*[]*[+47*F_cloudy_winds out of the s/s/w@8 mph_humidity:85%_barometer:30.29"/\_overnight lo:+42*F]*[Tonight on MadTrollie*[von Suppe]*]*

   Although it quit raining a couple of hours ado I have not ventured out of my "fortress of solitude" all day and have no intention of doing so this evening..just felt like spending some alone time..I think I would have made a great hermit..../....I play daily a sim of the card game Spades..my "partner" and both opponents are computer generated..and I refer to my partner as the "Artificial Idiot"..[AI]..among other things the programming treats all four suits the same when computing the players bid..and doesn't given  extra "weight" to Spades[always trump]..anyways I've come to the conclusion that while probably a very good programmer..he/she had read a book on Spades but has never actually played the game..../....When I was running a shipping/receiving department many years ago one of the trucking companies brought in a brand new trailer..and a new design..a 32' wedge design..with the front of the interior high then the back..so you drove up an incline entering and down exiting..apparently more aerodynamic and to save weight rather the a wood floor or at least panels of wood where the tires of the forklift touched the floor..polished aluminum..first time driving in one was mid-January in the Northcountry & outdoor temperature was a crisp -30*F..me and the 8'K lb. forklift w/a 2K lb pallet on the forks got into the nose of the empty trailer fine..I dropped the pallet..put the lift into reverse..took my foot off the brake and before I hit the accelerator slid back off the trailer and bounced off both walls in the process..oy vey..floor was like a sheet of ice..and I came to the conclusion that the engineer who designed it..had never seen a trailer..never been on one..and certainly never driven a forklift on one..in the winter anywhere where sub-zero temperatures were common..they eventually add slip resistant striping to the floor so that you could get in and out of them without ice-skating with an 8'K lb forklift..if you've never tried it..don't..I had a very interesting conversation with the terminal manager..which shall not be repeated here..../....have spent the day online as always..been busier on the FB group "The Farthest Side" where I'm a moderator..still a few loose ends to tie off..ergo..nite all....