Work/Sweat/Sleep

Ethan to Jasmine — 9/30/14

Cold open, Jasmine:

We’ve pretty much got the workshop set up. At least until the next shipment comes in. Very few of the rooms in the underground are heated. The vast bulk of it is food storage and most parts of those are unheated which stays a pretty steady -40. But a few areas have chemicals or components that don’t deal well with the extreme cold. Thanks to the chemicals in some of our cutting torches the mechanics room is heated to above 40F. Thanks to some sensitive electronic parts, like capacitors, the electronics room is above freezing as well. But still these rooms are damn cold if you are there for a few hours. Especially if the work requires bare hands.

So four hours in the shops and 30 minutes in the sauna has become our rotation. Try as I might I have found no solution to taking notes, reading or electronic entertainment in the sauna so even that time becomes work time as we plan for the session ahead. Repeat the cycle two more times.

A shower, some Skype time, a few hours sleep, a quick meal and it’s the next day. I like it busy like this — not much time to miss Mai. And by being almost ready to pass out I can drift off without my arms curled around that petite blast furnace. As small as it is this bed feels much too empty.

But three days in and Greg and I are feeling fatigued. So we cut the last shift down to two hours. I probably should have added it to my sleeping time but went looking through the nearly 2 TB of TV and movies waiting in my mailbox on EHD instead. [popcorn] Sin City is one of less than 50 movies in a permanent ‘keep’ folder on another drive. That means I like it a lot (I doubt it would have any appeal to you) and had been waiting rabidly on the sequel and was pleased to find it waiting. Until I watched it. The failure is clearly in the writing. But it’s the same group of writers and they had 7 years to prepare. I don’t get it. Very disappointed.

I’ve resolved to try to keep off the weight Thailand took from me (over Mai’s objections — she likes me Buddhaesque.) and add some time in the gym after the crunch period is over. And no more quests for the 6th waffle [laugh]. Time to counter father time sneaking up on me.

How did that work out for you?

Hard to say. I did build it but was already the dry season so we haven’t been able to truly test it. It’s also going to be a bitch to clean too. It’s going to end up being retooled several times until I am happy. But I’m sure I can do it. I’ve got us off the electric grid 2/3 of the year. If this takes us (me, she can drink the local water no problem) off the water grid, that is one less worry. Then just a leeching field and we are off the grid except needing trips to 7–11 for phone minutes [laugh]

[laugh] You are such a complicated man! [yes]

And yet quite a simple one too (see how complex I am?)

So, 5yrs from now, you’ll be a Kiwi? That’s very interesting since you won’t have actually lived there.

Yup. And that will be the exact amount of time I plan on living there after becoming a citizen too. [laugh] I don’t make the laws, I merely abuse them to the best of my advantage.

I love Alexis! (BTW How’s she (and Boom) holding up without you?)

It’s really hard not too. Isn’t it? Of course not to hear her tell it.

Glad you asked. Already got read the riot act for forgetting to mention that she passed her course and is now a fully employed junior EMT. Boom is officially in catchup school apparently also studying English afterward at our little already flourishing ‘school.’

She’d never say it, but I can see the loneliness sneaking around the edges of her smile. Like me, I think it is hitting her harder than she expected too.

You have some amazing luck you know that right?

My dad was fond of the saying “chance favors the prepared mind.” However even taking that into consideration I am aware I’m rather charmed.

I could use some of that right NOW!!!

I’m having Bee send you some flying spiders. I don’t have your address so we’ll just send a breeding pair and eventually a swarm will find you. [cheers][wink]

Was that when you were paying him/her the HUGE fee you mentioned? [laugh]

I know there is a good lecherous “how much do you charge?” joke in there but I’m too tired to craft it properly. Which only goes to show I should go to sleep. So I think I will. Night.

I would have thought I’d be happy to get back to some of my food staples but I’m already missing Thai food enormously. I really need to flip my head around and start appreciating this experience while it lasts. Only three rotations left. Speaking of which, talked to Greg about only working the winterovers and while he liked the idea he doesn’t want to risk giving them any reason to kick us from the queue. They have definitely been weeding out us foreigners and we are only around on seniority (grandfathered in.) I’d think this was being overly paranoid but I’ve seen enough HR bullshit over the years to think he’s right to play it safe.

Yeah it was, wasn’t it?!

It was only just ramping up at that time too. The first of many wonderful years [thesuperstitiousreadersjustcringed].

you remember which one it was?

11/22/63. Rather good despite the ending being predictable.

Anything new happening with bitcoin.

It’s been a good year for adoption with some big name companies accepting it now. But it has been in a steady price decline for the last too many months. I’ve had to do some price averaging which I’m getting steadily uncomfortable with as the drop continues. But I never worry about losing potential money. I made my profit many times over. So I’ll follow my rules and hopefully it isn’t completely collapsing. However the mathematics of bitcoin is quite predictable and there will almost certainly be a spike at the next halving near the end of 2015. I’ll dump a lot of the excess at that point.

I don’t recall you saying that you lived here. I thought you were here just for a visit. How long did you live here and what made you move?

I don’t recall whether I ever went into details. The time between getting the job here and actually having the position open was supposed to be 3 months so I let my rig contract expire. Just after that the 3 months was changed to 9 months and I had to scramble for a temporary gig. I found a contract job installing satellite uplinks (essentially preinternet and fairly new to the business level market) for a group of banks. I lived at W. Palmer Blvd near Fullerton, a Cuban neighborhood.

and sometimes you do so I know what it looks like

Me? Never [laugh]

one must walk with their head up and pay attention to where they’re going so as not to run into the MULTITUDE of people. It would be extremely difficult to achieve that if we’re all looking down at the ground for holes.

See, I would have agreed with that until I lived in Pattaya and watched them navigate sidewalks containing any manner of hazard you can imagine with seeming ease and without appearing to look down. Ooy (I really had to dig in my mind for that name) used to constantly steer me around hazards that I would have walked into, tripped over or fallen down. Eventually I learned to do this on my own. Much easier in Udon Thani where there are a lot less people and the threat of also being run over is therefore lower.

but then I doubt you would say that I would find it interesting, so I hope you can remember.

I don’t specifically, but I can guess because I could found the system itself interesting. Any job’s cost can be figured at the labor being almost free and the materials being the bulk. In the case of laundry it is electricity and detergent. So all laundry is washed together. A tiny colored string is attached to each garment and the colors mark the owner. Price is by the piece (just like at a hotel but at 1/1000th the price.) and type. You drop it off at any of hundreds of laundromats (one of the few Thai words I can recognize in Thai though I am sure I could be easily fooled.) and pick it up the next day. They are dried in sunlight on the roof. Gee I wish I could have told that in a more entertaining fashion.

Reminds me of a scene from Hannibal where the guy uses a cloth to catch someone’s tears, and then drops it into his martini!

I forget what I thought this was from but I found out not too far back that it was actually from an old South Park episode. [smile]

The Good Wife

I would think Lawyer shows would be as excruciating for you as Computer shows are to me. Unless you narrow your focus strictly to the characters.

Sounds beautiful…..

It was, very. But it was also a bit unsettling as the mind refuses to fully believe in one way glass. And I must have some toilet training trauma in my childhood as I am far less culturally flexible and uneasy with restrooms than I am with most things.

— -
We were outside today for the annual moving of the South Pole Marker and flags. The ice is moving North (South pole humor there) about 30' a year so each year the marker is moved (actually a whole new plinth and plaque are created. The old plaques are mounted inside on the walls.) to mark the new true South.

Fun fact: do you know we have volcanoes down here? The most active of which is Mount Erebus which is just passed McMurdo and plainly visible from here being it is over 2 and half miles tall. It’s been active since the 70s and actually erupted back in 2011. Not that the lava ever made it out of the caldera before freezing but it made a nice light show. Anyway it has been putting out a steady stream of steam for as long as I’ve been here. It was particularly active today recently and one of the newbs thought McMurdo was on fire (which we’d never be able to see it is was.) That was our chuckle for the day. Otherwise it work/sweat/eat/work. And a quick game of pool. I still suck.

— -

I’m responding to this more so because of Mai’s ability to pick up on idioms.

She came home one day with a book on common English idioms and soon started working them into conversations and asking if she used them correctly. I would point out the ones that were actually common (as defined by my having heard them before) and other useful tidbits but as usual she did all the heavy lifting and did so beautifully.

I get the impression that she’s highly intelligent.

You have your list of requirements, I have mine [laugh][cheers][whatawonderfulworld]

I’m not sure I can take it considering the heat and large, eye seeking, insects!

Sorry, too late, already in the mail… It’s marked Top Secret — Do Not Open, so I feel pretty secure in their release.

Have I told you I hate you this message?

No… and I worked so hard at it! [pout]

I suspect there shouldn’t be any issues with you remembering this stuff as its pretty spot on.

You can never assume with me, but you are right, no problems at all. In fact I got relive some stuff which was nice.

And then………The DC Story!

Uh huh.
You know I’m starting to doubt this “DC” place actually exists. Given the stories I’ve heard it’s starting to sound a lot like unicorns. Unicorns btw, I shit you not, are the national animal of Scotland. Fun fact. Move over Beaver and Bald Eagle, how do you top a Unicorn?
Just wasted 20 minutes of prime sleep time looking at a list of National Animals first to find out what Thailand’s and New Zealand’s were and then to see if any rose anywhere near the genius of choosing a Unicorn. On the ironic end is the Dodo bird. Clearly I need sleep. If I skip the proof (probably not a good idea) I should be able to finish up and publish tomorrow.

— -

Woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. I’ve been an emotional sulky mess and I certainly wouldn’t want to be around me (wherever you go, there you are) or hear from me. So I’m going for a little extra sleep and hopefully a do-over. [smile]

— -

Puppies and kittens

Kittens? Kittens! I give you hugs and you give me kittens? Kittens are for poker. And time makes them cats. (this was actually clever but you’d have to be in on the hugs & puppies reference. So I’m only being clever to myself [bigpatonthebackyeahme])

I couldn’t take it anymore and have officially signed up for cable (U-Verse) and internet.

[cheers][popcorn][cheers][clap][assortedhappinessemoticons][aura][afro][party][party][cheers]

[popcorn][[jump1]
[clap]

I’m not really happy with that, but all but Comcast

Comcast is the 7th most hated company on the planet. You really have to work to get in the bottom 10. Just tried to find the link and couldn’t. Might have been lowest customer service or evilest (Monsanto, still number 1! Forever and always.) It stuck in my mind because of your trouble. But since then it’s slipping through the cracks on the thin ice of my mind.

I’m sure you’ll do a wonderful job of culling all of these messages, so it doesn’t get too ridiculous for me to respond in the future. You’re good at that!

Do you still think so? [laugh][evil][laugh]

Crazier than a sack full of hammers
Ethan

— -
“I never knew he drank until one day he came home sober.”

Four in the morning
Crapped out
Yawning
Longing my life away
I’ll never worry
Why should I?
Its all gonna fade

Now I sit by my window
And I watch the cars
I fear I’ll do some damage
One fine day
But I would not be convicted
By a jury of my peers
Still crazy after all these years
(I guess never really thought about those lyrics before. This is not at all the meaning I thought. But here it is anyway.)