As we’re here for 6 months the format of my blog will change in that I will only do entries on days when something out of the daily norm occurs, or the mood takes me or I feel a rant, religious rant, joke coming on, or to celebrate a Wave of life.
Friday, 02 May 2025
Early start again, crack of Sparrows fart, 06:00. The flight to Las Vegas was awesome. Security was a breeze and the flight was comfortable with plenty of free booze, food, movies and time for the odd snooze. Brings back the joy of flying, could almost do this again just for the fun of it.
Then, sadly, we’ve a 7 hour layover in Las Vegas. No point in lounge access as despite charging an arm and a leg they only allow you in 3 hours before take off – what a shitshow. Of course Dragon Pass was useless.Fortunately our flight to Salt Lake is only 55 minutes.
Mike’s there to greet us in his mega truck and we spend the night at Mikes, rather than messing around getting into our condo so late at night.
Has the government completely lost its mind.
Our government is set to give the go-ahead within weeks for scientists to experiment whether the sun could be dimmed to combat global warming.
As much as £50m is expected to be spent on the experiments and analysis.
The methods could involve spraying aerosolised particles high into the stratosphere to deflect a small fraction of the sun’s energy away from the Earth. Early modelling studies have suggested that this may cool the planet relatively cheaply.
We haven’t a smidgen of understanding how the climate works, evidenced by the lack of an accurate computer model, yet here we are frittering away even more money on this political fad now called Climate Change. And why bother, we hardly see the sun anyway.
Have they not heard of “the law of unintended consequences”. Madness.
Saturday, 03 May 2025
Mike does waffles for breakfast – shitin in the tall cotton yet again.
Then we’re off to our condo, home for the next 6 months. Unload all 4 suitcases, then we’re off in the mega truck to pick up our STUFF from Mikes lockup. NB for next year don’t store cans of soda or beer in the lockup over winter, they explode with the -16F temperatures.
Spend the rest of the day unpacking. We’ve really bought to much stuff with us. We now have more clothes in PC than at home. Get to see our first Deer of the year as she strolls around the neighborhood.
Big surprise as we see Michael, who’s not normally here this time of year. That’s great the he and Laurie are here.
A trip to Smiths for vitals, judging by how much we’ve spent, two trolleys full, I think we’ve purchased the whole store.
Finally, it’s a Mexican take away from Chubasco’s. Awesome Burrito, but Wendy and Mike weren’t so impressed. Pity Albertos was closed.
Sunday, 04 May 2025
Seeing Michael driving off to buy their early morning coffee is a pleasant reminder we’re home. All we need now is to see or hear some Sandhill Cranes.
I sure know I’ve arrived home in Paradise when I set off for a sunny early morning stroll round to Ruths garage to pick up my bike; the tyres need pumping up but that’s all part of the joy; then it’s leggier time as I try and get on my bike, yeah I’ve remembered how and don’t fall off; followed by a ride back, enjoying just being here in Paradise, with all the other fitness freaks and thinking how lucky I am to be here.
Finish off the unpacking and reconfigure the condo to our needs.
The trade deal with India has run into controversy almost before it was signed. But stand back and look at it strategically and it makes sense to find ways to link what are currently the world’s fifth and sixth largest economies more closely together – particularly since India, number five, will soon pass Germany and Japan to become number three.
Stand back still further, and you can begin to see how the UK’s trading relationships will develop in the changing world economy. That prediction of India becoming the third largest comes from the International Monetary Fund’s latest World Economic Outlook by 2028.
The top half dozen economies by then, and that’s within the life of this Parliament, will be the US, China, India, Germany, Japan and the UK. So five of the world’s six largest economies will be outside the European Union. If the UK can follow the India deal by building closer trading relationships with the US and China, it will have started to reposition the economy away from Europe and towards the top three. Yeah, bring it on.
And now we add a trade deal with the USA. Not as good as we could hope for but a step in the right direction.
Of course the ANTI-BREXIT fanatics can now go and sulk, and rant about aligning more with EU than the USA. Without BREXIT we could not have these deals. Given a choice I would rather align with USA than that moribund socialist rabble in Europe.
Thursday, 8 May 2025
Start the day with a 2 hour 40 minute call to EE trying to get my mobile working. Tech support guy was not the brightest knife in the box. He had trouble explaining why they were charging me £36 for call when I have free roaming and a £20 spend cap; why they charged me for 0330 calls when my contract stalls ALL calls beginning with 03 are free. Ended up suggesting a new eSIM.
Play Pickleball in glorious sunshine with Mike and Carmel in the afternoon, helps with my EE anger.
Have a few drinks in the evening to calm me down.
Saturday, 10 May 2025
Another gorgeous day. Go on Bub’s hike up the Flying Dog Trail. Not one of the easiest of hikes, all uphill to the Beaver Pond and then all downhill back.
Finally invest in a new pair of Merrell trainers, complete with an all import Vibram sole.I think my existing Merrell Hiking Boots have about had it can feel every Pebble and sand grain, the Merrell soles are that useless. Wendy forced me to buy 6 pairs of hiking socks. I now have more socks than Muslims at a stoning, so I need a new chest of draws to accommodate at least 50 pairs of socks.
Good news is my mobile now seems to be working; the ridiculous 10 door code has now been replaced by a 4 digit code of my choosing; Gas fire is working; new chairs for the deck are on order, it’s a mystery where the other 4 chairs have gone.
Mikes round for Dinner in the evening.
More stupidity and wokeism:
Radiographers at several NHS hospitals have been instructed to ask all men aged 12 to 55 if they are pregnant before performing X-rays.
The controversial policy, aimed at considering non-binary, transgender and intersex patients, has sparked outrage among patients and campaigners alike.
Paradise – we’re home.