO  Port of  Entry functionary to Steve Peterson, the operator of a ten car trailer truck driver.

Colorado, winter blizzard, Steve was going from Longmont to Grand Junction with a load. When he went over the scale the added ice and snow accumulated on the cars he was hauling put him 310 lbs overweight.

Steve operated two trucks hauling cars for my employer. He was a great driver but careless in loading cars. I once rode with him to Grand Junction and he made the trip in thirty minutes more than I did in a Lincoln Towncar.

Back to Dumont, Steve kept his cool and paid the fine. Later, Steve Lance, aka Little Hitler who owned the dealership, reimbursed him.

As a standard practice at our dealerships, we gave LEOs and Correctional Officers good deals with the exception of the Colorado State Patrol and associated personnel. Unfair to some? Yeah, what goes around…………

As always, YMMV