Awesome Trip!!!

Well, I just got back from a wonderful 800 mile journey, just me and My BMW (My Bike My Way). Left here after work Monday, got on the road about 1:30pm. Headed west on 2 and hit a gnarly thunderstorm, complete with rain and wind. Glad I had that $25 rainsuit, with that on the rain didn’t bother me a bit. Bike does well in the wind, too, much to my surprise. All was smooth sailing to Twisp, from that point, spent the night there and headed on to Bellingham in the morning. Beautiful but cold through the mountains. Spent the night in Bellingham, then headed south to Seattle, via Whidbey Island. Took the ferry from Clinton to Mukilteo, much to my surprise bikes get on first and get off first :) Sweet! Hit I-5 rush hour, wasn’t as bad as I expected and I discovered I’d rather do rush hour on a bike than in a car. Go figure. I HATE the road surface though… every lane has this groove running down the center just about the width of a bike tire. The other grooves in the pavement felt a little oogey but I got used to those pretty quickly. I also discovered that grated bridges feel really oogey, but again the bike will go where it’s told to go. Spent the night in Seattle, slept in, left about 1pm on I-90 ‘til I could head north on 97. That was my least favorite part of the trip, the time I spent on I-90. Road surfaces sucked, and I just didn’t enjoy. Give me those nice 2 lane roads, please :) Got in about 8pm after a nice leisurely meander, tired but happy. Bike ran well, my total fuel expenditure was $49.54, 12 gallons. So the math works out to an overall average of 65 mpg. No complaints about that!

There’s some pics up on my PhotoBucket account, here. For some reason, though, they uploaded in reverse order of how they were taken. So the slideshow will be the trip backwards, LOL! http://s1110.photobucket.com/albums/h453/AuntieMayhem/Bike%20Trip%20July%20%202011/

Lots of lessons learned, a few technical errors along the way, but no dropped bike so no harm, no foul ;) Had no issues with any cars, and most every bike that went by, they waved. Ate great food… baked salmon, calamari, French onion soup, trout amandine, yakisoba… of course not all at the same meal! Didn’t quite earn an iron butt, but getting there… 7 hours on the bike today with a couple fuel stops and a couple photo stops… not so shabby :)

Upcoming Trip

756 miles, couple nights' stays at friends/family, just gonna be chill about it... got 4 days vacation and hoping to get some great pics along the way I'm pretty excited about this, been a long time since I've done anything "just for myself" by way of travel. It'll be interesting to learn about my own stamina and abilities along the way, and yes, I'm packing light... not one to feel the need for everything but the kitchen sink Camera, 2 changes of clothes, toothbrush, 9mm, pint of R&R, basically... the rest I always carry in the saddlebags anyway. Yup, taking the bike... she's purring and eager to get on the road for a good long ride. My average MPG has been about 64 when riding 60 mph and below, and about 55 when riding above 70 mph. Sure beats what I'm getting in my Tracker, 25 no matter how I drive whether fast or slow, in 4wd or 2wd. I know the routes, and if I play it right I'll be able to get some nice mellow time here and there to take advantage of awesome photo ops. I'll post 'em up after I get back, of course :)

New Power Tools!

Scored again big this week... found a '91 Alltrade 18" Scroll Saw, still in its original box and used only twice, for $30... then later that same day I scored a sweet Skil brand bench top 5 speed drill press for $35 All that leaves me to acquire is a bench top belt sander, and I found one of those in awesome shape for $45... if it's still there on payday, it's coming home with me

Then I can start on the collection of air tools I want, starting with an air compressor... but that'll be awhile, given budget restrictions.

So the first project I tried with the scroll saw, never having used one before, was a name-plate for my pup's doghouse that I built him 3 years ago. It's kinda fun using that saw But since I can get metal-cutting blades for it, it'll serve the purpose of a jigsaw and a bandsaw as well, which is why I got it. I don't do "hard core" wood or metal work, just stuff that needs to be done.

Trip To Sullivan Lake

Got my gear together for a day of riding and fishing, headed north out of town on 2. Took a left on 211 up to Cusick and Ione, then a right onto the Sullivan Lake Road. Fished awhile up there, but the water's still too high for any fish to be interested. Rode alongside the lake then up and around to Metaline Falls, down 31 to Metaline then stopped for a quick bite to eat. Best Reuben sandwich I've had in years, and cheap too! Came on down 31 'til it became 20, through Newport then home. Round trip, which actually was a figure 8, was 231 miles. Bike got 64 MPG. Wonderful day, saw so much beauty and if only there was work to be had, I'd be living up in that area in a heartbeat!

New (Old) Table Saw

1950-1953 Delta Milwaukee Homecraft No. 34-500 8" Bench Model Tilting Arbor Table Saw

Overall dimensions - 17 1/2" high by 37 1/2" wide by 22" deep
Diameter of Arbor - 5/8"
Diameter of Saw - 8"
Maximum Thickness of Cut - 2 1/4"
Maximum Thickness of Cut at 45 Degrees - 1-9/16"
Maximum Width of Dado Cut - 13/16"
Blade Tilt - 45 Degrees
Table in front of blade on capacity cut - 11-5/8"
Maximum rip to right of blade - 24"
Table working height on steel stand - 34 1/2"
Table Size - 22" deep by 15" wide
Table Size with extensions - 22" deep by 25" wide
Fence - 24 7/8" long by 2" high
Speed - 3850 r.p.m. with Standard 1725 3/4 hp motor

A decent link: http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f24/1952-delta-homecraft-34-500-8-table-saw-review-5034/

Rewired it today, checked it out, ripped a couple lengths of old wood… Needs a new belt but runs quiet and strong!!! Not bad for a freebie, eh? *grin* I’ll clean it up, graphite the gears, heck, maybe even restore it next winter when I’ve nothing else to do. And… parts are still available out there! A few are missing.

Green Productions

Thoughts, anyone?

For some reason I can't get this link to work, so you'll have to access it manually by highlighting, copying and pasting into your browser's address line. Sorry about that... I'm puzzled.

http://www.webvideo.bayer.com/module/player/player-research2009.aspx?folderid=11796&application=research-nl

5/21/11 Rapture FAIL

Hansom and Chica are patiently waiting for the rapture that won't be coming. Pity those who believed it would.

These little girls are really something!

This was at a Texas Tech Basketball game.

The National Anthem is sung by five young ladies ages 6-8.

An entire arena remains completely silent throughout the song. You could hear a pin drop.

Take a moment to listen to this.

The two young ladies on the right are 6 years old.

The two in the middle are 7 and the one on the left is 8.

Cat and Dolphins Playing Together

Here's some fun for everyone :)

Chica mi Gata at 5 Months!

Just showing off the new gal at 5 months... she's a sweetie, to be sure :)

Bike Transformation is Done :)

Well, here she is... pictured next to what she used to be. Her name? "My BMW." My Bike My Way. *grin*

Click on the title.

I don't know what happened to the pic I put up originally... but in checking my previous posts I noted it wasn't there. The only way I knew how to fix it was to add the link to the title... so click there :)

New 9-11 Video

NYPD Helicopter video of 9/11 attack surfaces
By Liz Goodwin

A newly released video shows the Sept. 11 World Trade Center attack from the vantage point of a NYPD helicopter.

According to Gawker, the National Institute of Standards and Technology requested the 17-minute video through the Freedom of Information Act, and the video was sent anonymously to the secret-sharing website Cryptome, which posted it. The Institute investigated the 9/11 attacks.

A warning to readers: The video, posted below, is difficult to watch--and voices on the soundtrack can be heard cursing as the horrific attack unfolds.

Chica mi Gata

Everyone, meet the newest addition to my family - Chica mi Gata. She's 12 weeks old, born 10/22/2010, and is a full-bred Maine Coon. Mamma is black, Daddy is vivid tabby and both are large cats. BooBoo is 5, he's of unknown pedigree, and they appear to be adjusting to one another just fine :)

Martin Luther King Day Bomb in Spokane

Click here for video.

SEATTLETIMES.COM - A bomb left along the route of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade was sophisticated, with a remote detonator and the ability to cause many casualties, an official familiar with the case said Wednesday.

The bomb, which was defused without incident on Monday, was the most potentially destructive he had ever seen, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to release information about the investigation.

"They haven't seen anything like this in this country," the official said. "This was the worst device, and most intentional device, I've ever seen."

The FBI on Wednesday declined to reveal any details about the bomb, which was spotted by three city employees about an hour before the downtown parade was to start, said Frank Harrill, special agent in charge of the Spokane office. The employees looked inside, saw wires and immediately alerted law enforcement, and the parade was rerouted.

The FBI received no warnings in advance and does not have a suspect, Harrill said. No one has claimed responsibility for planting the bomb.

The discovery before the parade for the slain civil rights leader raised the possibility of a racial motive in a region that has been home to the white supremacist Aryan Nations

"The confluence of the holiday, the march and the device is inescapable, but we are not at the point where we can draw any particular motive," Harrill said.

The Spokane region and adjacent northern Idaho have had numerous incidents of anti-government and white supremacist activity during the past three decades.

The most visible was by the Aryan Nations, whose leader Richard Butler gathered racists and anti-Semites at his compound for two decades. Butler was bankrupted and lost the compound in a civil lawsuit in 2000 and died in 2004.

In December, a man in Hayden, Idaho, built a snowman on his front lawn shaped like a member of the Ku Klux Klan holding a noose. The man knocked the pointy-headed snowman down after getting a visit from sheriff's deputies.

Harrill called the planting of the bomb an act of domestic terrorism that was clearly designed to advance a political or social agenda.

"The potential for injury and death were clearly present," he said of the bomb.

The FBI has offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the bomber.

41-36 Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks pulled off a 41-36 win over the New Orleans Saints in the NFC wild-card playoff game at Qwest Field. They will advance to play in the divisional playoffs next week at either Atlanta or Chicago, depending on the outcome of the game Sunday between Green Bay and Philadelphia. If the Packers win, Seattle plays at Chicago. If the Eagles win, Seattle will play at Atlanta.

Seahawks vs. Saints

Saturday... bring it on, Seattle!! Show 'em what you can do without Hasselbeck!!!

Go Seahawks :)

Get 'er DONE!