Monday, August 30, 2010

Music into Gold

What a weekend! Should've been relaxing, but some sort of inner angst that I can't quite put my finger on had me feeling a touch under the weather (or just beat).

Friday, got out of work at a decent time and hit up M*nards for a cartful of supplies, half of which were grocery items. I returned the small impact gun which failed in the first week of use, only to discover that model is no longer being carried. Supplanted no doubt, by something pricier.

For such a nice evening I had thought about having the gents out to the lodge but with Cara's schedule it made more sense to hit up the PL. Had a grand time, spent too much but the juke had us rolling. Cam dropped in but was quiet for the most part. Cara came by and discovered some coworkers. All-in-all a good way to blow off a little steam from a long week.

Saturday I decided to make my own. Got breakfast going, made some macaroni salad, got laundry running and worked on a shopping list for the Fleet Farm. Hung everything out on the line around lunchtime and hit up Waverly. Picked up a pair of 12v lamps for the tractor, in small GE blue and yellow corrugated boxes reminiscent of the 60's. The computer text on the label side told me they were newish..actually they were 20 years old. Still, you could feel the quality in your hands. Also grabbed a mini grease gun and other maintenance essentials, a few pairs of work pants, etc. Scored well at T&T, including a Tupperware bowl from '54, a GE stainless 60's coffee urn, a blue heaven baking dish and a stack of reel-to-reel releases. By the time I hit evil W*lmart for wine and razors, I was beginning to drag. Weather was gorgeous, however, so I cruised home at 50 or so in the Olds, and greased up the tractor in the shade. Mowed the DI area and called it a day.

Sunday, not sure what went wrong. Plenty of sleep, up at 9, and zero motivation. Nevertheless, I strapped myself to the power tools the rest of the day and have the sunburned back to prove it. Things were really heating up temp-wise inside, but a steady breeze from the south made working outside the side door quite tolerable. In between cuts, measurements upstairs, and routering, I caught 'Eddie and the Cruisers II' in 5 minute chunks. 1 word: Predictable. But worth it as an unintentional documentary of the Springsteen era. Also cut a new door for the pumphouse to replace the temp siding "door". A few coats of paint and it'll be ready to hang.

Somehow managed to put away all the heavy equipment and clean up moments before Cara came home. Decided it was make-or-break time and installed an additional light in the kitchen over the counter adjacent to the sink while she rested. The install went almost too smoothly.

With a superb late summer evening still to come, we took the wagon into town to the parents for chit-chat and a visit by my grandma. Snuck a peak at the basement (where is my Akai R2R?) and made a quick mental note: double the size of CS2). Stuck around 'til dusk before heading back.

Fall is coming.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

End of Order

The last few days have been pretty hectic, though fulfilling.

How to get the most out of a Thursday:
Up before the sun.
Narrowly escape a speeding ticket thanks to the stickler driving in front of me.
Put a good 10 hours on the clock.
Pick up a rusty axle from the flood plain with Ben.
Purchase an Oldsmobile.


Friday: This pitch black at 5:30AM stuff has got to end. Put in another long day of OT at work, then the parts store for a few misc items for Saturday. Needing a plan for Saturday's axle swap, Ben and I met up at the PL. I gave Cam a buzz as well. Not only was the A/C shot and doors propped open, it was too hot to serve tap beer (all foam) and Miller's company was rather lacking. We were feeling pretty nonplussed as it was, so after a couple beers and a tentative plan, we went our separate ways. I returned to the lodge in time for the mosquitoes to take hold and worked on the Olds for a little while before turning in.

Saturday morning….where was the sun? I paced until the fog lifted around 10:30, then was able to start mowing. The temps came up and the sky cleared. I ran the tractor until noon, getting a couple acres done as Ben pulled in. By that point, shirt sweated through and a decent farmer's tan going. And so IT began. One long, hot, humid, sweaty, dirty axle swap. We both agreed that was about our limit for automotive endurance these days. 8 hours baking in the sun, fighting rusty bolts and stubborn iron. Around 4 we got a brief reprieve and headed for Waverly for parts and cassettes at the new Goodwill store. Fought and fought and fought the brakes, which could still use another bleed, but the Blazer is now fully mobile and back in service. Polished off our fair share of Old Mills as we sat in the dining area, unable to move. Shower, dinner, and bed.

I was a little achy Sunday, and in one of those moods where I wasn't sure I wanted to do much of anything, but labor called. Got up and ran the push mower around for an hour taking care of the detail areas you can't get with the tractor. Yes, the sun was beating down. Then time for a little breakfast. Determined to do….something, I made good on this year's promise of taking Cara to Antique Acres for the Old Time Power Show. It did not disappoint! After that, to the car wash, then the parents' place where I caught the second half of Ghandi on AMC. Next, home to try out a pickled egg recipe and bring in the clothes off the line as the sun was setting.

The next morning, back to the grind. An 11-hour day followed by a stop at AZ to return unused parts and loan-a-tools. A sigh of relief to have that off my chest. Then the 'rents, and Fareway, and before you know it you get home and the only thing you can muster is grinding kitty litter into oil on the driveway. That, and a Digiorno pizza. Oh hell, and 45 minutes of ironing while sleeping standing up.

I can't say this summer has been a total loss. It's a different whirlwind mode this year, where even though I'm working constant OT and trying to tie up loose ends outside of work, I no longer must succomb to the whipping of the daily task list. That said, I think a little fall mini-vacation may be in order.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Strange Days

It's been odd the past week or so. Of course, there was the up and down of the drive-in screen. Spent Tuesday with the parents dismantling and salvaging a good portion of the remains. Then spent a few hours in the sun playing catch-up with grass that desperately needed mowing. The rest of the week was fairly quiet. Mostly because of late days at work and early nights in bed. After the drama and angst, I hit up the PL with Ben and Cam Thursday to blow off some steam. Still sorting out the Blazer axle, Ben and I engaged in enough automotive chat to turn Cam's stomach. Home by 11.

With a no-work-Saturday upon me, I relished in the fact that I could stay up late AND sleep in. Ran to Menards after work, then met Cara for dinner at the old Neighbor's establishment. Had a tasty bacon and cheddar burger and stopped by the parents for some books I still had over there. Home..tired and full. Went to sleep…not so late.

More of the same Saturday afternoon. Did my best to keep idle and "relax". Started off ok, but soon I found myself rolling in rust and dirt getting greasy under the blazer in the hot sun. Spun some LP's, looked cross-eyed at some technical pubs, but was mostly busy at nothing. Kept on that way until 11PM or so after putting up with enough calculations, and enough of a bad Jack Lemmon movie. Tired? Probably. Creative? Not so much. That did get me thinking about the creative process.

You might say I have a lot on my mind…two cars parked downstairs with drivetrains apart. Cold Storage 2 for this season (foundation types, roofing materials, costs). Replacing and building the drive-in. Cara's cabin. Getting the Blazer back on the road. Maintaining sanity from work. Stuff sitting around at the parents. Outstanding construction tasks. And lots of little things like taking care of the brougham title, sleuthing out a weather radio, searching out a snow plow and/or truck. Fixing the road. And all the mindless details that go into each of those. End of the day, apartment life sounds mighty good. Guess this is the price for being able to do what you want to do with minimal intrusion.

Meanwhile, vintage computing and design calls. Console sets sit, untouched. Business ventures, out of reach. It's not all negative energy, but it does a real number on the artful, creative side of things. But that I can deal with. Some of the most worry-less, simple, people I have had the 'pleasure' of knowing are not necessarily the most creative. And what about those individuals that were, but are now…not. What is the corollary?

When I worked in engineering, I could feel my soul being slowly overtaken. Same for energy. BUT, not creativity. And if a person is creative and positive, they can usually get themselves out of a lot of tight spots in life. Of course, outside circumstances were different, but I believe it was because I could counter the duldrum with my own time consuming inventions. Not quite enough time to get those ideas off the ground, but enough to package them up neatly and place them upon the shelf. A design for this. A solution for that. A small plan with beginning and end. The here and now is a different story. It's not the lack of free time that is the source of the problem as it would first appear, it's the slow attack on my intelligence. This is the conclusion I drew on Saturday. This wasn't a problem before- I wasn't dealing with idiots. But hang around a group long enough, and then tell me that your aspirations, intelligence, and attitude is not in some way affected. When meeting up for beers after work involves staring at a tv screen for 90% of the time with minimal engagement, you best put down your signature and give up. I mean, it makes sense why a major portion of the male population would rather do nothing than spend a Saturday afternoon watching sports and drinking beer, reacting only as events play out in front of them frame by frame. The trouble? I found myself equally motivation-less Saturday.
I'm going to chalk this one up to lack of sleep, but I best be careful, lest this situation consume me without further warning. Odd as it sounds, I miss the academic environment.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Yankee Brow Mopper

Wednesday, 4PM. At the PL. This is a week that won't get any shorter, even with Friday approaching (I'll likely be working Saturday anyway) plus two layoff days at work this week meaning I still have to show up for meetings.

Here's the recap... Friday night Ben and I drove over to wellsburg to pick up the bucket lift. We managed to make it to the lodge even with the rr's handiwork. Then a few well rec'd drinks at the panther before a busy Saturday.

The next morning i was up and pacing. It was hot, it was humid, but work needed to get done. Cara managed to break her tow before the construction started but she took it in good spirit. The parents showed soon and we started auguring the first 6' hole, which took some doing seeing as the extension wouldn't fit the motor shaft. Luckily I had a few spare galvanized fittings on hand and we found one that would work. Much toil and A LOT of hauling with the tractor, then the big moment. We had Ben on hand, Cam came out and even Blake and Hannah made a surprise stop in time to see if we could upright the first timber. After much consternation I continued with the bucket lift and things went off without a hitch. Plumb it, cement it, clean up and head for the smoke shack where cara, cam and i had some of the best chicken I can recall, delicious sides and even got in a few free games of pool. Sunburnt and tired, we called it an eve and got to bed with light still in the sky.

Sunday, the 'rents arrived as I was finishing auguring the initial 3' of the easternmost posthole before adding the extension. Cara , who was not doing too hot, took off to get her eye checked out leaving my dad and i to get to it. Fighting broken shear pins and the hot, wet air, finished the augor job, dragged the column into place, lifted one end onto the bucket, and then proceeded to upright and sink it into place! Cam arrived at noon in the midst of more digging and together we got the other two poles sunk and plumbed in the afternoon heat.

We broke for lunch and cool down before mixing cement, but even that went quick enough with 3 of us pouring, mixing, hauling and shoveling cement. With the job done we retreated to the lodge to meet the girls who brought pizza and breadsticks, then to the side deck to sit in the shade, have a cold one and take in a truly glorious Iowa summer afternoon, the kind that can only be appreciated in soaked shirts and jobs done.

Monday... Menards after work for more bags of cement, then an evening of mosquitos and cement mixing. Snapped a few lines and let things setup overnight.

Tuesday... Right to the bucket. Slowly but surely made my way bottom to top marking lines, fastening braces and securing the horizontal stringers every 24". Inside for dinner, then bed.

Wednesday, here i am at the PL. Tonight's agenda? Cutting 2x4's to length and attaching to the back of the stringers for rigidity. Trim the post tops...maybe paint the "extensions".

And perhaps work in a good blog-venting...