Sorry...I was distracted from creating a blog post today by watching a 20 minute speech that Mike Rowe gave a few years ago. It's really quite insightful, and the fact is, I don't disagree with anything he says in it. Two of the points he makes: Safety 3rd, and the decline of trade school attendance, are of particular interest to me.
Since Mike says it better than I ever could, here he is saying it.
7.31.2013
Damn...less than a year old.
So...after hauling our now empty chest freezer outside, and hosing it out, then giving it a round of ammonia followed by a round of bleach, we moved back into our garage, and plugged it back in.
Nothing. Oh...the green power light came on, and then the red 'running' light came on, but not a single bit of cold has been generated over the past 24 hours.
Poop.
Now, since I do unexciting things on my blog, like talk about chest freezers, I was able to look back and figure out I just bought this thing last November...it's not even a year old! I thought we had had it closer to 18 months. I don't remember purchasing the service/protection plan(we only paid a bit over $150 for the freezer...I think it might not have felt worth it.) Still...with it being dead after less than a year, it's got to be worth it to at least make the attempt to see if Home Depot can do anything for me.
Otherwise I shall call down all the demons of the internet upon them.
Nothing. Oh...the green power light came on, and then the red 'running' light came on, but not a single bit of cold has been generated over the past 24 hours.
Poop.
Now, since I do unexciting things on my blog, like talk about chest freezers, I was able to look back and figure out I just bought this thing last November...it's not even a year old! I thought we had had it closer to 18 months. I don't remember purchasing the service/protection plan(we only paid a bit over $150 for the freezer...I think it might not have felt worth it.) Still...with it being dead after less than a year, it's got to be worth it to at least make the attempt to see if Home Depot can do anything for me.
Otherwise I shall call down all the demons of the internet upon them.
7.30.2013
Movin' to the country, gonna eat a lot of peaches.
Yeah...I've had the Presidents of the United States song 'peaches' stuck in my head all day, as I have been in the kitchen pealing and chopping peaches.
My contribution was finished early...I popped out one batch of 9 pints of Honey Spiced Peaches, and then helped peal a few more pounds for my wife to can up this evening.
You know you have bought too many peaches when you have to run to the store to buy a larger canner, like I did earlier today. Swapped out a canner that could only handle 7 pint jars for one that can do either 9 pints or 7 quarts. It takes a while to get it to a boil, but the ability to do quart jars is a huge advantage.
My contribution was finished early...I popped out one batch of 9 pints of Honey Spiced Peaches, and then helped peal a few more pounds for my wife to can up this evening.
You know you have bought too many peaches when you have to run to the store to buy a larger canner, like I did earlier today. Swapped out a canner that could only handle 7 pint jars for one that can do either 9 pints or 7 quarts. It takes a while to get it to a boil, but the ability to do quart jars is a huge advantage.
7.29.2013
I won.
As threatened, it's time to go into painful detail about the events of my last weekend, starting with my 20th High School Reunion.
I'm not sure what I expected to get out of it, so I can't rightly say if it was a satisfying experience or not.
It wasn't cheap...it was $200 for a couple, and more if you waited an bought tickets at the door. That price kept more than a few people away...out of class of over 400 people, I'd say we had about 75 of them(plus guests) attend. There were even a few folks I talked to that came alone because they couldn't afford to bring their spouses. I'm sure there was once or twice my wife wished I had left her at home...but all in all, she seemed to have a good time. She is the friendly talkative type, and strikes up a conversation much easier than I do.
I would say that I only had three or four meaningful conversations(went beyond the where do you live and how many kids do you have point) all night. There just wasn't that many people there that I clicked with, or had significant memories of from high school, which is funny. I was in drama, and choir, and wrestled and played football, and was in a few AP classes...I thought I had a fairly varied social base, but I would say 80% of the folks who showed up at the reunion were ones I couldn't remember saying more than 5 words too in 3 years of school.
One thing I did realize, from the conversations I did have, is that no one came to the reunion with a sad story...which should make sense. People aren't going to pay $200 a couple to come talk about how bad their lives suck...and it wasn't why I went.
I went to see if I won...and I did. I had the hottest wife, and the best kids. Let's not talk about jobs...I wasn't about to admit all the times I cried in the shower before going to work...but I didn't hesitate to point out my wife.
I'm not sure I will go to a 25th or 30th...it depends on how much they decide to charge, and what kind of commitment I get from folks that I WANT to meet with. My wife and I could have come up with a lot more interesting/fun things to do with an evening for $200+. Heck...we didn't spend that much when we used to hit Seattle for a night at the 5th Avenue Theater. I'm more likely to use facebook to try and set up a night at Famous Dave's than go to anything organized again.
I'm not sure what I expected to get out of it, so I can't rightly say if it was a satisfying experience or not.
It wasn't cheap...it was $200 for a couple, and more if you waited an bought tickets at the door. That price kept more than a few people away...out of class of over 400 people, I'd say we had about 75 of them(plus guests) attend. There were even a few folks I talked to that came alone because they couldn't afford to bring their spouses. I'm sure there was once or twice my wife wished I had left her at home...but all in all, she seemed to have a good time. She is the friendly talkative type, and strikes up a conversation much easier than I do.
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| Who wouldn't want to talk to her? |
I would say that I only had three or four meaningful conversations(went beyond the where do you live and how many kids do you have point) all night. There just wasn't that many people there that I clicked with, or had significant memories of from high school, which is funny. I was in drama, and choir, and wrestled and played football, and was in a few AP classes...I thought I had a fairly varied social base, but I would say 80% of the folks who showed up at the reunion were ones I couldn't remember saying more than 5 words too in 3 years of school.
One thing I did realize, from the conversations I did have, is that no one came to the reunion with a sad story...which should make sense. People aren't going to pay $200 a couple to come talk about how bad their lives suck...and it wasn't why I went.
I went to see if I won...and I did. I had the hottest wife, and the best kids. Let's not talk about jobs...I wasn't about to admit all the times I cried in the shower before going to work...but I didn't hesitate to point out my wife.
I'm not sure I will go to a 25th or 30th...it depends on how much they decide to charge, and what kind of commitment I get from folks that I WANT to meet with. My wife and I could have come up with a lot more interesting/fun things to do with an evening for $200+. Heck...we didn't spend that much when we used to hit Seattle for a night at the 5th Avenue Theater. I'm more likely to use facebook to try and set up a night at Famous Dave's than go to anything organized again.
Son of a Motherless Goat.
After a fairly close to ideal weekend, I was putzing around in the garage, when I noticed an ominous pink liquid dripping from the bottom of my chest freezer.
Sure enough, it was worst case...a total loss of 7 cubic feet of frozen goods(including my last 10 pounds of venison)...and I don't know why. According to the lights on the front of the freezer, it had power, and it was running. As near as I could tell, the door was fully sealed. The only depressing possibility right now is that the freezer was 'running', but not running correctly.
I won't be able to tell that for a day or two. We moved the freezer outside last night and completed Phase 1 of the cleaning. Today we will complete Phase 2, and maybe even get it plugged back in tonight. At that point, I'll put some water in it, and a thermometer or two to see how it cools down.
Not happy, not happy at all.
Sure enough, it was worst case...a total loss of 7 cubic feet of frozen goods(including my last 10 pounds of venison)...and I don't know why. According to the lights on the front of the freezer, it had power, and it was running. As near as I could tell, the door was fully sealed. The only depressing possibility right now is that the freezer was 'running', but not running correctly.
I won't be able to tell that for a day or two. We moved the freezer outside last night and completed Phase 1 of the cleaning. Today we will complete Phase 2, and maybe even get it plugged back in tonight. At that point, I'll put some water in it, and a thermometer or two to see how it cools down.
Not happy, not happy at all.
7.28.2013
A full weekend.
Boy, we have been hoping ever since hitting the road at lunch time Friday: my main 20th Reunion Party Friday night, and then a less formal family picnic Saturday followed by a smaller 'after-party' at another friends house, which my wife and I then left early to go catch a late showing of 'Pacific Rim' Saturday night. All of this was then followed by going out to a family breakfast and a day at the Woodland Park Zoo with my mom and her fiancé, before then driving home Sunday afternoon/evening.
Since we are glutton's for punishment, on the way home, we stopped at a fruit stand in Thorp, Washington and picked up 72 pounds of peaches for canning, because we couldn't resist the price($13 for a 24 pound box.)
Good thing I had the foresight to schedule Monday off already.
I assure you, each of these epic events will be covered in oftentimes painful detail, but for now, in the interest of unpacking, and laundry, and just general kicking back, I leave you with this sign for which you can thank the lawyers.
Since we are glutton's for punishment, on the way home, we stopped at a fruit stand in Thorp, Washington and picked up 72 pounds of peaches for canning, because we couldn't resist the price($13 for a 24 pound box.)
Good thing I had the foresight to schedule Monday off already.
I assure you, each of these epic events will be covered in oftentimes painful detail, but for now, in the interest of unpacking, and laundry, and just general kicking back, I leave you with this sign for which you can thank the lawyers.
7.26.2013
Westward ho!
Heading out in a bit to swing over the western side of the state. I'm not sure if I'm more excited about getting to show off my wife and family at my 20-year High School Reunion, or getting to enjoy day-time highs in the mid-70's.
Probably the temperatures...I am soooooo tired of this 95-100 crap we have been getting the last 6 weeks.
Probably the temperatures...I am soooooo tired of this 95-100 crap we have been getting the last 6 weeks.
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