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Bits and Pieces:
September 9, 2002:
ACLU bust card
There is an interesting and useful document that I found on the
ACLU website. "http://www.aclu.org/" It is really a
list of instructions for situations where you may be arrested.
Don't be foolish enough to believe it can't happen to you just
because you are a good citizen. I was that foolish once. Then
it happened. That's another story which I may tell someday when
I get over the rage. Meanwhile, download the file and read it.
ACLU also offers it from their website in a handy pocket card
form if you can read and print Portable Document Format (PDF)
files. Both versions are in their library under the title, "ACLU
pocket card on police encounters."
Reluctant engines
One nice thing about having a large family is that the members
are likely to have a lot of specialized knowledge. Everyone knows
something. Here is a useful thing I learned from our family auto
mechanic. Carburetor cleaner can be used as a volatile fuel to
start lawn mower and rototiller motors. It works well in the spring
when they are reluctant and you don't want to yank your arm out
of the socket. Just spray carburetor cleaner into the air cleaner
and leave the choke off. The choke blocks off the air cleaner
when it's set to choke. I have found that the engine will usually
start in one or two pulls this way.
Splinters
I build things out of wood quite often. One thing I have learned
by bitter experience is that wood will splinter when you cut it
with a power saw. This is especially true in crosscutting plywood.
My solution is simple and inexpensive. I put two inch wide masking
tape on both sides of the wood. Then I mark the cutting line on
the tape. I have found that this profoundly reduces the splintering
problem.
Drilling Holes
Sometimes, while building things I will need to drill a hole part
way into a piece of stock. It would ruin the job to go all the
way through. There are little gadgets called stop collars that
will work for this. They can be fastened to a drill bit at the
required depth. These work well if I need to drill a number of
holes. For just one or a few holes, I have found that masking
tape on a drill bit works just as well. I just wrap several layers
around the drill at the required depth.
Drying Herbs
We are avid gardeners and one thing we grow every year is herbs.
What we have learned is that a microwave provides an ideal way
to dry herbs. Unlike other methods we have used, a microwave does
not diminish the natural color and flavor of the herbs as much.
They retain their flavor and their nice green shade.
Here is how we do it. After washing the herbs, allow them to drain and air dry for a few hours. Then place them on a shallow glass tray in the microwave. Give them two minutes at full power, then open the door. This allows any steam to escape. After a few minutes, give them two more minutes. Follow this procedure as many times as necessary to dry the herbs. Test the herbs by feeling them to see if they are dry enough. When the herbs are dry it is time to separate them from their stems. Most herbs are easier to separate from their stems after drying.
Music Stand
Sometimes, when working at my computer, I will need to reference
a book or magazine of some sort. For this, I have found a music
stand works very well. I can set it at the right level for my
eyes and get it very close to my monitor. One problem I have encountered
is most books and magazines do not like to stay open to the page
I want. To combat this I use spring type clothes pins to anchor
them to the music stand.
On Being Busy
All working people believe, in their hearts, that retired people
are not really busy. No mater how much lip service they give,
they don't really believe that we could possibly be as busy as
they are because they are working. It's nonsense of course. The
real fact is, most people, in their heart of hearts, think no
one else in the world could be anywhere near as busy as they are.
This is even true of the fools who spend several hours each evening
with their heads stuffed in the boob tube. It is not just the
fools. Almost everyone I know believes they are the busiest person
in the world.
Working people, by the way, believe the same nonsense about self employed people as they do about retired people. Their thought is, "What in the world could possibly keep them busy?" They believe that no one who is not a nine-to-fiver could possibly be very busy. The only real difference is that the self employed and retired people can adjust their schedule. I do this often for friends who are important to me. For the nine-to-fiver, this creates the illusion that we must not be very busy.
We can pity them, of course, that their schedule is not as flexible as ours, but we don't have to buy into their nonsense about retired and self employed people. Another point is, retired and, to some extent, self employed people set their own goals and thus have more fun doing what they do. We can also pity the nine-to-fiver for this, but we still don't have to buy into their self serving bologna.
Cutesy Stuff
I hate cutesy stuff. Cutesy stuff is for little old ladies. I
have always hated cutesy stuff and cutesy people. I only make
exceptions for children under five. The frilly towel buttoned
to the oven door handle, so you have to stoop over to dry your
hands, is one example. Another is the silly flashlight on the
screen when Windows stops your work because it decided , on its
own, to refresh its hardware knowledge. Then there are the silly
paper icons drifting across the screen when files are being transferred.
The Executioner
Television has made us aware of the McVeigh trial following the
Oklahoma City bombing. In the penalty phase, the jury was asked
to decide what punishment the crime deserves. Folks not on the
jury, usually see that as no contest. The folks on the jury were
apparently more thoughtful than that. They took a long time to
decide.
In our collective unconscious stands a stocky man in black
clothing with a black leather hood over his head and face. His
powerful hands, at the ends of his veined and muscled arms, hold
a very sharp, broad bladed, double bitted axe with a long hickory
handle. When we vote to execute any person, no matter how heinous
the crime, we make ourselves one with that man in the hood. I
suspect, the jury may have thought more about their own souls
than they did about McVeigh's. Yet, they finally condemned him
to death.
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