What's everybody doing today?

[Wingnut]

Watered and did a little work in the garden, but my back has been stiff so I'm taking it easy... too much stooping and bending again. I'm trying to get these holes dug and filled with amended soil, and I've been leaning over the different bags too much... but I wanna get it done so I'll be through with it. I'll probably just hold here today and see whether the stiff back goes away, as it sometimes does. If I had more money, some other fool would be doing this labor... used in conjunction, "if" & "had" are the two most useless words in the English language, lol. "IF ONLY I HAD..."

Reminds me of the old saw: "IF WISHES WERE HORSES, THEN BEGGARS WOULD RIDE!"

I could bust out the KLR thumper and dig holes with that big ol' Dunlop knobby, but that still leaves the soil to be mixed...

 

[snappy1]

I haven't gone to a play in years, I always loved to go!!

Me too. My dad was an actor in local plays and a singer at a night club in Tampa.

 

[Haertig]

Today (thus far) was "nerd with a computer" day.

I needed some more graph paper. This stuff has gotten expensive! I did find some reasonably priced on Amazon, but it comes in 400 sheet quantities, which is a lot more than I need. The green engineering graph paper pads I used to use in college have gotten ridiculously expensive, and I don't really need that kind of precision anymore, so just a simple grid works for me now.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QQTRNJ...olid=12OOM7YOOKUHO&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it
A lot of the graph paper on Amazon (and in other office supply stores) now seems to come in size 8x10-1/2 inches? What the heck is with that smaller size? I want normal 8-1/2x11 paper.

So I printed my own. I started out with this template:

https://www.printablepaper.net/preview/grid-portrait-letter-4-noindex
But it is only single-sided when printed, and I have a nice double-sided printer. So I doubled up the original file and made it into a two page double-sided printout. In Linux, the command to create that was "pdftk single-sided.pdf single-sided.pdf cat output double-sided.pdf". But when I printed this, I found that my printer was doing minorly jagged vertical lines. Not acceptable to a perfectionist. So I dug around in my printer menus and found some advanced options for vertical alignment fine tuning. I went through that process - twice - to get things aligned perfectly, then went on to print my graph paper. I used 20lb copier paper to print on (that is heavier than the more typical 15lb paper you find in student notebooks). Stops ink bleed thru to the second side of the page if you are using ink, and erases more easily if you are using pencil. I then used a three-hole punch to make the printed pages binder friendly. That way I can remove/insert/rearrange pages after writing them.

Now that everything is set up and aligned, future printings will be a more trivial "Open File - Set # of Copies - Print" operation.

 

[Neb]

Today (thus far) was "nerd with a computer" day.

I needed some more graph paper. This stuff has gotten expensive! I did find some reasonably priced on Amazon, but it comes in 400 sheet quantities, which is a lot more than I need. The green engineering graph paper pads I used to use in college have gotten ridiculously expensive, and I don't really need that kind of precision anymore, so just a simple grid works for me now.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QQTRNJ...olid=12OOM7YOOKUHO&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it
A lot of the graph paper on Amazon (and in other office supply stores) now seems to come in size 8x10-1/2 inches? What the heck is with that smaller size? I want normal 8-1/2x11 paper.

So I printed my own. I started out with this template:

https://www.printablepaper.net/preview/grid-portrait-letter-4-noindex
But it is only single-sided when printed, and I have a nice double-sided printer. So I doubled up the original file and made it into a two page double-sided printout. In Linux, the command to create that was "pdftk single-sided.pdf single-sided.pdf cat output double-sided.pdf". But when I printed this, I found that my printer was doing minorly jagged vertical lines. Not acceptable to a perfectionist. So I dug around in my printer menus and found some advanced options for vertical alignment fine tuning. I went through that process - twice - to get things aligned perfectly, then went on to print my graph paper. I used 20lb copier paper to print on (that is heavier than the more typical 15lb paper you find in student notebooks). Stops ink bleed thru to the second side of the page if you are using ink, and erases more easily if you are using pencil. I then used a three-hole punch to make the printed pages binder friendly. That way I can remove/insert/rearrange pages after writing them.

Now that everything is set up and aligned, future printings will be a more trivial "Open File - Set # of Copies - Print" operation.

Hah!
Made me remember cat, concatenate.

The Princess would be reciting her "do you know how much printer ink" routine if I did that. I had just load up on the numbered page engineering notebooks about a month ago.

National Brand Computation Notebook, 4 X 4 Quad, Brown, Green Paper, 11.75 x 9.25 Inches, 75 Sheets (43648) https://a.co/d/i4jbdVt

I have been using those while tutoring the eldest granddaughter in algebra. It feels more official than plain paper.

Ben

 

[Peanut]

Still unsure if I’m going to the bluegrass camp next weekend but prepping as if I were. Yesterday I dug out a 12vdc cooler. I’d bought it for some purpose years ago, haven’t used it since.

I plugged it up about noon yesterday. It stabilized at 50 degrees, no colder. I put in a freez pak. It then dropped to 41 degrees and has been holding steady 28hrs. The transformer in the plug assy is warm to the touch but not hot.

The freez pak is still mostly frozen. Looks like I’m set for the bunk house at the camp. It has power but no fridge. Meals are provided but not beverages. As long as I have plenty of water and lemonade, maybe a couple pepsi’s for caffeine, I’m set.

Still catching up on dirty dishes, only have plastic containers left to finish. Nothing but tv and a little pickin’ this evening.

rest of the day will be spent getting dad ready to go to Navy ship reunion next week. It’s in Mobile, Alabama and he’s getting anxious about flying and having to change planes in Charlotte.

Hope he has a great time! Mobile is a nice town, has strong vet presence. We lost a member, VenomJockey, a vet who lived in Mobile. Is your dad traveling alone? Give a shout if you need help down here. I have a cousin in mobile, I’m a few hours away and I can speak the dialect. Also the local vfw, etc will help out a vet if needed.

 

[Tommyice]

Hope he has a great time! Mobile is a nice town, has strong vet presence. We lost a member, VenomJockey, a vet who lived in Mobile. Is your dad traveling alone? Give a shout if you need help down here. I have a cousin in mobile, I’m a few hours away and I can speak the dialect. Also the local vfw, etc will help out a vet if needed.

Thanks, that’s very kind of you Peanut.

He’s traveling with his lady friend and will be meeting up with 20 or so shipmates. Although, he’s probably going to be only one there who served on it during Korea. Everyone else are VietNam vets. His ship, USS Tutuila was in WWII, Korea and VietNam. It’s an old Liberty ship.

He’s an American Legion member--the ‘lil toot was Atlantic fleet. He got to spend the Korean War going to Havana, Bermuda, Haiti and Gitmo.

 

[Bacpacker]

Worked in the basement some more this afternoon. Still organizing stuff. Did a small lumber inventory. dealt with the chicks. Filled up the cups with tomatos, added a bit of bone meal to the plants to boost root development and watered with a fish emulsion/water blend.
Sat of the porch after supper just relaxing with the wife and smoked a cigar.
Long busy week coming up. Nice to unwind this weekend.

 

[LadyLocust]

Yesterday I played in the dirt. Cleaned more in the summer kitchen . Hubby only caught one fish, his brother 4-5. No steelhead. They got “the good hole” had a fire, chairs, bacon, eggs, spuds, and coffee ️ and lots of good chatting.
This morning we went skiing for the last day of the season. Only skied a couple hours. It was too warm and the snow turns to mashed potatoes. Makes turning reeeally difficult. Nice though, very few people. Came home and finished getting garden beds ready. I did plant lettuce and spinach but it’s too chilly for much else.
I made a big ol’ pot of ham and beans so it was ready by the time we were hungry. Guess what’s for lunch tomorrow
Crazy storm blew through with wind and rain and now it’s sunny- must be spring.
@Spikedriver what’s Scheels?
@Peanut I really hope you can go. You’ll be disappointed if you don’t get to.

 

[Amish Heart]

Morning chores, then spent the afternoon in the small greenhouse repotting seedlings, and seeding a bit more things. Husband said he wasn't feeling well enough to go to favorite cousin's place for dinner, so it was a quiet evening with leftovers. She's called three times this evening because she missed us. Found out this afternoon that husband's uncle passed. They were close, and he's taking it hard. He was 75, and was battling cancer for a couple of years. It started in his foot of all places. Neighbor came by to invite us to the "block" party (4 miles of it, ha) ice cream social in a couple of weeks. He sponsors it every year, but skipped it last September, like it usually is. Heard some meowing in the garage, and Princess Fluffy has had kittens. Can't exactly see just how many yet. We call her Princess Fluff fa fa. Anyone who watches Jeff Dunham will get that. Little granddaughter's favorite. Socks the cat is also expecting any day now.

 

[Pearl]

Still unsure if I’m going to the bluegrass camp next weekend but prepping as if I were. Yesterday I dug out a 12vdc cooler. I’d bought it for some purpose years ago, haven’t used it since.

I plugged it up about noon yesterday. It stabilized at 50 degrees, no colder. I put in a freez pak. It then dropped to 41 degrees and has been holding steady 28hrs. The transformer in the plug assy is warm to the touch but not hot.

The freez pak is still mostly frozen. Looks like I’m set for the bunk house at the camp. It has power but no fridge. Meals are provided but not beverages. As long as I have plenty of water and lemonade, maybe a couple pepsi’s for caffeine, I’m set.

Still catching up on dirty dishes, only have plastic containers left to finish. Nothing but tv and a little pickin’ this evening.




Hope he has a great time! Mobile is a nice town, has strong vet presence. We lost a member, VenomJockey, a vet who lived in Mobile. Is your dad traveling alone? Give a shout if you need help down here. I have a cousin in mobile, I’m a few hours away and I can speak the dialect. Also the local vfw, etc will help out a vet if needed.

Plan to go, hope you get to go!!

 

[Spikedriver]

@LadyLocust Scheels is a sporting goods chain. It's like Cabela's or Bass Pro, lots of hunting and fishing stuff, but they also have equipment for biking and regular sports like golf, tennis, baseball, football, weightlifting, and so on. They tend to be a bit more pricey than some other places, but the selection is huge.

 

[LadyLocust]

Ah ha. Figured it was probably something of the sort but hadn’t heard of it. You’ll have to reschedule

 

[Weedygarden]

Watered and did a little work in the garden, but my back has been stiff so I'm taking it easy... too much stooping and bending again. I'm trying to get these holes dug and filled with amended soil, and I've been leaning over the different bags too much... but I wanna get it done so I'll be through with it. I'll probably just hold here today and see whether the stiff back goes away, as it sometimes does. If I had more money, some other fool would be doing this labor... used in conjunction, "if" & "had" are the two most useless words in the English language, lol. "IF ONLY I HAD..."

Reminds me of the old saw: "IF WISHES WERE HORSES, THEN BEGGARS WOULD RIDE!"

I could bust out the KLR thumper and dig holes with that big ol' Dunlop knobby, but that still leaves the soil to be mixed...

Bending over is tough on the back!
What kind of soil do you have? Clay? Sandy?
You may not have many leaves available in your area, but they are great for breaking up hard soil. I try to amend my soil every year when I plant. When I have had enough materials to add to one section, but not the next, I can tell a very big difference. I have also had to sieve out buckets of rocks. That has made a big difference as well.

 

[Pearl]

Bending over is tough on the back!
What kind of soil do you have? Clay? Sandy?
You may not have many leaves available in your area, but they are great for breaking up hard soil. I try to amend my soil every year when I plant. When I have had enough materials to add to one section, but not the next, I can tell a very big difference. I have also had to sieve out buckets of rocks. That has made a big difference as well.

Great point on the leaves!

 

[Pearl]

I'm going to bed, se y'all in the morning!! Not the start of a busy week tomorrow, the middle of TWO busy weeks!

 

[Weedygarden]

I haven't gone to a play in years, I always loved to go!!

I do too. I especially like to go to high school plays, but they are usually sold out. There is so much talent out there to see.

 

[Spikedriver]

I'm having a soak in the tub before I leave for Utah. I'm driving 5 1/2 hours out to Nebraska, meeting a coworker north of Grand Island. I'll leave my truck at his place and we're driving 12 hours from there to Salt Lake City. The drive will be brutal, but I'm sick of the hassle of flying. Plus, we're moving the job site to Wendover sometime during the week, and this way I don't have to hassle with trying to figure out flight times for going home. I might get home sooner by driving than by flying anyway...

 

[INresponse]

Well, as usual my post will be part yesterday and part today. Yesterday I moved around a BUNCH of clutter in the RV portion of the garage and had my neighbor come over to help me think through how I should store stuff and hang stuff on the walls. The biggest issue was what to do with the 3 sections of scaffolding. It was decided it would be best to hang it on the side wall near the back of the garage, on the side without the trailer door (drivers side if backed in). Since I have a 30 amp plug on that wall to plug in the trailer when parked I would need to keep the trailer about 2 feet away from the wall to allow me to walk down the side of the trailer so using that 1 foot of space to hang everything on the wall was not an issue. Above the scaffolding I would hang a heavy duty shelf for storage of smaller boxes and miscellaneous stuff. We then decided that hanging my ladders on the same wall would be an ideal place to keep them out of the way but still accessible when needed.
Next, it was decided that when I extend the workbench down the long portion of the wall, the opposite side of the trailer, I can store my large water jugs under the bench. My work bench currently, and the future portion, is kitchen base cabinets spaced 7 feet on center giving me about 4 1/2 feet of storage between each cabinet. The bench top is doubled 3/4" plywood 2 feet wide with the seams staggered and glued and screwed together with a 2x3 board glued and screwed to the face. Plenty strong and all solidly anchored. When I get a few more base cabinets I will extend it down the entire length of the wall and I will have plenty of room for emergency water storage. The garage is fully insulated and our winters don't get too cold here, a rare winter storm may bring temps into the teens but usually temps hold in the 20's for a night time low and normally we are above freezing during the day. A single electric oil filled radiator heater will keep the garage at 50* with no problem.
The final step we discussed was to build the 4 foot wide shelf along the top of the back wall for more storage of things I need but on rare occasions. The garage is 15 wide so 2x10's properly secured and spanned 11 feet off the floor will give me about 3 feet of space on top of that shelf. This will be an ideal space for random spare or original car parts (things that were upgraded but I still want the factory original for my old cars and truck), maybe cans of dehydrated foods, dehydrated water, and plenty of dust.

At this point we though it would be best for me to get these things completed to make more room and get a better assessment of what to do next. So, after a trip to Harbor Freight for some hangers, the scaffolding that was full of junk was cleaned off, disassembled, and hung on the wall. The shelf was hung above the scaffolding and is already full. I probably cleared over 50 square feet of floor space and it felt good to see the garage finally get some organization. Clutter from emptying out the garage in the old house before it sold a couple years ago was overwhelming, not to mention to 2 old cars parked in the garage, both of which need work to get running again. Now I am deciding which car to get running first, the old Chevelle to use as a daily driver or the Dale Earnhardt Monte Carlo I am thinking about donating for a tax write off. Time will tell, I have a few people to talk to about donating the Monte Carlo, I am hoping to turn that into sort of a big deal. Time will tell.

After working in the garage all day, and nursing a few, or several, PBR's I was showered and in bed and asleep by 10:30, but woke up at 1am unable to fall back asleep. When the sun comes up I will collect some trash out of the back yard and take it to the dump. Probably scatter some grass seed and a mixture of oats and barley seed in our grassy area for the birds and water it in properly. We will keep the birds out of this section for a few weeks to let the grass grow and get properly rooted. Fortunately most the grass in that area from last year is doing well so top dressing will help fill in the thin sections. The neighbor will stop by this afternoon to help me admire the progress made in the garage and brainstorm a bit more. Then off to work about 6pm.
Aside from that, not much going on here.

 

[Spikedriver]

0617 and the first leg of the trip to Utah is complete. Problem is, I expected some kind of SNAFU along the way, and there wasn't one. No construction, no accidents, nothing but smooth sailing. So I ended up getting here almost an hour early. Guess I'll lean back and catch a little nap. The next leg of the trip will start soon enough...

 

[sonya123]

Did a bunch of gardening yesterday before it rained. Son helped. I hope he passes his classes this semester, he seems to rather be gardening than studying. 2 of them he thinks are boring but they are required and not engineering classes ( computer programming and some financial thing) . But he was a great help. He made me a raised box for carrots. I want to try that this year to see if we can grow decent carrots that are not split or crooked or weird in some way. I added sulfur and sand to the dirt.
Also plantend fennel, another sort of difficult thing to grow here but I like cooking with it and it sells well. Plus I did some flowers ( mixed flowers and marigolds) on the edges for the bees and butterflies.
Almost forgot, I put in a bunch of snowpeas. They do grow well, and we put a cattle panel in the garden for them to grow on. Do the same with the tomatoes so they don't fall over

 

[INresponse]

and we put a cattle panel in the garden for them to grow on. Do the same with the tomatoes so they don't fall over

Growing your cattle on a panel in the garden?

Is tomato tipping a thing? I heard of cow tipping but not tomato tipping.

 

[Tommyice]

I called out sick today. Yesterday my allergies were so horrendous I must’ve gone through a whole box of tissues while at work. It’s a pain finding coverage last night but I’m glad I did so I could sleep a little later and just putter around today.

 

[Pearl]

Did a bunch of gardening yesterday before it rained. Son helped. I hope he passes his classes this semester, he seems to rather be gardening than studying. 2 of them he thinks are boring but they are required and not engineering classes ( computer programming and some financial thing) . But he was a great help. He made me a raised box for carrots. I want to try that this year to see if we can grow decent carrots that are not split or crooked or weird in some way. I added sulfur and sand to the dirt.
Also plantend fennel, another sort of difficult thing to grow here but I like cooking with it and it sells well. Plus I did some flowers ( mixed flowers and marigolds) on the edges for the bees and butterflies.
Almost forgot, I put in a bunch of snowpeas. They do grow well, and we put a cattle panel in the garden for them to grow on. Do the same with the tomatoes so they don't fall over

Cattle panels (and partial pieces) are great for vines! I use them for cucumbers.

 

[sonya123]

Growing your cattle on a panel in the garden?

Is tomato tipping a thing? I heard of cow tipping but not tomato tipping.

hahaha! Maybe we can grow some goats on there too!!

 

[sonya123]

I called out sick today. Yesterday my allergies were so horrendous I must’ve gone through a whole box of tissues while at work. It’s a pain finding coverage last night but I’m glad I did so I could sleep a little later and just putter around today.

that's the disadvantage of being a farmer with livestock , you can't call in sick even if you really are...

 

[snappy1]

Busy morning and I haven't left our little town.
Walked first to grocery store, then to drug store, then to health clinic, then back to drug store, then to mechanics. Both of our cars have been there over the weekend. DH's died Saturday and was towed there -starter. Mine has been waiting for a horn to be wired in. It was a lot of walking. DH's car is already home, mine is at mechanic's still. At home, I made low carb salmon patties and stuffed peppers (with venison and cauliflower rice).
Did 2 loads of laundry.
I'm tired!

And the play was very good! We had a blast! Definitely small town production and we sat in hard back chairs. Water was $1 a bottle and they had home baked treats and fresh popcorn at intermission! It was a lot of fun!

 

[Wingnut]

Going easy today, letting the stiffness in my back ease up and go away... seems to be working. No stoop labor today though, don't wanna aggravate whatever the problem was, I think the ol' back might have gone off after all that stooping & bending to mix soil & soil amendment from various bags. Tomorrow, I will use the wheelbarrow to mix soil, that should keep me upright so I'm not pushing my luck, lol. I'll be glad when these holes are all dug and filled with amended soil, but I reckon it's gonna take me a couple weeks to do all the planting. Meh, no big deal, not in a hurry here...

 

[Patchouli]

Airport, back home, bickered with offspring, cleaned out gutters finally, did some yard work. Virginia creeper taking over the back yard. Thinking , should move.

 

[dademoss]

Tonight I mourn for "Rocket Raccoon: He showed up a few days ago, hurt bad. He had some good food, a safe place to rest, but in the end his injuries were insurmountable. Not long ago I helped him across the rainbow bridge. He has moved to a better place

 

[zannej]

Magus! It's great to see you back!
Amish, I'm glad that the judge specified they aren't being removed or kicked out. They are simply being allowed to go where they want. I pity that couple that agreed to take them in. Unless they stay on their best behavior the entire time, I think that couple is in for a shock.
Dademoss, sorry to hear about the racoon.

Woke up to 9 cats in my room. It wasn't cold or raining. I guess they just wanted to be near me. The dogs like to hang out in here too.

Went down to the workshop to look at a plastic tub full of stuff a friend left with us when he had to move & didn't have space for it. I'd forgotten about it and suddenly remembered and was talking to him about it. I need to clear some space and have a nice clean area where I can take everything out, clean it, take pictures, send them to the friend, and figure out what he wants to keep. He already said I can give the diapers to a mutual friend. Said any baby stuff can go to her.

Arm wasn't cooperating with picking the box up at the time and I will have to vacuum it out and wipe everything down to get rid of sawdust and cobwebs. I did get the trash in my bathroom out at least.

Friend was at obgyn appointment with his gf but he said sometime this week he'll be able to help with my bathroom.