Welcome March 2020

Posted on March 1, 2020 by Steve

We’re one sixth of the way through 2020 but the impending awfulness called the American Election Season carries on. The South Carolina Primary had mixed results for me. Although Sen. Foot-in-Mouth wasn’t eliminated nor Mayor Buttplug, Sen. Cockblocker and Mayor Moneybags. Sanders remains in the lead to scare the NeoLiberals and Boomers while Warren isn’t looking good. The upside is that the Trump-Nazis’ Operation Chaos failed miserably. Since SC has an open primary and the GOP decided not to have a primary in their allegiance to Il Douché, Trumpkins were ordered to vote for Sanders to stir up trouble. As one example was given air time on NPR, to demonstrate her general ignorance, she was going to vote for Sanders so Orange Foolius will win again because the debate is over Kapialism versus Socialism.

Sigh…

I suspect this dumbass only finished high school at best before squeezing out another generation of morons. South Carolina has a horrible reputation and has been a pain in the ass from our country’s beginning.

  • The Citadel was instituted there. It’s primary purpose was a military academy for the privileged class so they could put down slave revolts.
  • They were no help during the Revolutionary War, like any state South of Virginia.
  • They tried to secede when Andrew Jackson was president.
  • It was filled with slave-owning shitbags violating international treaties on enslaving more African people after 1829.
  • They started the Civil War by attacking Ft. Sumter in Charleston.
  • They still have the flag of traitors incorporated into their state flag (stars n’ bars).
  • They’re not big fans of democracy, hence, not a shock one party canceled its primary.

We should just roll SC into North Carolina, eliminate its obstructionist, racist nature as NC is evolving a bit with its excuses for cities and universities. Ditto for the Dakotas and I’ve made the case for invading Delaware weeks ago, roll it into Maryland or PA. We don’t need 50 states, we’re just one country anyway.

Meanwhile, Kapitalism is an economic system, NOT A GOVERNMENT. Therefore, it is and always will be inimical to democracy and systems which enforce justice, equality and transparency. Why? The core principle to Kapitalism is exploitation, aka, screwing over somebody else. Admittedly, Socialism does involve some government intervention in the Economy. It can vary from government ownership of production (France tried this with the auto industry, it didn’t go well, mainly due to it being…the French), some economic planning (this is done by the Europeans with mixed results) and/or regulations to cut back on the screwing. Social programs/entitlements are not something Socialism nor Communism have a monopoly on. Pre-modern governments also practiced various things so this Free Market bullshit isn’t a recent development nor a panacea.

Enough of that. I’m hoping the dumbass NPR interviewed contracts coronavirus and then she can thank her Furher for cutting preparedness for the CDC back in 2017 as she drowns in her lung fluid.

March is a well-liked month for me.

Growing up in the Midwest, it often signaled an end to the long, cold, painful Winter. There were still horrible, cold, wet days until April. Just fewer! It also meant my brother’s birthday was coming. We’d get to have a small celebration on a school night. This could entail dining out, a movie and/or a couple hours at Aladdin’s Castle! We Get Xers didn’t have Spring Break in grade school. I think the week off is more for the parents than the children anyway.

In Austin, it means decent weather before the heat waves come late April/early May. I’m hoping the idiots scheduling SXSW made sure they timed their One Percenter Circle Jerk to coincide while UT/AISD is on Spring Break. Last year they did not and downtown was a mess! Fear not. Austin’s downtown will be undesirable year round soon as TXDOT has allegedly approved and financed remaking the I-35 corridor without planning an alternate route. Therefore, MoPac will be three times as unbearable. Shouldn’t it be two? No. All the traffic the GOP Thieves claimed would be redirected through the 130 tollway never stopped on I-35.

What else happens around March? Other friends have their birthdays. Ethan. Nelson. Nicolas. Hockey kicks into higher gear as the playoffs will begin in April. Co-workers get a tad lazier as they waste time filling out their NCAA playoff brackets. How many teams now? 128? I remember when the Onion expanded it to 9600 as a joke. Too bad life imitates art now. The bluebonnets blossom alongside our highways. This results in jerks trampling them to take kid photos. Very cliché.

I’ll close with the Header/Banner for March 2020. That’s a picture of Mount St. Helens erupted 40 years ago. It happened later in the month so I will do a more elaborate story closer to the anniversary. The volcano was a big deal for it’s the only active volcano we have in the continental US, meaning Hawaii and Alaska don’t count. I was really torn too. I got hooked back into Westworld and the third season starts mid-month. I could’ve also gone with the lazy St. Patrick’s Day jazz…mmm, Shamrock shakes! Good luck finding a McDonald’s with an operational system. Much like Jack in the Box, it’s often “broken” due to the employees’ hatred of cleaning/operating the damned thing. C’mon Whataburger! You can fill this void! Your employees have a better attitude alongside the burgers.

Fingers remain crossed on my house and money!

So will my fate wimp out like a lamb or roar out, kick-ass style like a lion! I am a Leo, I deserve the latter!

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Creative Brick Builder closing its physical store

Posted on February 29, 2020 by Steve

The e-mail came out of the blue yesterday! I’m sure the owner’s decision wasn’t one she made lightly but given the Economy taking an uncertain turn, plus Retail always has high overhead despite how much profit one can make on out-of-print sets. Such a pisser because I really loved the second location they had, it was a former private music instruction building.

It’s not the end of CBB though. It will remain via online to help out us Master and wannabe Master Builders hunt down parts, sets, minifigs and whatever. Just no LEGO-based birthday parties and what I enjoy the most with shopping at a physical store…impulse buying and discovering stuff! Oh yeah, and having an audience to share my creations or acquisitions with!

Thanks for everything Creative Brick Builder! When my financial situation shakes out for the better, I hope to be a good online patron yet I’m going to miss your Memorial/Labor Day specials on random bricks!

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Matters are looking a little better as February ends

Posted on February 28, 2020 by Steve

This was probably the worst February and Leap Month I’ve been through in a while. It has ended on a cautiously optimistic note. How so? I’m getting out of the house. I’m making little bits of progress on the living room, not enough to have company over…not by a long shot. The guest bathroom is totally great if a repair tech needs to use it. All I will say on the lady front is I’ve been communicating, dining and watching TV with one who doesn’t know all my jokes! Oh yeah, my new cat has done a 180 on his behavior. Aggie behaves like Kuroneko did, he follows me everywhere and has declared my lap as his own, much to Isis’ aggravation.

The primary issue stressing me out has remained the refinancing and how UFCU partially shafted me regarding the foundation. This has forced me to borrow from my retirement for the first time. I did consult a couple people I knew who had to do this. Both told me to brace for pain from multiple directions: the IRS, the plan and your paycheck. Given that I owe the IRS for 2019, I’m accustomed to their ass poundings. The borrowing went better than planned! How much I requested wasn’t much therefore the payroll deduction won’t be terribly painful…once the refinancing has been completed. Repayment is scheduled out over five years (not 15, darn!) and the phone representative said I am allowed to contribute more to end the loan sooner if I wish. The check arrived two days earlier than I was told, no complaint there! It was a cashier’s check which meant I was solvent instantly. Then I was able to tackle emergency bills to keep me afloat into mid-March.

Other friends have recommended quitting both credit unions I belong to given the nuisances they’ve given me. My 26 years with CEFCU will require re-applying to remove Somara from all accounts, yet I didn’t need to do this when I added her. UFCU I’ve bored you about for weeks. It’s very tempting. The only things saving UFCU currently is their ATMs being more numerous than their competitors and I don’t want to start completely from scratch on refinancing. As evil as Wells Fargo is, I would’ve been done with a couple phone calls.

I return to the standard grind next week…or not, one can never predict how the sudden hiccup the World Economy will shake out. Being “old,” I’m confident to be on the short list to be purged from my employer as Kapitalism’s Bible says to eliminate expensive people regardless of their experience and wisdom. The latter is now seen as “anti-innovation” by the Randroids ruling Silicon Valley. Yup. Those wealthy assholes are so much smarter. My rebuttal. How much money has Uber lost? Has Amazon really made a profit? Still don’t know how my brother’s last known startup ever generated revenue via something that was distributed for free and never solved an actual problem. We truly live in the Stupid Ages.

Just checked my 401k balance. I must be invested in more conservative stuff. All my 2020 gains were wiped out but only a mere fraction of 2019. But to quote Reid Fleming, World’s Toughest Milkman…”Day’s not over yet!” when you have an incompetent squad of Republicans in charge.

Fingers crossed the weekend will maintain the spirit. A new episode of Bob’s Burgers helps make Monday night better!

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Just passing through Austin

Posted on February 27, 2020 by Steve

I’ve seen it on TV. I was told all about it in college because getting to be on the crew was a PR internship for Oscar Mayer (or whatever parent company). I think driving the thing was one of Homer Simpson’s dreams. I just didn’t think I’d ever spot it at the same parking lot used by Dragon’s Lair, Conan’s Pizza, Terry Toys and Precision Camera! Up close it’s about the size of a delivery van despite the wheels being fairly far apart.

The person inside was nice enough to answer my questions. He was driving through, taking a leisure day in Austin. I asked him if he was on an internship like the one I always heard about at Marquette. Yup and he was from LaGrange, IL…my ex-roomie Paul knows this place because it’s in the Chicago area, near his ‘burb of Burbank. Oh, the interior was pretty spacious, looked comfortable and not a whiff of processed meats smells.

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More Trumpkin incompetence ahead

Posted on February 27, 2020 by Steve

Just as deficits don’t matter when the GOP is in charge, neither does the stock market “correcting itself.” Nevermind that when Orange Foolius was armchair quarterbacking, while constantly repeating the debunked lie over Obummer’s birthplace, he said the current POTUS should be shot into space whenever the Dow Jones dropped 1000 points in a day. One constant we can always count on…the Republicans’ selective memory.

Personally, I think it’s overblown. The Stock Market isn’t necessarily the economy. Trust me, all those “gains” it made hardly reaches the masses, aka St. Reagan’s trickle down bullshit. I remember how the Market would rise and/or get a hard-on in the Nineties when corporations laid people off by the thousands. Fewer consumers with jobs to buy crap yet it translated into a gain.

The other exaggeration demonstrating Wall Street’s general idiocy is the virus itself. It doesn’t seem to be any more fatal than the regular flus we experience every Winter; the death toll on them is about one in a thousand people. Of those who die with either, they often have compromised immune systems and/or they’re pretty ill with something nastier. This has been true with the deaths in autocratic China and the more open Italy. The coronavirus having a higher fatality rate is more likely caused by the survivors not being counted. You know, they survived and everybody, including the survivors thought they just had the flu. Ergo, Faux News watchers will be the most ginned up given their ignorance and willingness to believer whatever bullshit they’re told, namely how it’s a hoax to help the Democrats win the White House.

I hope it does finally change enough morons’ minds. This cult of personality could never handle a real crisis. By putting a homophobic, born-again Hoosier ex-governor in charge demonstrates how the GOP is reaping the rewards of their willful ignorance. Pence has rejected Science and reality for decades. We can expect this asshole to tell us to pray to his imaginary friend before doing something sensible like plenty of fluids, rest and just reschedule things.

On the other hand, the Democratic leadership in its obsession to stop Sanders, will find a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory this opportunity has presented to them.

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If you say this team’s name three times…

Posted on February 26, 2020 by Steve

…they don’t really do anything other than whip your butt via slapshots! Given their core appearance resembling the officials’ jerseys, I have a feeling they’d have to change or the officials would wear something completely different like they do in soccer.

I’m not a big fan of the movie. To me, it was a disappointment, rather typical from Tim Burton. I mean, I was expecting it to feature the title character, not the dead couple and the annoying family that moved in. However, the masses spoke leading it to be a decent hit in early 1988, some toys and a spinoff cartoon. The more annoying legacy was it gave Burton the opportunity to make two forgettable Batman flicks. I mainly bought the jersey for the colors and the business owner having the skill to coin a good, succinct team name derived from this movie. All too often the others are too long for my tastes.

It took some effort to conjure a name which would work and I settled for the surname of the family upsetting the ghosts, leading them to hire Beetlejuice. Keep in mind, number 13 is Catherine O’Hara, the funny one messing up the L.L. Bean look the house has, not the mopey-assed Ryder or in prison Jones.

Still hoping for another round of customized Miskatonic University jerseys. I have a last name in mind that isn’t Lovecraft yet was heavily involved with sharing the Horror writer’s creations.

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His Holiness, circa his ’68 Comeback Special

Posted on February 25, 2020 by Steve

This portrait is unique to the Chuy’s in Cedar Park along the 183-A tollway. It’s a good thing the guy has a good sense of humor. If you did the same for Mohammed, Jesus or Moses, there’d be a hissy fit with a chance of murder given how some followers are a noisy, batshit crazy bunch.

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RIP Katherine Johnson

Posted on February 24, 2020 by Steve

Farewell to a great American and a person who was vital to our (as in the World, not just America) success at landing on the Moon. Without Katherine’s brilliance and mathematical skills, I have a feeling there could’ve been delays.

Like most ignorant (as in, nobody told me) people, I may have heard of Mrs. Johnson in passing but got a good dose about her until the film Hidden Figures. How much was accurate didn’t matter, the gist of the racism was true enough and heartbreaking for me. Here’s a person with incredible skills and wants to contribute to a super difficult goal…and all these assholes dismiss her because she’s a woman and black, double whammy. You’d think fear of the Soviets would trump our stupid, petty bigotry. I actually cried at the end of the movie. Mrs. Johnson and her fellow mathematicians and scientists endured too much. I know I would’ve quit given such treatment, probably go teach.

Thank you for everything Katherine! Being a big geek for the space program, you’ve given me a lot I can never repay you for. May you gain your proper place in History too.

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Zamboni driver gets to live his dream!

Posted on February 23, 2020 by Steve

This is another reason why hockey is cooler than other sports! David Ayres is the Zamboni guy and practice goalie for the Marlies (my team plays them!). When he attended the Leafs v. Hurricane game last night, he got the call to suit up and play for the Hurricanes!

Now why does this happen in hockey and not say, the NBA or NFL? Those sports have enough players on the bench to fill in the gaps since the former involves both offense/defense and the latter, players from special teams can carry out the main roles. Hockey on the other hand…all teams usually have two goalies dressed, ready to play. Goalie is also a very specialized gig. I’m confident that if push came to shove, somebody could change positions yet it’s doubtful due to how customized the gear is and how long it would take someone to get ready.

Thanks to very old rules and traditions, the home team is obligated to provide a backup if the visitors run out. I think, and I’m confident Jeremy can and should correct me if I’m wrong, this goes back to the days when teams only had one goalie. These days it’s very rare to have the misfortune of losing two in one game plus the NHL parent often can call up someone from their AHL affiliate when they’re definitely down to one well before a game. There was a guy who got the nod some years ago for Phoenix because they couldn’t get their backup from San Antonio before face off. I think he sat on the bench as insurance.

As for David? I am giving him a standing ovation down here in Austin since he got to live his dream. I do hope this game was feature on Hockey Night in Canada, it’s that country’s institutional, cultural brass ring for most Canadians.

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Right wing code, nudge nudge, wink wink Feb ’20 edition

Posted on February 22, 2020 by Steve

Spotted this bumper sticker at my early-voting polling place for the Texas Primary. I’m guessing the asshole owner of the pickup truck (what else would he be driving? maybe a beat-up SUV) couldn’t afford the “don’t tread on me” license plates to flaunt his racism, xenophobia, sexism and Christo-Facism. Based upon this coded message, he also believes that the rural, empty and suburban parts of Texas aren’t enough, his camp ‘deserves’ to make Austin an ammosexual paradise filled with more god barns next to topless joints, gun stores and dangerous chemical plants…all in the same strip mall?

This ignoramus needs to get the world’s memo on Texas. They may like it for the image of the cowboy and Westerns they’ve seen but it’s also code for backwards, violent and acting without thinking. You know, cowboy diplomacy isn’t a compliment.

Meanwhile, why are the Republicans bothering to show up. They already goose-stepped up to renominate Orange Foolius.

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…and UFCU decides to keep punching me!

Posted on February 21, 2020 by Steve

A measly couple grand! This is what they’re dicking me over on! Rewinding somewhat. I mentioned earlier that my house needed a little repair to its foundation and I mean little. Foundations can cost five to six digits around Austin since we stupid humans decided to build on top soil on top of shifting clay with pieces of bedrock. Now the whole frickin’ refinancing is being withheld until this particular repair is done, period. The earliest the foundation contractor can get to me is the first week of March! It’s not just UFCU, it’s also Fannie Mae. Wait? Weren’t FM dipshits part of the Great Recession? Maybe if I said my income was really half as much and I lied via fake income slips, etc; to make it three times as much, I’d be Easy Street!

I am inches from telling UFCU to shove this whole thing up their collective asses. As evil as Wells Fargo is, they and the Westminster Dog Show put their contestants through fewer hoops than this credit union. Hell, mine back in Peoria solve most with a phone call. Then again, I would probably have to start all the over anyway which is the only thing sparing UFCU. However, thanks to advancements in electronic wallets like Apple Pay/Cash, namely their speed, I may ditch them in a couple years, after all the damage is repaired to the house, my credit and sanity/patience. OK, I’m exaggerating on credit. As long as you pay your bills on time, credit endures.

What I want to happen is UFCU finally goes forward, then I can knock out about a half dozen immediate problems giving me insomnia and I could regain some major maneuvering room. It’s amazing what you can do when the majority of a problem is lumped into one loan.

Other than wrecking my sleep, they’re making it hard to enjoy things in my life my doctor said were A-OK to have.

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RIP Jens Nygaad Knudsen

Posted on February 20, 2020 by Steve

The person behind the LEGO® minifigure passed away yesterday. Jens’ idea was introduced in 1978 with the first Space and Castle sets, something he had a hand in too.

Today, the LEGO corporation has manufactured an estimated four billion of these little representations of people which are usually four bricks tall. Exceptions have been made for the numerous licensed properties, children, Friends and monsters.

Thanks for all your dedication and imagination Jens! You’ve contributed to something children from 3-300 can enjoy!

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Cookie Disaster, Feb. 2020 edition

Posted on February 20, 2020 by Steve

According to the baker, these are supposed to be cookies of the number one symbol to celebrate a child’s first birthday. Yeah. As Charlie Kelly would say, “No it’s supposed to be a bicep muscle.”

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Knives Out: Must See

Posted on February 19, 2020 by Steve

If this is Daniel Craig’s post-Bond career move, I am looking forward to the next installment by Writer-Director Rian Johnson. Benoit Blanc is part Foghorn Leghorn, part Clouseau encased in the dedication of Poirot.

The short version of Knives is what happens if you mixed a standard Agatha Christie whodunnit story with doses of dark humor and for some reason Columbo. Why the old Seventies detective show? This isn’t a spoiler by now but one character isn’t guilty yet the evidence keeps piling up against them. As for the Christie elements, everybody in the family has a motive to killing off the murder-mystery author patriarch. The police and Blanc just can’t get the dots to connect on any though.

Johnson’s movie is also very ambitious via the cast. He roped in a dream team: Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Christopher Plummer, Chris Evans, Toni Collette and a cameo from Frank Oz. Films with such names either flop painfully or stick the landing, rarely is there an in-between. He pulled off the latter. I think the actors were thrilled to be in something Hollywood doesn’t make very often, nor well.

See it if you can for a change of pace given Hollywood’s current, predictable fare.

Alamo Extras: A BritCom parody of Poirot; Trailer for Murder, She Said; Dogs dressed up as people in a mystery; commercial for the Agatha Christie Hour on A&E; Tutorial on the characters from Knives Out; Rian Johnson telling Alamo his favorites movies that inspired Knives Out:

  • Death on the Nile
  • Evil under the Sun
  • Last of Sheila
  • Sleuth (1972)
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The world is dragging ass

Posted on February 18, 2020 by Steve

Remaining stuck over the shoe(s) dropping and despite some joyful things happening in my life, I just feel sad. Why? I wish I knew entirely. I live in relative comfort and safety compared to several billion people lacking clean water, decent housing or food security.

Immediate thoughts? I still retain some guilt in hurting Shea’s feelings; I know she’s human despite any arguments otherwise. Life continues to be in a senseless holding pattern over UFCU, lawyers and work. A couple friends are also in pain or undergoing bullshit because this is America, rich people’s rights overrule everybody else’s. The freezing rain Austin is now receiving isn’t helping, thus GIF with the Doctor.

On the other hand, there’s the temptation to just say…aww the hell with this! Sell the house, cash out my retirement (after Somara’s takes her ‘half’), life off the profit as I piece together the means to just travel, namely to the Netherlands, see if the Dutch would be interested in my skills and experience. America doesn’t seem to give a shit. Another thing I learned about how much more on the ball the Dutch are, intelligence expert/commentator Malcolm Nance said their version of the CIA/NSA hacked into the Russians’ disinformation campaign in 2016. They knew the logins, the actors, etc. Now there’s a country hitting above its weight in reality (the UK can only do this via James Bond movies).

But there’s reality. Let’s see if I feel better tomorrow.

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