Mortality:

Reposted from earlier: Hey, I’ve got better things to do than sit around a computer when the weather’s so nice.

About a year ago I lost my father to congestive heart failure at 78. He was a man from a dirt poor background who through will, determination, and the GI Bill, worked his way through college to become an aerospace engineer with Boeing. As a kid I remember him waking before dawn for the two hour commute to Vandenberg AFB and then arriving home long after my sister and I had eaten supper and been tucked into bed. When I was very young I recall the sounds of his harmonica and those of a few of his friends playing guitar and banjo and learned that he had been an accomplished musician in his youth and had dreamed of playing for a living. Over time as his family grew and he settled into his role of husband and father, his playing became less and less frequent until taking a new position with Boeing near Seattle moved him away from his band mates and his collection of harmonica’s were relegated to a box in the basement with the other flotsam of life that falls out of favor for one reason or another. He was a very good engineer and took his responsibilities of being a husband and father as his highest priorities but he kept his creative mind alive, developing a deep appreciation of Native American design and in his spare time teaching himself the art of silver smithing, becoming adept at creating silver jewelry using the spiritual forms of the northwest coastal tribes.

At the age of 57 he suffered a stroke leaving him unable to speak and his left side mostly paralyzed. He was no longer able to practice his profession or indulge his creative passion, forced into an early retirement. You may be thinking this is the part of the story where I recount my fathers decent into bitterness and resentment and early death but you would be wrong. After a long rehab he partially regained mobility and improved his speech to where he could be understood. He came to understand his forced early retirement as a second chance to do some of the things that he had long ago dismissed as unpractical or unrealistic. His final twenty years were a time of traveling. Of buying a small place on the Sea of Cortez in Baja. Of exploring and adventure. Of living with no rules other than where to, what next.

Ones mortality is often viewed as how long rather than how well a life has been lived. We are all dealt unexpected hands throughout life. Like a shark needing to continually swim in order to survive, our search for immortality, seemingly the holy grail of human existence will continue. Living your life big no matter the obstacles inevitably thrown in your path is the closest any of us will come to it in this life.

My father taught me this. I will teach my sons. If they forward this simple lesson to  their sons and daughters when I am gone, my fathers immortality, and mine, is assured.

It’s 102 degrees…

Why are you reading this!?

Apply this poultice of cap and trade and call me in the morning:

“The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.”

H.L. Menken   H/T Gerard

 

 Are politicians merely modern day versions of the tribal shaman? “Curing” ailments of their own creation with the end result being only that of maintaining their indispensability. I’ve long had my suspicions but watching them push the Gris Gris of global warming to a more and more skeptical public, I’m reminded of the desperate reaction of the shaman when confronted with the reality of a real doctor appearing in the village to treat the afflicted.

Take a look below at these two brief biographies pulled from Wikipedia.

Albert A. Gore Jr. 

 Former U.S. Senator from Tennesee and

45th Vice President of the U.S.

  

Born	March 31, 1948 (1948-03-31) (age 61) Washington, D.C.
Birth name	Albert Arnold Gore, Jr.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Mary Elizabeth “Tipper” A. Gore
Children	Karenna Kristin Sarah Albert III
Alma mater	Harvard University Vanderbilt University
Profession	Author, politician, Environmental activist
Religion	Baptist (formerly Southern Baptist)
Signature
Website	algore.com

 

Richard S. Lindzen  Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Meteorology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Born	8 February 1940 (1940-02-08) (age 69) Webster, Massachusetts
Fields	Atmospheric Physics
Institutions	Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Alma mater	Harvard University
Doctoraladvisor	Richard M. Goody
Notable students	Siu-shung Hong, John Boyd, Edwin K. Schneider, Jeffrey M. Forbes, Ka-Kit Tung, Christopher Snyder, Gerard Roe
Known for	Dynamic Meteorology, Atmospheric tides, Ozone photochemistry, quasi-biennial oscillation, Iris hypothesis
Notable awards	NCAR Outstanding Publication Award, Member of the NAS, AMSMeisinger Award, AMS Charney Award, AGUMacelwane Award, Leo Prize of the Wallin Foundation
Religious stance	Jewish

Both accomplished men. One in the discipline of science, the other in the arena of elective politics. One an average student and reasonably successful in his chosen endeavors, the other a brilliant student and scholar, recognized by his peers as being at the top of his field. One quite clearly possesing deep knowledge of that which he speaks, the other just as clearly a charlatan, spreading dis-information and encouraging fear among the villagers, thus enhancing his own power.

Via Maggies Farm, this essay by Dr. Lindzen regarding the hucksterism that is evident among the anthropogenic climate change humpers. Tell me why his views on the very subject of his expertise are casually dismissed by close to half the population, yet these same people will blindly follow the ramblings of one Al Gore on a subject that even they if pinned down, will admit he lacks any real in depth knowledge of.

In the words of the late Carl Sagan we live in a demon haunted world, with emotion and superstition playing a still leading role in determining issues which rightly belong in the realm of reason and logic. For all of the technological advances of western civilization over the previous millennium, we  still seem as susceptible to the call of tribe and shaman as were our ancient ancestors dancing around a burning effigy.

Crazy is as crazy does…

There used to be a time when being a little crazy was called having a personality. According to the American Psychiatric Association, this has become a problem and these “personalities” are in need of diagnosis and treatment. H/T to Maggies Farm for the link.

In 1981 in the small creole burg of Franklin Louisiana, a co-worker called a friend to come pick us up after a night of letting the good times roll at a local watering hole. After a bit, we were picked up by a fellow who went by the moniker of “Crip” Stevens. Mr. Stevens had in his younger days been employed as an oil field diver in the muddy offshore delta and had acquired his nick name due to an unfortunate bout of the bends, which had damaged some spinal nerves and rendered his gait decidedly asymmetric. Not one to let a little minor paralysis hamper his style, he arrived to provide our transport in a worn around the edges ’74 Lincoln Mk 4, riding alone in back with a couple of provincial hotties up front tending to the driving duties. The three of us piled in back, with Crip relocating to the front bench between his “chauffers”, and we arrived at his place out in the Cypress woods in due time. He lived in a big white elephant of a civil war era home in a beautiful state of faded glory, apparently inhereted from more genteel ancestors, and it was decorated not with the expected antiques but entirely and only with 1950′s and 60′s vintage carnival ride figures. Pig’s, hippo’s, elephants, auto’s, boats, spaceships…mermaid’s. You name it. The next morning he took us all on a ride in his air boat in the vast swampland surrounding the town, taking great humor in showing off the custom designed and built belt fed 12 gauge tri-pod bow mounted shotgun that he used to hunt not just duck but ducks at a time, and in telling tall tales of the many skirmishes in which  he had engaged over the years with his best friend from childhood, the local game warden. Crazy? Absolutely. But not in a way that would do anyone any harm unless you were a duck. He was what used to be referred to as local color. A character.

I often wonder what became of “Crip” and others like him I have run into over the years who march to their own drummer in a one man parade. If the APA had their way he was probably diagnosed as having some sort of personality disorder as a plea bargain in a poaching case, entered into one of the myriad state treatment programs, and is probably living comfortably and docilely in a trailer somewhere, collecting his monthly disability check. When did we get to the point where every quirk and eccentricity that deviates from some shrinks view of what is normal begin to be viewed as a pathology, with therapy and/or drug treatment recommended to bring you back to the “fold ” so to speak.

There has been much talk during the recent debate on health-care regarding why getting the government involved in medicine will surely degrade the level of physical care that patients will be able to receive, but not much has been said about the sure to follow bureaucratic interference in mental care. Once the government is given the power to determine the disease and the cure regarding the state of our mental health, we will be entering a brave new world indeed. When the state becomes responsible for its citizens mental health, the “cure” will be to enforce ”correct” behavior. It will then merely be bureaucratic consensus that determines whom among us is diseased.

Who’s crazy? You tell me.

For optimum performance, apply directly to face…

It’s about ninety degrees and humid currently in my little piece of paradise. Not that I’m complaining mind you. Given that about nine months of the year a person requires gills (we natives have them… no seriously) to breathe around here, there’s worse things than a few weeks of beautiful warm weather.

I’ve been trying to devise a method of getting Margarita into bloodstream in the most effective method possible and I think I have stumbled onto something. If I open mouth and eyes wide and inhale sharply as I turn the blender to eleven, I think it just might do the trick. I’ll let you know how it works out. Unless you’re from around here, don’t try this at home. I told you we have gills.

As an added note, both kids are gone with friends tomorrow so you know what that means!

From the Bluedogs to the House leadership…

There’s an old saying here on Earth Waxulon 6.

Don’t count your eggs before they’re chickens…or chickens before… they’re weaned?…um… how’d that go again…Oh yeah! DON”T MESS WITH TEXAS!!

“You don’t know who you’re messing with”

Richard Fernandez at Belmont Club gets it just right:

Did you hear the one about single payer health care coverage?…

 

Is it just me or are people starting to laugh at the claims made by Obama and the Dems, that in order to save our economy we must spend wheel barrow loads of borrowed money to adopt every pet leftist project to come down the pike in the last forty years. From the by now obviously mis-named “stimulus” package to the recent reticence of the Dems to follow their fearless leader into the neverland of socialized medicine, more and more people are starting to notice, and instead of getting upset they are shaking their heads and laughing derisively, realizing that again they have been had by a smooth talking pol.

It has been my experience that leaders can overcome many things in the course of their tenure. Laughter of the sort I’m starting to hear from independents and conservative democrat friends who cautiously supported Obama in the hope that he would bridge the differences between conservatives and liberals and usher in a new bi-partisan politics is not one of them however. This sort of self deprecating sour humor, the ” I can’t believe they screwed me again” attitude that I’m seeing will quickly enough turn to disgust and then anger. I would feel better about this phenomenon if I thought that the Republican party was in any position to take advantage of this so far small but growing populist backlash but they are generally as corrupt as the party currently in power.

They say that power abhors a vacuum and will rush to fill it. If this backlash of center left and center right represents any significant amount of people then it will represent power. The run up to the 2010 midterms should be interesting indeed.

I’ll take four cards…

There is a term used in playing  poker called the tell.  A tell is any facial expression, movement, blinking of the eyes, anything really that is consistently accompanied with a specific betting action that will ”tell” your fellow players whether you are betting with a strong hand or are bluffing. Everyone has a tell if you observe them long and carefully enough. Some, with much practice and discipline can hide or change their tell for awhile but eventually your tell will betray your intentions to all around the table. If you’re good, you’ll win the hand or game before your opponents zero in on your tell. Our President, fortunately for us all, does not appear to be that good.

Gerard has seen fit to alert his fellow players to our opponents rather telling tell, that of prefacing any particularly egregious stretching of the truth or outright fabrication with the term “Let me be clear” or sometimes “make no mistake”. As tells go, this one is becoming the equivalent of players around the table snickering and jabbing their elbows into the other players ribs as they encourage the rube to bet heavily. Substitute “players” for veteran Senators and Congressmen and you’ll start to see where I’m going with this.

It has been said (wait for it) that the true measure of being an effective leader can be boiled down to whether or not one can play five card poker successfully. After witnessing  president Obama take what seemed a very strong healthcare and energy policy hand into the final round of betting, ask for four on the final draw, and then wager like he’s holding aces full of kings, I’m thinking that perhaps good King Barack is more a Three-card Monte than a poker man.

Ten Things to Remember (or not) when Buying or Selling Real Estate:

This list is not intended to flatter myself as some sort of unassailable expert in matters of real estate. I’ve been in the business for five years, have been witness to the tail end of the price boom and now the current bust so I thought I would throw out a bit of advice regarding some of the things I have observed and learned during this time.

In no particular order.

 1.)Whenever you read, hear, or see an ad produced by the NAR (National Association of Realtors), ignore it and consider it hostile to your best interests. The NAR is a lobbying organisation for the real estate industry. Need I say more?

2.)If you are a buyer, always use the services of a buyers agent. When reading comments on various blogs and publications I am constantly amazed at the number of buyers who state emphatically that they refuse to pay three percent of the purchase price for someone to basically help them fill out the paperwork for a home they have decided to buy. Listen carefully. THE BUYER NEVER PAYS ANY COMMISSION! All commission proceeds come from the sellers side of a transaction. As the listing agent is bound by law to represent the best interests of the seller, why not use an agent who is bound by law to represent yours. Won’t cost ya nothin’.

3.)Prior to the closing of any transaction, read carefully with your agent the HUD statement, that bundle of paperwork that details what you are buying and where all proceeds of the sale are to be directed, well before you sit down at the escrow office to sign. Mistakes are often made and once all parties sign there is little or no recourse. As an example, when I purchased my place six years ago, it was missed by the lender and title company that the sale represented four separate one acre parcels. The sale went through with only the parcel that the house sat on being attached to the mortgage, essentially awarding me the other three free and clear. Still wondering why our lending institutions are going down the crapper? Not me.

4.) If while interviewing an agent in this market, you ask how business is and they say “Great!” or anything similar, scratch them off the list. They are liars.

5.) If while interviewing an agent in this market, you ask how business is and they say “Awful!” or anything similar, scratch them off the list. They are desperate and will do or say anything to get your dollars into their pockets.

6.)Don’t be afraid to make lowball offers in this market. If your agent is reticent to make a low offer on your behalf in fear that they might offend the seller or their agent, they are more interested in maintaining standing with their fellow agents than in getting you the best deal. Agents are legally obligated to present all offers to the seller. If they balk, insist. If they still resist, find another agent.

7.)Use a full service brokerage when listing a home. There are any number of discount brokerages out there who for a set fee rather than a percentage of the sales price will place your home on the MLS. Be aware that this is all that they will do. The job of an agent at a full service brokerage is to use their experience and training to catch anything that is not in their clients best interest as a listing moves from the marketing process and then through escrow. In nine out of ten cases nothing will go wrong. This leads many to think that nothing can go wrong. I have a former client who is very computer savvy and elected to market her home herself through a website she developed. She has listed it through a discount brokerage as a waterfront property. It has no deeded frontage, only the right to use the waterfront which was deeded to the local municipality in order to gain permitting for the home when built. If this fact is not disclosed at some point in contract negotiations or God forbid until after closing, flocks of lawyers will descend like buzzards at great expense to both seller and buyer. Pay a little more for someone else’s experience. Chances are nothing will go wrong during the course of a transaction but when they do go wrong it can be very expensive. There is no such thing as an innocent or small mistake in a real estate contract.

8.) This may seem obvious but don’t sell your home in this market unless you really need to. At least once a month, even now, I am approached by a client who thinks that they would like to “test the waters” and see what kind of price their home might bring. I can only conclude that they either cannot read the newspapers or that they refuse to.

9.)If you’re buying, get pre-approved through a reputable lender.  Not pre-qualified but a solid pre-approval with a commitment in writing stating down payment, interest rate, and how long the approval is good for. If the commitment is only good for thirty days, get another if this time line passes while you are searching for a home. This is a good idea in any market but particularly now with lending qualifications changing on a seemingly daily basis. Many transactions are falling apart during the financing contingency period these days. Don’t waste everybody’s time, most importantly yours, by stringing everybody along for a month only to have the financing fall through at the last minute.

10.)The last and most important bit of advice that I can offer is that unless you are an investor, don’t by a house for investment purposes. The past year should have taught us all a lesson in this regard.  A home is a different thing than a stock certificate. To purchase or not purchase is much more of an emotional decision, or at least it should be. Save the cold hard rationality for determining whether you can purchase, not whether you should. Buy something that you like. You might be stuck with it for awhile.