Thursday, March 04, 2004
It's raining! What is all this water doing here? It's not just the water but the gray skies. There aren't any planes flying over at the airport. No Ultralites flying. No Paragliders. There's mud everywhere. I want my money back. This Phoenix is broken. Maybe the batteries are dead.
Our house is at a point of stagnation right now. Not because there isn't anything to do. It's just that we're finding more an more things that need a garage to do them. I have been concentrating on the inside of the house and the horse facilities but now it's time to really get busy. Once things dry out we're going to start on the garage.
We had a controlled burn the other day. After pruning 12 trees, cutting down 6 others, cutting back 2 bougainvilleas (the most deadly plant on earth...they actually fight back) we had piles covering our pasture. You need a permit around here but they only cost $5 and they're good for months. We started around 9:30am and finished about 3:30pm. It was brutal work. I got a bit sunburned. The trick was to keep the fire going by finding out what burns well and what doesn't. The fruitless mulberry was a bit green but the palm tree stuff was awesome. I think they're made of nitro-methane! Those babies took a few of my eye-brows with them. Lorna was working with me but it just wasn't her best day. She started by flattening the wheel on the wheel barrow. Then she took the chainsaw (not her strong suit) and proceeded to knock the chain off of it. Then while I fixed the saw, she almost let the fire go out. She does make a hell of a mean enchilada, though. It's great to have all the debris gone but we have a huge pile of ash. The neighbors say it's great for the trees and garden.
I was welding again yesterday. I was attaching a piece of metal to our gate so that we can lock them shut. I was wearing shoes this time but one of those damn balls of molten metal found my sock again. Crap that hurts. I do have a full face helmet now so the fumes won't get me. Did you know that the light from an arc welder can give you a sunburn? I do...now.
Other things I know:
Horse manure can smolder for hours and smells as bad as it did coming out.
Gofer like creatures can eat through PVC pipe.
The thorns of a bougainvillea are longer than the thickness of the sole of my tennis shoe.
An arc welded piece of steel remains hot enough to burn through the fingers of a leather work glove...even after a few minutes.
The sparks from an angle grinder can start things on fire.
When the packaging of a product says "do not get it on your skin"...Do not get it on your skin!
Fire extinguishers don't last as long as you wish they would...Just kidding!
More later if I don't die!
Our house is at a point of stagnation right now. Not because there isn't anything to do. It's just that we're finding more an more things that need a garage to do them. I have been concentrating on the inside of the house and the horse facilities but now it's time to really get busy. Once things dry out we're going to start on the garage.
We had a controlled burn the other day. After pruning 12 trees, cutting down 6 others, cutting back 2 bougainvilleas (the most deadly plant on earth...they actually fight back) we had piles covering our pasture. You need a permit around here but they only cost $5 and they're good for months. We started around 9:30am and finished about 3:30pm. It was brutal work. I got a bit sunburned. The trick was to keep the fire going by finding out what burns well and what doesn't. The fruitless mulberry was a bit green but the palm tree stuff was awesome. I think they're made of nitro-methane! Those babies took a few of my eye-brows with them. Lorna was working with me but it just wasn't her best day. She started by flattening the wheel on the wheel barrow. Then she took the chainsaw (not her strong suit) and proceeded to knock the chain off of it. Then while I fixed the saw, she almost let the fire go out. She does make a hell of a mean enchilada, though. It's great to have all the debris gone but we have a huge pile of ash. The neighbors say it's great for the trees and garden.
I was welding again yesterday. I was attaching a piece of metal to our gate so that we can lock them shut. I was wearing shoes this time but one of those damn balls of molten metal found my sock again. Crap that hurts. I do have a full face helmet now so the fumes won't get me. Did you know that the light from an arc welder can give you a sunburn? I do...now.
Other things I know:
Horse manure can smolder for hours and smells as bad as it did coming out.
Gofer like creatures can eat through PVC pipe.
The thorns of a bougainvillea are longer than the thickness of the sole of my tennis shoe.
An arc welded piece of steel remains hot enough to burn through the fingers of a leather work glove...even after a few minutes.
The sparks from an angle grinder can start things on fire.
When the packaging of a product says "do not get it on your skin"...Do not get it on your skin!
Fire extinguishers don't last as long as you wish they would...Just kidding!
More later if I don't die!
// posted by Chris @ Thursday, March 04, 2004
Monday, March 01, 2004
I'm in NYC for the night. I need a shirt that says "I hate New York". This place sucks! Home soon.
// posted by Chris @ Monday, March 01, 2004
