Brakes

 We got up this morning and Belle'scar was missing.  Grandson Zach lives with us and normally goes to work during the dark-thirty hours.  He drives a 2004 Toyota Camry, and we had told him that if he ever had car problems, to take Belle's car and we'd figure it out later.  Which is what happened.

Zach got home from work about 10-ish and told me that he had brake problems.  We went out to diagnose and found a big spot of brake fluid under the right rear tire.  We got it into the shop and got it up on jack stands.  Brake caliper had turned loose.  Defunct.

It was originally my mother's ca.  Dad bought it new for her in3004.  We lost Dad  in '07 and Mom drove it  until 2018 when my sisters made her give up the keys.  We gave it to Zach and he's driven it through his senior year of high school, and college, and he loves that car.  It is a Toyota, but it is now over 2 years old.

We went to the parts house.  No lock.  We looked around, and found that O'Reilley's could get us one later this afternoon.  So, we ordered it. We'll have it in the morning and we'll get Zach's car back on the road.

I will walk him through the process, teach him how to bleed brake, and put new pads on the rear.  It's a good learning experience for the kid.  PawPaw ain't gonna be around forever and he needs to learn what he can while I'm still here.

In the final analysis though, it is still a 20-year0old Toyota and he needs to think about that.  We all loved our first car and we all know that it didn't last forever.

Her Too

I don't know if you have been watching this train wreck of a Senate rave in Maine, but it got more interesting today when some woman accused the Democrat nominee of rape.

I have questions.  Why now? As a police officer of 37 years, I know that these cases are easier to sole the sooner they are reported.  Allegedly, this occurred in 2021, which is five years past.  Why now? The cynical answer is that she is making these accusations as part of a political calculation.  But that would be extremely tacky.

The non-cynical answer is that she was devastated after the attack and has gone through years of therapy to regain her sense of self-worth.  She is now ready to come forward. Has she yet gone to the police?  Have warrants been sworn?

The timing is suspect and deserves more than a few answers.

July 4th

 This

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed

And This 

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Y'all have a magnificent day. 

Belts, Revisited

 Back in February, I complained that I could not find a belt I liked in the local stores.  You readers made some recommendations, and I took them to heart.  I particularly liked the belts advertised on AmishMadeBelts.com.  So, I ordered one.  When it came in, I was impressed.  The belt mic'd a sold 1.5 inches and was made from good saddle leather.  The only drawback was that it was too wide to fit the holster I use for my SW Shield. The blet was simply a tiny bit too big to go through the loops on that leather holster.

However, it fit nicely on the Simply Rugged holster I use for the SW Model 60.  I'm basically a revolver guy and didn't see the little revolver as a handicap. However, a man might live with one woman, but one EDC simply isn't enough. I needed a skinnier belt to carry that SW Shield.

So, I went bac to the Amish website and learned that a customer can sort by width and thickness.  I found a belt that was thick leather and yet measured in at 1.25 inches.  UPs dripped it off yesterday. I put it on this morning and think that this may be the bees knees for carrying the Shield.  The holster fits the belt nicely and holds the gun close and tight.

Y'all have a great 4th.

Why Not?

 Cooking lunch today, I was frying some meat pies.  Looking through the freezer I came upon a half-bag of frozen ravioli, and thought, Why Not?  Ravioli is just a small meat pie.

tasty!  I can't be the only guy who has ever thought of this.  I also fried some egg rolls and french fries and Belle thought it was fairly toothsome.

Whine On, Bitch

 AoC opens her pie-hole.

AOC: I think young people overall feel a tremendous amount of betrayal about the world that we’ve been left with.

Oh, please.  If she had any sense of historical perspective, she would know that the current generation has it better than any human since Lucy walked the Gret Rift Valley.   AOC lives in the greatest county the world hs ever produced, during  the easiest time that humanity has ever enjoyed.

This generation has it better than I did.  I had it better than my Dad's generation and he had it better than my grandfathers generation.  I don't now what AOC is whining about.

C'mon, Amy!

 I see that our gurl, Associate Justice Amy Comey Barrett, has sided with the liberals and Chief Justice (hack, spit) John Roberts on a case involving mail-in ballots.  Amy hails from Louisiana so she should hae better sense.

Unfortunately, the court ruled 5-4 in favor of allowing Mississippi to count ballots received up to five days after Election Day. This is a disaster, obviously a huge opportunity for fraud, an encouragement not to count expeditiously, approval for ballots not mailed in time and possibly harvested, and also indirectly ensures other states like California will count until they get the results authorities want. It was a very disappointing decision from SCOTUS, especially given our supposed conservative majority.

I thought that she was a conservative.  I guess not.  We'll have to put her into the liberal wing of the Curt.

In other news, I was at my local hooch dealer today and saw that they have upped their Scotch whisky game.  I found a bottle of Lagavulin and picked it up.  Never tried it, but I've heard good thing.  We will crack it the next time the Scotch drinkers assemble.

Super El Nino?

 The main weather channel I watch is Ryan Hall, who I have come to trust among the weather-weenies.  In addition to tornadoes and hurricanes, he talks about other topics and today he's talking about a broad weather pattern called a Super El Nino.

Click here and go listen.  It's interesting stuff and may have implications through this winter.  As always with weather, it's liable to change, but Ryan makes the argument that this weather pattern is interesting and may affect us all for several months.