Attribute to L. Neil Smith’s The Libertarian Enterprise

Pushing the envelope again for submissions^* as I await a SW style flatbread pizza I put in the oven for a quick dinner after a last minute shopping trip on the final evening of what has been a pretty decent vacation. All day I was contemplating either a full blown article or a book review which I’ve been wanting to do all winter—which is my normal time for that but it’s been busy between keeping up with my home front, projects, critters and worrying about the Corona and what comes next. And it seems like whenever there might be light at the end of the tunnel—something else terrible happens to destabilize the country even more and give the enemies of Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness a compelling issue or fear to manipulate public opinion and push the nation over a tipping point of no return that takes us into that dystopian future hallmark of many a Science Fiction novel with the boot of totalitarianism stamping on the collective human face forever.

Or at least a very long time that none of us will live to see the ending.

Such depressing thoughts continue to intrude into what has otherwise been a nice and productive week away from work. Again last night via the newsfeed on both the BLM protests and Corona. Another sleepless night that I tried to overcome by listening again to the audiobook that has become one of my favored H. Beam Piper works—the short story called “Police Operation” that I’ve listened to and fell asleep to several times in the last year since I discovered it. It would probably have turned into a book review for the upcoming issue were I not pressed for time on the last day of summer vacation week to get things done. I’m thinking next week because I really love that story and have been wanting to do it for a long time.

As said—it has been a productive week and relaxing most of the time. When I’m not worried about existential danger issues facing the nation. Progress has slowed somewhat on the Florida Room but that’s because my focus has shifted more to matters outdoors and in the greenhouse.

The table setup has been for the most part been broken down and looks like it did back in the beginning when I was building the walls and figuring out the basic infrastructure. The process was like evolution in reverse and I’ll probably detail it somewhat in the summer edition which I plan to do later to cover more interesting developments that are likely as I get more into various projects and upgrades. Along with the news. Maybe I should stay away from that stuff but one cannot live in a bubble. Especially in times like these!

My most significant accomplishment of the week has been a successful water test of what has become the new 40B Duo outside the Room. I also delivered measurements for the second hand 29 gallon to do a stand for that and a 20 Long to fit underneath and that will replace the other 40B duo in the room which will move out into the basement with the two newly sealed tanks. And I hope to be able to squeeze another 20 High stand in to have more diversity of small fishes plus an Axolotl tank in the Room!

I’m going to make the prediction that I’ll be as far along with that as I was with the current setup coming up on the anniversary’s of the date going into July.

It’s been a boring summer so far as weather goes—which is the usual theme of the Diaries—but I like it that way. Aside from the Curse of the Dry Belt which seems to have returned. Yesterday another round of predicted storms peetered out into nuisance variety showers and the ones predicted for this evening were a no show.

Made a trip to Walmart after long afternoon that could have made for a good article in itself : The Almost Perfect Day. Would have been perfect had I been caught up on weeding at the pond site and enough water in the pond to feel comfortable about running the waterfalls. The level is down significantly and the spring flow I tap to keep it topped off stopped weeks ago.

As for the Corona Update I’ll make it a quicke so I can get on with dinner and do other things in need of doing before bed. I’m still going maskless—unless the business I’m entering requires it. Or I feel it necessary based on crowds or the presence of elderly or other vulnerable people. So far cases in Pennsylvania are on the decline but the wish disguised as a fear is now targeting the West and the Southland. And last night there was news of a new outbreak in China that likely originated from the packaging of frozen salmon imported from Europe. Maybe it’s not a bad idea to decontaminate anything that will go into the fridge or freezer so I’m doing that again. It’s a no brainer. Cold preserves viruses while heat degrades them. So they probably wasted a lot of food in China throwing away the salmon. Just sanitize the packaging and cook food well and other common sense measures like hand washing.

Going into Walmart you see some people with masks and some without and all the employees are still required to wear them. Had a conversation with the guy checking out ahead of me who was actually wearing gloves and was a bit touchy about my criticism that gloves are unnecessary and have just as many contamination issues as bare hands—and it’s one more thing to mess with. I should have just minded my own business though I sometimes like to compare notes with others and I have no malice to anyone who takes different measures. The guy works in the airline industry and like the hospital—gloves are a necessity there. Probably were even before Covid came along because airports are just as dirty as hospitals when it comes to germs. The airlines are the major conveyors and hospitals are where the major collection points.

And I’ll be going back tomorrow. I haven’t kept in touch with anyone so I’m wondering what changes I’ll see. Might be busier as according to the stats in the newsfeed—PA hospitals are getting fuller and ICU beds are in short supply even though Covid cases are in decline state wide. Then again can I trust anything I read or hear on TV anymore! I remember one of the things Isaac Arthur listed as hallmark of a post scarcity society was access to accurate and honest information. And the way things in this time of crisis have become so politicized and subject to widespread unbridled speculation and fear mongering—that has become a very scarce commodity these days!

 

^*Pushed it too close, Jeff, I didn't get this until after I had put last issue up on the webserver. So here it is a bit late. “So it goes….” — Editor