Guess I'll put off the plans to make the front door open/close/lock smoother. Old sticky door kept out an intruder this evening - WHILE I was home, awake, just up the stairs. Not a pleasant experience. I hate violence.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
The Break-In
Guess I'll put off the plans to make the front door open/close/lock smoother. Old sticky door kept out an intruder this evening - WHILE I was home, awake, just up the stairs. Not a pleasant experience. I hate violence.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Bullet points
- The big push continues at my job, working way too many hours for the third straight week. Hope to wrap this weekend. Resume house chores. House chores which were left in a marked state of suspended progress weeks ago now... The neighbors must be so impressed. (Job also requires a career decision here this week lest I forget...)
- Hey. HEY! Did you see the Ferris Bueller boat?? They were awesome. What effort! Screw the lame Teen Wolfs.
- Thanks to the pinup girls (and Matt, I guess) for coming out to my areas for the first annual Ypsi Ton-Up vintage motorcycle rally. While despite not having a "vintage" bike I was able to mooch off the good name of Triumph and be a poser for a while. A modestly good showing on a hot Saturday afternoon on the river, including this exotic 1950's Vincent speed demon - don't touch it! And damn the mosquitos.
- Checking out Junip lately - an unknown-to-me project of Jose Gonzalez releasing new stuff this Summer. Really digging the mix of driving organs, downtempo drumming and Jose's how-is-that-guy-Swedish? voice. It's all a winner. And when you ace a cover of one of Springsteen's very best songs, I say a winner is you - Junip.
- "Americans...are forever searching for love in places it can never be. It must have something to do with the vanished frontier" - my vacation book. Name it! Then invade a small country in the name of freedom.
- So, how's the weather where you're at?
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Dogsittin'
Ooo let's go for a car ride. To love life this much, to relish every waking moment, every moment I'm around someone else, every moment I'm out in the open air, to go... to.... the dog park! Oh boy! ...Uh, hey... we're not stopping, Andy. Dog park. On the right... Meanie. I shall roust you with slobber at 3AM for this.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Full moon fever
The last week or so I've worked more than I have in years. The money's good. The days fly by because it's that kind of work, like in grad school. Setting up an engine lab. Wiring, assembling, re-building, re-wiring, etc. But it's June and it's nice out - just like June in grad school. Now where's the lake and the terrace and the sailboats and the Leinie's? Far away. Tonight, however, I have me a moon in the sky like a big yellow-orange pizza pie. And tomorrow I have work.
Because I like her, Neko Case.
Because I like her, Neko Case.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Porch begins
What begins as a fix-the-floor and restore-the-railing upkeep project has taken a bit of a turn. The columns that hold my porch roof up are, in fact hollow - without the post inside I was expecting. They are caving in on the rotting floor beneath them.
From the outside, after careful -surgical- stair removal:
And, after pulling out the cedar ceiling in the basement below, I have this view of the column support:
So... today, up goes the roof. Up up in the air. This should be fun. The neighbors are certainly amused.
From the outside, after careful -surgical- stair removal:
And, after pulling out the cedar ceiling in the basement below, I have this view of the column support:
So... today, up goes the roof. Up up in the air. This should be fun. The neighbors are certainly amused.
House for sale
The park next door (West Park) has been closed all summer for a huge drainage project - which is a bummer since it's my shortcut walking downtown. So anyway, there's a couple of very interesting unique homes at the other end of the park that I haven't walked by in a while. Walking home on Sunday morning I went down Chapin and saw this house for sale:
I really like the craftsman details on the porch of this house - a little jealous in fact. It's a few years newer than mine and a good bit closer to downtown with less street traffic. But.. no driveway and no garage. Not that I ever use those luxury items at my house... heh
Anyway, it's a comparable home to mine, just as quirky in that it's only two bedrooms and lacking in some of the modern "must-haves" that realtors like. So it's encouraging to see that it's gone fairly quickly at what I imagine is close to their asking price. Encouraging for me. Not that I'm going anywhere.
Well, if I can't buy the house I might as well steal some design themes for my next project...
I really like the craftsman details on the porch of this house - a little jealous in fact. It's a few years newer than mine and a good bit closer to downtown with less street traffic. But.. no driveway and no garage. Not that I ever use those luxury items at my house... heh
Anyway, it's a comparable home to mine, just as quirky in that it's only two bedrooms and lacking in some of the modern "must-haves" that realtors like. So it's encouraging to see that it's gone fairly quickly at what I imagine is close to their asking price. Encouraging for me. Not that I'm going anywhere.
Well, if I can't buy the house I might as well steal some design themes for my next project...
Monday, June 14, 2010
Way out west
If you need something to get lost in for hours, follow this guy's ride report. Montreal to Vancouver to Tucson to El Salvador. Amazing photography. Kind of the gold standard for bike photography, putting my pre-Spring ride to shame several times over. Starts slow but builds quick after page four or so I'm hooked.
I'm not really drawn to "adventure" riding - always seems a bit cliche, with the BMW's, the knobby tires and expensive gear. But, man... to go there.
One of those things that makes you realize how amazing the internet can be.
I'm not really drawn to "adventure" riding - always seems a bit cliche, with the BMW's, the knobby tires and expensive gear. But, man... to go there.
One of those things that makes you realize how amazing the internet can be.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Not building four mailboxes
The last couple of weeks free time was spent overhauling my front steps. I had to pull, re-grade and re-lay all the brick pavers to deal with the erosion and settling on the hill. That fix (so far) has proven a winner. And then I needed to get a hand rail on my steps because of my many concerns regarding America's aging population. (I've always been a bit of a demography buff) Anyway, the stairs posed a challenge for my usual geometry because of their lack of straight-lines. So I came up with this personalized "code-approved" design.
And I think it came out really good. My neighbor across the street, Jake, was watching the second post go in and wondered why the hell I was building two mailboxes. Then I had to leave just the posts in for a while while it rained, I worked OT, etc. And it really looked like I put four wooden crosses on my front yard. Ehh... it's Ann Arbor.
Anyway, it's the front of the house and it's nice to show off in my own silly way. It's also nice working out there. The neighbors come by and chat and all give approval. I have really laid-back neighbors, which is good for a lazy irresponsible single-guy homeowner like me.
Yes, but the point of this post for an otherwise minor and uninteresting project is this: I found I really like working on this exterior / landscape woodwork. The materials were a lot more forgiving than cabinetry and I like how my concept came to me and how it worked with the yard and the house. Next step is the front porch, which will be more-or-less a basic re-finishing but I may still look to add some of my own touches. From there, I've already got ideas for next year's side-yard garden-ararium.
projects...
And I think it came out really good. My neighbor across the street, Jake, was watching the second post go in and wondered why the hell I was building two mailboxes. Then I had to leave just the posts in for a while while it rained, I worked OT, etc. And it really looked like I put four wooden crosses on my front yard. Ehh... it's Ann Arbor.
Anyway, it's the front of the house and it's nice to show off in my own silly way. It's also nice working out there. The neighbors come by and chat and all give approval. I have really laid-back neighbors, which is good for a lazy irresponsible single-guy homeowner like me.
Yes, but the point of this post for an otherwise minor and uninteresting project is this: I found I really like working on this exterior / landscape woodwork. The materials were a lot more forgiving than cabinetry and I like how my concept came to me and how it worked with the yard and the house. Next step is the front porch, which will be more-or-less a basic re-finishing but I may still look to add some of my own touches. From there, I've already got ideas for next year's side-yard garden-ararium.
projects...
About my job, cont'd
I usually leave for work around 6:30. I get in just after 7, which is really too early. But my intention is always to minimize the hours in the afternoon I'm in a cubicle. I have to drink more coffee than I want to make it through this early start without becoming the amusing head-bobbing-as-he-nods-off-seven-times-a-minute guy.
I sit in a cube in the middle of a small-ish area (say 20 or so cubes) and I have no windows or natural light. I sit directly below a paging intercom. I do not enjoy this. We have mobile phones, SMS and two flavors of voicemail. The pager routine may make sense on the shop floor, but it's silly in an office. Maybe it's a regional thing. But I digress... I have a small cube with just my chair. No visitors chair or B.S. table. No one in my immediate vicinity works with me, but that's OK. They're all nice. As always, I keep a pretty sparse workplace. Was a time I thought it'd be nice to surround myself with all sorts of personal effects to humanize the cubicle, but I've never gotten to that spot with a job. Where I identified with that desk as my place. Even when I've held a spot for three years, it never has that comfort. And I think I'm OK with that. Maybe if I had an office. Ooo now I'm dreaming.
Until recently most of my work was at my desk, researching and documenting software to control this burner contraption I described last time. Lately I've been returning to my old familiar role as lab-rat. Around the corner from my cube is the lab, which consists of five engine test rooms (dynos) a couple of sophisticated gas-flow labs, and a bunch of "acoustic" rooms with the weird traingular sound-absorbing things surrounding you. I just deal with the dynos. And also the prototype vehicles we develop for the customers for this burner contraption. Being a lab rat means getting computers to work properly, wiring and re-wiring, doing mechanic work (since we really don't have any) and a host of troubleshooting. It's the sort of stuff that takes up all your time when it gets going, so all the brainy-yet-boring desk work I was into back in April is basically gone.
There's no place nearby for lunch. We're surrounded by hayfields, two farms and a lake. Two miles down at exit 150 on the interstate there's a Mobil Station with a Subway. So... I bring my lunch every day. I usually make peanut butter and honey on wheat bread. Because I like it. May not sound like much, but it's something I look forward to every day at 11:30. And I think it's moderately nutritious. When I'm cooking a lot I bring leftovers instead which is more exciting and showy. (leftovers!) Lately I'm not doing dinner at the house so much. I eat lunch at my cube to minimize my lunch time to, again, get out of work as soon as possible when possible. And there's the added incentive of less lunchtime = more $$, but we'll cover that another time.
Every day at 12:00 I go for a walk with Tom, usually Gary and most of the time Eric. We walk on the 1.2-mile test track behind the building most of the time. Or...when conditions are favorable we hike about the same distance on a two-track clearing through the woods and a corner of a hayfield to the lake. Which is nice because the lake always smells like summer to me. Tom and Gary and another guy in my group worked together previously at Visteon, a big bankrupt supplier towards Detroit, before taking the ever-so-common "package deal" to leave. They're both a good bit older than me, but working together and b.s.'ing as we walk it's never really noticeable. I consider myself well-versed at being middle-aged, at least between the hours of 7 and 3:30. Tom's a pretty committed motorcycle commuter, which I have respect for. He has an old Kawasaki sport-tourer with almost 100k on it - basically if it isn't icy or pouring when he leaves in the morning, he's on the bike. Gary is an amateur beekeeper. Turns out bees are pretty interesting. Eric's the boss, about halfway between my age and the other guys. He's pretty cool. He took this job just days before interviewing me so he's the new guy also. He had to leave a managing job near his home when the company relocated to Canada. So now he drives 90+ minutes each way from Oxford to work here. Tough stuff, but he's been a great boss for me so far.
Anyway, that's my work life post-GM in a nutshell. A rather plain and unsalted nutshell.
I sit in a cube in the middle of a small-ish area (say 20 or so cubes) and I have no windows or natural light. I sit directly below a paging intercom. I do not enjoy this. We have mobile phones, SMS and two flavors of voicemail. The pager routine may make sense on the shop floor, but it's silly in an office. Maybe it's a regional thing. But I digress... I have a small cube with just my chair. No visitors chair or B.S. table. No one in my immediate vicinity works with me, but that's OK. They're all nice. As always, I keep a pretty sparse workplace. Was a time I thought it'd be nice to surround myself with all sorts of personal effects to humanize the cubicle, but I've never gotten to that spot with a job. Where I identified with that desk as my place. Even when I've held a spot for three years, it never has that comfort. And I think I'm OK with that. Maybe if I had an office. Ooo now I'm dreaming.
Until recently most of my work was at my desk, researching and documenting software to control this burner contraption I described last time. Lately I've been returning to my old familiar role as lab-rat. Around the corner from my cube is the lab, which consists of five engine test rooms (dynos) a couple of sophisticated gas-flow labs, and a bunch of "acoustic" rooms with the weird traingular sound-absorbing things surrounding you. I just deal with the dynos. And also the prototype vehicles we develop for the customers for this burner contraption. Being a lab rat means getting computers to work properly, wiring and re-wiring, doing mechanic work (since we really don't have any) and a host of troubleshooting. It's the sort of stuff that takes up all your time when it gets going, so all the brainy-yet-boring desk work I was into back in April is basically gone.
There's no place nearby for lunch. We're surrounded by hayfields, two farms and a lake. Two miles down at exit 150 on the interstate there's a Mobil Station with a Subway. So... I bring my lunch every day. I usually make peanut butter and honey on wheat bread. Because I like it. May not sound like much, but it's something I look forward to every day at 11:30. And I think it's moderately nutritious. When I'm cooking a lot I bring leftovers instead which is more exciting and showy. (leftovers!) Lately I'm not doing dinner at the house so much. I eat lunch at my cube to minimize my lunch time to, again, get out of work as soon as possible when possible. And there's the added incentive of less lunchtime = more $$, but we'll cover that another time.
Every day at 12:00 I go for a walk with Tom, usually Gary and most of the time Eric. We walk on the 1.2-mile test track behind the building most of the time. Or...when conditions are favorable we hike about the same distance on a two-track clearing through the woods and a corner of a hayfield to the lake. Which is nice because the lake always smells like summer to me. Tom and Gary and another guy in my group worked together previously at Visteon, a big bankrupt supplier towards Detroit, before taking the ever-so-common "package deal" to leave. They're both a good bit older than me, but working together and b.s.'ing as we walk it's never really noticeable. I consider myself well-versed at being middle-aged, at least between the hours of 7 and 3:30. Tom's a pretty committed motorcycle commuter, which I have respect for. He has an old Kawasaki sport-tourer with almost 100k on it - basically if it isn't icy or pouring when he leaves in the morning, he's on the bike. Gary is an amateur beekeeper. Turns out bees are pretty interesting. Eric's the boss, about halfway between my age and the other guys. He's pretty cool. He took this job just days before interviewing me so he's the new guy also. He had to leave a managing job near his home when the company relocated to Canada. So now he drives 90+ minutes each way from Oxford to work here. Tough stuff, but he's been a great boss for me so far.
Anyway, that's my work life post-GM in a nutshell. A rather plain and unsalted nutshell.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Cat Power
Old video and maybe a little bit odd. But a pretty girl and a pretty voice...
On a rainy night. It's been raining a lot lately.
On a rainy night. It's been raining a lot lately.
Monday, June 7, 2010
The garden liked May
And so did the visitor to my garden.
Dum dee dum dee dum dum...I'm hungry. First I'll try parsley. OK just a few bites I gotta go update my blog. OK, I'm back let's try some basil - eww, don't like that. Ok, back to the parsley - oh no... look, the parsley's all gone. Hm - this over here's new. Up in a box, these must be tomahtoes [yes, my visitor pronounces it "tomahtoes"]. I'll try a bite of this and a leaf of that. Ooo I think I like tomahtaillos the best. I'll just eat every freakin' leaf but one...
Thus the unsightly chicken wire went up. Why couldn't my visitor enjoy lavender? Or mint? Or bamboo?? Answer: because then he'd be an English-by-way-of-Kentucky Panda bear. Think about that.
To whom shall I give these roses?
Dum dee dum dee dum dum...I'm hungry. First I'll try parsley. OK just a few bites I gotta go update my blog. OK, I'm back let's try some basil - eww, don't like that. Ok, back to the parsley - oh no... look, the parsley's all gone. Hm - this over here's new. Up in a box, these must be tomahtoes [yes, my visitor pronounces it "tomahtoes"]. I'll try a bite of this and a leaf of that. Ooo I think I like tomahtaillos the best. I'll just eat every freakin' leaf but one...
Thus the unsightly chicken wire went up. Why couldn't my visitor enjoy lavender? Or mint? Or bamboo?? Answer: because then he'd be an English-by-way-of-Kentucky Panda bear. Think about that.
To whom shall I give these roses?
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