Race Cars, Covid and Computers

 

Since my laptop is dying on me, I've been either transferring or deleting photos from it. I like how the old champ and sprint cars were a reflection on the designer's ingenuity. They were all looking for the best way to skin that cat, some successful, some not so much. Lots of creativity and craftsman ship in those machines. Also check out the white lettering on the tires in the bottom photo. You used to be able to buy most everything from both Montgomery Wards and Sears, Roebuck & Co. My family used to get a lot of merchandise from Wards - order through the catalog and pick it up a few days later at the store in town. Just like Amazon only without the delivery.

 As for replacing the computer, I use it for surfing the web, writing the blog and playing Free Cell. Most of the things stored on the hard drive are photos of trips or work in the shop - of course not much in the way of trips the last couple of years. And not enough work in the shop either, as far as that goes. I'm trying to decide if I should get another laptop or just go back to using the big computer on the desk. If I make it inconvenient to use, I probably wouldn't waste as much time on it. HP has one about like I'm using now on sale. I'll probably pull the trigger on it but only after some of the snow melts off the lane. I wouldn't want the computer ending up in the snowbank like a couple of recent deliveries.

I like to stay abreast of what's happening in the world but much of what I read is just plain upsetting. Maybe if someone could explain to me how Build Back Better is going to work, that would help. When you just passed the $30 trillion debt mark and inflation is well on the way to killing off the middle class, spending more fiat dollars on more government regulation is going to help us how? I watch the local ABC news affiliate every evening in order to get the weather report and every damn day, there's less and less actual news. There's plenty of accidents and shootings. And covid reporting, of course, but no one ever mentions how mismanaged the whole affair has been. Instead we get the number of new cases and the test positivity percentage. The test positivity rate should actually be close to 100 percent. If you're not sick as a dog, why are you even taking the test? Let me guess, government mandate. Now, however, you can sign up for an at-home test - manufactured in the same country as was covid. As a diversion to constant-covid, we can add worry about Russia and Ukraine and what's going to happen when we stick our noses into that mix. Maybe I shouldn't be informed about current events after all. All this political and economic monkey business I can't do anything about just increases my stress level. You would think by now I'd be better at dealing with things I can't control.  

There were a couple of Tom Selleck cowboy films on the other night - Crossfire Trail and Monte Walsh. They were both edited to fit the 2 hour time slot, that way they could squeeze in plenty of commercials. Because of that, they left out some of the good parts but I still got to hear one of my favorite lines from all time. Tom Selleck asks another cowboy how he was doing. His response? "Much better since I gave up hope." That's about where I am today. Just going to have to keep on keepin' on - working the projects, taking care of myself and the Missus, and preparing for whatever comes along. The Cowboy Way.