Friday, December 27, 2013

Solar Revolution

Today marks the completion of my 48th ride around ol' Sol, and the beginning of my 49th trip.

30 years ago I didn't think I'd make it to 21.

Guess I was wrong.

If I'd known I was gonna live THIS long...


Wednesday, December 11, 2013

This Just In...

...from the Scary Words Make News Scarier Department:

"...the campus was placed on lockdown after reports of an armed gunman."

Do they also lock down the campus if a gunman is UNarmed?

Thursday, August 1, 2013

If Women Don't Find You Handsome They Should At Least Find You Handy...

Today was a fix-it day at Casa de MXL.

I replaced a bad motor capacitor in an air conditioner and now have cool air flowing in the dining room and living room again, much to the happiness of the others who live here.

For the record, if I ever recommend you purchase a certain appliance, don't follow my advice.  I seem to have a knack for choosing appliances that only break special-order parts.

On a positive note, don't overlook Grainger as a source for appliance parts.  The motor cap that everyone else wanted upwards of $100 for was only $20 from Grainger, and was available in 2 days versus everyone else's week to 10 days.

I also replaced the lockset in the back door.  The door was made for a mortised lock, but somebody Bubba'd a modern lockset into it.  I won't say that I completely un-Bubba'd it, but at least the brass door reinforcement covers the Bubba job and gives the bolt a solid attachment point.

A few hours of lost sleep is probably worth the domestic harmony my efforts hopefully produce.

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Checking In...

I unplugged (mostly) for a few days for ABATE of Iowa's 29th Annual Freedom Rally.

I took a wi-fi hotspot with me but by the time the park filled up what little bandwidth was available was totally swamped.

Beyond that, I just really haven't had much printable to say about the world around me.

I have a couple of posts brewing...perhaps it's time to lean my chair back against the wall for a bit and see which idea pops into my brain when I bring my chair forward.*


*Quasi-obscure Young Adult literary reference

Saturday, April 20, 2013

A Resemblance

Friend Ms. Ecks opines on an article on CNN giving managers a few tips for working with people with Asperger's Syndrome.  It's like the articles about hiring and working with millennials - kids who were never spanked and always received participation ribbons and trophies.

Reading the article I find I share pretty much all of the traits the author ascribes to Asperger's.

All this time I just thought I was a geek that doesn't like people.

Friday, April 19, 2013

Another April 19 Milestone

A while back I wondered if something was going to happen on April 19.

Apparently I was right, though not quite in the way I feared.

Sounds like one of the suspected Boston Marathon bombers is assuming room temperature and the other is on the run.

It's still relatively early in the day as I write this though, so there's still time for the other shoe to drop.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

How Is Marriage Defined?

Same sex marriage is in the news currently due to cases being heard before the Supreme Court, and that got me to thinking about MY marriage.

We are a traditional male-female couple but we weren't married in a church.  We were both raised Catholic, but neither were active in the Church at the time, and due to her being active duty Army and stationed in Germany, unable to meet the Church's pre-marriage preparation requirements.

Nearly 26 years there was a small ceremony in my parents' living room, officiated by a county Justice of the Peace and witnessed by a select group of family and friends.

We were both of legal age, both standing before the JP of our own free will, and both willing and able to sign the marriage license.

Beyond those qualifications, what other business does any level of government have in our union?  If the state is supposed to be blind to color, gender and/or age in every other aspect of our lives, why does it matter whether both parties have innies or outies?

As long as both parties understand that they will become legally obligated to each other and to any children brought into the union, why does the gender of each part of the couple matter?  For that matter, why just a couple?  If all parties to the union are legally competent to enter into the contract, why does it matter to the state how many people unite?

I can't for the life of me understand how a committed same sex couple marrying threatens the idea of marriage any more than notable traditional marriages like those involving people like Larry King, the late Elizabeth Taylor, Britney Spears or whichever Kardashian it was that separated from her spouse before the ink on the license had dried.

Maybe I don't see it because I didn't have a traditional wedding.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Technical Difficulty

My give-a-damn suffered a critical system failure this morning.

Restoration efforts have so far proved fruitless.

Only mission-essential functions are being supported at this time.

Normally I would apologize for any inconveniences this event has caused, but as I said, my give-a-damn suffered a critical system failure this morning.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

Out With The Old...

Some time back I wrote about the joys of a 2600 mile trip on my '90 Ultra Classic and indicated that before the next long ride I'd be changing seats.

Mission accomplished, with the help of a left-turning inattentive driver.

Meet the new hotness:


So far I've only ridden it from the dealership to the house, but I can honestly say that those were some of the best miles I've spent on a bike in a long time.  That they were done in January in Iowa is just icing on the cake.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

I Think My Tinfoil Beanie Is Leaking...


There's a nagging thought in the back of my mind that says that someone somewhere has a timetable and wants things to come to a head on April 19, the anniversary of Lexington & Concord...and of Oklahoma City...and of Waco.

Friday, January 11, 2013

Broken?

Based on what I've read online and seen on the TV recently, I apparently have a box of defective high-capacity magazines.

I've owned some of them for 30 years and in that whole time none of them have killed everyone in my home.

Maybe I should put them on eBay and hope the purchaser sends me the money before he or she figures out they are broken.