TubaOrNotTuba

Living this close to the ocean my urge to fly is minimal. In sharp contrast I think that a ferry boat might be one of the best inventions of mankind. I mean assuming that I decide to travel. I do less of that now. There are a few trips that intrigue me. Particularly a vessel known as the cat with a capital C. The vessel was built as a military transport and then loaned to one of our ferry services. Actually the only thing keeping me from going for a quick journey is that this is an international ferry and I don’t have any particular reason to visit the other side. Been there and done it. I wonder if they would loan the vessel to a pair of Canadian ports just to give me a reason to come on board. I understand that there are some issues pertaining to the size of our RV but that can be sorted out in good time. Meanwhile we have another vessel that travels by our house twice a day. I did go on earlier iterations of the vessel but this one is new and probably still has that fresh boat smell. Not the nasty kind. The summer is far from over and we might just go for a weekend away. All to be determined in good time. While I wait here on shore I can watch the lights from my kitchen window and dream a little bit. From what I have read there are other new vessels that make it to this province. The mechanical issues seem to be done and the chances of being trapped on board for days and days are the stuff of legends not news. I will leave the idea floating around the house much like a boat and see where we end up. As for airplanes do not hold your breath. By my calculation the places where airplanes go to wait are less than comfortable and there is always the chance of a catastrophic failure.

Despite all the climate change we still profit from several seasons. The labels are less exacting before but we understand that we move through a calendar year. There are benefits. In the middle of a snowstorm you are not likely to be added to the list of blood donors for the local mosquito community. In sharp contrast once we move into the summer season that becomes a different risk right now if I open the door to allow a dog to go in or out I can expect that the number of bugs in my immediate location will be altered. People refer to it as a hatch. I only have a basic understanding of the life cycle but I can tell you that when someone says the mosquitoes are here they are. Imagine that people count their estimate. Like that last time the door was opened I think that five mosquitoes came in. No scientific reasoning but if you go with your hand on the ready you can kill at least 5 mosquitoes. Correlation rather than causation. I avoid opening the door unless someone important is on the other side. And because I am inside the house often I rarely have to donate to the local blood drive. All good by my calculation. We have other insects that want to share the house but they are few and we are watchful. And I believe that there is someone who comes around with a spray canister trying to get rid of any possibilities. For the bugs not the humans. Gone are the days when every room would have had a flypaper hanging from the ceiling. You can still buy those at the local store but I hate to think how many unexpected haircuts were involved in trying to remove the goo and the gunk. I spend a lot of time hoping that the wind will come up. A gentle breeze is a blessing.

This might be a good time to mention my favorite coffee mug. I know. Not a common thread. But if you drink a lot of coffee and do it over a long period of time you too might acquire a preference. In my case the mug was created a lifetime ago. Sometime around the time of the Korean conflict I think I have more than one of them and they have dates stamped into the base because these were former military surplus mugs I had an uncle that was in the forces and he gave us some one summer. They were created out of a material known in the industry as melmac. A sort of plastic I assume. And they are indestructible. You can even clean them by taking them down to the beach filling them full of sand and gently massaging until the coffee stains are gone. No ceramic here. What sets these mugs apart beyond the indestructible part is that they’re comfortable. Well balanced. Capable of keeping my coffee warm for a very long time. And if the mug falls on the floor I just have to clean up the liquid. The mug is and continues to be indestructible. They travel with us when we camp. I know I have seen those fancier mugs made of stainless steel but the reality is that they become too hot to hold if your coffee is hot and too cold to hold if your coffee is cold. This material is preferable on so many levels. The colour choices odd. I have one that is green and another that is yellow. I have seen other colours while checking out the prices on eBay but that was a while ago. Anyhow tell me about your preferred coffee mug.

I wish that I had more skill in telling stories. I mean I can read things for other people letting go in short bursts of creation but I want to be able to do more. However my take away from watching YouTube videos is that very few people are actually skilled at telling stories. Hours of narration but only minutes of content. Therefore I also tend to react to some of the funnier things that I see happening. For example there is one person who manages to always find a way to get lost and also to attract wild animals. That part does not always turn out well. Another has found that riding ferry boats randomly will take you to other parts of the world but then you have to find your way back home. I cannot imagine what the budget must be for some of this travel. Finding something to talk about every day comes with its own set of issues. No need to repeat myself because that will happen naturally. At least I have not had to seek out a copy of a thesaurus. Believe me some of the people on YouTube would be well served by such an acquisition. I have to wonder if they ever replay the videos they create. No matter. I am far from the moment where I am going to start creating a new channel with content that will amaze the world. Perhaps this is why so many people like to talk to their pets. Not with them. If your dog is responding to your thoughts you have a larger issue on your hands. Not wanting to point fingers. And although I listen carefully I have never received an intelligent thought from any of my own pets. Just an indication that more food will be appreciated and the sooner the better.

Having the rightful capillary is important. I am now trying to calculate what is the difference for musician between acting in a cover band or a tribute band. Remember most musicians perform covers of tunes written and performed by other people. Those in a tribute band tried to be more specific. They choose an artist and then they perform cover tunes of the music by that artist in part to mimic the original sound and at the outset to act as a tribute to the artist involved. I am truly not talking about something I know anything about. All of the music I performed in my earlier life came from sheets of tunes that had been written and performed by others. Sometimes centuries before my birth. At no point today go onstage and pretend that I was being as good and see original artist. My effort may have been attribute but I can assure you that handle or Beethoven never heard about my efforts. I guess that’s the point of this. In all comes down to history and where you sit on a continual timeline. If you are laying on your bag with guitar strumming a tune you are rarely performing either a cover or attribute. As my friend would say you’re simply noodling which has nothing to do with food. And anytime I have taken a recorder and played something that I felt really good about I was noodling in my own way. As you can guess I rarely have any exposure to live music. I live too far from the road as they used to say.

This morning I hoped to demonstrate their usefulness have a portable GPS to a family member. However the internal battery was completely discharged which means that I had good intentions and no results. Not to worry I know where I am and I was not going anyplace. We have other distractions right now. There is a very small human visiting. One that is still not at the point of telling us stories although that will come. Instead this is a pretest where the small human is still trying to figure out what on board systems function and what they do. If you hear a shriek that sounds like a fire alarm that is just a baby testing systems if you see a baby trying to fit a foot into the mouth that is just preparation for later moments in life. We all put our foot in their mouth eventually. If the baby reaches out with two hands equipped with small razor blades I think that is just a moment of testing to see if other humans will bleed. Just a theory. Outside the rain is starting. There is a strong possibility of a thunderstorm although I will wait for the sound and lights. As I mentioned earlier my weather forecasts are generated in Toronto and without boots on the ground we get and educated guess nothing more. Actually the rain has already started to fall. A classic demonstration of a shower. If we do get thunder I have found a thunder shirt to help to ease the stress of one of the two dogs that are visiting. Unsure if the shirt will fit.

Right now we have two dogs visiting with us. Volume is just a normal filled with joy Labrador. No food is safe. The other is somewhat older. Somewhat def. Somewhat blind. No warnings are given when the older dog decides to change course to position under your feet so you had best be up to your finest dancing skills. I have not fallen yet but today is young. However the sense of smell is still keen and so carrying a piece of cold pizza will buy me a moment of safety. Yes I will run out of pizza and I will have to find an alternative measure. Right now we are waiting on repairs to a Jeep. I cannot claim to understand all the technical aspects but the deal seems to be that the rear axle has to be dropped. Then the coil spring will be properly seated back in place and the axle will be placed back in its place and then all will be fine. As you can imagine I have been spending time trying to visualize how this happens. It makes me think back to the days my father repaired our station wagon while parked over the top of a deep ditch. There were several long 2 X 4 pieces of lumber involved in the process. And it worked although again I was not the one doing the heavy hauling. For those who have newer cars you will never know the joy of getting down and dirty with the mechanical parts. This is how some people spend their vacation time. In retrospect we have never being faced with large mechanical adjustments to any of the cars we have owned over the years. Proof that we are lucky.

The law is the law. Sort of. Recently I have been following a podcast by a lawyer in the United States who takes the time to examine some of the rulings made by the courts and how they have historical precedent or not. In other words what someone thinks the law means will still have to be interpreted. Hence the whole idea of having a judge. You know, to judge. I have relatively little experience with the law. Yes mommy I have been a good boy. But I am fascinated to watch the pre verifications that are offered. If you do not like what the law says shop around. There may be a different court with a different judge who will then give you the remedy you so desire. Hardly a firm foundation for society but this is what we get when we allow different parties to play. Is it a good thing that law can change? For sure. I do not want to return to the older system of an eye for an eye. Particularly when my eyes are no longer as good as someone else is. I will continue to follow the line of thought offered in this podcast because it brings me to a place that I had never considered. You know, that the law is not simply the law. I have no plan to begin a life of conflict with society but I do want to know what possibilities exist. In passing I am unsure just how this nation handles the mysteries of law. We also have a Supreme Court and legislatures but beyond that point there is a great fog. I will continue to study. If only for the intellectual pleasure it brings.

The law is the law. Sort of. Recently I have been following a podcast by a lawyer in the United states who takes the time to examine some of the rulings made by the courts and how they have historical precedent or not. In other words what someone thinks the law means will still have to be interpreted. Hence the whole idea of having a judge. You know, to judge. I have relatively little experience with the law. Yes mommy I have been a good boy. But I am fascinated to watch the pre verifications that are offered. If you do not like what the law says shop around. There may be a different court with a different judge who will then give you the remedy you so desire. Hardly a firm foundation for society but this is what we get when we allow different parties to play. Is it a good thing that law can change? For sure. I do not want to return to the older system of an eye for an eye. Particularly when my eyes are no longer as good as someone else is. I will continue to follow the line of thought offered in this podcast because it brings me to a place that I had never considered. You know, that the law is not simply the law. I have no plan to begin a life of conflict with society but I do want to know what possibilities exist. In passing I am unsure just how this nation handles the mysteries of law. We also have a Supreme Court and legislatures but beyond that point there is a great fog. I will continue to study. If only for the intellectual pleasure it brings.