Texas State

 Today was day 1 of Texas State.  We shot three matches today.  A qualifier for brackets and a fun match before we shot brackets.

Big Bill, a club member, won The Quick and The Dead.  It's a fun match that bestows bragging rights.  After lunch, we started brackets, which divides shooters by speed.  Another club member, Bullet Bob, took 3rd place in the Master Gunfighter bracket.  Your humble scribe, Major D, took 3rd place in the Sheriff's bracket.  So, on Day 1, the club won three minor trophies.  I'm okay with that.

I am now happily ensconced in the hotel room, having eaten a sandwich and now drinking Buffalo Trace bourbon. Tomorrow begins the main match, where all shooters are equal.

GTT

 In the mid 1800s, a person of family taking part in the great migration might pack up the wagon and paint GTT (Gone To Texas) on the door of the cabin.

In a few hours, Belle and I are heading to Texas to take part in the Texas State Championship of Cowboy Fast Draw.  We have someone watching the house and feeding the dog. Texas State was our first match we ever shot in, back in 2016 and we haven't missed one since.  

In the little town of Jasper, TX, there is a restaurant, Elijah's Cafe, that Belle enjoys.  Every time we pass through Jasper, we eat there, and she has declared that we will lunch there today.

Transphobia

 Am I transphobic?  No, not by any standard definition. A phobia is an unreasonable fear.  I know a couple of trans persons, and I'm not afraid of either of them,  I hope they work through their issues and wneb I'm with them, I try to be kind and gentle.

If we made a Venn diagram with trans people in one bobble, and crazy people with gun in the other bubble, there would be some overlap. Those are the people I am truly concerned about.  Mental patients with guns is never a good overlap.  I do not think that is an unreasonable concern.

That Nashville Shooter

A couple of things about the Nashville shooter.  I hope I don't hurt anybody's feelings, but I don't really give a damn.

We hear the moans from the usual suspects about banning guns, and taking away the rifles that are most popular in the United States.  The leftists can repeat after me: It takes a good guy with a gun to stop a bad guy with a gun.  That is what happened here.

Who do you call when there is a problem like a school shooter?  The cops, of course.  This was no place for a social worker or a mental health professional.  When it came down to stopping evil, it took reolute cops who were trained and ready to go in harm's way.   The bodycam footage was released today, and those men are heros.  It's graphic, so if you are squeamish, be forewarned.

The cops did irt right.  I can say this with some experience. I can say this with some experience. I was a Resource Officer for sixteen years, and they did it the way I would have done it.  I can say with some pride that I never had to do it.  The places I worked became hard targets when I walked in the door, and in those 16 years, no one was hurt on my watch.

The old canard about when seconds count, the police are only minutes away is still correct.  The shooter knew this and rejected other targets because they had people with guns.  She left a manifesto talking about target selection.  No cops = soft target.

Gender dysphoria is a real thing, even if the mental health professionals don't recognize it as such.  People stricken with it have loads of depression and anxiety.  The attempt suicide at prodigious rates. This young woman thought that she wanted to be a man. And don't talk to me about "dead naming". She is dead, and her feelings won't be hurt.  Although if someone had helped her work through her hurt feelings ten years ago, she might be alive today.

The cops did exactly what they needed to do.  The fact that there was not a cop assigned to the school probably cost lives. Innocent lives.  The school thought that they were doing all the right things.  They locked all the doors and instituted positive entrance controls.  But, when a crazed murderer got to the front door with a rifle, all those controls went out the window. Then we had a target-rich environment with no one to stop the mayhem.  Tell me again about "gun-free zones".  This one was an abject failure.

Doors

 Belle is in the hopital recovering from surgery.  She's doing welll, thank you, and should get released tomorrow.  But, they have these doors that make me laugh.

It's a regular sized door, with a half sized door, and they did that so that they can get a bed in the door without too much gymnastics.  But, they make me laugh because they're not really  a French door, just sort of a half-assed French door.  So, I call them Cajun doors because they aren't really French, just sort of half-assed French.  

Messed Up Monday

 I spent today in the hospital.  No, not for me, I'm fine.  Belle had a scheduled procedure and I was there supporting her.  She came through surgery just fine, and is resting in the hospital .  She will be there for another day or so, and we hope to get her out on Wednesday.

While I was waiting, I happened to notice that a person of interest had opened fire at a Christian school near Nashville. Initial reports were weird, and continued to get weirder as the day progressed.  A mentally challenged guy... a crazed cross-dresser... a transgender woman is the prime suspect.  We may never know.  It seems that the shooter presented the police with a good center-mass target and he she is no longer in the gene pool.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the survivors of this tragedy.  I understand that three children and three adults are victims of this tragedy.  The shooter is also dead, but I won't count him her with the victims.

As I have said before, initial accounts are often wrong and the reporting has been demonstrably wrong several times today.  It is simply the nature of these things.  The story will clear up in the coming days and we will hopefully learn from this tragedy

Sunday Morning Dawg

 

With Belle on the back porch.

Weird Week

 Here in Louisiana, the weather has been bizarre this week.  All four season in one six-day span.  It's been odd.

This morning our club held its Monthly Match.  It went well.  Instead of trophies this year, the club opted to compete for belt buckles.  Each shooter earns Top Gum points based on his or her standing in the combination of Monthly Matches.  It is amazing how much interest a few belt buckles has generated.

Belle and I will be busy next week, so if blogging goes awry, don't be concerned.  Life catches up with us sometimes.

Now, late in the afternoon on Saturday, Belle has declared Happy Hour.  It would be un-gentlemanly of me to let her drink alone.

"Uh" Problens

 Mark Novak, over at the Anvil YouTube channel, says that many gun problems are the cumulative result of "Uh Problems".  When you go into a gun, and you see a problem, then you see another problem, then later, you find another problem.  When you solve those small problems, you fix The Problem.

That's where I was this morning.  Two Colt clones that I used for CHFA shooting had a problem.  One had a loose loading gate, the other had timing issues.  I started with the loose loading gate, because I know that problem.  Take off the grip frame.  There is a slotted plug that bears on a spring, which bears on a detent, which bears on the loading gate.  Sure enough, when I took of the grip frame, the slotted plug was loose.  A quick turn of that screwdriver and I was done, but I took some time to clean and lube while I was in there.

The second revolver had timing issues.  As it came apart, I started finding problems.  Normal wear and an accumulation of grit and dirt.  I cleaned everything, inspected, and reassembled carefully.  The springs are good and the problem seems to have gone away.  This particular revolver is a Cimarron Model P with a weird internal safety that keeps the gun from firing unless the trigger is pulled.  There is a little tab on the rear of the trigger that engages a plunger on the hammer.  If this gun continues to have problems, I'll simply install a Colt hammer and trigger.  That ought to solve one of the problems.

But, it's working right now, so we will see.  Do the maintenance.

Not Doomed

 That's good to know.  Humanity is not doomed.

When Al Gore lost the 2000 presidential race, he pivoted to global-cooling global warming climate change.  He made quite a pile of money talking about the inevitable; that the weather will change from day to day.  This morphed into the Green movement and has brought us insult after insult to our intellectual curiosity.

Now it seems that there is a new major report (unlike those old major reports) that tell us the weather is changing from day to day.  According to Greg Gutfeld, there is a caveat buried in the report that puts the lie to everything that Gore, et al has been pushing for decades. You can watch the whole clip here.

That's right.  We are not doomed after all.  The weather will change from day to day, and we'll have to adjust.  Sometimes a jacket, sometimes a raincoat. Other times, just a tee shirt and tenner shoes. You have to adjust your clothing to the weather.  It's a radical thought.

Comments

 Replying to some of the comments on the tractor post below.

Termite said: You may get requests to come bush-hog other folks land, LOL.

Other folks can get over it.  I'm not in the land clearing business.

Anon said: X2 for Termite"s comment ... Love this blog , you have a lot more fans than you think

I appreciate this.  But, I don't do it to build a fan base.  It's a diary where I talk about anything that piques my interest. Sometimes, it is just to remember  a part number because it is easy to search. I talk about politics, my hobbies, projects and cooking.

Another Anon said: Last night at 6 pm I got my garden tilled ahead of today's rain.

Priceless..

Oh, yeah, a PTO mounted rotary tiller is a joy to own.  I let one get away from me, and I miss it.  It made putting in a garden (or renovating a pasture) very easy.   It's on my short list of thigs to look for.

 Slipstrm111 said... check the brush hog and make sure it has lube in the gearbox, mine did not!

New brush hogs are shipped dry. 90 weight is cheap.  Mine's full, I filled it yesterday.

It's Ready

 The tractor project I started in January is ready to go out to the family property and be used for maintenance.  It's a Kubota L3400, used with less than 400 hours.  My mechanic son went through it and declared it sound, and I did a little work to make the bucket more useful.  A couple of strap hooks and chain hooks are welded on, and I replaced that tiny factory tool box with something that is useful.

On Monday, I went to Tractor Supply and bought a rotary cutter.  While I may have liked to have something more robust, I had to match the available implements with the available cash.

That rotary cutter shipped "flat".  Some assembly required.  I spent today getting it put together, but I think it fits the tractor well.

In a day or so, my son will be here with a trailer and we'll take it to the family property.

Arrest Iminent?

 Will President Trump be arrested today?  Some think it is a possibility.  From what I've seen, the case is weak, flimsy, and well past the statute of limitations.  Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg may have some unique legal theory that will prevail, but many are saying that Bragg has never had an original thought.

If Bragg gets and indictment, it will be historic.  Never before has a former President been arrested.

New York city is preparing for unrest.  Barricades are going up.  But, I don't see it.  Trump supporters are generally well behaved,  Yet, from what I've seen on the tubes, the left will try to paint any protest as an insurrection. They seem to be almost sexually aroused at the idea.

Alvin Bragg is fulfilling a campaign promise. He promised to get Trump, and this is his best shot. Any rational observer sees this going nowhere, and sees it for what it is.  An unabashed political persecution.

Sunday Morning Dawg

 

Grand Jury Leak?

 Fox News is reporting that Donald Trump may face a legal challenge for a hush money payment he made to a porn star in 2016.

Former President Donald Trump said leaks indicate that he will be arrested on Tuesday next week after reports said the Manhattan District Attorney's office is preparing to issue an indictment for alleged hush money payments Trump made as a presidential candidate in 2016. 

 Donald Trump may be the most despised President in modern history.  I voted for the man twice, and generally, I liked his polices, although I sometimes thought his politics were a bit harsh.  Mean tweets certainly didn't help.  Let's not forget that Left was truly invested in a Hillary presidency and the stunning defeat she suffered tended to truly throw the progressives into angst and anguish.

It is my fear that this indictment and possible arrest will forever taint the upcoming presidential race. This case is a state charge arising out of Manhattan, and legal scholars are doubtful that the DA will prevail in the prosecution.  This is political showmanship and the charges surely will not survive a Motion to Dismiss.

Racoon Dog?

 Listening to Dan Bongino this morning, I hard a story so weird, so unbelievable that I had to go Google it.  Evidently, the New York Times has information that the covid pandemic originated in something called a racoon dog.  Seriously.  Here is the headline.

New Data Links Pandemic’s Origins to Raccoon Dogs at Wuhan Market

I've been a country boy my whole life and I know what a 'coon dog is.  Generally, 'coon dogs are something like a Walker hound.  But, I admit I've never seen a racoon dog. Maybe it's something Chinese.

A quick Google taught me that the Chinese have something called a racoon dog.  It's an ugly little beast. And now my education is more complete.  However, I would question the data, considering that a big lab that studied the corona virus was just around the corner.  What are the odds?  Where did that data come from?  Maybe the CCP?  I'm just asking.

In other news, it's St. Patrick's Day and in honor I'm making a big, hearty Irish stew.  Taters and carrots and beef and gravy.  In another hour, I'll make a pot of rice.

Intoxicated, naked man arrested in Ball after police chase

Just up the road from the house.  It seems that a fellow from Scott, LA was seen driving erratically in Pineville, LA and tried to make his getaway, which ended in Ball, LA,

According to our local news, KALB

According to the Pineville Police Department, Duane Boudreaux, 67, was driving a white Chevrolet truck, swerving into oncoming traffic in the 3200 block of Military Hwy, which caused another vehicle to swerve to the shoulder of the road to avoid an accident.

An officer tried to conduct a traffic stop on Boudreaux, but he continued on to Hwy 165, driving northbound in the southbound lanes at 95 mph. Multiple vehicles had to swerve to avoid accidents.

When Boudreaux reached the Shanghai Road area of Hwy 165 in Ball, he began to drive through the median in circles several times. He then drove his truck into the officer’s vehicle and attempted to push the police unit backward by continuing to accelerate.

The officer instructed the driver out of the vehicle, and he was arrested. Video of the incident showed that when he exited the vehicle, he was not wearing any clothing on the bottom half of his body.

Boudreaux has been charged with a plethora (some might say a surplusage) of criminal charges.

Greasing The Tractor

 I just spent 45 minutes greasing the tractor.  I squirted grease into every zerk I could find, and I may have missed one .  I'll check the lube order to see if I missed any.

This is the second time I have used the Lube Shuttle, and I admit I like it. If, indeed, it is possible to like a grease gun. Let me just say that it is the less onerous than any I have used before.  Tractors, and especially those with front loaders are greasy things.  Every motion point on it has, or should have, a grease fittings.

Several years ago, I began the practice of cutting up old tee shirts to use as shop rage.  I can generally get eight shop rags our of a male 2X tee shirt.  I have a stack of them in a box where I keep cleaning supples and today I used four in the lube operation. They are perfect for such operations.

Thursday Thoughts

 So, the Russians forced down a US drone over the Black Sea.  No one was hurt, so that's good, but a drone cost about $2 million per copy.  But, this incident opens our whole discussion of Ukraine and how much money we are spending over there.

Plus, it's getting springtime, and the muddy season will soon be on the Ukraine countryside.  Monile forces don't do well in mud.  Ask Patton.  And, NATO is supposed to be sending them some tanks.  If you've never seen a tank stuck in mud up to the turret ring,,, Well, let me tell you, math is involved.  You start talking about winch load capacity, rated cable strength. snatch blocks, and weight multipliers.  You do the math before you start hooking up cables.

It brings back fond memories of a place called Area 5 North at Fort Knox,

Alien Confused After Being Taken To Our Leader President Biden

Time to Buy a Brush HOg

 It's about time to spend the money and buy a brush hog for the tractor.   I've done some looking and comparing, and the decision comes down between the Land Pride (Kubota brand) and the Country Line, sold by Tractor Supply.  They are within $100 of each other, but I'm leaning toward the Country Line.

I've boiled it down to these two based on local availability and the number of dollars in my pocket.  If anyone has any reason to wave me off the Country Line, let me know below.

Unanimous

 I'm reading that Congress has sent Biden a bill to declassify all information on the origins of Covid-19.

He hasn't decided if he wants to sign it yet.

The measure passed unanimously.  It will be interesting to see if he signs it.

Monday Update

 This morning, I get ready to start the week by reading the news.  It seems that there has been another bank failure.  Signature Bank.  According to Yahoo Finance:

Regulators seized New York regional bank Signature Bank (SBNY) two days after shutting down Silicon Valley Bank as overseers of the banking system try to restore calm before markets open Monday.

That is interesting.   The second bank failure this weekend, and it seems that regulators are saying that the depositors in SVB bank will be made whole.  Their money should be available early this week.  I'm told that this bank has a lot of high-level Democrat donors and that Janet Yellen and crew worked overtime this weekend to get their money sorted out.

In other news, Rep Comer says that he has the goods on Hunter Biden.  I've heard that before.  The whole world knows that Hunter is crooked.  Some capitalize on it, others rail against it, but his dad is POTUS and the Biden Crime Family protects itself.  As long as Merrick Garland and Chris Wray are in charge, nothing is going to happen to Hunter.  Color me cynical, but that is the way it seems to be.

The Muffuletta

 The muffuletta is a sandwich associated with New Orleans.  Specifically, with the Central Grocery in the French Quarter, near the old French market.  It's an Italian sandwich with ham, salami, provolone and olive salad.  It's a cold sandwich that can must be eaten with two hands.

Every restaurant has their take on the muffuletta, but the descriptor that comes to mind is excess. One of my favorites is at Papa's Bar and Grill in Natchitoches, LA.  It's a big sandwich. If you order one, be prepared to take home a go-box.  Or, split one with your partner.  It's plenty.

Belle has her own take on the muffuletta.  She provides a smaller bun, so that guests can built their own.  She puts mayo, mustard, ham, genoa salami, provolone and pepper jack cheese on the bar, along with olive salad.  Guests can eat it cold, or press it in a sandwich press to toast it nicely.

We have people coming for lunch today and the muffuletta is on the menu.  The only real prep we need to do is to clear some counter space and make the olive salad.  I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

Spring Ahead

 Tomorrow we follow that twice-a-year ritual of changing our clocks.  Nurses and cops like this particular change, because  a 12 hour shift lasts only 11 hours.  That is a good thing.  In the fall, the time change makes the shift 13 hours.

We shot with the club this morning, and ran errands.  Now we're back at home, kicking back on a Saturday afternoon.  Belle will declare Happy Hour shortly.

Bank Fails

 Watching Tucker Carlson, I learned that Silicon Valley Bank, a large concern in California, went under today. This is very bad news for the US economy.

According to CNN:

New York CNN — Silicon Valley Bank collapsed Friday morning after a stunning 48 hours in which a bank run and a capital crisis led to the second-largest failure of a financial institution in US history.

This is very bad news for the US economy.  When depositors lose faith in their banks, they try to take their money out, which leads to a run on the bank, which leads to a capital crisis, which leads to a bank failure.  Small depositors are often insured by the FDIC, but we're not talking about small depositors here.  We're talking about large depositors losing lots of money, which has a downstream, ripple effect,

It has been a hundred years since the last big depression.  The best-case scenario would be to have adults in charge of the baking system, but we have Janet Yellen.  The very fact that I know who the Treasury head is does not engender confidence.  We may be in for a rocky ride.

Rainy Friday

 Awakening to a slow, steady rain, I decided this morning to do a little pawn ship crawling.  SO, belle and I set out after coffee. We started at Silver Dollar, which was once my favorite.  IT's barely open and had nothing that interested me.  So, we went to South Circle Pawn, which is strangely shuttered.  Closed up tight..  The other option was Alexandria Pawn, which is likewise closed.  The sign said Permanently Closed.

I know that times are hard for some businesses, but I had always heard that the two best for an economic downtrun were pawn shops and organized crime.  In the local area, three shops that have survived for decades are shuttered.  That is a damned shame.

Adventures with Purposer

Surfing YouTube, I clicked on these guys lik and I've fallen down the rabbit hole with them.

They do underwater searches, using sonar to locate vehicles that are underwater.  Sometimes with himan remains inside.  It's interesting technology, and they are solving cold cases.

Finished For Now - and Comments

 I got the tool box mounted on the tractor this morning.  Not as difficult as I imagined.  Lots of measure and fit, taking my time to get it close to right.  We weren't building a watch, we were modifying a tractor to make it a bit more useful.

That's better, now I can store a few tools and expendables.  The fact that the box matches the tractor is simply fortuitous.

Now, let's address a few comment.  First, Juvat says:

I envy your skill set. Apparently, well done!

Not so fast!  My skill set is Southern Rural.  I know my way around a wrench, and I understand that friends and family have good ideas.  I didn't weld, I didn't do much, but bounce ideas off folks I trust.  My buddy, Jay, runs a machine shop.  My second son is an ace mechanic.  I bounced ideas off both of them before I got started.

Next, Don said:

The seal idea - Brilliant!

 Yes, it is, and I wish I could claim it.  I found that idea surfing YouTube.  I am convinced that YouTube is one of the greatest educational assets in the history of mankind.  We have to separate the wheat from the chaff, but if you start searching YouTube, you will find an answer to your problem.

Old NFO said in an earlier comment:

I just hope the PTO isn't locked up.

Nope, we're golden.  I checked it yesterday.  I am convinced that it has never been used, though. 

Tractor Storage

 The various manufacturers ought to be ashamed of the boxes they put on tractors to store tools.  Seriously.  Those little boxes that the factory puts on a tractor is okay for storing a few lynch pins, but not much else.  So, I watched all the videos and came up with a few ideas

This tube on the front end loader is wasted space.  It would be a dandy place to store tow straps

So, I went to Lowes and bought a couple of Oatey Grippers.  These thing s are used to put a temporary plug in a Schedule 40 PVC pipe.  Of course, they were too big to go into that pipe, but a little judicious trimming of the inside plastic, along with snipping the seal, Super-gluing  back together and reinforcing it with safety wire seemed to do the trick.

Now, it fits just fine.

Now, I'll be able to store tow straps in that tube, out of the way yet readily available.

I have a buddy who is a tool maker, and he told me that his ship was making some tools, and he had some scrap that didn't work out, and had some big steel bars they had bent, learning how to do such things.  He told me that if I brought the tractor to the shop, he would weld some of those scrap books on the bucket that we could use to attach two straps.  I drove the tractor over this morning.

That should do.  We also have a couple of 3/8 chain hooks welded in the center of the bucket in case a chain comes into play.  Next we turned our attention to the rear of the tractor, where we welded a piece of scrap angle iron between the ROPS uprights

That should do nicely, along with the bar that Kubota already provided to mount that tiny pin box.  I will remove that little box.  Before lunch, I went to Harbor Freight and bought a nice protective case that I will mount on those two pieces of angle iron.  That will provide enough room to store some pins, some wrenches, and hammer and other accoutrements that should be handy on the tractor.

Now, if you will excuse me, it's time for lunch and a nap.

Lynch Pins

 Every small tractor I've ever seen uses lynch pins.  My Kubota has four on the 3-pont hitch and needs three more to attach an implement.  They are universal and cheap.

Thirty years ago, every ag supply had a cardboard box of these things near the cash register.  While buying feed or fertilizer, I'd grab a couple to put in the spares box.  If you are running a tractor, you need a couple of spare lynch pins.  When you are out in the middle of a field and realize that your implement has fallen off our tractor, you are happy that you spent that 50 cents at the feed store last week.

I went this morning to two different ag supply stores and could not find one.  I'd rather spend my money at a local business than go to the big chains, but tomorrow morning I'll head across the river to Tractor Supply.  I told both of the counter folk at the feed stores that I'd rather ship wheh them, but if they couldn't stock lynch pins I'd have to go across the river.

Sight Glass?

 I bought a tractor in January, a lightly used Kubota L3400.  We took it to my son's place where he needed to move some dirt, and I haven't even sat on it until today.  He's going to be out of town for a week, and he brought it over to my place so I could familiarize myself on it.

He had already checked all the fluids, but I wanted to learn where all the things were, so I started looking and couldn't find a dip stick for the transmission.  I found the drain plugs and fill plugs, but no dipstick.  So, I went inside and started Googling.

It has a sight glass.  Hidden under a hole in the floorboard.

Lovely.  At least it has a way to check levels.  I also note that the PTO has never been used on this tractor.  It's a 2010 model and still has the plastic shipping cover over the PTO shaft.  Of course the grease under there has hardened in the past 12 years, so I"ll have to cut that off before we can use the PTO.

It has 390 hours on the meter, so I'll dig out the book and see what a 400 hour service looks like.

Sunday Morning Dawg

 Eating crawfish with Belle

Alemites

 Dad called them alemites.  The rest of the world calls them zerks. Whatever you call them, they are used to squirt grease into a bearing or bushing.  When I was a youth, greasing vehicles or equipment was a constant chore.  While waiting for the oil to drain out of the family car, we would grab the grease gun and grease the front end.  As I recall, there were six on a Ford sedan.  Upper and lower ball joints, and one on each tie rod.

All that required a grease gun, and I always hated grease guns.  Not because I didn't understand the need for lubrication, but because the basic grease gun was horrible.  Changing the grease tubes is an exercise in frustration.  Compress the big spring, lock it into place, unscrew the metal tube, pull out the old grease tube, Insert the new grease tub.  Invariably when reassembling the gun, something would go wrong, the spring would get loose and shoot grease all over the shop.  Much cursing.  Grease everywhere.  I would have it from my ankles to my earlobes.

A month or so ago, I realized it was time for an upgrade before the spring greasing season.  The tractor needs grease, the zero-turn needs grease and my ancient grease gun needed to go into the trash.  So, I started casting about for alternatives.  I came upon a German invention called the Lube Shuttle.  I watched some videos and decided to order one.  It's a little pricey, but it is supposed to take all the frustration and mess out of greasing. It uses plastic tubes instead of paper tubes and they screw into the gun.

I looked on Amazon and found one.  I ordered it along with a case of grease. It came in yesterday, and this morning I unpacked it, assebled it and lubed the zero-turn in about fifteen minutes.  Mo hassle, no problem.

Below is a video that explains how it works.

I think I'm going to like this thing a lot.  I don't think that the local parts store has the grease tubes yet, but many of us have learned to shop online, so that is not much of a problem.  If you are looking for a grease gun, consider the Lube Shuttle.

Constitutional Carry, Once Again

 KPEL is reporting that yet another bill has been filed to make Louisiana a constitutional carry state.  Such bills have been filed in recent years, and passed the legislature. They were vetoed by our lackluster governor, and the legislature has been unwilling to over-ride the veto.

Our legislature is a piece of work, with a huge Republican majority in both houses, but the number of RINOs in both bodies make it virtually impossible to get anything done.  Louisiana is both an open-carry state and a shall-issue state but the legislature is absolutely impotent when it comes to reining in our Democrat governor.  As a whole, they are worthless.

Eating Crwafish

 Fridays, during the season, we visit a local boiler and get some crawfish to bring home.  As we did today.

It's nearly impossible for me to eat crawfish without drinking a beer, and I chose today to wash it down with a Miller High Life.  It is Friday afternoon, after all.  The dawg got his quota, begging from Belle.

If you are looking for wisdom today, all I can tell you is that it is Friday afternoon and I have a belly full of crawfish.  God made beer because He loves us and wants us to be happy.

'Yes Sir, You Are Responsible!’ Senator Hawley Grills Garland On Politic...

PJ Media is reporting that AG Merrick Garland was not having a good day yesterday on Capitol Hill.  He got ripped by Senator Hawley over the rogue FBI and their investigations in Catholics who prefer a Latin Mass.  Evidently, Catholics who prefer a Latin Mass are some sort of domestic terrorist group.

Garland had no good answers, and it leaves us wondering if Garland understand the First Amendment, or any portion of the Constitution.  

Thank God that this idiot never made it to the Supreme Court.

Generac Generator Blizzard Advisory....February 28, 2023

Okay, we're going to put this in the "You Gotta Be Shitting Me" category.

Evidently, in the Great Blizzard of 2023, Generac whole-house generators are shutting down due to over heating.  It seems that if they get covered with snow, the air-cooled engines can't breathe sufficiently to sustain operation.

I would think that if a generator gets covered with snow, it would generate enough heat to melt the snow, bathing the generator in cool melt water.  But, evidently that is not the situation.

Blancalario reports:

Lightfoot Is Out

 Sources are reporting that Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot has lost her reelection bid.  She came in third in a field of eight. Lightfoot is the first mayor to lose a reelection bid in over 40 years.

Not that I care much.  I don't believe that the internal politics of Chicago affect me on iota.  Still, Chicago is a big place, filled with Democrats, and the first openly gay black woman mayor has been crushed by out-of-control crime. The voters will only take so much, and Lightfoot delivered the excesses they could not stand.