Sunday, August 12, 2007
The Midnight Mitre Joint and Other Carpenter's Tales
Can't sleep. Only have one thing on the brain: mitre joints. I've spent the day progressing the front porch project: I now have a self supporting porch roof and decorative planking (it's even primed!). Tomorrow I'm installing the $500 worth of plastic tongue and groove planking to make the new floor. While the rest of the gang are being layabouts in La Minerve, I'm making progress. So much so that the thoughts of the next step (building the pillars and the stairs) are keeping me awake. Over every picture of the completed project is a watermark of a perfect mitre joint. You see, I spent the day mitrering corners (after overcoming my terror of the circular saw). It's sort of like when you spend the entire weekend doing 1000+ piece jigsaw puzzles: when you go to bed all your dream pictures are sawed up into jigsaw pieces. I hate when that happens. Okay, so I'm a little obsessive. Fine. A lot obsessive. So sue me. After a month or so of walking a drawbridge to my front door and collecting my mail from the dirt under the porch I feel entitled. Never mind the fact that two jack posts have been holding up the roof (mostly) during that time as well. It finally looks like it's coming together. It might even be mostly completed by September. A bonus: I have (knock on wood - there's some about) avoided removing my fingers and/or other portions of my anatomy with power tools. Hopefully this trend will continue. My recent track record with chef's knives is not very good. My left index finger is still very sensitive: I tried my acoustic guitar the other night, and I think I'll stick to my classical guitar for a wee while longer. The nylon high E string is a lot gentler on newly healed flesh than ultra fine gauge steel wire... Got to toughen up that finger tip first and get some new callus going before I try that again. Ouchie. Onto other extremities: twisted my now permanently weak left ankle again. Um, yay. Never mind, at least the grass got cut. Note to self: pretty sure the mower needs adjusting again - must remember to do that. Ah yes, endless lists of things to do. Darn, I was starting to get sleepy. Can't stop thinking of all the things that need doing. Crap, just thought about work...endless tasks that need accomplishing there too of course. Apart from being fired and re-hired next week (never ever invest anything in an airline, particularly money but especially a little piece of your heart, you will lose the money and the airline will break your heart and lose your bags into the bargain), somebody somewhere hired a new components engineer for the landing gear shop... without consulting the manager of the components engineering group. Whee. Working for this new company is going to be more fun than a barrel of mokeys on acid. Oh, sorry, I should have written "working for a bunch of monkeys on acid". Although it's a bit disrespectful of our close relatives the monkeys, I think it will prove to be a fairly accurate assessment. Management is so faaaaaaaaar out! A friend of mine would say that's a glass half empty kind of attitude, so let me turn it around for you. I am soo going to run circles around their witless heads, they won't know what hit them. That's the four stages for you. I think I'm in the anger phase. Ya think?
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Seeing Red in Charlottetown
I just received this message from Mr. Gerard Kennedy of the Liberal Party of Canada...
As I write this, Stephen Harper and his minority Caucus are meeting in Charlottetown to try and cobble together a new agenda with which to try to fool the Canadian public this fall, in the aftermath of their derailed spring election plans and a nosedive in public opinion.
The Conservatives may be choosing Liberal policy knock-offs to dress up in their own colours for the fall session of Parliament, or they may be deciding which U.S. Republican misdirection tactics to spend their big war chest on.
Liberals led by Stéphane Dion meanwhile are working hard on the latest version of the real thing - practical ways to have a fairer, richer, greener Canada.
The race is on – Mr. Harper still hopes to manipulate Canadians into a majority government and we have to show Canadians a more ambitious future they can put their faith in.
Your help is needed - even in the middle of summer. Your donation will give us the ability to energize Liberals, fully develop new policy and reach Canadians, all the while holding Mr. Harper to account on the many fronts where he is letting Canadians down.
Don't let Stephen Harper buy a majority - invest now in a renewed Liberal Party that will work for and with all Canadians.
Gerard Kennedy, Liberal Party of Canada
PS. Please make a donation to the Liberal Party today. All administrative costs are already covered so every dollar you give will directly help to counter Mr. Harper and move the Party forward.
PPS. Please be as generous as you can. Remember up to 75% of what you give will come back to you in tax credits.
As I write this, Stephen Harper and his minority Caucus are meeting in Charlottetown to try and cobble together a new agenda with which to try to fool the Canadian public this fall, in the aftermath of their derailed spring election plans and a nosedive in public opinion.
The Conservatives may be choosing Liberal policy knock-offs to dress up in their own colours for the fall session of Parliament, or they may be deciding which U.S. Republican misdirection tactics to spend their big war chest on.
Liberals led by Stéphane Dion meanwhile are working hard on the latest version of the real thing - practical ways to have a fairer, richer, greener Canada.
The race is on – Mr. Harper still hopes to manipulate Canadians into a majority government and we have to show Canadians a more ambitious future they can put their faith in.
Your help is needed - even in the middle of summer. Your donation will give us the ability to energize Liberals, fully develop new policy and reach Canadians, all the while holding Mr. Harper to account on the many fronts where he is letting Canadians down.
Don't let Stephen Harper buy a majority - invest now in a renewed Liberal Party that will work for and with all Canadians.
Sincerely,
Gerard Kennedy, Liberal Party of Canada
PS. Please make a donation to the Liberal Party today. All administrative costs are already covered so every dollar you give will directly help to counter Mr. Harper and move the Party forward.
PPS. Please be as generous as you can. Remember up to 75% of what you give will come back to you in tax credits.
Here is my response:
Dear Mr. Kennedy,
As much as I would like to extend my financial support to the Liberal Party of Canada, my current tax bracket, demographic, and personal situation prevent it. Rest assured that once I have paid my mortgage and home insurance, contributed to my RRSP, paid the heating, telephone, hydro, water heater, school tax, and property tax bills, either repaired or scrapped the rustmobile, found suitable used clothing for work and maybe a pair of shoes not too down at heel, I will gladly send the Liberal Party of Canada the $0.50 left after I buy groceries this week.
I'm thankful that I'm a 35 year old single woman without dependants, and not a 35 year old single mother. I have no objection to paying taxes so long as that money is not wasted. Therefore, on second thought, Mr. Kennedy, my message to the Liberal Party of Canada (and indeed any other party or government) is the following: do what the average Canadian has been doing. Do more with less. I would like to see a political party boasting of how it won an election on the smallest budget. Once a party has done that, I may consider giving them some of my hard earned money in support.
Sincerely,
As much as I would like to extend my financial support to the Liberal Party of Canada, my current tax bracket, demographic, and personal situation prevent it. Rest assured that once I have paid my mortgage and home insurance, contributed to my RRSP, paid the heating, telephone, hydro, water heater, school tax, and property tax bills, either repaired or scrapped the rustmobile, found suitable used clothing for work and maybe a pair of shoes not too down at heel, I will gladly send the Liberal Party of Canada the $0.50 left after I buy groceries this week.
I'm thankful that I'm a 35 year old single woman without dependants, and not a 35 year old single mother. I have no objection to paying taxes so long as that money is not wasted. Therefore, on second thought, Mr. Kennedy, my message to the Liberal Party of Canada (and indeed any other party or government) is the following: do what the average Canadian has been doing. Do more with less. I would like to see a political party boasting of how it won an election on the smallest budget. Once a party has done that, I may consider giving them some of my hard earned money in support.
Sincerely,
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