I’m not OK with folk calling me a sniveling bitch (even though I’m acting like one). It’s the weather you see; for a brief period (I guess about 6 hours) yesterday the forecast low of Tuesday evening was raised. It went from 0 to 2 and then to 3. In my naivete I thought that ‘they’ would keep raising it a couple of degrees each day and then, come Tuesday, we’d get by with a balmy 12 degrees or so. It turns out that that glimmer of hope has vanished,
Doing my best to think good thoughts:
Saw this sitting over at Breitbart this morning and can’t help but think that the sirens call for diversity for the sake of diversity truly is a fools errand.
Last night in front of Brandon’s place.
I feel like an ass for not seeing the weather big picture. I was looking at the forecast and was fixated on the coming Tuesday night low. It is now forecast to be at 0 (zero) degrees. When I first noticed that Tuesday’s low would be bone chilling, it was forecast to be 13.
The big picture that I didn’t recognize until this morning is when the sun goes down this evening it will not get above freezing again for an entire week. Thursday of next week is showing 37, but I’m think that’s just some guy working the models spreading a glimmer of hope.
Bad new: I’m unprepared for a week long event. Good news: I have time (today) to recover.
So I’ll be off to Wally-world a little later in the day and pick-up some 2nd class goods via 3rd class services. Here’s a little cold weather cabin porn that’ll remind us that it is going to be as beautiful as it is torturous.
50/50. That’s my odds of winning the jackpot in tonight’s lottery drawing.
I’ll either win or I won’t, that’s a 50/50 proposition.
She should have posted wisely, as she might not get the answer she was looking for.
Enjoy.
Before reading the whacked out, all caps and exclamation points, rant below consider this oddity of the English language I ran across in forming the title. When, in the title of this post, I say ‘wound’ I mean to form the simple past tense form of the irregular verb ‘wind’. As in ‘to wind’ and not ‘the wind’. I’m not referring to a person that has a wound, but rather to a person that is wound.. Now that we’ve removed half of the confusion (letting to wind and the wind rest for awhile) lets see what this eloquent gentleman has to say.
We call this type of rant late stage BDS and while it feels so damn good to get it all out it garners few converts. So it goes.
I don’t know why I am particularly sensitive to ‘influence operations’ today. The article on Austin earlier today set me off and now this article via Yahoo has kept the ball rolling.
Let me put the bottom line up front so that you can get a feel for how outrageous the reporting is: The connector the charging cable was damaged. No clue to how or why, but one thing for certain those keen eyed reporters at the ‘cool down’ know that it has it roots in ‘hate’. Their side wants you to know that the other side (whomever that might be) hates your side.
Extract from the article below. Before you become immersed in the ‘hate’, not that the author wants you to feel as if that not supporting sparky cars is unreasonable and tantamount to being a hate monger. Here goes:
Of course, targeting EV owners is nothing new. There have been many instances across the country where electric vehicles were subjected to keying, coal rolling, or other acts of hate.
While EVs are not always an affordable option, they provide significant benefits to the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency determined that transportation is the leading source of pollution in the United States, so relying on battery-powered vehicles can help reduce the emission of gases that contribute to climate change.
Still, there is a large contingent of folks who don’t care for protecting the environment and have a disdain for those who do.
One commenter on the Reddit post explained why these acts of hate won’t be going away any time soon and warned of the possible escalation of more dangerous behavior.
Dam folks the connector is damaged,. No need to start a war between the pencil necks and the rest of us. !
First thing: this boy is going to have a rough time in prison.
The story (from the Smoking Gun) : After being derided as a “limp dick” in need of Viagra, an ex-con named Nurdin retrieved “a pink dildo” from a bedroom shelf and battered his girlfriend.
Nurdin became upset upon being told that he needed erectile dysfunction medication to address his sexual shortcomings.
Nurdin allegedly then took a dildo and shoved it into the 37-year-old victim’s mouth. The woman also told police that he punched her in the left eye.
A judge has barred him from having any contact with the woman he is alleged to have battered. Additionally, if he secures his release on bond, he will be fitted with a continuous alcohol monitoring device.
Second thing: First I’ve heard of something called a ‘Continuous Alcohol Monitoring Device’. Where is this thing mounted?
Call me a wooss if you’d like, but I didn’t elect to live in the south just to have temps like this sneak up on me.
Tuesday the 16th is going to be rough on the cattle.
For those of you up north a mite snickering at my woossiness, cut a southern boy some slack.
I’m pretty sure that anyone who stumbles across my small corner of the interwebs knows that I’m quick to point out when someone, normally a liberal, is being played. By ‘being played’ I mean that the article is tickling an itch it’s audience has already developed by taking a shot at the fools on the ‘other side’ (R if your a D, D if an R, D and R if your a I). When the purpose of an article is to incite more than it is to inform, when you agree with something/some one without thinking then there is a good chance someone somewhere is playing you a tune.
Think it can’t happen to you? Consider this from Breitbart
I don’t like Austin. I’m not going to run down all of the reasons why but I will suggest that if having ‘no respect for Biden’ means you should be fired, then half of the country would be looking for work right now. Having ‘no respect for Biden’ rehabilitates Austin’s image, at least in my eyes, somewhat.
I really don’t like being played.
My son-in-law and granddaughter climbed into the ‘shoot-house’ the other day and was she was able to knock one down.
They live in Huntsville but have a cabin right next to the one I live in here in Tennessee. She’s having this one mounted to go along with the others they’ve got hanging on the wall. 2 for her and 4th for the cabin. She (and he for that matter) will only take a 8 or better buck, but as the season comes to a close they’ll bring down a doe or two for jerky meat.
The processor will carve all of the meat for jerky and what can’t be done that way will be hamburger.
We’re told that the Saturday game between KC and Miami, at KC, will be one of the coldest games ever played. Sub zero at kickoff. Four games in NFL history have had below zero kickoff temperatures::
— 1967 NFL Championship at -13
–1982 AFC Championship -9
–2016 wild card game -6
–2008 NFC Championship -1
My money is on these overpaid social activists finding a way to weasel out. If however, they man up and you’d like to watch, Peacock will be carrying it live. Yes, Peacock is a real thing and is a streaming service you must subscribe to. One can always subscribe and cancel after the trial period I suppose…..that is if the Chiefs and the Dolphins can get their game face on.
We’ve become so accustomed to, and accepting of, the grifters and the thieves in our governments that they show little or no concern about being found out.
It’s a sad sad nation that has people such as these embedded in offices responsible for prosecuting the very conduct they’re engaged in.
Here, take this gift,
I was reserving it for some hero, speaker, or general,
One who should serve the good old cause, the great idea, the progress and freedom of the race,
Some brave confronter of despots, some daring rebel;
But I see that what I was reserving belongs to you just as much as to any.
Where have I heard that before…….Oh, of course…
He didn’t just kill him, he misgendered him and then killed him. That’s painting well outside of the lines there Brian.
I’m 10 miles away from a boat ramp on the Elk River, 14 to several on Wheeler Reservoir, and I can’t seem to get there.
It’s a sordid tale.
Years ago, in 2016 I think, Gander Mountain was sliding into the abyss. I lived in Huntsville (AL) at the time and Gander was selling off all inventory and chaining up the doors locally, as they soon would be nationally. I was late to the game and pickin’s were slim by the time I realized they were selling off inventory. I picked up several poles and reels that formed the core of my fishing tackle at the time. This was right after I bought my boat and before I really understood which poles (and reels for that matter) went with which species and how lure weight needed to be tied to pole characteristics, etc,etc. (many, many etcetera’s)
I did a bang up job of frustrating myself. I thought the problem was me when in fact it was me AND the gear. This last year I started taking fishing a little more seriously (if a person can actually do such a thing). I began reading ‘how to’ articles and then saw some reviews on Amazon for KastKing fishing tackle. I sprang for a baitcaster called Royal Legend II. It was of surprising quality and I could actually cast the sucker without backlashing/birdcaging. I wondered what it could do on a quality pole (also from Kastking) and the difference was amazing. Over the course of a few months I bought 5 new poles and 7 reels.
Baitcasters from left to right Royal Legend ‘II’ (3 of these), Royal Legend ‘Elite’ and Zephyr BFS (finesse). The two spinning reels were both Royal Legend ‘Glory’ in the 3000 frame.
Four of the poles were ‘Perigee’: 6’ (for the BFS reel), 6’.6”, 7’ bait-casters and one 7’6” for one of the spinning reels. I put the other spinning reel on Kast Kings 7’ ‘Resolute’ spinning rod.
I had all of this equipment loaded up and out on the boat for about a week in September; casting away…living the good life when Maggie showed up. Maggie, an absolutely stunning Black and Tan coon hound, appeared on my doorsteps at 1:30 in the morning. I thought someone had lost her while hunting or she had wandered away from her owners so we set some food and water out and went back to bed. The next day, still there. I brought her into the house and placed her in the laundry room and she was content there and would not leave that room except to go outside to do her business and then she would come right back to the door. When I went out she crowded me so much it was almost impossible to walk.
Monday rolls around and we cart her off to our vet in Loretto (TN) to see if she was ‘chipped’: nope. The vet looks her over to see if she’s ok and, after giving her a blood test, tells us she has Heart Worms. Well shit. The vet says there are two general ways to treat her: Fast or Slow. Fast is expensive, painful to the dog, could kill her, and we would have to completely limit her physical activity for at least a month (if not more). The reason for limiting her activity was because the ‘fast method’ kills all of the adult worms in two mass killings a month apart. When the worms die they decompose and that material ends up coating the walls of her lungs and she would literally suffocate if she were to engage in any exercise greater than a slow walk and only then to use the rest room.
This is going to get back to my fishing in a moment, just stick with me.
We opted for the slow method where he treats her for any larva that may be in her blood with an injection, gives us heartworm meds to keep her from getting reinfected, and pills that are given to her twice a day to sterilize the adult heartworms she currently has. The sterile heartworms would die off at a slower pace over time. We would have to limit her movement for a month, but not as severely as with the fast treatment. We’d walk her on a 25 foot leash and she was content with that. Things were looking up and I’m all set to hit the river and lake in late September when wifey, while walking the dog, trips—falls—and breaks her hip.
We went to the emergency room, they admitted her and operated the next morning. Long story shortened: 3 days in the hospital, ambulatory ride to inpatient rehab for a month, then a month of in home physical therapy followed by a little more than a month in outpatient physical therapy. My fishing went dark for the last 3 months of last year.
The good news: the entire ordeal with my wife breaking her hip: emergency room, surgery, hospital recovery, ambulance ride, inpatient physical and occupational therapy, home care nursing and physical therapy and then outpatient physical therapy (and all of the food and meds my wife took while in care) set us back a grand total of (drum roll) $1.69.
One dollar and sixty nine cents.
Interestingly, every person involved with the care, facilities, food, meds, transport, etc.) knew what was/was not covered by Medicare and Tricare and everything they did was correctly coded and submitted with the exception of the $1.69 overcharge by a radiologist.
Insurance? Medicare (because we’re ‘dated’) as primary, Tricare (thanks to my 20 years in the service) secondary. So now the Social Security Administration is going to raise the price of Medicare by 8 or 10 bucks and I am more than happy to have them rip it from my monthly check.
Now that things have moderately returned to normal I’m ready to hit the water. I’ve got some heavy duty insulated and water proof overalls. coat. Boots, gloves and balaclava. A new thermos and inflatable life vest that can be worn under the coat. I’m ready, but the weather has gone to hell so, well, shit.
Perhaps he should think that through.
I understand that she has come out as bi….
…bi god that is one ugly woman.
Fearless leader begins rebuilding the confidence of the nation at about the 50 second mark.
Don’t know why but an old tune keeps running through my mind: “one toke over the line sweet Jesus, one toke over the line. Sittin downtown in a railway station one toke over the line.”
I’m a pretty good shooter. Not SEAL Sniper good (not even close) but with iron sights I could reliably (10 for 10) reach out and touch stuff to 400 meters or so. Age has brought that down to roughly 300 and then maybe at 8 out of 10. I just can’t see well enough to shoot much further than that. In a year or two I guess it’ll be down to 200 with iron sights. Now with a scope attached I can extend that to 600. The scope doesn’t improve my shooting ability so much as it compensates for aging eyes.
A man aught to be able to defend himself out to 600 meters, don’t you think?
I am (or recently was) a 1 Minute Of Angle (MOA) shooter when supported in the prone position. My National Match M1A is a 1 MOA weapon. My Czech made ammo is probably 2 MOA (vertical mostly). [1 MOA is equal to 1 inch at 100 meters, 2 at 200, and on and on].
I got good at shooting over a long, long period of training and firing. My father first taught me at age 7 and we would go target practicing at the KD (Known Distance) range on Ft. Ord; when Ft Ord existed (and for that matter when my father existed). I owned my own single shot 22 at age 11 and shot a lot at my uncle’s farm in Missouri when dad was in Korea or Nam. At 15 I was on the rifle team in Junior ROTC at Christobal High School in Coco Solo, Canal Zone. I was in the Army at 17 and by the time I was 18 I was on the Battalion rifle team at Ft. Kobbe in the Canal Zone. Every day we’d load up weapons and quality ammo and drive out to Empire Range. All I did was shoot! Short notes are: I’ve been shooting for 63 years and have been shooting an M14 or M1A (same/same) for 50 plus years. Additional short note: you can get pretty hammered on Panama Red during the half hour drive from Ft. Kobbe to Empire Range of a morning.
I need a scope to shoot well. Now getting a good cheek weld with optics attached was something I had been battling to achieve, without success, for a couple of years. I’ve used a folded towel, aftermarket cheek pads, and even tried to place the thumb on my firing hand vertically and rest my cheek it to gain some semblance of a cheek weld. I tried placing a folding towels under the forward portion of the stock assembly (under the barrel) and then placing my non-firing hand over the top of the rear portion of the stock to rest my face against.
No matter what I did the entire shooting experience was ridiculously complex, uncomfortable, and unrewarding. Being able to reliably regain the same sight picture from round to round (on my kick like a mule 7.62) was beyond the capability of my equipment. Something had to change. One thing that wasn’t going to change was the hobby I’d been working on for the last 60 plus years.
Here’s the problem space: below is a picture of an M1A (not mine) with optics added. Note how far vertically the eyepiece of the scope is above the shoulder stock of the weapon. It’s at least 2 inches above where the rear sight sits.
Now, here is a picture of an M1A (SOCOM edition I’m guessing by the length of the barrel) with an after market cheek rest added. Three things of note: 1) that cheek piece is not going to stay where you place it. A couple of rounds down range and you’re into a 5 minute drill trying to getting it set again. 2) The ‘eye relief’ (distance from your eyeball and the scope) is well away from where most scopes are made to function. 3) When you place the butt of the weapon in the hollow of your shoulder and then attempt to grasp the narrow portion of the stock you’ll find that the cheek pad gets in the way of both your shoulder and your forearm on your firing hand.
Enter the Archangel stock. Not only were the thumb wheel adjustable cheek riser and length of pull assemblies perfect for obtaining and keeping both a repeatable sight picture and a solid cheek weld; the hand-grip on the stock mimics to a great degree the pistol grip type assemblies found on the AR varietals. With a shoulder pad that absorbs a good amount of recoil and a forward stock assembly outfitted with a Picatinny rail, I can see why folk in the M1A community were scrambling to get one. They are so popular that Springfield Armory now outfits one of it’s models with this stock. Here’s a model with the model:
So I took the plunge and retooled my M1A with the Archangel stock
A couple pleasant accessories: M1907 two piece sling assembly, fold away bipod with extendable legs and 1.25 inch wide sling rings.
Here is how the beast turned out:
It’s nice to know that if there is a threat in my environment it can be removed from a safe distance.
I know that I’m going to win the lottery. I’ve always known. What bothers me most is the waiting as I was fairly certain that I would have been packing by now.
A little cabin on the coast:
More info on my future home here
Here is how you know that we have an incompetent government (as if you needed further proof). How in the world can the Sec Def go missing for nearly a week and no one in the administration notices?
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senior Biden administration leaders, top Pentagon officials and members of Congress were unaware for days that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been hospitalized since Monday, U.S. officials said Saturday, as questions swirled about his condition and the secrecy surrounding it.
I wonder who figured it out?
Sunday morning introspect.
It’s not Johnny Cash but rather someone who was touched enough by his lyrics and voice to honor his name with a somber voice of his own.
I’d seen various versions of the Haka performed by soldiers and warriors from New Zealand previously. Wild stuff. The clip below is the first I’ve seen it done by a single individual and the first time I’ve seen it done by a woman.
So what does it signify? Well, it comes from a Maori legend of the sun god and one of his wives who embodied the essence of summer. They had a son and the Maori said that the quivering appearance of the air on hot summer days is a sign of the son dancing for his mother. Their dance is, supposedly, a mime of his dance.
Before going all judgemental on the religious beliefs of the Maori, consider the very poignant observation of that great American philosopher Bill Burr:
It didn’t take long for all of the little AI gismoes to bait their hooks and cast their lines. These two messages, harbingers of the onslaught, appeared in my email today.
and
It’s just a matter of time before I fall for one of these scams. I guess then the little turd who developed the algorithm behind this madness will wet himself.
Given that I’m not altogether that far away from the intersection of decrepitude and technology I may be better served by buying a party hat and some noisemakers and strapping in for the ride!
I’ve been away from the keyboard for a good while now; just shy of a year. I have missed posting and exchanging ideas with a few stalwart readers (and the odd passerby).
I’m going to turn it back on and so I’m whipping the lazy electrons that lurk just beyond the surface of my keyboard and, with a rapidly receding hairline and diminished cognitive function, will expose the world once more to the ramblings of a cranky old soldier and die hard Zonian.
Happy 2024!
Finland made a special show of virtue signaling to the transgender community by showcasing a 59-year-old transgender farmer who bore the country’s flag during the opening ceremony for the European Figure Skating Championships.
The skater is a 59-year-old biological male who suddenly came out as trans a few years ago and decided to take up figure skating. In the video he (she/it?) delivered a sort of shaky, slow-motion spin around the ice, then fell and could not get up until a young woman skated over to offer a helping hand.
These are the folk that want to join NATO to ensure our mutual defense. OBTW:
The first saying in the Gospel of Thomas:
I’m thinking that the Gospel of Thomas is designed to drive folk along a path where it is the journey itself that’s the destination. If so then the more obscure the passage is, the greater the value derived in considering it’s meaning.
If each man must find his own truth then words that lead us to search (vice provide us with answers) have the greatest value.
When I was a child and began learning to read we were taught by using ‘Dick and Jane’ books. They went something like:
So, now every time I run into something I don’t understand I try and ‘Dick and Jane’ my way through it. That’s to say I try and break things down into the simplest possible form, kick the result around a bit, then assess that result against what is logical or rational.
Let’s do that just a little bit with the Gospel of Thomas and a simple question of redemption/salvation. Does that Gospel contain secrets that must be uncovered in order to achieve ‘salvation’. The obvious short answer is no, but let me caveat that ‘short no’ with a ‘I hope not’ and a ‘maybe’ forward going.
Why is a historical ‘no’ the right answer to that question?
What happens if the answer to the question ‘Is understanding the secrets in the Gospel of Thomas necessary for salvation’ is yes. That would mean that (here comes the Dick and Jane part) there was no salvation for the billions of folk that perished over the 1800 to 2000 years that the gospel patiently rested in literal anonymity, not to mention the forthcoming billions more who will never know it’s worth (if there is a worth) because Christendom has left no room for that voice. Well, if the answer is ‘yes’ then it’s going to take more than just a little reflection to flesh out what our relationship with God is really all about. ‘Yes’ then becomes unpalatable and we must abandon the ‘yes’ else-wise our understanding of God is a complete misunderstanding.
It could (not would) also mean that God allowed these billions of folk to pass on un-redeemed. (Another question for another time: I wonder where they’ve gone?) I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, I’m just stating that this could be so and it could be part of God’s plan. Or it could be so and not part of His plan. Finally (because I am clearly whipping this pony overly vigorously) it may not be so regardless of the existence or absence of a plan. In any case the appropriate response by leaders of all religious slants appears to be to either ridicule or ignore the Gospel. Given the perplexing nature of the volume, both responses seem appropriately styled.
So is ‘no’ the hope of all mankind? Actually, ‘no’ is the hope of that subset of all mankind that ‘hopes’. This subset is quite happy where they are at with God and would really, really prefer that no new late to the party Gospel upset their neatly ordered little afterworld. With that said, there is an alternative instantiation where ‘yes’ becomes an acceptable response for this group: when the solutions to the secret sayings are thought to be found in the religious practices the ‘faithful’ currently adhere to.
So, what about the ‘maybe going forward’ as an answer to the question? This response allows all of the faithful to keep the God they have (along with the salvation of the generations past and future) and introduces new potential paths for others. It would sorta work like all of our Old Testament hero’s get in along with the 1st covenant crowd, and all of the ‘saved’ from the New Testament adherents, and then now this new ‘Third Testament’ riddle solvers have earned a spot on the roster as well.
Now, the Dick and Jane approach to all of these hypotheticals leaves us utterly without answers. We are more empty at the conclusion of our quest than at the outset. It seems that it’s that emptiness that may be what we need in order to be filled. So, be filled with empty for a moment. Be in the desert. While in that desert consider what Jesus says in the 78th Saying:
In a book chocked full of metaphors could the desert of 78 be in our mind or soul or spirit. Perhaps empty is a good place to be sometimes.
I don’t know how this man kept such a uplifting attitude with all of the death and despair that confronted him. I do know that if it were me that was reunited with my unit after the suffering on the hill there would have been one sergeant that would never hear the one that ended it for him.
This is a good rendition of the tune, but what is most enjoyable about the video are the western scenes that have been put together. The clouds are magnificent.
So here’s a guy, a Space Force head analyst, that wore a chartreuse mankini over his clothes in the office and kept sex toys at work. What’s a ‘mankini’? Think Borat:
Andrew Cox is the Director of the Pentagon’s Space Security and Defense Program is said to ‘act like a 13-year-old boy’ and he created an environment unsuitable for a federal workplace. There was a six-month investigation: he has managed to keep his job.
It’s said that his behavior reportedly making employees feel “ostracized and uncomfortable” (no shit) and prompting one female employee to quit — did not result in Cox’s suspension or termination. In fact, Cox became the head of the Space Force’s new Space Warfighting Analysis Center.
I have no words. . .
It’s that time of year. When December rolls around many of the subscriptions that I have on my site are up for renewal. They all come at a cost and are billed to the secured payment facility I’ve established with the firm. About a two weeks prior to expiration, the providers hit my account and notify me that the payment was made and provide me a receipt.
The scammers have bots that float around the web-o-sphere and divine when various certificates and features are due to expire and then create nifty little notes (as below) to separate folk from their cash and hijack their site.
I got this one a short while ago
Some of them even brought luggage.
So, if the disaster disappears once the pilot leaves the aircraft, who (or what) is at fault?
Originally tweeted by Barton (4-8) (9-3) (@Barton_1015) on December 15, 2022.
Its things like this that give Nigeria a bad name.
