I find myself frustrated with all the jaw-ing on about the economy sinking and how to fix it while the same folks remain clueless on alternative solutions and the simple fact that THIS ECONOMIC SYSTEM CANNOT BE FIXED. Its own nature guarantees it will eventually collapse.
Rather than wasting time repeating what is wrong with this system, I thought I'd offer a comparison of what our current experts are suggesting through the model of 'a sinking ship'. The ship is slowly sinking, and there's no way to patch it because it was constructed of flawed material. Not only that, we've been at sea a long time, there's no land in sight, and we're running out of food.
Okay, we've been riding this ship so long we've forgotten there's any other means of transportation. We're hoarding our personal stashes and trying to grab whatever we can to secure our individual survival with the hope land will appear to save us. We're scared half out of our wits, and some are completely around the bend - we need the ship's crew on full alert with weapons drawn to protect us from them.
Just like real society, there's different races and cultures and levels of wealth, but we're all scared; the food supply is dwindling and the ship is springing leaks. We got folks on the oars being whipped to row harder, and we blame them for our predicament. We blame the poor and other races, we blame the wealthy, we blame the captain and the crew (some who are on the take, of course, being human).
We don't blame the ship, the ship builders, or ourselves. We're desperate to get to shore, but the waves keep crashing and we're in a panic. Small groups have banded together to ensure their own survival - we call them 'experts' and listen on edge to their advice.
What they're saying is that it's somebody else's fault and then point out scapegoats to throw overboard or sacrifice by stuffing them in the latest leaks. "It's the poor eating up our supplies, theirs ran out! Toss them off the boat!" (Never mind the poor are the ones working the oars and paddling harder because their lives depend on it.) "It's the whites / blacks / Christians / Muslims / gays / seniors / wealthy". The richest have prudently secured their place as long as the ship is afloat by paying off the captain and crew; it will difficult for the poorer levels to toss them off.
"Cut spending, increase revenue." Current talk is reducing social security, welfare, minimum wage (Bachmann to the rescue), raising taxes on everything - property, licenses, fuel, food, rich (who are still able to buy their way out of this for now). In other words, let's eat the old and poor and vulnerable or throw them overboard to see if the ship will ride higher in the water.
Problem is, we're on a ship, and it's sinking. The waves are like the weather, threatening whatever crops and supplies we do have while flooding our cabins and washing our own sewage into our drinking water. Folks are camped out in the hallways and fewer lights still burn at night, while the wealthiest dance in the ballroom dining on caviar and trying to pretend "we'll all get through this, somehow" - just toss off more of the poor and homeless. Even the recently homeless, those that lost their cabins and security in the last wave and didn't think it'd ever 'be me' they were talking about. (Hello, middle class, so eager to toss off the welfare bums just a few days earlier.)
The crew isn't safe, either, though 'job security' was the catch-phrase that got them to enlist. Those who are injured or unable to perform are getting their benefits slashed, questioned, or denied. The very folks they protected are now trying to pitch them overboard. They've become obsolete.
Who do we eat next, who do we shove into the next leak? These are the questions being asked today in our economic chaos.
The irony is that we have a massive blimp in the hold with room and supplies enough for all, and we don' t know what it is. The shipbuilders intentionally locked it up tight and deny it exists, because all it'd take is for every person to help inflate it and we'd be free of the 'economic ship'.
Instead we'll keep eating each other and warring and slashing budgets and sacrificing and squeezing what we can out of each other while the corporate players go another round of Monopoly, telling us the ship is the only game in town. And if we're smart, we can play too until we're One of Them. Never mind your soul, there is no afterlife in this world - anyway, it's legal.
Like I said, I'm totally annoyed, frustrated and fed up with the folks on the ship that won't listen about anything other than sacrificing each other. And we're on the ship.
But... In My World... I'm tearing apart cars, planting things, getting dogs, painting, and generally living busy. Those are different stories on life. Compared to the amount of misery going on in the world, I'm doing good! Dollar-wise I'm not, but Life-wise, it seems I do okay, somehow.
Best to all, please don't throw anyone overboard, just start inflating the blimp!
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Car-lita Lives!!!
Well... I have the 'time' thing figured out, and I am 'right on time' with my blog posts. Just the world and events have sped up around me, which explains losing 2 months here.
So... I have the '91 Dodge Shadow, not a bad little car but not a great little car. It had its own issues, like idling high when the engine was hot. I paid $80 to the shop to diagnose it, then had my mechanic (Shane) install a new 'intake manifold gasket'. This was after 3 new belts, thermostat, and some sensor by the thermostat. It still has a mind of its own on this, so may need to investigate the air-hose thing.
Right. One person recommended I squirt something like Carburetor Cleaner while it was running under the hood - which is flammable. Talking with Shane, he'd just had an engine fire in one vehicle while he was working on it, so I decided it would NOT be wise for me to randomly squirt flammable products under the hood unless, of course, I was to the point of maniacal permanent mechanical repair (i.e. 'toast').
Considering the Dodge came into my life around March 10, I have 4000 miles on it - and I've been driving the Acura again for the last week (about 400 'new' miles on it now). It's easy to see why MPG factors into my life; I could get between 26 - 28 mpg with the Dodge, but I'm averaging 32 with the Acura without even trying. Thanks to the handy-dandy invention called Calculator, I can even give a ball-park estimate on gallons and dollars for 4000 miles ... 148 gallons (at 27 mpg) at $3.85 is $570. At 32 mpg, it's 125 gallons or $481.
It made sense to try and fix Car-lita's timing belt. I couldn't find anyone interested in doing it and the general opinion (95 - 98%) was 'catastrophic engine damage'. The only saving grace was it snapped just as I idled through a stop sign to park. One person said "50-50 chance it might work" and that was the only glimmer of hope - and optimism.
So I bought a book.
Like the Hayne's manual on 1990's Acuras. Bought it on Sunday, May 15, and decided Terry wouldn't have given me a socket set for my birthday if he didn't expect me to take things apart. It seemed a good omen when the first socket actually fit the first bolt I tried! (I needed encouragement.) Joe's a friend I haven't seen in 3 years, but he called this spring; then he said he was looking for some work $...
Joe has had so many surgeries and spent 2 years in hospitals and assisted living, I didn't want him doing the work as much as being part of the brains and 'tool man'. He's never worked on an Acura before or did a timing belt, but he has torn engines out and such over the years - and has a massive amount of tools! (Sans 3/4 air gun thing that was needed to remove the crankshaft pulley belt - I snagged one temporarily.)
My intent was to video-tape each step, so that I could keep track if I needed to on the 'putting it back together again' part. However, Joe had stuff flying out from under the hood faster than I could register it on my brain. Between working under the driver's wheel, jacking up the engine, taking off all kinds of parts, etc. ...
Had to pick the brains of others, in that the book wasn't totally clear, but from Monday afternoon starting to Wednesday evening, we got her done. AND IT RAN!!!!!
I was quite nervous trying to start it, expecting anything including shooting flames and exploding parts. But Car-lita just needed a little coaxing to pop right over. Now how lucky is that??
Sure, it was parked in March when we had had so much salt and ice and snow on the roads, so the brakes were rusted up and jagged. I called 1) my insurance company and 2) Shane on Thursday morning; Shane had an opening in his schedule "if I got it out there", which I immediately did. Four new rotors and front brake pads, and 400 miles on it to date.
I still need to change the oil and can only leave it to the Universe as to Life Expectancy, since I am not that confident in my own repairs. I never took off a valve cover before, so this was a pretty intense experience. I tackled it because it was already broke - figured I couldn't break it then - and proving it sooner than later would be just as well. Either I had a $150 salvage vehicle (actually two, in that the other Acura is a parts car parked at Tom's) or a repairable one.
There is a sense of Home-coming for me to be back in my Acura, especially since it's the twin of the one I ran the last 6 years. It's beat up and doesn't look like much, but "it feels right". This is pretty much what I flew on for this challenge - intuition and stubbornness. I might be wrong, I might be right, but I was following my own instincts, however crazy it seemed.
The rest of life just fit in kind of around this, which means I am behind on everything. I have plants to get outside, the grass is a foot tall, I can no longer get into my tool shed because of trashing it and a door waiting to be cut in... But the sun is shining and I'm feeling pretty grateful to the Universe.
Now all I really need to do is wish Jim the best. I haven't written his way, but I've been sending thoughts of rapid-healing and hugs. This is also true for a couple other friends that have been having some challenges - you know who you are! Sending a hug to all who can use one.
I don't expect things will slown down anytime soon, but I wouldn't mind if it did a little bit!
So... I have the '91 Dodge Shadow, not a bad little car but not a great little car. It had its own issues, like idling high when the engine was hot. I paid $80 to the shop to diagnose it, then had my mechanic (Shane) install a new 'intake manifold gasket'. This was after 3 new belts, thermostat, and some sensor by the thermostat. It still has a mind of its own on this, so may need to investigate the air-hose thing.
Right. One person recommended I squirt something like Carburetor Cleaner while it was running under the hood - which is flammable. Talking with Shane, he'd just had an engine fire in one vehicle while he was working on it, so I decided it would NOT be wise for me to randomly squirt flammable products under the hood unless, of course, I was to the point of maniacal permanent mechanical repair (i.e. 'toast').
Considering the Dodge came into my life around March 10, I have 4000 miles on it - and I've been driving the Acura again for the last week (about 400 'new' miles on it now). It's easy to see why MPG factors into my life; I could get between 26 - 28 mpg with the Dodge, but I'm averaging 32 with the Acura without even trying. Thanks to the handy-dandy invention called Calculator, I can even give a ball-park estimate on gallons and dollars for 4000 miles ... 148 gallons (at 27 mpg) at $3.85 is $570. At 32 mpg, it's 125 gallons or $481.
It made sense to try and fix Car-lita's timing belt. I couldn't find anyone interested in doing it and the general opinion (95 - 98%) was 'catastrophic engine damage'. The only saving grace was it snapped just as I idled through a stop sign to park. One person said "50-50 chance it might work" and that was the only glimmer of hope - and optimism.
So I bought a book.
Like the Hayne's manual on 1990's Acuras. Bought it on Sunday, May 15, and decided Terry wouldn't have given me a socket set for my birthday if he didn't expect me to take things apart. It seemed a good omen when the first socket actually fit the first bolt I tried! (I needed encouragement.) Joe's a friend I haven't seen in 3 years, but he called this spring; then he said he was looking for some work $...
Joe has had so many surgeries and spent 2 years in hospitals and assisted living, I didn't want him doing the work as much as being part of the brains and 'tool man'. He's never worked on an Acura before or did a timing belt, but he has torn engines out and such over the years - and has a massive amount of tools! (Sans 3/4 air gun thing that was needed to remove the crankshaft pulley belt - I snagged one temporarily.)
My intent was to video-tape each step, so that I could keep track if I needed to on the 'putting it back together again' part. However, Joe had stuff flying out from under the hood faster than I could register it on my brain. Between working under the driver's wheel, jacking up the engine, taking off all kinds of parts, etc. ...
Had to pick the brains of others, in that the book wasn't totally clear, but from Monday afternoon starting to Wednesday evening, we got her done. AND IT RAN!!!!!
I was quite nervous trying to start it, expecting anything including shooting flames and exploding parts. But Car-lita just needed a little coaxing to pop right over. Now how lucky is that??
Sure, it was parked in March when we had had so much salt and ice and snow on the roads, so the brakes were rusted up and jagged. I called 1) my insurance company and 2) Shane on Thursday morning; Shane had an opening in his schedule "if I got it out there", which I immediately did. Four new rotors and front brake pads, and 400 miles on it to date.
I still need to change the oil and can only leave it to the Universe as to Life Expectancy, since I am not that confident in my own repairs. I never took off a valve cover before, so this was a pretty intense experience. I tackled it because it was already broke - figured I couldn't break it then - and proving it sooner than later would be just as well. Either I had a $150 salvage vehicle (actually two, in that the other Acura is a parts car parked at Tom's) or a repairable one.
There is a sense of Home-coming for me to be back in my Acura, especially since it's the twin of the one I ran the last 6 years. It's beat up and doesn't look like much, but "it feels right". This is pretty much what I flew on for this challenge - intuition and stubbornness. I might be wrong, I might be right, but I was following my own instincts, however crazy it seemed.
The rest of life just fit in kind of around this, which means I am behind on everything. I have plants to get outside, the grass is a foot tall, I can no longer get into my tool shed because of trashing it and a door waiting to be cut in... But the sun is shining and I'm feeling pretty grateful to the Universe.
Now all I really need to do is wish Jim the best. I haven't written his way, but I've been sending thoughts of rapid-healing and hugs. This is also true for a couple other friends that have been having some challenges - you know who you are! Sending a hug to all who can use one.
I don't expect things will slown down anytime soon, but I wouldn't mind if it did a little bit!
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