Thursday in an anxious haze 🌫️
Thursday, June 5, 2025. Going to be another hot one, especially by afternoon. End of Session Party at work was good but hot, I ended up heading home fairly early around 8 PM as I found it hard to keep my eyes open even though I had only one beer.
Hump Day just was kind of a crazy day. 🐪 Traffic wasn’t bad either way, though I was late heading in both because I left late as it took a while longer to iron and prepare my suit and tie and because I got stuck behind a slow moving dump truck pulling a telahandler along the Quay Street connector. 🏗️ It was difficult day in the office, not because of my doing, but what seemed like a lot of miscommunication. All I could do is listen 👂 put together what I knew and let others know.
Not having any milk yesterday, 🐮 I skipped making coffee at home for some water and caffeine pills. 💊 That of course messed up my sleep along with the diet cokes I had the party last night, which was so hot being in a suit and tie. I was originally going to wear a t-shirt and jeans or even shorts, and ride to party rather then drive my big jacked up truck and have to park and not drink much beer, 🍻 but I didn’t want to appear under dressed for the occasion.
I don’t ever have trouble getting asleep but it’s those early morning hours that can be tough. 🛏️ I got into this dream that I was down in New York City, probably for work, and I ended up in this car of complete strangers, getting dropped off in some random sketchy neighborhood and then it got dark out on a street with no working streetlights, and I end up getting mugged. 👿 It was a werid dream. But so was the party last night for a while, I was at this table of people talking about their luxury apartment life, you know with with the swimming pool and a whole bunch of games and leisure activities like fozball. 🏡
So often things get werid at work, 
as somebody who doesn’t own a TV, uses public transit or rides his bike to get work. 
I’ve never had internet at home, and I can”t think of the last time I actually had my computer anyplace but my office – I think maybe it was March or April. I don’t have an iPhone, really it seems like I am always broke as I’m saving and investing everything I can towards owning my own land. 
And not just a suburbanite house that smells like cow shit in some hicktown. I like being frugal and saving for a better tomorrow, even if it still seems impossibly far away, even though it’s not. I still seriously want to consider that early retirement thing, and build that off-grid homestead, even if I can’t do it today. First though I need to finish off that book on goat farming 
that is due to be returned on Friday to the library.
I really should get milk and make real coffee up tomorrow morning. 
This will improve my sleep compared to those caffeine pills which wake you up but also keep you up all night. But also I’ll try to get to bed at a reasonable hour tonight, 
and sleep well. I’ve been avoiding getting milk because the local Stewarts is all torn up for construction, forgot / didn’t have enough room on the bike the last time I grocery shopped. But I could get some tonight. Then maybe if its not raining finish off the book on Goats 
and read whatever is next on my Libby or Hoopla app, maybe just down at the Town Park so I can stay well after dark, rather then having to ride home from Five Rivers or wherever I go. Depends on how hot it is this evening too, and whether or not their there are thunderstorms. 
Saturday doesn’t look quite as wet, 
so I might take the Nature Bus up to Thacher Park, and hike and ride around the park for a while. 
Sunday I’ll see if Dad wants to go to the Gas Up. I am looking at the following weekend potentially spending it out in Vermont, if its sunny but not too hot. 
Probably do like Prospect Mountain Road and camp up off there and then hike Harmond Hill on Sunday. Just a quiet weekend, laying back in the hammock I’m envisioning. Or maybe not. 
The following Thursday is Juneteenth, which I plan to get up early, hit up For the Love of Bacon 
for it’s name sake, and then spend Thursday through Sunday at the Potholers and floating on the East Canada Creek. 🛟 Three nights if I don’t drive up on Thursday, so no permit needed. I could drive up on Wednesday, but I really don’t like fighting traffic after work. 
June 4th Twenty-Twenty Five 🧑🚒
Beep! Beep! Beep! The smoke alarm was going off when I got home last night from work. I don’t know if was the heat and humidity or more likely my neighbor smoking tobacco and grass that set my excessively sensetitve fire alarm off but so it was. Took it outside and it shut off but it was an annoying, and had to be annoying to my neighbor as it went off for who knows how long before I got home.
Today should be the first really hot day of summer. ☀️ Work picnic later so I decided I have to wear a suit and tie, 🧑💼 as members and staff will be there, coming from the legislature and they’ll be all dressed up. My suit doesn’t fit well at this point but this is the first I’m really worn it in a like a year. Look a little like Donald John Trump with the suit being so oversized for me.
I’ll take the smoke detector down 🔥 before I leave today, less the heat and humidity and neighbors pot smoke sets it off. I figure I won’t be home to late. Driving in today, because obviously I can’t ride wearing a suit and tie, and picnic goes to 9 PM and it would be a long ride back in the dark otherwise. 🍻 Just got to be careful how much beer I drink at the event, going for more cold soda 🥤 rather then the good stuff.
Bike was good yesterday, stopping making so much noise after I tighted the rack down with some wire and electrical tape. Need to figure out a more permanent solution that hopefully doesn’t look so crappy, 🚲 but I don’t care that much but noises annoy me. I ordered a new chain, 🔗 with hope of getting it on before I have to replace the cassette. If I do a chain every two months, or as the guage says, probably less headache then both the cassette and chain. I keep things lubricated, but when I’m doing 400-500 miles a month, with a fair amount of stop, go and hill cimbings it’s takes it’s number on chains. I wish they did last longer, but 750 miles is pretty typical for bike chain replacements. Compared to gas, its still a deal.
Went out to Five Rivers last night, 🐐 reading this e-book about goat farming, after finishing the book I had been reading 📖 on rooftop water collection. 💦 I am really quite interested in Homesteading topics and Off-Grid Living in general, trying to sort out what is real and what is just about being woke.
It was the third of June on a dusty delta day… 🌇
Singing along with Ode to Billie Joe on this beautiful morning. Skies are fairly blue this morning though you can see the wildfire haze and where there wasn’t clouds last night there was a fair amount of color from the wildfire smoke. We’d probably get more of the pollution here but there is a low off the coast that is expected to bring rain by Thursday through Saturday. Mostly thunderstorms but Saturday once again will be wet.
Went down to the Norman’s Kill Preserve and read 📖 some of the book I got out about rainwater harvesting. 💧 Such a pretty night, not too buggy. Topped off the rear tire on my bike, as it’s was only 40 PSI and while it riding okay, I figured I’m not riding trail and it does roll better with closer to 60 PSI in the tire down the road, though I feel the bumps more. I sort of like running it lower as I feel like it’s better on the rim but it is so much better hard. That said, the tire is complete crap, it’s cracked, and I think there are some cords that are broke in it. I need to get a rear tire for the bike soon, I’ve started to investigate torn tires but I’m not thrilled with replacing the tire right away. That book on rainwater harvesting is quite interesting. Sat down by the Normans Kill until around 8 PM.
It was a rush at the grocery store. 
Forgot to get milk 
and cider vinegar. Everything is all tore up at Hannaford, products ransacked and they now close at 9 PM – and it was around 8:20 PM when I first got there. I could stop on the way home tonight to pick up a few other things, especially milk which I’ll need for coffee tomorrow morning. Driving in tomorrow as I have the work picnic. 
My parents decided not to head out on their road trip due to the hot weather tomorrow, so I don’ have to go out there tonight to dog sit. 
Might instead go over to Five Rivers for the evening. 
Maybe I can piss off the woke bird watcher riding there with my mountain bike.
I kept hearing squeaks and creaks on bike, and it’s driving me nuts as I want to keep it good condition as long as possible, as it’s only two years old as of mid-July. Couldn’t find it but I did notice a loose – turned out to be broken bolt on the pannier rack where the box sits on my bike. Annoying, I ended up wiring that up with some wire I had and covering with electrical tape. Not sure what else I could do. I checked the chain, and it needs to be replaced again – just did that in early April – but I put so many miles on it. The rear tire is shot too. I swear all I do is put parts on that bike, but granted I go 30 miles a day lately, some of it on rather rough roads. I should just ignore the noises, some of it is probably the front wheel now needing replacement as those bearings are going too but no loose spokes as far as I can tell. At least most of the noise was the broken bolt on the rack. Bah. Replace parts when necessary, if they’re not perfect, nothing is perfect in this world. If it becomes a problem, they do make replacement pannier racks that don’t require the brass-on connectors. I could drill out the bolt and go through the pipe but it’s aluminum and I don’t want to weekend the frame. Probably the weight from groceries broke it but it was loose below. I think some of it is bouncing around in my truck bed when I’m carrying it places.
Riding in again today, 
going to wear shorts which always seems a bit strange and unprofessional but who cares it complies with the looser dress code of summer, especially when there is no session. While I don’t do a suit and tie for the most part nowadays, I do try to wear a dressy but reasonably casual Salvation Army shirt and jeans most session days. But in summer, t-shirt and jeans is fine. I am the Unit Director, so I can make such decisions, plus it’s compliant with the agency dress code memo, even if it does seem a bit casual. 
I can complain about the constant service the bike needs and how many parts I have to use, but it fun to
Lately it seems like I’m drinking out the fire hose at work. 🧑🚒Still fighting with that computer system that isn’t working and vendor that isn’t responding. It wasn’t the contract I chose or set up, it was done before I started as Director but I still get all the inquiries about why the system is down, even though I lack the technical ability to adjust the system and get it running again. I don’t even have an shell account on the computer, but if the programmers can’t fix I can’t either. I really get the debate about doing things in-house or with a custom interface that is contracted out – which is what we are doing but the contractor is MIA versus completely outsourcing a process. Annoying to no end. 🖥️
Got reading the debate about new versus used cars. 
Honestly, people should spend money on things they care about and have money to buy in cash. If you have to finance a car, then you probably shouldn’t buy new. But if you can pay cash, and it’s a vehicle you want and plan to keep it for the life of the vehicle – then buy it – especially if it’s something that get you were you want to go. Old vehicles are fine but they are more prone to breaking down and wearing out, and reliability matters especially if you plan to travel.
Last night I got my retirement statement. 
16 3/4 years in the system. Not too bad, by late 2028 I should be at 20 years if I stay that long and it gets boosted to 2% of years worked in calculating my pension. I am still thinking about early retirement at 55 though maybe if I can find something useful to do or stay until I have 30 years in the system, then I won’t take the penalty. I’ll have to see.
Trans 🏳️🌈
Last fall during campaign season and to a lesser extent in recent years there has been a lot of hue and cry about men who decide to transition to women and as part of their transition decide to participate in traditionally female sports. The concern by conservatives is either that such former-men either are perverts or have an unfair advantage by the differences in their bodies by their biological sex.
There also has been a lot of push back over the flamboyant drag queens, which are people who put on performance art, showcasing their bodies as a different gender then their biological sex. Often groups seeking attention are flamboyant, every community has performance artists who use color and risqué behavior to attract attention to their group’s blight. Whether it’s the bright yellow “Don’t Tread on Me Flags” of the conservatives and libertarians or the bright colors of the pro-same sex marriage of the “Pride Flags” the goal is to be seen and be recognized as part of one’s community.
I have really no problem with people choosing to embrace a gender of their choosing, independent of their sex. Or specify no gender at all. It is totally reasonable ot let people to choose the life they want. Years ago, society had very specific gendered occupations. You were a spokesman, a dairy man, a secretary, a nurse. The titles implied a specific gender, even though people of both sexes can do a job. By limiting occupations to one biological sex, you automatically loose 50 percent of the working population, cutting down your talent pool enormously and denying people access to good occupations that may be in local demand.
One of the preppers I follow on YouTube is a “male” nurse. His job has allowed him to persue to rural living and homesteading in West Virginia where nurses are in demand at rural hospitals. Many women farm, when I was out of college I worked several secretary and data-entry jobs. Traditional female occupations but certainly a man could do it. I don’t see anything wrong with allowing people to live the life they choose. If a women wants to wear jeans or a man a dress and that’s what they find comfortable and fits within the dress code, then then good for them.