Spotted this outside the local Wally-World on a warm weekend day.

Impressive, isn’t it?

I talked to the owner/builder–he looked just like you’d imagine, libertarian crossed with a mad scientist.  The motor is a Honda 125cc with an automatic transmission; the tires are Pontiac Grand Prix spare tires, the axle is a “positraction” – builder’s quote – looked like a straight axle to me.  The tow/push hitch is the arm from a satellite dish connected to a homemade hitch.  I don’t know why the mannequin head is attached to the trailer, other than when you see him cruise by it looks like a child is riding in the trailer.

I’ve shown people this photo, and I get asked one of two questions:

“Why?”  and “How fast?” If you ask “Why”, I don’t think you understand true independence; if you ask “How fast”, I was told “it starts qetting squirelly around 55”. I imagine it does-the ape hanger handle bars probably don’t help.

So, if you ever are in a situation were the normal answers don’t work, do like this dude and think outside the limits.

New ideas for the Good and True,

Billy Acre

Well meaning people that offer to help are good.  Well meaning people with their own agenda are something else.

Well meaning educated (college degreed) people can be, well, aggravating.

You’ve heard the cry “We need to do something!” No one knows what the something is, but we’re going to do it. Change! Change! Change!  I’ve thought about hanging an old change dispenser, empty, outside my work area with a sign reading “Sorry – We’re Out of Change”. So far, my ‘keep out of trouble’ filter has prevented me.

I’ve got all sorts of people “helping” me.  Some are just burning minutes ( “If you need anything, here’s my number” ), some, without any experience, will tell me how to do the job that I’ve trained for and spent years perfecting. The most aggravating are the folks that want data. They don’t know what they’re going to do with the data, but you need to collect it for them.

You’ve heard about “Rebel without a Cause”? This is “Data without a Clue”. Data, even analyzed and charted, without a reason for being, is worse than worthless. In a previous life, I went looking for some parts that were being made. I found them-rusted! Seems the plating department had run out of the chemicals they used. However, every day they took data samples, analyzed and charted the results. I looked at the charts-the line traveled right off the chart into never-never land.  They weren’t using the data for anything-it was just something someone educated had told them they had to do. No clue that the line should be stopped.

I’ve covered the Good, the Bad, and now the Something Else.  Folks helping you to further their own agenda are ‘Something Else’ . Doesn’t have to be at work – I’m sure that you can see this problem everywhere. I’m pretty much tired of being pulled into volunteer work, and after a while figuring out that I’m just there to support so-and-so’s effort to become a local/regional/state Grand Pobaah of Some Thing Important. Fortunately, I’m getting better a recognizing the signs, and exiting somewhat gracefully early in the effort.

Not saying all volunteer work is bad, or that people helping you all fall into these catagories.  Every organization has their internal structure with their own ‘quirks’.  Pick and choose the best organizations you can, and accept help – and offer help – as much as possible.

Figuring out how to recognize the signs and how to evaluate should be the subject of a future post.

Helping for the Good and True,

Billy Acre