Steve Try Again

 Steve,

I think I've fixed the comment problem on "Wake, Bake, and Grow. Give it a try if you have time.

ken

Pi Day

 Today being Pi day I had to bake a pie, mincemeat of course:

 Waiting for it to cool.

ken

Jonesing for a new Tormek T1

 Sharpening my kitchen knifes on the shop Tormek is pretty easy and fast but it does take set-up time and a little skill. The new T-1 addresses both of those with the set-up of just setting the desired angle of between 8* and 22* and the skill level is even lower and mostly applies to the honing phase.

Tormek T-1:

With my shop Tormek I can sharpen most edge tools. There are a few exceptions like most Japanese chisels and I've had a love/hate relationship with it for how many years it has been in the shop. BTW that has mostly been a "hate" relationship and I've come close to selling the Tormek many times over the years. All that changed a year or so ago when I had a "flat head" moment and realized the Tormek could gave a perfect "Unicorn" edge. I just hadn't used the machine correctly. After years of preaching "freehand" I now will use the Tormek if the tool will fit in one of the Tormek jigs. It gives a better edge (Unicorn) and is damn near as fast.

The T-1 is a one trick pony but I can see that one trick being pretty handy. At $350 USD I probably will not pull the trigger but damn it sure is tempting.

 If I can find the room and figure out a way to safely transport the shop Tormek it will go to Oregon with us for the Summer. The T-1 would take care of that problem. It's good to have sharp knifes.

I'm still trying to clean and organize the shop enough to work in, not sure if it will be done in time to make anything before we leave but there is hope.

See you on down the road,

ken 

Swap Meet

 The local WoodCraft holds a parking lot swap meet several times a year. The one today was lightly attended by both vendors and buyers. If I'm in town I will show up with one of my workbenches, a knock-down shave horse, some chisels and whatever else catches my eye. I had one at least semi-serious inquire on building a horse which is encouraging because most of the time it is "What is that thing?" and when you tell them you use it to make chair legs and spindles they look at you like "wow, this is one weird dude". 

Here are some of the vendors:

My area with the portable Moravian and the Shave:

 While it was a little slow I did manage to sell a little over $300 USD of chisels and diamond plates. The chisel buyers got a hell of a deal, each chisel was sharpened when sold.

ken

Space Needed To Store a Moravian Bench

 No photos of mine stored (too much crap to move) but I was able to measure the floor space needed. My bench slab is ~21" wide with an additional 3" tool tray for a total of just under 24". The length is 70" not that it matters in reference to needed floor space. With everything apart and stored properly the whole package is a hair over 22" deep. If my math chops haven't totally deserted me, it takes just under 4 sqft of floor space to store a broken down Moravian bench.

ken

Up On The Back Side Of The Clock

 Sleep patterns can be strange, or at least different from individual to individual. I've never had a "normal" sleep need or pattern. A few hours at whatever time I feel the need works while MsBubba is more traditional. I can sleep in a LazyBoy thru strobe lights flashing and a CJ610 doing power check run-ups with no problem. Opening the door with a "nightlight" on in the hallway will wake MsBubba enough that she can't go back to sleep. 

Enough of the set up, I'm up looking at "political sites" at 0300 and being the weekend not much was new or posted so I stumbled over to You Tube and woodworking. The first thing up was "Four Things You Get Wrong" when building a work bench or something like that. Here is a link: Workbench

He has some good advice, not quite correct on a few things but overall a good video. It reminds me that I should build an English bench as well as a Scandinavian bench.

ken

Photos of the RV Bath

 Bob asked for photos of the RV's bath refurbish. They are not very interesting and it is a shame there are no "before" photos.

From the bedroom door:

From the Kitchen door:

Not a lot was done, painted where there had been wall paper, new sink and fixture, new "potty" seat. Exciting no? BTW, the step stool by the cabinet is one of a half dozen or so I made several years ago. By blind ass luck it just fits under the vanity door and along the wall. 

There are a couple of additional things to fix once the motorhome makes it to the shop. 

The RV business must be pretty good, the first open shop space is March 2nd. I tried another shop and their first opening is in April.  

See you guys on down the road,

ken

Working on the Motorhome

 Not much time for woodworking it is needed by the motorhome. The first of the week project was repair of one of the bedroom's cabinets. Up in Oregon this Summer, on one of the times the bedroom slide was cycled it pulled the bedside cabinet apart. Wasn't a way to fix it in Oregon, it had to wait until we were home. Once home my job was to either build a new cabinet or repair the old one. After pulling the old cabinet out and a little butt scratching the repair of the old one looked like the way to go. It turned out to be pretty easy other than a lot of put it back in, then pull it out trying to figure out how it worked and needed to be attached to the slide. Once the process was figured out it was an easy and quick job to finish.

Next is a bathroom refurbish, it is still ongoing but mostly complete. I'm trying to find a replacement sink but expect we will live with the old one. New water taps are waiting to be installed as is the potty seat and lid. We pulled the old wallpaper off and painted the walls a nice clean cream. The place looks pretty inviting now.

The motorhome trash can build is still to come. 

ken

Buy Your Second Motorhome First

 

Great advice, too bad it is near impossible to do for a number of reasons. One of the first is everyone is different and has different expectations and what you think you want is often different from what you learn to want and need.

One of the first considerations and often one of the first to change after using the motorhome is how big should the motorhome be. Long can give more living space but can restrict where you can park especially if you like to use State and National Parks. As an example one of the Oregon State Parks we like to use has slightly over 100 full hookup sites for 34' or less motorhomes,  Thirty (approximate number) for homes < 36', 12 for units <38', and 2 for 40 footers.

That would seem to favor 34' or less but most class A motorhomes less than 34' are difficult to drive because they do not track well. A 34' home doesn't do a great job when compared to 36'. Thirty-eight to forty foot is the drive-ability sweet spot.   

Next on how big is what you get in general. A 34' motorhome will usually have front seats that turn around (some 180 degrees, some less), a dinette for four, a couch that makes into a double bed, an okay kitchen, a bath and a queen size bed with some storage. A 36 footer will have everything the 34 footer has plus a chair/recliner in the living area. Thirty-eight feet will add another chair/recliner, slightly more kitchen and bath space and more storage. Forty feet and you get more storage and likely a makeup area in the bed room, over 40' and you may have a 1/2 bath as well as a full bath behind the bedroom.

Of course next to size the most important decisions are diesel/gas and Class A or C. The A or C decision is mostly what floats your boat. Engine in back has less engine noise than one up front. Diesel/gas has two main factors, price and systems. A diesel chassis is designed for a service life of 700,000 to 1,000,000 miles, gas chassis no so much. The price difference can be offset somewhat by buying an older diesel motorhome. The other advantage of Diesel pushers is even entry level homes have complete and robust systems vs. most of the time with gas power the systems are not as good or complete.

While age of a used motorhome can be a factor, mileage on a diesel pusher is not much of a factor as you seldom find one with more than 150,000 miles, about 15% of the bus service life. Pre-2000 motorhomes likely have dated systems, worn interiors and brittle plastic.  Newer units have better digital controls but newer than 2006 the emissions control electronics can cause major problems. BTW, my preference if I were buying my second motorhome would be a 2006 40' top of the line bus like a ForeTravel or Country Coach.

More to follow,

ken

 

Headed Back To Tucson In AM

 We are being run out of Houston by Covid. It is time to go home anyway but For the second year in a row Covid has dictated our return home.  The good news is a good WX window for the trip home unlike last time driving thru a Winter freezing rain storm.

While both MsBubba and I have had three pokes and are reasonably protected it is still something to avoid. If the nutters would also get the vaccine and wear the damn masks odds are this country would be out of the pandemic. But then if pigs could fly...

We spent 7 months of the last year living in a 34'X8' box and some way some how we are still speaking to each other. It has been enjoyable but I expect this year we will cut it back to 3 or 4 months max. The main thing is to get out of Tucson for the Summer.

I've lot of shop projects ahead. One of the first is a smaller version of the kitchen trash can for the RV. Then some cabinet work in the RV's bedroom and replacing both the bathroom and kitchen faucets.

ken

 

Don't Look Up

 By shear accident we watched "Don't Look Up" the first night it was on Netflix. I hadn't a clue what it was about, it was just the first thing that showed up when I logged into Netflix. I thought the cast was good so we selected it.

Turned out to be a "must watch" and will join "Dr. Strangelove..." as one of the most important movies of my lifetime. BTW, watched "Don't Look Up" for a second time a few days later and it was even better the second time.

ken

Passing a Kidney Stone

 The afternoon of 12/31/2021 was painful with intense lower belly pain and every time the pain peaked a tossing of cookies, soon to be just dry heaves because there was nothing left to toss. At the time we hadn't a clue why, there was a slight chance of Covid but not likely. This morning after the dust had cleared MsBubba mentioned she thought it was a kidney stone as I had passed one several years ago with the same symptoms. I expect she is correct. BTW, you really do not want to pass stones, at times the pain on the 1 to 10 scale approaches a 9. It is a good thing I do not own a pistol or I would have been tempted several times last night to eat it.

BTW, it goes just as fast as it comes. Once the stone stops moving, the sky clears and the birds are singing. 

What a way to end a shitty year. This morning is beautiful, maybe a sign we will finally rid our country of TFG, his cult will craw back under the rocks from which they came, and 2022 will be better. A guy can hope.

Happy New Year all.

See y'all on down the road,

ken

Houston for the Holidays

 We left Harris Beach and Oregon for Tucson December 1st. arriving home on 12/03. The first travel day was short, less than 300 miles mostly because once past Clear Lake, CA there wasn't a good overnight spot in a reasonable distance. The second day was over 500 miles with a RON in a rest area just past Mohave, CA on Hwy 58. Third day while long was easy with all but ninety or so miles good Freeway and smooth road. 

It was interesting how much the desert can grow in 6 months. We only had 20 days to get ready for leaving again, most of which was spent cutting trees and brush back. What a PITA. 

I did a little woodworking, if you can call it that. Some friends (Fred and Pattie) are staying in our driveway and wanted a tchotchke shelf for the back of their RV.

 Tchotchke shelf in place:

 

We have been gone from Houston for about 18 years and I know a lot can happen over that time frame but even so I'm blown away by the change every time we return. The first is just the shear distances covered, as an example: from city center to where the Grand Parkway crosses I-10 is close to 30 miles. If I remember correctly the circumference of a circle is defined as 2XPiXR. Anyway roughly the length of the the Parkway is somewhere close to 150 miles or with no traffic about 3 hours to drive around. The other is the amount of money there, as the saying goes everything is bigger in Texas.

One last thing: the last time we were in Houston the boy child came down with Covid, this time the son in law has Covid. Last time with no vaccine it ran us back home to Tucson thru a Winter storm. This time with both of us fully vaccinated we will stay for the full time planned. 

See you on down the road,

ken
 

Booster Jab

 MsBubba and I got our third  (booster) jab Friday. I have just a little soreness at the shot location. MsBubba is another story. Like her second shot only more so this one is kicking her butt. That's the bad news, the good is it will be over soon and in a couple of weeks we will be even better protected.

Short public service announcement: Get the fucking shot. It will not only save your life but could save many others. Get the fucking shot.

Next week we leave Cape Lookout and head South to Humbug Mountain State Park for October.

See you guys on down the road,

ken

Sweet Maggie Dog RIP 08/18/2021

Monday morning we could tell Maggie felt well enough to go to the beach. Once on the beach, as we walked to her favorite place, she played in the water like a puppy. Her favorite place is where the beach butts against Cape Lookout and forms deep tide pools to swim in, dig for rocks, and retrieve sticks. Which she did until her tongue was hanging out. Tuesday night she started going downhill. Here is a photo of Maggie in one of her "safe" spots Tuesday evening:

  You can just make out her gray nose in the hollowed trunk of the tree. The tree is next to the fire pit where we usually have our evening drinks. By Wednesday Morning we knew it was time and called the Vet. At the Vet's she lived up to her name to the very end.

We will miss you sweet girl, the best dog ever.

ken

Afghanistan

 I did a couple of short Afghanistan tours flying a Learjet for the UN and returned several times in the GIV when Evergreen had business there. I was on Bagram Airbase one time when we used the GIV to look at a penetration type approach to be used by our cargo 747's. 

The UN tours were early in our involvement in Afghanistan and it was reasonably safe for expats.  We could go out to eat and shop in the markets with little danger. In fact one of our pilots married a women he met there.

We lived in a house off the airport with guards and had a driver to go back and forth to the airport. The last time I talked to one of the pilots on the Afghanistan contract all the UN expats had been moved into a large dorm like compound near the airport that they never left except to go to the airport. 

This is a photo of the cook and the station manager:

    Before the U.S. invaded Afghanistan the station manager spent over a year in prison because he didn't have a proper beard. The cook, according to the station manager, fought against the Russians and was a very proficient killer.  I'm sure both are in danger now for no reason other than they worked with a U.S. company.

My bedroom was behind the door the station manager is standing in front of. My last night in Kabul was extremely cold. I was scheduled to fly out on the UN Lear to Dubai then on Lufthansa to Portland and the Truckshop to McMinnville. I forget how many time zones I crossed but it was a bunch. Anyway I had every blanket I could find on the bed and was still cold when about midnight I heard a whoosh boom just out side the wall followed but the rapid tat tat tat of small arms fire. The sounds of a firefight moved around the compound until almost daylight. Needless to say there wasn't anyway I was going to miss the morning flight out.

ken

Selfies

Fat, dumb, happy, and illegal as hell. Headed to Central America in a LearJet 25D at FL450 and not a O2 mask in sight. Click it to big it and you might be able to see MsBubba in the back. The happiest times of my aviation life were with a LRJET 25 strapped to my ass. I loved that airplane, if you thought it, the Lear did it and did it immediately. No more, no less, what a beautifully flying machine. On top of that it had enough power to peel your foreskin on takeoff. If flown correctly, the thrust levers went forward two times. First time was on takeoff with power reduction to stay under the speed limit once airborne. The second time was setting climb power once clear of the airport. Reaching FL410 you started reducing thrust to stay under MMO and from then on the trust levers would be moving back. First big reduction was leaving altitude for landing. You reduced thrust to hold a 500'/minute rate of cabin descent until reaching around FL300, at that point the thrust levers could go to flight idle and if you did it correctly (mostly only possible if flying "Life Flight") never to go forward until the wheels were on the ground. Even better you knew when you lit the fires in three hours you would be standing in front of a FBO's urinal taking a leak. That airplane was a soulmate.
 

 

 

A few years older at the Kabul War Museum with a MIG (I believe 17) in the background. Afghanistan has handed a lot of folks their ass and a good bit of their left behind military equipment is in the museum.

 A must do when in Sturgis. Not much to say other than I was there for the 69th Sturgis Motorcycle Week.

 

 

That's it for today, see you on down the road,

ken

Photos For Safe Keeping

More photos recovered from PhotoBucket. The blog is a good place for safe keeping.

Isam, our driver in Khartoum, Sudan:

Isam was not as bad as most of the Sudan drivers with saying "yes, yes I know" and then driving all over the city showing that "no, no they didn't know". Khartoum traffic was total chaos with a mix of trucks, buses, pickups, cars, a few scooters, camels,  donkeys with and without carts, and folks on rugs having afternoon tea in the middle of the road, it was wild. BTW, roads were just kinda a general path going in the direction you wanted to go. 

Cell phone store in Khartoum:
 

This was typical of most areas of Khartoum once out of the city center.  Our Khartoum flat was in the same area as the bin Laden family compound.

Buying cell phones and sim cards:

From left to right, Isam, the station manager, my F.O. John, salesman, and Frank the mechanic.

John and Frank in the lobby of the main expat hotel in Khartoum:

After I left the pilot that replaced me and John were busted for smuggling booze from Kenya into The Sudan. It worked pretty good for awhile with over a $1000 USD profit per Nairobi trip.

ken

More From PhotoBucket

Posting miscellaneous photos from PhotoBucket. 

Finial approach for landing EIOB in Sub-Saharan Africa (North Sudan) 

The street where I lived in Kubul, Afghanistan. This is one of the better neighborhoods. The fighting in Afghanistan has been going on for so long there is not a wall or building that is not scarred or pockmarked by ordinance.

Even in war zones folks still live life, sometimes guarded by a guy with an AK47. Our helpers flying a kite in the back garden of our house in Kabul.

Last for the day, UD back in Tucson sawing a dovetail:

That's all for today, see you guys on down the road.

ken

Photobucket

 Several years ago Photobucket changed their terms of service and slapped a "Photobucket" logo across the stored photos unless you paid a fee to download your photos. I figured my stored photos were lost as I refused to pay the fee. I don't know what changed but recently Photobucket is allowing the photos to be downloaded without the logo.

I've downloaded many of the stored photos. It is still a slight problem because of the extension, Gimp does not recognize the file as a photo but at least I can view the photo and even publish them. Over the next few days I will post some of the recovered photos.

Maggie in Rocky Point, Mexico asking for anybody to play her game:

Another of Mags and the Ugly Dude:

One more motorcycle photo, the bridge over the Salt River:

   

ken