BAL leveler - Event Date: 14 Dec 2018

Drifting away again, while camping at Lees Ferry, I had the bad luck to have my right rear stabilizer land right on top of a dang ant hill.  My wife suggested that we really didn't want to invite the ants into the trailer.  So, I found a new use for the spray can of ZEP 45NC PTFE.  I not only lubricated the screw on the stabilizer, but all the pivot points very generously.  Curiously, the ants decided to use a different entrance to their nest. [Side note to furpod, I should have used gloves when applying the spray, but I didn't.  Moral of the story, do as I say, not as I do.]

So, turning back to the topic.  As a fourth generation Californian, my great grandfather came from Ireland to California to work on the railroads in the San Joaquin Valley in 1871, I can say with out a doubt that California is, like it or not, the leader of the nation.  Practically everything starts in California then goes to NY, then slowly spreads through out the nation, finally being copied in Alabama. So them apples ain't so bad, as long as you wash off the pesticide from the skin first.  And I don't think any other state has better grapes, or, more importantly, delicious wine.  And, you like your computer? Thank the folks in California for sharing it with you.  For those of you who say bad things about California, get out your quill pens and a piece of parchment and send a letter into the board to tell us how we should do things, but first take a look at where your state ranks in the world's economy.  You may find you're right in there with Qatar.

But speaking of 3rd worlders, we're also contemplating getting a place near Medellin, Colombia, in part because it's a very pleasant place and in part because we can get affordable and high quality medical care for about 5% of the cost here.  .... an example, my wife had gallbladder surgery there by a surgeon who trains U.S. surgeons on laparoscopic surgery, for a total cost of $700, including the hospital and anesthesiologist which would have cost about $18,000 here in NV.  We currently pay $35 per month for our combined medical insurance premium there.  The problem is that no one uses travel trailers in Colombia and we enjoy camping with our Pod.

Certainly, California is no panacea and it has its share of serious problems.  But there are many people who demean the state for reasons that are not always objective or based on fact.  And when you compare the facts, such as GDP. quality of education, job opportunities, etc., California comes out pretty well.  Housing prices, another reason we don't live there, are ridiculous, but that's a function of the most basic law of capitalism: supply and demand.  

One of the bad things about the state is that so many people, for so many years, have moved there that it's way too crowded.  But one must ask why so many people want to move there.  If it is as bad as some of the detractors say, it wouldn't be so popular.  

And, while drifting around off topic, remember that it was not I who raised the subject of California and its delicious pesticide laden apples. And it wasn't me who contributed to California having the 5th largest economy in the world. Heck, I'm retired and don't even live there.  I just mentioned that while using PTFE lubricant on your Pod, it wouldn't be a bad idea to glove up.  

But gloving up applies to a lot of activities in human endeavors that have even more fatal consequences than PTFE's, yet people still prefer not to do it.  It's all a matter of making personal decisions and accepting the consequences instead of blaming others.

So when I have a rusted bolt or nut that I can't free, or a stabilizer that has seized, I'll use my ZEP and if I'm not suffering a momentary bout of old age dementia, I'll drag out a pair of my Costco nitrile gloves and put them on before applying the ZEP in a well ventilated area.

There are many great things about Cali, and many not so great things. Like everywhere.

As a direct descendant of a member of the Mormon Battalion, that had finished their conscription period during the Mexican American War, and was working at Sutter's Mill when gold was found, I have a deep and long family history with the state. But that doesn't mean I think it's perfect, or that I would ever move back there.