The Show That Never Ends

Welcome back to the Ol’ Lavahead Show! The repairs on the gym showers were completed last Friday. However, the final touches, whatever that might be, were supposed to be completed this afternoon. Obviously, that event never materialized for whatever lame reason. So, a hasty trip was made on the bus to the Kapi’olani facility at 4pm just to take a shower. Never mind that a rainstorm was in progress at the time.

The weather has been fairly bad for several weeks. Lots of rain, mostly moderate showers, and gusty winds. Milder weather does not appears to be on the immediate time horizon.

The iPhone 14 Pro was finally identified with its true owner credentials, not the infamous pseudonym that has been in use for decades. Of course, the timing was coincident with the “mainstream” media saturation concerning thefts of iPhones and associated passcodes. So, several days have been invested in increasing the security of the device.

Yes, sadly, the personal iPhone was previously protected with only a four-digit passcode. Yet, every personal account is now managed by the device with logins, passwords, and 2FA codes all stored and generated on-board. So, the first mitigation was to convert to a longer alphanumeric passcode. By, the way, a four-digit passcode is essentially safe. The iPhone only allows ten forced attempts before it completely disables itself. The problem, though, is when sleazy criminals are able to obtain the actual passcode by nefarious methods.

Other steps will be taken soon. FaceID will be used to complete password autofill. And, the Screen Time utility will be exploited to lock out changes to the AppleID profile. Location Services has already been re-enabled in order to effectively use the Find My utility.

On a somber note, a chance encounter ensued with Sam, one of the regular gym members who hasn’t been seen in a while. He’s been working part-time, so he goes to the gym early in the morning. He also happens to a parishioner of the same church congregation that moms was a part of. He did not join the congregation when moms was still active. However, he is acquainted with people who know moms personally. He said that he had heard that a 100+ years old member had passed on about a week ago, and he immediately thought that the person in question was moms.

There has been absolutely no communication with immediate family for over three years now. So, there’s no way to confirm if moms has passed on. However, moms is most likely the only person over 100 years old (who was an inactive member due to age) in that particular congregation. Sad to say, the belief that the person in question is moms is very high.

There will be no attempt to contact any family member or other relatives on moms’ side. No attempt will be made to search for any information in the obituaries or on the Net. If Sam confirms moms’ passing, then a quiet vigil will be observed.

Miscellany: There has been no further encounters with the Mexican buddy, Roberto, since a few days ago. He departs one-way to Texas tomorrow.

Fiddling

There is very little to update about the personal situation here in “paradise.” As the Fascists of empire goose-step toward a thermonuclear apocalypse, not much is of concern. However, the thought of dying along side myriad assholes, all “vaccinated” and still wearing face masks, is thoroughly repugnant.

Both empire and Hawai’i tax returns were filed a few days ago, both using paper documents. The on-line tax account for Hawai’i was mummified. There is no telling when the e-file method will be embraced.

A $25 tank top (black color) was purchased on-line directly from Under Armour®. The process was quite smooth, and the merchandise was delivered three days later. There’s no desire to wait for “stuff” to appear at Ross®. These are the “twilight years” and this is the “end of days,” so there isn’t a whole lot of time left.

The showers at the gym in town have been cordoned off for exactly five weeks now. Repairs are “moving at a snail’s pace.” The alleged ten-day completion was obviously malarkey. So, the dual gym workouts, as fatiguing as they are, continues.

Miscellany: A new Substack contributor, Simplicius the Thinker, has been added to the reading list. Dark Futura, another Substack by the same author, has been also added to the reading list.

Triangulation Update

The missing mail fiasco is apparently over. A chance encounter either substitute mail carrier yesterday confirmed that she had brought up the issue with the regular mail carrier. The first piece of mail arrived today, a large envelope containing the Hawai’i tax forms that was ordered last week. Needless to say, the online inquiry to the postal service (USPS) was a “non-starter.”

The substitute mail carrier also provided a detailed explanation of the protocol used by mail carriers in order to determine whether mail is forwarded or returned to sender. Surprisingly, the routing decisions are not made at the mail distribution center.

A personal account was reluctantly established with the postal service. As it turns out, the account is actually invaluable. The Informed Delivery® option was quickly enabled. Any mail being delivered to the address of the account holder is photographed and the grayscale image is sent by e-mail as a notification on that day. So, the delivery of the tax forms in the mail was known ahead of time.

An account was also established with Hawai’i tax office. Since the requested tax forms were initially believed to have been returned, the contingency for e-filing the tax forms became a reality. However, with the paper forms in hand, the e-file option has been postponed until next year. Incidentally, the Hawai’i tax forms cannot simply be photocopied because they are designed for scanning.

There has always been a reluctance in establishing on-line accounts. Thus, only the basic types of accounts were established. Any useless accounts were quickly closed. As of now, that policy has changed. Every attempt will be made to move all activities on-line.

The personal e-mail address registered on most of the important on-line accounts has been changed back to the iCloud domain, even though the e-mail is forwarded to the secure Proton Mail account. The Proton Mail account will not be deprecated.

The reliance on the iPhone has increased exponentially, as sad as that may seem. The device now handles almost every important aspect of personal life. The “ecosystem” appears to be secure. So, the likelihood of replacing the standard pseudonym (used for AppleID) with real nomenclature is high. Even now, the only credit card in personal possession has been added to the Wallet “app.” All the other standing restrictions in the iPhone and associated “apps” still remain in effect.

On a side note, the repairs on the showers in the gym in town commenced on February 14th. The entire shower area has been gutted and the concrete floor was excavated at each drain outlet. The latest rumor is that the repairs have been expedited to realize completion within ten days.

Addendum: Dining at the Subway® in town has been significantly reduced as stated previously in Notes. The sandwiches appear to be getting smaller and smaller. The price of most of the sandwiches is now higher than a meal at Panda Express®. Personal patronage there is now just a token effort.

Miscellany: The official results are in … Hawai’i is ranked in sixth place amongst the most “vaccinated” states in empire. Over 81% of the population is fully “vaccinated” with the mRNA bioweapon.

Triangulation

The big switch to the new basic plan on Visible occurred on Sunday. Oh, there was much trepidation prior to the eSIM to eSIM conversion, what with the “clusterfuck” that happened last November during the pSIM to eSIM conversion. The process was facilitated using the wireless network at the gym. Visible has apparently streamlined everything through its “app.” Everything went smoothly. And, with the “valued member discount,” the monthly rate is still $25 with taxes and fees included.

The six pending credit card charges from the Institute of Hair Design were finally removed last Saturday. So, today, a visit was made to the establishment. A brief chat with Leo ensued, then payment for last week’s haircut was made.

A visit to the Post Office branch in town was made today as well. An inquiry about the mail forwarding request in November yielded that it was still active. In fact, a couple of parcels were forwarded recently. The only advice for the missing mail? Inquire at the Waikiki branch. From what could be ascertained, the missing mail was probably returned to all senders.

Later in the evening, a mailbox check was made. The mail carrier happened to be in the small entrance lobby in the “old folks home” in Waikiki at the time. While she was sorting the mail for the boxes, an inquiry was made about the missing mail. She noted that the tag in the mailbox still had the forwarding reference from three years ago. Since she is not the assigned carrier for this particular route, she stated that she will speak with the assigned carrier and their supervisor. So, there will be no need to visit the Waikiki branch. Sadly, any mail that was slated for delivery has already been returned to the senders. Why was the mail delivered before? Most likely, a different mail carrier was assigned the route.

Needless to say, a big-ass can of Corona® cerveza was definitely in order. The $140 in gift cards, the ordered tax forms, tax documents … all have been returned to sender. And, all because of total incompetence. This is a major “clusterfuck”!

In any case, the filing of empire and Hawai’i tax returns is the main priority. Money has already been requested for transfer to the local bank from investment accounts. All of the necessary tax forms have been downloaded as PDFs and will be printed out in a few days at the UPS Store® in town.

From Edward Dowd’s Gettr Feed

There’s really no need to deliberate on the stupidity now engulfing the whole of empire, is there? Little wonder why “things fall apart.”

On a side note, there have been increasing numbers of people everywhere since the end of January. Where have they been? Sequestered away because of “COVID”? Yeah, they’re finally coming out now, all wearing face masks, a full eleven months after the Fascist mandates were lifted.

Miscellany: Odd as it may seem, the only recent positive experience has been with Visible. The conversion to the new plan was using eSIM was flawless. In addition, there was significant reduction in latency and transfer speeds have increased.

Addendum: The latest word about the shower repairs in the gym. So far, nothing has been done, except superficial nonsense as observed previously in Notes. When will the actual reads commence? No one knows. The timeframe for completion, however, has been estimated to be several months.

No Mail

The curious case of missing mail continues with no answers forthcoming. Neither direct or forwarded (from the old Post Office mailbox) mail has been received in over a month. Oddly, there isn’t even any junk mail. Two inquiries have now been submitted to the USPS with only confirmation replies receive so far.

Mail theft is a possibility, but how was that accomplished? A bogus forwarding request could have been effected for the mailbox in the “old folks home” in Waikiki, although that seems farfetched. Yet, mail is clearly missing, and important mail at that. All the 1099 documents that are required for filing income tax returns, the $140 worth of gift card rewards earned from attendance at the gym, and so forth … nowhere to be found.

The final missing 1099 documents (for Aunty Lyn’s annuity) were sent by e-mail after an inquiry was made by phone call. The tax calculations were revised and the modifications were made in the original post of a few days ago. The customer service at Lincoln Financial® is superb, by the way.

And the “things fall apart” saga continues as well. The haircut at the Institute of Hair Design on Monday ended up with a credit card payment fiasco. The small Square® terminal (i.e., iPad) used for point-of-sale transactions declined the personal credit card six times even though the card is valid. The declined charges, however, appeared in the pending charges section on the Chase® site. A phone call was made to the latter and the representative advised a wait time of two to three days to see if the charges end up actually being posted. Then, an easy remedy would be available. So far, the charges are still pending.

At this moment, the most pressing concern is the possibility of identity theft as a result of the missing mail. An attempt was made to lock the personal credit reports at the three main credit reporting firms. Personal identity could not be verified, even given all the confidential information provided. Very suspicious.

Addendum: Various mail order catalogs, financial prospectuses, and Medicare Advantage information packets were requested on-line yesterday to be sent to the mailbox at the “old folks home.” Will they be delivered?

Ho-Hum 2023

Personal troubles continue to mount because … well, “things fall apart.” The showers in the gym are still cordoned off with little to no signs of any repair progress. At this point in time, the safe assumption is that the hired contractor has no idea where the leak is. So the dual gym workouts continue.

Nearly a month has elapsed with no mail arriving in the mailbox at the “old folks home” in Waikiki. There has not been any forwarded mail from the former Post Office mailbox either. So, a request was made on-line with USPS to investigate the problem.

With that in mind, none of the necessary tax documents have arrived yet. Fortunately, all but one was available for download on-line. The most important tax document is for Aunty Lyn’s annuity payout, and the latter is not available on-line. Thus, a phone call will be necessary.

There is, however, enough information to at least roughly estimate empire and local tax liabilities. This year, even retirement benefits must be fully included for income calculations. For empire, the total tax liability is $2,888 (with $5,171 already withheld). For Hawai’i, the tax liability is $2,268 (no withholding). So, the total payout for taxes will be a whopping $5,156!

Visible has now made a nice offer to legacy subscribers. Switching to the new standard Visible plan will maintain the $25 per month rate as a “valued customer discount” incentive. Obviously, the deprecation of the legacy plan is on the horizon. The big question … will the conversion cause lots of problems like the pSIM to eSIM fiasco?

Finally, the Mexican buddy, Roberto, has decided to move to Texas next month. He has seen Hawai’i degenerate to the hellhole that it is today. Fortunately, has has family there. And, he also owns a home there which was previously being rented. He will be missed.

Miscellany: A surprising weight gain of four pounds in two months caused some concern initially. However, overall weight is still on the low side. Of course, there was no increase in muscle mass. So, the abdominal area was probably the beneficiary.

Addendum: One of the free fast antigen test kits has been donated to the community table in small lobby in the “old folks home.” The remaining test kits will be donated next weekend.

Winter 2023

Winter 2023

Winter has finally arrived in Hawai’i. A cold front lingered over the islands for nearly a week and brought with it a couple of days of mild precipitation. The ambient temperatures were low enough to merit the use of the Mainstays® quartz space heater at night.

Slingpack

A small Highland Tactical® slingpack was procured at Ross® for $16 (with senior citizen discount) on Tuesday. The sling pack will replace the recently acquired sack pack (which was placed on the donation table in the “old folks home” in Waikiki).

The showers at the gym in town remain closed with no evidence of any kind of repair work in progress. The shower valve handles (and associated escutcheons) were removed and placed on the floor, most likely as a “prop” to create an illusion of work in progress.

There have been no evening outings to the International Marketplace or Ala Moana Center since the first week of January. There have no further visits to the ABC Store or Waikiki Market since the last report. No cerveza either. Unfortunately, sitting all evening in the mausoleum is not fun or exciting. There’s absolutely nothing to do. The temptation to seek out any form of “mainstream” entertainment through iPhone “apps” and subscriptions has been suppressed. In other words, a perpetual state of vigilance is in effect.

Miscellany: With the daily visitor count being so low now, the focus on terse and sporadic posts will be easily facilitated. There was some curiosity about the reason for declining visitors. Obviously, verbose posts are not desirable. Then, too, people may have taken offense to the positions stated in Notes about the bioweapon “vaccine” and the Ukraine crisis. Good riddance!

Addendum: Brian Wilkins of The COVID Blog summed up the situation best:

Non-vaccinated, non-degenerate, critical thinking men and women are the last bastions of true humanity. It’s a very small, sparse group. All of you have the responsibility to yourselves, your children, and if applicable, your God, to embrace your respective masculinity or femininity, along with your humanity.

So say we all!