Gravel Pit

Last Sunday we had assorted activities to attend that took us out of the house for the day. I'm forgetting what exactly these activities were, but suffice it to say that it included A's rehearsal, which meant getting over to the big city. I figured it was a good chance for N and I to go to the driving range and hit some balls, but we can't do that for 3 hours, so an expanded plan was in order. N decided to bring his RC truck with him and hit the skate park, which they had just renovated and had a big celebration the day before. Unfortunately, the celebration continued onto Sunday and the place was a zoo, and when I say a zoo, I mean full of skateboarders, who can sometimes be edgy and even venture into being hoodlums. Not necessarily the kind of scene you want young kids playing in. Plus, there just wasn't any space.

So we ditched the plan for driving his truck at the park, but didn't want to pass on the opportunity to get some RC driving in, so we drove around a bit, trying to think of where to go. Near the skatepark is the place where I purchased the concrete blocks that I used for the septic tank and as I recalled, it was a pretty big lot. It makes sense because concrete blocks require concrete, and the place was like a gravel pit. We drove up there and there was nothing in terms of a gate preventing us from entering, so we went in and looked around. Sure enough there were big piles of rocks and stones that you would expect from a gravel pit, which meant a golden opportunity to ride and RC truck. The day was beautiful so I sat in the car and read my book while he climbed up a massive hill and went crazy with his vehicle. It was actually cool to watch, and he had a blast. It was the perfect setting to drive the RC truck.

Afterward we went for supper and then the driving range, but I'm glad we didn't give up on the RC truck. It just goes to show you that it's never over until it's over... whatever that means.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Stephanie Stout for the pic.

Steampunked?

Last weekend the kids went to something called a Steampunk Festival, and they had a good time even though it seemed to have evolved out of nowhere. I guess A had spoken to her buddy about it weeks back, but in the teenage mind, even 24 hours in the past is an eternity, so it was soon forgotten. The day before the big event A got a message outlining the details of the day, and needless to say we had to figure out the logistics of the event, especially since it was an all day affair.

Now call me clueless, my kids do it all the time, but I wasn't sure what Steampunk even was. I see signs and symbols for it now and then, but I'm still not clear what it is, despite repeated explanations from my kids. The event was sort of like Comic-Con in that there's a scene and people dress up in themed costumes and hang out, but it's not Comic-Con, which is a big deal. Even the Manga Festival that we attended in Boston was a big deal, filling a convention center, but I Steampunk was a bit of a mystery to me. I guess there are movies, some of which I may have even seen, that portray it.

Either way, Saturday morning we were scrambling to prepare. One of the complications was that it went from morning until evening, so meals had to be planned. Another problem was that we couldn't go at the same time as AG and AH, so that meant going down later and then trying to meet them. The final complication was that I had to work and couldn't help out. If I were free I would have actually gone to the thing. I find them interesting, at least the Manga festival was.

In the end it all worked out. The kids had a good time, though I'm not sure they were blown away by the whole thing. I almost think it's geared toward adults rather than young kids. AG, the dad who took them, seemed pretty into it, with elaborate costume et al. I'm glad the kids had a chance to go and also to hang with their buddy AH, whom they don't see that much because she goes to a different school. Plus, they got to be a part of the Steampunk scene, whatever that means.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to George for the pic.

Blade Runner

Even though I've been cutting wood for a reasonably long time, I seem to learn something new every year. I just found out that you're supposed to replace the blade of your saw every now and then, or something like every few years. I've had my saw for probably 6 years and never did this, but now I know. I did notice that the saw was acting strangely, and as anyone who's used a chainsaw knows, you don't want that. One of the biggest issues was that the chain would jam with wood chips on a regular basis, forcing me to dismantle it and clean it up. It's tedious work and it's a bummer when your rhythm gets broken, and I'm rhythmic kind of guy. It's enough of a pain that when it happens I usually call it a day.

When I was cleaning the blade I noticed that there was uneven wear on it, with the bottom being more warped than the top, which makes sense since that's the part that is in contact with the wood. I took the blade into Joe's and they said it was time for a new one. They also recommended flipping the blade over every time you change the chain so the top and bottom get even wear. What's amusing is that I'd seen people with upside down blades and thought it was kind of funny, but now it makes perfect sense.

The blade was a little expensive, but you can't be too cheap when it comes to things like chainsaws, which scare the heck out of me. Besides, not only do we get a lot of use out of the saw, but it fulfills an important role in helping me to be a real man, or at least act like one. Oh yeah, it also helps keep us warm over the winter.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Josh Maine for the pic.

Online Glasses

I updated my look and got new glasses online through Zenni Optical, and I have to say that I'm quite pleased by the whole experience. First off, I like the glasses. I've worn wire frames for years and decided to go with thicker plastic ones so as to look fabulous, hip, and contemporary, which I'm sure my kids will agree, I am the embodiment of. The problem is that glasses are so darn expensive. Even when I go to the bargain bin, they still set me back around $125, and believe me, that's cheap. Frames alone will cost you around $250, and that doesn't include lenses, which I think is crazy. When you buy the cheaper frames, however, you have to take what you can get, and it's not always ideal, to say the least.

Enter online glasses. What a great idea, though it's not without it's limitations, especially for someone with a big head like me. Granted, it's not perfect, and I've sent back glasses because they didn't look right, but it worked out in the end. There are several online glass retailers, and I went with Zenni because they had good prices and the selection wasn't half bad. The pioneer in this field is Warby Parker, but their prices are much higher.

This is how it worked: I measured my pupillary distance PD (you can figure out what this is) and from there chose some frames. They have tons of frames designed for different sized faces, and the key is to pay attention to the PD. I uploaded a pic of my face onto their site and when you choose a frame it super-imposes it onto your image. Again, it's not perfect, and it's not the same as actually trying on the frame, but it's pretty darn good, and so much cheaper. I've spent hours trying on frames at the optometrist's office and gotten nowhere, so I was ready for something different. Plus, Zenni will give you 100% credit for returned glasses, or some percentage for a cash refund.

I purchased a couple of frames and returned them before finally finding ones that I liked. What's crazy is that for a pair of standard no-frills glasses, the lenses are free. I paid about $30 for mine, and they include a scratch proof coating. You can get different add-ons like glare reduction or even a tint (I bought sunglasses, too), for around $3-4. Bifocals, which I think are a complete waste of time, cost more.

In the end, I am all for online glasses. A few months back I forgot my glasses and had to use my backup pair that I keep in the car, but the prescription was old and I could barely see. I ended up driving without glasses, which wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It was then that I decided to get backups, but to put new lenses on the old frames would cost about $100. If figured for backups, why not just buy them online for $30? Here's another crazy thing - a screw came off one of the arms of my new glasses so I contacted Zenni to request one and they offered to send me a completely new frame. I declined and ended up going to the optician in town, who gave me a screw for free, but that's pretty good customer service, even if it's wasteful.

This is so much fun I may have to get another pair... then again, maybe not. Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to mixture-photographique for the pic.

Longboard

Among N's various projects, and believe me he's got a few, is making a longboard skateboard. This is a pretty ambitious project but I think it is very cool and one he should pursue, and I'll help him in any way I can. I'm actually curious to see where it goes because he literally wants to make it from scratch. This entails making the deck, which is akin to manufacturing his own plywood sheets, which is something I personally have never done and didn't even know was possible by the general public, but possible it is.

The first order of business was obtaining the wood, which was not as straightforward as you might think. If you've ever seen a longboard it's not a flat piece of wood but has bends in various places. I think the material of choice is plywood, but to get that distinctive shape it needs to be tweaked, and it seems like the best way to do that is with thin pieces laid over one another during the bending process. This, in my opinion, is a seemingly industrial process, but apparently it can be done. There are YouTube videos explaining how.

Whatever be the case, we are in search of the wood. The plan is to find sheets of wood as thin as possible, which means about 1/8 of an inch, and we found some at Home Depot but like much of the wood you get there, it's not the best quality. I've been told 1/8 Baltic Birch is the stuff to get, so the search continues. We may have to pay a visit to Baker Lumber, which specializes in hardwoods, though it's not always cheap. Then again, nobody said this process was going to be cheap.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to NoelleSkrobola for the pic.

Winter Prep

I know it's still barely fall but the weather has gotten cooler fairly abruptly and it's a strong reminder that preparations are in order for the coming winter. This of course means staying warm during the frigid winter months, and as much as I like the cold, it does take some getting used to after summer. I'm not completely ready to give up on wearing shorts, though it's about that time.

Though I'm not sure why I'm so OCD about this, especially since there are plenty of other projects that deserve my attention, but my goal is to get the year 2 wood pile done, and I'd say I'm about 65% done. We have a pretty good sized pile of uncut logs leftover and I thought I would just leave them as is over the winter but it's looking like I'm going to have to cut a fair number of them to reach my goal. The other day I split what I thought to be a massive pile of wood but when I stacked said pile it barely made a dent in our supply. What a bummer.

On a brighter note, I cleaned the chimney so we're good to go with burning, and we are all set with kindling, which I powered through when mom was away. It makes an incredible mess in the basement so it's best to get it done before she can witness the chaos. We have a healthy pile of fat logs going, and I even managed to stack a couple of small loads of emergency wood which comes in handy on those miserable stormy nights when the wood box is empty and the last thing you want to do is go out to the woodpile, in the dark, and fill it up.

So all in all things aren't looking too bad considering that it's late September. I'm hoping to finish year 2 so I can direct my OCD at something else, but for now I'll keep attacking that pile of logs.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Rick Payette for the pic.

Why Did the Turtle Cross the Road?

To torment me, of course. I was heading off to work the other day and had to swerve to avoid this fairly large turtle crossing the road, or should I say standing in the middle of the road, not really moving. Being the good samaritan that I am, I naturally stopped to help the thing along. This is not the first time this has happened, we've stopped to help turtles get out of dangers way in the past, except previously the turtles were small. This one was big, and for whatever reason was just standing there.

I went to pick the thing up and that only seemed to piss him off, because he started rearing his head and jerking his body, hissing all the time while clearly trying to bite me. Needless to say all my real-man training went out the window and I dropped the beast, though I'd only managed to lift him a couple of inches off the ground so his fall wasn't that bad. Gathering up my courage and wanting to help out, I tried again with the same result; the thing was vicious and clearly wanted to be left alone. I tried to encourage him along the road but seeing me as a threat he wasn't going anywhere, so I decided that the best action was no action and left him alone.

As I was driving off, however, I couldn't really bear the thought of a crushed turtle sitting on the road, so I went back for one last try and saw that he had disappeared. I was relieved on many levels, but mostly that he was (hopefully) out of harm's way. I was also relieved that I was out of harm's way and didn't have to deal with the thing.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Nancy Witthun for the pic.