Things Are Heating Up

 

My two coaching buddies and I went walkies on Sunday. One of them lives about 20 miles south of me, the other the same only north. We normally meet in the park by me but this time we went north to a recently remodeled park in the town where I lived before moving to the farm. It's a beautiful little city park with a paved walking path and trails through the woods. Unfortunately, the wooded trails were too muddy due to all of the recent rains and storms.

The Missus and I went to the grandson's open house on Saturday. Nice party and the kid is already gainfully employed in an apprenticeship program. While there the Missus' sister handed off a piece for her windmill that's needing repair again. A branch came down on it during the last round of storms that passed through. 

She was fortunate in that that was all of the damage at her place. A tornado went through not far from her place. Lots of tornado damage all around me this year. Houses, barns, cars - gone with the wind. I feel bad for those poor souls. Everything you own just gone. 

And now, we're looking at ninety-degree heat with heat indices over 100 for the remainder of the week. My plan is to get out early for my bike ride, do a little something outdoors or in the shop later in the day and then hide in the AC during the mid-day heat.

  

The Wait

 

I took my dog Larry to the vet yesterday. The clinic doesn't usually take appointments, so it's first come, first served after the lunch break. Larry and I had a long wait - I left the house about 1:30 and didn't get home until 5:15. Larry showed his displeasure of having had to wait by peeing on the examination room floor while waiting for the vet. However, while waiting I ran into someone I hadn't seen in years. Her father and my father were high school classmates. Her father had a dairy farm and my father would pheasant hunt his farm every Thanksgiving. We had a nice time reminiscing on "the Group W bench".

The financial seminar in the morning was pretty informative. Some of the facts and figures were taken from the Government, so I always question those, but I think he was telling us in a roundabout way to expect a market correction. I don't doubt but there's one on the way, no telling when, though. He mentioned data centers, one of them being scheduled just minutes away from our meeting place, in spite of the public's very strong vote against it. Social Security was also brought up. The latest figure bandied about is 2032 as the year our checks get a 22% haircut. I didn't see any smiling faces in the room full of retirees on that note.

Once again, since I'm a welder not a financial advisor, you do what's best for you, but betting on a government that's $40 trillion in debt sounds like a sucker's bet to me.  

What's Goin' On

Here's a bit of a run-down of the current events. 

Sunday, Surly and the clan came down and brought me a holster he had made for my pistol.

And it's a beaut! Cowhide on the outside and pigskin on the inside. Fits the pistol like a glove. He's really getting good with his leatherwork.

Monday, I took the Missus to the foot doctor since she was still in a lot of pain from her recent fall. Seems the emergency room visit didn't detect the broken bone in the foot, so now she's got one of those Frankenstein boots and a few pain killers. 

Tuesday, I went to the doctor for a checkup. Everything is looking good - blood pressure, A1c and whatever he heard while listening to my heart and lungs. Pretty happy with the results - I'm getting back on the program like I was on years ago. If I had stayed with it probably wouldn't have had the plugged up stent. 

Also, the medical alert device showed up for the Missus. She ordered it from Consumer Cellular, which is our phone carrier. I'm going to feel a lot better knowing the device has a fall alert function and the button to push for 24/7/365 help if needed. When you set the thing up you can put in names and numbers of people you want notified besides them making the call to emergency medical services. 

Wednesday, policed the dog park, mowed some grass, and got the new air cleaner in the mail.

It got here rather quickly considering it came from China. It fits the carb nicely, came with a clamp and the angle is perfect. One step closer to being finished.

Today, I'm going to a meeting with the financial guy in the morning. He puts on seminars about four times during the summer months. They're informative but he always seems to be a little more upbeat than what I am as far as the market goes. The numbers are continuing to go up, but I'm at the age if there's a big market correction, I might not be around long enough to recover. I'm not all that concerned since most of my gains are all on paper and as long as I pay my property tax I won't have to be living in a cardboard box under the bridge.

I'll be taking the dog to the vet in the afternoon. Between the two of them, that'll pretty much shoot the day in the ass.

Tomorrow, I'm going to be helping set up the radio equipment for the ham radio Field Day. I was planning on taking my teardrop trailer and camping Saturday night, but I need to stay home and help the Missus out. 

So, things rather slow on the projects for the next few weeks and the weatherman is forecasting temps in the nineties for next week. That in itself will slow me down but I'll keep pickin' away at things indoors and out. Never a shortage of things to do.
  

Father's Day

 

From Here

I really like that door - actually I'm a big fan of most anything from the Art Nouveau era. 

 The door to my shop is more Arts and Crafts. I made it at the high school with a little help from the Wood Shop Instructor. The boards are ship lapped and glued together, however, one of the glue joints let go over the winter and I've got a board sticking out along the bottom. I need to figure out the best way to pull it back in and keep it there. Just one more thing to add to the list.

Sort of busy day yesterday. Went for my bike ride in the morning, ate breakfast while watching an Audie Murphy movie. Did some more trimming on some bushes, sprayed some weeds, sharpened some knives, broke down some cardboard boxes, and a couple of other piddly things in the shop and in the shack. Nothing to write home about, but I kept my feet moving for the better part of the day.

The lilies are starting to bloom. I need to give the flower bed a bit of attention - pull a few weeds and plant another lily to fill in a gap. One of the nice things about day lilies is they require very little maintenance and add a nice splash of color when blooming.

Father's Day today, of course. I'm going to take a bike ride in the morning and maybe do a few things outdoors before the rain comes in. 

Happy Father's Day to all you Daddy-Os out there. Enjoy your day and keep on pushin'. It's a big responsibility. Do your best for your children and the rest of us as well.

Vanilla Fudge

 

I went to CVS the other evening to pick up medicine for the dog, so the Missus said as long as I was going pick up some ice cream. The selection at the drugstore was a little thin and overpriced, but as soon as I saw the Vanilla Fudge Drumsticks, decision made.

And here's why - Vanilla Fudge from back in the day. When it comes to music, the sixties and seventies had it going on. Some of the politics and war, not so much.

I've got a Hosta and a milk can flanking both sides of the shop doors. Hostas are looking good but it looks like the milk cans are about due for a touch-up. I've been doing a walk-around to see what needs to be done and to prioritize the list. One of the big oaks out by the tracks had branch come down in the last storm and a big willow branch in the storm before that one. There are three oaks all in a row that are all leaning a bit due to a storm that came through right after we moved in. There was another one in the line but it got uprooted. I started counting the growth rings and quit when I hit 200. There's another oak that appears to be dead that needs to come down. It split off a big branch two years ago. I think it was hit by lightning. I'm going to call my tree guy and see if he's still in business. I ran into him at the hospital when I was doing my rehab and he was having some issues himself. 

 I bought a chain guard for my old Elgin bicycle. I'd like to get it fixed up. No primo restoration, just collect parts for the present. It's a 1938 fat tire that I used to ride back and forth to the welding shop before I started teaching. I bought it from the owner of the bicycle shop I worked for part-time. He took it in on a trade-in and I bought it for what he gave the customer. When I got it, it had wooden pedals and war tires and tubes on it. I saved the tires and the pedals and installed modern parts. It's missing the rear fender and the saddle leather's gone. I'll shop around for a fender. There's plenty of big sprung saddles on the internet, but I'll wait on the until I'm ready to work on it - maybe take it down the basement next winter. 

Couple O' Things

 

I figured another Gil Scott Heron couldn't hurt, what with what has been going on in the world. I saw where they busted out the water cannons in Northern Ireland, and the natives there have gotten restless and have decided to do something about the immigrants after the stabbing incident the other day. 

I also read of Glock handguns being outlawed in several states here. Apparently, it's fairly easy to convert them to full-auto - illegally of course, but since Glocks are extremely popular, good first step to banning firearms.

The ignition parts to make the spark plug wire for the trials bike showed up. However, I screwed up and didn't read the fine print well enough. The boot is sized to fit on the distributor, not the coil. So I still need to address that.

I welded up the brackets on the gas tank the other day. Unfortunately, when I welded one of the brackets, I developed a leak underneath where I couldn't reach it to patch it up. I fooled around longer than I should have trying to avoid cutting the welds out and removing the bracket. Eventually I welded all around it rather than skip welding it. Problem solved, but not as neat looking as I would have liked.

I went to the funeral home yesterday to pay my respects to my former minister. He married the Missus and I, my brothers, and buried my mother and father. The Missus got thrown out of the house a couple weeks before we were to be married. I explained the situation to the minister that I was concerned that when he got to the part in the ceremony about speak now or forever hold your peace, someone would take that opportunity to speak up. The minister, God bless his soul, said he'll just leave that part out. Problem solved, and the Missus and I are still married 55 years later. Rest in Peace, Reverend Starr.  

Winter in America

 

I'm thinking it's definitely winter in America. The more I read, the more concerned I am about the future of the country. I read the other day the price of tungsten carbide has gone up 600% since January. Lots of drill and lathe bits use that stuff. Lots of other indicators pointing towards the end of the empire as we know it. Looks like there's going to be some arrests of big muckity-mucks in Washington coming up in time for the November election. That won't eliminate $40 trillion debt load, but I'll be pleased if everyone starts playing by the rules and a few of the worst offenders are behind bars.

Since the Missus is on the injured list, I've been staying close. Someone has to do the chores and let the dog in and out, but I did make it out to the shop and finish weld the gas tank brackets on the trials bike and get a couple of bike rides in.

I weeded the garden to other day, but I need to do that again today. Since I neglected it the last couple of years, the weeds are coming back strong.

I made a single wheel hoe years ago that I patterned after the Planet Jr. that I've never used much at all. I'm going to pull it out of the barn today and see how it works with my mysterious chest injury. The ground is sandy loam, except for a strip Surly turned over for me this spring, so it should be easy pushing. It's a small plot, so if the wheel hoe doesn't work out, I can use the long-handled hoe. 
 

Always Something

 

Lowbrow Customs has a history of the Sportster on their website. It's a nice run-down of the history with a nice selection of photos - some factory stuff, some chopper stuff. There's a photo of Elvis on his "K" model that Surly and I saw at a museum at Niagara Falls years ago. I also saw an Electra Glide owned by Elvis out west some place - The Corn Palace neighborhood, maybe.

I was planning on working in the shop yesterday, but things didn't go as planned. I got my bike ride in in the morning, fooled around on the computer a bit, and after checking the weather, figured I had better mow the front yard before the storm came in. The Missus was planning on going uptown, so I got her car out and started mowing. I was about half finished and saw her sitting on the steps. Rather odd behavior for the old bird since it was a humid and sunny ninety-degree day. Seems she took a tumble coming out the front door. I tried helping her up but we couldn't get it done. Fortunately, my neighbor was available, so he gave me a hand and we got her back inside. Those I've fallen and can't get up commercials aren't so funny anymore. Might be time to give Life Alert a call. Especially since she's not real diligent about keeping her phone close at hand.

I didn't make it out to the shop but I did order an air cleaner and the pieces to make up the coil wire for the trials bike. Depending on the weather and the condition of the Missus, I'm hoping to get out there today.

Car, Corn, Bike, and Editorial

 

Beautiful Auto-Union car. The panel beaters had it going on, that's for sure.

The corn had a growth spurt the last couple of days with the heat and the rain - mostly the rain. We're supposed to get a few more days of rain, and if it warms up again, I'll be able to hear it grow. A couple weeks from now I'll be isolated behind a wall of corn, which I prefer. It really cuts down on the road noise. The farmer sprayed for weeds last week and did a real nice job of keeping the herbicide in the field and not in the yard. The young guy has done a fine job of taking over from his grandfather. I've never had a problem with either of them.

 Made a little progress on the vintage trials bike. I've still got a few things to do before I have my buddy come out to help me get it running, but the list is shrinking. The exhaust pipe is too close to the float bowl, so that's a definite. I need a return spring on the rear brake, an air filter, a boot of the coil end of the spark plug wire, and finish weld the mounting brackets on the gas tank. Nothing that'll hold me up other than the lead in my ass.

It's Ride Your Motorcycle to Work Day. Like always, be careful out there. Farm vehicles on the roads, knuckle heads on cell phones, dirt and fresh cut grass on the road surface. Too many things to list, so be aware.

  Interesting article I ran across here. It's rather lengthy, but in my opinion, very much worth the time. Your mileage may vary. 

Heat Wave

 

On my bike ride the other evening I spotted a couple pieces of angle that were put out for the garbage man. After I finished the ride, I went back with the truck and picked them up. They're a pair of old bedrails. I'm assuming they're old not only by the rust but by the length as well. The one thing to remember about old bedrails is they are made from a high carbon steel - hard to cut and drill, and if you're going to weld on them, it's best to use a low hydrogen electrode like a 7018.

The bag of dirt is for planting flowers. I got the last of them in the planters yesterday afternoon. It was close to 90 degrees out and after the planting I did a couple other little things and called it quits. I need to work my way up slowly to get myself acclimated to the heat. Being an old man and a cardiac patient, discretion is the better part of valor. I need to get out early or late in the day for my bike ride and tending the garden. 

There's a couple things on the calendar for this upcoming week but should be able to get back out in the shop and make some progress.  

 

Rolling, Rolling, Rolling

 

I took a little short hop on the bicycle over to the Industrial Park the other evening and the paving outfit has upgraded their driveway entrance. They used to have just one roller, but now there's two and they're both painted up nice. Once upon a time in my checkered past, I worked for a blacktopping outfit and when I wasn't changing tires or running a scoop shovel, I was rolling asphalt. The one I ran was a little smaller than the ones in the photo, but it paid the bills and my college tuition. Just a small part of my diverse background, but I learned how to drive a tri-axle dump with a 5 and a 3 transmission.

My little orchid I received as a gift many years ago. It's still in the original pot but I'm afraid to mess with it. As you can see from the photo, it seems to be doing OK as it is. When we first moved here roughly 25 years ago, there wasn't a flower anywhere, which I found surprising. No "ditch lilies", iris or multi-flora roses, which were almost always to be found at old farmsteads. That's all changed now. We've got quite a few things blooming around here, it's certainly not a showcase operation, but the place looks lived in now.

The Missus and I went to the movies Monday to see Revolutionary America. It's a very good movie chronicling the events leading up to the Revolutionary War, the war years, and the beginning of the new country. It gives an excellent description of what the founders and the original Patriots went through to form the country. Much of the content came from Hillsdale professors. I was impressed with their presentations. It didn't seem they were just reciting facts, but rather they seemed to truly understand what the founders went through and the importance of preserving the ideals they were willing to die for. I'm of the opinion the knuckleheads running this country, at the very least, should see this movie. It probably won't change much, but maybe they would at least have a tinge of regret for what they've allowed to happen, because there damn sure isn't going to be an easy way to get us out of the mess we're in. 

World Bicycle Day

 

World Bicycle Day today - little late notice but I've been busy. 

I saw the above sign along the side of the road the other day, came home and looked it up. Seems there's a bike ride in the near future from one of the big dairy farms (tourist attraction) to the county courthouse. Nineteen miles one way, and that's the problem. One way with no shuttle bus or anything to get you back to the start. Since it's coming up pretty soon, I could be in shape to do the 19, but not 38 if I wanted to ride back to the start. I did find a local ride August 1st that has 40, 60 and 100-mile routes. I'm planning on doing the 40 miler for sure, maybe the 60, depending on the weather, training, etc.

I've been out on the bike the last few days - short hops, but now I've got an event to train for, so I'll get busy.

My First Love

 

I came across this on Facebook on a Sprint owners' group, I think. I didn't get the details because I swooned when I saw it. It's a '67 HD Sprint H that appears to be in showroom condition. I bought an identical one 58 years ago when I was a senior in high school. Right side shift, which took a little getting used to, and the handlebars were rubber mounted which also took a little getting used to, but I loved that bike. I saved up my money from paper route, frying chicken and doing farm chores to buy it. 

It cost me $650.00 which took me a bit to save up for. When I finally had the money, my mother said I should get a loan to start establishing a credit rating. I didn't much care about a credit rating at that point, but I knew better than to cross Mom on this deal. We went to the bank together so she could co-sign the note, we sat down across from the loan officer, and I told him I wanted $300.00 to buy a motorcycle. He said no because he didn't like motorcycles, and that's when Mom came unglued. She tells the guy the only reason we were sitting there is because she convinced me it would be a good idea and if he's not going to loan me the money, he should get his ass out of the chair and write her a check because she was closing her account where she had done business for over twenty years. The loan officer excused himself, probably to check on Mom's account, and came back shortly with a loan application for me.

I had the bike for almost one year exactly, had put a little over 5,000 miles on it and then it was stolen out of the garage in the middle of the night while we were home. The steering was locked, so there were probably two people involved. One year later I was working nights at the foundry and Mom hollered at me at 8:00 in the morning to get up, the FBI was on the phone and they wanted to talk to me. Seems they found the bike in Tennessee at a gas station. I had already been paid by the insurance company but I asked the FBI agent how it looked and he said it was in pieces. I don't know what happened to it after that but if you ever come across a '67 Sprint H with the serial number 67H17889, that's the one.

I got the swingarm bolt out of the frame on the Yamaha yesterday. Just like the Mounties, I too always get my man.