Piles of BS

How about something non-political for a change?

I spent last weekend while Brenda​ was at WindyCon putting up the hardibacker (again) in her bathroom preparatory to replacing the tile. 2 of 3 walls look fine, but the wall at the faucet end has the exact right spacing on the critical corner (where the wrap-around tile has to match up with the existing tile on the facing wall as well as the tile on the upper border has to match up with the rest of the main wall), but as it reaches the inside corner it cuts rather severely (almost 1/4") behind the existing main wall. That will make the tile at that upper border at that corner unable to rest properly on the existing wall.

Cursing silently (OK, you got me, not silently), I fetched the framing square to check the wall I'd put in. Again. For the umpty-umph time.

Sure enough, that wall is square. Completely square. Perfectly so, if I do say so myself.

The existing wall I'm trying to match to ... well, not so much ...

So now I have a dilemma. Do I un-square the new wall (using layers of hardiboard and grinding them down in some semblance of a smooth angle)? Or do I pull down the plastic cover on the existing wall and grind the (hard as rock) plaster down to make it square. Ish. ?

Both of which will be extremely messy, very hard to get right, and - oh, yeah - have to get done by next Wednesday. As in, the day before Thanksgiving.

• Thu, 19:02: Preseason! Time to study the baby #Pacers! #PacersGameNight
• Thu, 19:14: Hmm. Monta at point. Seems to be sharing the ball OK so far.
• Thu, 19:15: Good D from GR3
• Thu, 19:18: Orlando spinning baseline on PG and then Ian.
• Thu, 19:20: Awful pass from Monta leads to the break.
• Thu, 19:25: That's one way to stop the lob. Illegal block, 10 yards.
• Thu, 19:26: A DUNK FROM OUR STARTING CENTER!!!
• Thu, 19:30: Will we see all 5 guys going for the defensive rebound when the Real Games start?
• Thu, 20:02: Offense clearly a step slow. Defense pretty inconsistent.
• Thu, 20:25: Well, Ian's free throws are the same as last year...

( Read more... )

Good night's sleep - check.

Scraping remaining ice off walkways and driveway - in progress.
Getting frozen doors open on Miata - ain't gonna happen.
Getting Dad's Blazer started that wouldn't even try to turn over before we left for GAFilk - surprisingly easy.
Putting air in flat tire of Blazer that used to only trend low but was completely flat when we got back - must have been working but was going out somewhere as fast as it went in.
Changing tire for spare - complete with the help of many words and phrases not appropriate for public airing.
Putting air in spare to make sure it is the right pressure - bleeping cap won't come off the bleeping valve.
Limping to tire store for repair of old tire - yet to come.

Oh ... and at some point today I really should, you know, work

A bit of an unusual December for us. No kids or grandkids for Christmas (the youngest and his wife are serving as foster parents in Georgia and, unfortunately, that means they can't take their foster child out of state for holidays). My father is in town but is unable to drive until he gets his license reinstated from a medical incident last May, so I've spent a lot of my time being shuttle driver. ladyat's mother is with us and it has been working out very well, but it does mean some shuffling of activities. My sister and her husband are in town but I am participating in the Indy Winter Solstice so I will miss a lot of time with her due to rehearsals and performances. We did, however, get the tree and decorations up a lot earlier than most years so it has actually felt a little more like Yule than in the past.

It is in this time of darkness, when we think we should be contemplating the inner world, that we find ourselves at our busiest. We often decry the frantic pace, but perhaps it is closer to what our ancestors did than we would like to remember - every day was a struggle to survive, traveling miles to find meat for the table, searching for the last dried fruits or roots to fill cold and hungry bellies - never mind gathering wood for that all-important life-sustaining fire. Our problem may be the way we go about it - mindlessly, with the only thoughts being those of obligation, inconvenience, and inadequacy. Maybe we shouldn't despair that we can't be 100% contemplative at this time of year - rather, we should make certain that we are fully engaged in everything we do, dropping those things in which we cannot take joy, comfort, or at least satisfaction that we have prepared for another year.

It all seems a bit philosophical for a post whose purpose is simply to wish you all joy in whatever way you celebrate the Returning of the Light. Every year I find I love these words more and more (and acknowledge the help of cflute in giving them their final polish):

- as the sun increases, so may your joys increase.
- as the nights become shorter, so may your sorrows shrink.
- as those you love surround you, feel my love there as well.
- may you be blessed by your Gods, be they within or without.
- may all your dearest dreams come to you in time.

Joyous Yule, Merry Christmas, Blessed Hannukah, Happy Dong Zhi, and an Inspirational Kwanzaa to you all. May the best of this year follow you into the next.

We enjoyed Detcon1 so much we decided to share the song we wrote about the unofficial theme of the con. Please download for free or, if you feel so inclined, pay a little into the virtual tip jar...

I posted this on Facebook, but the embedded player isn't working very well over there.

http://www.lambdalegal.org/in-court/legal-docs/baskin_in_20140625_entry-on-cross-motions-for-summary-judgment

[UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA INDIANAPOLIS DIVISION] ORDERS the following:

1.
The Defendant Clerks, their officers, agents, servants, employees and attorneys, and all those acting in concert with them, are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED from denying a marriage license to a couple because both applicants for the license are the same sex. Thus they must act pursuant to their authority under Indiana Code Chapter 31-11-4 and issue marriage licenses to couples who, but for their sex, satisfy all the requirements to marry under Indiana law;
2.
The Attorney General, Greg Zoeller, his officers, agents, servants, employees and attorneys, and all those acting in concert with them, are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED from prosecuting or assisting in the prosecution, using his authority from Indiana Code § 4-6-1-6, of the following:
a. same-sex couples who fill out the current marriage license application where the spaces provided
only allow for a male and female (Ind. Code §§ 31-11-11-1 and 31-11-11-3),
b. clerks who grant the marriage licenses to qualified same-sex couples (Ind. Code § 31-11-11-4), or
c. those who choose to solemnize same-sex marriages (Ind. Code §§ 31-11-11-5 and 31-11-11-7). .
3.
William C. Vanness II, M.D., the Commissioner of the Indiana State Department of Health, his officers, agents, servants, employees and attorneys, and all those acting in concert with them, are
PERMANENTLY ENJOINED to:
a. Act pursuant to their authority under Indiana Code § 16-37-1 to change the death certificate form to allow for same-sex spouses,
b. Act pursuant to their authority under Indiana Code § 16-37-3 to issue death certificates listing
same-sex spouses, and
c. Act pursuant to their authority under Indiana Code § 31-11-4-4 to revise the marriage license application to allow for same-sex applicants.
4.
The Commissioner of the Indiana State Department of Revenue, his officers, agents, servants, mployees and attorneys, and all those acting in concert with them, are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED to exercise their authority under Indiana Code § 6-8.1-3 to revise the filing guidelines to allow and process joint tax returns for same-sex married couples as they do for opposite-sex married couples.
5.
The Board of Trustees of the Indiana Public Retirement System and Steve Russo, the Executive Director of the Indiana Public Retirement System, and their officers, agents, servants, employees and attorneys, and all those acting in concert with them, are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED to administer the
Pension Fund pursuant to Indiana Code Chapters 5-10.5-3, 5-10.5-4, and 5-10.5-6, so as to provide the same benefits for all married couples, regardless of whether the couples are of the opposite sex or the same sex.

On top of parent health issues (my father is back in the hospital after another low pressure issue and kidney problems, ladyat's mother has had enough problems living alone that we've convinced her to come live with us this fall), the small gods of the household have become disgruntled with us and decided to shower us (literally) with unblessings.

( The full story... )

Water. Why did it have to be water?