Annoyed

Well, I'm a bit depressed today.  I've lived here 30 years, improved the property, improved my gardening area, and I gain NOTHING!  Because every year, the neighbors' trees bordering my property grow taller and cut out more sunlight. 

If I had known those trash saplings of 2 feet 30 years ago would grow to massive shady sunlight-sucking monsters 50' tall by now, I would have mowed them dead!  I have asked the neighbors' if I could pay to have the tall trees replaced with fancy flowering smaller ones.  They say "no" because they like the shade.  Hint, hint; on the east and south sides THEY DON'T GET ANY SHADE FROM THOSE TREES!  But they are oblivious to that.  "Just saying NO" is easier.

So last year, after the gardening season was over, I looked at new homes on the internet.  I would like an open house layout with rooms defined vaguely by 30" high walls (all the better to put plants on). and a large enough property so that trees can't block the sunlight in some 40'x40' garden.

I visited some open lands.  They were all corners of farmland being sold off for cash, with working farmland next door.  Well, if you don't know what farmland fertilizer and/or a horse stable smells like all Spring and Summer; *I* do!

So that idea was a failure.

Last week, I looked for existing houses on 1-3 acres of rural land away from farms.  I found 5 that looked good.  Within a day, I learned that 2 were under contract for sale, 1 had a fussy homeowners association controlling almost anything you can image, and 2 were still available.

I visited those 2 houses with a realtor agent today.  Gosh, photographs can be deceptive.  Both were 3 bedroom/2 baths and 3-5 acres. 

The first, pictured here, was great inside.  Lots of great features inside, nice interior, high wood beam ceilings, a kitchen island with an induction cooktop, granite counters, large rooms, 2 car garage (in my case that would be 1 car and 1 boat), dual fireplaces (right in the center of the house), etc.  The basement was chopped into small rooms ( I want a workshop).  But mostly, the back 2 acres fell right into a ravine practically straight out the back door.  No chance for gardening there.  The house is basically like a Monopoly Hotel sitting on a baseball cap (good front visor, nothing behind).

So we went to the other house.  An acre wide and 5 acres deep.  The backyard was sunny ("gardeny").  And it was flat further back, so I could get for open space cutting down some trees.  Nice toolshed.  The upper interior was cramped but more space than I have now.  The basement was large; plenty of room for woodworking equipment.  

But it stank of mildew and showed water damage.  The reason was obvious when I looked under the deck.  The foundation is crumbling from long-term rain exposure.  The backyard drains TOWARD the house.  Whoever leveled the terrain originally should be drawn and quartered!  There were chunks of foundation spalled off from water damage.  Looking back into the basement, it became obvious the basement had been routinely flooded and the owners had tried a cheap paint job to cover it up.

Both properties were being sold for $350,000 in a rural area with well water and septic fields.

The realtor pair with me had never shown the properties previously and were dismayed by the problems I pointed out.  They seemed genuinely upset.  To the point were they took pictures of the problem areas and even noted some they found themselves ( a water-stained ceiling tile, for example). 

I'm sure that won't stop them from selling either place to anyone who wants them; that IS their job.  But they WERE surprised at what they saw.  I'll bet both places drop below $300,000 very soon. 

For someone who never bought a used house (and only my current one new-built) I sem to have a knack for discovering evidence of problems.  I noticed some other tricks the homeowners tried.  One front door rubbed hard on the carpet, yet there was no wear showing.   That meant the carpet was new.  So when I rapped on the carpet, the subfloor didn't sound solid.  That meant rain-damage through the roof.  Sure enough, there was discoloration in the ceiling above.  It had been re-painted and poorly, so you could see the spot if you knew to look. 

So my search continues.  A rambler on a basement on an open yard.  That's all I ask.  Looks like I will be staying here another year, though I will continue to check the listing "just in case".

Bad as my sunlight is, I refuse to move in the middle of Winter or in the middle of gardening season.

My plan is to buy a house, move, then clean/repaint/renovate the existing house.  I can have 2 for a few months because the current one is paid off so there is no expense holding it for sales prep.

But I'm sure not going to move unless I like the house better and I can garden better!!!

VP Debate

 The VPs had one job in their debate; defend their Presidential candidates.

My initial thoughts (listening to it on radio twice) is that Pence defending Trump and Kaine did a good job defending Clinton and got some jabs in on his own.  Kaine came out ahead.

Pence mainly denied things that Trump had said, while Kaine kept pointing those things out.  That made it hard for Pence, who doesn't really support most of Trump's opinions.  But given that, Pence did the best he could, and in a technical sense, skillfully.  He has set himself up as the top contender for the Republican nominee in 2020.

But he will face most of the losing Republican candidates of 2016 , so it will be another crowded field.

Kaine did a good job of defending Clinton, Obama, and Democratic positions in general in general, so he has a future also.  Whether an elected VP, or the losing one, he did well enough to establish himself as a leader in the party.  Obviously, being a winning VP will be better than a losing one, but either way, he is "noticed". 

If Trump wins and fails at leadership, the 2020 election could well match Pence and Kaine and I'm sure they are both planning for that.  Or if Clinton wins, as seems likely, Kaine will bide his time as VP and go for the Presidency in 2014.

But overall, Kaine won because he supported the likely next President and Pence won because he represented the conservatives who hate Trump.

This election might be the last of the Boomers, with Clinton.  The next might be even more contentious.

Trump/Clinton Presidential Debate

I just can't help responding to the Trump/Clinton Debate  as it was just so odd.  In my 48 years of watching presidential debates, I have never seen anything like it. 

Right after the debate, Trump tweeted that the Moderator was very good and that he (Trump) had clearly won.  Then, after a few hours, Trump learned that he had not done so well in the debate, and suddenly the Moderator was merely "OK".  The next day, when the first polls came out showing that Trump had lost the debate in the opinion of the viewing public, he decided that the Moderator had been really tricky and against him personally.

Since when does the Moderator's performance change over time as one's ratings of the debate performance go down and it is not your fault?

I'm not claiming that Trump lost the debate because polls said so.  I'm not claiming that Trump lost the debate because CNN said so.  I'm claiming that Trump lost the debate because even Fox News admits it!

And it gets worse for Trump.  He jumped at a Clinton suggestion that Trump paid no taxes like most of us have to, saying "I'm smart not to".  Well, maybe that is good for his business, but it means he can't claim to support our military forces, our economy, or domestic security groups.

He lost the rest of the debate by constantly making snide remarks during Clinton's turn to speak and insulting groups of voters in his turn to speak.

Then he attacked a former Miss Universe ( a business he controlled at the time) saying she was "too fat".  Have you seen pictures?  She was as forced-self-starved as all beauty-pageant contestants are.  As I understand it, she gained a few pounds after the contest, and that was probably good for her health.

And Trump couldn't let it go about her.  I tweeted several times after midnight to dawn about her.  Really?  How wants a President how fixates on irrelevant issues in the middle of the night?

Trump claimed that "polls" suggested he won.  Yeah, those were the kinds of online surveys where people can set up their computer to vote repeatedly.   The real polls, conducted by professionals say he lost the debate about 55% to 25% (the rest unsure).

I wish Trump would discuss some details of his plans to defeat ISIS, solve US poverty, reduce crime in cities, and apportion our tax dollars among problems like infrastructure rebuilding, military training and equipment, tax reform, rebuilding the middle class, education, etc.  But he just won't discuss those things beyond "I'll Make America Great Again".  Good, tell me how you'll do that!

I want to hear details.  Blind assurances do not move me.  Clinton gives details. 

I read an fairly neutral analysis that Trump stated a positive lie every 3 minutes 15 seconds as he spoke (12).  They caught Clinton on 1 (about a trade agreement staement).  I can accept a few deceptions for "Reasons of State", but a 12 to 1 ratio does not encourage me to support Trump.  Most of his lies don't even make sense! 

And then there were a couple interviews with the Libertarian candidate, Gary Johnson.  What a sad joke.  He didn't know what or where Aleppo was.  And then couldn't name a single world leader he admired.   A smarter person, blanking on names might have said he didn't admire any of them.  But that wasn't his problem.  He actually didn't know any names.

Seriously, *I* could have come up with Merkel, Cameron (only recently out of office),  and Hollande,  and I don't keep track of foreign leaders (paying more attention to places as nations).

His VP candidate tried to mention former President Vincente Fox of Mexico, but I haven't liked him since he referred to the illegal hispanic migration into the Southern US as "The Reconquista".

So Trump is an unqualified habitual liar and ignorant of world affairs, Johnson is just ignorant and ignorant of world affairs, and Clinton is telented at dealing with world leaders, nuanced and thoughtful.

That's a contest?

The Clinton/Trump Debate Tomorrow

I'm worried about the debate.  Clinton has to show great command of all national and international issues (and she will).  She probably has to know the Minister of Finance of Slovakia and the exchange rate of Dollars to Laotion Kips (and she probably does).

All Trump has to do is not pull down his pants and moon the audience...

And then too many people will think him "presidential" for restraining himself. 

If there was ever a difference in expectations between 2 people in a debate, this is it.  And it is not fair.  I grew up taught that knowledge, experience, and nuance matters in life and leadership.  I went through my career that way and I have lived my life that way. 

If Trump becomes our President, my brain will just EXPLODE.  And not because he is, but because enough Americans thought he should be.  It will be a society I no longer want to be part of. 

I live in Maryland.  Maryland is not a contested State.  Maryland will go for Clinton without any doubt.  It is some of the other States I worry about.  Personal opinion of States that go for Trump; they are obviously insane.

I read a very interesting book decades ago (and re-read it sometimes) called 'They Also Ran' by Irving Stone.  It details the losers in presidential elections, why they lost and what kind of presidents the losers would have made.  Stone's general view is that the American voters have generally made good decisions, but sometimes really made bad ones.  His judgements on the elections seem sound.

As he said in his epilogue, the American People have made the better choice rejecting Hayes for Tilden (the election was crooked in Florida and Hayes was chosen badly),  Douglas for Lincoln, Blaine for Cleveland, Landon/Wilkie/Dewey in favor of Franklin Roosevelt, Dewey over Truman,  Nixon over Kennedy,  and Goldwater against Johnson. 

We erred grievously choosing  Taylor over Cass, Grant over Seymour, Coolidge over Davis, Eisenhower over Stevenson,  and Nixon over Humphrey

We made a difficult choice between Smith/Hoover  between equally good candidates.

The rest of the elections seem to have been the better choices.

Let's hope this election doesn't go down in history as the worst decision the voters have even made...

Groundhog

I have a particularly wary groundhog this year.  I set out my live cage trap but it wont go in.  I've named it Radar.

It is unusually observant.  And, apparently, groundhogs  have great long-distance vision and hearing.  Radar creeps out of the backyard underbrush (which I really ought to get out and cut down) slowly.  To the extent that it can think, it might call ME Radar too.

Radar can see at least 200 feet and can tell if I so much as slowly poke my head over a windowsill.  If I do, he stands up, looks straight at me and runs away.  On the other hand, he cannot creep out into my wildflower garden (which must seem like a Eden of food to him).  I know every stem as well as HE does and he can't hide his little head whenever I look out the window.

I see him as well as he sees me.  I've been kind.  As long as he eats the clover in the lawn, I don't mind.  And my garden is covered with chicken wire he can't get into so far.  If he would stick to the lawn clover, I wouldn't mind.

But he has a natural taste for the wildflowers I am trying to grow in a patch for the cats to prowl through, and when it comes to the cats desires to prowl seeking mice and voles vs the groundhog's eating habits, Radar has to go.

I have tried to scare him away.  I have tried to just discourage him when he wants to eat the wildflowers I'm, trying to grow.    No success on that.

So I will have to set up the Hav-A-Hart live trap cage again.  I set it up in years past when I had groundhogs and caught them right away.  Radar is more cautious.  I read that covering the cage with long grasses is good for suspicious groundhogs, even draping it with landscape fabric is good.

I don't want intelligent cage-wary groundhogs around.  From my point of view, stupid and catchable is better.  The websites say that cantelopes and peaches are the best cage bait.  I have a honeydew melon bigger than I will eat, so I will try some of that.  Radars predecesors ate my honeydews last year before I finished enclosing my garden are last year, so that should work.
I'll hang a slice from inside the top of the cage (because otherwise the ants just eat them). 

Apple Intrusions

I had an annoying incident today.  I decided to download a new version of MacKeeper, some protection software. 

Usually, you just press a few buttons to download a program.  Instead, I got a live Apple Helper.  Who took over my screen...  I won't tolerate that from anyone.  THEY TOOK OVER MY COMPUTER!!!  For all I know, they still have control of it.  I'm uninstalling the program (but who knows if that actually works). 

When that is done, I will use a few anti-virus, anti-intrusion programs NOT from Apple. 

But this really bothered me.  I might have to consider Windows again.

September 11, 2016

Bitter is the memory and unforgiving is the anger.  It will not fade in my lifetime...

To the innocents ON the planes and IN the buildings, to those who tried to save lives and lost their own...  To those who sufferred from the attempts and lived in hardship after..

Retribution will come eventually...  BY humans ON humans.  Guilt will be found out some bright day.

Previous Cars

"15&Meowing" posted about the car they would like to have.  And as I commented, I relized that what I wanted to say was too long.  So here is the long version.  Thank you, 15&Meowing!

My first car was a 1966 Pontiac Bonneville convertible.  The convertible top was HYDROLIC.  Push a button and it opened or closed without effort.  It was 4 years old, a 20th birthday gift from my parents.  I adored it.  I added a removable (for security) 8-Track player under the dashboard.  I learned the back seat side panels could be removed so I added inset speakers there.  I was working at an auto-aftermarket part of a department store at the time, and one day they sent us a gadget called "Quadraphone".  Basically,  that let you send the music to four speakers, front left speaker and back right, and right front speaker  and back left.  It was cool at the time.

But I didn't know anything about car engines.  Dad wasn't big on teaching.  I learned decades later that he really believed if you wanted to know something, you asked, and if you didn't ask you didn't want to know.  I'm not an "asker".  So I didn't know about changing oil and stuff like that.

From lack of maintenence, the engine was destroyed and when I asked for money to fix it, Dad said that was my problem.  The car sat in the apartment parking lot and they hauled it away before I could afford to repair it. 

After I gave enough horrible stories of trying to bus 15 miles each way to and from work, walking 3/4 of a mile to the bus stop, transferring 3 times and being penalized for lateness when traffic was bad, Dad bought me another car.  He chose the ugliest cheapest car , a purple clunker Chrysler New Yorker ($800).  I saw a beautiful 4-year old 1970 tan Monte Carlo with a brown pebble roof and a sporty extended hood($1200).  And it wasn't that he was poor.  I could say "cheap", but he would have said "thrifty". 

For the first time since I was a child before Christmas, I begged.  I argued gas milage.  I argued "2 years newer - better value".  Dad was buying from a hunting buddy, so he knew he would get the best deal possible.  He fussed and hesitated.

But he bought me the Monte Carlo...  I was so proud to drive that around.  And while we didn't know then, it had speakers in the back.  Great sounds. I loved that car! 

By then, I had learned about basic car maintenance.  I kept good care of it.  But it had a bad engine from the previous owner and the engine locked up one day.  It gets a little strange here.  My sister was married to a car fanatic.  He used to take his engine apart for fun, clean everything and put it back together. 

I couldn't repair a toaster at the time, so that seemed really impressive.  He said it was the same engine as a Chevelle, and he had one and would be happy to replace mine wit it for free and get the Monte Carlo engine and repair IT and use that somewhere.

Dream come true, and he didn't even want my help (as if I could have given any).  Dad thought tat a good deal and drove the 60 miles to me with a car towing device.  We hooked it up, and drove off, whereupon Dad decided that he wanted to buy a cigar so we stopped at a strip mall. 

He mistakenly put the car in nuetral, aimed downhill and we stepped out.  When I saw the cars moving forward, I jumped back into the passenger seat and hit the brakes.  Dad was frozen in place outside the car.  The front bumper on MY car was slightly bent and Dad went ballistic! 

Hey, I saved a store-front crash and it was MY car that was only minorly damaged in the bumper.  And Dad was angry at ME.  The trip went seriously downhill and very quiet from there.

Yeah, I know he was embarassed.  I reacted fast when he didn't.  And he was "the Dad" so he should have.  But I didn't blame him.  I was just nearest and acted faster.  He said I should have pushed on the brakes slowly to not damage MY car's bumper.

I understood he was embarassed by leaving the car in neutral (it was a habit of his generation of stick-shift parking using the parking brake).  I understood that he was embarrassed he hadn't reacted
faster.    I didn't blame him, but he blamed me.

I suppose that was the first time I ever realized that Dad was just another person struggling to maintain a self-image.  And while I had caught Dad in some minor errors in life (and trust me, not very many), that one was the first where he totally lost it... 

I'm guessing I was 25 at the time, underemployed at minimum wage n a department store, sharing an apartment with 4 other guys.  And realizing that *I* did something right and Dad failed and that just because blame was ascribed didn't mean it was right or fail.

Dad complained to Mom tht I had damaged my car.  When I explained it to Mom later, she merely said, "Oh dear",.

I think that was the day I actually became an adult.

As it turned out, the Chevelle engine didn't seem to fit, the Monte Carlo carcass was sold cheap to someone who did know how to restore it.  And I never asked my parents for any help except once and that was a loan for a house purchase I they made me pay full interests on (so that they wouldn't lose a dime).

I struggled to buy a  Chevy Hatchback that lasted 5 years or so.  It had a horrible reputation but I got away with it.  Then, not knowing anything about buying new cars, I went to a chevy dealership and said show me the cheapest car on the lot. 

In my ignorance, and with a more knowledgeable "friend" with me, I paid full price on credit.  My "friend" told me later that he was amazed I paid full price.  But I brought him along because he had bought cars before and he was a negotiator in his business. 

I went off with a Chevette Scooter, which was about the least car you could legally drive on the road at the time.  I got away with that one for 8 years.

He said it wasn't his business to intrude with advise to me on purchases.  Um, isn't that what friends are for?  I gave him advice on some purchases whenever I had information.  He appreciated that.  But woudn't do it for me.  I think he liked seeing other people make poor decisions.

It was the start of a long 30 year road downhill for us (and no, there was no "relationship").  Just a long one-way friendship that finally ended after 41 years.

But I wouldn't want THAT car again...

My next car was researched.  I had learned a few things about buying cars.  I carpooled ans towed a boat.  The Ford Taurus Station Wagon was perfect.  The front seats were split, the back bench seats were rated "very comfortable".  I cared about that.  My carpool LOVED the car.

And it was the first time I ever really negotiated a deal.  I had info on the dealer's costs for all the options from Consumer Reports.  The salesman, in 1988 hated it.  He tried to dismiss it it.  He tried to deny it.  He said they lied...

But eventually, I got the car for $300 over their real cost, it lasted 10 years and I sold it back to the dealership for $3,000.  I loved that car, but it wasn't my favorite. 


A member of my carpool had a Dodge Charger and I liked it.  So I checked Consumer Reports magazine about it.  Turned out there was a family of it, the Dodge, a Chrysler, and the Eagle Vision (being the top of the line).  And when I checked all the features I wanted (nothing too fancy), the Eagle came standard with those at a lower price!   The basic Eagle I wanted was cheaper than the other brands with options.

I had Consumer Reports car info on that one too, but I paid $500 above their true cost.  It was in slightly more demand, and I wanted it more.

So I bought one.  My carpool member immediately bought a fancier car (and admitted why - there are crazy people all over the place, which is why they are always broke).  I kept that one going for 10 years until there was an engine problem the mechanics couldn't get fixed right.

One problem with the low-profile Eagle Vision was that I was commuting on back roads and crowded traffic.  I got SO tired of the new bright headlights in my face.  When The Eagle died, and I was hauling the boat and a trailer more often, I bought a 2005 Toyota Highlander SUV new. 

I had researched THAT on Consumers Report magazine too, but I didn't get the best deal.  They were simply too much in demand.  One problem was that they weren't being built in the US at the time, so the only ones available came "as is" and most came with features I didn't want.  So the ones I did want were selling about as fast as they arrived. 

Sometimes ya just have to bite the bullet.  But it has been a fine car for 11 years. and only 26K miles (I REALLY don't drive much)

So what car would I like to have of all the cars before (restored)?  BTW, how do you like my choice of cars over the years?

1.  1966 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible
2.  1970 Monte Carlo
3.  1986 Eagle Vision
4.  2005 Toyota Highlander
5.  1978 Trans-Am with the Eagle decal on the hood (that I lusted for but never owned)

Well, in order...

1966 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible
1986 Eagle Vision
1970 Monte Carlo

Not the Trans-Am.  I gazed in wonder, but that wasn't my style.  Speed Kills!  And the Highlander is my style, but not my desire.

The 1966 Pontiac Bonneville is my first and true desire...  The Eagle Vision is still too recent in memory.

Another Anniversary

This week, 30 years ago, 1986, I moved into this house.  I don't have the exact date because the legal purchase date and the move-in date aren't the same.  And it took a week to move everything.  But basically, around Labor Day, I moved into my own house.  No roommates, just me and Mean Old Tinkerbelle the cat (who I loved dearly in spite of the name).

It doesn't feel like all that many years, but it is...

It was a "starter house".  I guess I'm still starting...  I look at this place on Google Earth about once a month.  The pictures changes sometimes.  But the house doesn't really.  I know every blade of grass and garden weed.  I can walk around in the total darkness of the middle of the night and know exactly where I am (shuffling my feet carefully to avoid stepping on a cat of course - because THEY move).

If the power went out, in the middle of the night, it wouldn't matter until it got hot or cold.   I know every creak of floorboard, every sticky cabinet door, and every pipe noise.  In fact, I didn't hear a familiar sound last Spring and went down to check.  Sure enough, the A/C condensation reservoir was blocked by some surprise algae growth blocking the disposal pump overflowing onto the basement floor.


I know when the aquarium needs more water from the sound of the pump.  In my sleep.

It is unlikely that anyone will ever know this house like I do.   I was the 3rd person to build on my street and the other 2 left a decade ago.

I know every cat sound and if one jumps onto a kitchen counter, I know which one it is.   They hate that.

And I want it to stay that way for a long long time more!

Wish me a happy 30th in my home...

Mark and the Mews in The Green House, Maryland, United States, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way Galaxy, Virgo Supercluster, and we aren't sure beyond that.

Chess game

Friends, for those of you who can read chess notation, I present you with  what MUST be the ugliest win ever against a computer...

The computer game was set for looking 3 moves ahead because I can't do more more than 2 myself anymore...