One year ago today: July 29, 2022, I just cannot play guitar.
Five years ago today: July 28, 2018, Hotdog speculations.
Nine years ago today: July 28, 2014, camper pod upgrade.
Random years ago today: July 28, 2012, with a plastic fork.
Phooey, I said to the chores. It was overcast with a wind, I took the day off and spent it in the shed making too boxes. And fixing up older ones, I should really call them lockers. Listening to AM radio. Working in the front is okay except the neighbors seem to find whatever I’m doing to be more interesting than what they are up to. In the back, the only people who can bother me are the Gunsmoke guy (did I ever give him a nickname) and the hillbilly, who is now renting a spot in the barn. Can’t fool me, he’s got that lady from last Sunday up there. Hey, not my fault.
The construction is pallet slats joined by biscuits. This time, the slats were jointed as best as possible with the jointer machine, which is not set up right. The pieces are notably tighter and both the top and bottom are 3/4" to survive any bumps or falls. The hardware is salvaged cupboard hinges and a draw clasp, offset as shown here because I’ve not yet mastered making the lid cuts to fit flush after the hinges are screwed down. The stain is whatever was at the recycle bin when I was there in 2019. Gives the box a nice look from a distance.
The next box is for the brad nailer. I don’t really use this for much construction but it is handy for holding things together during glue-up. I was using Bond-Tite III™, but it is messy to work with, so I stepped down to Bond-Tite II™. It also has a slower dry time, which allows for all the mistakes I made. This box has some features that took me a while to get and I’m no master. The lid is recessed hardboard. The base is recessed but much sturdier plywood. The weight savings is so remarkable I’m certain that is why this technique is common.
The water tank got ignored and I got as far as laying out the pieces for the silo wiring. Yes, I’m putting an exterior light. It will be matched with another light over in the laundry area to give coverage of the entire north yard. Some existing wiring will have to be ripped out but there will be no shortage of thinking ahead here. Well, I mean it happens, but due to inexperience, not ineptitude, guys. Thus, today from 8:00AM to 2:00PM could be considered an ideal retirement episode for me. If I make it to my 70s, that is how I want to spend my time. The secondary character of all this is that it is the only type of work I would consider if it comes to making ends meet. I’m by no means ignoring what is happening to people’s paychecks out there. For once I believe them when they say they cannot afford both rent and groceries. It does not help to have Biden laughing in their faces. The radio was total anti-Trumpism but the bad guys have not yet realized they have made him a martyr and are driving people into his camp.
Bernina 790 Pro sewing machine.
(Around $16,000 with free shipping.)
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Here is a repair job of the air tools. It’s a box with a number of articles that I tend to take with me to Tennessee. I have a slight budget favorage (I created that term, Elliott) that I think will result in more clamps and more duplicate tools to be left in Tennessee. This year, I may be pet-sitting more as the Reb can go on extended tours when I’m around. I honestly believe the only time she does not worry about leaving the pets is when I’m in charge, which makes me happy as well. JeePee got another letter, asking to confirm some celestial calculations.
The radio reports the average American is now $400 from bankruptcy. That’s down from $800 under Trump. The stat is suspect, since nobody goes bankrupt over $400 and the figure has been repeated by that horrid Kamela woman, so it is suspect to begin with. Still, I see the struggles are catching up with people and they are squarely blaming the government. No matter what the Bidenistas try, they are bolstering Trump. Remember when this blog said the D-party was out of money and they would sooner or later have to start stealing in public.
This is what I meant. Sending billions overseas to be laundered is atrocious. They are looting the Treasury. Their system works on graft and corruption, any interruption of the money flow puts them in the crosshairs and they are beyond desperate. What do I do about it? Putter. It will be a long time before the system has me over the same barrel, so I get to putter. Here is something I’m looking at again. Book safes.
It is not as easy as they tell you. You’d think it’s a matter of drilling a pilot hole and cutting the pages centers out with a scroll saw. Wrong. The hollow books you see are likely laboriously cut out a few pages at a time by hand. Sometimes, I will make a quick version like shown here and I’ll tell you what goes wrong doing it this way. The pages move when being cut unless you somehow clamp them. And that clamp will get in the way of your scroll saw. Look more closely at this hollow from today. I needed a quick and dirty, so I was not concerned with looks and this is how they generally turn out.
The next consideration is gluing up the pages. What works best for me is to hand the book on a coat hanger into a quarter-inch deep solution of watered down glue (half & half) and let it soak a half-hour. Then clamp until bone dry to prevent the pages from wrinkling. The time involved is over an hour per book, making it uneconomical to make these for sale. I’ve thought making a template but the surest way to produce something nice is using a ruler and a sharp knife to cut through the pages a few at a time. I’ve seen the video of the guy who uses the hole saw. And to prevent sticker shock, be aware that rubber cement has tripled in price lately.
ADDENDUM
Wide awake after dark, I drove downtown to have a brew and write letters. The guitar player was an old acquaintance, I don’t do names very well. He’s been through the same Polk County sausage machine and views the local musicians with a disdain similar to my own. If you let them, they will waste your time If you don’t let them waste your time, well, you take it from there. The guy tonight is not duo-minded. He’s either solo or big band, however, he is in it for the money and that means we are rowing in the same direction.
I wrote three letters with some old lady with a name tag from Sarasota hitting on me. Stylishly dressed for a gal half her age, up close her skin was like orange peels. She says she knows me from somewhere but Plant City is the closest I’ve played “out west”. Dang, Taylor, if you really loved me, you’d keep these grandmothers off my back.
Taylor is the second most often named entertainer in this blog. Want some lame Taylor jokes, click link. I estimate she’s been mentioned in this blog around 350 times since 2003, when she was worth only $280 million. The biggest similarity between Mexico and the USA is that money does not signify intelligence. Remember how radio talk shows used to state their opinions were not investment advice? That has how expanded into two minute rapid-fire disclaimer that basically says if you are a goof, bugger off.
It contains all the gems, like you could lose money, past performance is not a guarantee, but the best has to be the caution not to invest money that might be needed for food, shelter, and medical emergencies. Incredible some people need to be told. If you’d like to chat with them, open a Twitter account.
[Author's note 2023: this date in 2012 is the page I chose to analyze why the older photos are not displaying. They are visible if opened in a new tab. My conclusion is Google is messing with the system again. They never leave well enough alone. Hopefully, the older pictures will again begin to display on their own. It could be a browser problem, who knows?]
