PLD

For a good all purpose PW lube, get T111 at Napa. Requires solvents to remove and melts above 450deg. It's $15/tube but you don't need more than a thin film. I have had the same tube for about 3 years. I use it on all my QC's and threads and my incidence of freezing/ockup has gone to nearly zero. And yes, you can lube the threads before teflon tape, and it still works fine. Also works great for hitch ball lube.

I pick and choose who I help. Ryan H and I compete in the same area, yet we share ideas and even thoughts about good/bad neighborhoods, marketing, etc. I would also send one of my customers to Ryan and not fear my reputation would be tarnished. On the other hand, when I get a hint of a price shopper who tries to lie/manipulate and get me to waste my time without concern for the value of my time, I nail 'em. Sometimes I call 'em out, other times I feed them full of BS that is just fringe enough to be believable, and just out there enough to be damaging to their efforts. Like the fact that I won't even wash a 1500 sq.ft. for less than $200 and I'm booked out with 'em for 6 months. One last note: If the local JERK that put in service magic requests last week just to do some price comparison happens to listening; Yes, I do still think you are a jerk. No, I will not tell you anything that may help you out. And yes, I am serious that you should send me a check for $11.00.

If you really want to get a little spooked, Tivo for "psychology of a suicide bomber" and watch that. We in the western world (well, at least I) have always been perplexed by UBL's (et.al) ability to convince hundreds to go to their death. This special examines the work of a group of forenic psycologists who examined the 9/11 attackers and other suicide bombers. They were particularly interested in the meeting places and relationships that brought them together. What surpised them (and me) is that generally Al Quada does not seek out "martrys" and "Cells". These groups/mindsets appear to form on their own and then seek out AQ/UBL for support/resources/training. They equated it to Harvard University. i.e. Harvard does not need to seek out the best, they seek out Harvard. And when I say these groups form on their own, I do not mean Mohammed Atta recruited 10 people and then went looking for UBL. I mean they come together out of thin air almost as if by chance. Strangers with similar, but less "aggressive" thought patterns meet and bond over common ideas. Once the group reaches multiple members the ideas/hatred/peer pressures become synergistic and grow until they explode in an act of violence. Anyway, if this is true it means that the war on terror is as pointless as prohibition/the war on drugs/swatting gnats. Philip

On a small tangent, anyone out there have a skid mounted in a pickup with no tank, no trailer? Thoughts?

As stated before, chlorine is the ticket... Why not oxalic? Back to chem101. If you need to breakdown Tannic Acid think alkali (ph+). Need to consume organic material, think oxidizer. Need a good Ph+ oxidizer? Try 12% NaHClO3 :) Philip

Note: I'm being fairly direct, but the questions below are not sarcastic or a setup for a flame. I'm truly interested in what you have to add. Are you serious about ebooks? If so, please elaborate on why you think so. Are you speaking of the resold generic books online, or writing your on book and selling it in a soft format? I ask because I have a successful online business, but I want to expand/diversify into another product line. Obviously no shipping and product cost is very appealing to an online business. Philip

I actually have customers tell me that we can't schedule for next tuesday, etc. because it's supposed to rain... Here on the radio one morning, the morning guy asked our weather guy (who has many, many national awards for his weather forecasts) just how many days the forecast was scientifically accurate. He replied that 2.5-3 days had a good degree of accuracy, and beyond that it was largely a guess. The morning guy left him dumbfounded with this question: "Then why the hell do you do the 7 day forecast every morning!?!"

I will seriously consider this. In fact, I have often considered starting one myself...

That's why I said cruise. I have that same photo with Michele! :)

Who's laughing? If you found this funny, consider yourself fortunate. The rest of us saved the file to run as our next help wanted ad. :( I've even come back from a quote to find my rig in the driveway at noon. The employee called me 6 *weeks* later to get their final check. Philip

$75 for a 5hp is a deal. It'd be on my parts shelf already. Good engines have a million uses. Roller pump, post hole auger, go kart, outrageous shop fan, repair push mower..

FWIW: I don't use a float tank. I plumb my supply into a 300gal tote and have an overflow pipe that spoils the overflow to the ground.

Let me guess. Carnival Cruise?

Speaking of super-gloeo. We debated here earlier about if all gloeo can be elminated w/o agitation or if there really was a super-G that resisted chems. I (and a couple of other SE'ers) were in the super-G camp. Well, I have more information. I did a roof this week that was badly infested. From the ground it was all the same, but looking at it up close it was more chocolate brown than the typical blackish. When I sprayed it with 8% and waited 5 min it disappeared all on it's own w/o out agitation. It did leave a whitish haze that may or may not have disappeared w/o rinsing. But IMHO, it needed (and got) a good rinse. BUT... the now gone brown gloeo revealed several smaller dark black patches in the typical "running down the roof" pattern. They were not missed spots, but spots that were co-existing in/under the brown gloeo. These required no more chems, but had to be agitated to remove it. So IMHO, there are two distinct types of G that exist and one will disappear with 8% and the other requires agitation with 12%. In my area 95%+ are the latter.

I had a callback for streaked picture windows in a high-end home. I guess they guys just got slack that day. In any case, I grabbed a bucket, a squeegie, and a bottle of that hose-end, no-streak, outdoor window cleaner. Figured I'd give it a crack before breaking out the ladders. Well, it worked lke a champ and for 6 bucks I fixed the problem in about 15 minutes.

Try Zyban. It attacks the psychological angle somewhat. I have used it twice now (5 yrs before and 79 days this time) and have been quite please with the lack of anxiety each time.

Hang though and even if you smoke, that's a slip and not a failure. Just stop slipping. Jan 21 will be 90 days for me.

Am I the only one that really got excited by Richard's pics? Challenge and profit all rolled into one icky package!

I accept CCards for my online biz via a typical account. I use that same account for PW'ing. I also accept PayPal payments for customers who write and ask, but I do not offer it as an option on my site. I DO offer it as an option for items listed on my ebay store. That said, I take about 10 paypal payments a month for over 3 years and have had no problems with them. The have my bank account info on file and I can sweep payments into my checking account or I can pay with paypal and they will fund it from cash on hand, then pull from bank and/or CCard. If PayPal allows you to offer an option that brings in additional business don't be afraid of it. And as for the 3%: The best CC account will cost you ~1.65%. The worst ~2.65% Most all have $50-60/mo (~$2000 sales) minimum. I pay 2.02% with a $55 mininum. If you are doing one here, one there, transactions then 3% may be your cheapest alternative for CC processing.

I can't speak for everyone. But I'll go on the record as saying that I LOVE it when a vendor jumps in here and makes themselves available. I wish more would do so. Vendor sponsored forums are ok, but because people generally only visit them pre-sales (or when they have a problem) the discussion/info can be a little sparse for my tastes.

De Jure nullification - Unconstitutional. De Facto nullification - Happens REGULARLY. Tax heavily and deny to spend those seized dollars in states that do not comply. Every wondered why every state passed a 21 drinking age and 55 speed limit so quickly and nearly all at once? Highway dollars. And that my friends is the sad fact behind why tax reform like the fair tax will NEVER be enacted. TOO much power in social manipulation through tax code.

Smart. Stupid. As much as the feds would like everyone (including themselves) to believe, a federal law can only further restrict state/local regs. The only time the feds can loosen such regs is when the law in question is rules unconstitutional. i.e. No federal law can make murder legal in Georgia. That said, they can pass a totally unenforcable reg and politic strongly to get the states to voluntary comply. Thank you for your service.

NaOCl + H2O ↔ HOCl + Na+ + OH- HOCl + HCl ↔ H2O + Cl2 ↑ In a nutshell, unless toxic chlorine gas is your goal, don't mix bleach and muratic acid. More simplistically, any ph+ (bleach, hyroxide) and any ph- (muratic, oxalic) are going to react, neutralize each other, and produce various by products. Often these reactions generate heat and gasses that cause the mix to boil and spatter violently.a And a boiling, spattering, hot mixture of 12% and acid is not a nice thing to be nearby...

Before garage, I used a long 1/2 vinyl coated cable through both wheels and around the toung/frame. Either cut the cable, or rip out the axle. Your choice! Actually, I forgot once and it did no damage other than to kink the cable. But the black marks and skidding quickly reminded me that the tires were't turning.

Don't even need that. There is a cheap metal shim designed just for master locks that that will open them in about 2 seconds.