Sunday, August 14, 2005

Camping Trip


Here's the new tent, and Carol sitting outside it. I really liked the new tent. It was relatively easy to put up, spacious and easy to use.








Rich and rachel at the beach.











Benjamin and I chillin' on the tailgate.








Hiking in the Olympic Rain Forest.





Cooking with fire.









Azalea at the campsite.








Rick, Rachel, Benjamin, Carol,, me, Azalea, and Riley in front of the worls largest Sitka Spruce.








Picking Balckberries in the back yard.

Friday, August 05, 2005

VACATION!!!

As of 2:30 I am off on vacation for a week! My attitude improves by the minute.

Carol's son Rick, his wife Rachel, and their three kids arrive tonight from Ogden. They are going to be here for two weeks. The first week we are going camping at Twin Harbors State Park outside of Westport Washington. It is a very nice park, and we are located on the Dune side. The grandkids have never seen the ocean, so it will be cool to play in the surf. I also intend to teach them how to fly a two string acrobatic kite. Burned marshmellows, hot dogs dropped in the campfire, coffee with insect parts, smole and sand everywhere. Tall tales by the campfire light. Insect bites and sunburn.

I can't wait. No computers no internet no television. I will be taking a cell phone, but I'm hoping we don't have service unless we need it.

Pictures and camping tales to follow!

Wednesday, July 27, 2005

NewZ

My 77 Datsun 280Z was in a car show last week, so I hurried and put my new exterior rear view mirrors on for the show. When I got the mirrors, the Z Store included a new catalogue. In perusing it there were several "I gotta have that" moments. Consequently when the opportunity to work this weekend came up, I saw Z parts in the budget.

When I was taking a break, I called up the Boeing Classified ads on-line. There I ran accross an ad that said "Free: 1978 Datsun 280Z, must be moved by Friday 07/22/05."It was Saturday, but nothing ventured, nothing gained, so I called the phone number, and the car was still there, so I went after work to take a look at it. I fugured at the very least, I could use it for parts.

The car was complete, less the battery, and had been running when it was parked for restoration. It had good rubber all the way around, and the body was fairly straight. They had sanded and primered the hood and front fenders. I told them that I would be back with a tow truck after work on Sunday.

So I dragged it home, and immediately after this post, there is a picture of it. It has several parts I can swap to my 77, like the center console and the factory mags, but I think I can, with a minimal investment of time and money, turn it into a daily driver.

Last night I hooked up a battery, but it wouldnt turn over, so I got a remote starter, hooked it up, and turned the key on. It turned over freely, but wouldn't start. When I sprayed a little started fluid in the intake it fired up for a second, but quit. I pulled the fuel line and there wasn't any (fuel that is). I can hear liquid sloshing around in the tank, so either the fuel pump is bad, or the wiring is bad. Neither of those things is any big deal, although I would rather it was the fuel pump, although that will be more expensive, but I have spent the last year and a half chasing electrical problems in the 77 and am tired of wiring.

I still haven't figured out when I will be able to replace the deck off of the living room.

Monday, July 18, 2005

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

OK, so maybe that's an exaggeration. Maybe it was more like "It was a real good day, it was a real bad day", but that just didn't sound right. Besides, everyone remembers the opening lines of "A tale of two cities". What a great opening line, one of the best ever. Maybe not as good as "In the beginning God Created the Heavens and the Earth", but equal to any other first line. How about "Call me Ishmael"?

At any rate, Saturday was one heck of a day. Morning Light just completed their second CD, so Saturday was the CD release party, and a free concert at Golden Gardens Park in Seattle. Carol and I were up at 4:30 so we could be in Kenmore at 6:00 to start packing up the equipment. It was cloudy, cool, and drizzling. In otherwords a typical Seattle summer day. As we always do, we said a little prayer asking the Lord for his help and inspiration (and a little good weather). By the time we got the stage up it was clearing, and by the time the band went on stage at 1:00, it was clear with a few clouds. After lunch when they started the second set, it was clear and getting hot. About that time my skin started to feeling tight, and when I checked it it was turning red. OOPS! By the time we put on the sunblock it was to late. At work Laurel was calling me "Lobster Boy" today.

The concert was fantastic. The band, despite a few technical problems, was right on. Their normal gigs are in Penal Institutions, so usually everything is very structured, and we only see the band members and our fellow roadies, so it was great having a big family get together complete with spouses, kids and dogs. Frisbees, barbeque, watermelon and good fellowship.

Carol is a lot lighter skinned than I am, so she burned worse. She is currently a study in various shades of pink.

On the way home from a very good day, we were in a car wreck. I was trying to do too many things at once, like accellerate, change lanes and watch traffic in front of me. I noticed an opening in the HOV lane, so I was trying to move over, check my blind spot, and keep half an eye on traffic in front of me. Between when I looked to check in front of me, looked in my rear view mirror, checked my blind spot, and looked back, traffic had stopped. I was already 75% in the HOV lane, and I made it 90%, so when I hit the car in front of me it was a glancing blow. No one was hurt, but the car I hit , hit the car in front of him. So rather than going home to relax, I had my daughter come and pick up Carol and Vincent and Molly our Shi Tzu, while I stayed with the car until it got towed.

Between the accident and the sunburn I didn't get a whole lot of sleep Saturday night. I was unsettled and nauseous on Sunday, from nerves and sunburn. Sunday we were celebrating my birthday, which is actually today. So I barbequed steak and shrimp-ka-bobs, although I didn't eat a whole lot. I had consideable help, so there wasn't a whole lot left over.

When I got up to go to work, the battery on the "Z" was deader than dirt, so I thought "Hmmmmm, it's my birthday and my backup car won't start. Maybe it's a sign that I should take the day off." But that was just too easy a copout, so I threw it on the charger on 35 amp quick charge, but it still took almost an hour to get it to where it would start. So I was an hour late for work.

One of the gifts I got for my birthday was a set of external rear view mirrors, so when I got home tonight I put them on the "Z". The "Z" is going to be in a car show on Thursday so I wanted to make sure the new mirrors made it on. It was hot and sunny, so I didn't want to be out in the sun too long, but the installation wasnt too difficult. The mirrors look great. I will post a picture when I get the time.

That's all for now

In the words of the immortal bard Tigger "TTFN".

Sunday, July 10, 2005

Jazz Alley III

So, for the third weekend in a row, we went to Jazz Alley again last night. This time it was to see Acoustic Alchemy. I wanted to see them last time they were in town, but we had something else going that weekend, so we missed out. I was determined not to miss them this time, even though it was a strain on the budget to go out three weeks in a row.

It was well worth the expense. They are such a dynamic group. I have admired their work for a long time. I hear them on the local Jazz station on the radio, and they have such a complex mellow sound that has layers on top of layers, but revolving around two exceptionally tallented acoustic guitar players. One plays steel strings, the other nylon, and the stuff they can do is amazing. I have played both, but know just enough to leave me standing there shaking my head and wondering "How the hell did he do that?" They just came out with a new CD "American/English". Go buy it. The band is MUCH better in person than on the CD. You miss the whole Jammin' thing, and all the solos that you get in a live performance. They really had the place jumping last night, and received standing ovations. Great performance!

Next weekend we will be playing roadies for the Christian rock band Morning Light. They are giving a free public concert at Golden Gardens Park on Saturday. Two performances. It is also their CD Release party. It will be a lot of work, but a lot of fun, too. As always their message is that it is possible to have a good time without drugs and alcohol. Check the side bar for their website. You can even catch a glimpse of yours truly and my lovely wife Carol in the Backstage Pass section.

Wednesday, July 06, 2005

MRI

I think I mentioned that I screwed up my sholder in High School throwing bad curve balls, and I have suffered the consequences. Last January, I hurt my right sholder again, and it doesn't seen to be able to recover on it's own, so I went to see the doctor. A shot of Cortisone didn't help, so it was off to the specialist for x-rays, and then to the Super-Duper-Specialist for an MRI (Magnectic Resonance Imaging). This is supposedly a pain free experience. Well I am here to tell you otherwise. Yes the actual MRI is painless, but they spent 45 minuted injecting special dye into the joint of my sholder before we got to the painless part. As I told them "I am not sweating like this because I was exercising".

Fortunately, the internal application of minor amounts of alcohol might get me to the point where I can sleep tonight. With being basically sleepless on the Fourth, not getting more that five hours last night, and probably not a whole bunch tonight, I guess I will need a 20oz Diet Coke with Lime tomorrow morning to get "Yump Started" as my Scandahovian friend would say.

I suppose I am facing surgery if I want to get it fixed, but CRAP I don't want to do it, but I can't even skip stones with my grandkids or play catch. Sure I don't throw things for a living, but I shouldn't have to give up that whole part of my life.

"Go not gently into that dark night, sweet Horatio."

"Go down gently, Go down silently.
I'll go down screaming 'Give it back it belongs to me'."

Monday, July 04, 2005

Jazz Alley II

I heard that Robben Ford was going to be at Jazz Alley this weekend, so it was dinner, drinks and a show again on Saturday. Carol wanted to know if we could afford ir, and all I had to say was "If I can't afford to go see a show and have dinner when I want, what the hell am I working for?" We spend most of our disposable income on kids and grandkids, so they can just cut back their expectations for a while. Besides, next weekend Acoustic Alchemy is going to be there, and I am not going to miss that show. When they were in town last year, I had other committments.

I have one month left to get things done for when Rick and Rachel and the kids are here for two weeks. I just hope Carol doesn't obsess too much about the house. Martha Stewart living will never feature our home, but it is comfortable and functional and I like it the way it is. Sure, there are things I would change if I had several thousand dollars to spare.

Today is the Fourth, and I can't help but stop for a minute and think about a small group of determined men who dared commit high treason against a tyrannical and opressive rule by a physically superior group of people in a foreign country, to inspire a belief in freedom that has changed and inspired the world. I also worry that the country that was born of opression and the desire for freedom has come to the conclusion that it is our responsibility to enforce our will throughout the world, whether we have justification or not. There was no smoking gun, no WMD. So, shame on all you newly discovered Conservatives who have abandoned your principles to cower behind your big daddy and declare "My daddy can beat up your daddy". That doesn't make him or you right. Whay kind of loyalty do you profess when you turn tail at the first sign of adversity and join the very forces that create the atmosphere of distrust and suspicion that makes things ripe for ferment? Go bow to your newly found gods of power and oil.

OBTW, just in case anyone thinks to claim higher ground, I am a disabled Vet who served our country proudly, and I support our troops, no matter what insanity our leaders have gotten them into.

Sunday, June 26, 2005

Jazz Alley

Carol and I both like Jazz Alley: http://www.jazzalley.org/, which is listed as one of the planets top 100 Clubs. They always have high quality performers, and the Club is well run, serves good food, and there isn't a bad seat in the house.

Last night we went to see Dianne Schuur http://www.dianeschuur.com/content/albumthirteen.htm with The Carribean Jazz Project. She is a two-time Grammy award winning vocalist and they are a Grammy award winning band. Together they make for a pretty dynamic performance. She has this amazing voice, with a three octave range, and although she only did one number on the piano, she plays a mean jazz piano. Scat singing has never been my favorite part of Jazz, because everyone who thinks the are a jazz singer attempts it even though they aren't worth a damn. But when it is done right with the right band by the right artist, it is something else. Dianne Schuur is one of the few who really do it right. At times when she is scattin' you can't tell whether it is a musical instrument or her voice, but what the hell, her voice IS a musical instrument.

"Deedles", as she is known, was in fine voice, and the band was hitting all the right notes. It was a lot of fun. And a good dinner and a couple of T N' T's didn't hurt the situation at all.

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

Father's Day

I know, I am delinquent again. Father's Day was Sunday, and this is Tuesday, but since my dad passed away a few years ago, I guess he isn't waiting for this.

Dad was born and raised in New Mexico, up around the Four Corners country. His usual mode of transportation was horseback, up until the time he could afford a motocycle. In his years growing up he worked part time as a genuine old fashioned Cowboy, helping drift a herd of mixed stuff to summer pasture. His first job was working in a Trading Post on the Reservation. Since he spoke Navaho and Ute as well as Spanish and English, he often would translate letters for the locals into English to send off to whatever Bureau needed whatever. The very first thing he bought with his wages was a turquois ring, which I have. It's a little small for me, but I can get it on my little finger. Every once in a while when I am thinking of him I will get it out and wear it.

Seeing as he had worked as a cowboy, he adopted that taciturn strong silent type mentality represented so well in the movies. It was the one thing about him that always irked the heck out of me, that he wouldn't tell stories about himself. What we learned, we learned from others. I have a copy of a picture of him at 19 dressed in black, astride a Harly Davidson, black hair slicked back and one leg drapend oh so casually over the gas tank. There had to be some hell raising going on, but us kids never got to hear about it.

I didn't always get along with him. He was a staunch Catholic, and I got to where I didn't like the church. I still don't, but dad's faith was unshakable. I guess that divesting yourself of your parents is a part of growing up. The idea is to have it as painless as possible. It wasn't too dificult for me. Uncle Sam decided he needed me over on the other side of the world, but that is another story.

There were seven of us kids, every one independent, opinionated and intelligent. I do have to say that my folks must have done something right, as there is not a one of my sibligs that I don't consider a sucess in their own way.

After I got out of the Service, I got together with dad for a guys night. He came over and spent the night, and we got a gallon of wine. By the time we got through with it he had forgiven me for every wrong I had done, and I had forgiven him for every slight, real and imagined. We were never best buddies, but we got along and understood each other. Sometimes I really miss his plain down to earth common sense and dry sense of humor.

Here's to you dad, wherever you are. I was proud of you all the way to the end and beyond.

Tuesday, June 14, 2005


New flooring in the spare bedroom Posted by Hello

The cabinets on the other side Posted by Hello

Here are the cabinets with the new veneer, and new smoke hood Posted by Hello

Just another day

I haven't recorded anything here lately. Pat of it is just procrastination, but I have also been busy with other things. Last time I made an entry, I was stalled out remodeling the kitchen, which, thankfully is pretty much done now except for putting the final finish on the cabinets. Man, will I ever be glad to be done. I started in December.

My baby (the 1977 Datsun 280) has been dead in the driveway with an electrical problem. Finally after a couple of months of frustration I managed to find a broken fusible link. It wasn't fried, just had an internal break in the wire, which wasn't even visible. I only found it by running the fusible link through my circuit tester, and I could see the meter needle fluctuating.

I also have put the floor in the spare bedroom. I only have to put in a filler strip around the edge and put in new molding, then start moving in furniture.

As soon as that is done I need to start planning what I am going to do with the deck off of the living room. The whole deck needs to be torn down and replaced. I have never cared for the design of the current deck, so here is a chance to completely remodel it. I want to expand it enough so it can also be a carport as well as a deck. I need to figure out the dimensions so I can run some numbers for the cost.

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Rock Man

I was surfin' the BLOGs the other day and ran across one titled "Stoner", which reminded me of a poem I wrote in my mispent youth.

ROCK MAN

Smoke a pound of Marijuana
Take a hit of speed or ten
Drink that booze, guzzle Beer
Tom you little Stoner.

But some day soon you'll do your last
Of one more hit, or one more blast
But live today, forget the past
Tom you little Stoner.

You'll come home late and find your wife
Waiting with the butcher knife
as she begins to take your life
Tom you little Stoner.

They'll put you in your muted grave
and leave your soul for God to save
above your head the stone engraved
"Tom you little Stoner".

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

Kitchen

I am getting close to finishing the kitchen, but got derailed by putting in the new smoke hood. When I tore out the other one, like most things in the house, it proved to be a lot more work than I anticipated.

The old smoke hood had been cut down from a larger smoke hood, to 30". Consequently the switches and exhaust flue were nor centered, but about four inches to the left. Consequently the hole in the shelf is also four inches to the left. The new smoke hood has a centered hole, so I knew I had to make a new shelf.. When I took the old flue down, I was flabbergasted. The tube was attached to a blank wall! There was no hole. I knew there was a vent attached to the wall on the outside, but when I tore things apart, it was four inches to the right and six inches lower than where the flue was attached.

The new smoke hood can be vented to the outside either through a 7" flue out the top, or a 4" by 6" hole out the back, The vent location in the wall didn't allow me to use the 7" circular duct, so I have to use the 4" X 6" vent, which means patching the old hole and cutting a new one, shimming the new one. When I was presented with all of the problems my forward progress kinda stalled out.

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

SMOKE FREE!

Back in February I quit smoking. I have tried to quit numerous times. As I have always said "Quitting smoking isn't hard. Heck, I do it a couple of times a week". The last couple of years I have made a couple of attempts to quit, but they didn't last. Last time I got the patch. I did great as long as I had the patch, but when the patches were gone, I went right back to smoking. This time I used the patch for a week, and after that just went cold turkey. There was only one time when I went around checking ashtrays to see if I had left a butt somewhere, but it passed.

Since I am diabetic, I really needed to quit. Smoking constricts the blood vessels in your extremities, and with the diabetes already lessening the blood flow, you stand an increased chance of losing a foot or leg. I rather like all my parts, and don't want to give any of them up. I had an uncle and a Great Aunt who lost a leg because they smoked and didn't control their diet.

As a consequence of quitting smoking, I also gave up beer. I have always said that it is a part of being in correct ballance. If you have a beer in one hand, you need to have a cigarette in the other to ballance. Besides,alcohol dilates yor blood vessels, so I figured that would cancel out the nicotine. Giving up the beer has proven to be more of a challenge, because the correlation is not as direct. But the doctor put me on a different diabetes medication, and it discourages drinking. I never was a heavy drinker, I just like a beer in the evenings when I get home.

Guess I'll give one of the non-alcoholic beers a try.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Confession

I have to confess........I have been surfing the BLOGs and not leaving comments. I know it's kinda like being a peeping Tom. You sidle up to the windows of someone elses life, peek in (hopefully without being caught) and take a peek at a litle piece of their soul. When you've had enough you go on to another window. Or maybe you return to one you've already peeped in.

It's addictive.

So I confess my sin, and apollogize to all of you out there. Tommorow, I may be peeking in YOUR BLOG!

Thursday, May 12, 2005

Capsules

Cast iron mind corset
Impenetrable non-thought process
Reality in a tin cup
Begged from street corner blind men
All is watersplash

Sweet cream thought love
Alone in neon speculation
As darkened earth-roots
Pierce a rock
Seeking satisfaction

Burning skyhook
Unilateral concentration
For only five dollars
You too can see
The face of GOD

Capsules
Swallow enough
And you're bound to die

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Last Down Day

Once every eleven days, we have a day in the schedule when there is no airplane in my position, so it is called a down day. Today is the last down day, because they are stepping up the production rates. So let's have a moment of silence for the last down day (Zzzzzzzzzzzz)

I had my physical yesterday, and everything was good, except I had to break down and get a shot of cortizone in my right sholder. I screwed it up in high school throwing too much crap when I was pitching. I had this wicked knuckle-curve that would start out like it was going to hit the batter in the head, and it would break down and to the left, and if I had thrown it right, be a called strike. I remember seeing a guy bail out of the batters box for what ended up a strike. Anyway I have a torn rotator cuff, and every once in a while it gets bad enough that I have to get a shot. For a couple of days after I am not sure if I did the right thing, but after that, everything is good for a couple of years.

I didn't post anything on or about Mother's Day. On Sunday I was too busy DOING Mother's Day to write about it, and afterwards I just didn't get around to it. Sunday after church, we stopped off at DQ for lunch, and Carol gave in to temptation and got a big Sundae. She had been fantasizing about ice cream lately, being on a diet and all, so I more or less insisted she suspend the rules for one day. Afterwards we went to the Movies to see "Sahara". It was a very entertaining movie. I have read all of the Clive Cussler books, so I was prepared to be disappointed, but I enjoyed it. The only detail that really bugged be was that the "sidekick" Al Giordino just didn't look like a swarthy Italian. He looked more like he was Irish. But that is a small complaint. The story didn't follow the book exactly, but the things they left out would not have played on the big screen.

Afterwards I barbequed a rolled Sirloin Roast and a good time was had by all.

My mom is 78, and lives by herself, but we kids keep track of her. Since we had a full day planned on Saturday, I dropped off a plant and card on Saturday and stayed and chatted for about an hour. She is an amazing woman. Managed to raise seven intelligent, opinionated kids and retain her sanity. When I was going through the process of adopting Vincent I described her to the social worker as "June Cleaver, but without the pearls and skirt".When I was growing up, I thought all families were like us, with a mom that stayed home, a dad that worked, they loved each other and provided a stable nurturing environment for their kids. It wasn't until I grew up and got out in the world that I saw what carnage Family can cause to each other.