Yesterday, my wonderful wife and I accomplished many tasks related to our “new” house, but failed to accomplish all of the ones we wanted to do. Today, in the aftermath of tree/bush trimming, lifting books and boxes, etc. I am extremely sore and lamenting my age.
Of course, we can afford to pay people to do almost anything that needs to be done around the house, but I believe in maintaining a real connection to one’s dwelling by doing at least some of the work. Yes, in general I believe in “work smart, not hard” but no behavioral paradigm is always appropriate, in my opinion.
One task that I was unable to complete was programming the new handheld garage remote to be used, primarily, for the single-car garage bay. Right now, no way exists to open that garage door from the inside of any vehicle in the household except for my wonderful wife’s Corvette. The original handheld remote, from 2005-06, has given up the ghost. Now that the single-car garage has a car in it (the Maserati), that is not an acceptable state of affairs.
For about $30 we purchased a remote supposedly compatible with our garage door openers since the remote is manufactured by Chamberlain and all of our garage door openers are from the same company. I am not the dullest knife in the drawer and have successfully programmed such devices before, but after six or eight attempts yesterday I just gave up. I called a local garage door company and they are sending a tech here this afternoon. I will ask that he program the new remote to all three garage doors since the remote has three buttons.
No time for old men, indeed.
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At least this sight soothed my psyche this morning:
While, of course, this house isn’t perfect, we are still VERY happy to be here. I cannot envision a realistic scenario in which we will ever go house hunting again.
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Was Leonardo da Vinci Jewish? That is the title of this Why Evolution Is True post. From Tablet, “which has a decent history of accurate reporting” is this conclusion:
“In all likelihood, Leonardo da Vinci was only half Italian. His mother, Caterina, was a Circassian Jew born somewhere in the Caucasus, abducted as a teenager and sold as a sex slave several times in Russia, Constantinople, and Venice before finally being freed in Florence at age 15. This, at least, is the conclusion reached in the new book Il sorriso di Caterina, la madre di Leonardo, by the historian Carlo Vecce, one of the most distinguished specialists on Leonardo da Vinci.”
To me, if this is true then it is just one more “up yours” to anti-Semites. Sorry, I can’t interpret it in any other way.
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This is a scary sign of the times, also from Why Evolution Is True. The top candidate for the job of superintendent of Easthampton (MA) Public Schools had his offer withdrawn because he used the word “ladies” in an email to two women. Once again, woke is a cult and DEI means Deny Excellent Individuals. Truth is, indeed, stranger than fiction. Maybe that’s why I don’t read fiction.
#NoTimeForOldMen
#GooseBumpsHouse
#LeonardodaVinci
#WokeIsACult
#somanyCARSjustonelife
#disaffectedmusings
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” we can afford to pay people to do almost anything that needs to be done around the house, but I believe in maintaining a real connection to one’s dwelling by doing at least some of the work”
I do the same, but only to a point. I can do pretty much any repairs/upgrades, but it comes down to time. Many of these will take me twice as long, because it’s not something I do regularly. Electrical wiring (had some done yesterday*), roofing, tree work, etc. I have done all over the years on my properties but have decided that my time/energy is better spent elsewhere.
These days I do what I know how to do, and pay others to do what they know how to do.
* Got hit by lightning a couple weeks ago, came in on the main power lines. Fried a lot of electronics, 2 routers, a modem, 2 tv’s, 1 camera system, a refrigerator and some light fixtures. Had upgraded surge protection system’s installed on all my buildings.
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I remember your writing about the lightning strike. Very sorry to read of that.
Given that you are still working, your making the time vs. money argument in favor of time makes far more sense than for me and my wonderful wife, who are both retired. Still, I think a homeowner needs to put some sweat equity, literally or not, into their dwelling.
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I have always mowed my lawn dating back to my parent home about 45 years ago. Now there are only a handful of people in my neighborhood who don’t use a service. I joked with my young neighbor who also does his mowing, I am the only one here mowing while remembering President Nixon.
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[Baltimore accent] You mean Life Magazine is here on my front lawn?!
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We have that on our coffee table.
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With respect to limiting activities as I age, there are activities which I can still accomplish and others which I know better than to attempt. Since my knee surgery, I have learned that I can still get down onto the floor and then get back up. One thing I do NOT do is use ladders outside. I know better.
The discussion about da Vinci being half Jewish is very interesting to students of da Vinci like myself. The man is undoubtedly a genius and for anyone who is a student of engineering, art, anatomy, etc. NEEDS to study da Vinci in order to learn to think logically, but to also think circumspectly as he did. His notebooks are amazing to look at and to study. He is one more example of the multitude of contributions that the Jewish people have made to the world, provided the supposition of his maternal heritage is true.
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Thanks, Philip. When considering the wide range of his abilities, da Vinci may be the greatest “known” genius in history. Of course, someone of whom we are unaware may have/may be even more transcendent.
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We know about Leonardo because his many notebooks are so well preserved.
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Exactly, some other “genius” could have had his/her work destroyed, tossed out or hid his/her work.
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I’ll be interested to hear how the tech does with reprogramming your opener equipment. We’ve had issues with our condo buildings in Fargo and many of the modern models aren’t all that compatible with older openers.
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Thanks, JS. The garage door company tech had no problem programming the newer remote to work with all three garage doors AND he made sure all three cars could open all three doors.
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Regarding my earlier comment about knowing when to limit your activities. Sometimes it is best to know when to humble yourself and ask for help when completing a task. I must give a great big Thank You to my son-in-law, Jon for helping me install the replacement over the range microwave. It is a two man job due to the bulkiness and weight of the appliance. And before hefting up the device, I had to have my nephew, the expert tile installer come and cut a quarter of an inch off of the tile backsplash so I could lower the wall bracket to the required 16.5 inches from the former 16.25 inches. It pays to read the installation instructions beforehand.
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“It pays to read the installation instructions beforehand.”
It’s amazing how many people refuse to do so. My marvelous mom used to say that the lazy person’s punishment was having to do the task more than once.
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