Occupation of Independence

It is remarkable how few rattlers I see over the course of a year. The long term average is 0.4 rattlesnakes per year. And some of that is just confusion with similar-looking (non-venomous) bull snakes.

How could a full time traveler not get spoiled and fickle; how could he ever adjust to doing the same thing twice? Those were the doubts I had when getting off the road about three years ago. But I had a secret weapon: the Granny J Principle. That is, I would now look at "routine" things more carefully and closely, instead of relying on sheer visual novelty. A mind can be like a camera that takes a macro closeup of interesting details, instead of a pan-opticon of ever-changing landscapes.

Credit rating agencies are important, since large institutions (pension funds, insurance companies, etc.) are prohibited from investing in governments or corporations that have low credit ratings. Also, low credit ratings will result in higher interest rates to compensate for the risk; that is the essence of bond market discipline. During the financial bubble of the mid-Aughts, the dominant American credit rating agencies are "credited" with being the enablers of a thoroughly corrupt and reckless financial system. They gave "everybody" AAA ratings.

My goodness there are a lot of things to do to get back on the road again. Although few people think of motor vehicles with the ruthless utilitarianism that I do, here was a chance for an exception: a brand new windshield made the old van look so pretty!, especially when reflecting some puffy mid-day clouds brought by the monsoon season.  In truth I love vans.

Once a year I usually have a chance to visit an RV friend who amuses me by writing first drafts of blog posts with pen and paper. (The reader might have an elderly aunt who still sends handwritten letters because they are more "personal".) Recall that it used to be more common to say that pen and paper help you think, whereas the computer supposedly distracts the writer. It seems quaint to see him look at his notes on paper and then start expostulating on his still-unpolished ideas.