Happy Birthday to my mom who still lives in CA. I made you a card. Click on it.

Happy Birthday! to my dad and sister. Click on the image below.

I jacked that corner too and put those rocks and wood there. That is the right rear. It took a lot of work to get past that area. The left rear was stuck too, behind another root. Nothing I could do there, just drive over.

Thinking that road doesn’t look so bad? Think again. Keep in mind, totally stock truck with long wheelbase and no lockers, and slick mud. Here you can really see how big that piece of tree was. I was getting very worries that I would never get out by dark and would have to walk. I was SO relieved when I made it past that. That is until I turned next corner and got stuck again.

I cannot even tell you how muddy the inside of my truck was after that. I was covered in mud including hands and arms every time I got out and did more work. My hands would get so muddy I had to wipe them off on tree branches. Since I had to get in and out over and over as I tried, most often unsuccessfully, to drive out, there was mud everywhere.

Right around the corner I came to this lovely spot. I had learned my lesson. Prepare the bad chunk of road BEFORE you drive through it. I did. I got out and searched for rocks and wood to fill up that deep rut. No, I could not drive around it. That stick on the left side of the photos stuck out too far and would have destroyed the side of my truck.

When I got back to the real road I was THRILLED. No walking in the forest in the dark in the cold weather while sick. My poor truck however, suffered some damage. Nothing mechanical though. These are great vehicles. Lifted and locked it would be wonderful. Unfortunately suspension lift kits for it are well beyond $2000 just for the parts, and ARB air lockers are also expensive.

I may take off the now crushed step bars, although they do protect the plastic above them.

This is in Forest Grove. I had to look. I am curious what the hell those people did in their front yard that required the fire department, but I still do not know.

This is what northwest Oregon looks like except for 5 minutes in July.

Working on my new business cards, to be plastic, which are now here in reality on the couter and in my wallet.

My dad’s birthday was on a Saturday but we both had to work because we are trying hard to get bills paid so he came over on Sunday. He and my dad came to my house and we went to eat at McMenamin’s Grand Lodge right down the street in Forest Grove. He got to watch golf, relax, and eat where he wanted. It was a nice day. Thanks much to them for coming.

Why so many pictures of the cat, Steve? Because I can do whatever I want. My site, my camera, my friend. When I get in a good mood I take pictures of everything, as can be seen here. It is harmless. There is no film to buy.

I like this photo of my glass globe.

Check out the unique and delicious cake my brother got for my dad. It was unusual. It was very light inside; foamy. You didn’t really have to chew it. It would just melt in your mouth. Besides that, it was lovely to look at.

Netflix has turned out to be a good deal. That is the envelope a Blu-ray movie came in, but I use the instant streaming service much more. I have an episode of “The Seeker” playing behind me here at work right now.

Yes, yes, I KNOW I haven’t paid my bill. Geez. Do they have to send the same bill 5 times? I finally did pay that $815 electricity bill by the way. I have learned my lesson and use much less heat now. The bills after that are back to about half of that.

Rocks in the mail! Hooray. I like minerals. I am going to start a small collection. These specimens are very inexpensive, which is good since I hardly make any money right now.

amethyst druze

natural vein copper

“Float” copper that has been drug along by a glacier

Walmart progress down the street. I have newer photos than these which I will post soon.

This is the roof at my business. I am pretty excited I have roof access from inside. I went up there to sit in the sun for a few minutes one morning. When I got up there I found a drain clogged again and a lot of standing water. It took a lot of work to unclog it. That water smelled awful and rotten. The photos are after the water mostly drained.

The two new HVAC units the owner had installed. Very expensive. It will be great to have AC all summer though. The installation was a total fiasco. The first guy turned out to be a lying criminal and screwed the owner over. He has since been punished severely by the state, county, and city.

These photos make me smile because I know how it felt right then. I had about 10 minutes before opening the store. I lay on the rof, took my shirt off, and enjoyed the first minutes of warm sun this year. That watch I like. It is the cheapest watch I have had in forever, but I like the funky retro/modern style. When you hold the watch up to look at the time, it automatically light up for 2.5 seconds. Sweet.

I am eating healthy foods for breakfast. I have a lot of bananas too.

 

Time once again to clean my aquarium and work on the filter.

That was the earliest I had been up in ages. It has been so long I do not remember why. I just know I had never seen that view from my kitchen window before.

Work, with spot metering.

Upgrading the firmware in my Garmin 310XT running watch. It connects wirelessly.

Spring coming early to the hedge in front of my business, and a chair to sit in the sun for a minute. It didn’t work out. Customers kept coming. I got some minutes in though.

A couple of very nice things I have bought and sold recently.

And then there is this. What the hell? you are probably asking. It is a collectible nutcracker from Steinbach. It is the most odd thing I have taken in for a while. The things people collect.

Since I cannot afford bodywork, I spent the $19.95 for the Dink King to minimize a jack induced dent on my truck. It worked pretty respectably after the first dozen tries or so that did not. The glue kept not sticking very well. You are supposed to leave it on for 5 minutes. No way. Once I started leaving it on forever, it worked much better. I don’t have photos of the after, as I got tired of taking pictures after the first many failures. It was worth the $20. RIP, Billy.

Photos around the shop here in Cornelius. Cornelius, wasn’t that part of the name of the guy who owned the factory in Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood? I’ll be right back… Nope, he was Cornflake S. Pecially

Hello.

The loaded shotgun is mostly a visual deterrent. I always have a gun closer than that one.

One of the two kinds of very small snails that have infiltrated my aquarium.

More proof that I am indeed using my stove. I know it is difficult to believe. That food looks pretty hearty for not having any meat in it doesn’t it? Since then I have started adding more ingredients such as olives and peppers.

On a sunny Sunday a while back, the only one of the year so far I think, I went for my first run of the year after being sick for months. I was very excited and relieved. First though I went to my gum and lifted weights, also for the first time in way too long.

After the gym I drove over to Fernhill Wetlands to go running. I was ready. I got out and… I was not ready. It was freezing there because of the wind. I HATE running while cold so I went somewhere else.

I drove over to the tiny “town” of Dilley and parked at the elementary school. Ah, it was much better. Less frigid wind. I only ran 4 miles, but I was so glad to get started. I also wore my new GPS watch for the first time. I love it.

Me after my first run in too long.

These are some of the things I saw along my run.

That is not a hotdog. It is also not very good. At all. Some meat-like foods are good, some are not.

One of the three books I am reading right now, not counting non-fiction.

Another little box in my mailbox! I love having things arrive that are not bills and warnings. The blue is azurite and the green malachite. I got it very cheap.

I have people who bring in huge piles of “silver” jewelry. The vast majority is not actually MADE of silver, just silver color. I have to test and sort it all out, often hundreds of pieces at a time. It takes forever and tons of concentration. That paper is the result of using acid to test a couple hundred items in a row. Recently I spilled the little bottle of acid on a paper towel and it started smoking and nearly burst in to flames instantly. It also stained my fingers for days. Be careful with silver test solution. Seriously.

I wish ink were not so expensive. I go through a lot at work. At least I don’t have the really big expense of the many expensive cartridges for my big photo printer now that it is dead. I hope I can replace it eventually. The USB SD reader is because my laptop at home has a dead card reader. It, like the computers here at work are getting very old, but I cannot afford to replace them until this recession ends. Thanks to people electing Obama, that may be a while.

And then there were the shoes. I was very excited about the Nike Free running shoes. Unfortunately my forefoot is much too wide for them and they started tearing the skin off my toes within seconds of my first run with them. I had to take them off and run the rest in just socks. I was on the treadmill at the gym. Running with no shoes tore of my calf muscles so much, they are still recovering a week and half later. I sent the shoes back and traded them for some extremely ugly 30 years out of style New Balance 833s that are shaped like my rare foot, with narrow heel, high arch, and wide forefoot. They are great and a huge relief for my poor forefoot and little toes.

I spend a lot of time looking things up and pricing them. After cleaning of course. Even every single DVD and game gets thoroughly wiped clean. My business is different than almost any used place. Everything is nice and clean and a step above. I take much pride in it, even if most of the people who see it don’t care. Good people do and they are the only ones I care about anyway.

I love watching clueless people drive. There is a ton of it in Cornelius because there are tons of immigrants/illegal aliens and not many people drive in Mexico. They hop in some way-too-big-for-them vehicle and go at it with no idea what they are doing. It is amusing when people run into metal poles and things, but not so funny when they are driving ridiculously slowly in front of me due to fear of being pulled over and deported. Unfortunately this lady missed the pole. Barely. I was disappointed.

That is not bacon. It is also not really edible. I try all sorts of different things. Some are good, that fake bacon was not. Horrible. Like flavored styrofoam.

More stuff in a pan again. That time with olives and tiny pieces of habanero pepper added. I love that food. Mmmm. Some people think if you don’t eat meat you must be nibbling on some pathetic salad. Not the case.

I was excited to get the heart rate strap for my gps watch. I had never used one before. It is very interesting to learn about resting heart rate, maximum heart rate, heart rate reserve, and recovery rate. Still not sure what my peak heart rate is, I have seen it at 102. I will tell you my resting heart rate when I get back in shape and it is lower. The old strap from Garmin was very thick and looked extremely uncomfortable. This new one is much lighter and mostly elastic, a big improvement. It is too expensive locally at REI etc. I found it at some obscure place online for almost half price.

Yay! More interesting and colorful mineral samples. I got all 3 of these from the same e-bay seller with cheap combined shipping. Another piece of azurite/malachite, small this time, quartz, and the red is vanadinite.

I bought the ab-wheel for the reasonab;e price of $9.95. I keep it here by the counter now. The first couple of times I used it were rough, but I will get back together. Fall and winter were not kind to me. I will do everything I can to come back. Can you believe that wheel came with ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS? Come ON.

I found the makeup on the dog to be disturbing. You can’t really tell in this photo, but it had its face painted or something, with bid red circles around its eyes. People are strange.

And there is my new Garmin Forerunner 310XT GPS watch. Yes, it only comes in orange. It took me half a year to get and I had to sell my older GPS watch and a few of my favorite regular watches I worked hard for to pay for it, but it is worth it. The watch is the only running/training partner I ever have. The battery life is much better than my old one so I can use it for hiking too. It connects wirelessly to my computer and uploads to Garmin Connect where I can view my workouts on maps and with speed, elevation, pace, heart rate, data. It is pretty darn cool. You can also view activities of other people. http://connect.garmin.com/ Once I get back in better shape I will start sharing some examples.

The spot where I spend much of my life and where I am typing this right now.

While churches disturb and sadden me greatly as havens for intellectual weakness and fear, they do sometimes make for nice photos. This is one of the 47 churches in my neighborhood. I took a picture of it while driving aimlessly on Sunday morning, trying to figure out where people like me can meet people and be a part of something too. I still don’t know.