Poker Perambulation

This beats a Frantic Friday six ways from Sunday.  When Fridays got frantic in my life, it was usually because I forgot or failed to get something accomplished in my little world.  Frantic seems to appeal to a limited set of adrenalin junkies or the type of folks that don't like Geico and can't figure out what to do about it.  After all the above link is proof that blogging is

It is fantabluous because I've had a few more readers show up.  We aren't quite to the old blog levels but getting closer according to Google provided statistics and Alexa bumped me up over 200K for some reason.  GoDaddy would only let me use their crappy stats package.  I could have paid them but they manage to get enough of our money to sponsors race cars and psuedo-porn promotions. If I am looking for pseudo-sex, I'll pass on something with daddy in the title.  That one's paid upgrade kept one a second class citizen of the net with limits imposed.  Here, I'm the limit.

The thing that wasn't fantabulous this week was the attempt to move to Dish.  The guy showed up and I thought it'd be a simple hookup to the SW.  Not so.  SE!  Dish doesn't like trees.  I do.  Result would have been a post set in the middle of the yard.  Then there was ground.  They needed to steal ground from the phone company instead of the ground rod by the distribution cable point.  That would have run a bright orange cable half way around the house.  I won't be trying decorative, orange cable accents; so I had to go back – temporarily at least – to Comcast. 

I think I'll be heading out today to find a guy to rebuild my old TV antenna.  That'll get me 80% of what Comcast is willing to provide on their $19.95 basic cable package. Fact is they don't give one all the channels that one can snag out of the air.  As to the cable based ones, I can watch HSN or QVC for free on the Internet.  And, many other show are starting to distribute via the net.  With a bit of effort, I can probably end up with more without spending $19.95/month. 

I know most will snicker over such modest cost for a little enjoyment.  After all most people's cable bill in my area is closer to a hundred.  They'd probably say I'm a cheap ass and be right.  But, I'm right too.  That 1200-bucks/yr would give one a very choice upgrade of a vacation, car accessory package, or boost toward a nicer retirement.  Thinking short term puts one's finances in government mode – hell, it only a fraction of the overall budget.  Nothing to worry about.  Face it, cable bills are about as valuable to you as congressman's earmarks.  Of course about 90% of my viewing is already available via the ether.   I can live a full life without the Sopranos.  The last time I had full cable (3-months free) I had a great time the first month.  From there out what I thought I'd enjoy was what I'd already viewed the previous month.

I was an early implementor of cable.  That was the era of local cable franchises.  They set up a temporary office in our bedroom community.  The price was $4/month and movies ran it up to about $10.  Here, I had to take basic cable to get broadband.  That was a ten-spot then.  It has been double in a few short years.  The last of the local cable got 'acquired' by the monoliths.  They lobbied local control out of the picture.  And, the price double.  Surprise! Surprise! They are only concerned with their side of the cash flow.

Having a memory of the past is a real disconnect between your world and mine.  The other day I wanted a simple dropper bottle.  I stopped in the local Walgreen and went to the pharmacy counter – not a customer friendly place under the best of circumstances.  I asked to buy an empty 2 oz dropper bottle.  In the old days, they'd have reached under the counter and got one and I'd have paid a quarter.  Here I was directed to a wall and a blister pack.  Price?  $3.95.   Now that is roughly 1600%.  I don't care what decade's dollar comparison you want to make to today.  That is a screw job. I'm pretty sure I could have found the house mercurochrome in such a bottle cheaper -- if it were still sold.  Instead I walk out PO'd.


Now, an eyedropper bottle isn't something to get seriously exercised about, right?  You dump the 4-something-with-tax and maybe mumble under your breath or just grin and bear it.  The thing is that they've redesigned the world while we weren't looking.   In my day, I at least got lip service from people who thought that they'd profit over time if they kept me slightly happy.  Today, you folks are entitled to talk to a guy in Bombay who's only got the job because he was the cheapest way to deny corporate responsibility.

You know what?  Look around the table/town/big-box.  You don't see the fish do you? Yup, you know why too!!!

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