Jan 25-27 - in queue

It's always the most recent activities that are memorable.  Yesterday that was being in one vaccine queue for 90 minutes and then another for 30 minutes.  The first was the Publix Supermarkets pharmacy queue and the second, the Volusia County queue.

The first is tough as it's one queue for all of Florida.  The 2nd is supposed to be our county but guess what, we're close to Orlando and beyond that, people are willing to drive across the country for vaccine so I'd be surprised if others in queue weren't from 100's of miles away.  These vaccines are supposed to be for Florida residents but I'm betting that people with short-term leases are also in queue and, since it's supposed to be >65, that's every person in Florida, population 22 million.

I was in right on the dot on both of these.  With the first, there's a screen refresh every 60 seconds.  Great.  Watch this space!  The 2nd, as in the last time, I got to the stage of selecting two tickets and hung there for a half hour before it came back sold out.  What a crappy purchase/cart app.  If I can select two tickets there should be a semaphore that stops anyone else from selecting those tickets.  

In other news ... I'd been having some issues with the 40hp Yamaha on the skiff.  It would grind slowly and then eventually start, as if the battery was low, which it isn't ... but what the heck. Let's swap the battery.  Only ... I hooked it up backwards and then dead as a doornail.  Nothing, not even the power tilt 'n trim worked.  Great.  What a screwup.

So ... I googled.  As with anything else,  I was reassured that I'm not the only dodo who has done this.  Seemingly intelligent people have made the same mistake.  I'm saying seemingly intelligent because I'd rather lump myself with them, than dodo's.

And ... guess what ... there's a fuse for that !  I found the fuse and was good again.  Cranking the engine while standing on the dock,  saw some smoke from the wiring coming from the battery - not inside the engine.  Looking more closely, there's a tiny cut in the heavy gauge wiring and salt water has penetrated the wire and corroded the strands, leaving only a few that are heating up !  I cut the wire, wire-nutted it together and voila, no more slow cranking.  That was the problem all along.  I have to purchase a replacement but I'm good for the moment.  

That was yesterday.  The day before, I rode.  The day before that, who knows.  

I did do some electrical work, replacing a switch in the kitchen with a Kasa smart switch.  Two lights on the front of the garage had light sensors that didn't really work.  Now they're on a smart switch that's programmed for dusk to dawn.  I also took down the Christmas lights.  Too bad, I like the look of them on the walkway to the dock. 

That's pretty much it.  Today and tomorrow are cool and very windy but not like up north that's now in the negative F territory.  

Onward ...