Crazy Talk

So, I'm standing in the ammunition line at Wal-Mart (how many great stories start with that line?)  a while back, and I strike up a conversation with a guy behind me in line.  This fellow looked like a stereotype of a Wal-Mart gun shopper - dirty jeans and tee shirt, missing a couple of teeth, four-day beard growth - in other words, he looked about like me.  I made an offhand remark to the effect that it was amazing you couldn't buy any 22 ammo. 

For those of you who haven't tried to buy ammunition lately, it's pretty scarce.  In particular, 22LR is hard to find.  In my opinion, this is almost entirely due to the nuts who think Obama - or the UN - is about to take all their guns away.  In the case of 22LR - a low cost, low power caliber mainly used for "plinking", target practice, or small game - this is a particularly absurd argument.  I've seen no proposal to eliminate or limit this caliber (as a practical matter, I've seen nothing to  make me believe any limits on gun ownership are coming in the foreseeable future). 

In any case, I was surprised when the other fellow agreed with me that no one was going to be confiscating 22 caliber weapons, although he did say he was more worried about his other guns.  I didn't answer that, since I was pretty sure we'd see things differently, but he continued.  "He's a communist, you know".  I thought I knew what he was talking about, but I asked who "He" was.  "Odumma", he said, "No wonder this country is going to hell - I can't believe they elected him twice!"

I told him I could understand how he got elected, and that I had voted for him twice.  He was incredulous, "You voted for that BOY?"  I said, "I wouldn't say boy - he is the president, after all".  I did tell him - truthfully - that I wasn't happy with everything Obama did, but that I thought (still do) that he was better than the alternatives.

At that point, my fellow shopper apparently decided his need for ammo was not as strong as his disgust at standing next to an apparent communist, so he walked away, muttering to himself. 

So this guy has such strong feelings about Obama that he can't even stand in line with me, knowing I have a different opinion.  Contrast his reaction to mine regarding George W. Bush.  I happen to believe Bush was the worst president in my lifetime - a period of time that includes Richard Nixon!  I was disappointed when he was elected the first time, disturbed when he took us into two unnecessary wars, and absolutely shocked when he was re-elected in 2004.  I had a hard time understanding why ANYONE would vote for him, after the disaster that was his first term.  Because I live in a dark red state, my opinion was certainly in the minority, and I was constantly made aware of that in conversations.  There was never a time, however, when I was so disgusted to find myself standing next to a Republican that I just had to vacate the area.  I also never found it necessary to intentionally mangle his name, or to invent some crazy theory about what he was doing or planning (of course, in Bush's case, what he actually did was bad enough - no imagination was required). 

In short, this Wal-Mart shopper was afflicted with Obama Derangement Syndrome - the idea that our president is responsible for everything bad that happens.  Even more delusional - if Obama is for something, it must be bad, so it should be opposed.  This is why "Obamacare", originally a Republican idea, is so universally hated by the right wing.  I don't love the new health care law - it falls far short of my ideal - but it's at least a small step towards true universal coverage.

Another example:  I was recently talking to an elderly gentleman from South Dakota.   He made the comment that his son - a health care worker in Georgia (not a physician) - had been out of work for over a year.  And now, "Obama cut off his unemployment pay."  I normally avoid political discussions with acquaintances, but in this case, I couldn't stay silent.  I explained to him that the senate - controlled by the democrats - had approved an extension of the emergency long-term unemployment payments, but that it was being held up by the republican-controlled house.  In addition, I pointed out that the republicans in Georgia had refused to expand Medicare, leading to hospital closures, perhaps leading directly to his son's unemployment.  He said, "Maybe I've been voting for the wrong party."  I told him I thought he was, and he laughed, and said, "I could never do that."  So here we have a man who doesn't know what his son will do without this help, doesn't agree with the failure to expand Medicaid, but can't imagine anything that would cause him to vote for a democrat!  I quit talking politics at that point, but I can't help but wonder, what makes people vote for candidates that support policies with which they disagree?

More crazy talk:  I was informed by a woman that the reason so many young blacks are in jail is that our jails are too pleasant!  She said, "Jails should be underground, like in the old days.  Most of them have it so much better in jail than where they live that, as soon as they get out, they look for a way to get put back into jail.  If the jails weren't so nice, they wouldn't do that."  "Couldn't it be", I argued, "that so many African-Americans are in jail because of the long sentences imposed on non-violent drug offenders?"  She also didn't recognize that blacks are much more likely to receive jail time than whites for similar offenses.  I told her I didn't think our prisons were all that pleasant, but she just wasn't buying it.  In this case, since I was stuck in a car with her for several hours, I changed the subject.  Sometimes it's just not worth banging your head against the wall.

Want another story?  I played golf with a fellow from Alaska.  He's a pleasant guy, and we were chatting on the way home.  Somehow, we got on the subject of health care, and he said that he - apparently due to a small percentage of native Alaskan in his heritage - could get free health care if he wanted it, but of course he turned it down.  I asked, "Why in the world would anyone turn it down?".  He said the trouble with this country was that people weren't self-reliant enough.  I asked what we should do with people who had serious health issues, but couldn't afford care.  He said, "the Eskimos would just float them out on an ice floe.  They had the right idea."  So here's a seemingly reasonable man, suggesting we just kill off anyone who can't take care of themselves.  Of course, he had a good job, with insurance, and no health issues.  In his mind, that's because he's eaten right and taken care of himself.  So, all you folks out there with cancer, diabetes, or any other debilitating condition should just go ahead and keel over so you're not breathing oxygen the rest of us could be using!

I could go on with stories like this far longer than you'd want to hear them (I probably already have, right?).  What is it that makes people so wrong-minded?   All of these folks are out walking around like everyone else - are they nuts, or am I?  I'm not trying to be one of those old guys who walk around talking about how the country is going to hell, but, seriously, what is going on?  Maybe all this crazy talk will stop in 2017, after Hillary Clinton is inaugurated............

Obamacare

My brother had an interesting post the other day about why the Republicans are so desperate to make The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) a failure.  He does a good job explaining it, so I won't add anything to that discussion.  What I'm interested in talking about is the law itself - what it will do to people like me, and what it won't do.

When I first left my job at Lester Electrical in 2006, I bought a health insurance policy on my own.  The first year, it was a fairly straight-forward process - fill out a 6 page form, pay the money, and you're done.  About the only claim I made on it was when I tore a muscle in my leg climbing out of a ravine on the golf course (don't ask!).  I made a trip to the doctor, and they ran some tests to make sure I hadn't developed a blood clot.  No big deal, and in a month or two, I was back to normal - or as close to normal as I ever get.

Imagine my surprise when I attempted to renew my policy the next year!  I had about 10 phone calls asking about my accident - did I have a history of problems with my leg?  Was I still having problems?  Do I often tear muscles?  They didn't want to insure me, unless they excluded this type of injury.  Keep in mind, this was a one-time deal - kind of a freak accident.  After much discussion, they finally agreed to write me a policy, but it was a very near thing.  That opened my eyes - what do you suppose would have happened if I'd have been diagnosed with cancer or a heart condition?

Because of my experience with buying insurance, we added coverage for me on Theresa's group policy the following year - no questions about pre-existing conditions, no cancellation (unless, of course, you  lose your job).

Fast forward 6 years, and here we are - retired, one of us is disabled, and we both have pre-existing conditions that would make buying health insurance impossible or unaffordable.  Fortunately, Theresa's company has kept her on insurance for 6 months, so we have not yet had to deal with it.  That will end in November, leaving us only a month until most of the new health law kicks in on the first of January.

After January 1st, insurance companies are no longer allowed to refuse coverage or charge extra for pre-existing conditions - a huge issue for us.  In addition, the lifetime limits are gone, so you don't have to worry about a single catastrophic illness making you uninsurable.

There are a few other nice features about Obamacare - young people can more easily stay on their parent's insurance until they get on their feet, and most people will be required to buy insurance.  In addition, health policies must cover certain procedures - mainly preventative care and women's health screening.  Early reports indicate premiums are lower than expected, but we won't really know about that until early next year.  All-in-all, it's a nice, modest improvement that helps a lot of people have just a bit more security.  What is it not? It's NOT a "government takeover of health care".  It doesn't let the IRS determine your health care.  It's not the end of freedom in this country.  It's a nice, modest improvement.

Is the Affordable Care Act perfect?  Of course not.  It falls short of what I think needs to be done - a "single payer" system like that in almost every industrialized nation on Earth.  I hear conservatives bray about "our health care is the greatest in the world", and I agree - if you have unlimited funds.  If not, you may or may not get the care you need.  In this country, we spend more on health care than any other country, with only fair results.  We need true universal coverage.  Until we do, the Affordable Care Act is at least a step in the right direction.

The Heat - Movie Review

The weekend, we went to see the new Sandra Bullock - Melissa McCarthy movie, The Heat.  There's nothing new or ground breaking in this flick - it's a pretty standard "mis-matched buddy cop show".  Except it features two female cops, and McCarthy is totally over-the-top hilarious.

Bullock is the big star, of course, but in this film, she's the straight man to McCarthy's antics.  Her character, socially stunted FBI agent Ashburn, is uptight, unpopular, and very by the book.  McCarthy's Detective Mullins is the  polar opposite in every way - sloppy, crude, nasty - but a very effective cop.

It will come as no surprise that these two are forced to work together.  Naturally, there's a lot of conflict between the two, and eventually they bond and catch the bad guys.  If this description makes the movie sound very predictable, it should - you can know what's going to happen just by watching the trailer.  That doesn't make the movie bad - suspense isn't the point here.   It's plenty entertaining watching Bullock try to manage the foul-mouthed McCarthy, and the pratfalls and jokes are virtually non-stop.  I found myself laughing through the whole thing - from the opening to the final credits.

I'd talk about other performances, but there's not much to say.  The rest of the cast is fine, but no one really stands out.  McCarthy's on-screen family is funny, the bad guys are really slimy, and the cops are just kind of there.  The plot, such as it is, is fine, but this is not a plot-driven movie.  It's all about McCarthy, and she's just really funny in this one.

If you're looking for a fun, easy watching movie - and if you're not easily offended by bad language - check out The Heat.  It's certainly worth the price of a big bucket of popcorn!

Adding an Electrical Outlet

I've talked about making simple electrical repairs before, but this is a different case - if you need to add an additional outlet, there's a few other things you need to do to complete this task.

If you're inexperienced in working with electricity, take a few minutes to read my previous post.  Everything in there applies - you'll want to make sure you've killed the power before working on anything.  As always, if you're not comfortable doing the job yourself, consider asking for help from  some knowledgeable person, or hiring an electrician.

In my case, I needed to install an outlet next to the dryer which would provide power to charge a small battery-powered vacuum.  This was an easy project, since there was an existing outlet on the other side of the wall.  Regardless of where you're getting your power, the steps are the same:

• Make sure you've got your supplies.  At a minimum, you'll need a box, receptacle, wire, plate cover, and wire nuts.  Assuming you're installing the outlet in an existing wall, you'll want an "Old Work Box". 

This is a typical old work box

• Choose the outlet you're going to use for power.  Make sure it has adequate capacity, and that it is not controlled by a switch. 
• Plan how you're going to route the cable to your new outlet.  In my case, it was easy, since I was just going through the wall.  In some cases, it will be difficult or impossible to avoid running the wire on the surface of a wall - if that's true in your case, you'll need to enclose your wire or cable into conduit.
• Verify that the power is off at the outlet from which you're pulling the power.
• Remove the existing outlet.  Disconnect the wires, making note of which wires go to the brass (hot) side.  This should be the black wire, with the white wire going to the silver screws.  If it isn't correct, verify with your meter which wire is hot, and mark it with black electrical tape.
• Mark out the outline of your box in the desired location, making sure you'll miss studs, pipes, or electrical cables.
• Cut the hole in the drywall, using a hand saw or oscillating multi-tool.  Check to make sure the box fits the hole.
• Route your wire from the source to your new outlet hole.  In my case, it was easy to push the wire through.  If you have a long run, you may need to use a fish tape reel to route the wire.
• Connect your wires at the source - hot to black, neutral to white.  Connect a third small wire ("pigtail" about 6" long to each, to hook back up to the outlet you removed in the earlier step.
  
• Connect the old outlet (hot to brass screw, neutral to silver screw), and re-install it in the outlet box.
• Route the cable through your new box, and install it in the hole you cut in the wall.  Strip about 6" off the end of the cable jacket, and hook up the receptacle (once again, making sure you put the black, or hot, wire on the brass screw).
• Install the receptacle in the box, install the outlet covers, and turn the power on.  Check to make sure you've got power at both outlets, and you're done!

  

  Wire pulled through, ready for the outlet.

  
  

  

  All done!

This is an easy do-it-yourself job - the hard part is routing the wire.  If you've got power close, like I did, it takes only a few minutes.  After rounding up all the parts, this job took me about a half hour to complete.

My Busy Week

A few of weeks ago, I got called by a former client, who was ready to sell the home I'd sold them a few years before.  It's always gratifying to get a call like that - after all, if they didn't think I did a good job for them when they bought their house, they'd hardly call me to sell it, right?  To make it even better, they told me they had decided when they bought their home that they'd call me when they wanted to sell.

The odd thing about this call was, it was the THIRD call from a former client I received THAT Day!  That's right, three people who bought homes from between 2007 and 2009 called me on the same day.  I made arrangements with each of them to go look at their house and give them advice on pricing, as well as how best to market their home. As it turns out, all of them needed a bit of time to get their house ready for market - they all worked like crazy over the weekend, and I listed all three last Monday.

The Lincoln real estate market is strong right now - there is a shortage of quality listings on the market, and buyers are active.  By Friday night, all three of my new listings were sold, and one of my sellers had already written up a contract on a new home.  A second seller is still looking, but will probably buy a home in the next week or two.  In addition, I sold two lots, which will turn into a pair of town homes (one of which is already sold!), and listed another new construction town home that is just getting started.  All in all, my week was one of the best - and busiest - since I started selling real estate.

I know I'll never be this busy all the time - and who would want to?  I don't mind working late when I need to, but I certainly don't want to do that every day.  When it happens once in a while, it's great fun.  Now, I'm taking a week off.  I don't need to feel guilty - I got enough done this week!

"They're Not Gonna Catch Him!"

The Spring Game was last Saturday.  The Huskers, as usual, have some talent - they won't win the national championship, but they'll have a decent team, I suspect.  Often, one or two relatively unknown player will step up and be the star of the intra-squad scrimmage, and it happened in a big way last weekend!

Jack Hoffman didn't play until late in the game.  On 4th down, he carried for the first - and probably last - time as a Husker.  The result was incredible.  Even if you're not interested in football, check out the video clip.  I suspect you'll be impressed with Jack, as well as the rest of the team.

Jack, by the way, is a 7 year old pediatric brain cancer patient.  He was befriended by former Husker running back Rex Burkhead, and has become close to a number of players on the team, and one of the players came up with the idea to put him in the game.  With this run, he goes into the record books as the leading rusher in the spring game, and his touchdown gave the Red team the win in the annual scrimmage that marks the end of spring practice.  I love the play by play guys calling the play ("He's got another gear!"), and it's quite touching to see all the players gathering around Jack.

One way to look at this is that this game doesn't count - it's just a practice, after all.  As I said before, often players will look like stars in this game, only to fall back into obscurity by fall.  In this case, I think this game does count.  This play may not mean much to football fans across the country, but it meant a lot to one little boy.  Twenty years from now, no one will remember who scored first in this spring game.  I bet we'll all remember who scored last.

Blown Away

Many years ago, I owned several guns - a couple of shotguns and a .22 rifle.  I didn't hunt or shoot a lot, but on occasion I'd get out and use them a bit.  My father had a .22 pistol that I had fired a few times, but I've never owned a hand gun.

After having kids, my hunting and shooting got put on the back burner - I didn't fire a gun for over 25 years.  My guns were sitting dusty and rusting in the closet, so I eventually just got rid of them.

A week or so ago, we were out to dinner with my son and daughter-in-law, and they mentioned that there was a new indoor shooting range that had opened in Lincoln.  When they said they were planning to go, Theresa said, "I'd love to go shoot a gun!"  Once I got over the shock, I reluctantly agreed to go and give it a shot (pun intended).

BigShots Indoor Range is a nice place, located just off of West O Street in Lincoln.  The owners are very friendly, and they seem to be quite safety-conscious.  Since we hadn't been to their range (or, in Theresa and my case, any range) we were required to view a short video on gun safety before we could shoot.  Although they are experienced shooters, Matthew and Mitzi also had to watch the video.  The woman who set this up - "Terry" - was nice, and didn't look down on the neophytes in our group.

Theresa and I don't own a gun, but Matthew and Mitzi have a .357 Magnum revolver, and some very nice friends of theirs (Joe and Audra) let us borrow a .22 pistol.  BigShots has rental guns, but you must have a county handgun purchase permit to rent.  If you don't have a record, the permit is easy to get - it costs $5.

We rented hearing and eye protection (required), and went to the range.

If you go, the first thing you'll notice is that some guns are LOUD!  Some guy was shooting something about the size of a bazooka - we all jumped about a foot off the ground the first time it went off.  Standing in the booth next to it, you could feel the concussion every time he fired.  The .357 was fairly loud as well, making the .22 sound like a cap gun in comparison.  Joe gave us some instruction on how to safely operate his .22 semi-automatic pistol, and Theresa blazed away.

The targets at the range are on a track, and can be moved to any distance desired.  I'm not sure of the maximum distance, but it's enough that most of us wouldn't be able to hit the target at that range.  We were typically shooting at targets in the 5 to 10 yard range.  Surprisingly, both Theresa and I were able to group shots within about a 6 inch range at these relatively short distances.  Not surprisingly, the .22 was much easier to shoot accurately, although both Theresa and I were OK with the .357.  After a bit of practice, I improved quite a bit with the .22. Matthew and Mitzi were, of course,  better.  John and Audra were quite good, from my perspective - Audra had some really great groupings with the bigger gun.

All in all, it was a lot of fun.  Friday nights are "Date Night", so the range fee was $20 for the two of us.  While ammunition for larger caliber guns is expensive, .22 ammo is still relatively cheap, so, if you own a gun, this isn't the most expensive night out you can imagine.  Gun rental would add a bit to that, but it's still affordable.

A couple of weeks ago, I'd have told you I'd never fire a gun again.  I'd also have been pretty sure I'd never own a hand gun.  Even more surprising, Theresa had a great time!  After going to the range, I find myself thinking about buying a pistol, and making the range a more or less regular outing.