PN:
Joe’s Comment – Another week of winter weather. Another week of avoiding all my projects: in the house, in the shop, on the Internet, in the yard.
Every single one.
It isn’t because I’ve no energy. My energy level hasn’t changed. But focusing that energy to address an urgent task or simple project confounds me.
My daily time is scattered all over the place. Planning for projects. Researching methodology, parts sourcing, technical reading, learning new things and ideas.
And plenty of self analysis, self reflection, with a side order of incrimination.
J’accuse!
Unlike Émile Zola, my accusations echo inward.
It is a winter phenomenon with me.
The man with dissipated focus.
I suspect it is related to daily sunshine exposure.
A few minutes a day is not possible for most of an Okanagan winter.
The lack of sunshine precipitates self reflection.
Self reflection leads to who knows where?
I found the following words from someone named Rudy Francisco a salve for my seasonal self deprecation and criticism. It might work for laundry, too –
Way back when in the ’70s, I decided to move to the Okanagan Valley. Part lifestyle, part demographics, mostly climate.
A song to suit my mood.
It has been a long, cold winter:
Canadiana
Druthers
Joe and I grow weary.
Every single cotton-pickin’ day, we see morons in our sweet beautiful town of Vernon BC wearing masks.
Alone in their car.
Walking by themselves down the street or in one of the peaceful parks.
In business settings.
In social settings.
Sometimes in small herds…..
Joe swears it is an IQ test.
The Cochrane Collaboration is a UK non-profit that has the reputation of being beyond repute, a gold standard for legitimate health care data review.
Their finding is NOT a surprise to Joe and me.
From the article:
“In an interview, Tom Jefferson, the Oxford epidemiologist and lead author (Cochrane) told journalist Maryanne Demasi on Substack: “There is just no evidence that they” — masks — “make any difference,” “Full stop.” But, wait, hold on. What about N-95 masks, as opposed to lower-quality surgical or cloth masks?
“Makes no difference — none of it,” said Jefferson. What about the studies that initially persuaded policymakers to impose mask mandates? “They were convinced by nonrandomized studies, flawed observational studies.”
What about the utility of masks in conjunction with other preventive measures, such as hand hygiene, physical distancing or air filtration?
“There’s no evidence that many of these things make any difference.”
From Druthers, a Canadian news source.
This segment could have been included in the COVID category, but Joe and I are trying to corral our Canadian sources. Here’s Issue #28, March 2023, cover of the Druthers newspaper, hot off the press –
Druthers is a Canadian news source. Their motto is “If I had my druthers, we all would know the truth“. Free subscriptions. Voluntary donations accepted. All issues available on line. The Druthers website is Druthers.net
The above article in legible form is viewable here.
Americana
Babylon Bee
A satire from the good folks at the BB.
Good grief!
Joe Biden has been an absolute disaster.
How in the world could this train wreck of a man garner any respect as the leader of the most powerful country on Earth?
Over 50 years in office.
Putting on our very best objective lens (we are a “theoretical Libertarian”), Donald Trump did more good for his country in 100 days than Joe Biden has in a lifetime. There is also an argument that Donald Trump did more harm in 4 years than Joe Biden did in over 50 years. Time to drag in the perspective eyeballs…..
Joe Mekanic and I are mud peckers, dirt people, salt of the earth.
We measure quality of life by other criteria than the holy dollar or by popularity. Remember we are “theoretical Libertarians”. Greta Garbo once said “I want to be left alone”, and as a political statement, it resonates with Joe and me.
Joe Biden is dull. He was not qualified for the job. He deserves all the ridicule and scorn there is as a rebuttal to his hubris, his incompetence, his impotence.
Some humor from the geniuses at The Babylon Bee:
Intellectual Froglegs
Joe Dan hasn’t released a new Froglegs for quite some time.
We speculate he had to re-calibrate his position and message.
Whatever the case, a worthy episode in the IF catalogue:
COVID Aftermath
Babylon Bee
Trolling the whole World of Lefty wackjobs since 2016.
Almost an oxymorn, BB is a Christian biased news satire generator.
Joe smiles and waves at every video and meme we view:
COVID Memes
Joe’s Garage
Acceleration
We’ve probably posted this video (or one very similar) in a past Sunday Rant.
It is so American in nature.
These crazy badgers push the envelope, then turn around and declare it a norm.
Just listening to the facts of how the vehicle makes it to the other end of the track without detonating into a zillion pieces is testimony to this apparent “grass roots” engineering.
The data is almost unbelievable:
Zip Ties n Bias Plies
Peg & Co. decide to see how high a small block Ford truck motor will rev in first gear.
Problem – there is no throttle body so the engine doesn’t run.
Solution – tow the truck behind a roll-off hauler, put the Ford in 1st gear, let out the clutch, and hang on.
This is an example of FAFO (fuck around and find out), à la Ford.
Spoiler alert!
The clutch came apart before the engine gave up.
Joe says it was turning some frequencies only dogs could hear until the clutch gave up.
This is test to destruction research performed to northern Alberta mud pecker standards. Big entertainment value, small investment.
As Peg would say, minty!: