BeachWeb
- January 2007
For
'engineering-projects' (Squirrel-Engineering,
Stump-removal-engineering, and others... ) scroll near-to the
bottom of this web-page.
Today
is Wednesday, 24 January, and here's today's image:
Ms. May's showing two-talents in one image, here... She not
only grows terrific tomotoes, but she can take a really beautiful
picture with one hand...!!!
Today
is
Thursday, January 11, 2007: and we have had some
'cleansing' going-on around here. Some things are dirty, some
things are sandy, some things are downright ookie.... However, after
some degree of washing and (still not completely) drying... - we have:
Today
is
Monday, January 8, 2007: Herein we publish 'today's
puzzler' - write us an e-mail ( bill@vikingasia.org,
sailormayw@vikingasial.org ) and let us know if you vote for 'first
word' or 'second word' - and we'll see who wins-out and we'll publish
the answer in next Month's web-page...
here's the 'puzzler-quiz:'
We have two bottles of hot-sauce; note they were both 'produced'
in Asia (on in Hong Kong, one in Thailand) and they are labelled:
Garlic Chili Sauce
Chili Garlic Sauce picture
of these jars...
here's the puzzler-quiz - is the first a "Garlic Flavoured Chili Sauce"
or a Chili Flavoured Garlic Sauce" and the reverse for the second... -
that is - is the first word in the title the 'most dominant'
ingredient; or is it the second word in the title? - BOTH sauces,
though they are titled differently, follow the same 'pattern' in the
way they list ingredients... - let us know what you think?
January,
2007 - well - we're here
- and HAPPY NEW YEAR to one and all...
Here's some images to open-up our New Year. This orchid
blossom was here (along with some others). On the way
back from our new year's party last night, we saw a bunny-rabbit
running from Ms. May's orchid-area at about 01:30 a.m. - we thought
Maybe Mr. Bunny-rabbit was eating orchids, but no further evidence!
anyway - a beautiful orchid to greet us in the new year...
More May-Wong-Orchid images - very pretty stuff!
By the way - Mr. Bill's bread-making was very well received at the
new-year's party last night!
Book Review(s):
I just finished " The
Keeper's Son " by Homer Hickam
(he's the guy who wrote the book and who's life was chronicled in the
movie " October
Sky " about the son of a West Virginia coal-miner who built model
rockets as a teenager, won a national science-fair medal and
subsequently went-on to a career as a NASA engineer.)
-
anyway - THIS BOOK, that I just finished, is about the Nazi
U-boats off of Cape-Hatteras during World War II, and it is a very very
interesting book. Apparently there were over 400 sinkings
of Allied shipping during an 8 month period off the Cape, in 1942, and
this book is just a brief look into that era and it's happenings...
One of the 'stars' of this book is the 83 foot US Coast Guard
'cutter'.... - they even have a web-site about these traditional wooden
boats, here .
Other good books of late:
Carl Hiassen's "Nature Girl" -
his most recent offering is EXCELLENT. Also by Carl Hiassen; " Sick Puppy " -
about a Black Labrador; and " Hoot
" - about some ground-owls - a kids-book but excellent reading, anyway,
and a couple others. - I've just started " Basket Case
" Carl Hiassen writes very much like John D. MacDonald,
about south-Florida and the crazies that live here. However, Mr.
Hiassen is about 40 years newer than John D. MacDonald...
Also - we are working on 3 GPS
books - but they are all fairly basic - will let you know which
seems best.
Remember, too, that there is a terrific science fiction writer, ' Elizabeth Moon ' - who has
written several science fiction 'series'.... I've read most of her
books ( (about 5-8 books, last summer) but she continues to be an
inspiration in the science-fiction-world.
a couple of 'product
endorsements' - we don't 'normally' do this - but when
one is 'happy'
with something - one tends to 'blow their horn':
1.) Best (brand) Kiteboarding Kites: http://www.bestkiteboarding.com
. We've been flying a "Waroo
9 meter " recently and really like it!
2.) SeaSpecs - water-sports-sun-glasses; I had a 'leash' on mine for
almost 2 years, but then took it off because the glasses STAY ON, in
all sorts of 'crashes': http://www.seaspecs.com
- excellent product
3.) Garmin GPS units - I now have three - and the most recent (November
2006) is a 10 year improvement on previous ones I also own and the
advancement(s) in technology are STUNNING: http://www.garmin.com .
4.) "Assuming" all in the Hang Gliding thing continues to go well,
during March-April (my birthday is in March) I'll 'most probably' buy a
new Hang Glider from these people: http://www.willswing.com .
The item I'm probably going to get is the " Sport
2 ".
Some
'engineering' things:
Cannons (belonging to the Florida Yacht Club (Jacksonville)); re-bolted
with larger (stainless-steel (316)) bolts, and routed-out the
wood-mounting-frame-area:
Some (more) 'engineering' things: - wherein the (very
poorly-understood) Mr. Bill has the completely
mistaken belief that he
can 'out-engineer' the squirrels who desperately want at the bird-feed
in the two bird-feeders that we have put out; in an attempt to try to
share our (in-considerable) net-worth with the birds who we know are
starving to death around here...
IF you believe the completely normal and rationally-intelligent Mr.
Gary, who was one of Mr. Bill's instructors and now is Mr. Bill's boss
at IRCC (Indian River Community College) he says:
Bill, You have to learn to " Think like a
Nut, and IRCC doesn't prepare you for that. " - a pointed, intelligent
and completely correct quote if I ever heard one!
- A 'squirrel proof' (Ah HA!) bird-feeder stand (still not
'Squirrel-Tested').... - picture here
- A Re-arranged squirrel-proof' Finch-bird-feeder
here picture
here
- Yet Another re-arranged (larger-bird) feeder here with a
'customer'? picture
here and customer-leaving-here
- Photographic Evidence that Mr. Bill's Engineering is 'for
naught'?! --- small
picture of squirrel-on-bird-feeder; larger-image
- Photographic Evidence that Mr. Bill's Engineering 'does work' (to
some degree) for some birds and some bird-feeders; larger-image
- (the above image(s), though, are of a bird-feeder that is
literally "Skyward" - that is it is about 26, maybe 30 feet above the
ground. The squirrels have not (yet) gotten-up-the-nerve to climb
that high, they have looked, they have started-up, they have not,
though gone ALLLLLLLL the way up to this bird-feeder, (yet). They
may get brave / hungry / etc in the future, but at this point,
'not-yet' - so my engineering skills may have out-done them (so far)...
- As of two weeks later (24 January) - I've learned a lot and
refilled the bird-feeders a LOT MORE and mostly-though I've learned
that I CAN DEFEAT these curious, and inventive little creatures, but it
took a lot of WORK... - more pictures here, later!
- BUT _ this morning it was RAINING - and we found Mr. Squirrel on
the large-bird-feeder, the one we thought he couldn't get to! - UGH UGH
UGH _ more engineering required, here!
.....
Here's another engineering project - a bit more successful.
This (sail) board, made by my good friend Mr. Henry, about 25 years ago
- had an 'ookie' fin-box in it, and it was leaking water significantly,
so I routed the fin-box out - and the water drained for two days.
there was a significant void inside the board - the chemical structure
and heat and etc. wasn't quite right when
they made the board. Anyway - so I routed-out the
old-fin-box, rinsed the inside with fresh-water, dried it for a week -
put some foaming epoxy in it and a new fin-box and here's the 'almost'
finished result.
This repair was done with 'C-2' cloth and with West System Resin.
I'll probably put one more layer of cloth on it - a tiny-bit of filler
and off we'll go. The mast-box is the next to
go - the deck is already cracked around the box. The box is
an OLD OLD OLD "Bahne"type two-piece box which is very weak...
I have another (one piece) box, so I can install it when I need
to - when the old one breaks-out...
And my last engineering project - is the removal of this (fairly HUGE)
stump in the extreme NW corner of the yard where Asplundh took-out the
bulk of the tree and then Pike put in a new power-pole (and we'll now
have 3phase power nearer-by as well as a cleared-yard-area. - ANYWAY _
stump-removal has become a sociological drive for Mr. Bill - after
several hurricanes he removed 7 stumps - all 'by-hand' - the most
automated I got was a chain-saw...
Anyway - this one is WAY BIGGER with manymore roots, but I think I can
persevere - it will take me a week or so - it normally took 3 - 5 days
for the others - but - I was younger then. Additionally-
others were MUCH CLOSER to a good, high-pressure supply of water
- this one is at the end of 200 feet of hose - so the washing-step(s)
and there will be a lot of them, don't go as fast.... - more picture(s)
when I get closer to completion - I worked for a while this morning,
but eventually the rains got me!
------------------------------------------------------
On Friday the 26th this thing came out of the ground - very surprising
- it was several days 'early'...
......
and the hole that it left behind (needs some trimming-up - but have to
service the chain-saw again...!
last updated: 09:13
a.m. on Sunday, 28 January, 2007 USA-EDT; revID: 1r
