my journal: various subjects, opinionating, CW at times

@slowdecline48 😁😂 It was a pretty weird movie 

ACCIDENTAL HUMOR

Gotta say I'm surprised this post is still up!...

The 7Cups algorithm is rather primitive, isn't it?

LATE-NIGHT THOUGHTS, & A LITTLE DRUM-POUNDING

So the realtor & I started the ball rolling yesterday afternoon.

It will be a major life change, yes indeed... Gonna renew the lease one last time for the minimum period. Turns out it's seven months, not six. The rent will go up a little but I'm not sweating it. I'll stay in this place through hurricane season, but what I'm really paying for is time. Which I will put to good use. A move like this will require some serious preparation...some judicious purchases for needs, not wants (think canned foods, medical/first aid items, soap bars, bug repellent, etc). And a lot of work, as the more necessary things I build & not buy means more money saved. Also for skill review & development. Because when you go out into the bush (or the desert, swamp, etc.), what keeps you alive is focus & skills, not gear.

It will be a major adjustment. No doubt there will be rough days. Some days I'll have flareups & not be able to do much. That can't be helped. But by now I know what to expect & how to handle it...have even gotten used to it, somewhat.

I'm not the biggest, strongest, or fastest for the kind of venture that is coming...also I am no longer young. It will be difficult...at times, very difficult. But I believe I am up to the challenge. I have some unusual skills, & a few more tricks in my bag than most. Also experience: I lived out in the sticks for over two years, & have been on the streets three times. The less new you are to something, the better your chances.

So many years of freelancing, a few years hustling as a vendor, so many getting-by jobs, moving around, living tight...then discovering one of the cooks at the nearby WaHo is also a realtor (!)...all the years & all the miles wandering up to this point. I am so godd*mn hungry for it now.

This move & eventual build will be most challenging but I'm going ahead with it anyway. I will either succeed & eventually have a house & other things for self-sufficiency, or d!e trying. If it's the latter then I'm fine with that. We all gotta kick the bucket sooner or later, after all...the only choice left to us is the way we d!e. I'd rather d!e with my boots on. It's the only way to go, in my book. And when I go, let it be on my own land as a master of my domain instead of in some ratty little 1BR place, only discovered rotting in the hallway a few weeks after missing the rent.

...yes, it is coming. And my time is now.

@slowdecline48  OMG This is awesome news Slow! Congratulations! 😀 

@mytwistedsoul Thanks. Yup...one day my lifestyle may be similar to yours.

"happy dance"...

@slowdecline48 😀 definitely gotta do the happy dance! 😂  I know there's  alot of work a head of you but you took that first step! And the lease gives you time to start getting things together and making plans 

[CW: VIDEO LINK, HORROR, "ADULT" SUBJECTS]

This song is inside my head now for no reason at all:

Feed My Frankenstein (the best cover!)

@slowdecline48 I was just listening to this earlier! 😂

@mytwistedsoul 😆 Great minds...

More Commentary on America's Decline, My Thoughts

[CW: A FOUL WORD, MY OPINIONS] (the latter probably always need a warning in here)

Also, re Trump's calling Biden a "bad Palestinian" (the article is here):

Trump's coarseness aside, CAIR has no business criticizing him since CAIR & other outfits like it have been perpetrating antizionism and antisemitism since day one. The belief system they represent requires it, since its theological validity depends on invalidating Christianity & Judaism &, in practice, subjugating Christians & Jews. Also, "Islamophobia" is a term of casuistry. It is used as a rhetorical weapon by CAIR, ISNA & similar US-based orgs to deflect & suppress any criticism of their faith, regardless of whether said criticism is valid or not. That's not to say that prejudice against their faith communities doesn't exist; it does & it's wrong. A more valid (& honest) term would be "Muslim-phobia".

Does anyone remember Run-DMC? I sure do...

....errrgh. Getting old is not as much of a blessing as people say it is...

Some nights it's still "whubfug"

[CW: DEATH, TENTATIVE DESCRIPTION OF]

Last night was a bit rough but now it's over & gone, as all things eventually are.

Immediately after waking up, I caught a quick visualization of one of the possible ways I'll be removed from the census...image inside my head: a half-rotted skeleton dressed in homespun clothing, slumped on the ground under a tree. It was obvious that I'd gone to the tree, sat down in the shade under the canopy & never got up again.

Also instantly knew that it was my tree on my land.

🤔 ...Not a bad way to go, all things considered. It's rather pleasant.

I'd prefer to be sitting at my drafting table or collapse while working on something in my home shop but if that's the way my life sub will run out, I'll take it.

from the Chronic Cooking Dept.:

Started this about four nights ago...it took just over 24 hours to finish. Unfortunately I didn't have any carrots or potatoes at the time, but I did throw in some lentils in the last 20 minutes. Also, part of the base stock was peposo. If you don't know what that is, keep following this journal & the next time I make it, there will be pics. Anyway the stew turned out well...better than expected, in fact.

@slowdecline48 Always! Cause you never know when the next plandemic might happen 😉 

Or the next civil disturbance in cities across the nation, after a dubious shooting by a cop or some other incident that gets fanned into a brushfire by our scandal-driven news media... Tbh I'm not too worried about C0vid or similar outbreaks. So often the real danger is not the disaster itself, but public reactions to it.

@slowdecline48 Looks good! Kind of like chili 

@mytwistedsoul Chili would be a good idea in January, now that I think about it...

@slowdecline48 Yeah it's alittle to hot out for chili now. It freezes pretty good though 

Signed the lease today. I have seven more months in this crackerbox, with a rent increase. But as long as I remember why I signed, it'll be okay. What I am buying is time.

Time to let Beryl & whatever other storms come this year pass through. Time to do what I have to (one of the first tasks: finish the bike trailer mod. Pics will follow!)... Time to pick whichever parcel I like, assemble the funds, sign the paperwork & get it. Time to take a few trips to wherever it will be, & get to know the place...& if possible, start building small but necessary things there before I even move.

The day after I leave this anthill, I'm gonna post the review it deserves on G00gle Maps....maybe even on Yelp.

Got my work cut out for me now. I may or may not be here all that often for the rest of the year & a while after January. It all depends on how things go. If you make a sacrifice to whatever god(s) you venerate for me, I would be grateful. I'd really appreciate it if your chosen deity happens to be Bacchus.

@slowdecline48 I can't say I won't miss seeing you around Slow. Maybe throw us a bone every now and again to let us know how it's going ? Stay awesome 😎 

A sacrifice? I got you covered 😂 

@mytwistedsoul 😆 I'll try. If the Sometimer's* disease doesn't kick in I may post snapshots of my preps & projects for the move, if anyone is interested.

*That is a perfect word you coined. It sums up bad short-term memory so well.

@slowdecline48 I'd definitely be interested in seeing how things are coming along. You don't have to worry about swamp puppies where you going to be building do you? Or those big man eating snakes? 😅 I frickin' hate snakes *shudders* 

It works doesn't it?  Cause sometimes we forget 😂😂 

Not too much. I'm more worried about insects than anything else, particularly mosquitoes & ticks. Swamp puppies can appear anywhere in Floridastan, but the little ones are nothing to fear unless you're a Chihuahua or similarly-sized dog. 😃

@slowdecline48Yeah you never know what the mosquitos and ticks will give you these days if they bite you. Anything from dengue to something that makes you allergic to meat

it's always fun when I forget how the forums work *smh* 😅 sometimers in action!  They've even found swamp puppies in Pa recently. Probably people letting them go as pets - unless they're migrating too 😬

The gators are running north to get away from Florida Man.

@slowdecline48 😂 You could be right! There's some really "unique" people in Florida. I've read the stories 😁 some people spent too much time in the sun and it's melted their brain 

[CW: my political opinions, again]

For the most part I don't respond in these threads, though. Tribal-minded partisan fools never change.

from an article Do you have enough to feel financially prepared in case of an emergency? in consumeraffairs.com. It's good for basic guidance

As someone with chronic conditions & a little more economic & financial literacy than the average bear, I can tell you this:

Considering current inflation & probable economic trends for the rest of the year & 2025, it is obvious that $5,078 is strictly in the "better than nothing" category. For an emergency nest egg, if you're a single adult you should have $10K stacked up. If you have a spouse $15K is likely the bare minimum; $20K is best but if you can, try for $17.5 to $18K. If you have dependent children you should hold another $6K per head, at least.

I am well aware that quite a few people here either don't have an emergency fund at all or have nowhere near $5,078. Do what you can in your situation. Even a bunch of tens or twenties folded up inside a mint tin is still better than nothing if you have a sudden expense. But an ambulance ride can cost $3,000+...that's just the trip itself. A hospital stay or major car repairs can easily cost more than that. Which is why you need a nest egg. Right now is a great time to have a savings account with a higher interest rate than a typical retail bank will offer. Do your research & you'll find something for your needs (Investopedia has sections on financial guidance & planning. That would be a good start) But if you don't have a nest egg & you are able to save anything--even five bucks a month--then do it. And start putting it away.

Trust me on this, folks.

@slowdecline48

Yes I agree definitely more is better. 

Financial uncertainly is more than ever an issue and the inflation and shrink flation on food in Canada is making food insecurity a thing for so many people here. 

My son is in Engineering and even with a career set forth it maybe difficult to rent even or much less own a home unless very careful planning financially. 

Even putting a modest amount of $ invested when you begin work pay yourself first is a great idea. 

My child and grand children will have a tougher path definitely. 

I am lucky to be retired, saved well and have a pension. 

More than once in my thirties, I thought about traveling the world...Europe, Asia, maybe parts of Africa if they were safe enough to go. While I'd still like to see some parts (particularly Italy, maybe Spain), things have changed. My age, my priorities...& certain trends, which are fairly new but also age-old.

With regret, I must say that despite being partly of mixed Celtic descent, I can never go to Ireland. Or to England.

@slowdecline48

Travel as I age has changed bc if how I can get around ie walking or interest in what areas have changed bc of the world situation more of the world is less safe for various reasons. 

I am from Canada 🇨🇦 I travel to USA and my own country preferred now. 

I am Irish ☘️ descendant from Cork still got the accent lol 😂 and French descendant from the French islands of Newfoundland that still belong to France …

@SunShineAlwaysGrateful It's been a minute since I last saw you in here. Welcome back. How have you been?

Glad to be back life is settling thankfully and going to focus on the 50 plus community mostly …

Very glad to see you still writing … love it !

Thank you 😎

So I finally narrowed down the number of available properties to four.

I tried to boil it down to three but I just couldn't manage it. So many factors to consider, almost all of which tie into location & how much land I'll be sitting on. It's complicated!

Once I sort of figured it out, I e-mailed my agent & included the list. We'll see what happens, & when I can take a look at these places. Gonna hafta do more research before then. My work is never done.

@slowdecline48 Hey congratulations! 😀 You probably haven't seen it just yet tho lol but congratulations 🎉