Thunder & Lightning is off to the proofers along with the H/O Day card and Nationals registration form. That was two weekend days of work, usually it's most of a weekend and a few evenings, so I guess I am getting faster at the editing thing. I needed a picture of something related to Nationals, so I dug up some pics from the last time we went to the Great Lakes Dragaway and found a few of Luke boiling the hides in the burnout box so he's on the cover. Plus, I got to use that phrase in my editorial.

 

WOW, Chris, what a hail that must have been. I know vinyl siding is pretty tough stuff but that was just destroyed- and the windows. Good you made it thru unscathed. As Dan said, Friday was really nice here, Saturday started out rainy- then partly sunny and warm but windy, Than Sunday rain then snow. We got about a inch. Saturday was the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Clare. Wifey and I went down and met with some other Red Cross people. Decorated a RC pickup w/ Green Irish/leprechaun/ clovers/etc. and were in the parade- I had the easy part- driving- Linda was in passenger side and refilled candy buckets while others carried the banner and gave out candy- It was fun. I kept thinking on Sunday how fortunate parade was on Sat- not Sunday. Sunday at noon was a blizzard!

 

I celebrated St. Patrick's Day purchasing two more hanging fern plants for the front porch. Big T-Storms rolled through from 1am - 4am dropping tons of rain. Surprisingly, the winds were not atrocious - no major branches/limbs down. There are numerous GBH (Great Blue Heron) in this area (as you can imagine). I believe one in particular has taken up residence at the periphery of my back yard - he's becoming accustomed to my comings/goings - doesn't leave but knows I'm there. He's been there eight hours thus far today. Tomorrow afternoon they'll insert the dental implant post.

 

New Turkish 100% Cotton Terry Cloth Bathrobe from Land's End arrived. This is replacing the exact same robe I've owned for 25 years. Twenty five years for a bathrobe isn't bad. I've always been very pleased w/ products I've purchased from Land's End.

For those interested, entire Land's End site e.g. all products are 50% OFF - ends today. Orders >$99 FREE SHIPPING.

 

Thanks for the heads up Norm-
I have some vintage Terry Cloth products in stock...stuff wears well.
Looks like consumers have set the parking brake on spending, I received an offer from the vet today...book an appointment in the next three days and receive 30%off wellness check...

The doors project turned out nice. Refreshed and clean. Good to hear you did not get the wrath of the weather system potential that moved across the country the past few days.

Chris- Those photos of your place are unreal, at least you guys were spared a worst misfortune, prayers for those that were affected across the United States. Gabe's weekend games sounded like a bunch of fun and kudos for his abilities along with the families support.

G'day Myke - Just incase you are checking in.

Greg- That parade sure sounds like a hoot, nice the town does stuff like that.

 

Keith - Thanks. So happy doors are finished. Dodge a bullet w/ the weather last night. My cousin's husband (Oshkosh) works for Lee Beverage. He's been texting me Quinness images.

 

The projects completion... Like Church and Exercise, such a good feeling we get when it is over with.
Neat connection with the savory mellow taste of the nectar of the gods

 

Isinglass Huizenblaas

 

Greg - We get some bad storms down here, but it was by far the worst hail storm I've ever witnessed. I saw pieces Silver Dollar sized that were being driven by 75mph winds, a real recipe for destruction. I count myself lucky. I'm sure you remember me mentioning the town of Arnold several times that is just 12-miles north of me. An EF2 tornado went directly thru the downtown area leveling several structures and damaging many, many structures. I think Missouri had close to 80 confirmed tornadoes on the ground that evening and I believe the death toll is over 20 now. It was a bad, bad evening!

Norm - Glad the storm that went thru your area was not too severe and that you had no damage. 👍

 

Our family tells of stories when our great, great ancestors saw a couple Wooly Mammoth levitate off the ground when a green Storm King dropped from the sky.

 

Good evening guys,

I spent the better part of my day on the phone or with a contractor dealing with insurance or getting an inspection. Here's what I got done:
- Got ahold of my home insurance company (Hartford), got assigned a Claim Specialist and filed a claim. They are sending an adjuster tomorrow between noon and 2pm to take pictures, inspect, and document the damage.

- Got ahold of the Roofing and Siding company that replaced my roof 3-years ago and the inspector was at my place at 2:30pm. Newer (2022) roof is trashed, along with gutters, fascia, and some soffits. Found another window screen damaged, in addition to the 3 other screens that were destroyed and the two broken windows. Found one of the decorative window shutters damaged that I hadn't seen previously, and at least one dimple in the double garage door I hadn't seen.

- Called the fencing company that installed our fencing. They said they were inundated with calls and would get back to me ASAP in regard to scheduling an inspection date for quote to repair.

Felt like I got a pretty good jump on it. However, I'm still sure it's gonna be a long haul because of the sheer volume of destruction in this area.

Hope everyone has a great evening.

 

Chris - What did you do the rest of the day? Will you get in a full day's work, tomorrow?

 

Norm - If I was having any more fun it would be illegal!

 

Chris - Good you have been getting the response from folks, sometimes that is more than 1/2 the battle.

 

Keith - You're right, I agree. I appreciate your support

 

Guinness? Gesundheit!

 

Zurück zu dir

 

Good afternoon guys,

Another busy but productive day.
- Got ahold of the Window and Door Company my Roof/Siding guy works with on projects like mine. They are coming out March 26th to develop the plan for the broken windows and screens.

- Got ahold of the inspector for the Fencing Company that put in our vinyl fence 3-years ago. He cannot get to me until March 31st, but at least I'm on the schedule. I went out today and did a detailed inspection of the fence and marked every broken piece with a red grease pencil.

- When my house was built, it was not "Code" to have to put Tyvek underlayment on parts of the home that are outside of the Living area, like the garage part of the home. If you look back at the pics I posted you will notice the garage has the interior plywood exposed without Tyvek wrap. I called the Roofing/Siding guy today and told him that I would like to have the parts without Tyvek tarped prior to the next potential rain event, which is looking like this coming Sunday. I also said that I would like the 2 broken windows tarped because I if we get another hail event before they get to us and the inner panes get broken I'll really be screwed. He said no problem, they'd work it in. We'll see???

My day is not done, Gabe has a band concert tonight at 7pm.

Hope everyone has had a great day and has a relaxing evening!

 

Why red?

 

I had two colors, yellow or red. The red stands out more on the white vinyl fence.

 

Chris - Finished How The Earth Was Made. What am I watching next? Deniro right?

 

Found it. Zero Day.

 

Chris, if that roofer can't do it, hie thee to home depot for some tarps and a staple gun 9/16ths staples. Save your receipts and get reimbursed by insurance.

 

Yep, that's it, I think you'll really like it.

 

Agree 100%, that was my back-up plan if he is not here by Saturday morning. Really appreciate the suggestion!

 

Hi everyone.

Walked in the door maybe 30 minutes ago. Man that's a tough trip! It was not terrific. Got to LA fine. Flight to Melbourne left 4 1/2 hours late. We flew to Brisbane because the crew was going to time out. Got to Melbourne about 7 hours late. And, my phone didn't work. Seems the out of country networks have been shut down. Couldn't tell you why. I was able to use my friend's phone to call Mom when I got there, but no texting, no phone, and limited internet if I was around a wifi connection. Very irritating. The car show was good but only about half the size of last year, because the club cut off registration too soon. Then the cops were out pulling people over for cruising. So, no cruising, no alcohol on the street, and the club took the side of the town council and told everyone to mind themselves or there'd be no show next year. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you! Plane left 2 1/2 hours late this morning, which made me miss my flight home in LA. Glad I'm home.

I'll do some catching up later. Right now I just want to crawl into bed. Chris you'll do okay with the storm. We had a storm like that several years ago, I heard that since it was so epic the State paid some/most/all(?) of the claims and everything was paid. Maybe the boys' team needed that first cup of coffee before they could really get going.

Okay have a good night everyone. I might sleep for days.

 

Mike - Welcome back.

 

x2! Sorry your flights were so jacked up both ways, it's a tough enough trip even without those issues. Glad you're home safe.

 

Well, I have to admit something I'm pretty embarrassed about, until my daughter texted me to let me know about Gabe's band concert I had forgotten he was even participating in Band, and couldn't have told you what instrument he is playing. Bad GrandPa!!! 🤕

He plays the flute. I was absolutely amazed at how well these 6th-graders sounded as a full orchestra. We had a very nice time. I'm going to pull out some of my "Tull" for Gabe to listen to and see what he thinks?

The adjuster for Hartford is coming today at 1pm.

Hope everyone has a great day!

 

Good morning everyone.

Thanks guys. I'm glad to be home. It surprises me that QANTAS was so unreliable this time around. Next year I'll be able to fly Delta and that will be heaps better, as I can check my bag through from Atlanta to Melbourne, and back.

I feel like a real person again. I'm not one that believes in jetlag but I got to bed around 12 last night and slept till 10. By myself. Uninterupted. In my own bed. And got into my own shower this morning. I like going places, and I like getting back. It does seem weird not to have my friend around.

So! Big day today. Gotta go get Tiger then go see Mom. I'm a little peeved at my sister because she didn't stay with Mom the whole time I was gone, but Mom said she didn't care and seems okay. There are several things I need to get to now that I'm back, at both houses, and errands, and it's time to start the yardwork and mowing, and, and, and... Gonna be nice today so it's a good time to get it all going.

And it's time to get going. Hope everyone has a great day.

 

Ian Anderson played the flute because he was not a great guitar player. Man could sing and was a show man though. He had a way of singing cynically I like.

 

I was always a fan of Tull's music. I never read anything about the quality of his guitar playing other than he usually played Rhythm guitar vs. Lead. I sure loved his flute solos though, and you're right about him being a showman.

 

Koda - John Batten down the hatchit's


E'llo Myke Welme whm mytite

 

Chris - I finished Zero Day last night - good mini-series. Entertaining.

Played 18 yesterday. Just looking to find a swing. Began rather poorly but finally found one. Pleasant playing conditions. Can't find my iPhone. Hoping the person I played w/ & shared a cart has it.

 

Good morning everyone.

Well here we are back at Big D. I didn't sleep at all last night so this should be an interesting morning. So far so good. Decent start to the day and everything is working and people seem motivated. And only two this week so you can't beat that.

Picked up Tiger yesterday afternoon and he was glad to be home. I was glad to see him. I'm wondering what went on while he was in jail. He's not usually real affectionate but he seemed a little clingy when I picked him up. Oh well I'll take it. I know he slept good last night.

G'day mate how you goin' !

Errands this afternoon and this weekend I need to get the mowing going big time! I think I'll go and buy a cheep gas push mower to get things started. My last one hasn't run in a couple years and I'm not very interested in getting it going. I think I have 3 or 4 like that now. The electric mower I use at Mom's is fine but the extension cord I have isn't long enough to reach the whole yard, and I'm afraid if I start putting more cords together they'll get too hot and cause a problem.

Almost breaktime. I need to go find a snack. Hope everyone has a good day.

 

Norm - Glad you enjoyed Zero Day. Crap, on misplacing your phone, I hope you find it soon!

 

Mike - Wow, you still have an electric mower that has a cord for power, how old is that thing? Have a good rest of your day!

 

hehe Chris I got this mower for Mom when she moved back home from Florida some 20 years ago. It's a Black and Decker, not fancy but it does the trick. My Dad worked for Black and Decker and when I was a kid I used a 60s version electric mower. I hated it at the time but I'd love to have it now.
Didn't know this picture would turn out so big.

I also have a rechargeable mower that has a bad battery. There is no immediate way to change the battery, so I will unassemble it and see if I can find a battery that will work. It doesn't have to be pretty. I never was very good with small engines, which is why I have so many push mowers that don't run. They can't be too hard to work on there isn't much to them. I may dig one or more out and fiddle with them.

So, I'm sensing surprise in your question? Do people not use electric mowers with cords anymore? Actually I think most people don't use anything they have a lawn service.

PS this is the mower I use now, probably will be the same big picture.

 

I have a lawn service. The guy is excellent but very, very expensive.

 

I'm alarmed Mike doesn't have several of these in his portfolio.