The AH Coffee Shop and Reading Room 02: A Comma (is a Restful Pause)

[_Lynn_]

Good evening.

 

[TxRad]

Hypoxia, I ran a TB28 Turbonique attached to the rear end of an old Barracuda until the NHRA outlawed them around 1967. Never had a problem with it. It put put about 1100 HP at the rear axles. Come off the line in low gear, shift to neutral, and hit the button. You are instantly slammed back in the seat as the front end comes up and the car fires forward. Man, what a ride.

Since I always ran the best of five match races against another crazy guy, the NHRA ruling didn't effect me. The track put up the money and we split it no matter what the results were. We ran in the low nines with a 289 in his car and a 273 in mine. Seeing those little engines under the hood after the races always made people crazy.

NW, I think I finally got my cold under control. Jack Daniels and sweating it out helped a lot.

Fresh coffee for the evening crew and a hot cuppa tea for HP.

 

[TxRad]

Good evening.

Snowed in yet? The weather idiots have been yelling about lake effects snow up your way for three days now.

 

[ChloeTzang]

I understand zinc works for flu. I can verify it works on colds. Hope you feel better soon, stay hydrated as best you can.

Zinc with lots of vitamin c. They boost each other's effectiveness.

Also juice a whole clementine, including the skin. The skin gives your immune system one heck of a boost.

 

[Hypoxia]

No snow here. No exploding engines. No forlorn glances. No new medical news. Nothing.

Monday, nothing.
Tuesday, nothing.
Wednesday and Thursday, nothing.
Friday, for a change, a little more nothing.
Saturday, once more, nothing.
(repeat in Latin, Greek, and Armenian)
--Tuli Kupferberg​

I've been practicing SECRET AGENT MAN on banjo-'ukulele. Did you know that Johnny Rivers is an Italian guy from Brooklyn? One of his early bandmates wrote SNOOPY VS THE RED BARON. A pattern lies in there somewhere.

I need a steam-powered 'ukulele, preferably Italian. with espresso. Or an 'ukulele-powered steam engine might doC. Burn those cheap 'ukes...

Coffee beckons to me from the horizon.

 

[TxRad]

Why am I awake at this ungodly hour?

Okay, I'll make the coffee but I'm headed back to my warm place in the bed. Snuggle early and often, is my new motto.

 

[ishtat]

The whole of Australia is sweltering with an early summer heat 40 to 46 celsius for the interior 90% of the country. Not so bad on the coast, only 35 Celsius on Sydney harbour but over 40C only 40 miles inland. I would prefer HP's minus numbers.

40 C almost 103 F
46C almost 115F

 

[Handley_Page]

Zinc with lots of vitamin c. They boost each other's effectiveness.

Also juice a whole clementine, including the skin. The skin gives your immune system one heck of a boost.

We have effervescent vit C tablets (1 gram) with added Zinc (you can almost hear the advertiser : "Now with added Zinc"). I must remember to get some tomorrow, when I go out shopping.

The whole of Australia is sweltering with an early summer heat 40 to 46 celsius for the interior 90% of the country. Not so bad on the coast, only 35 Celsius on Sydney harbour but over 40C only 40 miles inland. I would prefer HP's minus numbers.

40 C almost 103 F
46C almost 115F

Frankly, sir, I'd gladly swap you some of your for ours.
And the air temperature has risen to +2C (roughly 36F ?). I don't have much of a problem with the low temperatrure; it's the slippy-slidy walking I fear.
My ability to fall safely vanaished a year or two ago.

Is there no way of using all that heat togenerate electricity or something ?

 

[NotWise]

The neighbor's horse made a lot of noise during the night. He's stabled not far from my bedroom window, so it's real easy to tell when he's banging around in there. I got up this morning to find that he'd knocked down my garden wall.

The neighbor met me at the front door just as I was leaving for work. He doesn't speak much English, as near as I can tell, so I talked to his son and they promised to get everything fixed.

 

[TxRad]

The neighbor's horse made a lot of noise during the night. He's stabled not far from my bedroom window, so it's real easy to tell when he's banging around in there. I got up this morning to find that he'd knocked down my garden wall.

The neighbor met me at the front door just as I was leaving for work. He doesn't speak much English, as near as I can tell, so I talked to his son and they promised to get everything fixed.

How much of the garden did he eat?

Grill cheese sandwiches and tomato soup for lunch.

Fresh coffee for the afternoon crowd.

 

[NotWise]

How much of the garden did he eat?

The wall he knocked down made the lower half of his stall, so he couldn't get through it. If he had, then he could have gotten to some parsley. That's all that's left in the garden.

He probably wouldn't have left my yard. It's walled and gated at night, and then there's that lawn. It wouldn't be the first time I found someone's horse grazing in my yard. They get that far and stop.

 

[Handley_Page]

Zinc with lots of vitamin c. They boost each other's effectiveness.

Also juice a whole clementine, including the skin. The skin gives your immune system one heck of a boost.

What IS a 'clementine' ? (a sort-of tangerine ?),
would the juice and the zest suffice ?
Thanks for the hint.

The wall he knocked down made the lower half of his stall, so he couldn't get through it. If he had, then he could have gotten to some parsley. That's all that's left in the garden.

He probably wouldn't have left my yard. It's walled and gated at night, and then there's that lawn. It wouldn't be the first time I found someone's horse grazing in my yard. They get that far and stop.

Would that be a useful alternative to using the lawn mower?

Time for Tea, I think.

 

[NotWise]

Would that be a useful alternative to using the lawn mower?

Only if someone else wants to clean up the shit.

 

[Handley_Page]

Only if someone else wants to clean up the shit.

That's good, I'm told for the Roses.
<slurp>

 

[oggbashan]

That's good, I'm told for the Roses.
<slurp>

To his dying day my father couldn't forget an incident from the 1930s. It was 10.45 am on a Sunday morning.

The milkman's horse had dropped a pile of manure in the road just opposite the boundary between my parents' house and their next door neighbour. My father was in his Sunday best suit preparing to go to the nearby church for the 11 am service. He didn't want to be seen by his neighbour as he shovelled up the manure.

Why? Because the next door neighbour was the Church of England vicar who would be conducting the 11 am service.

My father wanted to wait until the vicar left for the church. Then my father would dash out, shovel the manure, wash his hands and go to church.

The vicar came out of his house in his full canonical vestments. My father grabbed his shovel...

But the vicar had his own shovel and claimed the manure first!

 

[TxRad]

To his dying day my father couldn't forget an incident from the 1930s. It was 10.45 am on a Sunday morning.

The milkman's horse had dropped a pile of manure in the road just opposite the boundary between my parents' house and their next door neighbour. My father was in his Sunday best suit preparing to go to the nearby church for the 11 am service. He didn't want to be seen by his neighbour as he shovelled up the manure.

Why? Because the next door neighbour was the Church of England vicar who would be conducting the 11 am service.

My father wanted to wait until the vicar left for the church. Then my father would dash out, shovel the manure, wash his hands and go to church.

The vicar came out of his house in his full canonical vestments. My father grabbed his shovel...

But the vicar had his own shovel and claimed the manure first!

One of the largest profit margins for zoos and circuses, is elephant manure.

Fresh coffee and then I'll see who, uh, what I can catch for supper.

 

[ChloeTzang]

One of the largest profit margins for zoos and circuses, is elephant manure.

Fresh coffee and then I'll see who, uh, what I can catch for supper.

Have you ever seen elephant manure? We spent a few days driving around Kruger National Park in South Africa where they have thousands of elephants and you see them all the time. We went on a guided walk up to a small herd and thei poop is knee high and humungously huge. Very fibrous too, they eat the branches of trees and the wood goes right thru.

 

[TxRad]

Have you ever seen elephant manure? We spent a few days driving around Kruger National Park in South Africa where they have thousands of elephants and you see them all the time. We went on a guided walk up to a small herd and thei poop is knee high and humungously huge. Very fibrous too, they eat the branches of trees and the wood goes right thru.

I've been to the same Park in SA. I also have a friend who was the vet for a well known circus that went out of business recently. There is a big difference in wild elephant manure and tame elephant manure. There is a company that processes the tame stuff by drying it and grinding it to a finer consistency. An interesting process.

Supper was grilled chicken.

 

[NotWise]

That's good, I'm told for the Roses.

I don't know of anyone here who uses or sells horse shit. Cow manure (from dairies) or steer manure (from feed lots) are the standard. I do have a vague recollection that the zoo used to sell manure, but maybe now the city is keeping it to themselves.

 

[TxRad]

I don't know of anyone here who uses or sells horse shit. Cow manure (from dairies) or steer manure (from feed lots) are the standard. I do have a vague recollection that the zoo used to sell manure, but maybe now the city is keeping it to themselves.

Some of the larger stables is where I used to get Horse manure. They usually had big piles. Bring shovels and carry off what you want.Horse manure is usually too 'hot' for a lot of plants so I'd mix it with my compost. Worked great that way.

I live close to a mushroom growing company so that is my fertilizer of choice now. They change out the beds two or three times a year. Bring a tarp, a shovel and carry off what you can. They have a mountain on the backside of the building.

 

[NotWise]

Some of the larger stables is where I used to get Horse manure. They usually had big piles. Bring shovels and carry off what you want.Horse manure is usually too 'hot' for a lot of plants so I'd mix it with my compost. Worked great that way.

The same is true for cow and steer manure. It needs to be composted or it's too hot.

A few years ago I learned that "compost" in the UK and "compost" in the US are different things. What's called "compost" in the UK is called potting soil in the US. In the US, "compost" is usually manure rotted with fibrous material like leaves, grass cuttings and wood chips. It stinks.

It's an important distinction if you're reading UK instructions for maintaining a house plant and they say to plant in compost and cover the soil with grit.

Eew! You do that? And grit--d'you mean like hominy grits?

 

[TxRad]

Grit would be sand.

The coffee is ready for the morning crew. I'm headed for a shower and then bed.

 

[Handley_Page]

I don't know of anyone here who uses or sells horse shit. Cow manure (from dairies) or steer manure (from feed lots) are the standard. I do have a vague recollection that the zoo used to sell manure, but maybe now the city is keeping it to themselves.

Perhaps for political purposes ?

Time for mkorning coffee, I think

 

[ChloeTzang]

I've been to the same Park in SA. ........

Supper was grilled chicken.

It's moments like these you really need your morning coffee. It was a fantastic place wasn't it. We spent a few days driving around and staying in the camps and then a couple of days in a private safari camp on the edge of Kruger which was even more amazing. Walking around on the veld with a guide in the middle of the wildlife. A bit scary sometimes. The private camp had an old giraffe that lived in the camp and just wandered around. One afternoon it got to 52 Celsius. Still remember how hot that was. We came back to camp and there was a whole family of lions IN the swimming pool and I'd been looking forward to a swim. Changed my mind.

That brings back a few memories. That was a wonderful holiday. My Dad was working in Botswana for a while and Mom and I and one of my brothers went down for a few weeks. Amazing place.

http://www.2oceansvibe.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/African-Elephant-Kruger-National-Park.jpg

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9b/e8/01/9be801dd6c0766d50e5e1739e6156c12.jpg

And hey, this was the actual pool. Found it online but the camp name is different now. Imagine that filled with lions and Chloe is about to stroll down and someones says "Ach, nie! Not a gut idea." There's a story there somewhere, I know.

https://images.trvl-media.com/hotels/3000000/2860000/2851000/2850993/2850993_42_z.jpg

 

[Hypoxia]

Big cat manure also does well; to keep the neighbouring cats out of your garden.

I think I've seen such marketed as ZOO-DOO.

Now, back to 'ukuleles. My century-old soprano banjo-'uke just isn't feasible, even with those new titanium strings. It's too awkward to hold and finger properly, and the tuning pegs suck. Looks like I'll have to get a newer, bigger, louder one, hey? Maybe concert size, in-between soprano and tenor.

I also need another concert 'uke strung linear with a low G string (yeah, have fun with that!) to balance the one strung re-entrant with a high G string (more fun). Some music just doesn't sound right on anything else.

SECRET AGENT MAN doesn't really work on any acoustic 'uke but it's just fine on a mandolin in Gee-DAD! tuning. Especially on the cheap old Soviet oval-hole mandolin, rather boomy, tuned down a minor third, Yank Rachell-style. That tuning is great for playing along with blues guitar.

Enough for now. I'll get back to steam cars soon. And lust for coffee. Coffee. Coffee...
_____

FLASHBACK: I recall listening obsessively to a circa-1970 Warner-Reprise sampler double album called The Big Ball. Here comes Ed Sanders (of the East Village Fugs, editor of FUCK YOU: A Magazine of the Arts, and author of the quintessential Manson Family book The Family) singing a country-ish song, The Illiad, aka Johnny Piss-Off.He starts by chanting in ancient Greek with a deep Arkansas accent, then sings about beating up queers, then goes into a brief rant for coffee-coffee-coffee-coffee-coffee-coffee-coffee-coffee...

That coffee rant flows through me now. Oy.