My Desultory Blog

Posted By RichC on June 4, 2023

You would have to know my penny-pinching personality to truly understand my frustration over gasoline prices, but these receipts had me pulling out my hair.

A little pretext: My wife has ALWAYS only purchased Shell gasoline for her cars. No matter the price, she always goes to Shell and has been loyal for decades. Over the years, I’ve suggested that she might want to occasionally fill up where the price is a little lower, but even as the price differential started to be noticeable in the final tally, she stayed loyal. 

In November, we joined Costco and both of us have enjoyed shopping there. When I’m driving a “gas” car (ie. Florida), I’ll fill up at Costco in Delray Beach and she noticed that there was a significant difference in price between Costco (plus percentage for Costco branded Citibank credit card) and the local stations. So she decided to give it a shot this week for her Acura RDX (premium or occasionally mid-range). As someone who is always. on GasBuddy checking prices (see 2008 post for a smile), I was pretty happy about this … BUT I did not realize Costco prices there Regular gasoline MUCH lower than their PREMIUM gasoline (they don’t sell diesel so can’t fill my BMW X5 35d).

This only came to light because she needed to get to an appointment when her tank was empty and so decided to add $10 at the local Shell station before she would be near the new Costco in West Chester, Ohio. Since it was only going to be a couple gallons, she selected mid-grade and paid $3.919. The next day she stopped as planned at the Costco where the REGULAR was priced $3.159 and proceeded to fill up with PREMIUM .. where it was priced $4.149 (nearly $1 more than Regular). So much for any savings or convincing her to fill up at a station other than Shell … pretty depressing for a penny-pincher. 

Category: Acura, Automotive, Financial, Misc, Shopping | No Comments »
Tags: acura, costco, gasoline, mid-grade, premium, rant, receipts, shell

Posted By RichC on June 3, 2023

What a super nice office and comfortable place for Taylor to work. I find myself envious of his new position as “Director of Planning and Zoning” in Batavia Township, Ohio.

As a parent, it is rewarding to see your children excelling in their careers and appreciated by those they work for and with. I’m confident that Taylor is a perfect fit for his new position and that his skills (and personality) are an exact fit for the residents of Bataivia Township. I’m sure that I will continue to remind him that he is service them … spoken like a small government conservative.  😉  

Category: Archive, Misc, Personal, Photos | No Comments »
Tags: batavia township, career, director, family, goverment, office, planning, taylor, zoning

Posted By RichC on June 2, 2023

It seems like a shorter than usual week (it was with Memorial Day), so I’m tossing in a Friday Filler video and a #DDJ below the break that is sure to make most of us smile.
 

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Category: Entertainment, Humor, Social Media, Video | No Comments »
Tags: animation, cute, ddj, father-son, filler friday, friday filler, mp4, social media

Posted By RichC on June 1, 2023

This is a lunchtime test post after the WP to Twitter API broken in mid-May 2023 (last @mydesultoryblog to Twitter was on May 19th). If all goes well, this will automate a tweet when a new post is generated as before. 

For the fun of it, here is the latest trending video on the news and social media. 
 

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Category: Blogs, Misc, Video | No Comments »
Tags: maintenance, mydesultoryblog, twitter

Posted By RichC on June 1, 2023

The previous “refined” Cornhole game project for my granddaughters worked out so well that I decided to make a modified set for Taylor’s birthday in June this year. Thankfully I started it early since I’m modifying the project just a little bit to work on mortise and tenon jointery … and have been busy outside (now I’m under time constraints).

A couple of years ago on different woodworking project, the handcut mortise tenon joints for an oak Bitty Baby doll crib project were impressively strong, but I really haven’t mastered them using a square-chisel mortiser and router table with a coping sled (was going to make one) for the tenons. After getting the hang of it on a few practice pieces (photo right), the repetitive process was much quicker and accurate; I can see why they are preferred in furniture construction. So far, so good as the lightweight folding leg glue-up is curing overnight.

The mortising part is relatively straightforward as once the depth stop is set, the center drill is lined up in the center punch location and each “square hole” is relatively easy to repeat. There is some bottom cleanup for each mortise with a 1/4” chisel, but the clear pine was easy to cut. Same for the router table cut tenons … a little clean up using a utility knife made quick work of them (photo). I am wondering if the clean up would have been less with a spiral router bit rather than straight?

Category: Woodworking | No Comments »
Tags: cornhole, game, granddaughters, jointery, mortiser, project, taylor, tenon, woodworking, workshop

Posted By RichC on May 31, 2023

One would think after twenty some years of pool ownership, I would have invested in a cement sidewalk (pool decking) edger. Nope … it was not something familiar to me since we have never lived on a city lot or had sidewalks. Now after 40 years of homeownership, I’ve finally broken down and spent $79.20 at Amazon for a Worx 12AMP electric edger (now priced $123.53) … for the sole purpose of cleaning up the overgrown edge of our pool decking. So far, it is a great product. 

A “most used” gadget for me is the Ember Coffee Mug that was a gift last year for Father’s Day. I use it twice each day … morning and evening … and it has been one of those premium gifts that is worth its expensive price. Thanks family! 

But, last month the “coaster” malfunctioned and I tried to fix it (the little spring contacts no longer “springs”). Eventually I contacted the company and they promised to replace the coaster. A few weeks went by and so I followed up with an email and received an apology back. Good company!

Thanks for checking in! It looks like there was a processing error which has since been corrected. Your order will be on its way shortly. My sincere apologies for the delay. Thanks again for your patience and have a great one!

Stay Warm,

Ember

Category: Advice, Gadget, Photos, Shopping, Tools | No Comments »
Tags: coffee, ember, gadget, lawn, ledger, mug, pool, replacement, warranty, worx, yard

Posted By RichC on May 30, 2023

The next time the LED chip malfunctions or “burns out,” I may try this hack … although instead of taping on a piece of foil … I think I’ll use solder. 

Category: How-To, Repairs, Tidbits, Video | No Comments »
Tags: dremel, fix, hack, led, lightbulb, mp4, repair

Posted By RichC on May 29, 2023

This content is restricted.

Category: AI, Holiday, Music, Technology | No Comments »
Tags: america, band, chatgpt, here, Memorial Day, mp3, music monday, musicmonday

Posted By RichC on May 28, 2023

The “hold” for the ebook by Yeonmi Park titled “While Time Remains” became available this past weekend and even though I haven’t finished the last book I started; I guess I’m going to “start” another anyway (it is a “forever problem” — start a book, but never finish it). 

From all the interviews of her that I’ve watched and read, her insight from the perspective of someone growing up and living under the brutal Communist regime in North Korea, and now on what she is currently seeing in America is disturbing. Those of us who are watching the weaponization of government by power-seekers from the political left need to push back a little harder … especially at the ballot box. But more than that, we need to stop the brainwashing and leftist indoctrination by our education system and stop this growing dependence on government. I suspect I’m in agreement with Ms. Park, but her book should be an interesting read.

The North Korean defector, human rights advocate, and bestselling author of “In Order to Live” sounds the alarm on the culture wars, identity politics, and authoritarian tendencies tearing America apart.

After defecting from North Korea, Yeonmi Park found liberty and freedom in America. But she also found a chilling crackdown on self-expression and thought that reminded her of the brutal regime she risked her life to escape. When she spoke out about the mass political indoctrination she saw around her in the United States, Park faced censorship and even death threats.

In “While Time Remains”, Park sounds the alarm for Americans by highlighting the dangerous hypocrisies, mob tactics, and authoritarian tendencies that speak in the name of wokeness and social justice. No one is spared in her eye-opening account, including the elites who claim to care for the poor and working classes but turn their backs on anyone who dares to think independently.

Park arrived in America eight years ago with no preconceptions, no political aims, and no partisan agenda. With urgency and unique insight, the bestselling author and human rights activist reminds us of the fragility of freedom, and what we must do to preserve it.

Category: Books, Education, Politics | No Comments »
Tags: ebook, elections, indocrination, north korea, Politics, reading, schools, voting, yeonmi park

Posted By RichC on May 27, 2023

Once again, politicians are taking our US SPENDING and BORROWING problem right to the wire. Everyone knows that eventually politicians will just raise the debt ceiling and borrow more. The Republicans want spending cuts and the Democrats want a “clean increase” so as to be able to pay promised liabilities (previous spending) and we all know they want to spend more. In other words, the credit card is maxed out and need a higher limit so politicians can borrow and make the payment on the credit card balance they owe … and then some. Our fiscal insanity is enough to drive normal budget oriented people crazy.

As of 25 May 2023, the U.S. debt ceiling is $31.38 trillion, which means that the Treasury Department is not allowed to go into debt beyond a certain limit unless explicitly authorized by lawmakers. However, the amount stipulated in late 2021 has been exceeded since January 19. While the debt ceiling was not suspended this year, financial maneuvering, also referred to as extraordinary measures, has been keeping the U.S. from defaulting on its debt. — Statista.com

BUT … is this borrowing problem today really the biggest problem. Probably not. That will be Social Security and Medicare in 2031and beyond. This makes me think, perhaps those elgible for Social Security should start collecting a smaller monthly check before it becomes significantly less than promised? (currently, delaying Social Security beyond ones FRA is worth an addition 8% per year!) 

As a result, the CBO is expecting that Social Security benefits will need to be cut by 31% beginning in 2031 if no changes are made to the program.

ThinkAdvisor.com

The Tax Foundation laid out the Social Security and Medicare predicament this week as Speaker McCarthy quarrels with the President Biden over cutting spending and raising the debt ceiling. If it is this difficult to agree on some restraint to spending, it doesn’t look good when it comes to the proverbial untouchable Third Rail of Politics (aka: Social Security and Medicare – its political suicide).

An aging U.S. population and a declining worker-per-retiree ratio (now only 3 to 1) have contributed to the cost of financing Social Security and Medicare. Under current law, Medicare’s Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will be insolvent by 2031, and Social Security’s Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) Trust Fund by 2033. Without reforms, Social Security benefits would be automatically reduced across the board by 20 percent, and Medicare hospital insurance payments would be cut by 11 percent. Absent any reforms, the 2023 Trustees Report shows that a significant payroll tax hike of 4.2 percent would be required to close the current funding gap for OASDI and Medicare.

Given the dire outlook presented in the Trustees Report, policymakers must reform these programs to ensure their long-run stability. Below, we briefly review various proposals over the past decade to reform Social Security and Medicare. The list is not exhaustive, but it illustrates the possibility of tackling this issue with a measured and bipartisan approach..

Conclusion

While policymakers should also continue to focus on wasteful and counterproductive discretionary spending that continues to raise deficits, we should not lose sight of the fact that Social Security and Medicare are the largest contributors to our growing deficit and debt crisis. For too long politicians on both sides of the aisle have chosen to ignore the problem. The risks to our economy will only continue to grow the longer we wait to address them.

See Tax Foundation article 

Category: Financial, News, Politics | No Comments »
Tags: debt ceiling, economy, government, medicare, social security, spending, tax foundation, taxes