So far, in the circle of friends, clients and coworkers it is. I'm starting to see more folks wearing masks in public places, especially grocery and department stores.
Most say it's flu-like symptoms while one customer of mine said it's kicking her arse right now and cancelled all appointments.
I live in Palm Beach County and sewage water testing for coronavirus is higher than last year and after months of declining vaccinations, it's reported people have started again. Yeah, it appears they check poop for virus.
South Florida has tourism and people coming here for the winter, so we get an influx of travelers. I went on a sales call to see clients after they returned from vacation... I waited a few days to book the appointment just to be sure they didn't get sick along the way and pass it around as another stop was to a client who recently had a newborn.
I'm considering masking-up when I meet new clients.
Is COVID on the rise? It would appear COVID or a variant is making the rounds again.
I used to watch the TV show (also on YouTube) about people who were life-long hoarders taking it to the extreme. Last week, I attended a swap meet for people in the model aircraft hobby and remember many vendors who brought out the same stuff that didn't sell in last years swap meet.
I stopped going the ham radio festivals as the percent of used junk exceeded the new products. Sure, it's a way for someone to find a good deal on a part or hard-to-find radio tubes and it's probably a big social event to meet up with people you have talked to on the radio, but have no other connection with. Toward the end of the event, you can see them boxing all the things that didn't sell and bringing them back home.
An old friend works for an electronics firm and scours booths selling components he can sell in his business. Some connectors made 20 years ago are higher in quality than the new products.
I had a few computer monitors that were perfect for design drawings as the aspect ratio was equal to a sheet of paper. Using them daily and the capacitors in the power supply would fail. I found a guy who repaired them for a reasonable cost. His shop was filled to the ceiling with stacks of dead PC's. I went back to see him after COVID and the shop was closed. Brown paper covering the windows and a FOR RENT sign on the door.
Maybe he was able to recycle some of those electronic parts. I've seen videos where they process the gold plated contacts removing the gold so it can be reclaimed and sold for a profit. Probably the cases can be sold as scrap metal.
I've got a few small model helicopters I used for learning, some are still in working condition... but I moved on to bigger and better. I'll probably take them to one of the flying fields with a sign FREE in hopes I can unload them and stop hoarding them.
It's not money (loss or gain) but releasing stuff I have been keeping in inventory.
Now that I'm getting back to music, some of the gear I've been holding on to for years will become useful to me and I won't have to buy stuff again.
Maybe you're familiar with the site gofundme where people can donate money for a specific cause. For example, someone involved in a hit-and-run accident and needs money to pay for medical expenses. They, or someone opens a 'go fund me' account to collect money to offset the medical expenses. They list a specific goal amount of money needed.
Mentioned in another blog, Elena Cardone, wife of real estate millionaire Grant Cardone, opened a gofundme account with the goal of $355,000,000. needed to offset the recent court judgement for crooked Donald's corporation.
Elena is reaching out for donations.
I first heard about it and the fund had raised $265,066. where one guy donated $5,000.
Checking today, the total raised is $932,711. The highest donation listed is Anonymous at the amount of $10,000. There are a few $5,000 and lots of $1,000. and that seems to majority of large donations.
I scanned the list to see people donating in $5 increments. How they got to $11 could mean someone only gave him a buck!
If you feel strongly about this go to the
fund yourself and pledge some money...
Not everyone is cut out for the positions they hold in business. One business owner I worked for often used the term Peter Principal where some people rise to a position where they begin to show incompetence.
One woman I knew was the best draftsperson in the department and received a promotion that put her in a management position. The company did a disservice to her and themselves. Orders began to back up as she trained her replacement and she wasn't knowledgeable with the workings of the company, making a few bad decisions. Happy with the pay increase, uncomfortable with the demands of her new job, she felt she couldn't step down (as there was no longer a place for her) and decided to leave the company.
Lose/lose for her and the company who employed her.
Another boss was nice enough to use the phrase "We're all wired differently" describing how he tried to place people in the best positions they were suited for. We had one cabinet maker who owned his own custom shop. His business failed, not because he was a bad cabinet maker... he was very experienced and produced high-quality work. His weakness was an inability to manage the business end of his company. Working for someone else was the magic formula.
I think everyone has experienced a dyslexic moment now and then and accidentally transposed an address or some part of a phone number. Every week, I get mail in my box intended for a neighbor. In that case, it's laziness or fatigue. Sorting mail and being dyslexic would be a career disaster.
30+ years ago, I worked for a place before they went on computer where the bookkeeper constantly transposed figures. Mistakes were in her typing, hand written notes, especially phone messages, but the worst part was her accounting errors. It frustrated the owner for the time lost going back over ledgers correcting her mistakes. They photo copied all the checks and he had to go back to see there she transposed entries.
The position required multitasking that she wasn't good at, compounded by lots of interruptions of a small office where she would get flustered when things got really busy. It was more than dyslexia as she would often put callers on hold and totally forget them. They would call back angry!
I suppose there is hope for dyslexia.
Dyslexics of the world…..
UNTIE!!!!
I studied Uilleann (Irish) pipes in a former life and pipers often talked about their 'big gig' was to play in a pub on St. Patrick's Day. Some made the most money on that event, more than any other performance.
Good music, great craic... lots of brew.
I quick scanned the forums and blogs, but not to see any mention of this holiday today.
Tradition for those living in Chicago is to witness them adding dye into the river!
I see in the news, Russian president Vladimir Putin is up for reelection and there is no one (who survived) who is running against him. He's expected to win the election this week, making it his 7th consecutive term.
That means parades and parties in the street to celebrate...
When I joined CS, there were complaints about 'how good things used to be' with the old timers. During the 'newbie week' before I was allowed to blog, I went through old blogs. Lots of old blogs. There were episodes of gossip, biting and back stabbing back then... pretty much what all social media sites have to endure. Collectively, we are all in different age groups, have economic differences, language and cultural differences as CS's reach is global. In the right state of mind, it's a sharing of differences and ideas. In the wrong state of mind it a separation.
Someone did a Facebook page where they clipped headshots of members showing them in less than positive settings. Obviously, there was sufficient issues then to prompt a tattle-tale page away from CS.
The site I was on before CS closed down was a fun place to blog and get along. Loosely managed, the administrator couldn't keep up removing scammers and hackers, so he assigned the URL to another dating site. I received a text invitation from a friend to join CS. To my surprise many of the members from that site were here long before me and I knew there were complaints from a few of the older members, how they said the new wave was different and didn't fit in. As a group (regardless of personality) they/we were disliked. That was no secret and some were blatant to voice their dislike for members who weren't in their clique.
Over time, many of the original members have moved on, so have the ones from the other site. Remember Willy? His escape from CS was an untimely death. We agreed to disagree on many levels, but I still miss him.
What is remaining from the original CS group are some venom filled complainers, especially one scornful gossiper from the Emerald Isle. You would think there would have been some acceptance for the second wave. Not true, they still hold a grudge and take swipes (especially at me) regurgitating their dislike whenever they can.
Being friendly doesn't work.
Being funny, doesn't work either.
Ignoring them, doesn't work as they complain about that too. It seems battling with other bloggers gives them pleasure.
Saying nice things to other members is an invitation to get your head chopped off and others in the fray will piss on you and laugh.
Recently a member was booted out by administration, there must have been a reason. But, It doesn't matter how many people liked him, if what he said didn't agree with CS, they chose to close his profile. I believe their decision is final. There have been instances where a few waited a while and returned with sock profiles. Maybe they are under the radar of administration or quietly given a second chance.
That to me is really not important... either way.
Claimed by one, I write boring blogs and clip news articles, much the same as others, although he contradicts himself by posting similar boring things.
In closing this blog, I hope the instigators of hate will come to their senses and act like responsible adults and not 'shallow thought' gossip mongers. CS history records itself as the blogs of those who cause a ruckus often disappear and worse, their profiles go silent too.
Are your proud of your actions here?
Be an asset to CS and not a liability.
In the words of Rodney King: "Can we all get along?"
I'm the subject of false accusations on CS... again. Not the first time and my accuser has been the same person who has done this several times over the years.
Probably, two weeks ago, the profile of a regular blogger has gone quiet and the suspicion arose that I'm responsible for reporting this member.
Sorry to burst your bubble... FOR THE RECORD, I had nothing to do with it.
Around the same time his profile status changed, I noticed the disappearance of another member. I came home from meetings to see butcher had last commented on one of my blogs. When I clicked the blog to read his comment, it wasn't there. His profile appears to be closed.
So mysteriously 2 members have gone silent.
My suggestion to the person who is accusing me, is to stop your hate and paranoia. Seek professional help for your condition.
It's expected this blog will fuel another round of hate blogs in retaliation... so be it.
In the music news, Eagles band co-founder Don Henley was in court this week over a case where he clams handwritten notes used to craft songs from the 1976 album HOTEL CALIFORNIA had been stolen and sold at auctions. Three collectibles dealers Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski are on trial in this case.
Valued at more than $1 million, the defendants knew the materials were stolen, manufactured false provenance, lied to auction houses, potential buyers and law enforcement about the origin of the manuscripts.
This all started with author Ed Sanders, who had been hired to write a biography of the Eagles, were he allegedly had stolen them in the late 1970's and is said to have sold the manuscripts to Horowitz in 2005, who then sold them to Inciardi and Kosinski.
In this case, Sanders has not been charged with a crime. However, the means by which Sanders got the notes is essentially the question at the center of the case.
Henley testified that he gave Sanders access to his handwritten notes, but he never gave the writer permanent possession.
The attorney who is representing Kosinki, stated the defense rightfully owned the material and therefore were free to sell the papers. He claimed that Henley voluntarily provided the lyrics to Sanders.
The defendants opted to forgo a jury trial and the trial is expected to last for several weeks. The verdict will ultimately be decided by the judge. Obviously a lot at stake.
Hotel California is listed as the third-best-selling album of all time, certified platinum 26 times by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) having sold more than 32 million units worldwide.
I used to think the world was full of chronic complainers, but... the more I looked the more I found, so there must be room for more complainers...
Brian Butler, aka Trump Employee 5, is a central witness in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents investigation/indictment. Butler, was employed at Mar-a-Lago for 20 years, originally had an attorney provided by Trump, has his own attorney now and changed his story. He has spoken repeatedly with investigators as he unknowingly helped Walt Nauta deliver boxes of classified information from Mar-a-Lago to the former president’s plane in June 2022, headed to Trump's residence in Bedminster Country Club.
In and exclusive interview by Kaitlan Collins of CNN, Brian spoke out about the case and his involvement, stating he doesn’t believe the criminal case against Trump is a “witch hunt,” as the former president has claimed.
Interview here:
It's important to know, Trump's attorney had arranged a meeting with the FBI and that the search was no secret, different to Trump's claim. Also noted, Trump as former president has secret service when he travels and due to the level of top security, both local police and the governor of Florida were also informed of the search.
Trump is in need of quick cash and only a few wealthy people on the planet who can pull from their pocket to help him out on a loan. The Saudi Prince, Jared Kushner, Vladimir Putin, Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, Charles Koch... and Elon Musk of Tesla, SpaceX and Twitter/X fame.
It's reported this past Sunday, Elon was at Mar-a-Lago along with a few wealthy Republican donors to have a private discussion.
Kudos...
I'm thinking about the future and should Trump lose any of his federal cases, he would be officially convicted of a felony. Thus anyone fronting money (as in aiding and abetting) to a felon, it in itself is a crime.