December
1 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
We were up a few minutes earlier than usual this morning and with the cloud cover the entire walk was done in the dark. Maybe a hint of sunrise but certainly not sunup when we finished. That early start got me to Fry's for the week's grocery gathering at 7:00 and early for my 8:00 dentist appointment.
From there it was to the gas station across the street from the Golden 9 restaurant where I filled Desperado's tank. Across the street and fill me with a Veggie Omelet that was very good. This restaurant and the Cook E Jar are my two recommended places for breakfast in Casa Grande.
Drove all Interstate from there to the turn south on AZ 90. There was heavy traffic but no crazy drivers and no wind other than the back draft from the trucks. Arrived here around 12:30 and got the space that I wanted although the Park appears to be really filled up. This is not the route that I drove today but is the one that I would have if not for the dental appointment which was a detour from this route of 135 miles: Montgomery Rd, I-8/I-10 (114 miles), AZ90 & AZ82.
“I like people who buck the system. Individualists. I often warn people: ‘Somewhere along the way, someone is going to tell you, ‘There is no “I” in team.’ What you should tell them is, ‘Maybe not. But there is an “I” in independence, individuality and integrity.'” — George Carlin
Notice the left-wing media fawning over the death of former President George H.W. Bush.
That same media didn’t care for him at all when he was in office. They couldn’t wait to usher him out as a one-term president, and replace him with Bill Clinton...
Keep this in mind as the media swoons, fawns and preens over George H.W. Bush, calling you a racist if you don’t go along with it, as they did after John McCain’s death. This is the same media that called you a racist back in 1988 and 1992 if you voted for him. - The Media’s Sudden Love Affair With George H.W. Bush, Michael J. Hurd
2 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
I knew that I was moving into winter by coming back here in December. I also knew that I needed to buy some sheets to replace the set that I have on my bed that are worn through. So I went online last night and ordered a 190-Gram Cotton Flannel Sheet Set. Maybe it will arrive at the earliest date in the date range and I can pick them up on 6 December but if not then the next time I go to town.
They are going to be needed if the forecast is close to right. However, my experience with forecasts for Cochise County is they usually guess low for the high temperatures and high for the low temperatures. They think the low tonight will be 28° and tomorrow night 31. I'll be getting my basement heater plugged in sometime today which is forecast to remain cold all day - down in the 50s.
This February 1893 issue has been released in book form for some reason unknown to me. Some of what is in it I liked and some I could have done without. It is somewhat the same as The American Mercury magazine that H. L Mencken and George Jean Nathan published in the 1920s and '30s.The Idler was an illustrated monthly magazine published in Great Britain from 1892 to 1911. It was founded by the author Robert Barr, who brought in the humorist Jerome K. Jerome as co-editor. It generally catered to the popular taste, printing light pieces and sensational fiction. The magazine published short stories, serialised novels, humour pieces, poetry, memoirs, travel writing, book and theatre reviews and interviews. It also included a monthly feature called 'The Idlers' Club,' in which a number of writers would offer their views on a particular topic. - Edited Wikipedia
Why are we letting ourselves be dragged into everyone’s quarrels — from who owns the islets in the South China Sea, to who owns the Senkaku and Southern Kurils; and from whether Transnistria had a right to secede from Moldova, to whether South Ossetia and Abkhazia had the right to break free of Georgia, when Georgia broke free of Russia?
Do the American people care a fig for these places? Are we really willing to risk war with Russia or China over who holds title to them? - Is Putin the Provocateur in the Kerch Crisis?, Patrick J. Buchanan
3 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
My shoes are starting to fall apart and my feet have been hurting for the past month. I checked to see when I bought them and it was about 7.5 months ago. That is about as long as a pair will last me.
Went online to see what they were going to cost me and found that they were at a Special price; about $40 less than the same shoe in a different color. Color! I do care, within a month they are dirt brown. Placed the order and think I will pick them up next week on shopping day.
It was freezing this morning but a little warmer than the forecast. The weather guessers have raised their forecast lows to be above freezing during the next 10 days so I'll unplug the basement heater tomorrow or the next day.
Curtains for the Clintons is a significent article. Not so much because what is said but who says it and where it was printed. This is a New York Times Sunday Opinion written by Maureen Dowd. She was anti-Clinton before it was cool but the Times would not have printed this Opinion unless the paper is also moving away from its prior Clinton aggrandizement.
This was the last Sherlock Holmes short story, one that was not at his best. I don't think the Holmes stories are his best writing but they are the ones that brought him fame."His Last Bow", published in September 1917, is one of 56 short stories about Sherlock Holmes written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It was first published in Strand Magazine as "His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes", and, amongst six other stories, was collected in an anthology titled His Last Bow: Some Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes. The narration is in the third person, instead of the first person narration usually provided by the character of Dr. Watson, and it is a spy story, rather than a detective mystery. Due to its portrayal of British and German spies, its publication during the First World War and its patriotic themes, the story has been interpreted as a propaganda tool intended to boost morale for British readers. - Wikipedia
4 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The weather gurus forecast low was more in line with their usual guesses. They thought it would be above freezing but it was below that when we went on our walk this morning getting down to 30.8° before we finished. They continue to forecast the lows to be above freezing during the next 10 days. They also think there is a chance of rain on Friday which is not good, that is shopping and laundry day. I hope they are wrong about the rain and right with their low temperature guesses.
105 year old lady's advice.
"For better digestion I drink beer.
In case of appetite loss I drink white wine.
In case of low blood pressure I drink red wine.
In case of high blood pressure I drink scotch.
When I have a cold I drink Schnapps."
"When do you drink water?"
"I've never been that sick!"
"For better digestion I drink beer.
In case of appetite loss I drink white wine.
In case of low blood pressure I drink red wine.
In case of high blood pressure I drink scotch.
When I have a cold I drink Schnapps."
"When do you drink water?"
"I've never been that sick!"
This is another collection of seven short stories. There were three of them that I had read before. I read two of those again because I did not recognise the title, skipped the third one because I did. They are all good stories, I even enjoyed rereading the two after getting started on them and realizing that I had read them before.There are six short stories in this collection. Mr Jerome had a preface that asked readers and critics to not think they are all humorous since that was what had become expected of him.
Though Jerome K. Jerome achieved literary fame on the strength of his humor writing, this collection of tales spans humor and a number of other genres. The title story, "John Ingerfield," is regarded by critics and fans alike as one of Jerome's finest works. - Book promo at Amazon
5 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
A warmer morning walk. The low was not in the 40s as the weather gurus expected but it got close at 39.2°. I think the cloud cover helped keep it warmer during the night and then will make it colder during today. The Friday forecast continues to be a chance of rain with a high temperature in the 50s - not good.
I am doing not much of anything. I do have the VA eye exam tomorrow which will either confirm or deny that I need cataract surgery. If I do then I need to find some way to get to and from the VA hospital in Tucson where I assume I'll have to go. There is also Patches to consider. If I don't need cataract surgery then I would like some alternative that will improve my vision which is certainly not getting better.
The 2018 U.S. International Mathematical Olympiad Team took first prize in this year's competition, with Russia and China placing second and third. The individuals won 5 gold medals and one silver with their combined scores taking the Team Title.
Their names do not read like stereotype American names. I have guessed at their ancestry but you might note that there does not appear to be a European, Central American or Mexican name among them: Adam Ardeishar [Indian], Andrew Gu [Indian], Vincent Huang [Chinese], James Lin [Chinese], Michael Ren [Indian], and Mihir Singhal [Indian]. Gu, Huang, and Lin are returning team members from 2017 and Lin earned a perfect score.
A good article, MSM Is Getting Weirder, More Frantic, And More Desperate By The Day, by Caitlin Johnstone. She has her sights set on bringing down the MSM and this is just another broadside, I applaud her efforts.
I do not subscribe to the belief that the shift in behavior of the media is due to an establishment hatred of Trump; despite the rhetoric and the narratives, Trump has been protecting establishment interests just as reliably as his predecessors, and everyone who knows anything about Russiagate knows that it will never lead to the removal of Trump from office. A much more logical explanation is the need to manufacture support for the geopolitical agenda of isolating Russia and shoving it off the world stage to stop it from protecting China’s rise to superpower status, and in cold war the use of propaganda becomes even more important than in hot war. But I also think there’s more to it than that. I think a large part of the frantic urgency that we are seeing from the establishment propaganda machine is nothing other than an attempt to regain control of the narrative.
6 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
I can't see very well because of the dilated eyes but think I can get this posting typed. The VA eye exam seemed to the the most thorough exam that I have had. The conclusion has been postponed until an even more thorough exam can be done by the VA Ophthalmology people in Tucson on 15 January 2019. The VA Clinic here said that the cataracts do not look bad enough for surgery but they do not know why I can not see very well.
I stopped at Sunny D's for breakfast on the way into town for my appointment. Then stopped at my UPS Store on the way home and picked up all the mail that they have been holding. Also got the three packages that have been delivered this past week; Leapknot Coffee, flannel sheets and new Keen shoes. I have one more order coming in next week and that should be my contribution to the Holiday consumer shopping totals that are so important for the US economy.
7 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Read Will Rogers column 88 years ago: December 7, 1930
The bottom flannel sheet does not fit Desperado's mattress as well as the Wal*Mart sheets did and they did not fit very well. Putting them on is just as difficult, but OOOH how soft and warm.
The new shoes made a world of difference on the two walks that I have now done with them. I could tell that my feet were not lining up with the rest of my body. Feet hurt, ankles hurt, legs hurt - I should have bought them over a month ago. Not a good excuse but I didn't want to chance the delivery to High Chaparral and the Casa Grande Post Office did not seem a good alternative.
Haven't tried any of the Leapknot coffee yet. I got it out of the bag and into my vacuum container which has worked well to keep coffee fresh. It smelled great!
We cut the morning walk short at the halfway mark because we were getting wet. It was not raining very hard but buy the time I started driving to town it was hard enough that we would have got soaked if had continued.
Decided to do laundry first. The laundromat was not open when I drove past it the first time; raining and dark. It was still not open when I did find it the second time but the woman that opened up late pulled in right after I did. Got started writing up today's posting while that chore was being done.
From there I went to Café Olé where I got their Chorizo and Egg Scramble with their very good home fries. The place was packed when I got there but the service was quick and the noise was outrageous.
That was my next stop. At the VA Audio Clinic to get the 'Restaurant & Crowd' function reactivated in my hearing aids. When I had the Show Low VA try and improve my hearing they disabled those functions which filter out some of that noise. The guy here also found the problem with my right hearing aid that probably was there when I had Show Low try to fix my problem back in July. Need to send the aid back to the manufacturer, will get it back in a couple weeks and will see if the problem has been fixed.
Grocery gathering at Fry's. Then a quick stop at the Christmas Tree Lot that is being run by a couple that I met in Casa Grande that live full time in a 'Skoolie' with their two homeschooled daughters.
8 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
That didn't take long. I got my new shoes into mud within the first 24 hours of wearing them. Tried to do our usual afternoon walk along AZ 82 and got into mud almost as soon as stepping off the pavement. Retreated and did the walk through standing water within the Park to wash the mud off.
Patches got her feet cleaned off as well but she needs mud flaps on her front legs. She throws muddy water up and back all along her belly. A dirty dog is a happy dog, so she is happy.
In the month since the day before the midterm election the Dow Index is fallen then bounced and as of Friday is down over 1,000 points. "The technical indicator of a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth as measured by a country's gross domestic product (GDP), although the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) does not necessarily need to see this occur to call a recession." - Investopedia
So, technically the US is not in a recession and the NBER will probably not declare that it is until sometime late next year. About the time the 2020 presidential primary campaigns start to warm up. There will be are a lot of economic reporting spin after the first quarter 2019 shows negative. During the second quarter there will be a lot of investment in Hopium and vast amounts of blame placed on President Trump. It will be an exciting News Cycle.
9 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The two pixel art drawings are moving along ever so slowly. The second one in the series of four has been much more difficult to draw than the first one. It is looking good and I could probably finish it in another 3-4 days.
There is the Japanese theme one however which is even more difficult. I have only completed about one sixth of it. I'll be working on it for the next few days until it starts to exasperate me. Will not give up on this one, I think it is going to look very good.
Ocasio-Cortez and the Coming Leftist Dictatorship by Michael J. Hurd is just a preview of what is coming. Occasional Cortex does not have the good sense to keep her mouth shut. There is also Auntie Maxine but most of the Democrats that are going to use their Congressional powers to punish those that do not agree with them stay quiet about what they are going to do.
We have a serious problem on our hands if tyrants like Ocasio-Cortez and her fellow Democrats mean what they say, that they will use government punishment to shut down mockery of or disagreement with the rulers in power. It means that anyone with a different point-of-view is now an enemy of the government.
10 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
I have erroneously used a lot of Verizon data these past couple of days. Found that my Paperwhite had firmware updates that could have been done automatically if I were to keep my Paperwhite connected to WIFI all the time. Two night ago was the first time that it has ever been connected to WIFI and that did not do it.
The manual update procedure is much too complex for this old codger. I would have been better off having a 5th grader do it for me. Finally got it done on the third try. Which gave me a Paperwhite that I had to learn how to use again.
That was not too difficult. I have not discovered all that may have been changed but the adjustment to font size and how bold it can be is great improvement now that I am becoming vision impaired to go along with my hearing impairment.
I downloaded a long novel from the Cochise County Library to be read on my now New Paperwhite. So far everything works about the same as before but as I said above the text is now even more readable.
Made continuing progress on the Japanese theme pixel art project yesterday but it is very slow. I'll do some more drawing on it today and tomorrow and then think I'll switch back to the other drawing. I can only stay motivated for either of them for a few days at a time since the progress is so slow.
Colder that forecast this morning with the low down to 35 versus the 40s that the weather guesser thought it would be. They are guessing lows at just above freezing in a couple of days. I may connect my basement heater again for those days since their guesses are usually high it will probably freeze.
11 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The low this morning was 40° but felt warmer than that. Perhaps it was due to my wearing my wool capote expecting another cold morning like yesterday. The forecast for tomorrow morning and Thursday morning is freezing so I'll wear it again and also will be plugging in my basement heater to protect water pipes.
I plan on doing much the same things today that I did yesterday. Drawing the Japanese theme pixel art, reading the book from the library and cooking some 'linner' meals. I made up breakfast servings yesterday so that will be the only difference.
Sarah, if the American people ever find out what we have done, they would chase us down the street and lynch us. – President George H.W. Bush to Sarah McLendon, Journalist, in 1992 Press Corps Interview, when he was asked about Iraq-gate and Iran Contra
I think Bush 41 was too optimistic. The American people know what has been done but are too phlegmatic to any chasing much less any lynching. Read Signs of Coming Collapse: Citizens Worldwide Revolt Against Taxation & Illegal Aliens by Jeremiah Johnson for his take on what is happening in Europe. The American people are not yet willing to risk everything they have but I think the election of Trump was a 'sign'.
In order for a nation to continue, it needs to maintain all of the elements that made it a nation. Those elements can be found within the borders, language, religions, and culture of its people. When the laws that are made within a nation to protect its citizens and maintain it are flagrantly disobeyed or circumvented by its politicians, courts, and legislators, it is time for that nation to return to the grass roots and exercise their rights...The instabilities we are seeing are a precursor of things to come, and the Parisian cab driver was correct…in order to change an evil, sometimes you have to be willing to risk everything you have.
12 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
All the News can focus on is the fight in the White House. It was a fair fight with two Democrats against President Trump. Vice President Pence was in the room but all the pictures I have seen make him look like Charlie McCarthy and he remained speechless.
The Establishment would roll over him in a New York minute. I can only hope that the rumors turn out to be true and Trump drops him from the 2020 ticket.
I brewed my first cup of Swummy Blend coffee from Leapknot Roasters this morning. I have been drinking Folgers Black Silk for the last week and this was so smooth in comparison. It is a medium roast coffee, like Arbuckles, that claims to be mellow, balanced and nutty. I like it, I think I'll go brew another cup.
The low was a pleasant 42° this morning. I was overdressed with my capote but will need it tomorrow morning if the forecast for a freezing low comes true. The high temperatures have been great, in the 60s, and are forecast to continue. So far winter has been very nice.
I quote the closing to How Democracy Is Losing the World by Patrick J. Buchanan. The people of the world, except those in the US, are going to be laughing at the antics of The Establishment trying to get rid of President Trump during the next two years. The Establishment will have to kill him, I see no other way for them to achieve their goal.
Yet, for the next two years, we will be preoccupied with whether paying hush money to Stormy Daniels justifies removing a president, and exactly when Michael Cohen stopped talking to the Russians about his boss building a Trump Tower in Moscow.
We are an unserious nation, engaged in trivial pursuits, in a deadly serious world.
13 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Aanother shopping day with just a little other running around town. There was breakfast at the Landmark restaurant which had a big crowd of Army personnel. I expect that at Café Olé but not usually at the Landmark although they do have big crowds in the morning.
Grocery gathering at Fry's was quick and easy. Then stopped at my UPS Store and picked up an order of hulled barley and oat groats from Mulberry Lane Farm. The last batch of 'linners' that I cooked up was sans oat groats and I had about a cup of hulled barley remaining.
The last stop before getting back to the Park was at RV City. There I got a thumb latch for the sewer hose compartment. The one that had been on there apparently fell apart and dropped off. Also made an appointment to get my bathroom faucet replaced and have the sink drain cleaned out.
I checked the basement heater this morning and it was working as designed. The low temperature was 34° and the Thermo Cube turns on when the temperature drops below 35 and then shut off again when above 45. It was on when I checked it and unplugged before going to town. It is forecast to be colder tomorrow morning so I'll be plugging it back in later today.
“We read to know we’re not alone” - William Nicholson
"It’s also why I write." - Both quotes are from Peachy Keen and Cool as a Cucumber in a Banana Republic by Doug “Uncola” Lynn, a good blog posting. Some fine food for thought.
“President Trump has canceled the White House holiday party for the media, making the decades-old tradition a victim of his increasingly contentious relationship with major news organizations.” - Fox News
Bravo! President Trump continues to fight back!
14 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Read Will Rogers column 88 years ago: December 14, 1930
This morning was colder than yesterday but not by much. It felt a lot colder so I checked my basement heater as soon as we finished our walk and it was off although it felt like it had been on. I checked it again about 30 minutes later and it was on so it had heated that compartment to a temperature of 45° and shut off. Then since the outside temperature was 31 or less it reached 35 and cycled back on again. Perfect!
I did no pixel drawing yesterday, neither project. Did a lot of reading on my Paperwhite. There is never any pressure to finish a book downloaded from Gutenberg or some of the other free book websites but the Cochise County Library has a book return limit. The novel that I am now reading is a long one so I can not dawdle. It is also a good book and I am motivated to keep reading to see what is going to happen next. I'll be doing some drawing today.
15 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Gov. Ducey, who is required by law to appoint a Republican to an open Senate seat previously held by a Republican, said an appointment decision “will be announced in the near future.”
If the good Gov does the right thing, and the politically efficacious thing, there may be a Senator McSally from Arizona sworn in to start the 116th Congress.
Thank you for appointing me to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy created by John McCain’s death. It has been an honor and a privilege to again serve the people of Arizona. When I accepted your appointment, I agreed to complete the work of the 115th Congress and then reevaluate continuing to serve. I have concluded that it would be best if I resign so that your new appointee can begin the new term with all other Senators in January 2019 and can serve a full two (potentially four) years. Therefore, I will resign from the U.S. Senate effective 11:59 p.m. EST December 31, 2018.” - Letter to Gov. Ducey from Sen. Jon Kyl
A warmer morning walk that would not have triggered the Thermo Cube for my basement heater. Weather.com does not forecast any freezing mornings during the next 10 days. Weather Underground has website problems again and is not showing a forecast and most of their site does not work at all. Probably made another improvement, I think they need some programming assistance. The National Weather Service thinks it may freeze next Tuesday morning but that is a far into the future that they show forecasts.
We did have some cloud cover this morning, and it looks like it will stay that way all day. That made for a spectacular Arizona Highways magazine cover photo opportunity. Sunrise does not seem to last as long as sunset but they are a great show while they last.
16 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The weather guessers finally got the morning low temperature in the 40s that they have been forecasting. It seems that this will be one of kind since the next 3 days are expected to be in the 30s although not freezing. The high temperature yesterday was only 54 and I stayed cold all day, had to fire up the Wave 6 a couple times after the usual morning shut off. Maybe get back up into the low 60s today.
I made some good progress on the second in the series of pixel art drawings that I doing. There is a good chance that I'll have that one finished in a few more days. I wish I could say the same for the one with a Japanese theme. It is very difficult and extremely slow going.
I can also see a completion of the long novel that I got from the Cochise County Library within the next few days. It is a complex book that jumps back and forth in time and from one character to another but overall a fairly quick read.
17 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Patches and I poked the bear yesterday afternoon and got away dry. When we went out for our walk I could see that it was rain in the Huachuca Mountains and the wind was from the south which would bring it to us. We chanced it and got only a few sprinkles when we were within 100 yards of Desperado on our return.
It was cloudy and cold all day with the high at 58°. Most of the rain came after the sun went down with a total of 0.27" recorded by the National Weather Service at the Sierra Vista Airport. That is not far from the Park so probably a fair estimate of what we got here. WWW.wunderground.com is still not reporting anything except the current temperature.
I finished the second in the four part pixel art drawing series yesterday. Today I'll be getting back to the Japanese theme one and work on it for a few days and then start on the third in the series. The first two look very good, I'm motivated to see them all finished and presented together. Probably will not finish the book on my Paperwhite today but most likely will tomorrow.
Some time past Chris Hedges, one of the remaining real journalists, made it clear that without violent revolution to excise the tumor of government superiority over the people, freedom throughout the West is dead as a doornail.
The question before us is whether the Western peoples are too brainwashed, too firmly locked in The Matrix, to exhausted to stand up and defend their freedom. Resistance is happening in France and Belgium, but the government that sold out Greece hasn’t been hung off of lamp posts. Americans are so brainwashed that they think Russia, China, Iran, Syria, North Korea, and Venezuela are their enemies when it is perfectly clear that their Enemy is “their” government in Washington.The Myth of Western Democracy, Paul Craig Roberts
18 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Yesterday started with a clear cloud free sky. A few clouds started to blow in then even more by the time we went on our afternoon walk. The rain came about the time I was falling asleep. There was not as much as the last storm with only 0.14" being reported by the National Weather Service.
Sunny or mostly sunny with high temperatures in the 60s and lows in the 30s. Tomorrow morning is expected to be right at freezing. The water pipes can take that so I'll disconnect the basement heater today so I don't have to do it in the dark tomorrow morning. I'll be going to town again.
U.S. stocks have not fallen this dramatically during the month of December since the Great Depression of the 1930s. On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost another 507 points, and it is now down more than 1,000 points from Thursday’s close. This fresh downturn has pushed the Dow and the S&P 500 very firmly into correction territory, and the Russell 2000 is now officially in bear market territory. The ferocity of this stock market crash is stunning many of the experts, and many investors are beginning to panic. Back in early October, the Dow hit an all-time high of 26,951.81, but on Monday it closed at just 23,592.98. That means that the Dow has now plunged more than 3,300 points from the peak of the market, and many believe that this stock crash is just getting started. - Stocks Are On Pace For Their Worst December Since The Great Depression, by Michael Snyder
A recommended read, 809 pages in hardback or about 15,000 locations on Kindle. The moving back and forth in time also brings the family ancestors into the story which is sometimes confusing but good historical fiction.From Edward Rutherfurd, the grand master of the historical novel, comes a dazzling epic about the magnificent city of Paris. Moving back and forth in time, the story unfolds through intimate and thrilling tales of self-discovery, divided loyalty, and long-kept secrets. As various characters come of age, seek their fortunes, and fall in and out of love, the novel follows nobles who claim descent from the hero of the celebrated poem The Song of Roland; a humble family that embodies the ideals of the French Revolution; a pair of brothers from the slums behind Montmartre, one of whom works on the Eiffel Tower as the other joins the underworld near the Moulin Rouge; and merchants who lose everything during the reign of Louis XV, rise again in the age of Napoleon, and help establish Paris as the great center of art and culture that it is today. With Rutherfurd’s unrivaled blend of impeccable research and narrative verve, this bold novel brings the sights, scents, and tastes of the City of Light to brilliant life. - Book promo @ goodreads.com
19 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The low was 31.9° at my local Weather Underground reporting station this morning. The wunderground.com website is working again, for how long is the question. No freezing lows in their 10 Day forecast until 28 December. I hope they are right. The National Weather Service reported a warmer low but they almost always do.
Went into town and stopped at Denny's for breakfast. I may go there once a month or every six weeks but they have become too expensive for me to use them as a regular breakfast stop. I like their Skillets but don't think they are worth the price.
An easy grocery gathering at Fry's and I was at VA Audio right at 8:30 to see if my right ear hearing aid was fixed. It took a few more adjustments but is much better than it has been. I'll have a better idea about how well it is working after wearing it again for a few days.
That is about all for today except will dump holding tanks and add fresh water after it warms up a little more. The water tank is probably as close to being dry as I have had it in a long time. The water pump is sucking some air; time to add water for sure.
20 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
President Trump gets my total approval with the withdrawal of troops from Syria. Now if he would get us out of Afghanistan and quit saber rattling all around the world perhaps I will once again believe his campaign promise to get us out of wars. The Establishment is outraged so this is a good decision!
We have won against ISIS. We’ve beaten them, and we’ve beaten them badly. I get very saddened when I have to write letters or call parents or wives or husbands of soldiers who have been killed fighting for our country. It’s a great honor. But it’s heartbreaking. Now we’ve won, it’s time to come back. They’re getting ready. You’re going to see them soon. - President Trump
Caitlin Johnstone has a good blog posting on the subject, Reactions To Trump’s Syria Withdrawal Plan Say More Than The Plan Itself.
We’ve got to evolve beyond this mentality of intrusive domination which is so aggressively promoted as normal by the mass media. The idea that it’s okay for a powerful nation to insert its military force into a weaker nation in order to manipulate geopolitical dynamics to its advantage is a sickness, and we need to heal it.
Now he needs to do something about The Wall. His 2020 re-election is a nonstarter if he does not. He has to know this and must have some plan. The Establishment also knows this and their plan is to keep him from building a wall or do anything that will stop illegal immigration. The Establishment want the illegals and they want to separate President Trump from his supporters. It is going to be fun to watch what happens during 2019.
21 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Read Will Rogers column 88 years ago: December 21, 1930
I finished reading The Complete Works of H. P. Lovecraft which was not really a book. It was a collection of stories that were compiled by Cthulu Chick, who created the EPUB, MOBI and PDF formats and then made them available as one download from archives.org. There are 63 stories in the collection that were originally published in magazines, or not published at all, during his lifetime. The stories are now available in books, some as stand alone novella or in collections.
Overall I will say they are entertaining, weird but entertaining, although he does tend to be a one trick pony when it comes to storyline. He died in poverty at the age of 46 but is now regarded as one of the most significant 20th-century authors of horror and weird fiction. I would also place his writing in the subgenre of subterranean fiction that was very popular at the close of the 19th and beginning of 20th century.
The winter solstice arrives today at 5:23 pm EST so tonight will be the longest night. I will be finishing our morning walks at sunup in about a month.
Some are suggesting that the reason why the vote was unanimous was because they wanted to send a “strong signal” to President Trump. He has been extremely critical of the Federal Reserve in recent weeks, and this could be a way for the Fed to show Trump who is really in charge...
President Trump knows that the only way that he is going to win in 2020 is if the economy is doing well, and he also understands that higher interest rates will slow the economy down. So essentially the Federal Reserve has a tremendous amount of political power in their hands.
During the Obama era, the Fed pushed interest rates all the way to the floor and kept them there for many years. But now the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates seven times since Donald Trump took office, and four of those rate hikes have been under current Fed Chair Jerome Powell. - Is The Federal Reserve Actually TRYING To Cause A Stock Market Crash?, by Michael Snyder
This Shoutbox exchange happened in October after the 'dip/retreat' in the Dow Index from its all time high. Even a blind pig can find an acorn once in a while.
kaBLOOnie: Any comments on the recent stock market?
Ed: I think this 'retreat' has been fostered by all the midterm election bickering. If the Republicans 'hold' then the market should also, if the Democrats take control of the House then I think the market will get hammered.
22 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Today was spent at the range with the Cochise Gun Club Pistol Workshop. It was only the third time that I have shot using my shooting glasses that I got back in August. I see the sights better with them than with my progressive glasses but my vision is not very good with them either. Did not shoot well at all, need to do more dry fire that have not been doing.
Idle Ideas in 1905 was published in 1905 as the title might suggest. It is a collection of 21 essays on subjects such as 'Should Women be Beautiful' and 'Should Soldiers be Polite' that were probably first published in a newspaper of magazine. They are each approximately 100 locations in length in the Kindle format so a quick easy read. Most of them are humorous views of the human conditions of the time in England and Europe. A fun read.Stopped at Sunny D's for breakfast along the way. Got their Huevos con Chorizo and did not like it very well. From what I could remember that was one of their good menu items. I'll try something different next time.
Those two activities plus driving back and forth to the range was my morning and part of the afternoon. I need to get 'linner' ready and Patches needs her walk after waiting for me all morning although I think she did nap for a good part of the morning.
23 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The federal government 'shutdown' is The News. However, I think it is much ado about nothing. There are only 9 federal departments that are being shut down and within those departments the 'essential' employees will continue to work and ALL the employees will get paid retroactively when the 'shutdown' is removed. It is great theater but will have very little impact on the deplorables in this country. I expect to see a dead cat bounce in the Dow Index next week because the big drop last week had the 'shutdown' built in.
I don't have much on my To Do List for today. Probably get back to drawing some more of the Japanese theme pixel art and reading my new novel. There will be another shopping excursion tomorrow with my regular grocery gathering day falling on Christmas I need to make adjustments.
It is 113 years later and we still are hearing the same arguments. Of course we now have President Trump that imposed tariffs, if a Democrat president had done so there would huzzahs.
It is a long argument, and you might not be able to follow it; but you must take it as a fact now generally admitted that the cheaper you buy things the sooner your money goes. By allowing the foreigner to sell us all these things at about half the cost price, he is getting richer every day,and we are getting poorer. Unless we, as a country, insist on paying at least twenty per cent. more for everything we want, it is calculated that in a very few years England won’t have a penny left. - Idle Ideas in 1905, Jerome K. Jerome
24 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
My routine gets discombobulated when there are holidays. I knew that most businesses would be closed on Christmas Day, which would have been my usual shopping day, so I thought it best to go today. My first stop was to be at Café Olé for breakfast but they were closed.
I was almost sure that Denny's would be open so stopped there. Went inside and waited to be seated for as long as my patience could withstand then left. Went to Fry's and got my groceries and decided that there were two restaurants on the route back to the Park. I would stop at the first one found open and if none were I would make breakfast at home.
The Landmark was open so that is where I had breakfast this morning. Got their California Omelet with their good home fries. Not much a crowd, I was tempted to go back to Denny's and tell the people standing in line that there was a restaurant that was open and staffed to serve them at the west end of Fry Blvd.
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of the crime novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an attempted murder inspired by the legend of a fearsome, diabolical hound of supernatural origin. Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson investigate the case. This was the first appearance of Holmes since his apparent death in The Final Problem, and the success of The Hound of the Baskervilles led to the character's eventual revival.In 1999, it was listed as the top Holmes novel, with a perfect rating from Sherlockian scholars. - Edited Wikipedia
25 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
MERRY CHRISTMAS
I hope everyone that may be reading this posting has a wonderful day.Patches and I will be doing the same things that we do most days. I have started to set up the third pixel art drawing in the series of four. Also started reading a new book.
I cannot conscientiously recommend it for any useful purposes whatever. All I can suggest is that when you get tired of reading "the best hundred books," you may take this up for half an hour. It will be a change. - Preface The Idle Thoughts Of An Idle Fellow, Jerome K. Jerome
A good start to some thoughts that are more serious than much of what Mr. Jerome wrote but he does include some funny segments.
There is no fun in doing nothing when you have nothing to do. Wasting time is merely an occupation then, and a most exhausting one.
As for cats, they nearly equal human beings for vanity. I have known a cat get up and walk out of the room on a remark derogatory to her species being made by a visitor, while a neatly turned compliment will set them purring for an hour.
I do like cats. They are so unconsciously amusing. There is such a comic dignity about them, such a "How dare you!" "Go away, don't touch me" sort of air. Now, there is nothing haughty about a dog. They are "Hail, fellow, well met" with every Tom, Dick, or Harry that they come across.
26 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The storm was blowing in almost all day yesterday but I saw no threatening clouds when we did our afternoon walk. Heard the first attempt to rain a little before 7:00 last night. I woke up a couple times during the night and could hear it softly raining. When we stepped outside this morning there was a mist which turned to sprinkles then to light rain. We got a little damp.
Total rain so far has been only 0.12" and the experts claim it will stop by 8:15 am. It is going is stay cold however with a forecast high to be 49. Slightly warmer tomorrow but freezing lows through the weekend and highs in the 40s. I think we will be getting some winter weather. Probably snow on the Huachuca Mountains this morning but will not know until the cloud cover lifts.
Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow, a collection of essays, was published in 1886. It was the author’s second published book and it helped establish him as a leading English humorist. While widely considered one of Jerome’s better works, and in spite of using the same style as Three Men in a Boat, it was never as popular as the latter. A second "Idle Thoughts" book, The Second Thoughts of An Idle Fellow, was published in 1898. The essays had previously appeared in Home Chimes, the same magazine that later serialised Jerome's Three Men in a Boat. - Edited WikipediaOne more quote from the book that has 14 essays with the last one, On Memory, being the best of them. A good read that is recommended.
..that the ever-lengthening chain of memory has only pleasant links, and that the bitterness and sorrow of to-day are smiled at on the morrow...It is this glamour of the past, I suppose, that makes old folk talk so much nonsense about the days when they were young. The world appears to have been a very superior sort of place then, and things were more like what they ought to be.
27 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
We continued to get rain showers throughout the day yesterday. I knew that my afternoon routes would be muddy so stayed in the Park. Got only a few sprinkles. It is mostly clear this morning but the forecast is a chance of rain tonight. The low was 33 this morning but the next 6 days are expected to be in the 20s. I have the basement heater connected.
I got the third in the series of four pixel art drawings set up and made good progress on getting it drawn. It is so easy compared to the Japanese themed one now that I have drawn two in the series. However, I'll be drawing the more difficult one today and for the next few days. Progress on it will be slowed by my usual month end house cleaning chores, shopping and a RV repair appointment.
That is about all I have on the agenda. More time on the couch with my Paperwhite and Patches. Maybe some batches of 'linner' cooking.
How the New Silk Roads are merging into Greater Eurasia, by Pepe Escobar is an article well worth reading. I quote the closing.
As Diesen notes, Russia and China have become inevitable allies because of their “shared objective of restructuring global value-chains and developing a multipolar world”. It’s no wonder Beijing’s drive to develop state-of-the-art national technological platforms is provoking so much anger in Washington. And in terms of the big picture, it makes perfect sense for BRI to be harmonized with Russia’s economic connectivity drive for Greater Eurasia.
That’s irreversible. The dogs of demonization, containment, sanctions and even war may bark all they want, but the Eurasia integration caravan keeps moving along.
28 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
Read Will Rogers column 88 years ago: December 28, 1930
The weather gurus called this one. The rain started a a few minutes after midnight adding 0.16" to the puddles in the Park. I may have too much mud for my usual afternoon routes and will be staying inside the Park again.
I was worried that there would be ice but the low was 33.4° and that happened in the early morning hours. It had warmed up to about 35 by the time we did our walk. That is the good news. The bad news, it is expected to reach a high today of 46, a low tomorrow morning of 24 and then a high of 43. I just hope there is enough sun today to dry the roads in the Park because I'm sure there will be ice tomorrow morning.
The Last Galley: Impressions and Tales is a volume collecting 18 short stories first published in 1911, also titled The Passing of the Legions.From the Preface Doyle wrote the following which I think describes historical fiction which had not become a genre quite yet. Doyle's series of short stories used the period of the Roman Empire for his historical background. Enjoyable and nothing Sherlockian about them.
The first half is made up of a series of pictures of the past which may be regarded as trial flights towards a larger ideal which I have long had in my mind. It has seemed to me that there is a region between actual story and actual history which has never been adequately exploited. I could imagine, for example, a work dealing with some great historical epoch, and finding its interest not in the happenings to particular individuals, their adventures and their loves, but in the fascination of the actual facts of history themselves.
The Federal Reserve Is A Suicide Bomber With A Deeper Agenda by Brandon Smith is an article well worth reading. I doubt that there are many people that will believe what he says but what if he is right?
Trump campaigned on the argument that the Fed was creating an artificial bubble in stocks through low interest rates. Then he took full credit for the stock market rally for the past two years. Now he is attacking the Fed for raising interest rates and causing markets to fall. It seems to me that the future mainstream narrative will read that a spoiled Trump caused the crash, blamed the “innocent” central bank that was only attempting to “normalize” the economy, and in the process made the situation even worse.
This is the closing of Paul Craig Roberts' blog posting, Blessed Are The Warmongers.
As evil spreads its dominion over the West, it is no longer the peacemakers who are blessed. President Trump’s desire to improve relations with Russia were rewarded by former CIA director John Brennan branding Trump a traitor. Trump’s decision to withdraw US troops from their illegal and defeated purpose in Syria resulted in Susan Rice, a former national security adviser, declaring Trump to be a threat to US national security. None of Trump’s enemies regard worsening relations with Russia to be a national security threat. It is peace that is declared to be the threat.
29 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
By mid morning yesterday the clouds had lifted from the Whetstone Mountains and I could see a dusting of snow. It was gone by noon but the snow level had come down to around 4,000' during the night. The rain we got was snow until it either hit the ground or had melted by 6:00 am yesterday.
I said that the low yesterday was 33.4° but that was in the morning it went down to 24.2 just before midnight last night. It was below freezing by 8:00pm. The low this morning was 21.2 which happened a couple hours before our walk. There was ice!
Only up to 28 by 8:00 this morning and I have frozen water lines. I was getting water earlier but the continued cold has finally froze them. The basement heater is working and hopefully will protect the water manifold but it can not keep all the lines from freezing. Snow in the forecast this afternoon, it looks like it is snowing now in the Huachuca Mountains.
I got the bathroom cleaned, floors washed and living room vacuumed yesterday. If it will warm up some today I'll get Desperado's windows washed and the dash wiped down. I also need to dump holding tanks and add fresh water. The weather forecast being what it is I don't have much to choose from doing it today or tomorrow. Will try and get it done today.
Sears, America’s iconic but bankrupt department store chain, passed a critical milestone Friday when a deadline for potential buyers to submit bids on its assets passed.
On a much grander scale, the same thing is true for the nation as a whole. During 2018, we were able to kick the can down the road a little bit longer by adding nearly 1.4 trillion dollars more to the national debt. State and local government debt loads are at record levels, corporate debt has doubled since the last financial crisis, and U.S. consumers are more than 13 trillion dollars in debt. The name of the game is “extend and pretend”, and the only reason why we have been able to enjoy a standard of living that is far, far greater than we have earned is because we have been able to borrow giant mountains of money at super low interest rates. But now interest rates are starting to climb, and our unsustainable debt levels are becoming increasingly overwhelming. Just like Sears, it is inevitable that we will experience our own day of reckoning. - Death Of An Icon, Michael Snyder
News that the Lame Stream Media will ignore or do their best to spin as more proof that we are all going to die because of 'climate change'.
The year will not only set a record for zero “violent” tornadoes — those ranked EF4 or EF5 on a 5-point scale — but will likely also set a record for the fewest “intense” tornadoes (F/EF3+). With just three days to go, 2018 has seen only 12 intense tornadoes in the U.S., three fewer than the record-holding year of 1987, which had 15.
Unsurprisingly, the number of tornado deaths in 2018 is also remarkably low at ten and could also turn out to be a record.
Climate alarmists will have to scramble to explain to the public how the declining number of intense tornadoes is really caused by global warming, which they will undoubtedly do. - 2018 First Year Ever with No Violent Tornadoes in the United States, Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.
30 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
We had snow showers off and on for most of the day yesterday. Desperado's water lines thawed out but the tank was very low and needed to be filled. When I went out to add water I found that the Park faucet was frozen and I did not have enough hose to use the one in one space over that was protected and unfrozen. Finally around 3:00 in the afternoon mine thawed out and I was able to fill the tank. I put off dumping which I'll do when I return from shopping.
Our afternoon walk was shortened to about half its normal distance. We started out with a few snowflakes floating through the air and finished in a wind blown blizzard. I looked like a walking snowman and Patches was doing the dog shaking thing every minute or two. We cut the walk short this morning also. The streets in the Park were very wet late in the afternoon and temperatures fell to freezing soon after we quit. There was ice, lots of ice, including the inside of Desperado's windows plus my door latch was frozen shut and the steps would not fully retract!
Went to town with my first stop at the laundromat. While the laundry was going through its cycles I got this posting started. When wash-n-dry was finished I went to Café Olé and got their Mexican Scramble, Chorizo-n-Eggs with homefries and refried beans, the dish that my usual server tells me that I want before I sit down.
A stop at Fry's where I filled Desperado's tank with gas. Then filled the refrigerator and cupboards with groceries. The sun was doing it job well leaving the roads dry and all the visible snow gone from the Whetstone Mountains. There was still some snow in the Park on the northwest side of anything that provided shade but the streets were clear except for pools of standing water.
Only expecting a high of 46° today but with sunny conditions the snow will be gone by tomorrow. A low this morning of 23.8 but much warmer tomorrow morning if the forecasters are right. Still expect it to freeze so I'll plug the basement heater in again. It is a bother but not nearly as much as a frozen water manifold.
The title story could have been published as a novella but there were 5 other short stories included in the book that was downloaded from Gutenberg. All of them are good but the detective story is certainly Sherlockian.Though Jerome K. Jerome is best remembered as a humorist, his fiction spans numerous genres, as evidenced by the diversity of the tales published in the collection Malvina of Brittany. A highlight is The Street of the Blank Wall, a classic detective story that will please fans of Sherlock Holmes. - Book proma @ Overdrive
31 December
Quail Ridge RV Resort
Huachuca City, AZ
The low this morning was 27.3° a little below the forecast and it happened before we went for our walk. Maybe more rain and snow tonight and tomorrow with the expected high to be only 41. The forecast low for the morning of 2 January is 18 or 23 depending on who is doing the guessing. Either guess is cold and there will be ice. I sprayed my door latch with WD40 hoping the claim that it drives out moisture works and it does not freeze closed again.
I did no pixel art drawing yesterday and probably will not do any today. I have a RV repair appointment and then a quick trip into town to my UPS Store to pick up a prescription from the VA. I also have to do another month's of Will Rogers weekly articles. There is also the time that will be spent with Patches and my Paperwhite while on the couch.