Windows 8!

We did not walk this morning because the computer was coming and needed to be signed for.  FedEx usually gets to our place around 9 AM and today was no exception.  I finished up Monday's blog before making the change to the Acer.  When I booted it up, big surprise, Windows 8 was installed.  The first boot up when I originally got it gave me a choice of Windows 7 or 8, so I choose 7 since that is what I have been using.  No choice this time, so I decided to give 8 a try.  It was a little frustrating at first, then I found a cheat sheet in the instructions, only 4 tips on it, but they sure made a difference.  Bev came up in the afternoon so I could look at her laptop, part of the back had popped loose.  They must not have Loctited all the screws, because several were missing.  We finally found out the base of a recessed screw had broken.  I replaced the missing screws and we made a temporary fix while she looks into a new back.  The rest of the evening, I messed with the computer some more.

 No Pictures today, so here is one of Bev and Michelle at the Abbotsford Air Show in the about 1977.

Helicopters and Baseball

I finished up the mechanical assembly of the Trex 500 today, now I just have to install and hook up the electronics.

 James had a double header at Ridgefield this afternoon, so I rode down with Mik and Michelle.  James played at first the entire first game.

This is James getting a hit during the first game, that new bat is working well for him.

James and his buddy Dalton (17) during a pitching change in the first game.  They ended up losing that game 10 to 9.

James went in to pitch at the start of the second inning of the next game.

James coming in to score, I am not sure if he was walked or got a hit this time.

He got another nice hit in this game, it looks just like the other picture, but the shadows are much longer.

He did a great job pitching, he had 8 strike outs in the 6 innings and did not allow any runs to score.  He also made some awesome plays at home on passed balls and bunts.  They won this game 9 to 1!  We picked up pizza on the way to get James, then went up to their house and had a nice visit while eating it.  Watching James do so well sure made my day.  I think I will rearrange my schedule so I can go watch his last games.

Finally the flowers are blooming!

Saturday was a rest day for me after 8 hours of flying on Friday.  I did go out and do a little work on the helicopter, but that is about the only thing I accomplished.

 Sunday I started modifying the Table Shade mounting brackets so they will work on the benches at the flying field.  I soon discovered that I did not have the right piece of metal to do the job, so I got the camera and took pictures of flowers until Vera got home from church.  The Magnolia tree is getting pretty tall, so the 42X lens sure worked good for those pictures.

 Our rhododendrons are just starting to bloom, this red one is the first every year.

The lilacs are just starting to bloom and they smell so nice.

This azalea has been in bloom for a while, it got pruned pretty heavy and does not have as many blossoms as normal.

  And last, but not least are the wild strawberries, we have them every where and the chipmunks really like them.  After lunch, we went downtown and I found just what I wanted for the brackets at Gunnar's.  I spent the afternoon welding up and painting the extensions.  Watching some rodeo this evening was a nice end to the day.

We are having Fun Now!

Boy was it foggy for our walk this morning!  We went a little farther this morning, we did not think any of the ladies would be walking, so we parked at the North end of the river trail rather than the church.  When we got down near where we normally come out on the trail, there was Peggy.  We walked with her the regular route, then picked up the mail and walked back to the Blazer.  When we got home, I started checking the Toledo Airport webcams.  It did not start clearing up until after 10, so we headed up and got there about 11.  Bruce had just started flying and there was still dew on the grass from the fog.  It was one of those rare days with hardly any wind, there ended up being seven flyers during the course of the day.  Rene had seen my post on Facebook about flying, he came up to join us and joined the club before the day was over.  I had a great time, flying for 8 hours with only one mishap, I was doing an inverted spin with the plane and the battery flew out.  It came straight down from about 100 feet, but there was surprisingly little damage.  My carbon fiber reinforcements paid off, it will be an easy repair.  When we got home, I hooked the motor home to power, came in and settled in for an evening of TV.

Making headway!

 It was a nice morning for our walk, warm enough that I unzipped my coat before we were finished.  After we got home, I started catching up on my blog, it took lots of head scratching to remember what I have done since last Saturday.

While I was working on the blogs, UPS showed up with my table shade.  I am going to try it at the flying field so I will be a little more comfortable working on my planes.

I also got a new Hair Hat with that order and I wore it over to see the twins.  You should have seen the looks on their faces.  They were eating, they just stopped and stared for the longest time until I went over and let them feel and look at it.

I went out this afternoon and worked on the helicopter some more.  I got the main frame bolted together and the skids put onto it.  I am really happy with the kit, the fit on everything so far has been perfect.

It is Here!

 This how it looked out the kitchen window this morning!  I was up early, probably excited because my new helicopter was coming today.

After our walk, we stopped at the post office, and there it was.  While Vera was at bible study, I read the manual and discovered I did not have the batteries it uses, so I got online and ordered some.  Then I went to the shop and started putting it together.  I got the rotor head assembled before it was time to leave for James' baseball game.

Mik had researched bats, and the one he got James is supposed to be the best!  It sure worked good this afternoon, this is James' first time at bat, a nice hit.  They were up 9 to 0 at the end of the first inning!

James had two hits, two walks and got hit once, this is one of the other times he got on base.  One of his teammates hit one that ended up in the outfield, and James was able to score from second.  They ended up winning 16 to 0.  It was a beautiful evening and we were able to watch the game without coats on.  Michelle invited us up for ribs Mik was doing on the Traeger, boy were they good!  We had a nice visit, and then headed home.

Flying!

We walked before going flying, the cherry trees along Front Street in Castle Rock are in full bloom, so I remembered to take a camera today.  It only took a few minutes to load up for the trip to the flying field.  The first half of the day was great, then about 1:00 the wind came up and some clouds rolled in.

Galen had his Waco out again today, it looks pretty real climbing out after take off.

He had the cowl off to do some adjusting, so more of the intricate details of the engine can be seen.  About Five, we loaded up and headed towards home.  We stopped in Toledo for some salad and chips to go with our sandwiches.  Then we stopped at the South Lewis County Park to eat, watch the ducks and fishermen.  We had a nice relaxing drive home via Barnes Drive and settled in for the night.

The Lost Monday

Well, I know that I took some flower pictures Monday!

I also know what my evening snack was!

I should have taken a few more pictures during the day, as I don't have a clue what else went on.  I know we walked, but other than that, it was not too exciting of a day.  Waiting a couple of days to do this does not pay off when it was a laid back day!  I will have better luck with Tuesday because we went flying and I always take lots of pictures there.

Sunday

Vera went to church this morning, while I puttered on the computer and worked in the shop a little.  After lunch, we watched some truck racing on TV until we had a visit from Jeff and Tina.  We spent the afternoon talking, then went to the shop for an engine Jeff and I had worked out a trade on.  While we were there, Jeff volunteered to sell some of my engines on Ebay, so I loaded him up.  They had offered to treat us to pizza, so we headed down to Papa Pete's.  We had a good time there, and we came home with half a pizza for Monday!  No picture today that I can find, so here is one from the past.

This is Grandma and Grandpa Jarvi at Sauvie Island where Grandpa ran the pumping plant.  Sauvie Island is the largest island on the Columbia River, and one of the largest islands in the US.  Notice the camera, Grandma took lots of pictures, maybe that is where I got it from.

Boy those patio stones are heavy!

Before

After

After breakfast, I went out and masked two flaps and one aileron for the P-51 and painted them.  When they were done, I headed in to see if Vera wanted to make a mail run.  She came out just as I did ready to set the patio stones.  I got my gloves and we started in.  It actually went pretty fast and we were done in a little over an hour.  Then we made our mail run and picked up an oven bulb so we could broil the delicious sandwiches Vera had made for lunch.  After lunch, I went out and masked off the other wing of the P-51 and sprayed it.  Earlier we had talked about what flowers we wanted by the pond, so I asked Vera if she wanted to go get some.  We ended up at Heaton Nursery on Pleasant Hill Rd and found just what we wanted.  Vera picked out the three Azaleas and we got some moss for ground cover and sedum to put into the Strawberry Planter.  After dinner, I went out and pulled the masking off the P-51 wing.  I also went out, took pictures of our work today and hiked around taking pictures of the native flowers.

I love the look of Easter Lilies when they turn pink!

Walking, Slides and Shopping!

Thursday

We walked Thursday morning, then spent the rest of the day at home.  I scanned in some more slides and puttered in the shop a little.  This is one of the slides I found today, from the 70's, I am flying my Helibaby which was my third helicopter at Coweeman Jr High.

Friday

It was just Vera and I walking this morning in a pretty good rain shower.  We had our umbrellas, so we did not get too wet.  When we got home, I did some masking on the P-51's wing and got it sprayed.  After lunch, we decided to make a Pepsi run to Safeway, we also hit Wilco for a shepherd's hook to hang one of our solar lights on.  Our last stop was Swanson's Fuel for some patio stones.  After loading them twice, I was pretty tired when we got home.  I messed around on the computer, checked the tracking and Acer has the new computer.  The rest of the evening I watched some shows on the DVR. 

Finally some flying weather!

Yes, it was pretty good flying weather until about 2:00, then the dark clouds rolled in and we could see rain coming.  Several of us made one more quick flight before packing up and heading home.  The picture is of Bob's new P-47 Thunderbolt, I got to test fly it, and it is a keeper, in fact we flew it a couple more times just because it was so much fun and looked so good flying by!  I also put a test flight on the black and red Swift, on the first take off, the canopy fell off.  That made an interesting trip around the pattern to land.  We taped it on for the next flight and I got it pretty well trimmed out, it and the P-47 lands nice and slow, they were making me look good!  My best landings today were with other people's planes, I bounced the Bonanza so bad on the first landing that I took off again and made a little better one the second try.  I also got to fly Galen's Waco again today, boy does it sound good.  When I got home and had the motor home put away, I came in and downloaded the pictures from today, edited some of them but I got so sleepy that I went in, settled into my chair and watched some TV.  I think there were some naps in that couple of hours, because I feel great now.

New Helicopter

Well, after our walk, I spent a bunch of time on the computer and ended up ordering a new helicopter.  I have been wanting one for quite a while.  All my bigger ones are 10 or more years old.  I finally tore myself away from the computer about 12:30 and headed to the shop.  I had planned on covering the gear doors, but it was so nice out that I decided to do the yard.  I got the string trimmer out and went around the shop, as I got to the Northeast corner, there were the twins coming out to play.  That was the end of the trimming for a while.  I went over to the play fort with them, I had big surprise when I saw Jeff walking over.  We went into the shop and had a nice visit.

After Jeff left, I finished up with the string trimmer and started mowing.  I always love the way it looks when I get done.  When I got things put away, I came in for dinner, then got caught up with my blog for Sunday and Monday.

I was in the kitchen when I noticed the sunset, it was sure a nice finish to the day.  Now that I have this done, it is time for more Duck Dynasty.

Foggy Walk

Sunday

Sunday was not too productive around here, I watched a NASCAR truck race and did some covering on the P-51.  While I was out in the shop talking to Bob, Ava, Harper, Rielee and Dianne showed up.  The twins were spending the night and were out for a little walk while the sun was out.  The girls all started playing with the magnets and Rielee asked for the magnetic pickup tool.  I had moved it, and had a heck of a time finding it, then I threw some big washers down on the floor for them to pick up.  That was fun to watch, they could hardly get them loose from the magnet.

Monday

It was pretty foggy when we went down for our walk this morning.  By the time we had gone around the dike and got back to Front Street it had lifted a little, so I decided to take a picture of the trees coming into bloom.  The nice thing about that fog this morning is, there is normally not much wind when it is foggy, so the walk is enjoyable if you are dressed warm, which we were!  The new computer refused to boot up, so I got the RA today to send it back.  I packed it up in the original boxes and took it down to UPS.  After that, I got the other wings covering replaced.  I watched three episodes of Duck Dynasty tonight, they crack me up at times, a good way to finish the day.

Shelton Swap Meet

 We were up early this morning so we could get to the Shelton Swap Meet by 8 when it opened for the set up.  I had a dozen or so airplane kits I wanted to sell, they are set up on the first two tables in this picture.

Vera went up on the stairs to take this picture about a half hour after it opened.  It was not a big swap meet, but everyone was really friendly.  We sold three planes and I was beginning to think we might have to haul the rest home and try Ebay, when Jeff came over and asked me what I wanted for everything. I thought about it, made an offer and he accepted it.  That ended our day on a good note, we visited with friends for awhile before heading home.  In Tumwater, we hunted up a McDonald's and had another Angus Burger Deluxe, it was just as good as the last one!  The next stop was Costco, we filled up with gas, then wandered around picking up a few things we wanted.  We took the Little Rock Road to Rochester before getting on I5 and heading home.  We had a good day, but it sure felt good to get home!

Rainy Baseball

Quite the weather we are having, 32 degrees and frost on the roof this morning.  Needless to say, I put on a couple of extra layers for our walk.  When we got home, I transferred the last files from the old computer to the new and started cleaning things up, we can now use the back door!  James had a game this afternoon at three, so we left early to get the oil changed and get my monthly blood test.  I had forgotten and I got a telephone reminder yesterday.  We did not have to wait at either stop, so we were over at the MM field in plenty of time to get Vera's favorite parking spot.  When we got there it had just started to rain pretty good and they were covering the varsity field.  We were not sure if the game was a go or not, but they just moved over to the practice field.  In the picture, James is helping take the tarps off the practice field.  A junior who plays first base was there today, so James did not get to play, the way it was raining, that is a good thing.  They had a double header scheduled, but the first game was called after 5 innings because MM was ahead of Ridgefield 13 to 1.  It was raining hard enough that they did not try play the second game.

We had a baseball coupon for Mikey's Take & Bake Pizza, so we stopped and picked one up on the way home.  We both really liked it and will probably stop there again.  I messed around with planes the rest of the evening until it was time for my pill at eight o'clock, I popped two into my mouth and then realized they were the wrong ones.  Luckily, I had not swallowed yet, so I spit them out and came in to get the right one!  Being in the shop when that reminder went off sure fouled me up!.

Baseball

 Well, I finally got the clock done today!  We swept the deck and rearranged the flower pots, now we are ready to pick out some new flowers for this summer.  I did some more downloading to the new computer, the picture file has grown since the last time I checked, there were 94,000 pictures in the folder.  Some of those are duplicates that have been edited.

 This afternoon, we went to James' baseball game, they were playing Woodland, James played first the whole game.

This is James' friend Dalton at third base, it was a good afternoon for baseball, sunny the whole time.  They ended up winning 5 to 3.  After the game, we went to McDonalds for a quick dinner as James had Babe Ruth practice tonight.  If you have not tried it, McDonalds has an Angus Burger Deluxe that is really good.

New Computer!

The outside clocks are finally done!  While I was waiting for files to transfer to the new computer, I went out and finished it up.  You can see the temperature marking I had to add, they are not perfect, but close enough. The weather vane, North/South indicators and the scroll work below the clock are what I painted yesterday.  Setting up a new computer is sure time consuming, I got my favorites imported, Photoshop CS-6, Chrome and Print Artist Gold installed and I am in the process of transferring my pictures to it now.  So far I have transferred 46,000 pictures and I am only about half done!  I edited my pictures with Photoshop, and things sure happen a lot faster now!

That worked good!

We walked this morning, then decided to run to Longview for some numbers so I could finish the clock.  Our first stop was Office Max, and the lady showed me right where the stick on numbers were.  One half inch was the smallest they had, they looked pretty close to what I wanted, so I picked them up.  On the way to the cash register, I commented that I couldn't think of anything else I needed, and she said what about a new office chair.  Mine has been tipping side to side and making weird noises, so I started trying different ones.

This is what I ended up with, it has eight adjustments and memory foam so it is quite comfortable.

When we got home from Office Max, UPS had delivered Vera's new Smart Pressure Cooker.  She cleaned it, read the instructions, and put a batch of rice in it for lunch, it worked great!

Later, Vera mentioned the girls were over at the sandbox, so I grabbed the camera and went over.  I had a good time watching them and visiting with Dianne.  I spent the evening doing more painting on the outside clock, I had started assembling it and the parts I had not painted looked tacky!  I checked the tracking, and the new computer is getting delivered tomorrow!

 After our walk this morning, I was checking my emails when I heard lots of knocking on the door.  It was Ava and Harper bringing us cinnamon rolls and flowers.  They marched right into the computer room to give Vera hers!  The cinnamon rolls did not last long enough to get a picture taken, but the flowers did.  I worked on the outdoor clocks some more today, I had not painted the pole, so cleaning and painting it were today's project.  I discovered one of my orders was at the Post Office, so we ran down at lunch time to pick it up, I was surprised when an order from Hong Kong was there also.  I did not expect it for a couple of weeks, then we picked up lunch at BK and headed home.  After lunch, I went out and finished making up some ultra bright LED assemblies for the planes.

Later, I picked a couple of Easter Lillies and took them over to the girls.  They were all excited, Dianne had to get a vase for them and they put it on their little play table.  Harper had a magnetic Tinker Bell that she can dress up.  It comes with a book that shows the outfits.  She had just finished putting this outfit on Tinker Bell and was really proud!  I cleaned up the paint booth and folded it up, took the garbage to the road and did some cleanup in the shop.  After dinner and while watching some drag races, I got a call from Jackie.  John Patrik can now get himself to a sitting position!  We had a nice long talk until my phone ran down!  When the races were over, I went out and put two flights on the little helicopter before coming in for the night.