It's hard to believe - but fall is here. The calendar says so and so do the leaves on the trees. Although we had a pretty warm summer-like day yesterday and today looks to be pretty nice as well - the highs are getting more into the 60s and the lows are creeping down into the low 40s at night. We actually had to turn on the furnace last week! I really love the fall here in New England. Crisp mornings and evenings, low humidity, and comfortable afternoons!! Yesserie - quite nice.
Well - I finally finished all my winterization maintenance on Winne and got her re-parked in storage yesterday. I'll continue to exercise the engine and generator monthly to keep them happy and to charge the batteries a bit. I don't mind if Winne gets a little more rest - but I don't want her too used to it. She needs to be ready to roll at a moments notice come late December!
Taylor Anne is getting older and bigger by the day. Unfortunately I don't have any recent pictures to post. I'll work on fixing that this week. Stacy stopped by for a few hours a couple of times this last week and Peggy made the drive to Richmond one day since she was having Taylor withdrawal. But Taylor and family seem to be doing fine.
I've pretty much finished my work on the '68 Mustang but not quite. Once we got her running good and re-checked the carburetor we found lots of "junk" getting back into the fuel system from the gas tank. We removed the gas tank to see how it looked inside - and it was REALLY bad. So after discussion with the owner it was decided that we would replace the gas tank, fuel lines and fuel pump. It really won't be that expensive and it will make the car much more reliable. So I have that project to look forward to later this week after the parts arrive. In the meantime - the Mustang's owner has another project that he wants me to work on. This one is a 1934 Ford Pickup Streetrod with a Chevy engine that needs a tuneup. So it looks like I will be playing auto mechanic this week. The owner of these vehicles is a lobster fisherman from nearby Harpswell. As partial payment for my friend and my work on the Mustang - he brought us 5 each freshly caught lobsters yesterday! This guy must know me pretty well already. Mikee Will Work For Food! (Especially Seafood).
Others that know me well understand that I am a Chevy guy - and Chevy guys just don't care for Fords much. At least this Ford is Chevy powered. It's like a sign I saw on another Streetrod said:
"Built Ford Tough - With Chevy Parts"
At least Peggy will know where to find me this week.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
More Musings of a Maineiac
My last few days have been mostly spent performing maintenance on Winne and continuing to work on that '68 Mustang project.
I finished up on Winne's wax job on Sunday and then moved on to working on some surface rust around the lower storage compartments. I started noticing this rust when Winne was only a couple of years old and have been trying to stop it by sanding and using rustoleum paint - but it keeps coming back. Based on what I have read and noticed on other similar Winnebagos - this is a common problem. This time I thought I would try a product called POR-15. Everything I have read about this stuff has been positive so I purchased a "starter kit" to give it a try. After using a wire brush to clean up the loose rust scale I cleaned the rusty spots with the supplied "marine cleaner," and then applied the "metal prep" solution. After rinsing off those solutions and letting everything dry I applied two coats of the black POR-15 paint. This stuff really dries fast and appears to be extremely hard. Only time will tell if the rust is stopped. We'll see how it looks next spring.
As I reported a few posts ago - I thought my work on the Mustang was complete last week. But alas it was not to be. Apparently the really old gas sitting in the carburetor had turned pretty much to varnish and the floats starting sticking - so a carburetor rebuild was in order. Yesterday I spent several hours disassembling the carburetor and cleaning all the parts - and yes - there was lots of varnish like deposits and crumbling gasket material floating around in there - yukky! Today the rebuild kit arrived so I spent several more hours putting everything back together with all the new innards and gaskets. Then came the moment of truth. After the carburetor was placed back on the engine and the engine was turned over a few times - she fired right up and ran pretty smooth - with no leaks! Gosh I love it when stuff works after I've torn them apart and put them back together again! I still have a few adjustments to make tomorrow - but so far so good.
Miss Peggy had jury duty again on Monday. Actually she had jury selection duty again - and once again she wasn't chosen. To be more accurate - no jury was selected at all when it appears that the defendant and the prosecution decided to settle "out of court." Word on the street is that once the defendant saw the looks of the prospective jurors he decided that a plea bargain was his best bet! Too bad - I think Peggy was looking forward to being a juror - she has always liked to watch all those lawyer shows.
So that's pretty much the way it is here on this 21st day of September 2011. Unemployment is up, the stock market is down, the president and democrats want to raise taxes, the republicans want to cut spending, and only two more days until that big satellite in space is supposed to fall to earth. Be sure and keep your eyes open and duck when necessary.
I finished up on Winne's wax job on Sunday and then moved on to working on some surface rust around the lower storage compartments. I started noticing this rust when Winne was only a couple of years old and have been trying to stop it by sanding and using rustoleum paint - but it keeps coming back. Based on what I have read and noticed on other similar Winnebagos - this is a common problem. This time I thought I would try a product called POR-15. Everything I have read about this stuff has been positive so I purchased a "starter kit" to give it a try. After using a wire brush to clean up the loose rust scale I cleaned the rusty spots with the supplied "marine cleaner," and then applied the "metal prep" solution. After rinsing off those solutions and letting everything dry I applied two coats of the black POR-15 paint. This stuff really dries fast and appears to be extremely hard. Only time will tell if the rust is stopped. We'll see how it looks next spring.
As I reported a few posts ago - I thought my work on the Mustang was complete last week. But alas it was not to be. Apparently the really old gas sitting in the carburetor had turned pretty much to varnish and the floats starting sticking - so a carburetor rebuild was in order. Yesterday I spent several hours disassembling the carburetor and cleaning all the parts - and yes - there was lots of varnish like deposits and crumbling gasket material floating around in there - yukky! Today the rebuild kit arrived so I spent several more hours putting everything back together with all the new innards and gaskets. Then came the moment of truth. After the carburetor was placed back on the engine and the engine was turned over a few times - she fired right up and ran pretty smooth - with no leaks! Gosh I love it when stuff works after I've torn them apart and put them back together again! I still have a few adjustments to make tomorrow - but so far so good.
Miss Peggy had jury duty again on Monday. Actually she had jury selection duty again - and once again she wasn't chosen. To be more accurate - no jury was selected at all when it appears that the defendant and the prosecution decided to settle "out of court." Word on the street is that once the defendant saw the looks of the prospective jurors he decided that a plea bargain was his best bet! Too bad - I think Peggy was looking forward to being a juror - she has always liked to watch all those lawyer shows.
So that's pretty much the way it is here on this 21st day of September 2011. Unemployment is up, the stock market is down, the president and democrats want to raise taxes, the republicans want to cut spending, and only two more days until that big satellite in space is supposed to fall to earth. Be sure and keep your eyes open and duck when necessary.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Kids, Grandkids, and a Birthday Girl
Happy Birthday to Peggy! Today is Peggy's special day and she had a great weekend to celebrate - complete with all three of her grandkids. Brian along with Alyssa and Emily drove up from Jerzee on Friday to spend about a day visit with us before heading back this morning. Their main reason for coming was to see Taylor - but we managed to sneek in some Grandma and Grandpa time with them as well.
We had the whole gang over for a BBQ and gab fest yesterday afternoon. There was burgers, dawgs, and chicken - along with gabbing and oohing and awwing with Taylor. It was great having all the kids (except for Nicky who had some work related training and couldn't make it), grandkids, and added kid (Bailey) for a visit. As you would expect - it got a little noisy - but I think we all had fun.
Today we'll be getting back to normal. A little church, a little football, maybe a NASCAR race, a little waxing on Winne, perhaps a nap ... and of course I'll take my bride out to dinner on her special day.
Just another great Autumn (late summer for the rest of you) day in Maine.
We had the whole gang over for a BBQ and gab fest yesterday afternoon. There was burgers, dawgs, and chicken - along with gabbing and oohing and awwing with Taylor. It was great having all the kids (except for Nicky who had some work related training and couldn't make it), grandkids, and added kid (Bailey) for a visit. As you would expect - it got a little noisy - but I think we all had fun.
Today we'll be getting back to normal. A little church, a little football, maybe a NASCAR race, a little waxing on Winne, perhaps a nap ... and of course I'll take my bride out to dinner on her special day.
Just another great Autumn (late summer for the rest of you) day in Maine.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
'Bama BBQ in Brunswick (Maine)!?
After two days of rubbing and buffing - half of Winne is waxed. I don't quite understand how - but somehow Winne's outside has gotten larger while the inside space has remained the same! It probably isn't so - but it sure seems that way when waxing and buffing all day! Then maybe ... I'm just getting tireder and sorer easier (I doubt either of those were real words but you get the picture).
After getting cleaned up from my Winne Waxing chore I thought I would read the on-line edition of our local newspaper to see what was happening out in the world. It didn't take long to find out that the world is pretty much just the same today as it was yesterday. Except for one article that just hit me as a sign of the times we live in!
It seems that a resident of the nearby small town of Richmond was the victim of a burglary last Friday night. Now that by itself isn't that odd - but it seems that the stolen items were 5 very large (reportedly 10 to 15 feet tall) marijuana plants that he was growing in his yard. You see a few years ago the good 'ol State of Maine passed a "medical" marijuana law and that law made it legal for folks to cultivate plants in this quantity for their own "medicinal" use - as long as they received a permit to do so. Well - it seems this fella was a licensed grower so here we have a situation where the local cops who spend countless hours dealing with illegal possession of marijuana - including illegal growing of marijuana - must now try to find this poor fella's missing marijuana and return it to him. I know I'm old fashioned and too conservative for my own good - but something just doesn't seem right with this story!
So after pondering that article for a bit while drinking my perfectly legal, very dry, and slightly dirty martini - I went on to read about a couple who have just opened a southern style BBQ joint in an empty store in Brunswick. Now I'm pretty partial to good BBQ so I read on with more interest. It seems this couple are from Foley, Alabama, used to have a BBQ restaurant and catering business down there, and decided to try their hand at selling southern BBQ in Lobsterland.
Well how about that! As all ya'll may know - Peggy and I have tended to spend several weeks each of the past few winters down in Lower Alabama - and really enjoy some of the local food down there. So when I mentioned the new place to Peggy - she took the opportunity to not make dinner and suggested we go try the new place - "Sista's BBQ." Peggy tried the Sista's Sandwich consisting of pulled pork with cole slaw on top in between two corn bread pancakes and a side of BBQ Beans. I went with the "Sampler" to try it all - BBQ ribs, chicken, pulled pork, and some sliced beef with potato salad and beans on the side. Yum-Yum - I think we may have found a new favorite BBQ place - right here in Brunswick, Maine! It was all really good - but I thought the BBQ beans, potato salad, and ribs were especially good!
When I placed the order I asked the fellow taking the order (I think it was Sista's brother) if they were going to be open all winter - he thought for a minute and then replied that it depended on how many folks wanted BBQ in the winter in Maine. I replied that I thought that made sense - but my plan was to head south that time of year and get southern BBQ - in the south! It will be interesting to see how they make out with their business. As long as we are here - I plan on helping them out frequently.
After getting cleaned up from my Winne Waxing chore I thought I would read the on-line edition of our local newspaper to see what was happening out in the world. It didn't take long to find out that the world is pretty much just the same today as it was yesterday. Except for one article that just hit me as a sign of the times we live in!
It seems that a resident of the nearby small town of Richmond was the victim of a burglary last Friday night. Now that by itself isn't that odd - but it seems that the stolen items were 5 very large (reportedly 10 to 15 feet tall) marijuana plants that he was growing in his yard. You see a few years ago the good 'ol State of Maine passed a "medical" marijuana law and that law made it legal for folks to cultivate plants in this quantity for their own "medicinal" use - as long as they received a permit to do so. Well - it seems this fella was a licensed grower so here we have a situation where the local cops who spend countless hours dealing with illegal possession of marijuana - including illegal growing of marijuana - must now try to find this poor fella's missing marijuana and return it to him. I know I'm old fashioned and too conservative for my own good - but something just doesn't seem right with this story!
So after pondering that article for a bit while drinking my perfectly legal, very dry, and slightly dirty martini - I went on to read about a couple who have just opened a southern style BBQ joint in an empty store in Brunswick. Now I'm pretty partial to good BBQ so I read on with more interest. It seems this couple are from Foley, Alabama, used to have a BBQ restaurant and catering business down there, and decided to try their hand at selling southern BBQ in Lobsterland.
Well how about that! As all ya'll may know - Peggy and I have tended to spend several weeks each of the past few winters down in Lower Alabama - and really enjoy some of the local food down there. So when I mentioned the new place to Peggy - she took the opportunity to not make dinner and suggested we go try the new place - "Sista's BBQ." Peggy tried the Sista's Sandwich consisting of pulled pork with cole slaw on top in between two corn bread pancakes and a side of BBQ Beans. I went with the "Sampler" to try it all - BBQ ribs, chicken, pulled pork, and some sliced beef with potato salad and beans on the side. Yum-Yum - I think we may have found a new favorite BBQ place - right here in Brunswick, Maine! It was all really good - but I thought the BBQ beans, potato salad, and ribs were especially good!
When I placed the order I asked the fellow taking the order (I think it was Sista's brother) if they were going to be open all winter - he thought for a minute and then replied that it depended on how many folks wanted BBQ in the winter in Maine. I replied that I thought that made sense - but my plan was to head south that time of year and get southern BBQ - in the south! It will be interesting to see how they make out with their business. As long as we are here - I plan on helping them out frequently.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Winne Wakes Up
Yesterday I went and woke up Winne. She had been sleeping over in her storage location for almost 3 months and was getting pretty dirty from just sitting there. She had been sleeping - but seemed ready to wake up and stretch her legs a little. Once her chassis battery was hooked up and the ignition key was turned she started right up and was ready to roll the whole mile over to our house. Now that she is in the driveway I'm sure all the neighbors will be wondering when we're leaving again and where were headed this time. They will be disappointed when they find out that it's just pre-winter maintenance time. Oh yeah - and Winne sure did like getting plugged in to her new 30 Amp electrical supply on the side of the house - much better than that 15 Amp supply through the 50 foot extension cord she had to endure in the past. We can even exercise the heat pump system with the 30 Amp supply!
So it is time to clean and wax Winne and prepare her for the colder weather that will be approaching. My plan is to take care of all the stuff that needs doing while the weather is still pretty nice so that all we have to do is load some clothes and food and hit the road when the time comes. Let's hope that I don't have to include shoveling her out and removing snow/ice from her roof to that pre-travel list!
So it is time to clean and wax Winne and prepare her for the colder weather that will be approaching. My plan is to take care of all the stuff that needs doing while the weather is still pretty nice so that all we have to do is load some clothes and food and hit the road when the time comes. Let's hope that I don't have to include shoveling her out and removing snow/ice from her roof to that pre-travel list!
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Busy Week - Topsham, Maine
How did it manage to get to Saturday already? This has been a busy week!
We spent a good deal of Monday and Tuesday at the hospital visiting with Stacy and Taylor - so that explains a couple of days. Then there was the trip to Scarborough on Wednesday to see the financial advisor guy - followed by another trip to the hospital to see Stacy and Taylor get discharged.
I did manage to get part of the Vue waxed somewhere in between the hospital visits and I spent several hours over the past couple of days finishing up my work on the '68 Mustang engine. I was successful in getting the engine running and tuned up pretty well - so that project is behind me. But it appears that my friend that "found" the Mustang project has found another project for me - a 1940 Ford Streetrod that has some engine problems. I may be starting a second career as an "antique engine restoration specialist!" But if I keep this up - when am I going to find time for all my projects? Oh well - it keeps me off the streets and Peggy knows where to find me!
Speaking of Peggy - she got to report for jury duty yesterday - her first time. She wasn't chosen for a specific jury yesterday - but she will get additional opportunities later in the month.
So that's pretty much the way it is here in the northeast corner of New England. The leaves are starting to show a little color as the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting cooler. It won't be long now and the splendor of fall will be fully upon us. That will be closely followed by me complaining about having to rake those pretty red, orange, and yellow leaves!
At least I won't be complaining about all the political election signs. On second thought - maybe another election would be a really good thing.
We spent a good deal of Monday and Tuesday at the hospital visiting with Stacy and Taylor - so that explains a couple of days. Then there was the trip to Scarborough on Wednesday to see the financial advisor guy - followed by another trip to the hospital to see Stacy and Taylor get discharged.
I did manage to get part of the Vue waxed somewhere in between the hospital visits and I spent several hours over the past couple of days finishing up my work on the '68 Mustang engine. I was successful in getting the engine running and tuned up pretty well - so that project is behind me. But it appears that my friend that "found" the Mustang project has found another project for me - a 1940 Ford Streetrod that has some engine problems. I may be starting a second career as an "antique engine restoration specialist!" But if I keep this up - when am I going to find time for all my projects? Oh well - it keeps me off the streets and Peggy knows where to find me!
Speaking of Peggy - she got to report for jury duty yesterday - her first time. She wasn't chosen for a specific jury yesterday - but she will get additional opportunities later in the month.
So that's pretty much the way it is here in the northeast corner of New England. The leaves are starting to show a little color as the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting cooler. It won't be long now and the splendor of fall will be fully upon us. That will be closely followed by me complaining about having to rake those pretty red, orange, and yellow leaves!
At least I won't be complaining about all the political election signs. On second thought - maybe another election would be a really good thing.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Welcome Taylor Anne
Well - that wasn't what we had planned for today!
We got a call from Stacy last night around 10 PM informing us that "her water had broken" and she had been admitted to the local hospital to deliver "Baby J." Since this was about 4 weeks earlier that the "due date" - we were surprised - to say the least! Of course Peggy was ready to jump in the car and head right over - but we chilled out a bit and reminded ourselves that Stacy and Kaj started this baby project - and they would do just fine in continuing this portion of the job! But needless to say - sleep didn't come too easy last night and it didn't take long at all to answer the phone call from Stacy around 4:30 AM informing us that our new grand daughter had arrived around 3:44 AM - 5 pounds and 10 ounces - 18 inches long - and that mom and baby were doing fine! Of course sleep didn't come at all after that so we got up - played on computers for a bit - and then headed out for our first visit around 7:00 AM - but our first stop was at the local WalMart to pick up a Teddy Bear. It's kind of a Grandpa Tradition that needed to be kept in place!
We made it to the hospital around 8:00 AM and went right to the Maternity Ward where we got our first viewing of "Baby J" as we walked by the Nursery. Of course we knew her right away - she was the gorgeous one being tended to by the nurses! Then we visited awhile with proud parents Stacy and Kaj and found out that this little girl was to be named Taylor Anne Johansen. A beautiful name for a beautiful girl!
After a few hours of visiting we left for awhile before returning this afternoon for another visit. By this time Taylor was in the room with Stacy and Stacy was feeling (and looking) less tired from her ordeal.
So here are the first blog pictures of Taylor Anne - I'm sure there will be many more:
We got a call from Stacy last night around 10 PM informing us that "her water had broken" and she had been admitted to the local hospital to deliver "Baby J." Since this was about 4 weeks earlier that the "due date" - we were surprised - to say the least! Of course Peggy was ready to jump in the car and head right over - but we chilled out a bit and reminded ourselves that Stacy and Kaj started this baby project - and they would do just fine in continuing this portion of the job! But needless to say - sleep didn't come too easy last night and it didn't take long at all to answer the phone call from Stacy around 4:30 AM informing us that our new grand daughter had arrived around 3:44 AM - 5 pounds and 10 ounces - 18 inches long - and that mom and baby were doing fine! Of course sleep didn't come at all after that so we got up - played on computers for a bit - and then headed out for our first visit around 7:00 AM - but our first stop was at the local WalMart to pick up a Teddy Bear. It's kind of a Grandpa Tradition that needed to be kept in place!
We made it to the hospital around 8:00 AM and went right to the Maternity Ward where we got our first viewing of "Baby J" as we walked by the Nursery. Of course we knew her right away - she was the gorgeous one being tended to by the nurses! Then we visited awhile with proud parents Stacy and Kaj and found out that this little girl was to be named Taylor Anne Johansen. A beautiful name for a beautiful girl!
After a few hours of visiting we left for awhile before returning this afternoon for another visit. By this time Taylor was in the room with Stacy and Stacy was feeling (and looking) less tired from her ordeal.
So here are the first blog pictures of Taylor Anne - I'm sure there will be many more:
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Almost Autumn
Well -- we made it through Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene on Sunday without losing power or any other issues here at our house. Eric and Jen lost power for awhile and it was late morning on Monday before Stacy and Kaj's power was restored - but all-in-all not too bad. We did get a good deal of rain and some pretty good wind gusts but the only damage was a lot of dead-wood limbs from our two oak trees scattered over our lawn. Peggy and I spent a few hours on Monday picking up the tree debris and all is back to "normal" now.
With the storm behind us and pretty nice weather returning - I returned to my house painting chores and finished off the garage/breezeway area around the deck. All I have left to do is the rear of the house and the gable ends. I'm thinking these areas may wait for next year!
I was asked by a local friend to help him get a 1968 Mustang running after sitting - partially disassembled - for a few years. So that was my project for today. Nothing like trying to figure out what wire and vacuum line goes where - especially when when somebody else took things apart. Fortunately - engines were relatively simple back in those days so I think I have enough stuff put back together to get the engine running - but I couldn't get the starter working today - so I'll spend some time on that tomorrow.
After completing my antique auto reconstruction project - I think it will be time to clean and wax the more modern autos here at the Evringham household. After all - Autumn is rapidly approaching here in New England and it's time to start getting the auto fleet prepared for what will be following.
Then it will be the Winnebago's turn. It has been 7 or so months since Winne has been waxed and it is definitely time. Even though we don't plan on going anywhere in the short term - we need to get Winne ready to roll - just in case we figure out when our next trip will start - where we will go - and how long we'll be gone.
Although we have no firm plans, or even plans carved in putty, we are contemplating taking a winter trip again this year - leaving Maine right after Christmas - heading to Florida by way of New Jersey - maybe even a trip to see the Mouse - then over to Lower Alabama for awhile - then perhaps a trip to the "Hill Country" of Texas for a few weeks - then wandering home again. Our planning needs to deal with all the issues we dealt with during past winter trips like: We want to be home for the "Holidays" but we want to leave before winter really sets in. We want to be home around the 1st of April but some of us get nervous when thinking about being gone for 12-14 weeks.
And then there is the new grandchild. If we leave the end of December and don't return until April 1st - the baby will only be 2 months old when we leave and will be 5 months old when we return. We will have missed over half her life! So we have that issue to deal with as well.
The good news is that we have a few months to figure it all out. Until then - I'll just make sure Winne is ready to go when we are.
With the storm behind us and pretty nice weather returning - I returned to my house painting chores and finished off the garage/breezeway area around the deck. All I have left to do is the rear of the house and the gable ends. I'm thinking these areas may wait for next year!
I was asked by a local friend to help him get a 1968 Mustang running after sitting - partially disassembled - for a few years. So that was my project for today. Nothing like trying to figure out what wire and vacuum line goes where - especially when when somebody else took things apart. Fortunately - engines were relatively simple back in those days so I think I have enough stuff put back together to get the engine running - but I couldn't get the starter working today - so I'll spend some time on that tomorrow.
After completing my antique auto reconstruction project - I think it will be time to clean and wax the more modern autos here at the Evringham household. After all - Autumn is rapidly approaching here in New England and it's time to start getting the auto fleet prepared for what will be following.
Then it will be the Winnebago's turn. It has been 7 or so months since Winne has been waxed and it is definitely time. Even though we don't plan on going anywhere in the short term - we need to get Winne ready to roll - just in case we figure out when our next trip will start - where we will go - and how long we'll be gone.
Although we have no firm plans, or even plans carved in putty, we are contemplating taking a winter trip again this year - leaving Maine right after Christmas - heading to Florida by way of New Jersey - maybe even a trip to see the Mouse - then over to Lower Alabama for awhile - then perhaps a trip to the "Hill Country" of Texas for a few weeks - then wandering home again. Our planning needs to deal with all the issues we dealt with during past winter trips like: We want to be home for the "Holidays" but we want to leave before winter really sets in. We want to be home around the 1st of April but some of us get nervous when thinking about being gone for 12-14 weeks.
And then there is the new grandchild. If we leave the end of December and don't return until April 1st - the baby will only be 2 months old when we leave and will be 5 months old when we return. We will have missed over half her life! So we have that issue to deal with as well.
The good news is that we have a few months to figure it all out. Until then - I'll just make sure Winne is ready to go when we are.
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