It was rainy and cold by Tempe standards so I had to break out the overalls for the day. People loved the tie-due overalls and I just said “They’re great for painting” and showed the paint on my hands from my current project and they all said “Oh yeah” and realized they are great for painting because who gives a fuck if you got a splotch of paint on your tie dye? At any rate, I got the trim done so tomorrow the ceiling and then the second coat on the walls and the edging and then painting the closet. Then all I have to do is replace all the sockets, hang the curtains, and the dog room/sun room will be complete. YAY.
Normally I just do the trim first, then the ceiling, then the walls, but I am painting yellow over white so I knew it was going to need two coats, so I did the bulk of the walls, then the trim, then I will do the ceiling and another coat on the walls. If that makes sense. It made sense to me. So that is why I did it. Joelle was giving me a suggestion that didn’t make sense, and I just blurted out “you had fifteen years here to do that, now you’re just gonna sit back and let me do it my way.” I’m still an asshole at heart.
I dunno if I have ever talked about it, but my dad was a teacher at a state college in WV for decades, and I don’t know if you know anything about teacher salaries in the 70’s and 80’s at small schools, but they were not great. They sucked, in fact. Mom and dad went to college for a combined almost 20 years and their combined salaries were substantially less than all the union guys mining coal or working at the steel mill. And don’t think I think those guys were overpaid. Hardly. I watch them gimping around to this day, broken bodies and all, enjoying their retirement. And they fucking earned it.
At any rate, teacher salaries sucked, so dad supplemented their incomes by basically being a handyman- painting, drywalling, wallpapering- he was very good at it. And I had to “help” him a lot, although I am sure my help as a young pre-teen to teen consisted mainly of me being the most obnoxious cunt on the planet the entire time I was there and occasionally being useful for brief, fleeting moments with the frequency of Halley’s Comet.
Halley’s comment. Everyone my age knows about that, but I bet very few people under the age of 45 do.
Back to my point- he did a lot of that, I was there for a lot of it, and I basically learned how to do it without planning to or for that matter wanting to. I am glad I did. During the summers when I was in undergrad, and the bars I was a doorman at didn’t need me because no students, and the clothing store didn’t have many hours for me and I was not at national guard, I would work construction/renovation. I did roofing, a lot of painting, a bunch of drywall, etc. Don’t do plumbing or electricity and don’t fuck with them in the least- that’s a quick way to create a major bill. Those guys are pro and you hire folks to do that shit.
I don’t do tile, either. That shit is HARD and a real skill. Not that the other things are not. I am sure a pro would look at me doing this shit right now and just shake their head. But I know enough of painting and drywall that I can do a passable job.
All of this was a very long-winded way of saying that while doing this it is funny how many things I have started to do and had an “oh yeah that’s how you do it” memories come flooding back, fighting their way through who knows how much drink and drug to make it to the surface and be remembered.
Had another trip down memory lane today when I saw that Erick Erickson was promoted to primetime slots on Cox Media Group. The same Erick Erickson who wanted to throw political opponents from helicopters ala Pinochet and who once said he was going to shoot a postal worker. Among who knows how many other awful things he has said and done. And it made me think about how cancel culture really works. And the way it works is there’s always money for assholes who fluff the billionaires.
Remember Ward Churchill? I don’t even remember what his point was or what he was talking about so this is by no means an endorsement, but that’s how cancel culture works for liberals. You get shitcanned and memory holed. Be a Nazi and you get promoted.
You will be pleased to know that the young lady across the street and introduced herself and apologized for parking where she did, and we had a nice chat. I told her there was no reason to apologize, I was not mad, I was just worried we were going to hit her car (it’s a Mercedes). I could give a shit about my paid off 2013 CRV, it can take a little dented bumper, builds character. Look at the fucker driving it.
Long story short she was very pleasant, got home late last night form work and didn’t even pay attention, and I told her that if she has a hard time finding a parking space, just park in our driveway behind Joelle’s car because she never drives. At least there she’s not gonna get backed into by two old fuckers with thick glasses.
So that was nice.
Speaking of Joelle, she’s had a rough one because her best friend’s brother died unexpectedly in his sleep. I knew him, nice fellow, about 3-4 years younger than me. Went to bed and never woke up. Joelle was friends with him and is doubly upset as she lost a friend, but also because her other friend is distraught. So that kinda sucks. I’ve been through that recently.
That’s it from me. Very good piece by Dan Froomkin on why the NYT sucks so much.
Jerry
I feel for Joelle. A friend of mine here in Raleigh just suddenly died in the hospital after a week and a half battle with pneumonia, Covid, and TA-DA!! surprise lung cancer. Shocked. Just in a state of fucking shock
If we have any old school North Carolina punk rock people here, that friend was Sam Mauney of Garbage Man, Days of…, and Picasso Trigger
Phein64
My uncle Al spent thirty years working in the steel mills on the north side of Pittsburgh, and his pension was a grand total of $19 per month. Even though he retired in the 1960s, that wasn’t enough to live on for long, and he didn’t.
I will never vote for anyone who wants to cut Social Security for working people, or raise the retirement age higher than it is now.
Also: Tile is fun! I can paint, and I can tape and mud drywall passably, but for tile all you need is those little spacers, a good tape measure, and someone to kibbitz the whole time who you won’t want to kill. I’ve done several bath room projects and flooring projects, and I’ll take tile over drywall every time.
tam1MI
Well, Katie Porter just managed to lose all respect I had for her.
Katie Porter Says California Primary ‘Rigged’ After Losing
Wave Function Collapse
One little recent change that helps with home projects I’ll pass on: for light electrical work — changing a light fixture or receptacle sort of thing. Wago connectors are an immense improvement over wire nuts. They are totally NEC approved and so much safer and hard to screw up that I foresee the day when wire nuts become UNapproved.
Sure, they are more expensive. Instead of a giant bag of wire nuts that will last you forever costing $1.99 you have to pay almost 20 bucks for the same bottomless bag. But your basic Wago 221 connector will take any wire 12-20 AWG, stranded or solid, and make safe connection that is almost impossible to screw up and will not come apart, arc, or frustrate you when doing the install.
I do a lot of our plumbing stuff too but I’m with you on the drywall and painting skills being some of the most useful stuff to save a few (thousand) bucks.
My one gripe about drywall is how the the big box stores will sell you a 12″x12″ square for 17 fucking cents less than an entire 4×8 sheet. Grrr!
Quiltingfool
Mr. Quiltingfool was a flooring guy for years (until his knee told him to stop); he is great at tile, loves wood floor, hates Berber carpet and vinyl flooring. Therefore, our floors are tile, oak flooring and frieze carpet.
He also despises painting and drywall. He did all the flooring in our house (saving a huge amount of money), but he hired someone to paint all the doors and trim!
Honestly, I think he is wicked smart and can do just about any kind of construction.
Another Scott
Hugs to Joelle and everyone having a tough time now. :-(
On a lighter note… Dan Davies substack:
This was one of the evils of Trump, and probably yet another reason why Biden will win. We actually don’t want to have to think about whatever the president is doing (or not doing) every . single . day. We have enough things we have to think about every day – do your job without drama and leave us out of it.
Cheers,
Scott.
Poe Larity
Sorry for her loss. I don’t need another year like 2023.
But could someone do a TLDR for the rest of it.
Lyrebird
Ouch and condolences to Joelle and to @Jerry:
That’s much too young.
And to Cole, good on ya for making a neighbor into a new friend.
Tony G
That’s right; Ward Churchill. He was tossed into the Memory Hole within a few days after 911. (Actually, for anyone younger than thirty, 911 itself is in the Memory Hole.)
zhena gogolia
@Poe Larity: John’s doing home improvement, which he learned how to do from his father.
Russell
Dude, ceiling first!!
Sorry for Joelle and her friend. Too many folks going going gone these days. :(
schrodingers_cat
Super Tuesday results of my little town in Western MA
Winner of D Primary: Biden around 400 votes
Winner of R Primary: Haley around100 votes
Orange Person got < 100 votes
If only the rest of the country voted as we did.
TeezySkeezy
@tam1MI: the wording is bad. She is wrong for using the “rigged” language for the obvious reasons. But her complaint would have been reasonable if she had avoided that wording. Really too bad she did that.
Quadrillipede
Someone posted a Technology Connections video a couple weeks back, which sent me on quite the rabbit hole. (Why wouldn’t you want to watch 25 minutes of a guy boiling about a litre of water in various kettles? That’s perfectly reasonable entertainment…)
After poking around in the comments on one video I found a reference to The Secret Life of Machines, so I guess it’s my turn to return the favour. That URL should lead to YT videos all of the episodes (plus 15-20 minute epilogues from Tim Hunkin filmed in 2021).
I’ve only watched a couple of episodes so far, but for me the most interesting thing is that they were filmed in 1987, which is about as late as you could make a TV show about this kind of thing before the arrival of the internet and the Web just a few years later:
NotMax
I’ll choose installing tile (wall or floor) any day of the week over drywall.
Redshift
Erickson’s latest (forwarded on social media yesterday) was a bizarre attempt to bothsides the two parties, whining about Dems saying the GOP supports insurrection and insisting “neither has a claim to moral superiority” because…
Democrats started the Civil War!
If you have to go back 150 years to find an example of the other party being as terrible as yours, maybe think twice before talking about “moral superiority.”
Leto
John: I’ve spoken about this too, but my dad was a public school teacher. Same deal with the salary. He also did all the home repair stuff. Dry wall, painting, roofing… and I too was the “helper”. I think a lot about the stuff I just “inherently” know now about those subjects, and it’s because of all the time my dad had me by his side. Basically apprenticeship training. It’s really helped me later in life when I’ve either had to dispense advice to friends about those topics, or now (when I can’t do a lot of those tasks), I can talk with the contractors about these things and not be lost.
But I think for him, it was just a way for us to hang out and bond. I think we both miss that.
Redshift
@NotMax: Know anybody who could install aperiodic tiling when I do my home remodeling? I’ve wanted it for a floor ever since I heard about it.
CaseyL
Condolences to Joelle and Jerry. A lot of us are getting to the age where we, our friends, and relatives have far more yesterdays than tomorrows… some of us very few tomorrows. It’s brutal.
John, I envy you knowing how to do all that stuff. I took a home improvement/repair course at a local community college, and was hopeless at it. (Trying to hammer nails in straight is my Kryptonite.) I would LOVE to be able to do basic repairs and touch-ups.
And good on ya for being nice to the young lady across the street. Offering up your driveway for her parking is above and beyond. You’re such a good egg.
Quadrillipede
A friend of mine from university died a few years back, probably wasn’t even 45 at the time. If nothing else, it does help underline how precious the time we do have actually is.
[ETA I think it was some kind of previously undiagnosed heart problem. He did drink and smoke quite heavily, and I don’t think he did a lot of exercise, but still…]
Splitting Image
I always remember him as the “goat fucking child molester” guy. As always, every accusation is a confession.
eclare
@Quadrillipede:
The same thing happened to the ex of a friend of mine. He was in town to see his kids, never showed up. She went to his hotel room and found him. I cannot imagine.
Lyrebird
@Redshift: Dang, that is amazing!
I can see why you’d want it, but I can also bet you would have guests staying way too long in the bathroom, if you put it there, staring at the floor and trying to figure out where the repeat starts…
ETA: maybe you could talk those designers into making a kickstarter either for ceramic tile or maybe carpet tile would be an easier sell. It’s a heck of a lot easier to trim once you reach the edge of the room.
Roberto el oso
Among a lifetime’s worth of saying horrible things the one from Erik Erikson that stands out for me is when he responded to the father of a kid who was murdered by that incel out in CA several years ago. Erikson, who never fails to point out that Jesus Christ is central to his life, responded to the grieving dad by saying “sorry about your son, but my 2nd amendment rights trump your son’s life”. Malevolent freak.
Ward Churchill got booted for saying, after 9/11, that the victims in the Twin Towers were, for the most part, “little Eichmanns”.
ArchTeryx
As usual, late and stupid. Being chronically ill sucks. However…
… in response to some commentary between @Sister Golden Bear and @MomSense, we’ve got several trans folks in our circle of friends here in New York State and we’re prepared to have our own little Anne Frank shelter if it comes to that. I’m truly hoping that there are a lot of folks like us if Ragnarok occurs and Trump is re-elected despite tonight’s barnburner of a speech.
We’re not letting people like Micki (transmasculine) and Rayne (transfeminine) get hauled off to the camps without an armed fight if it comes to that. We’re all hoping it doesn’t.
Citizen Alan
@TeezySkeezy: I don’t think her complaint was reasonable no matter what language she used. I was reminded of an early season of Survivor. (I didn’t watch the first season but was curious enough about the cultural phenomenon to watch starting in the second. I think that’s where I learned subliminally to hate Mark Burnett.) I distinctly remember that there was a guy on there who was ex-military and really did have extensive survival training. And the poor doomed bastard honestly though survival skills were what was important about that show instead, say, being ruthlessly manipulative without seeming to be ruthlessly manipulative. I still remember the look of utter confusion on his face after he was voted out the first week.
Ruckus
John, wait a few years/decades and you’ll see fewer and fewer people you know. I was the youngest in my family, now I’m the oldest because I’m the only one left. I’ll be 75 yrs old soon and I’m the oldest in the cousins collection. I live in a seniors apt complex, one has to be over 55 to live here – I’m over qualified…. Not the oldest though, that’s a lady who used to ride motorcycles, still rides around on her senior’s 4 wheel battery electric scooter. At 97 yrs old. She may be the oldest in the complex but not by much. Now I’m going to do the normal senior thing and go to bed.
Juju
Oh, I’m sorry Joelle. That hurts. Sympathy and hugs to you and your friend. When I’m sad and overwhelmed I hug my dogs. Thurston might need some hugs.
BellyCat
Good analysis by Froomkin. Unfortunately, he overlooks the primary motive of the FTFNYT : concern creates clicks.
BellyCat
Sending large hugs to Joelle and her friend’s family. Very sad.
BellyCat
@NotMax:
Ditto. Slower but far more satisfying, with much greater longevity.
BellyCat
Agreed on all you wrote and hoping for same with my son, who is now 8.
(I had to figure all this stuff out on my own because my father had M. S. and died when I was 11. Never got to experience the bonding part doing this stuff together.)