The end of vacaation -- Sunday

The last day of vacation.  So much left unfinished -- but, there's always next weekend.


We don't always go to church, but this time we did. 


Afterwards, I was going to go visit my friend at the nursing home, but I did a web search for visiting hours and it indicated that they didn't have any staff on during the weekend:  weird.  (It possibly referred to just the "business office"; presumably they'd have a front desk/reception person available at all times.  But, had to make a quick decision, and decided that since I didn't know his room number I should get more information -- later.  So instead, The Lady and The Girl drove off to Ikea, and I took the boys home -- but stopped by the store to pick up milk -- and immediately prior, I bought them cupcakes at the nearby bakery (I almost got the chocolate muffin, but decided to get the blueberry muffin for a change of pace; it was okay -- but should've got the chocolate muffin).


Put the laundry on; put the dishwasher on.  Had some food (a bowl of cereal?)


As mentioned, I foolishly stayed up 'til 1am last night (this morning) -- so I was tired.  Around noon(?) I set the timer on my phone for 30 minutes, for just a quick nap.  Unfortunately, I forgot to his "start", so I slept for more than 30 minutes:  woke up around 2pm, when hearing The Lady's voice (must've just arrived home).  

Changed into my yeardwork clothes.  Dumped out the vinegar soak and started to scrub the 15kg weight that I put in the plastic tub last night.  Decided that it needed more soaking, though -- so put it back in with more vinegar -- but this time diluted to abotu half strength, since it'll probably be in there until next weekend.


Worked on the property line some more, including a clever (so says I) lightweight solution involving a way to span the remaining palm tree:  using two sticks of bamboo as spreaders, similar to on a hammock (see photo).

But first, of course, had to source the bamboo (from a stash from 3-5 years ago), then cut to length, drill holes and make notches in the end for the cords.

It worked.


Also worked on the two door wedges:  cut them to length, based on the marks I made yesterday when I tried them out on the doors at the Cash Converters; sanded them; glued sandpaper to the bottoms.  Will oil them some evening this week, and probably deliver them next weekend.


Then it rained like crazy.  Being from the Pacific N.W., I considered continuing to work (eh; it's just water) -- but it was also thundering, and around here getting hit by lightning is a very real possibility -- so I came inside (which was disappointing). 

The Lady was clearing out a pile of things in the corner of the kitchen, so I helped out with that from about 4:50pm-5:30pm,  Then the rain let up a bit (but still drizzling, and I still had about a half hour of daylight -- so I went outside and pulled some weeds.  Did that until it was almost too dark to see. 


Came inside, chatted with The Lady, watched about a half hour of The Space Between Us (a movie) on Netflix.  That takes us to about 9pm.


Came over to my desk, and excavated a few things.  Was considering doing some mending, but I've been dong this blog entry for the last half hour -- I think -- and it's 10:35pm now.  I haven't played any musical instruments yet today, and I've been thinking about playing guitar -- so I'll probably do that instead of mending.


And... ended up finishing watching The Space Between Us, and noodling around on the three-string acoustic guitar.  Came up with some usable riffs:  we'll see if I remember them.  It's now around midnight; had pre-written the summary below; off to bed!!!


Over all, I had a productive -- and therefore "good" -- vacation.  I would've finished shooting the line along the property boundary, but the rain made the cord sag just enough to drag against some low items that would be difficult to shift:  better to wait until things dry out. 

Made some progress on a few small projects.  Watched a lot of the Black Mirror series -- plus various YouTube videos and other Netflix.  And had some great naps!!!  :)


Tomorrow:  back to the real world.

I will do very well at retirement...!!!


--GG

Winding down -- Saturday

So:  Saturday.  Only one day of vacation left.  And it's already feeling like a regular weekend -- except that I have a more substantial backstory of recent activities.


Around 9:30am, went to the local metal recycling place for the first time in amonth or two.  Dropped off a handful of old bicycle parts I had left over from a project:  being environmental by not throwing them away; didn't want to stand in line just to get a few bucks for them, so i just "donated" them.

Found three cymbals in the "brass and bronze" bin:  no-name; one had a substantial crack about an inch in from the rim.  Paid scrap-metal prices:  $16 for 2kg -- which is about five bucks a cymbal; fair enough.

Also found a peculiar set of pruning shears in the mud.  The guy didn't charge me for it, since I'd donated the steel from the bike parts.


Got home around 10:30am (had to wait for the scales to clear, so I could get the cymbals weighed).  Drilled out the ends of the cracks in the cracked cymbal, to prevent the crack from spreading.  Also used a dremel tool in my power drill to grind back a pointy section of the crack.  While I had the drill out, decided to polish the cymbals using a brass wire brush: they wre pretty tarnished.  I'd never use a wire brush on "good" cymbals, or ones with a logo -- but these were cheap and blank.

After I cleaned the cymbals, I was inspired to paint a silver "star" across the bell (the centre) of each cymbal:  putting paint on the outer sections might dull the sound, but not much of the "crash" sound comes from the centre, so I wouldn't be changing the sound much (if at all). 

Cut pieces of masking tape into triangles and made asymmetrical multi-pointed start shapes, with the points more-or-less radiating out from the centre.  Gave it two coats of silver paint:  I have about five cans of silver spray paint, left over from a project where I wanted a specific shade of silver but I couldn't tell from teh paint can description.

It turned out pretty well:  someday I'll upload a photo.


Started work on the pair of door wedges for the Cash Converters that I'd promised to make.  Got the basic shape, but then didn't want to go further until I tried them out on the door.  Had been regretting not picking up the 15kg weight (it's a good increment), so I drove over there, tried out the door wedges, marked the excess, and bought the (fairly rusty) 15kg weight.

I knew that I was nearly out of vinegar (for de-rusting soaks), so on the way back I stopped off at Aldi and picked up five 1L jugs of vinegar

Put the 15kg weight in a plastic tub, and poured nearly two litres of vinegar on it, to soak overnight.  Tomorrow I'll scrub it off, rinse it with a baking soda wash, then heat it in the oven and give it a light coating of candle wax, to prevet further rust. 


I think I had some food at this point; had also had some food earlier:  both times, I think it might have been leftover garlic bread.


Intermittent light rain throughout the day, by the way.  But since it wasn't raining at the moment, I turned my attention to running the cord along the property line: I ended up replacing all of the existing rope, as the old sections kept breaking.  I also re-aligned the plastic bucket that hangs from a pulley at the far end, which provides tension on the line, as well as punching some holes to that the bucket will drain instead of filling with water (which makes it heavier than I'd like, for these purposes).

It really helped that I had cut down that other palm tree.  Unfortunately, the remaining palm tree, nearby, is just slightly displacing the line.  I tried hacking away some of the bark, but it's not enough to provide clearance.  I'll have to consider some sort of alternative. 

Worked on the property line 'til just about dark.  Also split a half-log from the felled palm tree into two quarters.  Then it was even closer to dark, so I packed up and went inside.


The boys and I had (another loaf of!) garlic bread for dinner (plus some cut-up watermellon), while I watched a few Cinema Sins episodes on YouTube.  Tried out the new cymbals, and ended up somewhat playing the drums.   That takes me to about 9:30pm.


From about 9:30pm-10pm, did some minor tidying of my desk; a brief "hack" of my reading glasses (adding some black thread); and writing this blog entry up to here.  :)


ADDENDUM:  Stayed up until about 1am -- Netflix and various videos.  Whops.


Tomorrow I'm going to try to finish the two door wedges; finish running the property line; maybe lathe a cymbal holder for one of the new (rescued) cymbals; maybe-maybe visit my co-worker at the nursing home; and maybe set up my PC (swap out the hard drive; install Linux).  Oh:  and maybe pull some weeds.


When I do outdoors things, or little projects, I'm happy-putter-y, and it makes me feel like I've had a good weekend.  Or vacation. 


One day to go.


--GG

Winding down -- Friday

Friday -- only the weekend left -- and then back to work:  ah well.


The usual morning thing:  make lunches, get people out the door, browse internet.


Took a nap from around 9:30am-10:30am.  Got up, had some food, watched Dark Mirror -- again!!!  Meant to catch the 11:30am showing of Stan and Laurel, but I lost track of time and didn't properly start getting ready until about 11:30:  even with the 10 minutes of ads, plus the trailer -- wasn't going to make it.  Okay, change of plans.


Considered going to visit a friend from work at his nursing home:  about half a year ago he had a mysterious brain issue -- like a stroke, but global -- so his brain is pretty much fried:  very sad.  I tried visiting him in the hospital on two occasions, but he was asleep both times -- even though I hung around for a chunk of a day.

But then, decided against it.  Maybe tomorrow.


Took the weights out of the vinegar bath, scrubbed them with a wire brush, rinsed them in a tub of water with a few shakes of baking soda, then rinsed.  Put them in the oven for about a half hour at 100C (to make them completely dry, plus to heat them up), then rubbed them with a candle (which melted upon contact) to seal the metal to prevent rust.

That description makes it sound shorter than it actually was.  I didn't check the time.


Somewhere in there, ate some food -- while watching Black Mirror.


Around 3:30pm I turned my attention to the cord that I'm using to shoot the property line.  Turns out that the cheap rope that I bought would've been fine if I'd completed the task in a timely manner -- but it's been several months, so the UV damage now makes the rope break at various spots.  Was also heating up some garlic bread.  At it -- while watching Black Mirror.

Around 4:15pm I decided to head to the hardware store to get more rope.   Starting to rain lightly.  At the store it took me a little time to figure out which of the many options I wanted.  The receipt says that I paid at 4:42pm. 


Came home, raining more heavily.  Went "eh" and re-strung some of the rope on the boundary line -- but then got really heavy, and also the lightning was getting closer -- so I went inside.


The Lady wasn't home yet, due to a school thing, so I played the drums (it annoys the family if I do it when they're at home):  had a grand time, and came up with some drum beats that I might use someday.  I'm not a good drummer -- but I'm un-schooled enough that I come up with my own way of doing things -- which sometimes converts into "originality".


Everyone came home.  A quick dinner.


For some reason, around 7pm I was fairly sleepy -- considered just going to bed.  But I wanted to get more things done, so I didn't.

Still raining like everything. 

Decided to log today's purchases; also logged various purchases from a pile that's been on the floor next to my desk for -- it turns out -- about a year (whoops). 

The pile of papers that I went through freed an African slit drum that my late paternal grandfather had made for use when we were kids.  Unfortunately, he had seen them, but didn't understand their functionality -- so the "tongues" weren't tuned, and therefore the drum was unusual for "real" music-making (fine for little kids to make noise, of course).

Over the last half year or so I've been getting into hand percussion -- so I turned it over and tried playing the back.  It actually sounds really good! 

So, that's how I'm going to use it:  on my lap, with the slits serving as sound holes.  


It's 10:25pm:  the rain has completely stopped, and I'm not sure when -- but probably in the last half hour.

Will play electric guitar through a "blues" overdrive pedal that was in a bag among the pile of papers I went through.  Depending on whether fatigue hits me or not, I'll play for a half hour or hour, then go to bed.  Or, play, then watch more Black Mirror -- maybe while playing the three-string acoustic guitar.

A pretty good day.  A shame that the rain prevented me from finishing running the new rope along the property line:  ah well; tomorrow.

Kind of funny that if I hadn't needed more rope, I would've spend the entire day without leaving my yard:  I'm okay with that.



--GG

Day something -- Thursday

I'm starting to lose track of how many days I've been on vacation -- and also having the sense that I'm on the downwards slope.  After tomorrow (Friday), it'll be just like any other weekend:  then, back to work on Monday.


If I could win the lottery and quit my job, I could very happily spend the rest of my life doing this:  minding the house while the kids are at school; doing various chores and projects; running the occasional errand.



The usual morning:  help get lunches and get everyone out the door; a brief check of the internet; putting some laundry on; taking  a nap.


This time I intentionally set my alarm for just an hour (and I wouldn't need to take naps if I went to bed earlier; duh) -- so, getting up at 10:30am -- but the dogs woke me up fifteen minutes early with their barking.  I'd forgotten that the septic tank servicing guy (quarterly) would be stopping by this morning.  I went outside and had a nice chat:  he told me about his vacation.



Was planning on catching the 11:30am showing of the Laurel and Hardy movie, so took a shower and got dressed -- after phoning a musical instrument shop a few neighborhoods away and seeing if they had a cello book (volume 2!) for my son.  Went to lock the dogs in the laundry room -- but then I couldn't find one of our two dogs.  So wasted about a half hour looking for him.  And then once I figured out that he had found a hole in the fence of the doggie yard, it then took another ten minutes to round him up and bring him insides.


It was now 11:30am, but I still figured I could I could make the movie since I knew from earlier in the week that the first ten minutes were just ads (ugh), and then there'd be about four trailers before the actual feature.  But then I was a block away and realized that I hadn't confirmed that I'd turned various things off:  was pretty sure, but...


So I went back -- and figured that if I went now, I'd be late for the movie.  Okay:  change of plans.




Got the box of recycling bottles (worth 10c each!) and took it the local recycling place.  Got about $11 off it: fair enough.



Then went to the Cash Converters (pawn shop chain) in Wynnum West, which I hadn't visited for a while.  They had a bunch of disk weights ("plates") at a good price:  usually it's over a buck a kilo, but most of them were actually at a buck a kilo -- so I picked up a few (twelve; had been planning on this).  Also chatted to the sales clerk -- one of the regulars -- and realized that I hadn't made a door wedge for them like I promised.  Will have to do it today or tomorrow.




Stopped off at Aldi and picked up a few different garlic breads, plus two cakes of tofu (organic; firm; they only had one type).



Then stopped by the Woolworth's on the way home to get a jug of milk.  Turns out they had Jatz crackers on sale (which I enjoy; I have about a box every 2-3 days), so I bought a big box of 20.  Also bought two or three more garlic breads -- so, five in total -- to do a taste test with the boys tonight (The Girl and The Lady aren't into garlic bread).  Also bought a cinnamon roll at a bakery on the way out of the shopping plaza.



Home:  put the food in the 'fridge.  Had half of the cakes of tofu for lunch, with Japanese nori rice seasoning on top.  Also the cinnamon roll.  Watched an episode of Black Mirror as I ate.  Then cut up the watermelon that was in the 'fridge (but taking up room), ate about a quarter of it, put the rest in a plastic container and put it in the 'fridge.



Hm:  this reminds me of people texting/blogging/Facebooking photos of their food.  Ah well:  this is for me to look back on.  And maybe my kids.



Went outside got the weights from the car, put them on my workbench under the carport.  Removed the price tags from the weights, and put some of the rustier weights in a plastic tub for re-rusting:  poured cheap vinegar in there, plus some expired bottles of diet cola (the artificial sweeteners turn sour over time -- but the cola still retains its acidity).  But because I wasn't sure the diet cola would be sufficiently acidity, I added some leftover citric acid (a baking supply) to bring the acidity levels up.  Added some rocks to fill in the blank spots in the liquid, thus raising the over-all levels.  Slooshed it around; will let it sit for a day or two, then scrub off the rust with a wire brush, rinse with some mildly alkaline water (i.e. will add some baking soda), then heat gently in the oven to dry them.  Will finish by rubbing (while still kind of hot) with an old candle, to protect it from future rust.



About 3:45pm, headed out to go pick up the cello book.  This time putting the dogs in the laundry was no trouble (whew!).  Afternoon traffic was starting to build up, but not a big problem.  Picked up the book, then also checked out the Garden City branch of Cash Converters:  nothing interesting.



Home about 5:30pm.  Put on the garlic bread -- just a quarter or so of each sample.  The boys and I tasted them -- and they all taste about the same!  Although:  I only tried the mid-range through to the cheapest loaves -- so maybe the more expensive ones taste better?  Blondie boy did find one that he didn't like, though.



Don't remember what I did after that (I'm remedially writing this the following morning -- from memory, no notes), but I think I checked e-mail, and then pretty soon thereafter The Lady said it was time for dinner. 


Alternated between watching Dark Mirror and helping Blondie Boy with his homework -- plus laundry (again!).



Spent the evening logging some expenses that had been kicking around:  one of my quirks is that if something is music-related (e.g. the recording magazine I buy), excercise-related (e.g. the weights), or tool/woodworking/yardwork-related, I write it down.  I also logged most of the weights I'd bought.


Thurs, March 14, 2019 -- Blog entry -- JUST A BACKUP SO I DON'T LOSE IT..


Watched another episode of Black Mirror; meant to noodle around on guitar as I watched, but forgot.  Went to bed just after midnight.



Am getting a little concerned:  all these great plans, and few things actually completed.  Today didn't feel as "productive" as the other days -- partly because I spent most of it driving around (or browsing shops), and also because I added a task (cleaning the weights) that wasn't originally on the list.


But, I still had a nice day.  Will "bat cleanup" on the weekend.




And -- BTW -- this still beats wandering around Hamburg (or somewhere) for a vacation:  I have so much stuff to do around the house -- and it makes me happy to get these things done (or at least:  spend time on them, and making progress).  So why would I want to go anywhere else?


Other people's mileage would differ, of course:  this is just what makes me happy.  ;)



--GG

Day 5 of vacation -- Wednesday

Wednesday -- Day 5 of my vacation.


Helped everyone get out the door, again.


Some minor internet, then took what I intended to be a one-hour nap, but I hit my snooze alarm twice -- so maybe 9:30am-10:45am?  (I didn't take notes for today.)


Alternated between the internet and watching Black Mirror on Netflix (which technically is also the internet).  Somewhere in there I put a load of dishes on; a little laundry.  Headed outside somewhere between 2 and 3.


Made two more gluts (disposable wooden wedges); finished splitting the palm tree log; split some more of the logs; moved them from the neighbor's property onto ours (the split logs are now only half the weight!).


The Lady got home around 5pm, and we went out to pick up the car from teh mechanics.  Got there around 6pm; home maybe 6:20pm?


Shower.  A little more laundry.  Write and post yesterday's blog entry; write this entry.  Now 7:35pm -- dinner.


Dinner while watching yet another episode of Black Mirror.  Then watching another:  only a few minutes into it, but getting tired (now 10:10pm; been checking e-mail for the last few minutes).  Will noodle on three-string guitar while watching the rest of the Black Mirror episode, then to bed:  estimate 10:30pm; for me, early.


UPDATE:  Nah.  Ended up also watching the "Hang the DJ" episode of Dark Mirror, thus staying up about an hour later than intended.  That's okay:  my favorite episode thus far.


--GG

Day 4 of vacation -- Tuesday

So, it's Tuesday:  day #4 of my vacation.  (Oh:  never got around to playing my effects pedal last night:  got trapped by the internet instead.)


The other car is in the shop, so I'm stuck at home. That's fine:  plenty to do.


Helped everyone (except me) get out of the house:  made sandwiches and cut up apples for the kids' lunches (they assemble the rest).


Puttered around a little bit; maybe put some laundry on (I forget).  Took a nap from about 9:30 to 12:15pm.  Kind of "burning daylight" (i.e. should've been getting things done outdoors) -- but it was a fairly hot day -- and I enjoyed the nap very much -- so:  eh. 


Had a breakfast-lunch of two bowls of cold cereal while watching a half hour of the Netflix series Dark Mirror:  pretty good -- although I'm appreciating some episodes more than others.


Loaded the dishwasher and started it.  Did some laundry. 


Pretty humid:  some rain during the day. 


Another 15 minutes or so of Dark Mirror.  Finally got changed and went outside at 1:45.


Spent my time splitting the sections of palm tree that I cut down a few days ago.  Took me longer than I expected:  some species split easily; some don't; this one is in the middle of the range. 

Ran out of wedges, and my existing gluts (like wedges, but made out of wood; user-made; expendable) weren't thick enough, so I made some more.  That took me until near dark.


Borrowed the riding mower from my brother-in-law:  tidied a few places in the lawn (mostly the "soccer field" -- currently set up with two poles and a rope, to mimic a volleyball net).  Kept it overnight, to use tomorrow.


Packed up my tools around 6:30m; went inside; showered.


Decanted the remainder of expired food into a big bucket, and stashed it far away from the house:  didn't feel like trekking it down to the existing pile; stashed it far enough that vermin wouldn't be attracted to the house; will shift it tomorrow.


Made dinner for the boys and me (The Lady and The Girl were away at a sports thing).  Just sandwiches and cut apples:  usually we'd have frozen pizza, but for some reason The Lady didn't pick any up when she did the weekend shop. 


The Lady got home; chat with The Lady. 


At 8:30pm, watched some more Black Mirror (which drinking loads of water), then do laundry; more chatting with The Lady.


About 10:30pm actually plugged in the delay pedal and had a go (using a guitar wiith single-coil pickups).  Pleased with my choice of pedals:  the "digital" sounding echo rather than the "analog" (i.e. high-end fades with each repeat) that I chose to not get. 

Messed around with various riffs, chords, and some of the very few actual songs that I can play the melodies (e.g. "What Child is This"/"Greensleeves").  Came up with a chord progression that could make a song:  can hear it being doubled, with a different strum pattern, on acoustic guitar.  Still need a chorus section, and a vocal line (melody) for both -- and lyrics, of course.


Bed around midnight:  I'm nocturnal -- and I don't have to work tomorrow. 


--GG

Day 3 of vacation -- Monday

We're down to one car (the other is in the shop), so we all left the house at the same time.  Dropped the kids off at school, then drove The Lady to work.


Stopped by a used bookstore on the way back from The Lady's work, browsed, and picked up an autobiography of the main accompanist of some famous Australian singer (Dame Nellie Melba; never heard of her, but my [Australian] wife had).  I've only read part of it, but the blurb in the jacket indicates that he was active from the 1920s through 1960s.  The book is copyright 1983, and a note from the publishers indicates that, sadly, the author passed away prior to the publication of the book.  Hello, Mister Melody Man, by Lindley Evans.  Engagingly written (IMO), and discusses music things (which is of interest to me).


I'd originally planned to do various outdoor things today (yardwork and/or woodworking) -- but since I had access to a car today, I did various errands instead.  Was planning to catch the 10:45am showing of Alita:  Battle Angel (no one else in my household was interested but me), so stopped by the house to pick up a flannel shirt (I sometimes get cold in air conditioning), then got to the theatre by 10:35.

Bought the ticket and was in my seat just a few minutes before the start time -- but then had to sit through (literally) 10 minutes of ads.  Then came four or five trailers -- but unfortunately, they were trailers I had already seen on YouTube.

The movie was good, though:  will review shortly.


After the movie I went to the mall's food court and bought a Hungry Jack's (the AU branding of Burger King) vegan burger and ate it while reading the book on U2 (the band).  Then got a frozen cola on the way out.


Stopped by the local Cash Converters (a chain of pawn shops).  Browsed the DVDs and picked up Fear and Loathing in Vegas (with Johnny Depp), which I'd been meaning to see sometime.  For a dollar.  Australian (so, about 80c in the U.S.).

Then walked a few shops down to the sewing, crafts, and art supplies place, to buy the right color thread for repairing a pair of The Lady's slacks:  a seam is coming undone.  Will probably repair sometime this week.


Went home for about a half hour, and did some YouTube research to compare two guitar delay pedals that I would be choosing between that evening:  a guy on Gumtree was selling a cheap one and a medium-priced one, and they had slightly different "flavors" -- so I needed to decide (thought it would be to extravagant to buy both).


Left to pick up the kids from school, then picked up The Lady from work.  She ended up being on a phone call, so we had to wait for a bit.

Then we drove down to the Gumtree seller's place:  should've only taken 15 minutes, but the GPS app somehow sent us in the wrong direction (bad address entering?), so we then had to backtrack by 15 minutes.  Made a reasonably quick decision (bought the less-cheap pedal).  Drove home. 


Dinner.  A little Netflix, while eating.



Remedially post blog entries for Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday (tonight).  Is now 10:40pm, 



Noodle around on the guitar while trying out my new (used) pedal:  probably use single-coil pickups.  Maybe some Netflix or a DVD after that.  To bed around midnight?


Staying home tomorrow.  Probably finish cutting up the palm tree and removing it from the neighbor's property, then finish shooting the property line.  Possibly do some woodworking -- maybe some lathe work.


Yet another good day.  Vacation.  :)


--GG

Second day of vacation

Sunday:  second day of vacation.
Second day of vacation (Sunday, March 12th):


Sometimes we go to church; sometimes we don't.  This time The Lady and The Girl went, and the boys and I stayed home.

Watched various YouTube and Netflix -- possibly some web searches as well (don't remember; I'm writing this on Monday...).


After lunch I wiped down all the food items we took OUT of the pantry (one by one), circled the expiration dates, and restored each to the shelves (in an higgledy-piggledy manner).  Items that were just a month or two out of date, or about to expire, I put on a special shelf; items that were truly out of date I put in a box, piled the boxes/packages/cans on the front lawn, and later (with the help of the kids) emptied into a big bucket and then (just before dark) tossed into the bushes waaaay into our back yard (we have a big yard):  the animals may feed on them; it's sufficiently far from the house that I'm not worried about attracting pests; hope that some critter besides me enjoys that expired brick of Spam.

I recruited the kids to help me on the pantry-related tasks, on 30 minute rotations (I used the oven timer to measure the elapsed time):  I think each kid did three sessions (yow!  four and a half hours...!!!).


Watched a little Netflix, then around 3pm or 4pm chopped down (with permission from my neighbors!) a palm tree that straddles the property line:  a few months ago I tried to "shoot" our property line by hanging a cord from surveying peg to surveying peg, but the palm tree was in the way.  Used my late [paternal] grandfather's felling axe to chop it down, after having (a few weekends ago) re-ground it to a narrower pitch and then re-sharpening it.  Then chopped it into four logs about as long as my leg, plus the top bundle of "fronds", to make it move-able.  Plan on splitting the logs with wedges, then letting them dry for a half year or a year, to see if they end up being usable as lumber:  probably not, but it won't cost me anything except time (and I need to dispose of the logs somehow, regardless).

The tree fell the wrong way, BTW:  I chopped through about 40%, but apparently it didn't naturally "sag" in that direction like it was supposed to.  No matter:  I got out safely, and it didn't fall on anything important (in fact, it fell exactly on one of the "escape paths" that I'd cleared).

Also, I was afraid of the "hinge" (where I chopped) being too strong, and having to then free the felled trunk from the stump.  Quite the opposite:  completely fell off.  Probably due to the palm tree only having maybe 20% of the fibres of a "regular" tree:  the rest is filled with squishy stuff -- so, less tensile strength.

It's late summer, so it stayed light until maybe 6pm (I didn't keep track).  Brought my tools inside, then dumped the above-mentioned bucket in the lower back yard.


Since the kitchen isn't really usable (The Lady is still sorting the pantry, with things piled on the stove), she sent me out to pick up some pizzas for dinner.  I also put on some store-bought garlic bread, when I got home.


Re-strung the formerly 4-string, now 3-string acoustic guitar, while watching the rest of Get Out (suspense/thriller) on Netflix:  when playing that guitar yesterday had decided to change the tuning:  it had the correct middle four strings (A D G B) mounted, but was tuned to the lowest (thickest) four strings' tuning (E A D G).  But then when I re-turned it to the higher tension, I discovered that I didn't like this new (but correct!) tuning, because the higher string tension made me have to press down too hard to fret the notes, and it made it too hard to "bend" notes.

So, I removed all the strings, put the lowest two strings (E and A) back into the packet, and collected the highest-pitched four strings (D G B E) in the "wrong" positions (the centre of the neck, rather than the bottom four locations) -- with the intent of tuning them a little slack, so that the middle four strings would still be tuned correctly for their position (A D G B) -- but slightly slack.

However, when removing the strings, I somehow broke one of the strings near the tuning peg -- rendering it too short to mount.  So the current guitar is now just a three-string:  A [no D] G B.  This forces me into unusual fingerings, and I came up with some riffs that I wouldn't otherwise have stumbled upon. 

Anyhow, noodled around in that new configuration while watching the middle third of Get Out.


Finished Get Out around 9pm(?), but didn't feel like going to bed -- so finally watched Sin City on DVD:  bought it maybe half a year ago, on DVD, for a buck.  Engaging enough that I stayed up until about 11pm watching it, then went to bed.


End of Day 2.  Still enjoying myself thoroughly.  :)


--GG

First day of vacation

I'm taking a week's vacation -- just because I felt like taking a week off work.

No specific plans; definitely no travel:  just doing stuff around the house -- a mix of "what I 'ought' to do", and "what I feel like doing".

The last few times where I take an arbitrary vacation, I end up thinking it was the best vacation ever -- but I only remember portions of what I've done.  So this time, I'm taking better notes.


So:   Saturday, March 9 -- my first day of vacation.  Puttered around the house, put some laundry on, watched some various videos on YouTube.  No particular aims to be "productive":  just recovering from the week. 

The family went out to run some errands:  I took a beautiful, beautiful nap from about noon 'til 3pm.  Some interesting dreams -- although they faded when I woke up (which was appox. when everyone got home).

In the afternoon (pretty soon after my nap), recruited the kids to help me empty out the jumble of our pantry (NOT a "walk-in"; the size of a closet):  did a "bucket brigade" of me handing things to one of the kids, who then handed it to another kid, who stashed it somewhere nearby.  Then I wiped down the shelves.


I also ran some of the plastic baskets (totes?) through the dishwasher.


Had dinner:  I think it was a fast-food burger, followed by a bowl of cold cereal (not sure; I'm writing this two days later).

Watched the first half of the movie Get Out on Netflix.  Kinda interesting -- but not so much that I was compelled to stay up past my bedtime just to finish it.


Noodled around on my 4-string acoustic guitar for a bit, while watching Netflix.  Bought the guitar for AU$15 (negotiated down from AU$19) -- so about $12 American.  A good tone -- but the bridge is broken so you can't mount the top and bottom strings.  I have the guitar tuned to E A D G, which is the tuning of the four thickest strings -- which is the same as an electric bass, but an octave away.  Decided to swap out the strings and tune them to the "proper" middle string tuning:  A D G B.



--GG

Music more regularly

I've posted a variation of this before.  And now I'm saying it again.  :)


One of my middle-aged wisdom items is that the secret to happiness is to spend as much time as you can doing the things you like -- and avoid as much as possible doing the things you don't.  Within reason:  you still gotta pay bills and wash the dishes; and don't do things that are bad for you or harmful to others.


So:  it takes me a long while to get around to playing an instrument -- but once I do, I find it great, and realize I'm an idiot for not playing instruments more often:  the very act of playing [nearly always] makes me happy (i.e. intrinsic rather than extrinsic rewards).  

And then I don't pick up a guitar for (literally) another two months....  ("Duh.")


So, starting maybe half a year ago, I started making an effort to play something [nearly] every day:  bongos; guitar; (unplugged) electric bass; etc.   I even started keeping drumsticks in the car, so I could "play the steering wheel (and dashboard)". 

Often I'll do the "guitar cousin" thing of noodling around on guitar or bass while watching t.v. (Netflix, really) -- often coming up with some interesting riffs that I'll use for "something".

So:  not task-oriented (i.e. directly songwriting, or recording).   But I'm just enjoying the experience -- and getting incrementally better in the process.

Just making myself happy.  :)



Which -- BTW -- none of the kids seem to do that.  So my musical inclination doesn't seem to have passed through to my children:  maybe the grandchildren? 

But I do notice that The Girl doodles and draws of her own accord:  good.  :)


--GG

Naps are great

It's Saturday afternoon.  Just got up from a nap.


Taking a nap when you're sleepy is like having a drink when you're thirsty.  Delightful.

:)


--GG

Day Something -- Thursday

I'm starting to lose track of how many days I've been on vacation -- and also having the sense that I'm on the downwards slope.  After tomorrow (Friday), it'll be just like any other vacation:  then, back to work on Monday.

If I could win the lottery and quit my job, I could very happily spend the rest of my life doing this:  minding the house while the kids are at school; doing various chores and projects; running the occasional errand.


The usual morning:  help get lunches and get everyone out the door; a brief check of the internet; putting some laundry on; taking  a nap.

This time I intentionally set my alarm for just an hour (and I wouldn't need to take naps if I went to bed earlier; duh) -- so, getting up at 10:30am -- but the dogs woke me up fifteen minutes early with their barking.  I'd forgotten that the septic tank servicing guy (quarterly) would be stopping by this morning.  I went outside and had a nice chat:  he told me about his vacation.


Was planning on catching the 11:30am showing of the Laurel and Hardy movie, so took a shower and got dressed -- after phoning a musical instrument shop a few neighborhoods away and seeing if they had a cello book (volume 2!) for my son.  Went to lock the dogs in the laundry room -- but then I couldn't find one of our two dogs.  So wasted about a half hour looking for him.  And then once I figured out that he had found a hole in the fence of the doggie yard, it then took another ten minutes to round him up and bring him insides.

It was now 11:30am, but I still figured I could I could make the movie since I knew from earlier in the week that the first ten minutes were just ads (ugh), and then there'd be about four trailers before the actual feature.  But then I was a block away and realized that I hadn't confirmed that I'd turned various things off:  was pretty sure, but...

So I went back -- and figured that if I went now, I'd be late for the movie.  Okay:  change of plans.


Got the box of recycling bottles (worth 10c each!) and took it the local recycling place.  Got about $11 off it: fair enough.


Then went to the Cash Converters (pawn shop chain) in Wynnum West, which I hadn't visited for a while.  They had a bunch of disk weights ("plates") at a good price:  usually it's over a buck a kilo, but most of them were actually at a buck a kilo -- so I picked up a few (twelve; had been planning on this).  Also chatted to the sales clerk -- one of the regulars -- and realized that I hadn't made a door wedge for them like I promised.  Will have to do it today or tomorrow.


Stopped off at Aldi and picked up a few different garlic breads, plus two cakes of tofu (organic; firm; they only had one type).


Then stopped by the Woolworth's on the way home to get a jug of milk.  Turns out they had Jatz crackers on sale (which I enjoy; I have about a box every 2-3 days), so I bought a big box of 20.  Also bought two or three more garlic breads -- so, five in total -- to do a taste test with the boys tonight (The Girl and The Lady aren't into garlic bread).  Also bought a cinnamon roll at a bakery on the way out of the shopping plaza.


Home:  put the food in the 'fridge.  Had half of the cakes of tofu for lunch, with Japanese nori rice seasoning on top.  Also the cinnamon roll.  Watched an episode of Black Mirror as I ate.  Then cut up the watermelon that was in the 'fridge (but taking up room), ate about a quarter of it, put the rest in a plastic container and put it in the 'fridge. 


Hm:  this reminds me of people texting/blogging/Facebooking photos of their food.  Ah well:  this is for me to look back on.  And maybe my kids.


Went outside got the weights from the car, put them on my workbench under the carport.  Removed the price tags from the weights, and put some of the rustier weights in a plastic tub for re-rusting:  poured cheap vinegar in there, plus some expired bottles of diet cola (the artificial sweeteners turn sour over time -- but the cola still retains its acidity).  But because I wasn't sure the diet cola would be sufficiently acidity, I added some leftover citric acid (a baking supply) to bring the acidity levels up.  Added some rocks to fill in the blank spots in the liquid, thus raising the over-all levels.  Slooshed it around; will let it sit for a day or two, then scrub off the rust with a wire brush, rinse with some mildly alkaline water (i.e. will add some baking soda), then heat gently in the oven to dry them.  Will finish by rubbing (while still kind of hot) with an old candle, to protect it from future rust. 


About 3:45pm, headed out to go pick up the cello book.  This time putting the dogs in the laundry was no trouble (whew!).  Afternoon traffic was starting to build up, but not a big problem.  Picked up the book, then also checked out the Garden City branch of Cash Converters:  nothing interesting.


Home about 5:30pm.  Put on the garlic bread -- just a quarter or so of each sample.  The boys and I tasted them -- and they all taste about the same!  Although:  I only tried the mid-range through to the cheapest loaves -- so maybe the more expensive ones taste better?  Blondie boy did find one that he didn't like, though.


Don't remember what I did after that (I'm remedially writing this the following morning -- from memory, no notes), but I think I checked e-mail, and then pretty soon thereafter The Lady said it was time for dinner. 

Oh!  And jotted down some song lyric ideas that occurred to me in the car.  I have an idea for the chorus melody; the verse just has a concept, but no direct melody.


Then alternated between watching Dark Mirror and helping Blondie Boy with his homework -- plus laundry (again!).

Spent the rest of the evening logging some expenses that had been kicking around:  one of my quirks is that if something is music-related (e.g. the recording magazine I buy), excercise-related (e.g. the weights), or tool/woodworking/yardwork-related, I write it down.  I also logged most of the weights I'd bought.


Watched another episode of Black Mirror; meant to noodle around on guitar as I watched, but forgot.  Went to bed just after midnight.


Am getting a little concerned:  all these great plans, and few things actually completed.  Today didn't feel as "productive" as the other days -- partly because I spent most of it driving around (or browsing shops), and also because I added a task (cleaning the weights) that wasn't originally on the list.

But, I still had a nice day.  Will "bat cleanup" on the weekend.



And -- BTW -- this still beats wandering around Hamburg (or somewhere) for a vacation:  I have so much stuff to do around the house -- and it makes me happy to get these things done (or at least:  spend time on them, and making progress).  So why would I want to go anywhere else?

Other people's mileage would differ, of course:  this is just what makes me happy.  ;)



--GG