Terlingua Dreams

Terlingua Dreams
Governors Landing Campground - Lake Amistad - Del Rio, Texas

Thursday, February 28, 2019

Ransomware consequences

Initially got up with the thought of going to go buy me breakfast but by the time I took a shower, got dressed and put on make-up it was lunch time, lol !!!

Was puzzled that the water bill had not been deducted from mother's bank account.  Headed to the Water Billing Department only to find out that they are still struggling with the hack the City of Del Rio suffered in January.  They are only accepting checks and cash payments but since she is enrolled in ACH payments it is taking them longer but they will not be penalizing the customers that use this method.

The City is also having problems issuing birth and death certificates for the same reason.  They do not want to open up current or older files to protect them from the ransomware demanded by the hackers.

The granddaughter of a friend of ours was born at the beginning of the year and she has yet to be issued a birth certificate because apart from the City of Del Rio hacking there has also been a problem with the State of Texas new system for birth and death records.

Why is this a problem? Without a birth certificate, she can not get a passport for her newborn child.  She works at a Maquiladora in Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila-Mexico where they offer free childcare for employees.

Gasoline has once again gone up, filled up at Walmart who had the cheapest price in town $2.14 a gallon for unleaded gas.

I got so much accomplished today thanks to my readers and their suggestions.  I am too cheap to buy index cards so I just cut up cereal boxes to the same size and wrote down everything I needed to do or purchase and then another list of the order in which to do them to save on gas and not to have to do return trips.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

25 comments:

  1. Too bad about this hackers there sure can mess things up.
    Gas here in WHY AZ in $2.89 a gallon

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    1. I don't know WHY but the name of that town is just funny :D

      In comparison the gas prices in Del Rio are not so bad.

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    2. It was named WHY because it is a Y in the road, but needed to have 3 letters to name it.

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  2. Without my lists I'd always be behind!

    The out of commission computer system has stopped the birth & death certificates? That's serious stuff... I think there is a lesson there..

    $2.50 for gas in Sebastian Florida, the futures market gas has been going up & I need around 30 gallons for the RV today. We're moving inland to a county park, our reservations here are up.


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    1. I was trying to read the paper off a newspaper stand and it said the mayor had done an interview regarding this matter but it did not say if it was a TV interview or the station. I suppose it was with media in San Antonio, Texas.

      Vital Records is next door to the Water Department so I stopped to ask on behalf of our friends when to expect the birth certificates. There was a sign on the door saying that as of Feb 27, 2019 no certificates would be issued. The fact is that none have been issued this year.

      You are paying less than bloggers in Arizona. Safe travels.

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  3. I'm always making lists, misplace them, and then start another list!

    My birth certificate, issued in Nov. 1940, is all handwritten. Maybe they should go back to some of the older ways that aren't as hackable! That would require employing more people, which would mean fewer on public assistance. We want to automate everything and not have to hire people to do the work, but then we have a huge unemployment problem. Doesn't make sense to me.

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    1. From what I could speed read from the newspaper stand it appears they are trying to protect records older than 50 years old. The lady at Vital Records was rather tight lipped about the subject.

      I do not know but I suppose most vital records going back decades have been digitalized to protect them.

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  4. Some people think that a computer is much better than a person doing the same job, but when a computer messes up, it can cause a very huge problem.

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    1. I can't blame computers but I do blame those darn hackers who demand payment in order to release said records.

      If I remember correctly I think you once blogged that you had been a victim of ransomware as well.

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  5. ¿Que paso, Ss?

    I am glad you are "green". I have been cutting up cereal boxes and big mail pieces for lists for a long time now myself. 100 index cards for a dollar at the dollar store is wasting money! Haha

    GSG

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    1. ¿Qué pasó, Sb?

      Lol, that reminded me of the Freddie Fender and Texas Tornados song :D

      Yes, I have been "green" for a long time but I can not take credit for it, I learned that from my parents. I can not see buying something when I can use an alternative and keep it from going to the landfill.

      I am so glad we won yesterday, it was good to see the guys getting their mojo back.

      What do you think of the Pau Gasol buyout agreement?

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    2. Grrrr- my keyboard doesn't have an upside down question mark but I learned the trick on a "hack" website and thought I'd pull a fast one on you. However you one-upped me with the accent marks! Can't get anything past you!

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    3. You can do a Google search and it gives you the codes for the accents. Mine only work when I am on my computer, it does not work for me when using my tablet or cellphone.

      Hold down the ALT key set your keypad to Num Lock and input the code.

      á ALT 160
      é 130
      í 161
      ó 162
      ú 163
      ñ 164
      ¿ 0191

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    4. Thanks. The only one I try to speak Spanish to is you.

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    5. I believe it might be due to the fact that I am the only Latina that blogs about Terlingua or at least the only one I know of.

      How about MY SPURS...we WON this evening...great game!!!

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    6. Congratulations, cheeflada!

      (Sorry for misspell)

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    7. Had been a LONG while since I heard the word "chiflada" applied to me...like by my uncle when I was still a teenager...jajajajaja :D

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    8. One of your replies reminded me of the following classic...

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7R13MFULyqg&list=RD7R13MFULyqg&start_radio=1&t=136

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    9. THANK YOU FOR THAT! AWESOME! I miss Doug so much but was able to see him live a coupla times. I have a couple of his later albums (vinyl) including the Tornadoes. I got to hang out with that bass player wearing the derby one night about 5 years ago and see Augie at my neighborhood bank on Fridays. I helped him haul his equipment on stage at Saluté Bar around '95 and he was very appreciative. I'm not a stargazer or jocksniffer type but these guys are genuinely good guys - just as you'd expect.

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    10. That is great anecdote. San Antonio being the capital city of Tejano music I bet you have seen a lot of legends of not only Tejano but other genre.

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  6. I always was a fan of Pau Gasol no matter who he played for and I was real happy when he became a SPUR. They are showing puro SPURS class by letting him out of his contract so he can end his career with a contender. GSG

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  7. Did not see this comment that is why I asked your opinion on my reply above.

    I agree the Spurs showed a lot of class letting him out of his contract.

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  8. Cutting up cerial boxes for index cards is a pretty good idea. I know use my phone for my shopping lists. Of course that isn't fool proof either. And how come 10 Items comes out to about 20+. Gas here is up again too.

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    1. I also use the entirety of the cereal box to write down directions whenever we have to go see a new doctor much like flash cards and I write it in big letters so I know what exit to take or where to turn since I have bad eyesight.

      A phone would not work in my case because mine weighs too much and I usually just leave it in my car. I prefer a handwritten list and I too come home with more items than I intended :D

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