Star Trek: Lavahead

“Star Trek: Picard”

The pilot episode of “Star Trek: Picard” was recently made available for viewing by everyone on YouTube. Visually, the series is quite impressive. Tube programs have “come of age,” but that really isn’t saying much. As with theatrical releases, there is an extremely heavy emphasis on special effects. Nonetheless, the highlight of the episode was when Jean-Luc Picard discovered a new purpose: to find the remaining twin “daughter” of the late Commander Data. When he reflects out loud about his new mission, he summarized his current stagnant situation: “I’m waiting to die.”

Waiting to die ... that is the entire edifice of any “old folks home,” or the whole of the commodified life-style for that matter. When human existence is completely dominated by LCD or OLED screens of varying sizes (e.g., “smartphone,” widescreen tube, notebook computer), then the sublime transition to death is already in progress.

A brief summary of the current state-of-affairs:

1. Gym workouts continue unabated even when tolerating extreme persistent pain. The workouts are probably the only factor that is preventing a lapse into deep demoralization.
2. Geriatric immunizations are continuing, although there has been no solution for the second dose of the shingles vaccine.
3. No attempt has been made to find alternative housing, and the motorhomeless option has yet to be seriously entertained. Relocation is “on the table,” but no destination has been determined.
4. Major austerity policies remain in effect, although most are being accomplished through attrition.
5. The massive hurdy-gurdy video library (HGVL) has been restored on Google® Drive.
6. Section 8 waiting list status has been confirmed, although the maximum asset limit cannot be met.
7. The universal implementation of the Google® Voice VoIP phone number has been completed.

Any other considerations will be posted in updates.

The weather has remained extremely mild with slightly cooler temperatures. Shorts and tank top are still the preferred mode of dress, even though Winter is here. Contrast that with the last two years as reported in Notes.

Addendum: Much to the surprise of local authorities, the flawed annual “point in time” homeless count revealed that there are about 7,000 people who “became homeless” (phrase used by local newspaper) during the last year. The number completely offsets that people who were allegedly placed into permanent housing. The number is most likely underestimated, but confirms the observations in Notes. Although, not specifically mentioned in the article, the new homeless are probably victims of slumlord evictions. The article only hints at the cause with the aforementioned quoted phrase.

Excerpts — Entropy 2020

On the increasing likelihood of a thermonuclear conflagration and global climate change, from the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists:

Humanity continues to face two simultaneous existential dangers—nuclear war and climate change—that are compounded by a threat multiplier, cyber-enabled information warfare, that undercuts society’s ability to respond. The international security situation is dire, not just because these threats exist, but because world leaders have allowed the international political infrastructure for managing them to erode. 

In the nuclear realm, national leaders have ended or undermined several major arms control treaties and negotiations during the last year, creating an environment conducive to a renewed nuclear arms race, to the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and to lowered barriers to nuclear war. Political conflicts regarding nuclear programs in Iran and North Korea remain unresolved and are, if anything, worsening. US-Russia cooperation on arms control and disarmament is all but nonexistent. 

Public awareness of the climate crisis grew over the course of 2019, largely because of mass protests by young people around the world. Just the same, governmental action on climate change still falls far short of meeting the challenge at hand. At UN climate meetings last year, national delegates made fine speeches but put forward few concrete plans to further limit the carbon dioxide emissions that are disrupting Earth’s climate. This limited political response came during a year when the effects of manmade climate change were manifested by one of the warmest years on record, extensive wildfires, and quicker-than-expected melting of glacial ice.

On the increasing chance of a global pandemic, from LiveScience site:

The first cases of the pneumonia-like virus were reported in Wuhan, China on Dec. 31, 2019. Since then, the virus has spread to various other countries, including Thailand, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United States, Australia, France, among others. 

In order for this virus, or any, to lead to a pandemic in humans, it needs to do three things: efficiently infect humans, replicate in humans and then spread easily among humans, Live Science previously reported. Right now, the CDC is saying this virus passes between humans in a limited manner, but they are still investigating.

On the absurdity of cultural and societal degeneration, from RT site:

Michele Kobke has been dating the Boeing 737-800 since she met it at Berlin’s Tegel Airport in 2014. She says was immediately attracted to the jet’s wings, winglets and thrusters when she spied it through the airport window.

There are obviously more serious concerns about the failed “civilization” paradigm including “woke” movements, gender confusion, breakdown of civility, “smartphone” addition, homeless epidemic, opioid crisis, social inequality, civil unrest ad nauseam.

Nonetheless, the “big picture” can only be described by increasing entropy. Disorder is increasing at a pace that cannot be explained in any other manner.

MLK Day 2020

There were no plans for a posting to Notes anytime soon. However, as the fragile mental state is worsening, an interim update was in order. No doubt, the forced and hasty disassociation from family has been a deep psychological burden. Yet, there is no solution.

Another chance encounter with the formerly-homeless buddy occurred earlier this month in town. The formerly-homeless buddy was “killing time” before an appointment to have a tooth extracted. The circumstances are questionable since he should have detected the cavity much sooner. Most likely, the formerly-homeless buddy did not want to pay “out of pocket” for dental work since his Medicare/Quest insurance does not cover the latter. Extractions are covered, of course, as detailed in Notes from personal experience.

Mind you, the formerly-homeless buddy disclosed that his large safe deposit box is stuffed with “Benjamins” (read: $100 notes). He has been able to save $700 per month from his disability benefits. Because he ran out of room for stashing the cash, he purchased three high-end motor scooters to “launder” the money. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to pay for dental work!

With that in mind, the new pair of Oakley® prescription shades was purchased for $300 a couple of days later. Being a cheapskate can only go so far. At this point in time, there is just no sense in ridiculous “penny-pinching.” Such ludicrous actions can only fall under the category of the “denial of death.”

During the discussion with the formerly-homeless buddy, the topic of residence relocation came up. The formerly-homeless buddy is open to moving elsewhere. Las Vegas was the discussed option. He would move there, but he doesn’t want to move there alone. Thus, the option will be deliberated.

The thought of moving to another ghetto apartment complex in Hawai’i or elsewhere “leaves a bad taste in the mouth.” Dealing with sleazy property management, slumlords, psychotic tenants, and shitty environments is just not that appealing. And, no matter the locale same ol’ shit (or worse).

Nissan® NV 2500

There is, of course, the motorhomeless option. A nice cargo van camper conversion was discovered on Craigslist today ... a 2015 Nissan® NV 2500 for $20,000 cash. From what can be ascertained, the vehicle is “sick.” It has everything! Isn’t that perfect for a pariah?

Addendum: The Spotify® “app” was installed on the iPhone XR and a free account was established in order to exploit the unlimited music streaming feature of the current wireless plan. Disclosure Radio is the preferred channel at the moment.

Milestone — 25 Years!

The LoserNet® site, in its many forms (i.e., journal, “blog,” Notes), has been in service for 25 years. Actually, its inception was in 2004 during December with a defunct prototype site. The inspiration for continued Web presence came about in February 1995 with the debut of “The Loser Living Upstairs.”

The original on-line journal was hosted on the university server in Convalescent City in Cali. From there, the latter was migrated to the now-defunct Geocities. Then, the site was migrated to Tripod, where it remains untouched to this day. The legacy “blog” then superseded the journal. And, the rest, as “they” say, is history.

The original site was obviously designed using archaic computer technology. What is interesting is that it is actually now ideal for the standard “smartphone” display (as shown above on the iPhone XR). The entire site only requires less than 4MB of storage and is available as a compressed file for downloading (see link in previous Note). Notwithstanding, any kind of depressing situation can now easily be resolved by re-reading “The Loser Living Upstairs” on the trusty “smartphone”!

Entropy 2020

Entropy is a scientific fact that is not accepted by many people, even though the latter explains events through time. One of the simplistic examples of entropy is that of an egg that somehow ended up cracked and splattered on a floor. The damaged egg will not reverse its trajectory and return whole to its original position, as proven empirically and understood as “common sense.” Yet, in the grand scheme, neither the former or latter offers any reason why the sequence of events occur or why those events are irreversible.

Entropy explains everything through the passage of time, all the way to end of the universe itself by “heat death.” Entropy explains aging as well as the failed “civilization” paradigm. There is no way to stop the increase of entropy. Any attempt to return order to an increasingly disordered system will only cause entropy to increase more rapidly.

Population growth increases entropy. Technological advances increase entropy. Knowledge increases entropy. The passage of time increases entropy. With increasing entropy, disorder increases (often not linearly). Understanding the effects of increasing entropy is essential to coping with the frustrations of what is generally referred to as “life.”

The pedestrian issues that were delineated in the most recent Notes of the previous year are those that are being carried on into the new year. In summary, those issues include:

• Housing (or homelessness)
• Medicare (senior citizen “cash cow”)
• Geriatrics (and death).

Nothing else really matters. Heck, even Notes is subject to increasing entropy.

Addendum: The Molech-themed Twitter® feed was resurrected a few months ago. Much more effort is being devoted to the latter than to Notes.

New Year’s Eve Addendum: A stroll down to Waikiki Beach at 11:30pm, the first since moving to the “old folks home,” was not leisurely. Thousands of people were present, stretching all the way down to Fudgepacker Park. The only midnight fireworks show scheduled for the area was located at the Aloha Tower, a few miles away.

Fortunately, an unoccupied picnic table at Fudgepacker Park was found and a fairly good observation post was established. The homeless were also unwitting participants in the festivities. Was it fun? Not really. Hau’oli Makahiki Hou!

Update: The buddy who resides in the older building at the “old folks home” in Waikiki disclosed that there has been one death and two other geriatric residents transported to the emergency room (both returning in worse shape) recently.

Legacy “Blog” Update: The legacy “blog” was finally edited to remove the defunct Photobucket images placeholders. Unfortunately, in the process, some of the posts lost formatting. Fuck it!

Legacy Journal Update: The partial index of the later segments of the legacy journal has been restored. The entire site will also be downloaded and archived. A compressed file (optimally for use with a personal Web server) of the archive is available to the general public. Incidentally, the site on Tripod is actually optimized for “smartphones.”