Man oh MAN! - where to begin?
I got in trouble AGAIN at work - this time for raising my voice to a co-worker who is a friend of mine. I am still under probation for shooting my mouth off to the dept. co-ordinator. Section Manager has let me know in NO uncertain terms that if this happens again I am GONE, longtime service or no. Actually, he should probably have fired my ass anyway, but I'm nonetheless grateful that he DIDN'T...
--is squared away, should have no further problems.
...Sigh, I have probably come closer to being fired on more occaisions than anyone else still working there...this is a distinction of sorts; tho' I DON'T recommend it.
Second major event happened on the 14th. I had a 1PM start as our workload was backing up a little. About 2PM...I almost killed another driver...
I won't say anything else about it except to say that if the other driver had been watching where he was going - the whole incedent wouldn't have happened. As it was, the fact that he was proceeding at very slow speed saved him from getting a fork through the ribcage. If he had been travelling at normal speed, he would have been killed and neither he nor I would have known what had happened until it was all over...
...I've had nightmares about something like that happening.
I was a good boy and reported the whole thing to the acting dept. head (regular guy is on vacation). He's a good guy, did it by the book, took statements from both of us and proceeded with a preliminary investigation. 90 minutes later Randy told me that I would be paid the rest of my hours for that day, but that I should GO HOME...he figured the perfect ending to the day would be to knock out a sprinkler head or something. I REALLY appreciate being sent home...I was still shaking from the near-miss and I had spent the last hour-and-a-half driving like a Granny. Following Tuesday I was told to not operate any of the machinery until the investigation (now under Management review) was complete. That took until thursday. Both the other driver and myself have been re-instated...BUT...I feel dissatisfied somehow. I don't know how to put it into words; but there has never been a fatality in this building, and I am VERY disappointed that I was involved in a near-fatality...especially as it has been hinted at that this isn't the first such incident to occur - this is supposed to make me feel BETTER??!
More news: I got Taras' bike pack-rack built...and it works! About 16$ in parts, it is part IKEA desktop widget, part 10-24 threaded rod and 3/8th nuts - and a WHOLE lot of Permetex threadlock. I was initially worried that the 'prototype' was too flimsy for the job intended...but I soon found out how durable my creation was.
Taras swapped paint with a Motorist on his way to work Thursday morning.
He's OK, but will need some physio to get the kinks worked out. No broken bones, but probably will end up with some whiplash and a LOT of bruising. No internal damage that he can tell, but he WAS on concussion watch for 24hrs or so. His #1 bike is a write-off, but the luggage and rack survived without damage! Guilty Pleasure: I was sorry to hear he'd been in an accident, but at the same time pleased that my invention had stood up so well under 'extreme' conditions!
Our House: a work in progress...
Or: two steps forward, one step back...
Figured out why the lawnmower kept choking up: had the blade set too low. The back yard gradient is so uneven that only by setting the mower blade at its HIGHEST setting can you get a half-decent cut without any breakdowns. Of course, this means I have to mow the grass no more than 7 days apart...sigh. While re-doing the lighting in the workshop I found out that we now have TWO leaks in the shop roof/deck surface. One is where the stupid Beagle chewed through the fibreglas mat sealing the join between the shop and the rest of the deck, the other was worn thru over winter. I can re-do the worn thru part, but Grandpa has suggested some metal flashing over the joint seam...I have to agree, it's a good idea. He initially suggested running the flashing right off the edge of the garage roof to the deck surface, to get around the hackneyed flashing job our contractor did. I may have to get him to come with me and sketch out what he has in mind. For sure we have no lack of Alum roofing sheet to make the flashings with.
Donovan Sterling: where ARE YOUUUUU???
Haven't heard from Don the Mon lately, he hasn't turned on his ICQ in DAYS...so how am I going to co-ordinate my efforts to get to Fragapalooza? I am just about ready to chuck the whole thing... and at the same time I am desparate enough to try some really creative ways to raise the cash. I have tried and Tried and TRIED to sell my #2 bike, the 1150$ wunderbike, but no bites so far...
To anyone else besides ME who reads this 'blog...
I am selling a 16" 'comfort' bike - a 1994 Norco Kodiak. It has an OS 6061 Alum frame and alloy-quick-release EVERYTHING. Shimano gripshifters and derailleurs, v-brakes. It's a 21-speed, no suspension, hardcore daily commuter. Weighs about 20 pounds...no, I'm NOT kidding.
So why am I getting rid of it? It's TOO SHORT. Seriously, I've got an extra-long seatpost on there and it is NOT helping...I've already built a replacement and it's working out fine. I had intended to keep the kodiak as my backup ride, but I NEED THE MONEY...
300$ cdn, O.B.O. I'll ship anywhere in North America - who pays shipping depends on how far away I have to ship it...
contact me at brianarc@hotmail.com...if yer interested.
Sunday, June 23, 2002
Friday, June 14, 2002
Once upon a time there was a struggling Nation. Actually, nationhood was a pretty new idea; warring tribes and foreign immigrants and refugees looking for some land to call their own had been the norm; but eventually, everybody got settled in and the idea that the land should become a Nation got passed 'round; after all, everyone was doing it!
Mostly what got the whole Nation-building idea rolling was the Great Empire. The Great Empire was lead by a fella named George. George and his well-heeled advisors decided that the people of the struggling Nation had resources that the Great Empire needed "to preserve our way of life" - and since the struggling Nation was primitive, backward, and not even really organised INTO a proper Nation yet, George and his advisors figured getting those resources would be a cinch. George moved his soldiers in to 'keep the peace', he set up a puppet dictatorship to 'provide good governance', and he sat back and waited for the tribute to roll in. After all, the military and economic might of the Great Empire was known and feared all over the WORLD.
The people of the struggling Nation didn't like it. Not one bit. Farmers, craftsmen, respectable community leaders and even clergymen all agreed that this turn of events was manifestly unfair, but they knew the Great Empire had them outmanned and outgunned. "This is a Crisis" the leaders of the Nation-building movement told the people of the struggling Nation, "We cannot defeat the armies and the might of the Great Empire, to even attempt it would be suicide. Therefore, we will try to make the Leaders of the Great Empire change their minds, peaceably if we can, forcibly if we must. If it comes to that, we will try to make it so expensive for the Great Empire to continue their injustice that they will have to go someplace else for what they need and leave us alone."
And they did.
They destroyed official buildings and property belonging to the Great Empire. They killed officers and soldiers of the Great Empire. Sometimes, even ordinary citizens of the Great Empire were killed! They planned these attacks to have the maximum shock effect on the leaders and people of the Great Empire, with minimal risk to their own people; because, unlike the Great Empire, the people of the struggling Nation did not have many soldiers to spare. There were brutal reprisals by the Great Empire for these attacks. The people of the struggling Nation endured these reprisals, because they knew GOD was on THEIR side.
Eventually, the war the Great Empire was making on the struggling Nation became so expensive that the resources extracted from the struggling Nation were no longer enough to defray the cost. George's well-heeled advisors were unhappy, their fortunes were suffering; finally, they persuaded George to sign a treaty with the struggling Nation. Later, the struggling Nation, now a true Nation at last, became an ally and trading partner of the Great Empire, much to the benefit of both peoples.
---Don't ya just LOVE historical paralells?
BTW: the struggling Nation was America, 226-odd years ago.
and the Great Empire was Great Britain, 226-odd years ago.
Mostly what got the whole Nation-building idea rolling was the Great Empire. The Great Empire was lead by a fella named George. George and his well-heeled advisors decided that the people of the struggling Nation had resources that the Great Empire needed "to preserve our way of life" - and since the struggling Nation was primitive, backward, and not even really organised INTO a proper Nation yet, George and his advisors figured getting those resources would be a cinch. George moved his soldiers in to 'keep the peace', he set up a puppet dictatorship to 'provide good governance', and he sat back and waited for the tribute to roll in. After all, the military and economic might of the Great Empire was known and feared all over the WORLD.
The people of the struggling Nation didn't like it. Not one bit. Farmers, craftsmen, respectable community leaders and even clergymen all agreed that this turn of events was manifestly unfair, but they knew the Great Empire had them outmanned and outgunned. "This is a Crisis" the leaders of the Nation-building movement told the people of the struggling Nation, "We cannot defeat the armies and the might of the Great Empire, to even attempt it would be suicide. Therefore, we will try to make the Leaders of the Great Empire change their minds, peaceably if we can, forcibly if we must. If it comes to that, we will try to make it so expensive for the Great Empire to continue their injustice that they will have to go someplace else for what they need and leave us alone."
And they did.
They destroyed official buildings and property belonging to the Great Empire. They killed officers and soldiers of the Great Empire. Sometimes, even ordinary citizens of the Great Empire were killed! They planned these attacks to have the maximum shock effect on the leaders and people of the Great Empire, with minimal risk to their own people; because, unlike the Great Empire, the people of the struggling Nation did not have many soldiers to spare. There were brutal reprisals by the Great Empire for these attacks. The people of the struggling Nation endured these reprisals, because they knew GOD was on THEIR side.
Eventually, the war the Great Empire was making on the struggling Nation became so expensive that the resources extracted from the struggling Nation were no longer enough to defray the cost. George's well-heeled advisors were unhappy, their fortunes were suffering; finally, they persuaded George to sign a treaty with the struggling Nation. Later, the struggling Nation, now a true Nation at last, became an ally and trading partner of the Great Empire, much to the benefit of both peoples.
---Don't ya just LOVE historical paralells?
BTW: the struggling Nation was America, 226-odd years ago.
and the Great Empire was Great Britain, 226-odd years ago.
Monday, June 03, 2002
KWY's move: Oy Vey...!
KWY mentioned that many people have helped him move over the years...once. I have the honor to be among a select few who have been there more than once...I have to admit that the previous move is still a blur...to much pain associated with the memories, I guess.
I started out the week of May 27 pretty normally. I get Mondays off now that we are on downtime at work. Of course, this also means I am working 10 hours per day during the remaining 4 days of the week. Our toilet backed up on the 28th. I think my little son may have tried to flush a hot wheels...
...then the cutoff valve for the toilet started to leak - badly...
...then the pipe attached to the cutoff valve downstairs ruptured while I was at work...
...that's 3 plumbing crises in a row, in a 24-hour period! Don't bad things ALWAYS come in threes?
The ruptured pipe was what decided me on taking the rest of the day off work and taking care of business. We can't afford a plumber, so I had to: 1).fix the ruptured pipe in order to: 2).turn the water back on in order to: 3).replace the cutoff valve in order to: 4).finish installing a replacement toilet. All told, we budgeted 200$ for the project, and ended up spending 100$. I found a discontinued bowl-and-tank set at Canadian tire for 95$, and the manager was nice enough to knock off 25$ more because the bowl and tank were "mismatched; one is bone white and the other is china white". I didn't ask which was which; and frankly, I don't think he knew - I certainly couldn't tell the difference! Old toilet wasn't just plugged, its base was broken and the closet flange hadn't even been bolted to the floor! Not sad to see it go. Still don't know what got jammed in there, and I have no interest in finding out.
According to my Reader's Digest Big Book of DIY, the ruptured pipe could be fixed with something called a Saddle Clamp. I was unable to persuade anyone at Home Depot to find me one ("look, you just cut out the damaged section and replace it with a section of PVC and two couplings"), and our little Home Hardware at the foot of the street didn't have one in stock. I had to chainsaw my way thru the bathroom wall downstairs (literally) to get to the pipe. I improvised a saddle clamp using a piece of industrial-grade garden hose and three standard 1/2 inch hose clamps. Spent two hours standing in the wash sink in our Laundry Room fiddling with that pipe (can't move the wash sink - it's concrete!) before I finally got it clear and applied the fix. The cutoff valve was easy by comparison, and the toilet gave me hardly any trouble at all - except that it is TALLER than the old one and I had to rush out to Home Depot at 9pm to buy a new PVC fill pipe for the tank. I could have bought a toilet seal kit with one of those super-flexible fill hoses with the woven SS sheath included, but NOoooo, I had to save a couple of bucks! Next time out I got smart...more on that in a minute.
Back to the Move...
Did a full 10 hour shift on friday, then over to KWY's after I showered and changed. I had psyched myself for an all-nighter...KWY had rented the largest van available, but owing to demand, had to take a "less than perfect" example. Typical of KWY's philosophy, he had reserved TWO vans at two different rental outfits. Ryder lost his reservation, and Uhaul had what I came to describe as a "25 ton brick". That truck was a deathtrap: clutch was shot, engine ran poorly, and the entire front end was so badly misaligned that the LH corner of both front wheels had been worn smooth. Fortunately, we didn't get the load-up finished until midnight, so dribbling that heap down hwy 1 to clearbrook Rd at barely 70kph wasn't TOO much trouble. I personally believe we were under Divine Protection. We still had a pickup truck's worth of stuff to go, as well...
We spent until 2am getting the majority of the stuff off the Uhaul before calling it quits. KWY and I borrowed mark's truck and returned for the rest of his worldly goods. We had a pickup truck worth of stuff to load, but Mark's ford is only 1/2 a pickup...it's a pick?
SO: we had one more trip to make...this realization came at 3am. We needed sleep, so I set the internal clock for 1/2 hour, and slept right thru it...we got up again at 4:15am. Got the majority of the remaining stuff packed and (half!) loaded in the pickup. Got back to clearbrook and unloaded. It is now pushing 8am. Went BACK to KWY's old place and finished up loading (except old hardware - no room left and didn't feel like moving it...). KWY's landlord shows up (having informed him that new tenants wish to begin moving in at 9AM!!!) and demands that he (we!) clean up the place. KWY had no intention of doing so originally - he had basically already kissed his damage deposit goodbye; but it was kind of hard not to do SOMETHING with LL and wife standing there. I got the last load out to the truck whilst KWY ran around like a (VERY TIRED!) mad fiend and tried to police up all the remaining junk in the suite. Meanwhile, KWY's loading crew at the other end had showed up at 10AM to offload a new fridge and continue emptying the Uhaul...which was locked. It became a real phone tag marathon while KWY tried to A) convince mark to keep the guys around at his new place in order to be there when he finally arrived with the key to the Uhaul and, B) track down his real estate agent, who was transporting the fridge, and dropping off the keys at 10am, as well. All the while LL and wife are dogging his steps, trying to explain how very hurt they are that he didn't clean up, and how they have to leave right away to pick someone up at the airport...the new tenant, I think. We finally got out of there at 10:30am; or rather, KWY did, I went home! The rest I got secondhand from KWY later: the offload went OK, the 25-Ton Brick got returned to Uhaul on time, and KWY managed to hold off physical collapse for a grand total 36 HOURS to get the move accomplished. His Lady Fair, the lovely Leona, picked him up at Uhaul and they schlepped the rest of his stuff (stacked neatly on the back patio) up to clearbrook.
Final note: I have to convince KWY to reactivate his ICQ, and get a ICQphone link going...I ain't gonna keep calling long distance to clearbrook just to talk to him.
This brings us to Monday, and grandpa, apparently impressed by my plumbing savvy, asked me to fix the leaking faucet in his kitchen. It was an old Delta knockoff, and I got a kit of parts from Home Hardware (took the kids out for a stroll down to the HH and we got some ice cream on the way back) and set to...didn't work. There was NO WAY that ball assembly was coming apart, the sucker was fused solid. So grandpa suggested "how about a new faucet set?" I was SO in favor of that plan. Called down and was informed that HH had a nice Moen set for a good price, so grandpa hopped on his scooter and went down to pick it up. Install was a breeze, grandpa was nice enough to include two of those wonderful flex hoses for the taps - I am SERIOUSLY contemplating buying those as replacements for the supply hoses on all our fixtures. Needed to make the holes for the connectors slightly bigger - no prob, a little work with a jigsaw and a cylinder rasp got it done. New faucet may outlast grandpa...
Final item of note: Laurie and I and the kids...all attended church together. More on that later, if there is anything at all to say...
KWY mentioned that many people have helped him move over the years...once. I have the honor to be among a select few who have been there more than once...I have to admit that the previous move is still a blur...to much pain associated with the memories, I guess.
I started out the week of May 27 pretty normally. I get Mondays off now that we are on downtime at work. Of course, this also means I am working 10 hours per day during the remaining 4 days of the week. Our toilet backed up on the 28th. I think my little son may have tried to flush a hot wheels...
...then the cutoff valve for the toilet started to leak - badly...
...then the pipe attached to the cutoff valve downstairs ruptured while I was at work...
...that's 3 plumbing crises in a row, in a 24-hour period! Don't bad things ALWAYS come in threes?
The ruptured pipe was what decided me on taking the rest of the day off work and taking care of business. We can't afford a plumber, so I had to: 1).fix the ruptured pipe in order to: 2).turn the water back on in order to: 3).replace the cutoff valve in order to: 4).finish installing a replacement toilet. All told, we budgeted 200$ for the project, and ended up spending 100$. I found a discontinued bowl-and-tank set at Canadian tire for 95$, and the manager was nice enough to knock off 25$ more because the bowl and tank were "mismatched; one is bone white and the other is china white". I didn't ask which was which; and frankly, I don't think he knew - I certainly couldn't tell the difference! Old toilet wasn't just plugged, its base was broken and the closet flange hadn't even been bolted to the floor! Not sad to see it go. Still don't know what got jammed in there, and I have no interest in finding out.
According to my Reader's Digest Big Book of DIY, the ruptured pipe could be fixed with something called a Saddle Clamp. I was unable to persuade anyone at Home Depot to find me one ("look, you just cut out the damaged section and replace it with a section of PVC and two couplings"), and our little Home Hardware at the foot of the street didn't have one in stock. I had to chainsaw my way thru the bathroom wall downstairs (literally) to get to the pipe. I improvised a saddle clamp using a piece of industrial-grade garden hose and three standard 1/2 inch hose clamps. Spent two hours standing in the wash sink in our Laundry Room fiddling with that pipe (can't move the wash sink - it's concrete!) before I finally got it clear and applied the fix. The cutoff valve was easy by comparison, and the toilet gave me hardly any trouble at all - except that it is TALLER than the old one and I had to rush out to Home Depot at 9pm to buy a new PVC fill pipe for the tank. I could have bought a toilet seal kit with one of those super-flexible fill hoses with the woven SS sheath included, but NOoooo, I had to save a couple of bucks! Next time out I got smart...more on that in a minute.
Back to the Move...
Did a full 10 hour shift on friday, then over to KWY's after I showered and changed. I had psyched myself for an all-nighter...KWY had rented the largest van available, but owing to demand, had to take a "less than perfect" example. Typical of KWY's philosophy, he had reserved TWO vans at two different rental outfits. Ryder lost his reservation, and Uhaul had what I came to describe as a "25 ton brick". That truck was a deathtrap: clutch was shot, engine ran poorly, and the entire front end was so badly misaligned that the LH corner of both front wheels had been worn smooth. Fortunately, we didn't get the load-up finished until midnight, so dribbling that heap down hwy 1 to clearbrook Rd at barely 70kph wasn't TOO much trouble. I personally believe we were under Divine Protection. We still had a pickup truck's worth of stuff to go, as well...
We spent until 2am getting the majority of the stuff off the Uhaul before calling it quits. KWY and I borrowed mark's truck and returned for the rest of his worldly goods. We had a pickup truck worth of stuff to load, but Mark's ford is only 1/2 a pickup...it's a pick?
SO: we had one more trip to make...this realization came at 3am. We needed sleep, so I set the internal clock for 1/2 hour, and slept right thru it...we got up again at 4:15am. Got the majority of the remaining stuff packed and (half!) loaded in the pickup. Got back to clearbrook and unloaded. It is now pushing 8am. Went BACK to KWY's old place and finished up loading (except old hardware - no room left and didn't feel like moving it...). KWY's landlord shows up (having informed him that new tenants wish to begin moving in at 9AM!!!) and demands that he (we!) clean up the place. KWY had no intention of doing so originally - he had basically already kissed his damage deposit goodbye; but it was kind of hard not to do SOMETHING with LL and wife standing there. I got the last load out to the truck whilst KWY ran around like a (VERY TIRED!) mad fiend and tried to police up all the remaining junk in the suite. Meanwhile, KWY's loading crew at the other end had showed up at 10AM to offload a new fridge and continue emptying the Uhaul...which was locked. It became a real phone tag marathon while KWY tried to A) convince mark to keep the guys around at his new place in order to be there when he finally arrived with the key to the Uhaul and, B) track down his real estate agent, who was transporting the fridge, and dropping off the keys at 10am, as well. All the while LL and wife are dogging his steps, trying to explain how very hurt they are that he didn't clean up, and how they have to leave right away to pick someone up at the airport...the new tenant, I think. We finally got out of there at 10:30am; or rather, KWY did, I went home! The rest I got secondhand from KWY later: the offload went OK, the 25-Ton Brick got returned to Uhaul on time, and KWY managed to hold off physical collapse for a grand total 36 HOURS to get the move accomplished. His Lady Fair, the lovely Leona, picked him up at Uhaul and they schlepped the rest of his stuff (stacked neatly on the back patio) up to clearbrook.
Final note: I have to convince KWY to reactivate his ICQ, and get a ICQphone link going...I ain't gonna keep calling long distance to clearbrook just to talk to him.
This brings us to Monday, and grandpa, apparently impressed by my plumbing savvy, asked me to fix the leaking faucet in his kitchen. It was an old Delta knockoff, and I got a kit of parts from Home Hardware (took the kids out for a stroll down to the HH and we got some ice cream on the way back) and set to...didn't work. There was NO WAY that ball assembly was coming apart, the sucker was fused solid. So grandpa suggested "how about a new faucet set?" I was SO in favor of that plan. Called down and was informed that HH had a nice Moen set for a good price, so grandpa hopped on his scooter and went down to pick it up. Install was a breeze, grandpa was nice enough to include two of those wonderful flex hoses for the taps - I am SERIOUSLY contemplating buying those as replacements for the supply hoses on all our fixtures. Needed to make the holes for the connectors slightly bigger - no prob, a little work with a jigsaw and a cylinder rasp got it done. New faucet may outlast grandpa...
Final item of note: Laurie and I and the kids...all attended church together. More on that later, if there is anything at all to say...