My Boring Life Stuff

**Micanopy** · 10-14-2023, 07:14 AM

Today I plan to ride my bicycle. Been some time since I had ridden. It is amazing at the difference in my ability to balance between when I was a kid and now. Shaky with the handle bars with one hand. I suppose that is how age creeps up on you. Maybe I should wait to drink a bunch of beer until after I am done riding.

Wife and I like to ride the trails. Gives her an opportunity to gab incessantly about all the meaningless dribble she finds interesting. Every so often someone will shout at us. “Passing on the Left”. Then they go zooming past. Makes me wish I had gotten an EBike. One that screams along at 30MPH so I can yell at people. EBikes allow you to peddle when you want to peddle, and ride when you want to just ride. They go uphill, too. That is the part that I suspect I would like best.

We see quite a few EBikes while out riding. Young people ride them, but mostly it is old farts with their wretched knees. They look like they might be fast enough to outrun a bear. Maybe not.

I visited cycle shops and saw that they want an amazing amount of money for a regular bike. Wally World had us two bikes for $400 something together. Cycle shops started at 500 each. Then there are all the accessorization that must happen. I say must happen. I got LiveScope mounted on my handlebars. We each have lights facing forward for night time riding. A bell. The city has an ordinance that says all cycles must have a front and rear light at night, and a bell at all times. In case you crash. You have something to do while lying in the ditch. You can ring your bell for ambulatory service. Ring Ring……nurse nurse get the hearse I am getting worse.

Actually, taking a wicked spill is very much a part of cycling as an adult. As kids we get up and rub some dirt on our injuries and ride on brother. I realize that I might crash and come away with difficult to heal injuries. I wear my helmet and I try to be careful. Sooner or later I will go down.

They have apps for bike riding. One said give us your credit card to prove that you are an adult, click agree to all these terms, and we promise not to charge the card. Hmmmmmm……..

The app I am using now shows speed, fastest speed achieved, time and distance and a GPS map showing location. I got a mount for the handle bars. Last trip out we went 3 miles one way, and then back for a total of six miles. Each trip out we go a little further. My legs need to work their way up to this riding stuff. She does leg exercizes all the time so it is easier for her, but still she mentions the way her legs feel when done.

Gliding silently along the path we surprise squirrels and such. I holler passing on the right and she wobbles some.

Ours are mountain bikes. I want to ride sally ride some of the trails we have hiked. She does not want to ride trails just yet. Says she is concerned about crashing. I said it is just dirt, not hard asphalt like the other trails. We both agree we will not venture out onto the highway. That is just idiocy. Taunting those that drive large cars at high speed. When steel meets flesh and bone, steel wins every time. Squish you go and all for what ? Just to show you have a right to ride on the road, too ?

Not long ago I had an encounter with an angry bike rider. Out on the four lane O’Dark hundred, people trying to get to work. Huge beautiful bike lane, and he wanted to ride in the middle of the right lane. Until I came round towing the boat. Then he was cussing up a storm and wanted to fight, and so I stopped and got out. He saw me and took off. I hollered- “Wait…. come back I want my lesson”. So riding the roads is not a good idea. I actually used to bury them folks. So sad, struck down during the fever of life. Wasted lives, but they got their point across maybe. Their right to ride the road, too.

One morning about two decades ago my brother and I encountered a gaggle of idiots that refused to ride single file. They would turn around and look at us and just keep going. I wanted to blow the horn but my brother was behind the wheel. It was like they wanted us to see how much fun they were having. Finally we got around them. Then down the road he decides to stop and get some gas. Well sure enough here they came, and then stopped at the traffic light right there at the gas station. I walked towards them and started telling them how stupid they were. That they looked silly. Like a bunch of Court Jesters. On and on the insults just sort of flowed out of my mouth. They just got mad and when the light turned, off they went. Up ahead we encountered them again and I shouted out “Cowards” as we passed them. Might have been a bird flying in the area, never know.

So I have zero plans to dress up like a Court Jester and hound people as they try to go down the highway. We shall stick to nature trails and such where we see only the beautiful stuff. The trail she likes best is paved over top of some old RailRoad tracks. The right of way would cost millions to accumulate today. Swampy all around and moskeeters can’t alight upon your thinnest skin parts when you are moving at super duper high speed. Yes, we average about 8 mph. Which is blazing fast if you didn’t already realize.

We are going riding again today. Same trail she always wants to ride. I suppose we will stretch it out some and go for an incredible 8 miles. Very few people can ride 8 miles on a mountain bike, down an asphalt trail, carrying all that extra weight of the light, phone, and bell. Very few. That is why so many get them EBikes. They let the battery and motor do the work. I am supposed to be getting exercise. I really don’t much care for exercise. I should have gotten the EBike. Zoom Zoom…..look at me.

My doctor is always harping on me getting some exercise Who cares I only see him twice a year. He doesn’t know that mostkly I sit in the shade and drink beer. I mean maybe he does, but really does it matter ? We all shall perish. Life is like a vapor. Here today gone tomorrow with lots of stuff in between. I don’t see the need to just add in a dose of exercise when we can just sit in the shade and drink beer and stare out at the creation meant for us to enjoy. I like flavored alcoholic drinks, too. Moonshine, stuff like that. Never fooled with the dope stuff. I tried coffee and liked that. Tried cigarettes, liked them. Tried beer, liked that. Whiskey, liked that. So I knew that if I tried dope, that I would like that, too. I would be a true mess today had I just tried that stuff. I see the sadness it generates in them what dare try it.

My Kid brother is coming to visit later today. So after the ride I will relax some and maybe visit the grocery store. Watch some Foo-Ball out in my manly man lair. The garage. There there is none to request the volume be adjusted to a ridiculously low level. No one cares if you spill your beer or dribble cheese sauce on the floor. No one to suggest a Romantic Comedy take the place of foo-ball. Just me and my pups, altogether with our snacks and cold beer. I even have a fridge in the garage, and yes there is some cold beer kept in there.

Well time to see if she is ready to head off on our biking adventure.

**DockShootinJack** · 10-14-2023, 07:41 AM

Fella been ripping up and down the road here with a chainsaw motor hooked to his bike. That thing was screaming. Surely exceeding the posted speed limit on the road. Braver than I am at this point in life

**BuckeyeCrappie** · 10-16-2023, 07:59 AM

Hey! I’m an ole fart with wrecked knees! My bicycle is my JD tractor…

**Micanopy** · 10-22-2023, 07:43 AM

When we got married, she picked out her engagement ring. Somehow she lost it. No big deal as it was about a $20 ring. Like I said, she picked it. I was ready to go whole hog and finance a large rock, but she didn’t want that. She wanted that dumb thing instead. Ordered on line too. Oh well.

Our anniversary is just a few days away and so I took her shopping for a new ring yesterday. She told the dealer that she did not like diamonds and wanted something to go with her slender fingers. She selected a pearl with some diamonds around it. I must say it does look very nice. She picks it up Friday, after the anniversary, due to getting it sized downwards to fit.

The ring cost pretty good, $600, but it was no where near what I had prepared myself to pay. I saw her texting pictures of it. She showed her father pictures of it when we visited. Seems to be very happy with her choice. Personally I would have selected the big rock.

Then she asks what I want for our anniversary. Hmmmmmmmm……

Garmin Force TM ( $ 3,800 )
IPhone 15 Pro ( $1,200 )
New Truck. ( $ 80,000 )
New Gun ( $ 1,800 )
Dancing Girls with Cold Beer. ( Priceless )

Not sure what I should ask for, so I guess I choose nothing. Happy just to see her when I come home from working. Mom was right, when the right one comes along you will know it. A good woman is one thing. A fantastic woman is something entirely different. Never settle for less than, when with a little patience you can get the best.

**DockShootinJack** · 10-22-2023, 08:22 AM

Ouch. Good thing you got the new gun in hand before the dancing girls and beer. Just say.

**Micanopy** · 10-30-2023, 05:34 AM

Saturday morning we went to my boss’s lake front home. He was hosting an antique boat show. There were fifty very old boats there on display, many of which no longer run. They are just for looking at. There were people set up with old outboard engines, many of which are not for sale. Weird I know. Everyone seemed to be very proud of whatever it was they had. They even had a raffle for an old boat that needed refinishing. I kept my money in my pocket afraid I might win the damn thing and have to keep it in my yard.

Then there was a water ski show. Man that was pretty good. My wife sure liked it. Like Cypress Gardens….well close. They did pyramids and show cased various hot dog moves. Like circling the boat and barefoot sking. They had outfits and did some lifts and other tricks. It was very nice.

Then they served BBQ ribs, chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a roll with sweet tea. I have prepared and eaten that meal many times, and it is still just as good as the first time I had it. After the meal I helped some, and then left. My wife was ready to get out of there, even if I wanted to stay some.

Their home is very nice and they just built a two boat lift dock. The home has been in their family for 70 years or so.

Then we drove to the HomeDepot to buy a…..wait for it……wait…….a new water heater. The old one started getting really hot. Then I had to hit the reset button. Then it was the circuit breakers. I had already pulled the top element and it was crusted over. I considered a rebuild, but decided after 25 years it would be best to simply replace it. The cost was $425 for a 40 gallon tank.

The old unit was very heavy with sludge in the bottom. I couldn’t put it in the truck by myself. My wife had to help and we barely got it. Of course, easing it off at the dump was far easier. I thought to myself that I made the right decision in replacing the unit altogether. Mt electric bills have been running high and I think I found out why.

The new heater had screws on top vs. copper tubes. I bought Shark Bite fittings and braided lines to do the hookup. It was super easy to do and looks nice, too. The next guy, the one that replaces the unit, will enjoy the ease the hoses present when replacing the unit. This was a fairly easy DIY job. I mean your setup might present some issues that require a pro, but most likely if you ever need to do this you can. I probably should have replaced mine years ago. I plan to drain this thing next year and try to keep the sludge build up to a minimum.

I did discover why it takes so long to get hot water to the master bathroom shower. They ran 3/4” copper line into the water heater, but only 1/2” copper line out. I suppose the builder saved himself a few dollars at a lifetime of expense to the home owner. I just thought that was a pretty nasty thing to do. He couldn’t have saved but a few hundred dollars. The kitchen sink also has a medium water flow when it comes to hot water.

The builder went out of business not long after he built the home. Everything they put in it was builder-cheap grade stuff. The walls are cinder block with poured concrete inside corners and certain places along the wall. Concrete floor, hip roof with asphalt shingles. The shingles were regular builder grade, and we are considering a metal roof soon. Not sure I want to go to that expense, but it would be an almost permanent fix. We shall see.

The A/C unit needs a complete replacement now as well. 25 years is doing pretty good. Trane makes a nice unit, or at least they did. The newer models are very energy efficient. There were some new regulations passed by the government that will make future units a royal pain, so now is a good time to get one. The government never does anything to help us, just hinder us.

I have a friend that does A/c refrigeration work and with what I will save on the new unit, will be spent on buying something very nice. Such is life for the homeowner. Beautiful, no gorgeous weather, and no fishing. BLUCK !!!!

**BuckeyeCrappie** · 10-30-2023, 06:04 AM

Sorry to hear about the hot water heater. Our went out at 8.5 years old just 3 weeks ago or so. The water was scorching hot when we returned from the KY Lake Shindig. The thermostat was bad and it couldn’t be reset. Ours was so full of rusty sludge it wouldn’t drain. It was heck moving it out to the tractor full. Once outside it got it drained finally and the loaded her up. It was under warranty as we got the 9 year warranted model.

The retailer replaced cit no questions asked and the new model doubled in price from 8 years ago to a whopping 921.00! Blessed we didn’t have to pay for a new one. We are also blessed it didn’t blow up as often happens when a circuit breaker fails.

Did you put an expansion tank on your cold water side? It is an inexpensive and often required by code safety “outlet” for thermal expansion. Found this for you. What Is a Thermal Expansion Tank (& How To Check It) | ApplianceTeacher

Thermal Expansion Tank here. Search Results for thermal expansion tank at The Home Depot

I hear tell insurance companies can deny claims if a water heater blows up. Who knows but for $40.00 it’s a safeguard.

**DockShootinJack** · 10-30-2023, 08:34 AM

I think we are going tankless when the time comes. Run it on gas and only heat it when you need it

**Micanopy** · 10-31-2023, 05:06 AM

The new water heater I installed has a high pressure release valve on top. I ran a PVC pipe from it down to the floor. If high pressure occurs inside the tank, the valve will valve itself open and shoot air and water down that pipe and onto the floor. This will avert an explosion as seen on TV.

I do not feel that an expansion tank is necessary. Now Jack will need one if he installs his on demand unit. It would prevent the internal piping from splitting open. Plumbing can be tricky. I mean there I was, crouched over trying to fiddle up the thermostat, and my crack wasn’t showing. Not even a little and you can ask my wife. I am disgrace to the entire industry.

**BuckeyeCrappie** · 10-31-2023, 07:16 AM

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