CarShare Farce

The first rental with Enterprise® CarShare was a nightmare. The vehicle was filthy inside and out. Visible external damages were also evident. So, several minutes were devoted to calling the help line and providing details in order to avoid assorted penalties. That’s all in the Member Handbook, by the way.

Later, after the usual visit with moms in Hawai’i Kai, there was a voicemail and e-mail from a local guy who allegedly manages CarShare on the island. He alleged that the passenger window was left down, yet none of the windows were ever lowered for the duration of the rental. Upon return of the vehicle, the engine was shut down and check out procedures were followed. There is no way to lower the windows when the vehicle is off. And, with the gale force winds blowing, the lowered window would have been fairly conspicuous. An educated guess is that some kind of revenge was in play because the sorry condition of the vehicle had been reported earlier. Locals always seek revenge, even when in the wrong.

Various incidents keep accumulating, which provide solid arguments for the exodus from society via the cargo van camper conversion. Hence, all preparations are being made to insure a smooth transition to motorhomelessness. As much of personal business is being completed in a timely fashion. The target date is still set for the end of November.

Update: A rebuttal e-mail was dispatched to refute the aforementioned claims made. So far, no response. The incident will be archived, and another “false flag” event will trigger immediate communication with the corporate office.

The Ruse

The last drive on the Likelike Highway to the dealership in Kane’ohe with the Nissan® Quest minivan was scenic and enjoyable. Coffee time was held at the fast food joint in Kahala first in order to facilitate faster access to the H-1 freeway and avoid the morning rush hour. About an hour of time was required to divest the minivan. Much “gnashing of teeth” and waffling occurred over the last month, but logic prevailed (i.e., reasons listed previously in Notes). Subsequently, numbness overwhelmed the senses.

With the divestiture of the minivan complete, the anticipated exit from the “ownership society” was accomplished. The only remaining material possession of any significant value is the iPhone XR, and the latter is not worth much. The sale of the minivan will yield $12,000 in funds when the check is received within two weeks.

The reduction of material possessions to near nothing lays bare the ruse of the “vital lie.” There is now nothing to reinforce status or social standing. No external meaning can be derived. Only the true essence of human existence in all its nakedness is visible. Hence, the numbness. Unfortunately, freedom has yet to be attained. There is still rental housing slavery in the dreadful “old folks home.”

At the present time, there are no plans to replace the minivan with another vehicle. Ownership of any new vehicle will require a dual-fold purpose, that is, both a mode of transportation and homeless motorhome. Nothing more, nothing less.

The weather turned cold and rainy by mid-afternoon. The wrath of the minivan, perhaps? There was some remorse, but logic and reason can find no cause to reverse course.

Addendum: There is no celebration planned over this latest significant event. Instead, more austerity measures will be invoked. The moratorium on all purchases will continue indefinitely.

Update: The divestiture of the minivan has resulted in a $15,000 decrease in net worth. The true cost of exodus is always high.

Dental Nightmare

The dental appointment at the Makahiki Clinic has come and gone. The usual cleaning, radiology, and examination for $150 was completed. The attending dentist completed the examination. There are five between-teeth cavities including the wisdom tooth that is long over due for extraction. The one troublesome molar that underwent a root canal definitely has a fractured root. In addition, the erosion has worsened. No surprise.

The attending dentist is new and very thorough. The suspicion is that all of the problems were evident over a year ago, but the previous dentist was lackadaisical in methodology. Obviously, professional complacency is passed on to the patient through costly, albeit preventable, procedures. Total expense may be $1,000 or more.

Many of the experiences detailed in the old journal, “blog,” and in Notes are commonplace for the poor and destitute. Insofar as dental care is concerned, there is little wonder why the poorest classes, including the homeless, are missing teeth or toothless.

Red Flag 2019

The annoying beeping of a vehicle back-up alarm broke the silence at 2am this morning, which is unusual. In the locale of the “old folks home” in Waikiki, the beeping noise pollution commences at 6:30am at the earliest by the usual suspects, garbage trucks. A quick glance out the window of the mausoleum revealed two police vehicles in the parking lot. The beeping was most likely emanating from an ambulance parked out of view. The absence of sirens could only lead to one conclusion, another death at the “old folks home.” Voices were heard in the newer building, so the incident must have occurred there. The “old folks home,” as stated previously, is either the last stopover before matriculation into an assisted care facility, or the final stop.

On a side note, moms has indicated that she has lost five pounds recently, bringing her overall weight down to just 63 pounds. The latter had to be the most alarming news so far, since extremely low weight could have serious health ramifications. The sister-in-law has purchased some of those questionable geriatric diet supplement beverages (read: nutrition shakes) for moms. As moms turns 97 years of age in a couple of weeks, there will be more geriatric maladies coming.

Motorhomeless Hotel

An article in the local newspaper detailed a new aspect of the tourist industry in Hawai’i ... “mobile vacation rentals.” The focus of the article was one such vendor, Hippie Bus Hawai’i, which essentially is a dilapidated shuttle bus parked along the Kapi’olani Park corridor. The vendor squeezes up to six people in the “piece of shit” and charges each moron about $30 per night.

For Rent

The grifter who owns the bogus enterprise is jeopardizing the life-style of the many motorhomeless who have no choice but to “live” in their vehicles. In addition, there are several of these “mobile vacation rentals” in operation at this point in time. A Draconian crackdown by the authorities is inevitable. Needless to say, the current plan for future motorhomelessness is now in doubt.

Of course, what is puzzling is that there are tourists who would spend money to visit Hawai’i and essentially experience the homeless life-style. Every venue, every “attraction” ... all extremely expensive. There is nothing cheap here. Saving money on sleeping accommodations will not reduce the other exorbitant costs.

Updated Update - 4

A chance, albeit brief, encounter with Shirley occurred at Ala Moana Center this morning. She’s married again, but it’s a same-sex marriage. The couple are residing in a posh condominium complex in Kaka’ako. The conversation has subsequently been moved to text messaging.

Aunty Maria passed on last month after a long bout with Alzheimer’s disease. Uncle T had stopped off to visit moms last Sunday and broke the news. Slowly, the relatives are dying off. Moms will outlive them all, but not without ramifications. No doubt, moms will eventually end up in an assisted care facility just like Aunty Maria.

A power outage in Waikiki yesterday afternoon left the “old folks home” literally in the dark. Neither building has back-up generators. So, many of the decrepit senior citizens were left stranded outside or on the respective floors of their apartments because the elevators were not operational. Shortly after power was restored, an ambulance arrived and transported one of the old codgers out of the older building.

Tonight marks the last regular visit to Subway® in Ala Moana Center (or any other location) for dinner. The prices have increased by at least $1 on average. Many other venues provide more value at those price points. Visits to any Apple® Store location remains mummified as well.

The International Market Place will continue on as the surrogate “living room.” Loitering on the second floor, mauka side, happens daily from about 8:30pm to 10:30pm. Come and join the fun with the homeless and other fellow loiterers!

Waikiki Update - 3

As to expected, the Waikiki experience has rapidly degenerated into a metaphorical amorphous blob. Overall, Waikiki is following the same trajectory of collapse as that of empire. Fortunately, the “old folks home” is in stasis. Well, maybe not.

The laundry rooms in the new building of  the “old folks home” are still devoid of laundry appliances. However, the security fob to enter the older building was finally obtained. During the last episode of laundry chores, a conversation was engaged with one of the geriatric residents of the older building. Many truths about the “old folks home” were forthcoming, too numerous and laborious to list. Nonetheless, all warnings given will be heeded.

Visits to the Apple® Store in Ala Moana Center (and all other locations) have been mummified in view of the recent Draconian measures invoked (detailed in a previous Note). There are good reasons why the stock price has tanked in the last few weeks. Ownership of the iPhone XR will continue, but no brand loyalty is implied. A “smartphone” is just an appliance. Nothing more, nothing less.

There have been extreme internal debates concerning the disposition of the Nissan® Quest minivan. With only a few days of the two-month “grace period” remaining, time is running out. The stalemate was originally thought to be incongruence with the “ownership society.” However, subsequent analyses point toward mortality issues. At this point time, the Kelly Blue Book® Instant Cash program has valued the minivan at $12,400 maximum.

Yellow is the New Yellow

Yellow Vest

Interest rates have not even come close to 3% yet, but the central bank of empire has mummified further increases. Savers at traditional banks never realized any interest rate increases at all. Only money market funds offered meager dividends. And, rank-and-file peons surviving “paycheck-to-paycheck” could care less.

In any case, the central bank of empire is now poised to drop interest rates to zero percent (ZIRP) once again and resume purchases of dodgy “paper” (QE). The real danger lies in the fact that public and private debt is “over the top” and asset prices are already hyperinflated. Monetary policy will most likely fail and, consequently, bring about negative interest rates (NIRP). With asset prices hyperinflated, the tragic result will most likely be commodities hyperinflation.

Will the “deplorables” finally arise in protest like the “Yellow Vest” protestors in France? Nah, peons of empire are too busy killing each other or engaged in multiple addictions (i.e., “smartphone,” tube, opioids, antidepressants, cheap booze, junk food, consumerism, etc.) to even bother.

Incidentally, the Gilets Jaunes protest movement is the final culmination of years of oppression by the moneychangers and powers-that-be. The initial catalyst, by implication, was the law imposed in 2008 requiring that all operators of motor vehicles wear a yellow vest. Oh, the irony!

Addendum: Once ZIRP and QE are invoked, the transition to motorhomelessness will commence in earnest. The latter monetary policies will remain in effect for subsequent decades, if not permanently, and there will be no other alternative to survive.

Clinic Visit & Geriatrics

Last night, the automated fire alarm at the “old folks home” in Waikiki was triggered at 11:15pm. The event necessitated a rapid traversing of eight floors via the staircase. The majority of the geriatric tenants ended up milling about the parking lot until the fire department personnel arrived. In the aftermath, the cause was attributed to a senior citizen who was chain-smoking cigarettes in the mausoleum, which triggered its smoke sensor. Numerous senior citizens, mostly too decrepit to walk down the stairway, chose not to evacuate the building. What would happen to them in the event of a real emergency?

The appointment at the Waikiki Health Makahiki Clinic this morning necessitated a change in itinerary. An excursion by bus to town at 8am was required to drop off the gym bag at the downtown gym prior to another excursion by bus to the university district.

Coffee time was held at the fast food joint on King Street. A group of senior citizens ended sitting at the next table. Their conversation mostly centered on events that transpired about 50 years ago. Then, there was a search for anyone with a local newspaper. Apparently, one of the “little old ladies” just had to check the obituary section. Consequently, coffee time was severely marginalized.

The clinic visit was mundane. Aside from routine diagnostics, various future geriatric immunizations were discussed. A flu shot was administered. Then, the current physician detailed that another physician will be taking his place from this point forward. No other tests or bloodwork, aside from the constantly postponed colonoscopy, was prescribed. So far, so good.

A dental appointment was also scheduled for later this month. With no dental insurance, the cost of the visit will be $150 for routine cleaning, x-rays, and examination. At least one cavity will need to be filled and the extraction of a troublesome wisdom tooth are on the immediate horizon at considerable cost.

Addendum: Death is apparently an abstraction for senior citizens, much as it is for younger generations. Unfortunately, death is very much real, too real. Reducing death to an abstraction is just another attempt at perpetuating the “vital lie.”

New Year, Same Ol’ Shit

Another uneventful New Year’s Eve after the usual Hawai’i Kai visit. Holidays are brutal for a pariah. No family, no friends, just a seemingly lonely existence. That is why Waikiki is not a bad option for residency. Unfortunately, the Waikiki experience becomes tiring and burdensome in due time.

Dinner was courtesy the fast food joint on Ke’eaumoku Street. The ambiance at the latter location is befitting a pariah. And, the prices for menu items are up to $2 less than the locations in Waikiki. The customers are not the typical pretentious tourists. Rather, there’s an eclectic mix of various Asian senior citizens, locals, and the homeless.

New Year’s Eve in Waikiki, on the other hand, was somewhat more “exciting.” Young hotties were running amuck in skimpy dresses, all of them queuing up for celebrations at the various nightclubs. The International Market Place was bustling with activity. Fortunately, a choice spot was secured in the surrogate “living room.” Absolutely no participation in New Year’s Eve events occurred.

The first day of the new year can be summarized as the same ol’ shit. Morning coffee time is still held at the Discovery Bay (Waikiki) location of the fast food joint. Most of the customers are tourists, which makes for a mediocre experience. The rest of the day was just like any other day with the gym being the main focus of activities.

Ala Moana Center was open for business at the usual time. Obviously, there’s no time for holidays. The entire complex was filled with shoppers at 9:30am for all of the New Year’s Day sales. Can these fools ever get enough of the shopping bullshit? Apparently not. Consumerism has replaced religion as the most prevalent form of the “vital lie.” It has become an “immortality project” of endless scope, as presciently described by the Great Prophet, Ernest Becker. In all honesty, another new year is just another year closer to death.