Chipper lives, armoire first round cut.

I went out for a walk on Friday after I wrote the last post.  It was nice, everything is in bloom.

After work, I went and picked up some TV tables.  I was intending to bring them down for Jess and Heather, but I think I might keep these.  They are nice and match the aesthetics of my house very nicely.  

Saturday got a late start because of rain, but I did start getting the boards shaved down for the cap.  I shaved my 2x3s down to 1x2 actual size.  Mostly so they fit better.  Pro tip though, running the planer on the tailgate of the truck was a mistake.  

I ended up fishing my big sawhorses out of the back yard (thankfully without sinking into the swamp), and putting a pallet across them.  It worked better than expected, and eliminates the possibility of the planer flinging something through the side of my truck, which would make me rather sad.

I then needed to clear out from underneath the cap.  The main thing under there was the chipper.  So I put the oil in and got it fired up.  It lives.  This is the first branch ever run through it.  It was close to the limit of the chipper, around 2.5".  It bogged a bit more than I would have liked (I worry about 3" actual stuff), but it handled it just fine.    

It made a big mess though. When I ran a few more I put a bin to "catch" the chips and it still made a mess.  Oh well.  

I ran a handful of sticks through it, and then parts started falling off.  Not a great start for DR.  

I managed to find both nuts thankfully (and surprisingly to be honest).  They are nylon lock nuts, but there are no threads cut into the nylon, so it wasn't installed properly at the factory.  Easy enough to fix though.

My work outdoors got cut short courtesy of a large green blob headed right for me on the radar.  

I went and grabbed pizza for dinner.  I didn't set a record for number of miles on a tank, but this is really close, and if I ran it all the way down (I still had a few gallons left), it would have, the gas light wasn't on yet when I filled it up.

Sunday was kind of a lazy day.  It was surprisingly chilly, but I still got a few things done.  I went and picked up some cabinets for Jess and Heather, and when I got back I got the cap marked and ready to drill.  Apparently I left all my roofing screws (I want screws with gaskets) in KY though, so I will need to pick up some more.

I also went and got the board I had marked all cut up.  

This is the back panel, so it is roughly the size that the armoire will be, and this is roughly where it will live longer term.  

I haven't marked the other panel yet.  Dad reminded me though that I never got the power auger fixed.  He wanted me to bring it to Barry to see if he had a replacement carburetor.  So I disassembled it.

It clearly had a leak, but it wasn't from the carb.  It looks like the o-ring on the bottom of the air intake. 

 Current To-do:

• Design deck
• Build deck
• Build armoire.
• Install whole house filter.
• Refurb cap
• Access panel upgrades in master closet
• Back yard drainage.
• Insulate the water lines
• Take scrap metal to Buffum
• Close up tiny home.  Seal up plumbing.
• Storm doors

Nice week.

I didn't get much done this week, I spent a lot of it outside.  It was pretty nice most of the week, and I went out a couple of times instead of doing work.  I have noticed though that even my lot is turning green, despite the snow we had a week ago.  

I also went and picked up a couple end tables.  I have a lot of stuff to bring down with me on my next trip.  The table is behind the white shelves, and there are more chairs and another end table off the right side. I hope it all fits in my truck.  

I rearranged a little bit to get the armoire laid out.  I got the first sheet of plywood mostly marked.  I am hoping to finish the armoire this weekend, though that might be ambitious since the temperature will be a little on the cold side for finishing.  I at least want to get the parts cut though since the plywood is really in the way.

So the big projects for the weekend are the armoire and the cap.  With a little luck, I hope to at least have the 2x3 side reinforcement attached.  It isn't really winter anymore, so I have combined the lists.  I have removed the cabinet upgrades since I have done the most important ones.  There are some that would be nice, but I will do them as I need the space.  

  

Current To-do:

• Winter projects: 
• Design deck
• Build deck
• Build armoire.
• Install whole house filter.
• Refurb cap
• Access panel upgrades in master closet
• Back yard drainage.
• Insulate the water lines
• Take scrap metal to Buffum
• Close up tiny home.  Seal up plumbing.
• Storm doors

Wet weekend. Short update.

I had a pretty quiet weekend.  I did some thinking on the back deck.  I was looking at the merits of just pouring a concrete slab, but I am still not sure how I could make that work.  The back yard isn't level, and I can't dig at the higher side.  The only way I can see is to either pour the concrete at an angle (so it is sloped), but I worry about how much slope there would be.  I don't think I would want more than a 1/12 pitch, since even at that you can feel it when you walk.  So I think I am locked into a deck, despite the tax and construction implications.  I still need to put gravel and stuff down to manage the water underneath, or build the deck so that it catches the water and puts it in the drain I will be installing.  So I am still back at building a deck at any rate.  It just means a lot of work, and requires I do more research to make sure it is strong enough to hold a hot tub.

I dodged the rain and picked up a couple of things for my sisters this weekend though.  Saturday I went and picked up a little set of shelves.  I need to reattach the top though, it looks like a couple of the cams fell out.  Finding my spare cams will take longer than fixing it.

Sunday morning was nice, at least until lunchtime.  So I went out and picked up a table.  The table is an Ethan Allen, and while I wouldn't buy one (they are too expensive), they aren't bad.  

I also spent some time reorganizing things in the house.  I got all the stuff I have picked up moved into the third room that I am bringing down.  This frees up enough floor space that I can lay out the plywood for the armoire so I can hopefully get that marked and cut this week.  

Current To-do:

• Winter projects: 
• All the cabinet upgrades (bathroom, pantry, and kitchen)
• Design deck
• Build armoire.
• Install whole house filter.
• Refurb cap
• Shelving upgrades in master closet.
• Access panel upgrades in master closet
• Install cube organizer in living room.
• 2024 Projects:
• Back yard drainage.  Complete Mortgage.
• Insulate the water lines
• Take scrap metal to Buffum
• Close up tiny home.  Seal up plumbing.
• Deck
• Entertainment center
• Storm door

Short kind of boring update.

Not too much has been exciting this week.  Work has sucked a little worse than normal, but oh well.  I don't know why it wouldn't upload them in the last post, but these are the freebies that my computer repeatedly failed to upload.  

My snow is pretty much gone.  One day and my snow all but disappeared.  This was taken Tuesday when I got home.  

I had a casualty.  My George Foreman is now dead.  One of the heating elements burned out in it.  

Most of the week thus far (and will continue tonight) is just catching up on cleaning.  I cleaned up the white shelving I picked up last week.  It is now clean enough to be moved further inside.

I found some more cheap excavators to look at, and they offer delivery too, so I won't have to rent a trailer and drive a ways to pick it up.  I think the excavator is a superior option to a 3-point backhoe.

Current To-do:

• Winter projects: 
• All the cabinet upgrades (bathroom, pantry, and kitchen)
• Design deck
• Build armoire.
• Install whole house filter.
• Refurb cap
• Shelving upgrades in master closet.
• Access panel upgrades in master closet
• Install cube organizer in living room.
• 2024 Projects:
• Back yard drainage.  Complete Mortgage.
• Insulate the water lines
• Take scrap metal to Buffum
• Close up tiny home.  Seal up plumbing.
• Deck
• Entertainment center
• Storm door

Eclipse camping.

I finally got my power back Friday evening.  The first thing I did was set up the UPS I had been slacking off on getting installed, so my internet should stay alive in future power failures.

I also went and picked up a cabinet.  It is big and surprisingly heavy.  If Jess or Heather want it, they can have it, but otherwise I will put it in one of side rooms.  It needs cleaning.

Annoyingly when I was walking it through the door, it apparently tore the fake linoleum for the entryway.  I will try to fix it at some point.  

I did get some freebies with it though.  

<Insert picture when computer is less stupid>

I have been thinking of changing the layout of the house a bit.  When Uncle came out, I ended up putting the futon in the gym because I couldn't open it up in the project room.  The only gym equipment I have is an elliptical and bike, and a couple dumbbells.  I think I might put those in the living room behind the couch, and make the second room a guest room and outdoor equipment room, and make the third room a project room.

Saturday I went over to Mike Kelley's campground for the weekend and the eclipse.  I took the scenic route across Vermont.  It was a very pretty drive. , though I took a more scenic route.

His campground is right across the road from Lake Champlain.

It has been a long while since I last used my tent, but everything went up without a hitch.  I had to jerry-rig the electric a bit, since my extension cord I brought wasn't quite long enough.  It all worked fine though.

After catching up with Mike Kelley, I went on a bit of a nostalgia tour on Sunday.  Went to Hicks (though there isn't much going on this time of year), drove through Argyle, and so on.  I got Dog Shack for (late) lunch on my way back.

Sunset over Lake Champlain.

Monday was the eclipse.  We had some very minor cloud cover, but it wasn't bad.

My phone was pretty bad at taking pictures, it seemed like the light sensor in it wasn't up to the task of what I was asking it to do, and it didn't have enough exposure adjustment to make up for it.  I did get a couple though.

Mike Kelley tried using a welding helmet.  It kinda worked.

He also taped some glasses over his iPhone.  That took some decent shots.

Totality.

I started to take a video with my phone right as totality started, but decided against it (I wanted the phone for actual pictures).  Despite being short, it looks neat so I didn't just delete it.

I also set up my GoPro to take a time lapse, but I haven't gone through the photos yet.  When I do I will set up a photo album.  I am moving away from Google Photos (they have been screwing me at every turn), so I will need to set up a new thing and it might take a few days. 

I made two bets on the drive home.  Neither turned out.  I waited until about 7:30PM to leave, hoping the worst traffic would be over by then.  I also took a back roads type route which was a disaster.  I have a theory on the route: there is no cell coverage in a large chunk of Vermont, so Google Maps never realized that the traffic there was a disaster (even when I was in a 3 mile traffic jam I looked at the traffic when I got out of it and had signal again, and it said it was fine), and thus it kept sending cars on that route to avoid the traffic quagmire that was the main route.

I got home at 2AM and immediately crashed, I didn't even empty out the truck.  On my way in this morning though, I am happy to note that my snow is largely melted off, and I am down to about 70% coverage.  This week's system is still supposed to be all rain, so I it should go quickly unless the weatherman lied again as is their way.

At this point, I think most of this week will be cleaning up, the house is a disaster.  It is supposed to rain, so I probably won't do too much on the cap.  I need to make a decision on the excavator though.

Current To-do:

• Winter projects: 
• All the cabinet upgrades (bathroom, pantry, and kitchen)
• Design deck
• Build armoire.
• Install whole house filter.
• Refurb cap
• Shelving upgrades in master closet.
• Access panel upgrades in master closet
• Install cube organizer in living room.
• 2024 Projects:
• Back yard drainage.  Complete Mortgage.
• Insulate the water lines
• Take scrap metal to Buffum
• Close up tiny home.  Seal up plumbing.
• Deck
• Entertainment center
• Storm doors