Veterans Day

Michael Jackson

I'm tired of hearing about Michael Jackson, his strange life, his spiral into near-lunacy, the charges of child molestation, his death, and FINALLY the last gasp of the trial of his doctor.  I'm glad it's over.

I am not big into "celebrity".

But I recognize talent.  Michael Jackson was probably the most multi-talented entertainer I have ever seen.  He could dance better than Fred Astaire and Elvis Presley combined, he could sing with a breathless passion, and he produced songs (so far as I know) of an originality slightly beyond the Beatles or Bob Dylan.  The Moonwalk, Billy Jean, and Thriller amaze me to this day almost 30 years later.  But that WAS almost 30 years ago.

I regret the curse of great riches that happens to some people.  As it did Michael Jackson.  Some people can handle money, some can't.  Jackson couldn't.  I wish he could have stayed "merely wealthy".  At some level of income that would have have made his life great but not overpowering.

I couldn't like him in his last 20 years.  He just became too weird.  He "lost touch".  We will probably never really know what drove him down his own personal rabbit hole, and I regret it happened, as I would regret it happened to the poor and average among us.  But it happened. 

I an reminded of a question in a Philosophy class.  "Your very good tennis partner is accused and acquitted of child porn.  What do you do?"

My answer was "play tennis, but not allow him to babysit the kids".  I gave reasons, of course; it was an essay question. But that was the the core of the answer.

In the same way, I admire Billy Jean and Thriller, etc, but I am vaguely glad that he is gone...  And with the trial of his "doctor" over and done, I hope to never hear his name again on TV.

Computer Scare

I have a confession.  I am hard on inanimate objects when I get angry.  I have punched holes in walls, in hollow doors, and I have been known to throw things.  There are reasons why some people live alone...

Don't worry, I never take out anger on people or pets.  I also play online computer games with other people.  That's not really a good combination.

I thought I had ruined my computer last night.  I was playing Risk and had won 3 games in a row, and reached a level where I was playing a real expert.  I had him on the ropes when suddenly I couldn't make any moves.  After 3 turns of complete frustration, I threw the wireless mouse at the wall.  It broke apart quite satisfactorily...

I had an older wired mouse to replace it.  I still couldn't make any moves.  The keyboard went next, then the wineglass (which had only ginger ale).  So I shut off the computer.  I spent the next hour on my hands and knees carefully collecting bits of glass in a small wastebasket so the cats wouldn't step on them.  That was penance... 

This morning, I set about reconstructing the computer...  The wireless mouse went back together well, the keyboard  was plugged in...  Nothing.  I tried an older keyboard.  The only problem with it was a "B" key, so it should have at least worked otherwise.  I tried an older wired mouse that would only scroll up.  That didn't work either.  I checked the monitor for power, it had it.  Rebooting my Mac-Mini, I could hear the power-up sound.  The monitor would come on with the "no signal" graphic normal at start up.  I was baffled.  I tried every combination I could think of.

I worried about what scheduled blog posts said that I meant to edit.  I worried about emails I wasn't receiving.  I worried about what I was missing on the CB... 

I was so annoyed that I ate dinner early because I didn't have anything else to do.

I kept going at it all night.  I am not skilled at computers, but I am analytical and persistent.

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The monitor connection to the computer had come loose...

All is well.  The wireless mouse still works, the keyboard still works, the computer still works.  Meanwhile, I feel pretty stupid...  Throwing things at walls never accomplishes anything useful.

Unhappy Halloween

This may sound strange.  I don't like Halloween.  I used to.  I used to carve pumpkins and stay by the front door to give out candy and admire costumes.

But about 6 years ago, no kids came to the door (or my neighbor's) and after a couple years of that, I just stopped trying.  I don't eat candy, so I had to throw it away after the holiday.  I started just ignoring Halloween.

To avoid an odd single trick-or-treater disturbing the evening meal, I started just blacking out the windows and turning the room lights off to signal I wasn't participating.

Until THIS year!  I read in the local newspaper that sex offenders in many places were REQUIRED to do what I was doing.  Turn out the lights, not give out candy...  Oh GREAT, if I DON'T give out candy and participate, I will be viewed as a sex offender by some neighbor, and you know how rumors spread...

I batted that back and forth all day in my head, and I hate to say that I caved!

I worry about rumors.  I'm an aging (61) single guy; the modern version of aging females considered witches in the older days.  So I rushed out to buy candy, kept all the house lights on, ate dinner early, and waited for trick-or-treaters.  None came.  Well, the cats were happy, they HATE the doorbell!

And you know what I noticed at prime trick-or-treating time?  Half the houses on my street were dark!  Either I live in a very BAD neighborhood, or THEY weren't worried about appearances...   So a good lesson about appearances. 

Now WHAT do I do with a year's supply of Hershey Hugs...?

Happy Halloween!

Mulch

So I was shoveling the mulch out of the trailer.  Here are pictures...

First step. shoveling the mulch away from the back so I can remove the back of the trailer...

Half done...

3/4...

 The pile off the trailer...

The mosquitos got too fierce.  I had to stop. The only good thing about the skeeters this time of year is that they are slow.  Still, I got 8 bites.  It was that they were around my face that made it hard.

Really, it was harder than it looks...  It was close to like chopping ice off the driveway...

A Neat Trick

My most immediate outdoors project is emptying the trailerload of mulch.  And I made good progress at it today (about 2/3 emptied - pictures another time).  Unfortunately, the mulch is packed down by rain and weight and it has to be broken loose in chunks even using a mulching fork.  That was a bit of work.

So I took a breather every 15 minutes and walked around the yard a bit, which is semi-forest and lots of field weeds.  Guess what, those triangular sticky-seed plants are in full seed!  I can never remember the name of the plant and I never remember what it looks like, but if they grow where you live, you know the seeds.  By the time I was done with the mulch for the day, my pants were coated with 100s of them.  I HATE picking those stupid seeds off.  I even considered just trashing the pants (they ARE old).

But I had a thought.  I have a hand vac with a rotating brush head.  Spreading the pants out flat on the floor, I tried the vac.  It worked beautifully.  In about 3 minutes, they were completely cleaned of sticky-seeds!!!

Give it a try.  Just remember not to empty the collection bag outside where the seeds will sprout...  LOL!

Sometimes I am REALLY Dense

Recently, I posted about my frustrations in trying to repair the drip irrigation hoses.  I had 4 of them mounted to a 4 gang valve on a 12" post.  Two winters ago, the heavy snow broke the drip hoses off the couplings at the gang valve.  I became obsessed trying to find an internal connection (like a stent, I suppose) to reattach the hoses to the couplings.  I wasn't having any luck, because I needed 7/16" tubing and couldn't find that size anywhere.

One person, seybernetx, suggested standard garden hose repair kits.  I dismissed the idea because, well, it wasn't a standard garden hose.  Have you ever dismissed an idea because it didn't fit the way you were thinking of a problem?  Yeah, me too!

Well, I was walking past the broken drip hoses today, and the old LIGHT BULB OVER THE HEAD lit up!  A hose is a hose is a hose...  WHY was I caring about the existing brass hose couplings?  A standard hose repair kit would work just fine.  I had simply assumed the drip hoses were some odd size that wouldn't work with standard hose repair kits!

Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb!!!

The hard part is that I am usually quite resourceful about fixing things, using odd unrelated objects to make repairs... I guess this is one of the top 10 list of THINGS I FLUBBED!  I even had one of the right size repair kits sitting around.  It worked just fine.  I just need 3 more from the hardware store tomorrow.

Thank you, seybernetx.  And my cats say "hello" to your cats...

Outdoor Fall Projects

Well, it is raining again today.  It must be the rainiest Sept/Oct I have experienced.  And that has exploded the mosquito population.  Even with deet on my arms and neck, they swarm around my face.  They are pretty desperate.  Probably because there are so many of them and so few victims outside in suburbia.  Really, when I was young, all kids were outside from dawn to dusk except during school.  Now, hardly a kid is outside.

And with more pets being cats, and kept indoors, less pets for the skeeters to feed on.  I am considering getting my hunting garb mosquito netting headgear out...  That may seem extreme, but when the skeeters are biting your face, its not!

I haven't been doing too much outside the past week.  The inside of the house needed a lot of cleaning and organizing.  And I have that trail-load of mulch to empty...

Project 1 - Empty the trailer of mulch.
Project 2 - Deadhead all the perennial flowers of flowerstems and hang them up for the finches to eat the seeds.
Project 3 - Deepen the drainage ditch from the patio and install real perforated drainage pipe to the downslope area.
Project 4 - Clean the patio of silt and debris.
Project 5 - Protect the patio from rain from the deck above.  My idea is to put plastic on the deck and then cover it with outdoor carpet.  I plan to rebuild the 20 year old deck in a year or two, so it is a temporary measure.  The deck has given its expected lifetime.
Project 6 - Kill the ivy that has taken over the ridge in the backyard.  Too awkward to mow, but I cant till it down and spread the soil until the ivy is all dead.  The vines wrap around the tiller tines.

THAT should keep me busy for awhile!  And I'll try for pictures...

Crazy Neighbors

Well, I stayed up all night playing Risk and Hearts online, and I heard a familiar scream out the window.  The neighbors across the street were at it again.  Usually the Fat Idiot Guy (FIG) is ranting and screaming at the woman. 

Ofentimes, this results in him peeling the car backwards out of the driveway, then peeling rubber down the street out of the neigborhood.  She sometimes runs in front of the car.  He USED to STOP.

Its gotten worse lately and I have been very worried about her safety.  And recently, there has been a child involved in the fight.  FIG suddenly likes to take the infant with him in the car.  Driving away recklessly.

This morning, FIG took off again. with infant, and the woman stood there screaming.  I have intervened before with threats of "calling the cops".  I have spoken to the renters there (there are at least 2 couples, I think).  Its hard to tell. 

But this time I asked the woman (18? 21?) if she needed help.  She asked my to call the police.  I did.

They were there in 5 minutes.  Two County and two State cars.  I explained that I had called on her behalf, and backed off so they could talk to her.  One cop stayed aside , and I gave him a brief background on the problems of the past year.

He talked to the woman for about 20 minutes, giving her advice and explaining the limitations (FIG IS the child's father, so it isn't kidnapping).  I lent her my cordless phone to call friends for a safe haven.  I was amazed the phone worked outside like that, but it did. 

After overhearing that she needed to file legal papers at the County Courthouse10 miles away (and knowing she had no car), I offerred to drive her there if her friends/family couldn't.  I'll bring a book if asked to drive.  Paperwork takes time.

But I just couldn't continue to hear her screaming in mental agony every week.  Yes, maybe I should have acted more forcibly before.  But it is difficult to know the dynamics of bad relationships.  I have acted before in other places and been told  (rather forcibly) to "BUTT OUT".  But I guess I judged this one correctly.

I did not know before this that there was physical violence involved.  It was all yelling and screaming before.  But she had blood on her nose (interestingly, she was not aware of that).  That shows how bad things can get behind closed doors. 

I'm glad I called the police, I think she is going to get some legal help and it is now "on the record".

On the other hand, this FIG is a real looney tunes type.  If someone bangs on my door, I will answer through the computer room window.  That's safe.  If it's the woman, I will drive her to a safe house or legal place of her choice.  If its the FIG, well, I have a real Gladius propped by the front door and another at the top of the stairs for self-protection.  He IS the kind of person who would beat down a door and attack. 

Sorry to bother you all with this, but I have to write sometimes to get things straight and put disturbing events in print.  Some good news.  A car pulled into the driveway a few minutes ago.  It wasn't FIG.  It was her dad. (Well, I went out and asked)  He came by to help her pack some things and bring her home for some shelter for a while.  I offerred any help I could give.

*SIGH*

BTW, the cats didn't know the earthquake was coming, but they DID know the neighbor screams were going to start before I did.  They went all poofed and UTB about 3 seconds before I heard the first yells.  Good for them.


(Very Tired) Mark

Garden Watering Stand

I like to keep the garden watered, but it's boring.  It's wasteful to use an oscillating sprinkler on the raised veggie beds because of the walkways between them, and the flowerbeds are too narrow for one.  It is too boring to just stand there and water all the beds by hand.  I have drip irrigation hoses, but they all broke off at the raised brass couplings under the weight of the snow 2 winters ago (haven't quite figured out how to repair them).

I had developed a rather convenient way to water them all a patch at a time using a fat hose nozzle and a spading fork.  I stabbed the fork in the ground abut 10' away and nestled the fat hose nozzle (shower setting) in the fork's D handle.  But that required getting the garden fork firmly in the ground at each 6' section or raised bed.  Naturally, if I needed to water the beds, the lawn soil was rather hard to penetrate with the fork.

I needed a better way.  My first thought was a pole with a clamp on top and a flat "X" at the bottom with spikes to "step" into the lawn.  I couldn't find any parts like that, and I'm not a welder.  Then I looked at my camera tripod.  It looked a bit flimsy, needed some kind of attachment at the top, and I wasn't sure how waterproof it was.  But a tripod seemed the way to go.

I built one using pressure treated wood and stainless steel hardware.  The PT wood is 2x2"deck balusters. The tripod is designed with 1 forward and 2 back legs.  It is 2 back legs to resist the backwards force of the water and the weight of the hose.

The balusters come with pointed ends.  I wanted the points for the bottoms, but I wanted flat tops to attach a nozzle platform.  So I cut off the tops of each of the 3 balusters.  Then I cut 3" off the 2 back legs to use to widen the attachment surface.  Two pieces of scrap wood added some width.  It was all glued and screwed to the front leg.

Next, I used a tapering jig on the tablesaw to cut angles for the 2 back legs to attach to the front leg.  They are shorter because I used 3" to make the top attachment surfaces, but also because the front needs to be longer to create an upwards angle for the nozzle platform.  That will make more sense in the last pictures.  I can't give an exact angle for the cut (I really just overlayed one on the other and eyeballed the "right" spread).  It looks about 30 degrees though.

I needed to drill a hole through the 3 legs for an axle bolt.  I rigged up some stops and supports on my drill press for the 2 angled back legs.  The front leg just needed a spacer to account for the platform support.

It looks like this when the bolt and nut is put through all 3 legs.   This holds the legs all at the angles.  But I also wanted to be able to store it easily for the winter.  That meant being able to collapse it.  So I took the back legs back to the drill press and lifted them up slightly to angle the holes. 

I may not be explaining that well.  To store it, I wanted the 3 legs to compress flat to each other, and the lengthened hole allowed that.  And so that the bolthead and wing nut (for tightening securely on a flat surface, I used a forstener bit to make an angled hole the size of the flat washers.  I don't have a picture of that, but it will be obvious when/if you make one of these yourself.

Notes:  1, The washers between the legs were removed later.  I realized I DIDN'T want the legs to slide easily when being set up.  2,  The spacer washers below the wing nut are there because the wing nut catches on the wood before the bolt is tight.  3, Use a bolt with threads the whole length.  The bolts with about 1" of threads don't have enough thread length.

Here is the tripod in the storage position.  That's what I mean by "compressing flat" and why the back legs have elongated holes. 

Here is the tripod set up, minus the hose nozzle platform on top...  You can see that with the front leg longer, it creates an upwards angle.

Here is the finished tripod.  A piece of PT board is glued an screwed to the platform support on the front leg (the screws are countersunk under the wand nozzle).  Copper clamp-downs hold the wand in place with pan-head exterior screws.  A wand nozzle is much easier to attach than a standard nozzle.  The wand, BTW, has the most uniform spray of any nozzle I have ever tried.  This brand is Melcor; others may be just as good.

To relieve hose-weight pressure on the wand, I attached an angled  hose connector.  I have quick-connect attachments on all my hoses and attachments.

And here is the watering tripod in action!  Adjusting the angle of the front leg easily adjusts the angle of spray.

It's easy to move from spot to spot, stores nicely, and should last decades!