Warm Weather has Consequences. Pay Up, Dave.

We don't get that much warm weather here. Maybe 4-5 week long stretches a year. The last few years it's been much less, maybe two little stretches a year. Usually in the Summer it's cool and overcast in the morning, burning off by the early afternoon. Maybe the temperature will peak in the low middle 70s. then overnight it cools down into the low middle 60s. It's not really the Sunny California resort weather that everybody imagines but it suits me. I really like the fact that the weather is not that much different, year round. It gets at least up into the mid 60s most days, year round. It's been years since we had a freeze.

We've been having a warm spell the last week. Up to about 80, every early afternoon for an hour or so. The median temperature is enough higher that my 25 year old GE refrigerator is failing to keep the bacteria at bay. Bummer.

Everybody has their favorite place to get major household appliances. I tend to like to get high end ones. My theory is that they tend to work better and last longer. It may not be true but that's what I think. I moved into this house in 1987 and all the appliances pretty much date from that time, except for the stove, which is original, so 35 years old. I need to replace that next, still works good but it has a few ignition problems. Anyway, it was down to the Sears scratch and dent warehouse today. Got a Kenmore side by side refrigerator, with through the door ice and chill water. I'll probably regret that but that's what it came with. If it quits working I'll just detach the guts and go with ice trays. What the Hell. It's black. I don't care for black appliances but it is what it is. Looked like the best deal in the place today. What the hell. It's got a couple of dents and a big scratch on the side. Shipping damage, not a repo. It's their premium line. Looks like an Asian model, probably made by LG. Has one year parts and labor and a valid extended warranty offer. Didn't buy that. It was almost $500 and the refrigerator only cost me $620, down from a retail of $1500. Didn't seem worth it. Edison will come and pick up the old one and recycle it free and give me a $100 rebate for buying a new, energy efficient refrigerator. Thank you, GE.

Hope this one lasts 25 years. Then they can bury me in it.

No Blogging

I haven't been blogging. I especially haven't been blogging about Presidential politics. Here's why.

Likely Republican primary voters, in most States, Red and Blue, skew heavily to Tea Party supporters. They will likely prevail in electing a pro Tea Party primary candidate to stand in the general election of 2012 against Barack Obama. It doesn't really matter which one it will be, even though some are markedly more crazed than others. A Tea Party candidate, any Tea Party candidate, stands no chance of winning a nation wide general election for anything, including the Presidency.

At this point, it really makes no difference how popular or unpopular Obama may be with his base or anybody else. Unless the Republicans elect a centrist, compromise candidate for the general election, they stand absolutely no chance of winning. There's no way that you can massage the numbers to make it work.

The only person at all, that I can think of off he top of my head that the Republicans could put up that might both have a chance at garnering enough primary support and then winning a general election for President is David Petreaus. I haven't heard that he's interested in running, have you?