The Storm

 Well, we had rain and it seems as if more rain is on the way... much more.  There is a storm transitioning up the eastern seaboard (nice of use of the word transition, eh?) that is apparently going to dump at least an inch more rain upon Central PA.  Temps will hover in the 40s (F).  Accuweather, however, seems to be on the fence with this one, since they're predicting only .20 of an inch of rain, yet they also saying that we should expect ponding in the roadways.  Every other weather report says the ponding is definitely going to happen.

I did work yesterday.  It was another meh day.  When I got to the flooring desk a rather pretentious couple was doing changes to their quote.  Big $$$.  Luckily for me they are not my customers, so all I had to do was sit there for a few moments and listen to them dictate exactly what they wanted to happen.  Let me append that sentence, she was dictating, he was on his phone.  I chuckled when I overheard him say that "he was setting the record straight."  I also chuckled when she said they would return to the store today so her father could pay for the install in order for them to take advantage of his military discount.  For that to happen, their quote needs to be in his name, which means it will have to be rebuilt, a rather time consuming process.  I'm so glad I don't work today.

And Howie is not big enough to get things off the kitchen counters, and I don't mean pulling things off with his paws.  I know this because he pulled a squeaker from his squirrel and, rather than walk it out and put it into the trash, I set it on the counter.  Not 2 minutes later I heard him crunch, crunch, crunching on plastic.  Now it's out in the trash.  This also means nothing can be on the counters that he might catch his interest.  Biggie once ate an entire loaf of bread once, and while Howie is not as high as Biggie, he is longer.  Here he is in the kitchen.

And, in case you missed it, China increased tariffs for the United States to 125%.  They're going to stir fry the American economy.  At the same time they're doing this, they are negotiating with the EU, cutting back on tariffs.  There is some serous deal making going on with electric cars.  I understand China has also stopped taking orders for certain Tesla models (S and X) in China, which will help with EU electric car deal.  China is the largest market for Tesla.  That sound you hear in the background is Elonia sobbing.

And will the market rise or fall today?  Well, that Chinese tariff increase is probably going to put a damper on things, even if this storm moving up the eastern seaboard doesn't isn't as rainy as predicted.  More and more people are pointing out that the Orange Anus's Art of the Deal pause in tariffs was in reality the Art of the Steal.  They're trying to find out how many Republican congressmen and senators bought stock at the low price before the pause was announced.  Unfortunately for them it dropped fast yesterday, so their greed probably wasn't as satiated as they were hoping.  Oh, and don't worry, I suspect that the markets are going to keep dropping.  Remember, he has 6 bankruptcies on his resume.

Counter This

 First off, I was wrong about the weather.  It's supposed to be chilly willy today and warm, up into the 70s (F) tomorrow.  I can deal with this.  If the long range forecast is correct, our temps will be staying moderate for the foreseeable future.  While this is not good for the gas, electric, and home heating oil companies, it's great for consumers.  Perhaps if they had been more focused on Global Warming and less upon their own greed this pain to their bank accounts might have been avoided.  Good for us in the short term, probably bad for them in the long term.

The new monitor came yesterday.  It's bigger, though I tend to lose my mouse pointer from time to time, so I change it, made it bigger and bright purple.  We'll see if that helps.

Oh, and today is my birthday.  I'm 71 today.  If you listen closely, I'm sure you can hear my sister and brother laughing.  To celebrate, I'm going to make some cauliflower soup, and Lily and I will share some cake and ice cream.  Oh, and I'm probably going to the movies tonight.  And probably a haircut is on the agenda, as well as... gee, it looks like I'm going to be rather busy today.

And my new granite kitchen countertop has been installed.  I got a number of odd looks when I told people I wasn't going to personally pick out my slab, that I was more concerned with colors than pattern.  I wanted colors that coordinated with my pale yellow walls and backsplash, which is glass tiles with shades of pale blue and brown, with shiny copper highlights.  This is what I got.

And this is a good day to be a Democrat, or a Centrist, or an Independent American.  Republicans and staunch conservatives took it on the chin... well, they did win the governorship of Mississippi, but that was almost a done deal.  Not only did Ohio enshrine abortion rights into they constitution, they approved the domestic use of marijuana (private citizens can now own up to 5 plants).  In Kentucky, Democratic Governor Andy Basheer was re-elected by a large margin. That's right those conservatives in Mitch McConnell's state really like it when there's a Democrat in charge.  In Virginia?  Ouch.  Governor Glenn Youngkin's plans to become a presidential candidate ran off the tracks big time.  His conservatives lost control of both the State House and Senate rendering his agenda moot.  

Interestingly enough, I've not heard one of the losers in yesterday's elections cry out election fraud, most likely because Republicans that lost, lost big.  Will Republicans learn a lesson?  Absolutely not.  That would mean they'd made a mistake and were wrong, that they weren't reading the American people.  Honestly, by now you would think that most Americans realize that Republicans have absolutely no desire to read them, or understand them.  The only people Republicans are interested in representing are the very wealthy.

Surprise!

 The weather was nice yesterday.  Sixpence reported that the temps climbed up into the 70s (F) where he lives, well, those temps are hitting Central PA today and tomorrow.  Then, supposedly, we have a dip down into the 50s (F) before the climb back into the 60s (F).  I'm fine with that.

The retail business was slow yesterday.

The Orange Retailer I work for changed their scheduling system, from Kronos, to something else that's more cumbersome, probably to save money.  I used to be able to print off a copy of my schedule and hang it on my refrigerator... not any more.  They want us to use our phones.  I used to copy my schedule over into my Calendar, the one that has all of my appointments so I could see everything at a glance... not any more.  Associates aren't happy.  This reminds me a lot of when Microsoft released Windows 8 (?), an update that was touch screen oriented.  We Windows users all remember what a failure that was.

Rather than on 11/13 my new countertop is getting installed today, 11/7.  Surprise!  Yep.  I got a call, and 2 texts, from them.  One of our Kitchen Designers at my store who used to install countertops told me this happens if it's an easy install, and installations themselves are a bit slow.  So, when I finish this entry, I'm going to go down to the kitchen and disconnect the plumbing. 

And, since my birthday's tomorrow (cards, letters, and gifts are always appreciated) I bought myself a new computer / gaming monitor.  Actually, It's more of a necessity.  My aging Acer monitor has been having issues: random areas that go black for a few seconds and sometimes there's a black grid that covers an area of the screen, but never the same area.  It is 7 and a half years old, so I guess it's time.

And of course this happened yesterday.

Every time I got an update, I chuckled.  The Moral Degenerate was not happy.  His life is a shit show.  It always has been.  All the deceits he built is so-called financial empire are on full display proving he isn't even close to being the savvy billionaire his constant braggadocio led people to believe. 

This leads people to ask how he can be beating Biden in the polls.  Let me remind you, we're a year away from the election, that's important, but more important is the fact that people lie on polls.  This is why every election people scratch their heads and ask, "how could the polls have been wrong?"

The Orange Anus

 Monday!  The weather's supposed to be nice today and tomorrow, at least according to Accuweather.  Temps in the mid 60s (F) with overnight temps dropping into the mid 40s (F).  This is not bad at all for this time of year.  I mean, we're in November and, at least as far as the long range forecasts are concerned, our temps are going to hanging around in the same degree range.  

Retail was okay yesterday, at least in the morning.  Business slumped badly in the after.  We can blame that on football.  The Philadelphia Eagles were playing the Dallas Cowboys.  Not a big fan myself, but a lot of people consider the Eagles their home team even though they're over 2 hours away.  Anyway, by 4 in the afternoon the store was a ghost town, with the only customers being either soccer or cricket fans.  Yes, we do have cricket fans in the area, mostly Indians and Pakistanis.  

One of our kitchen designers used to install countertops for a living, so I've been plying him with questions about what to expect from next Monday.  He told me that I should expect the installation to take about 2 hours.  I had shown him my original design and he'd said "easy, peasy."  I measured well because when the tech came to build the template, his square footage and my square footage matched.  That rarely happens, mostly because most people measure once or twice.  I measured at least 10 times, not because I'm that detail oriented, but because I wanted to know how much it was going to cost up front.  The last thing I wanted was to get an additional charge because my measurements were inaccurate.

And for those of you who don't know, the Orange Anus is taking the stand this week as part of the penalty phase in his trial in New York City.  

Oh, dear, I hope that image was too graphic for those who are faint of heart, but let's face it, the time has come to call and anus and anus.  It might be today, golly, I hope so.  I understand there's some concern (understatement) from his allies that he might just explode when he begins to be squeezed because the truth is that he is anything but seedless, (that was just another one of his lies).  As a result, people in the courtroom will probably be juiced.

Or is it Ivanka that's going to be testifying today.  Ooops.  Let's be honest, she will have no problem stabbing Daddy, or her brothers in the back.  He groomed her well. 

I am an Extroverted Empath

 Well, the weather outside is delightful with the morning temp in the mid 40s (F).  Today's high temp is supposed to be in the mid 70s (F), and by Friday we should be in the mid 80s (F).  Over the weekend, however, the bottom is predicted to drop out with overnight lows in the mid to up 20s (F).  Yes, that's right, they're predicting us to be below freezing.  The time has come to move my garden hose down into the basement.

Remember, winter is less than 2 months away.

The measure tech came and measured for my new countertop yesterday morning with some sort of apparatus on a tripod that held a large tablet.  He used lasers, and took pictures, as well as the old reliable tape measure.  He would touch the screen and it would make short, high pitched beeps.  When he was done, I dragged my finger across the screen to sign my approval.  It took him all of fifteen minutes.  If there is an adjustment in my quote, I should be getting it today.  Installation is scheduled for November 7, the day before my birthday.

I stayed up late playing Starfield, mostly because I was told I'd get a nice ship if I finished a certain number of quests.  So, I completed them and got a very nice ship that has a crew of 5.  To be honest, however, the real reason I went to bed so late was because I was having fun playing the game.  It can be very addictive!  Because part of my character build is Empath, I can sometimes persuade characters to do what I want, without having to shoot them.  That sounds bad, but it is fun!  And, of course, the fact that I'm playing as a hot ginger doesn't hurt any.

And, of course, another Speaker candidate came and went yesterday.  The Republicans inability to choose an individual is becoming tedious.  One of the things I find truly amusing is that the Spawn of Satan, Donald J. Trump, is pulling their strings.  The fact that they are giving him this power tells you all you need to know as to what their ambitions are:  a socially conservative authoritarian government in which they constantly get to say "shut up, we're in charge."  This doesn't mean that they're completely out of touch with a majority of Americans, they simply don't give a shit.  In a country in which the majority is supposed to rule, they want a minority that can dictate.  They are going to try and ignore everything that doesn't fit into the mold they're trying to fill.  Get ready, when they fail their cult is going to go nuts.

Blizzards

 Outside, the weather is a brisk 44 (F) and those individuals who get paid lots of money to forecast heat waves and deep freezes are saying that today's the last cool day for a while.  Tomorrow the temps are supposed to climb up into the 70s (F), and by Friday we're supposed to top off at around 79 (F).  And no, for those of you who are desperately waiting for Indian Summer, this is not it.  As I've said before, Indian Summer only happens after the first frost, of course, now that we're beginning to deal with Global Warming, that might not happen until well into December.

I do get to go in and work today.  Hopefully it will be quiet.

I also get to call the granite people and select my slab.  I have the purchase order number to verify that I'm actually going to have it installed.  The installers will be here tomorrow to measure and build the template.  Then, if things go well, my new countertop will be installed in two weeks.  While a number of things need to be done by then, I don't foresee anything cataclysmic happening.  It's just painting and laying the vinyl plank flooring, which means crawling around.  Believe me, it's not the crawling around that bothers me, it's the standing up afterwards.

And I was down in York yesterday to lunch with my friend Betsy.  It's always Chinese buffet and Dairy Queen, and desert is always a Blizzard.  Yesterday I had a Royal New York Cheesecake blizzard.  It was okay.  I was thinking it would only be chunky pieces of cheesecake and I was wrong.  There was some strawberry sundae topping inside which wasn't to my liking.  I suppose that's because while growing up, my mom only bought two types of jelly, grape and strawberry.  Now I really don't like either.

Since it's now Monday, the clown show in Congress is going to start up again.  We've had enough of an intermission between acts.  Nine names are in the ring and, as far as I know, only one of them is what you might consider a moderate.  Whispers have it that Trump is still pulling the strings behind the scenes.  That wouldn't surprise me.  He represents the authoritarian dictatorship so many of them want.  The fact that he's a lying sack of shit means nothing to them, it's the power they believe he promises.

And, speak of the OA, I believe he's once again back in court today.  Tomorrow, his former attorney Cohn is supposed to testify against him.  I'm wondering if the two of them are going to come face to face in the courtroom.  Trump doesn't need to be there, but if he believes he can use it to bolster his campaign he'll put in an appearance.

  

Another One Bites the Dust

 We did have showers yesterday, not steady rains, just a brief period when parts of the veranda not covered by the maples out back was wet, and on the street out front you could definitely see that it was raining.  And then it stopped.  There is a 40% chance of rain today, but again it's only going to be sporadic showers... if that.

Everything has been set up with new countertop.  They're going to come to measure and make a template on Tuesday, and 2 weeks later it's going to be installed.  As a result, certain things need to be done in the next 14 days, like all of the painting needs to be done, and the floor should be installed.  I work better in the morning, meaning I'll probably be getting up well before dawn cracks across the horizon.  

I do get to go to work today.  Can you see the excitement in my words?  It won't be until this afternoon, which gives me time to take Lily for her walk, maybe get in 2 miles on the treadmill, and possibly do a little painting.  

And yesterday this happened.

That's right, another one of Trump's crooked lawyers bit the dust, pleading guilty to get a deal so his saggy butt wouldn't need to spend a single night in jail.  From everything that I've read, Cheesy was one of the architects, and now he's going to talk... or already has provided seriously incriminating information.  This also means that Trump's being rattled constantly, and when he gets rattled, so does his cult, especially those members of congress who believed he was going to give Republicans unlimited power.  Ouch!

I don't doubt for a second that those hard-liners who were pushing for Jimmy Jordan to be Speaker of the House are beginning to look back over their shoulders, because both Chesebro and Powell can name every single one of them who was involved in the insurrection.  I mean, that's why Jimmy had himself put in charge of a committee whose main job was to squelch such inquiries.  Personally, the more of them that go to jail, the happier I will be.  This is how the Republican Party dies, by it's own hand.

Kracks!

 The forecast for today is showers.  That's fine.  I'm off work.  Temps are supposed to climb into the low 70s (F), so maybe I'll get some yardwork done.  I find it difficult to believe we're this close to November and we have still not had a drop in temps.  While nighttime temps are dropping down into the upper 40s (F), during the day we're still climbing up into mid to upper 60s (F).  Not that I have a problem with those temps, as it adds up to a decrease in my heating bill.

So... my countertop has been reordered.  We're switching software (the reason my original order got lost... they think) and no one really knows what they're doing because we've had zero training.  Before the kitchen designers would key in shapes and sizes; not any more.  Now it's square footage and linear feet.  I somehow think I'm overpaying, but if I do they'll issue a credit.  And, speaking of credits, they credit off the first charge, now all I have to do is wait for hit to hit my account.  This is a common complaint among customers, that the Orange Behemoth I work for is quick to charge, and very slow to refund.  If you get a refund on a debit card, it can take almost a week to hit your account, yet that charge  is taken out instantly.  For those of you who don't know, this is what happens when greed takes over accounting.

And then yesterday this happened!  Sydney (aka Kraken) Powell took a plea deal and flipped on the Spawn of Satan.

I got that news flash right after I punched in at work.  As I walked through appliances, I said "good morning," to one very vocal Republican who barely responded, he was too busy hurrying to a computer no doubt to check out the Kraken's deal.  So much for loyalty to the Orange Anus.  I mean, who could blame this 68 year-old fool who knows they have enough evidence to put her behind bars for years.  I'm suspecting she's not going to be the only one who's going to cut her losses just to save herself from doing time in the clink.  

Hard line conservatives are still threatening the spouses of congressmen who voted against Jordan.  If those congressmen didn't expect this, then they were really stupid about whom they were crawling in bed with since all these people want to do is say "shut up, we're in charge."

Common Sense

 Weather here in Central PA was nice yesterday.  Temps climbed into the mid 60s (F), and for the most part skies were blue, though clouds did begin to roll in late in the afternoon.  No rain, though, in fact none is expected until Friday and Saturday.  Sunday's supposed to be nice.  That's good.  I'm going down to York on Sunday. 

I went though a bit of consternation yesterday, but not much.  When I ordered my countertop, I got an email informing me that I'd receive a call within 2 business days to set up a template making appointment.  Yesterday was day 4, so I called expecting to set up a date and was told that Capital Granite and Tile didn't have a copy of my order.  Some people would have been frantic, not me.  While it would be nice if everything sailed along smoothly, however, with little issues cropping up here and there that is often not the case.  The Orange Behemoth I work for is transitioning from an old Legacy system to something new and Microsofty that's still very buggy, so even though they took my money, the order never processed on the Capital side.  End result:  the Orange Behemoth issued a credit to me, and this morning when I go into work a Kitchen Designer will do (for free) what I did.  Perhaps, if the fates are in my favor, I'll be able to snag another 2% or 3% discount.

I made a chicken, black bean, and rice dish for dinner last night, and... oh... dear, it seems as though I used the seating chart for the Adelphi Theater as a placemat. 

As expected, Jimmy Jordan fell short of the votes he needed to become Speaker of the House, in fact, he fell even shorter than he did on Tuesday.  There will be another vote later this morning where little Jimmy is expected to lose by an even greater number of votes.  You would think that after yesterday he'd have learned his lesson.  Remember, Jimmy's a Republican, that means he will never learn, no matter how many times he gets smacked down.  His motto might actually try, and try, and lose again.  An interesting sidebar is that the Squishies (moderate Republicans) might actually be learning a lesson, that if they use their spines for what they were intended, they can stand up to the extremism which is destroying the party.  You and I know this is not really a lesson, it's simply common sense.

Wowza!

 Finally, my schedule is back to what I like.  Four days off, and the of the three days that I work, 2 of them are only 6 hour shifts.  20 hours a week.  I had been concerned about those hours back when I went part-time because I do like to spend money and thought that perhaps my expenditures might need to be curtailed somewhat.  That has proven not to be the case.  

The product for my new countertops has changed.  Originally the plan was to go with a man-made hard surface, there would be no need for sealing it yearly, and I'd chosen something called Sand Smoke.  However, when I went into work yesterday, I saw that the price had gone up from $66 per square foot to $88 per square foot.  Wowza!  Can we talk price increase!  A 33% increase is too much.  If I'm going to spend that much, then I'm going to go with a natural stone, even if it does need to be sealed.  So, after wasting far too much time, I've decided to go with marble, something called Fantasy Brown.  Hopefully, all the price increases were processed yesterday and that won't be going up in the next 3 weeks.

Yesterday, the legal team for the Orange Anus filed to dismiss charges against him in Georgia, evidently following a similar tactic by Cheesybro ( I think that's his correct name).  At the same time, they filed to to have Tanya Chutkin recuse herself from his January 6 trial.  I find these attempts rather amusing because his team (if that's what you want to call it) seem to think that they're dealing with amateurs.  Jack, Fani, and Tanya are not country bumpkins, and Donny J has pulled all of these tricks before.  However, Donny J, being the loser that he is, will always go back to his age old playbook time and time again.  Every thing he does is simply a variation of what he's done in the past.  I'd seen one commentary which said that his largest problem was that the selfish, egotist that he is meant that he had to be the one calling the shots.  As a result, he's turning into a rerun fewer and few people are finding interesting.