TubaOrNotTuba

For the last few years, I have accepted that my “local” bank is actually ten hours away. I really have little reason or occasion to stand in a queue, now that online transactions are a thing. However, every once in a while…

I appreciate my health care system. Right across Canada, we seem to be able to find our way past the cash register and actually access trained doctors, nurses and technicians. You’re sick? We’ve got your back!

Using online client tech is not really difficult; me and my various banks have got this figured out, and we have for several years now. In sharp contrast, our federal government has a system that seems to be a study in user frustration. It’s all about jumping through the hoops to prove your identity; as if someone wants to impersonate me and pay my tax bill. I get it, their programmers need a challenge or two, and when you have a postal system, and walk-in centres and modems, stirring madly will create a system for the eons. If you fail to use the system regularly, you can test the model all over again.

Here’s a little story, with a moral lesson. A famous, high end, audio company sent out a firmware update for their noise-cancelling headphones. Specifically, the integrated Bluetooth feature. Within days, the complaint pile started to rise. On the online user forum, hundreds of entries. The company was perplexed, and sent out technicians to test some of the headsets… in the homes, where the complaints began, rather than in some cold, sterile laboratory. The technicians were unable to duplicate the alleged behavior.

I decided to make the final push, this morning. As of lunchtime, the deck is clear. The BBQ is inside, ready to hibernate, and the furniture “that will never rot” is piled below the deck. I got everything done before the winds came up and the water came down, and I’m pleased with myself.

I knew we would get a break in the weather. It was too early to be snowed in. With that pile of recyclable cardboard weighing on my conscience, I spent time last evening, breaking things down and piling, even though the big blue truck wouldn’t be by for another three weeks. And this afternoon, the snow went away. Not all of it; there were traces in the hedgerow, but the path was clear. I put the pilot of the big green machine on alert.

What if you only needed to buy two cars in your lifetime? Would you be willing to pay a premium price? After reading a web article about how certain Tesla vehicles are still in service after a half million miles. Translate that into average domestic driver stats, and you are up into the 4x range. Remember, this is new technology, and it will only get better. Instead of owning a car for six years, you could aim at twenty-five. Doable. A reasonable hope. Assuming that you keep the salt out of everything, the actual frame might also last. And with that, we’re in to true long-term vehicle ownership.

Snap! That wind is cold. I’m really looking forward to mid-week, when this “cold snap” takes a break. Long enough to drive the big Green Machine indoors, and move the faithful flower pot away from the plow line. The deck furniture can wait (very weather resistant), and I rather enjoy the assistance provided by a thin layer of snow, going downhill. Soon. Oh, and don’t forget the BBQ. I don’t imagine I’ll do much grill time between now and spring, so it also deserves a warm and dry place to hibernate. I can’t imagine how all those folks in the south get by without the fun of fall.

I live in a small province. Things are reduced in scale. In fact, until the arrival of the industrial potato period, a family farm would have been 50 acres, or a multiple (2x, 3x). Big enough to get the family fed without needing a trained guide to find the limits of your land.

Watching the UPS van back into my lane this afternoon, I felt relief. Another delivery, here, on time. Amazon, you’ve got a problem, if you’re listening (of course, you are). I am starting to doubt the efficiency of your delivery system, and let’s face it, that’s all you have. No stores, in my universe. No staff. When I place an order, I have a reasonable expectation that you will come through. And, as of late, the process has an “iffy” smell. I have two different orders for some RF chokes out there. Both marked as shipped. Neither received. And we had the jelly belly fiasco, last week. There are others. You shouldn’t model your business after eBay.