Thanks for the tips, @Rontuner . I think the iron I bought is faulty. It would melt a little solder and then completely fail to melt any more, even with the solder pressed against the iron.

"Small business owners in some of Chicago’s predominantly Latino neighborhoods say business hasn’t bounced back since Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino and his team of agents left Chicago last week." https://www.wbez.org/immigration/2025/11/21/small-businesses-still-reeling-from-operation-midway-blitz

What is a trillion here or a trillion there to Saudi Arabia. Seriously.

A simple case of mistaken identity. (“ I THOUGHT that cop was a prostitute… “)

@CHAS said in This month's piano recording: may have to wake up the Clavinova that is here definitely!!

Check out NJ. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/15/us/politics/latino-voters-new-jersey.html?unlocked_article_code=1.1U8.3k6_.6xwphnf-_S_V&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Ha! There is something blooming around here after all. Mr wtg and I went for a brief walk which took us past our friends' house, and lo and behold, their witch hazel is in fragrant full bloom!! I smelled it before I saw it. I love both the scent and the delicate spidery-looking flowers. [image: 20251119_151929.jpg] [image: 20251119_151941.jpg] edit: About witch hazels. https://www.thespruce.com/witch-hazel-growing-guide-5191457

Yahoo!

@Daniel Not just in the US. Canada has a similar housing crisis. I bought our house in 2011 for $150,000. The (conservative) estimated value today is $450,000. Nothing about our neighbourhood has changed. No new services or anything that would have increased the property value. My kid and his girlfriend pay $2400 a month to rent a small two bedroom apartment in a nearby small city/large town. That’s almost twice my mortgage payment, yet even if they could save up enough for a down payment (while also paying that ridiculous amount in rent), they would never be approved for a mortgage because paying rent does nothing for your credit score.

Mary Bruce from ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/video/trump-saudi-crown-prince-murder-jamal-khashoggi-127650855

A panel of federal judges blocked Texas from using its new congressional map, which Republicans drew earlier this year in an effort to shore up the party's narrow House majority in next year's midterm elections. The ruling, signed by Judge Jeffrey Brown, who was nominated by President Donald Trump, ordered Texas to use its previous map that was drawn in 2021 instead. “The public perception of this case is that it’s about politics. To be sure, politics played a role in drawing the 2025 Map. But it was much more than just politics. Substantial evidence shows that Texas racially gerrymandered the 2025 Map,” Brown wrote in the ruling. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/federal-court-blocks-texas-redrawn-congressional-map-rcna244673

@Daniel

Great! Thanks so much!

More on the pasta tariff. https://www.arlnow.com/2025/11/17/italian-store-aims-to-hold-pasta-prices-steady-amid-107-tariff-threat/

We watched the first hour of last night's episode this morning while we were having breakfast. Good stuff.

Good links, wtg. I copied them to my email.