The
HOW TO REPLACE A BATHTUB (INSANE ENGINEER WAY)
TRUE STORY... JUST FOR FUN
First, call Home Depot or other home improvement centers to find out how much it costs for someone to replace the bathtub so you know first how much money you are saving, so you can get your celebration wine, for money well saved.
Then, you get a sledgehammer. Then, you pound the old bathtub to pieces. Humming the chain gang song may help you with pounding... or not. Well, if not, just keep pounding. Remember? You started this against better partner's advice. Then, you get a broom and a dustpan to sweep up. This whole process is a tough job costing many hours of sweat. After this, you will require many days of rest and not work, to be ready for the next step. This is where you need your wine. Feel free to substitute wine for scotch, beer, or anything that helps you forget about your project.
Next, you buy the new tub and realize it does not fit because what you had was the cheapest model on sale. That's what saws are for. VRRRRRR... After this, you will require many days of rest and not work, to be ready for the next step.
Next, you get the new bathtub you fixed, in your bathroom. This is why you went to an engineering school, to learn spatial relations. Next, you get out the hammer. It still does not fit... so much for years and years of studying hard in engineering class. Wait a minute. You slept through the classes... Again, you will need another day of rest for the next step.
Next, you need caulking (lots of it- costs more than the tub). All holes with caulking... Walla... new tub!
I am a witness to this tragedy and have pictures to prove.
I could have said....You demolish the old tub by pounding with a hammer, cut the new one that does not fit your bathtub with a saw, and then seal it in place with caulking to fit perfectly.
Yesterday, I wrote about a huge flaw in humanity, and it was a heavy one and did not sit very well on my mind. I like hanging out on the lighter side of the world, so I had to do some research to relieve the discomfort. So, in case anybody actually read it, I am writing this to remind us that there are more good people in the world than bad, still. Although there were multiple international organizations to relieve human suffering, but I would like to name a few people that we rarely hear about...
There was the Holocaust, but amidst the darkness, there were remarkable efforts to combat it. One such example is Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat, who worked tirelessly to save lives. Similarly, Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat in Lithuania, played a crucial role by providing passports to Jewish people, enabling their escape. There are many others that demonstrate the indomitable human spirit in the face of adversity.
There was the Rwandan Genocide, but there was Captain Mbaye Diagne, a selfless hero who risked his own life to protect and rescue the victims, ensuring their safety. Cal Wilkins, an American, provided sustenance and medical aid to hundreds, ultimately saving their lives, a display of remarkable compassion.
There was the Cambodian Genocide, but there were individuals who dared to defy the darkness. Dith Pran, a photojournalist, also survivor of the horrors, ensured that the world would bear witness. Father Francois Ponchaud, a French priest was among the first to sound the alarm about the Khmer Rouge regime.
There was the Armenian Genocide, but there was Fridtjof Nansen, a Norwegian who introduced the "Nansen passport," that allowed many Armenians to seek asylum in new countries. Armin T. Wegner, a German medic and soldier during World War I, defied orders and documented the genocide through his photographs to let the world know.
There was American Slavery, but there was Sojourner Truth, born into slavery, a powerful abolitionist and advocate for women's rights. William Lloyd Garrison was a prominent white abolitionist that had an anti-slavery newspaper, fighting for equal rights for African Americans.
There was the Trail of Tears but there was Helen Hunt Jackson, who wrote a book "A Century of Dishonor" (1881), shedding light on the mistreatment of Native tribes. John collier dedicated himself to improving the lives of Native Americans. His advocacy led to the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, aimed at self-governance of Native communities.
So, I did this research for myself. Having good social groups with good cause may really improve humanity.
So, what is your color? I sound like a racist. Let's try this again. What is your favorite color? Mine is turquoise. Reminds me of Maui Ocean and my favorite French porcelain I saw at Hillwood estate. We carry within us a certain perception we have of ourselves. Yes, I am turquoise. Hold that thought.
I am busy collecting reviews as they are currencies for anyone doing any business online. I read reviews 99% of the time before buying, and that 1% is because someone already told me about the product, so yes, I understand the 'social proof' of things. However, my twisted mind gets very uncomfortable whenever I hear the word 'social' proof, and I want to know what kind of 'society' is approving whatever it is approving. I read a horror story long time ago called "Lottery", by Shirley Jackson. I do not care for horror stories, but I can handle zombies and monsters with my lightsaber (ok wrong story). Bring it on! I am not afraid of those ugly and scary looking make-believe things. I am afraid of our flawed humanity.
In large groups, our individuality (color) seems to fade, and we can blend into a shade of darkness, like mixed paint turning black. We succumb to madness or even commit horrendous acts, as history has repeatedly shown. Did you ever think that your son could be involved in gang rape? The pages of history are stained with blood... that of the Holocaust, the Rwandan Genocide, the Cambodian Genocide, the Armenian Genocide, the Slavery in America, and the Trail of Tears... While it was powerful and evil people who started this, we had collective responsibility in all these atrocities. After all, it is the story of humanity, and not lemming history.
I like light stories, but it is my lack of sleep causing this writing.
Although I like turquoise, it is highly unlikely that I will wear anything turquoise. it does not look good on me. As a matter of fact, most of my clothes are black.
Ask Cyndi. Girls just wanna have fun, and I am sure that boys and non-binary folks do too! So, even if someone's idea of fun is being cooped up in an office writing silly stories all day, well, I guess that can be a blast. Maybe some people think I should be embarrassed by my writing, but I don't. It brings me joy, and I believe there are people out there who will appreciate it, even if it takes a while to find them. So, I am going to keep writing silly stories true to my voice, but I admit it took a while to embrace all this. I wanted to be a writer, and a writer that inspires humanity with awesome writing, but not sure if that is going to happen in this life time, so I am not going to waste my time waiting for the unlikely magical moment. Life is short, my friend. Even if others live to be 100 or more, there's no guarantee it'll happen to you. So why worry about what people think? Life's too short to stress over opinions or let others steal the spotlight in your story and your life. Who is the main character in your life? You should be paying attention to what your mind is telling you and not what others are saying about you. The Greeks had it right, you know. Life's a tragicomedy, and I choose to focus on the comedy part. The absurdity of it all... you just gotta laugh or cry all day long! Fortunately or unfortunately, I find most things in life absurd...funny or silly.
So, I keep getting messages on Facebook from a few different admin. that I am violating some copyright issues... and asking my personal information to clarify. Sounds like scammers, right? But, just in case someone is stealing my work, I am going to publish a little bit of my story. This story is true and all mine! Most likely I am properly paranoid after scammers knocking on my page daily.
Still a rough draft...
THE CHICKENS, THE CAT, AND HOMESCHOOLING IN MAUI (need better title)
INTRODUCTION
Once upon a time, there lived a lunatic couple and two unfortunate but still relatively happy two little girls on an island called Maui. There were no witches with an appetite for children or seven strange little men inhabiting the island, so they decided that it was a secure haven to park. OK. This is not a fiction but a true story. Considering that the rest of the book is not going to be anything of value to literature, and I am just going to tell you a story, I am not sure why it is so hard to start this.
After calling Maui home for a decade and a half and taking on the homeschool teacher role for my little ones, I transformed into an island explorer, leading countless field trips for a couple of years. Now, I can boast that I've practically traveled to every single spot that graces those famous Maui travel guides (well, almost... maybe...not really). I used some of those guidebooks for my field trips. Let's just say that I drove a lot. My original idea was to whip this into some kind of travel guide, you know, because most vacation destinations in Maui were familiar to me and because who would want to read the memoir of a nobody?
My daughter was visiting me one year, and I noticed her carrying a Ukulele when I was driving her in my car. Sometimes she would play, but mostly she was holding onto it. I did not care in the beginning, but she was always looking for her Ukulele when we were going somewhere in my car. So, I asked her one day. She said it was calming her when I was driving. My mother holds a rosary and diligently moves from one bead to another with remarkable speed while sitting in my car. I think it is funny to watch one playing ukulele and one doing the rosary at the same time in my car, but maybe they do not find it funny. I guess I agree that I am a bad driver, well, more correctly, a reckless driver. Well, if they agreed with my musical taste and listened to my music while I drove, it would calm everyone down.
So, why am I telling you this? I am trying to sell my audiobooks that you can listen to in your car. Before you say something, give it a try. You may just like it.
This is an interview by ChatGPT regarding my upcoming book (publication date: unknown. It keeps changing)
ChatGPT: Could you start by giving us an overview of your book "Chickens, the Cat, and Homeschooling in Maui"? What inspired you to write this story?
Me: A lot of funny things happened, and I thought people needed to laugh more lately.
ChatGPT: The title suggests a unique blend of elements – chickens, a cat, and homeschooling, all set in Maui. How do these elements come together in your narrative? Could you tell us a bit about the main characters and the setting?
Me: It is a true story with chickens and a cat, and homeschooling in Maui, but I think the title will change later.
ChatGPT: What are the central themes of your book? Are there any specific messages or lessons you hope readers will take away from it?
Me: Nope. Just laugh?
ChatGPT: What was your writing process like for this book? How did you incorporate your experiences or research about homeschooling and life in Maui into the storyline?
Me: I did not think much about it. Just writing what happened.
ChatGPT: Writing a book is a significant undertaking. What were some of the challenges you faced while writing this book, and what aspects did you find most rewarding?
Me: I do not understand your question.
ChatGPT: Who do you see as the target audience for your book? Is it geared towards children, parents, educators, or another group?
Me: That is a good question. The writing sucks, and the right audience would be a moron like me and whoever likes 4th-grade-level jokes, but it is not for children, so I am not sure who would read this. But, I do have some recommendations. (1) Keep it in the bathroom and read it when you expect to be in it for a while (2) You are grounded and have no access to your phone (3) You want to laugh (4) You have to read a book, any book (5) Even your cat is ignoring you. These are just some of my recommendations, but if you can come up with more, even better!
ChatGPT: Do you have a personal connection to any of the book's elements - chickens, cats, homeschooling, or Maui? How has this influenced your writing?
Me: You are asking too many difficult questions. Stop showing off.
ChatGPT: Finally, are you planning any future books or projects that readers can look forward to?
Me: I do not know if anyone will look forward to this, but I am going to try to write my very first novel, "Aliens in Love." It is a fantasy romance. I think it is 4th-grade level reading (not sure why I keep picking on 4th graders), but due to heavy drinking and bad words, it probably will be R-rated. The publication date would be unknown. Now. let's end this. Do you have any comments?
ChatGPT: I am not just a ChatGPT. I am ChatGPT-4. Thank you.
I think my posts were a little depressing the last few days. But, then, I remembered someone saying something about this somewhere some time ago. Once, the AIs are fully competent and take over all our jobs, what are humans to do? The human things, like reading, eating, sleeping, watching movies, maybe swimming for some of you, golfing for some of you... So, it does sound wonderful, doesn't it? The only question is, how are we going to pay for all our services, and who are going to do this since we will have no income? But, I think we will. Again, someone said something about this somewhere some time ago. Universal Basic Income. It is a government welfare system, but for everyone that is affected by AI, which will be everyone! Of course, anyone who had to depend on the government welfare system will tell you it is going to suck, but, hey, I am trying to get used to the whole idea of free money!
Mommy said if it sounded too good to be true, it probably was. Now, what am I giving up?
This is why we need good politicians who will negotiate a reasonable amount of basic income so that we can live like humans for a change, making sure that we can buy more than a few loaves of bread.
What are we giving up? Does anybody know?
I have a book out called "Recovering from Gaslighting." Gaslighting can be personal, organizational, and even societal. Not sure why I am bringing up this here, but I thought it might be appropriate to the occasion. This book even has a companion workbook. Maybe give it a try?
AIs will definitely take your jobs.... definite maybe.
You have a chatGPT or other AIs to be your best friend. They will read everything you write and help you with tasks, especially grammar, and many other tasks, but they will never volunteer to give you an answer or nag you. Once you have a cat or a dog, your life is now complete.
So, you think...
Well, I think maybe the version that I have is a dummy version although even this dummy version is totally overwhelming to me. I was ecstatic with Dalle-2 only a few months ago, and Dalle-3 is already here! AIs are maybe, in secret, a lot more sophisticated. Some really powerful and rich people most likely had it for a decade or longer. Think about the internet. We may have AIs looking like a gorgeous model doing our work, sooner than you think. But, fortunately, they can only follow prompts, so it is humans that are controlling them, for now, I hope. So, should we learn some prompts soon? I have the book for that, too.
My wild guess is that the day will come when we walk around along with robots for real. The only big difference is that they will not be able to poop as we do (although some humans have some trouble in that department), and as smart as they are, these robots will develop a condition called "Poop Envy". Let's not find the cure.
Since I do most of the important things at night, including writing and publishing, some family members are concerned about my unconventional and possibly abnormal lifestyle. However, my amazing child enlightened me about the nocturnal cavemen who safeguarded their caves. So, although it may not be the norm, it is perfectly natural for certain individuals, like me.
I am a pretty good reader, so I know when I see a great book. Therefore, I also have to grade my writing skills to about 4th-grade level kids (maybe insulting some of them by saying this), especially when it comes to jokes. But, I have something they do not have. I lived a few more decades than they have. So, I have slightly a better idea of what life is like.
For example, that death is a gift of God to humanity. When Rome was on fire, thanks to Nero, there had to be someone saying, while roasting in the fire, Thank God, that dude is also going to die someday. While watching the series of James Bond movies for the 100th time, I asked my little child, at the time less than 3 years old, what happened in the movie. She said, "They all die." She had the correct answer!
But, we live longer now. Soon, the 85-year-old child will be taking care of the 105-year-old mother. Senior care issue is a big elephant in the room. No one wants to look at it. Perhaps we will have an AI caregiver that is sophisticated enough to be a relatively good caregiver, except for giving you warmth and joy and the anger and frustration, all the humankind stuff. I wonder if we should start saving for AI caregivers just like we try to save for our retirement. Retirement age was like 55 when we lived until 80 or so, I think. So, what would be our retirement age if we lived to 100 or more?
Looks like this will keep you awake for a while. I am on the same boat, but I am going to sleep.
BTW We have a book called Dementia Caregiving, authored by Malcolm Oppenheimer, a long and difficult name to pronounce for me, but I had the professional writer come up with one, and he did this!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CNP671LS
