Good Weekend to Spend in Bed

Pretty crappy weekend around here. Cold and rainy for the most part. The farmer managed to get my fields planted on Saturday so I'll have soybeans in the front pretty soon. I got the sheet metal for the barn picked up Saturday morning, went to the gym, came home and then vegged out the rest of the day. Other than a few chores, Sunday was basically a repeat. I'm pretty well caught up on my magazines now, though.

Surly sent me a link the other day to Special 79 Fabrications. The guy does some really nice work. I looked back through his blogposts and it looks like we have a lot in common. He's into hockey, Moto Guzzi's, he taught for a while and he makes motorcycle parts. Too bad he's out East, I'd like to meet him and talk a little shop. If you get a little time, check out his work. He's mostly doing handlebars and gas tanks, it looks like, but he also does some artsy, fartsy stuff, and complete bikes. He's got some good how-to videos as well.

I'm officially counting down the days until school's out (12 'til the little darlings leave). In the past when someone would ask me if I was counting the days, I always said there was no point in counting days when your still counting years. This year is different. I'll be glad to get away for a break and maybe I can come back in the fall with a little better attitude. There was a nice editorial in Sunday's NWI Times by Morton Marcus about the role high schools should play in economic development. Only takes a couple of minutes to read it and gives a different slant than what is usually bandied about. He makes an extremely good case.

As soon as the weather clears up a little, I'm heading out to the shop and getting things going out there. I need to do a serious organization/cleaning session. I definitely need to start seeing some progress on the motorcycle front and if I get the place straightened out a little, maybe it'll get done. I'm getting some professional help for a few things around the shack that can't be postponed any longer and I'm still not physically ready to tackle. I can't run but I can work on a motorcycle. I just need to pull the rag out of my ass and get after it. I missed the Hub Run yesterday, by the way. I ran the first one and the 30th anniversary one last year - sorta glad I wasn't out there in the rainy 40 degree temps.

Have a good week - did I mention only 12 more days?

Sheet Metal

I'm heading out to pick up the metal for the barn in a little bit. There's two weeks left for the boys to at least get the roof on. Hopefully the weather will cooperate. It's looking like rain out there now, in fact.

Put a couple of guys on the cider press job. I decided to just start from scratch and build a metal one. Since I can use the big screw and bucket, it should be wrapped up next week.

That's all from here.

Traveling Pirate: I saw your comment the other day but Blogger went haywire. The post went away along with the comment and I couldn't log in to respond. So, thanks for the comment and we all need to get together after you get home - talk a little shop and a little trip.

The Darkroom

Photo From Here











Busy week already. We fixed the hitch on the drag for the baseball field, an air compressor tank, the frame on a 4 wheeler, and the rear strut tower on a rust bucket little car. I also got the prototype skid plate for the Rickati bent up.

I got caught up on some of my paper work and while working on that came across some new stuff I need to incorporate into my curriculum for next year. I just finished up the "mapping" to reflect the new state performance standards and now I need to include the reading standards. Apparently, since no one else has been able to teach the little darlings how to read over the course of ten to twelve years, it's going to be up to the Tech guys now. I'm thinking maybe they should just run everyone else off and let us do the whole job. If they figure we can do it in a shop environment with the old "hands on" approach, maybe that should actually be the delivery system of choice. Oh wait, that's what everyone who has a grasp on the situation has been saying for years. I did find it odd that I just stumbled across this stuff when someone, somewhere, should have been keeping me abreast of these changes.

There's a new guy at the state level in charge of vocational education and he's been earning his money at least. He put on a Webinar earlier this year to introduce himself and to get to know his people. I received an e-mail from him the other day asking for input from welding teachers to work on the standards during a workshop this summer. I'm going to check up on that and maybe I'll spend a little quality time this summer in Indy giving them my "two cents" worth.

The garden's in, everything else is planted, the chicks are doing well and the barn project is progressing. So in spite of the stupid crap that's happening at school and in education in general, my life is good. Hope that's the case with the rest of you as well.

Just as a little side note, the third year anniversary of Shop Teacher Bob was last week. I've actually been able to keep posting at least twice a week as per my original plan for three years. If you've been reading along for any length of time, you've been able to see the types of things that vocational students do and, hopefully, the importance of these types of classes to the young men and women who enroll in them.

Jumpin' Jack Flash it's a Gas

Gas Gas.

One of my fellow Tech Ed teachers loaned me his trials bike. I'm not sure why. I think it's because he has the thing and he's not quite sure what to do with it and I'm the only guy he's ever talked to that mentioned trials bikes without being prompted. He can ride a bike fast, he's just not sure what to do about going slow. I rode it around the backyard a little Friday afternoon but I didn't get a chance to do much else with it this weekend. It's got huge fun potential, I can see that but I just didn't get the chance to do much with it this weekend.

I did manage to get in a T-Ball game on Friday evening. While there, Surly and I planned our assault on the moving of heavy things for Saturday. Saturday morning involved picking up a trailer, then loading a lathe and delivering same to Surly's garage. We also moved a woodworking jointer for me from the same place as well as a floor crane and an engine stand. The move came off relatively smooth - not even so much as a pinched finger. Surly commented after we had gotten the lathe in place about all the stuff we have moved. I hadn't really thought about it but between us we have moved about six or seven metal working lathes and a couple of milling machines, several welders and even a garage. I always just kind of do it with out giving it much thought - that is, thought about it being unusual for a guy to get up on Saturday morning and move things that weigh a half ton or more. There usually is plenty of thought given on how to get it done safely and efficiently. I guess "shop guys" just do these things. We got it all done, including picking up a mower and returning the trailer before the rain came in. I guess that good clean living does pay off.

I worked around the shack yesterday. It was a beautiful day to be outside, so I spent the better part of it out. I got the garden in except for a few pepper plants I need to pick up. I put a new belt on the mower and mowed the front yard, planted some trees and shrubs, policed up around the new barn, and took care of a few other odds and ends. Wrapped it all up about six and was both too sore and too tired to ride the trials bike. Damn, it's hell to get old.

It's a beautiful morning as I right this but it looks like rain coming in for the rest of the week. It'll just have to be, I guess. I'm just glad I got my work outside done yesterday. I need to take care of the "peeps" and get to work. Have a good week.

Progress & Peeps

Things have been going pretty good the last few days. The boys have been working on their resumes - that's interesting. For something that should take only an hour or so, they've been struggling. Lots of misspelled words, punctuation errors and basically sloppy work. After several rewrites most of them are at least somewhat presentable, finally. It's no wonder they do poorly on the "Big Test". At least they'll have put one together before they graduate. We do a unit on finding a job - filling out applications, locating employers who use welding, resumes - all the things that should have them ready to go to find a job when they graduate. Unfortunately, many of them don't put much effort into it. Might explain why so many young people can't find a decent job. At least I've done my part.

We finished up the aerator/dethatcher. It came out looking pretty sexy. Should work, too. He can aerate or dethatch, either separately or both at the same time.

The shop's just about bare. We spent the other day cleaning up real well. Looks pretty good in there now. Almost a shame to do any work and drag all the tools out again. I'm going to be working on the big ass log splitter next week and try to finish that up before school's out (He says, very optimistically). The owner hasn't been around at all this year to check on the thing so obviously he's not real worried. It sat at a local welding shop for a year before it came here. He's a nice guy and we've done several jobs for him in the past. He's been pleased with our work but usually we jump on his stuff and knock it out right away. This time he made the mistake of telling me it's a back-up for his other one and he was in no hurry to get it back - which is the last thing you want to tell me. It'll be nice to get it moved out and create a little more room, however.

We've only got three and a half weeks of school left so I'm not sure how much the Building Trades boys will get done on the barn but the trusses are just about all up. They've got the spiral stair where it needs to be, so the next thing is to cut one truss down to give that some clearance and header off the floor to strengthen that up where they have to cut the whole in the floor. As long as they get the roof on the barn, I can work on the rest of it this summer. I've already bought the garage and service doors. I need to get a big door for up on top yet but the job is looking good. The rain has really slowed the progress.

The Missus picked up the chickens late yesterday afternoon. They were a little ahead of schedule but the little darlings are doing swell. They eat, drink, poop, and make noise which actually sounds a lot like my retirement plan. Hopefully I'll be able to get my tomato plants and my trees planted this weekend in between the raindrops and helping Surly move some things.

Enjoy the weekend.

Steinbeck

From Bookpuddle:

And this I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world. And this I would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this I must fight against: any idea, religion, or government which limits or destroys the individual. This is what I am and what I am about.

From Steinbeck's East of Eden

That my friends, is why we must read books.

Photography & Reform

Photo From Here

That has to be the best photograph of Lauren Bacall ever.

I've been looking at a lot of photos lately. I'm heading into the darkroom one of these days soon to print up some stuff from my Italy trip as well as a few other things I've shot over the last year. Seems like I'm always bouncing from one thing to another, no surprise if you've read this blog for anytime at all, but photography and motorcycles are the ones I always return to. I want to enter a couple of photos in the county fair this year. The black and white stuff was mostly garbage last year. Plus, I'll hopefully end up with a couple of nice photos to hang on the wall. A couple from Italy and a couple of artsy-fartsy ones.

In keeping with my goal to finish some things up, however, I'm not starting on my new pinhole camera for a while. I want to make one that uses the same 4x5 film I use in my big cameras. I'm working on a design but it'll have to simmer a bit. I have been making a little progress around the shack. Put a new battery and new blades on the mower and have kept up with the mowing in between the raindrops and the pumping. I got a little of the garden turned over prior to heading out for opening day of T-Ball season on Sunday. Hope to have that finished up by the weekend so I can start planting. Baby chicks will be here on Friday - looking forward to that. I've got a couple of things to finish up for their nursery. Paint it pink, hang a little mobile overhead - those kind of things.

The governor signed the merit pay bill for teachers, so his reform agenda has been fully implemented. The total package was tamed down some but it's going to be real interesting to see how all of this reform shakes out over the next few years. Real reform would have changed the delivery model. I don't know where the politicians got their information that led them down this path, but I'll be they didn't talk to too many "old school" shop teachers or young teachers who left the classroom within the first five years of their career, as so many do. I do have to admire the nerve of people who have never taught anyone a day in their life deciding what's best for education. Especially when they cut the funding. I haven't yet seen how they are going to reward those of us who don't directly prepare students for the graduation exams or how they are going to compensate those they force to get additional education in order to renew their teaching license. Yep, it's going to be interesting.

The sun's supposed to be out for a few days early in the week. Let's all get outside and work on our melanomas.