At my daughter's college graduation, the speaker was Senator Angus King of Maine. Yeah, his son (or grandson?) was graduating. For a laugh, he described "politics" as a compound word, with poly meaning many an tics being a lot of crawling insects.
The graduating biologists were upset, and even discussed the matter with him later. Tics have eight legs, and are therefore not insects, but arachnids.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
An octopus has 8 legs. Does that mean it is an arachnid?
Oh, they’re arms, not legs?
Never mind.
Good evening Diners. Janie. Give everyone a drink of their choice and put it on my tab.
Not feeling 100% at the moment. I'll have a Pusser's Rum.
IMG_4996 by David Harrison, on Flickr
Hopefully it will 'pull me round'. If not I'll enjoy the rum.
Had the youngest grandson visiting for a couple of days. He was really pleased at running trains by himself.
IMG_2464 by David Harrison, on Flickr
Chicken and Mushroom Casserole is on the menu.
Those missing from the Diner a speedy return (if you wish).
Thoughts & Peace to All who Require
David
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought
maxman An octopus has 8 legs. Does that mean it is an arachnid? Oh, they’re arms, not legs? Never mind.
The Beatles had eight legs....
MisterBeasley maxman An octopus has 8 legs. Does that mean it is an arachnid? Oh, they’re arms, not legs? Never mind. The Beatles had eight legs....
So are Beatles insects or arachnids?
maxmanOh, they’re arms, not legs?
An octopus has zero arms and zero legs, but does have eight tentacles.
An octopus is a cephalopod.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Good Afternoon,
Another cool day here, only 35F.
Got the bivalent booster yesterday. Was very tired afterwards but no other side effects.
Think I'll run the CP Hudson. It hasn't been out of its display case since last winter. Still have never seen another like mine on brass listings. Guess it was a very limited run back in 2002.
Supposed to be about 55F for a few days starting tomorrow so will do a blitz to get the yard ready for winter. Quite a few pots to empty and the pond to pump out.
Nothing else new.
CN Charlie
Nice things are happening down here.
My trees are making remarkable recoveries. My Crape Myrtels, that were really rocked by the storm, are completely covered with new leaves, and are growing like crazy.
-Photograph by Kevin Parson
The Sea Grapes have new, green, big leaves coming in, but they have a bit more work to do the fill in like they are supposed to.
The Royal Poinciana, that was reduces to a bare trunk and a few broken branches is even beginning to show life and growth again.
The Mohagany Trees that are in the parking lot at work are all covered with bright green new leaves. All the damage is on the way to being fully concealed.
So... you can all have your fall colors, but down here we are being treated to a second spring, and some real good signs of things getting back to normal.
SeeYou190we are being treated to a second spring, and some real good signs of things getting back to normal.
That's good to see Kevin!
Our fall colours are pretty much done now. They stayed for longer than usual because we had a couple of weeks of nice weather, but yesterday it was windy and rainy so most of the leaves have come down. The Locust tree in our backyard is still changing. It's always the last to drop its leaves, The Service Berry is still a bright peach colour so we will still have a few days to enjoy the fall entertainment.
Cheers!!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
maxmanSo are Beatles insects or arachnids?
Neither! They are (were) human beings! They had eight legs (occasionally 10). Beetles are insects. They have six legs. Arachnids have eight legs. Beatles have (had) eight eyes (occassionally 10). Arachnids can have eight eyes, or four, or six. Depends on the flavour.
Chloe, I need coffee!
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The insurance adjuster is here looking at the house. I finally made it to the top of the list.
Did you hear about the rancher? He was paid in kine.
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
David: Great that you have a grandson that likes to run trains. Hope you enjoyed your day with him.
If I am ever lucky enough to have grandkids, I hope one of them will like trains.
Tin Can II David: Great that you have a grandson that likes to run trains. Hope you enjoyed your day with him. If I am ever lucky enough to have grandkids, I hope one of them will like trains.
Good morning everyone. Just black coffee today, Flo.
We were all excited about the weather report last night -- rain predicted for today. Well .... we got rain. About 20 or 30 drops on the sidewalk. I guess in Death Valley that would be called rain, but it wasn't quite what we wanted.
up831We were down in Oklahoma and came back through my old stomping grounds in Kansas. Unfortunately, we did not go through Salina to the Cozy Inn. Anyway, there were trees with color, but the colors were subdued. As we came north into Illinois, the colors were much more vibrant.
Jim, the trees in our area are mainly Ash, Silver Maple, and Cottonwood. All of them just turn brown and drop their leaves. However, over the past 30 years, quite a few people in my little town have planted Sugar Maples, which produce more fall colors. This is one of my Maples. For some reason the other Maple did not turn color. They are the same kind of Maple, they are planted about 30 feet apart, and one turned orange and one turned brown. Notice the stack of shingles in the neighbor's driveway. His will be the last house on our cul-de-sac to have the roof done.
SeeYou190So... you can all have your fall colors, but down here we are being treated to a second spring, and some real good signs of things getting back to normal.
That's great news, Kevin. It's amazing how nature recovers, often faster than we think. I know that New Orleans had the same thing happen after Katrina.
Tin Can IIDavid: Great that you have a grandson that likes to run trains. Hope you enjoyed your day with him. If I am ever lucky enough to have grandkids, I hope one of them will like trains.
David, I agree. You've done a good job of getting them interested. My grandchildren like to see the trains, but after about five minutes, they are off to do other stuff.
My wife has a project for me to work on today. That means my layout bridge will still be sitting on the workbench unfinished. Retirement life has been very busy lately.
I hope everyone mentioned and unmentioned has a great Thursday.
Lion, that cow is eventually going to need to be milked. I've done my share of that, so I hope you can take care of that chore.
York1 John
I asked my doctor if I gave up delicious food and all alcohol, would I live longer? He said, "No, but it will seem longer."
York1 This is one of my Maples. For some reason the other Maple did not turn color. They are the same kind of Maple, they are planted about 30 feet apart, and one turned orange and one turned brown.
There are a lot of Maple Trees planted down here. They really grow fast and tall in our climate.
However, they stay green and keep their leaves year round. They also do not produce any syrup. I have been told that Maple Trees will not propagate on their own in South Florida, so are in no way invasive.
Oldest grandson is here for a couple of days.
NorthBrit Burger, Wedges, Cheese, Onion Rings and Mushrooms.
Wyndham Farm tonight.
IMG_2465 (2) by David Harrison, on Flickr
I am getting ready to start refinishing the butcher block maple top of the model building workbench.
I finished it with Minwax Polyshades about 20 years ago. The orange-ish color I chose does notwork for me anymore. I am going to try and get a more natural finish on it this time.
Instructional videos seem to suggest that Kleen-Strip is the best option for this task.
Flat car load idea?
Crunch Time by Bob Anderson, on Flickr
One of the reasons stated for getting rid of cabooses was crew safety. There's some validity to that end.
I hope everyone is doing well —
Cheers, Ed
The refinish of the model building desk has begun...
-All photographs by Kevin Parson
My model building desk was purchased in the early 2000s, and has always been the most expensive piece of furniture we own.
Countless hours were spent at this desk with the girls doing homework, painting models, and just talking.
When I bought this desk, I opted for the heavy Maple butcher block top. I finished it with MinWax polyshade, which looked terrible, and the orange color I chose was just awful. I have lived with this poor choice for 20 years.
It also showed plenty of wear from decades of use.
I bought some Kleen Strip paint remover, watched a few how-to videos, and got to work.
The stripper just brushed on, then had to sit for 25 minutes to loosen up the polyurethane finish.
I was so pleased to find that the original Maple beauty was still underneath all that mess, and it was in very good shape.
Once all the polyurethane was removed, I used the after-strip cleaner to tidy up the surface.
With the job done, I am just amazed. It only took three hours to get it all stripped.
Tomorrow I will do some sanding and make it ready to stain properly.
SeeYou190Tomorrow I will do some sanding and make it ready to stain properly.
Looks good Kevin! That stripper works quite well.
What are you going to finish the desk with? When I refinished our dining room table last spring I used Polyurethane Spar Varnish and it has turned out to be a really durable surface.
One mistake I made was to follow the instructions on the Minwax stain that I used before applying the Spar Varnish. The can said to apply the stain across the grain instead of with it. That resulted in the stain leaving slightly darker lines across the table. They are barely noticable but I can see them and they bug the heck out of me. The problem was also probably partially my fault because I didn't use a sealer after finishing the sanding.
I am surprised that Minwax suggests staining against the grain. The majority of advice is to stain with the grain.
Rich
Alton Junction
Good morning all. A large coffee please, Flo.
Anybody over the pond want any rain. We are fed up with it here. Every day and night it has rained since Ian.
All the Grandchildren are here over the weekend. Two birthday parties to put together.
richhotrainI am surprised that Minwax suggests staining against the grain. The majority of advice is to stain with the grain.
Hi Rich,
I thought that going with the grain was the right way to do it, but I read the instructions several times and they said to go across the grain (or at least, that's what I thought they said).
In any case, the problem isn't serious enough to worry about.
hon30critter richhotrain I am surprised that Minwax suggests staining against the grain. The majority of advice is to stain with the grain. Hi Rich, I thought that going with the grain was the right way to do it, but I read the instructions several times and they said to go across the grain (or at least, that's what I thought they said).
richhotrain I am surprised that Minwax suggests staining against the grain. The majority of advice is to stain with the grain.
We just refinished our dining room tables.All 10 of them. They look very much like your work table, they were made from retired bowling alleys and so are very heavy. We took the tops off of them and set them on the floor, the the floor refinishing guy came and refinished them. They look great now.
richhotrainDave, I initially accepted your assertion that Minwax specifies staining against the grain. But, then I went to the Minwax website, and it specified staining with the grain. I wonder if your stain was a special formulation that requires staining against the grain. Can you recheck and let us know?
It wasn't Minwax that I used. Sorry. It was Varathane Classic Penetrating Wood Stain. Here are the instructions regarding application. Click on the photo to get a better view:
Note that it does say to wipe the stain with the grain before it dries, which I did. The problem was that the pigment had already left the streaks across the grain on the freshly sanded pine.
I think my mistake was to not use a conditioner.
I'll know better next time.
Our tables, finished by the floor guy, used the same finishes he uses on the floors, and this turned out very well.
hon30critter richhotrain Dave, I initially accepted your assertion that Minwax specifies staining against the grain. But, then I went to the Minwax website, and it specified staining with the grain. I wonder if your stain was a special formulation that requires staining against the grain. Can you recheck and let us know? Hi Rich, It wasn't Minwax that I used. Sorry. It was Varathane Classic Penetrating Wood Stain. Here are the instructions regarding application. Click on the photo to get a better view: Note that it does say to wipe the stain with the grain before it dries, which I did. The problem was that the pigment had already left the streaks across the grain on the freshly sanded pine. I think my mistake was to not use a conditioner. I'll know better next time. Cheers!! Dave
richhotrain Dave, I initially accepted your assertion that Minwax specifies staining against the grain. But, then I went to the Minwax website, and it specified staining with the grain. I wonder if your stain was a special formulation that requires staining against the grain. Can you recheck and let us know?