Subj : Various Things To : Daryl Stout From : Barry Martin Date : Sat Dec 31 2022 08:17:00 Hi Daryl! BM> Sneaky! DS> That's what the musical instruments shop proprietor on an DS> episode of The Flintstones said, when Fred was wanting to buy DS> Wilma a piano for their anniversary. When Fred asked when he I super-vaguely remember that: I haven't watched The Flintstones -- uh -- since the dinosaur ages. BM> Well if we take a carpeter's screw and screw it clockwise we're turning BM> into the wood so holding things together. And clockwise is loosenging, BM> which sometimes is a bad thing and sometimes a good thing, depending on BM> the desired outcome. ...And now to continue to attept to achieve BM> Nirvana through comtemplations of my navel. DS> Leftie loosey, righty tightey. Oh-oh: you unscrewed my naval and my rump fell off! DS> Or like Foster Brooks said "I was part of the naval air DS> force...tried to force air theough my navel". I thought that was DS> a built in lint filter to get stuff to make a sweater with. DS> Unfortunately, that only works if you're an "innie". Just be thankful it was from there and not elsewhere! DS> I don't care to have things shoved up my orifices, especially DS> when it relates to Covid-19 checks. :P So far I haven't needed to be checked, though if not feeling well and someone sticking an overgrown Q-Tip up my nose just may trigger a sneezing bout. BM> You have to think ALTernately: SHIFT to a different mindset! DS> Just key in on the right topic at the appropriate time...see DS> the tagline below. DS> ... Of course I'm on topic!! What Conference is this??!! I'm not sure: I don't see the conference when I'm in Reply Mode. BM> I'm sort of so-so on eating out this year: food hasn't been as good as BM> it should have been, and not because the kitchen was swamped. Example: BM> went to breakfast with friends: toast was presented properly: two BM> slices, diagonally cut, butter between the two slices. Mine was BM> correct, the other two's butter was excessive: too much to melt and BM> actually didn't look like butter nor margerine -- we weren't really BM> sure what it was. Otherwise the meal was good but nothing spectacular BM> albeit expensive. Oh well. DS> It is rare that I eat out anymore. More often than not, I order DS> delivery from Grubhub from an area restaurant, or I get 25 DS> tenders from an area Slim Chickens...and use ketchup for dipping DS> sauce. I can get 4 meals out of that. (I misread that as Slime Chickens! -- "The chicken that comes with it's own sauce!" ) I had a boss years ago who always ate out: he said it was cheaper to eat out and leave a tip than cook at home. He didn't enumerate but was based on utilities (mainly gas but also some electricity for blenders, etc.), wages to cook, get the food (shopping), etc., etc. BM> I think my CU is offering 'points' with their debit card -- not sure as BM> I don't use it; credit card is better for me. I find writing down each BM> transaction -- use pen onto ledger -- keeps the "it's cash!" concept up BM> in front of my mind. The bigger the total becomes means the more money BM> I'll have to take from my bank accounts to pay it back. For some BM> people that method works. DS> There is so much credit card debt right now, it's not funny. DS> Thankfully, I don't have to worry about that anymore. But, I'm DS> only one step away from being rich...all I need is money. Find a penny Pick it up. Now go home And sew the rip in your butt! I was reading an artcile a while back where the 'poor' spend more money on the same item that the 'rich'. (The terms are relative.) If someone has to buy an item and pay cash they are spending less for that item than someone who has to finance, IOW pay interest (money to borrow money). BM> I also drive people 'nuts' by not having separate "Christmas Money". BM> Well, back when got an envelope with money in it at Christmas.... To BM> me it's all 'money' and I've rarely gone on a shopping spree just BM> because I was given money. Save it for later when I do want something. DS> I have some cash on me, which is rare...I did get a little bit DS> for the Christmas holiday, but I'll use it if I get a chance to DS> eat out...which again, is rare. Works for me! My thinking is those little, infrequent splurges are good for the soul. I'd not go overboard in either direction: not going to restrict myself to go to a super-cheap place with mediocre food just to save money when eating out on Christmas Money. OTOH definately not going to a Michelin restaurant and splurge all my fun money. OTOH if I had _always_ wanted to go to that Michelin money and now could afford it I'd go. Lots of variables. BM> And sometimes not taking the savings is the better option. Needed BM> full-coverage insurance on my car when I first bought it; after it was BM> paid to a certain point I could drop down to whatever the partial- BM> coverage level is called. The difference between the two rates was BM> only $5-6 dollars a month. Hmm: get fully paid for a replacement or BM> get paid ~$1000 'cause the car is so old and have saved $60-70 a BM> year....? DS> You have to look at things in the short term, and in the long DS> run. With not having a car (or driving) anymore, I don't have to DS> worry about things like gasoline, repairs, insurance, property DS> taxes, license tags, etc. It does suck being stuck at home for DS> all but 2 days a month (for a run via Lyft to the Post Office DS> Box), but I have no choice. The blurred vision without warning DS> made it too dangerous to drive. Right. Again, a lot of variables. On one hand a lot of inconvenience not having a car but then it's better than laying around in a long narrow box! BM> But that makes clean-up so much easier! DS> That is true. Plus, if you have a bunch of boxes in the trash DS> pile, thugs walking by may see that as a signal that you have DS> wealth to be robbed. Yes. Best to cut up and/or turn inside-out to hide the contents. BM> Yup! Actually it was kind of funny: after the call I was looking out BM> the window onto the street and a silent police car roars past towards BM> where I said the guy was running. ("Silent": lights flashing but no BM> siren.) DS> I like it when the K-9 gets the criminal. Some of the 'cop shows' will show the police dog capturing the criminal. Almost ROTFL-funny when the big tough I-can-outsmart-the-cops guy starts whimpering when the dog has captured him. BM> Was 2ø when I woke up this morning; forecast is for mid-40's on Friday BM> and Saturday. Meteorologist commented plus pointing to a graphic close BM> to a 100ø difference between the -40 and -50ø wind chills a few days BM> ago. (A hare flawed because one temperature is wind chill and the BM> other is not but still is a drastic difference in only a few days.) DS> It'll be in the 60s to near 70 here through at least next DS> Tuesday, with a threat of significant severe weather next DS> Monday...unfortunately, it looks like an early start to the DS> year's tornado season. Locally we broke the record high for the date: think it was 67ø. So from the official wind chill of -40ø we had over a 100ø difference. And then the next day dropped to almost freezing, so about a forty degree difference in 24 hours. BM> Definitely!! I have a small digital thermometer with a several foot BM> probe stuck under the bezel/cap thingie to monitor the temperature BM> under the floor where the hot water comes through (it's the colder of BM> the two as in different joist spaces). Temperature displays too close BM> to 32ø, start the dripping! (Both.) DS> If you have quite a bit of nocturia overnight, you can keep the DS> water going with the potty runs...even though being awakened DS> isn't your pee-rogative. Euwwww!! The good news is usually only once a night. Actually had rigged up a little device which I was considering to use to keep the toilet water trickling -- ended up not needing it. "Invention" was a length of thin wire (#30) which one end would go under the flapper and into the passage to the bowl. Just enough to keep the flapper ajar slightly. Other end of the wire went through a small hole in a food container (happened to be a 16 oz sour cream) and a knot of wire so wouldn't get pulled through. LIS don't know if it would work as ended up not needing it. DS> ... Of course I'm on topic!! What Conference is this??!! Seems to be the Miscellania Conference! ¯ BarryMartin3@ ® ¯ @MyMetronet.NET ® .... 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