ERCOT

 Once again, Abbott's ERCOT fails to keep up with power demand, with many parts of the state having power outages as temperatures soar. Why is nothing ever done? Why do Texans keep voting for Abbott? It's a mystery to me. I suspect, but can't prove, that Texas utilities are plagued by corruption. It seems that no real improvements are ever made. Where does the money go? I doubt that it goes into the power infrastructure, because it keeps having the same old problems, summer and winter. Can't meet demand. Outages.  

I'm not on the same page with the majority of my fellow Texans, and I take that as a good sign. There's nothing wrong with ME. 

The Heat Has Hit

 Very uncomfortable but at least I'm not worried about frozen and burst pipes and there is relief in the morning. Remedies for heat are easier and cheaper than remedies for cold. Like, take a cold shower and sit in front of a fan. Enjoy a cold drink. Wear light clothing. We are fortunate to have had moderate winds with the heat, and the air is dry. 

I can take it.

Hot!

 It had to happen. Now the heat wave hits, first of the season but fortunately we still have cool mornings. 

Could be over 100 F and a record high today. 

We Are In For It

 That scorching weather had to appear eventually and we are in for it, now, with temps above 100 F for several days. But the air will be dry. I must do a lot of watering now. The "positive feedback" set up on the central AC is very effective. I thought of that last summer, I believe. It worked very well then and it works very well now. I tuned in to Svengoolie last evening and was reminded of two very good movies, now very obscure: The Green Man and The Wicker Man. I read the Kingsley Amis novel, "The Green Man", years ago, and the movie was very faithful to the novel. These are classics, in my opinion. As for Sue Grafton, I'm on the letter M. Wonderful to read these in order, one after another. 

It is 60 F right now, and that is a good way to begin what will be a hot day, a prelude to the very hot weather to come. Now. Now is the keyword for today. 

Cool Mornings Hot Days

 Mornings in the sixties make the hot days bearable and so far we've come close to 100 but have not hit that mark. It is now about normal for this time of year. Perryton, Texas, got hit very hard by a tornado. I only vaguely recall the place. I think I was up there in late '68. I was driving a '55 Chevy four-door with a bad transmission. And the guitar I had at that time was too many for me-- the pickup switches and the wonky bridge made it hard for me to get the hang of it. Beautiful guitar but a stupid purchase. What I needed at that time would have been an SG Jr. Single P-90 and a very simple bridge. I was too ambitious. I looked at a Fender Mustang in Sonic Blue and even that would have been better than the Jaguar, although the bridge would still have been a problem. I have a Mustang today and it took a lot of work and adjustment on the bridge to make it playable. And the Jaguar I have today has a Mustang bridge. In the early eighties I had a Fender Jaguar in sunburst, a Rickenbacker 360 in Fireglo, a 1964 model, and a 1961 SG Special. I wish I had kept those guitars. I've had so many, many, guitars over the years! Now I stay where I am. A Stratocaster in sunburst and maple neck/fingerboard, a Sonic Blue Mustang, a Candy Apple Red Jaguar, A sunburst Jagmaster, and a couple of acoustics, one very vintage and perfect for primitive blues, and another that has become vintage. A special issue. 

I forgot that I have an Epiphone SG Special! It's red. These guitars all have very special nostalgia vibes and only death or disaster would part me from them. I love those guitars and I've got them around the house where I can always see them, or impulsively pick one up and play a few riffs or some blues, or some old time rock and roll.