Month: May 2020

May 14, 2020 – ‘Tacticool’ Thursday

May 14, 2020 /

Back when I was a youth, I was in Boy Scouts. One of the things we did quite a bit of was rafting, mostly white water. There was a friend of the troop that was an outfitter in the summer time and he would let us use his rafts for short excursions in the offseason. I have gotten the opportunity to raft the Deschutes, John Day, North Santiam, Mackenzie and the the Willamette.

My first trip, was on the North Santiam and when the rafts were all blown up and ready to go, we were handed a fifty caliber ammo box for our valuables. This was our boats’ dry box. Military ammo boxes have a water tight construction and a durable seal that allows the box to float (as long as it is not full of lead).

It seems to me that in today’s world the surplus boxes have all dried up. I think for the one pictured, I paid $3 in the early 1990s. I remember distinctly paying $5/ fifty caliber box in the late 1990s. They can definitely be found online, but you will be paying $20 plus shipping. Fortunately new, non-surplus boxes can be found for around $12-20 if you are interested in picking one up. MTM makes a plastic ammo box for $10. It doesn’t quite stack the same with the metal ones.

I thought that I would talk a little bit about what they can be used for. Well, first of all you can put ammo in them. I like to put reserve ammo in them so that when there is a run, like now I know that it is safe and sound for when I want it. I already talked about using them for a waterproof container, very good use. You can buy trays to put inside the fifty caliber box, that turns it into a toolbox or parts box. I have seen them strapped to ATVs for that purpose. I know that there are plans so that you can build a self contained ham radio w/battery for grab and go use.

Surplus ammo cans come in a variety of sizes. Some of them are very large. Rafting companies on the Colorado have built mobile toilets on the largest of the boxes. They have to pack out waste to minimize the environmental impact of raft tours. I think that the most useful size is the fifty caliber. It seems to be the best compromise between size and weight.

I am always interested in what other people are doing or have seen. So let me know what you have done.

May 13, 2020 – Rainy Day, time to work inside

May 13, 2020 /

Since my update last week, probably 75% of the siding is now up. There is still some caulking to be done as well as most of the painting. There is consistent rain in the forecast for the next two days so I am going to be switching gears on the outside and working on the inside.

In the interest of ‘edutainment’, I figure I should be working a little harder than just posting pictures of progress and a short blurb about it. I am going to try and get some helpful information in these posts. So, with that, here is a starter information about siding.

Now, wasn’t that fun?

May 12, 2020 – Review: Hunt, Gather, Cook

May 12, 2020 /

Hunt, Gather, Cook: Finding the Forgotten Feast by Hank Shaw was the April book selection in the Left Coast Cellars Culinary Book Club. Unfortunately, the club has been on hiatus since mid-March but that doesn’t mean that the reading doesn’t go on.

Hank Shaw is an author, blogger, podcaster and general media person. His focus is about cooking with wild sourced ingredients. He tends to collaborate with others in this space like Steven Rinella. If you are into this sort of genre, then you probably already know about him and his contemporaries.

The book is organized into three sections. Section one is about foraging, section two is about fishing and section three is about hunting. Each chapter in the section is grouped by a theme such as wild berries. At the end of each chapter there are five or so recipes focusing on the type of ingredients the chapter is about.

This is one of those books that I would consider a gateway into the subject. There is no possible way that a person can safely learn everything about foraging by reading this. Every microclimate and region in the country could support it’s own botanist/mycologist/herbologist from the vast diversity that is present. There is no mention of mushrooms, which is probably a good thing. Instead the focus is on high value, low risk choices like seaweed and day lilies.

Another potential roadblock to successfully implementing ideas in this book are access, equipment and knowledge. For example, in my state there is no ‘season’ for rabbit hunting. It does require a license to do so. There is public land about ten miles away, but I have rarely seen a rabbit. I think that to really do this successfully, having a flushing dog would be the only viable option. Dogs are not allowed in the public land without a leash.

Instead of focusing all of my energy into why any of these ideas can’t be done I think the best use of this book is to read through it and look for things that can be done. Almost everything has a season to when it is available and or legal (including a lot of plants). Plan times to obtain these items as family activities. A family charter for bottom fish and crab is something I can do in my area. Then be prepared to feast when the trip is complete.

I enjoyed reading this book because it is about 25% technique, 25% cookbook and 50% inspiration. So, it is not a page turner but it does get the mind stimulated about the possibilities. Over the years, I have learned that it is much more enjoyable to pursue the activities rather than read about them. But I find that I can more easily find the time to learn and think than I can do. For that reason, it is exciting to think about that next fishing trip or making blackberry wine.

May 11, 2020 – Mom’s hand chosen picnic

May 11, 2020 /

I hope that you all had a great Mother’s day. I know that we did. It was more like a Mother’s Day Weekend. Friday, I hung a new chandelier. Saturday, we cleaned the house and hung pictures that have been sitting around. Sunday we had a picnic on the lawn, I installed a window treatment and we watched a movie to finish it off.

The picnic was delicious and while she chose the result, I went to work on how it was done. I thought that I would share.

The kids did a lot of the work, so I will help them develop their sense of presentation at some other time. But, the first item was a fruit salad.

  • Fruit Salad
    • Watermelon
    • Grapes
    • Pineapple
  • Charcuterie Tray
    • Assorted crackers
    • Cheese
      • Sharp Cheddar
      • Dill Havarti
      • Gouda
      • Parmesan
    • Cured Meat
      • Prosciutto
      • Salami, two types
      • Coppa
    • Pickled asparagus
    • Chocolate truffles
    • Salmon Spread – Mix ingredients for eveness
      • 8 oz cream cheese
      • 2 oz smoked salmon
      • 2 tbls capers
      • 2 chives, chopped small
  • Egg Salad Sandwiches
    • Sliced French Bread
    • Egg Salad
      • 10 hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped
      • 2 stalks of celery, fine dice
      • 1/8 cp finely sliced red onion (very small amount)
      • 10 chives finely diced
      • 1/2 tsp dill weed
      • 1/2 tsp thyme
      • 1/4 cp french mustard
      • 1/2 cp mayonnaise
      • dash of cayenne
      • Salt and pepper to taste
      • vinegar to adjust acid

Mix the egg, onion, celery, chives, dill and thyme. Then add the mustard. Add the mayonnaise slowly so as not to make your mixture too sloppy. Adjust your additional seasonings accordingly.

I added a little more vinegar to increase the acid at the end. So keep tasting as you go along. You might even want to leave it a little dry if you know that is what you like. There is nothing worse than an over goopy egg salad in my opinion.

May 8, 2020 – Ever driven with no headlights, in the dark?

May 8, 2020 /

Since the quarantine began we haven’t been out much. On occasion we have something that has to get done. In this case, we needed to get our exchange student to the airport at three AM. I was driving on the freeway and I thought to myself… “Wow, it seems the headlights are really dim. In fact, are they on?” So, I flipped the switch and the headlights came on again.

During that trip, it happened at least three different times. But, it wasn’t always both headlights. Sometimes it was one on either side of the vehicle. My first instinct was that it was an electrical problem. This Lincoln Navigator is a bit of a gremlin with electrical problems. There are what appears to be phantom errors with the parking sensors, check engine light, suspension monitor, etc. I check them with a code reader and reset and they seem to disappear.

Today’s headlight is a complicated and potentially expensive proposition. Not only are the bulbs expensive, but there are also ballasts and igniters, that is to say a bunch of electronics as part of the assembly. A big shout out to p38fln on f150online. The advice was that if both are going out within 2-5 minutes of startup, that it is likely the bulb. So, I ordered two new bulbs at $54/ea. The worst case scenario was that I replaced the bulbs for no reason, but they are ten years old at this point.

There are a number of good videos on YouTube on how to change the bulbs. It actually is pretty easy to access them. By far and away, the most difficult item is to remove and re-install the T-10 screws that hold the headlight in place. It is not a real accessible place and little screws tend to be difficult to start.

Start by removing the two 10mm bolts holding the assembly in. Once those are out, there is a tab on the left (or right depending on which light you are working on) that needs to be lifted. Pull the unit straight out.

With the assembly free, remove the three inserted light bulbs by twisting and pulling. Then remove the connection to the headlight by pressing the tab and pulling straight out. Now the assembly is out to remove the headlight.

Remove the rubber cover to the headlight. With at T-10 screwdriver, remove the two screw that hold the bulb. Pull the lamp out and disconnect the electrical connection. Finally, remove the metal clip at the base of the bulb and swap it onto the new bulb. Reverse the process to install.

I am happy to report that I have had no headlight outages since replacement. This is a limited data set and I have driven the vehicle three times since. But, it was happening every time the lights were on before I changed the bulb.

From this experience, I would recommend doing your research. I saw a lot of effort and cost expended by others when a bulb change was the solution. Replacing wear parts make sense when troubleshooting and repairing anyway. I dont know what a shop cost would have been, but I would guess several hundred dollars, plus the hassle.

May 6, 2020 – Covid-19 has turned my 5.0 GT into a commuter car

May 6, 2020 /

My son sees a medical specialist every couple of months for monitoring. That specialist works at the research hospital in Portland. For us, that is over an hours drive on a good day. Normally, I make the next appointment when we are at the doctor’s office. I try to make it where it will have the least impact on the school day or in other words ‘as late as possible’. That leaves us at the whims of rush hour traffic during most appointments.

As a life-long, small town guy I find rush hour traffic extremely frustrating. This is born largely out of my belief of the colossal waste of time commuting is. My two years living in the suburbs or Portland cemented that for me in the 1990s. I have tried very hard not to live or work where I had to deal with those frustrations.

First, I needed to get fuel before we left. The Mustang has a small tank to begin with at 16 gallons. With the low price of gasoline I filled the car up for $32. I almost always reset the trip counter when I fuel up because I monitor the fuel economy during that period. It is a habit that I have always done as a double check on the gas gauge.

During our trip, traffic was incredibly light. I would characterize it as Saturday morning. I think that we stopped at two lights in Salem on our way to the freeway and two lights once in Portland. For an appointment at three PM, we would start to encounter the afternoon rush hour at this time, however typically not terrible in the mid afternoon.

Our round trip spanned from 1:30-5 PM. I would have expected 1:30-6:30 PM so I was really happy about that. Now, the best part… the Mustang’s overall fuel economy. I averaged 29.2 MPG on that trip. I have never seen the economy that high before. I usually average about 20-22 MPG. For that trip specifically I have seen it as high as 26 MPG.

The net of this is that the Mustang can be more than double as efficient as my other two vehicles. I am typically no lead foot nor am I a hyper-miler. I enjoy the power sometimes, but it is hard to find a place where I can safely exert it because usually there are too many people about. That usually leaves me with merges or passes when I flex it the most. But, when there is little traffic, it is nice to see what can be done at a steady pace.

May 5, 2020 – Project Update for the week

May 5, 2020 /

I may sneak one more in this week, just because rapid visual changes are about to happen. I have the lap siding to finish the south side. Nevertheless, I will talk about what has been accomplished since the last update.

It has been a structural journey over the last week. Sill replacement has been the focus. I replaced eight feet of sill from the south east corner of the window all the way past the front door. I started with completing the demo in the front. That took two days.

I continue to preach… the root of this problem is poor building practice. I believe that the reason I am dealing with this problem is that the driveway was laid right against the house. Wet cement touching non treated wood will lead to rot. The sill was cedar, which was good, but no match for bad decisions. Six inches of soil should have been removed before the driveway was laid so that it wouldn’t be against the structure.

I removed and reset the door. The rough opening barely allowed the door to fit (they were exact measurements – opening and door). Fortunately, the framing around the door was rotting anyway, so I restructured the framing to allow for 1/4″ clearance around the door.

Because of the thickness of the sheathing and siding, the door did not fit properly into the opening with the trim. That was all rectified so that there will be a unified trim look and hopefully a better fit inside.

The door also needed new structure under the threshold. The last opening was actually hacked out of the sill. Not only was the sill rotten, but the height and angle left the threshold sagging and a gap under the door.

This whole process was a slow go with jacking and temporary supports. I needed surgical cuts with butchery grade tools and cancer of unknown spread. I think we are through the worst of it and look forward to putting it all back together.

Also exciting news, we have agreed on a price and scope of work to reconfigure the bathroom, the entry door will no longer be in the kitchen, stubs of pipes will no longer be out of the floor and there will be space to add a washer and dryer.

May 4, 2020 – The continued legacy of ‘Techno-junk’

May 4, 2020 /

I had another occasion to dig up what I call Techno-junk this weekend. It happens to be an old desktop computer from the Windows XP era. There is a circuitous route for why I wanted it in a minute.

I am having a problem with the headlights on our 2010 Navigator. They will just shut off without warning. Sometimes it is one side, other times it is the other side and sometimes it is both. When driving in town, you may not notice that your headlights are out, everything seems dim however. So, I wanted to use my scanner to check for any codes that might be present.

I didnt get any codes at all. My scanner is only configurable to the model year 2007. This scanner is upgradeable, by connecting it to the computer via serial cable otherwise known as COM. This is an old connection style, today it would USB. In fact, there are COM to USB converters, but I do not have one.

This machine we used three generations of operating systems ago. I think we probably used it from around 2005 – 2012. It does have a COM port and I have connected this scanner before. This computer has kind of lagged around, not for this reason but because it has personal information on it, including a lot of old photos. I have made efforts to remove these items but the total status remains unclear.

The first problem I had was that the BIOS battery was dead. Apparently, I knew this because a new battery was installed, but the protective sticker was still on the back of the battery. I installed the battery and set the BIOS clock. Then the cover was off, and there is some sort of proximity switch that prevents boot up without the cover.

I did get the computer running, I navigated through all of the errors and warnings to update the scanner. Then I started looking around to see what was still on this computer. I found a lot of music, iTunes worked perfectly and it notified me that the newest version was available for download. It even downloaded current versions of podcasts that I am still subscribed to.

When I launched Rhapsody, it blue screened. After reboot, it launched but it was a program that wasn’t used much so it really didn’t have a lot of data or function. While I was messing around, updates were prompted to install.

Twenty-eight updates were attempted to install. At least six failed, they were .NET framework service packs and things of that ilk. But I was sure surprised that there were any updates. I had several blue screens during the process so I am not sure what the real problem is. Now, the machine wont boot passed the BIOS check.

There are some warning lights on the back of the case. The status indication is that there is an ‘other problem’. Troubleshooting steps are to verify the connections of the hard drive and disk drive are solid. It kind of acts like a hard drive failure though.

One trick that I have used in the past is to remove the hard drive and plug it into a working machine. That bypasses all of the other hardware issues. If I can offload the data (one more time), this machine will finally be headed to the scrap heap.

Because my scanner is OBD II specific, there are no other updates that it will receive and the COM port will no longer be necessary as that protocol was ended in 2012. The scanner is as up to date as it will ever be. Some things will be lost forever like music downloaded with the Windows Music license format. That idea was not carried forward and will only play on devices originally downloaded. Tax years 2011 and 2010 are no longer relevant. Only photos are the prize.

I guess what inspired this post was my amazement that six years after support ended, I still had pending updates. I know that this machine has been on and connected in that time. This experience has driven a few planned posts as well 1) headlight resolution of the Navigator 2) repair of the Yamaha sound systems – I know what is wrong there.

I am still very much busy with my housing project. That is partially why last week was so barren. But I will be back.