Insurance Thoughts

 

I had to go to the hospital the other day to pick up some medical records for the Missus and they were making a lift on the new addition while I was there. That telescoping boom is pretty impressive and the cab appeared to tilt to enable the operator a better view when setting the lift up on the roof. I don't have any idea what it would cost to rent that crane, but added in with the rest of the expenses, it would help explain the cost of a hospital visit. My recent emergency room visit and overnight stay was a tick over $100,000. The ambulance ride was $2,400. I don't have any idea what the rehab program cost but as much as I bitch about the government and the wasteful spending of my tax dollars, Medicare does a fine job of picking up the tab. The doctors take a beating, but old farts like me with Medicare and a supplement insurance policy, don't have to worry about medical expenses in our retirement. 

I had to go to the dentist yesterday. That's a different story. I've got dental insurance but it's pretty limited. Likewise, my eye insurance. So even though Medicare takes care of the majority of the bills, when you add up all of the costs for insurance policies, you better have a source of income besides Social Security if you want to retire comfortably or hope you never have a catastrophic event, whether medical or with property damage like the folks around here who were hit recently with tornado damage.  

I bought motorcycle insurance the other day. The outfit I had the Himalayan insured with, along with car, truck, trailers and property, didn't offer a discount if I added the Sportster in. Four vehicles insured, with only two operators, and only one of us riding motorcycles, they could have thrown in the Sportster for free as far as I'm concerned. After all, I can only operate one of the vehicles at a time and the book value of a '77 Sportster isn't much. I switched to Geico and the premium for both bikes is next to nothing. My coverage is at a minimum, but I don't ride much anymore, nor do I ride like I did when I was a young man.

Insurance is a racket, no doubt about it, but you need to protect yourself. The combined premiums on all of my policies is my biggest monthly expense. I never gave that much thought when I was doing my retirement planning. Something to think about, though.  

Radio Remembrances

 

Very much under-rated singer. I think like a lot of blues/soul artists, she just didn't get a lot of airtime on mainstream radio back in the sixties. There were a couple of AM stations I used to listen to back then that played a lot of black artists, but radio was moving to all mainstream rock and roll, and album cuts on FM, as I recall. WLS was the big AM station in Chicago with Clark Weber when I was in high school and for a few years thereafter. I think they were still broadcasting the Breakfast Club and The National Barn Dance at that time as well. One of my alternative stations featured Daddy-O's Jazz Patio. That's where you could hear Carla Thomas and other Jazz, Blues and Soul artists back then.

 They just don't make 'em like this one anymore. And if they do, I don't know where I would go to listen to them. The public radio stations I used to listen to went to a talk radio format. Shame really. If I wanted to listen to people yapping for hours on end I'd sit on a barstool.

I was on the road yesterday and got a call about fixing some aluminum fenders. The photo doesn't reveal the extent of the damage, but lots of cracks to be fixed. I'm guessing some of the cracking was from vibration but judging by the way they are bent, someone was standing on them. I wasn't looking for any work, but he came to me by way of a friend of mine. I still find it odd a small city where he lives doesn't have a weld shop. That's how I ended up welding the helicopter tanks.

Picked up the air and oil filters for the mower and got the first mowing of the season done. I'll get the filters changed and swap the blades out in the next couple of days. My weed-whacker leaked a puddle of gas on the garage floor, so I need to see about fixing that. I got the pickup in for service yesterday, picked up some medical records for the Missus at the hospital, and did some grocery shopping. Doing some household chores and driving the Missus to an appointment today. No rest for the wicked.

Looking Back & Ahead

 

I've done a pretty fair job of mixing it up over the years - aren't too many things left on the bucket list.

Cuzzin Ricky and I had beignets at the Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans after riding the City of New Orleans down there and a more recent trip to the Grand Canyon by train. 

I've been to Europe several times but I'm done with international travel. There's a couple of places I'd like to visit but I'm not getting back on an airplane again. While air travel is still probably the safest form of travel, there have been some recent incidents that have given me pause, as well as the whole experience at the airports both coming and going.

I've got a couple of places in the US I'd still like to visit, but I don't know when or if that will ever happen. I no longer feel comfortable leaving the Missus on her own and she doesn't travel well. I do feel fairly comfortable with my own health again. I finished up the cardiac rehab on Monday and both the surgeon who replaced the plugged stent and my own cardiologist said no damage to the heart, and I should be good for another 100,000. 

Now that the weather has turned warm at least a couple days per week, I'll be tending to some outside chores and doing some inside things on the rainy days.

 

I've been working on my family history once again. Ancestry has more resources available and other members have posted more information that ties into to my bloodline, such as the above photo. The lady on the right is my great, grand aunt, born 1869. I used to attend an annual family reunion of the descendants of her and her sister for years. These were relatives on my dad's side. Unfortunately, as the older generations passed away, so too did the reunions. Surly hosted a revival several years back, which was well attended and great to see us all together again along with the younger generation.

I've been concentrating my recent efforts on the paternal side but I'm going to start working on the maternal side soon. I've been adding all the new information to my family tree on Ancestry and once I gather all that is easily available, I'll see about getting it all typed up to make an addendum to the book I published a few years back. I think I will have to take a road trip to Tennessee before I go to press on that, however. 

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 April is National Welding Month. Welding has progressed dramatically since the days of the blacksmith working at his forge. The recent launch of the spaceship that's going to circle the moon wouldn't have been possible without welding. Likewise, your automobiles, bicycles, household appliances, and most everything else in your daily life, either directly or in their manufacture. 

If you know someone looking to go into the trade but needs some financial help for a trade school, don't forget the MikeRoweWorks scholarship program. AI won't build the submarines, the pipelines, the skyscrapers, or repair the broken school desk or garbage truck. Only skilled craftspeople can do that and there are lots of jobs available now, so get some skills and get to work.

Weekend Update

 

I finished chopping the stump out over the weekend. I whacked on it a bit Saturday after coming home from the gym and then finished it up yesterday. I still need to clean up the wood chips and get some black dirt to level up the hole and then plant some grass seed. I'll get that done this week.

Gas prices haven't hit $12.99 yet but they have shot up around here recently. After working on the stump, I got the Himalayan out and rode over to the filling station to top off the tank. $5.049 for premium unleaded which is exactly $1.00 more than regular. However, I'm finishing up cardiac rehab this morning, so I won't have to be driving much in the future. The motorcycle gets about twice the mileage my truck does and the bicycle, of course, only uses the energy I put into it. Short hops around here I can use a two-wheeler for most things. The Himalayan has saddle bags, and I have a small trailer for the bicycle, so trips to the grocery and hardware can be accomplished on two wheels.

Changing direction, I saw a couple interesting things on Facebook recently. I no longer post anything or comment since they censored my anniversary post a couple of years back, but I do enjoy some of the "Reels". Unfortunately, I didn't get the links for two of the most interesting ones. 

First up was one from Steve Morris Racing Engines. He took an aluminum block and cylinder heads to a welder that has to be one of the best in the business. He welded up water jacket holes in the block with no preheat or cleaning using a very small, water-cooled torch. Rather than pure argon shielding gas, he used some secret-squirrel blended gas containing helium, lots of amperage and the frequency control way up there. I really wished I would have bookmarked it; I'd like to watch it again - lots to learn there. The reel is about 30 minutes long but if you're a welder and run across it, it's definitely worth watching.

I've been following The Tool and Die Guy also. He posted a written test a few days ago that was given to want-to-be machinists to find out what they knew prior to being hired in and investing a lot of time and money in them. I took the test and I'm sure I got them all correct but I've been around for a long time now. I don't know how I would have done straight out of high school, but probably better than many of the mopes that showed up in my college classes.

And last but not least, MachinistX. There are MachinistX reels and a website. The focus seems to be addressing the issues of recruiting new blood into the trade and passing along the knowledge of the old timers before they retire. 

I'm not a machinist per se, but as a long-time educator and a concerned citizen, I like to hear what others are doing to recruit people into the trades along with what's being done to bring manufacturing and craftsmanship back - somebody has to weld those submarines after all.

On the Road

The ham radio group was meeting for lunch yesterday, so I went in early for rehab. The sessions run an hour long and Wednesdays they have a 15-minute session on topics of interest to cardiac patients. By going in early I had plenty of time to get to lunch as well as stopping to see my brother from a different mother for a short visit. It was about a 45-minute drive to the restaurant from his house and a beautiful day for it. Lunch was good, both the food and the company. Afterwards, I took a short spin around town. 

The church in the photo is a whopper. Unfortunately, the town no longer is. The main street is not quite vacant but not too far from it. It's a shame what has happened to so many of these small towns. I'm sure you could buy a lot of real estate cheap, both commercial and residential, but what would you do with it once you owned it? Hard to bring it back when there's nothing to keep the young people there. Especially after taking a hit from the covid shutdowns and the recent inflation. 

And what's worse than that? Tornado damage. On the way home I went through the small town that was hit recently by the tornado. Lots of damage - a couple of businesses destroyed along with many houses. However, like most small towns, the people all unite and come together to help each other out, but it's going to be really rough dealing with the loss in the long term. There are a lot of people just trying to get by with a roof over their head these days. Think how tough it would be when you've lost everything.  

Chopping Wood

 

       Had this one playing while I was chopping on the stump.

Not much left of the stump but I was getting gassed out, so I figured it was time to quit. I don't have much stamina yet but I can swing the axe - not like Paul Bunyon, but well enough to get some work done. I had cut some slots in the top of it the other day with the chainsaw, and I was able to break some pieces off with a big pinch bar, but I didn't get my angle cuts deep enough to connect. I didn't want to get the bar in the dirt. Another hour or so I should have the stump low enough to throw some dirt over it, rake it smooth, and throw some grass seed on top of it.

You can tell spring is here when the Magnolia trees start to bloom. The grass will be ready for mowing soon also. When the tractor was down, a friend of mine plowed the lane and threw some gravel into the grass. I need to rake some of it back in and the rest I imagine will get thrown into the fields by the mower. Not the best for the blades and the deck, but I don't have a rock magnet, so what will be will be.

And ain't that the truth. It's all about priorities.

Pickle Ball Repair Again

 

Coach Jen and I went to the Golden Gloves prelims Thursday evening. I haven't been there too much these last few years due to working or the Covid cancellations. I had a good time both at the fights and having the opportunity to catch up on a few things with Jen. I'm trying to decide if I want to be involved with amateur boxing in the future and we kicked a few ideas around on the drive down.

While I was at the fights I received a text about fixing another piece for the pickle ball courts at the rec center - no rest for the wicked. I picked the pieces up Friday after rehab, welded it up and sprayed a little paint on it, giving the paint time to dry, so I can deliver it today. I certainly don't mind repairing these things, but it's not all that easy. Originally, the round tube is fastened by soldering or brazing it to the rectangular tube. In order to TIG weld the two parts together, the solder must be removed, as well as the paint. Since the round tube is only about .020" thick, you can't get wild with the sander and take much stock off. It went fairly smooth until I burned a hole in it. Patching the hole was a pain but I got it, it's done and will be gone later today.

The weather is supposed to be warm again today, so I'm going to do a little outside stuff and then work on the trials bike or maybe put the electronic ignition in the Sportster. Just looking forward to being out there with the big doors open and the sunshine coming in.